May 8, 2013

Education Week, Vol. 32, Issue 30
Families & the Community News in Brief 'Parent Trigger' Plan Falls Short Again in Fla.
For the second year in a row, a tie vote in the Florida Senate has meant defeat for a proposal to allow a "parent trigger" option in the state after such legislation passed the state House of Representatives.
Andrew Ujifusa, May 7, 2013
1 min read
Education Funding News in Brief Emergency Manager Exiting Detroit District
Roy Roberts, the emergency manager of the 50,000-student Detroit public school system, will retire on May 16.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, May 7, 2013
1 min read
Teaching Profession Letter to the Editor ExcelinEd: Critics Make False 'Leaps of Logic'
To the Editor:
The article "Education Industry Players Exert Public-Policy Influence" (Industry & Innovation Special Report, April 24, 2013) references allegations made against the Foundation for Excellence in Education (ExcelinEd) by the group In the Public Interest.
May 7, 2013
1 min read
Assessment Letter to the Editor Atlanta Cheating Essay Contains 'Empty Claims'
To the Editor:
Michael J. Feuer's Commentary on the Atlanta cheating scandal contains his own set of empty claims in order to protect the use of standardized testing. Some examples:
May 7, 2013
1 min read
School & District Management Letter to the Editor Teachers Should Receive More Time to Collaborate
To the Editor:
Laurie Barnoski's Commentary, "School Leaders: Don't Let Your Teachers Lose Heart" (April 3, 2013), was an important reminder of the emotional and professional demands of teaching.
May 7, 2013
1 min read
Assessment Letter to the Editor Standardized Tests Do Not Track Individual Learning
To the Editor:
In his Commentary "It's Not the Test That Made Them Cheat," on the Atlanta cheating scandal, Michael J. Feuer is correct in arguing there is no legitimate excuse for cheating.
May 7, 2013
1 min read
School & District Management Letter to the Editor Cheaters Are Villains, But There Are Heroes, Too
To the Editor:
Physicians who murder, police officers who steal, and educators who cheat—these are all heinous crimes. There are no excuses. Period. But why has teacher cheating erupted only in this last decade ("It's Not the Test That Made Them Cheat," April 17, 2013)?
May 7, 2013
1 min read
TEXAS: Teachers, students, parents, and school administrators rally at the state Capitol in Austin to protest the amount of testing in schools and to demand restoration of funding to public education.
<b>TEXAS:</b> Teachers, students, parents, and school administrators rally at the state Capitol in Austin to protest the amount of testing in schools and to demand restoration of funding to public education.
Eric Gay/AP-File
School & District Management Rifts Deepen Over Direction of Ed. Policy in U.S.
Rapid change in education—and society—has intensified the debate to a level not seen since the battles over school desegregation.
Michele McNeil, May 7, 2013
14 min read
'Citizen science': Angeneris Cifuentes, 16, a student at the Brooklyn School for Collaborative Studies, gets ready to release a goldfinch as part of a workshop at Cornell’s ornithology lab. Across the country, students are gathering data for scientists.
'Citizen science': Angeneris Cifuentes, 16, a student at the Brooklyn School for Collaborative Studies, gets ready to release a goldfinch as part of a workshop at Cornell’s ornithology lab. Across the country, students are gathering data for scientists.
Heather Ainsworth for Education Week
Science Students Conduct Fieldwork for Scientists' Research
Through "citizen science" projects, students leave the classroom to collect data for scientists and get hands-on experience.
Nora Fleming, May 6, 2013
7 min read
Federal Rewards for Schools Key Facet of NCLB Waivers
States that got flexibility under the No Child Left Behind Act have promised cash bonuses and other rewards to high-performing schools and those that show significant progress.
Alyson Klein, May 6, 2013
7 min read
Third graders walk out of their classroom after taking the ISTEP test at Emmons Elementary School in Mishawaka, Ind. Technical issues with the state’s computer-based testing program could mean many students' tests are invalidated.
Third graders walk out of their classroom after taking the ISTEP test at Emmons Elementary School in Mishawaka, Ind. Technical issues with the state’s computer-based testing program could mean many students' tests are invalidated.
--Joe Raymond/AP
Standards & Accountability States' Online Testing Problems Raise Common-Core Concerns
Technical glitches during recent online assessments in a number of states are prompting worries about schools' ability to administer common-core testing in 2014-15.
Michelle R. Davis, May 3, 2013
9 min read
Education Funding Social-Emotional Learning Gets Race to Top Boost
Districts are using their share of the federal grant dollars for a range of efforts aimed at the "whole child."
May 3, 2013
6 min read
Federal Opinion Overcoming Four Barriers to Evidence-Based Education
Federal officials should help create a coherent system of supports for research-based innovation in schools, Robert E. Slavin writes.
Robert E. Slavin, May 1, 2013
5 min read
Teacher Kim Woods works with 9th grader Takija Brewer in her U.S. History class at Muskegon Heights Public Academy High School. The entire staff