December 5, 2012

Education Week, Vol. 32, Issue 13
College & Workforce Readiness News in Brief Test Consortium Drafts College-Ready Criteria
Twenty-five states have drafted an initial definition of what college readiness means, and descriptions of the skills and knowledge students must demonstrate toward that goal.
Catherine Gewertz, December 4, 2012
1 min read
School Climate & Safety Report Roundup Teenagers' Health
Both teenage boys and girls are engaging in muscle-enhancing behaviors far more than previously known, according to a study published online last month in the journal Pediatrics.
Bryan Toporek, December 4, 2012
1 min read
Special Education Report Roundup Students with Autism
A new study confirms that students with autism spectrum disorders tend to major in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics if they make it to college.
Nirvi Shah, December 4, 2012
1 min read
Assessment Report Roundup Analysis Finds Wide Variation in Effectiveness of L.A. Teachers
Los Angeles has an unusually wide spread in the relative effectiveness of its teachers, according to an analysis released last month by the Strategic Data Project, an initiative housed at the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University.
Stephen Sawchuk, December 4, 2012
1 min read
Recruitment & Retention Study: More Churn at the Top in Large Districts
A study finds that 71 percent of superintendents in California's biggest districts leave within three years.
Sarah D. Sparks, December 4, 2012
6 min read
Rituparna "Rita" Raichoudhuri, who is going through a one-year principal residency at Wells Academy High School in Chicago, monitors students as they head to class. Like a growing number of other aspiring principals across the country, Ms. Raichoudhuri is getting much of her training inside the kinds of schools where she is likely to end up working.
Rituparna "Rita" Raichoudhuri, who is going through a one-year principal residency at Wells Academy High School in Chicago, monitors students as they head to class. Like a growing number of other aspiring principals across the country, Ms. Raichoudhuri is getting much of her training inside the kinds of schools where she is likely to end up working.
Greg Ruffing for Education Week
School & District Management More Principals Learn the Job in Real Schools
Universities and districts are increasingly basing principal training in the schools where leaders will end up working.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, December 4, 2012
6 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Chris Whetzel
Federal Opinion Common-Core Momentum Is Still in Jeopardy
Raising student expectations could help smooth the tough road ahead for standards implementation, writes Rick Dalton.
Rick Dalton, December 4, 2012
4 min read
School Climate & Safety Letter to the Editor School Climate Series Could Have Gone Further
To the Editor:
Your recent four-part series on school climate and student behaviors offered practical strategies for schools and teachers ("Rethinking Discipline," Oct. 17 through Nov. 7, 2012). However, addressing critical issues in education has traditionally required identifying root causes when determining solutions—something which regrettably was nearly absent in the series. Focusing only on symptoms does not generate lasting resolutions.
December 3, 2012
1 min read
Education Funding Letter to the Editor 'Holistic Approach' Is Only Way to Fix Schools
To the Editor:
Here are Commentary authors Michael Greenstone and Adam Looney's recommendations for improving K-12 education: Look to charter schools for new approaches, start school later, institute after-school programs, and make sure each school has "great" teachers ("The Importance of Education: An Economics View," Nov. 7, 2012). Groundbreaking stuff, and we've seen it all before. What about addressing poverty? And the accompanying health issues, damaging home environments, and unsafe neighborhoods that more often than not come along with it?
December 3, 2012
1 min read
Assessment Letter to the Editor Student-Learning Data Are Crucial
To the Editor:
Alfie Kohn was right on point about lots of things in his Commentary "Schooling Beyond Measure" (Sept. 19, 2012).
December 3, 2012
1 min read
Equity & Diversity Letter to the Editor Teachers Can Help Prevent Discrimination
To the Editor:
The Commentary "Two Lives Diverged" by David Bamat (Oct. 10, 2012) brought back memories of Boonton (N.J.) High School, from which I graduated in 1966. At Boonton, we were separated into general, commercial, college, and scientific tracks. I chose the scientific track because of a lifelong interest in science (not realizing at the time that women would be discouraged from entering those fields).
December 3, 2012
1 min read
President Barack Obama poses for photographs with students after a campaign speech in September at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Young voters, along with Latinos, were among the constituencies that proved crucial to the president’s re-election. That support could help put issues such as college aid and immigration reform higher on the agenda.
President Barack Obama poses for photographs with students after a campaign speech in September at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Young voters, along with Latinos, were among the constituencies that proved crucial to the president’s re-election. That support could help put issues such as college aid and immigration reform higher on the agenda.
Marvin Joseph/Washington Post/Getty-File
Equity & Diversity Youth, Latino Vote May Mean Clout on Key Issues
College access and immigration are among the topics that may rise on the to-do list for the president and Congress.
Alyson Klein, December 3, 2012
7 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Illustration by Chris Whetzel
Standards Opinion Common Core vs. Common Sense
Schools should be redesigned to align with the needs of students in light of the new standards, Ronald A. Wolk writes.
Ronald A. Wolk, December 3, 2012
5 min read
While speaking only in Mandarin, teacher Li Jing Jing shows her kindergartners at J. Ralph McIlvaine Early Childhood Center in Delaware how to fold a paper turkey. Half the day the children are taught in Chinese and half the day in English.
While speaking only in Mandarin, teacher Li Jing Jing shows her kindergartners at J. Ralph McIlvaine Early Childhood Center in Delaware how to fold a paper turkey. Half the day the children are taught in Chinese and half the day in English.
Matt Roth for Education Week
School & District Management Elementary Pupils Immersed in Foreign Language
Delaware and Utah are funding foreign-language instruction at the elementary level in hopes of fostering achievement and economic growth.
Jamaal Abdul-Alim, November 30, 2012
8 min read
Standards Opinion Science Standards Require a Teacher-Learning Rethink
There are five principles to consider for supporting professional development for science educators, write Jean Moon, Sarah Michaels, and Brian J. Reiser.
Jean Moon, Sarah Michaels & Brian J. Reiser, November 30, 2012
6 min read
Education Funding Testing Group Scales Back Performance Items
The Smarter Balanced consortium will present only one performance task each in math and literacy, in addition to multiple-choice and other items.
Catherine Gewertz, November 29, 2012
6 min read
Assessment Standardized Testing Costs States $1.7 Billion a Year, Study Says
States spend, on average, $34 per student on assessment, according to a national study released by the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center on Education Policy.
Andrew Ujifusa, November 29, 2012
4 min read
Reading & Literacy Opinion Four Questions on Common Core and Reading Assessment
There are critical questions to address on technology and other issues in planning for reading assessment tied to the common-core standards, Breyette Lorntz writes.
Breyette Lorntz, November 29, 2012
4 min read
Teaching Profession Teachers' Contract Includes Peer Review
The pact approved in Newark, N.J., sets up a dual salary schedule and ensures teacher involvement in evaluations.
Stephen Sawchuk, November 28, 2012
3 min read
This 2010 file photo shows Saliyah Cruz as principal of West Philadelphia High School.
This 2010 file photo shows Saliyah Cruz as principal of West Philadelphia High School.
Harvey Finkle for the Public School Notebook
Assessment Philadelphia Principal Describes Fallout of Test-Score Inflation
When she took over as principal in 2010, Saliyah Cruz thought Communications Technology High—now involved in a state-led cheating investigation—was a high-perfoming school.
Benjamin Herold, November 28, 2012
8 min read
Jayla Martin, foreground, and Ashanti Baker solve math equations during their dance class at the Millwood Freshman Academy in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Jayla Martin, foreground, and Ashanti Baker solve math equations during their dance class at the Millwood Freshman Academy in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Shane Bevel for Education Week
School Choice & Charters A+ Schools Infuse Arts and Other 'Essentials'
The networks, soon to be in four states, are guided by such "essentials" as the arts, teacher collaboration, and experiential learning.
Erik W. Robelen, November 27, 2012
9 min read
Student Well-Being Opinion What Kind of Success Does 'Character' Predict?
It's not character or "grit" alone, but interest and motivation, as well, that propel student success, Joan Goodman writes.
Joan F. Goodman, November 27, 2012
6 min read
Fourth grade teacher Andrea Coulter, and her student-teacher, Kelsey Frost, background, instruct students using a co-teaching method at Clearview Elementary School in Clear Lake, Minn.
Fourth grade teacher Andrea Coulter, and her student-teacher, Kelsey Frost, background, instruct students using a co-teaching method at Clearview Elementary School in Clear Lake, Minn.
Jenn Ackerman for Education Week
Student Well-Being Better Teacher-Candidate Mentoring Targeted
To improve the student-teaching experience, teacher education programs are taking more care in picking and guiding "cooperating" teachers.
Stephen Sawchuk, November 26, 2012
10 min read
Equity & Diversity Study: Housing Aid No Path to Better Schooling
The four largest federal programs to house families in poverty do not help parents get their children into higher-quality schools, according to the Poverty and Race Action Council.
Sarah D. Sparks, November 16, 2012
4 min read
School & District Management Charters' District Enrollment Shares Rising, Report Finds
Las Vegas, Tampa, and Dallas showed the fastest growth among districts where charter enrollment tops 10 percent, a study says.
Andrew Ujifusa, November 14, 2012
3 min read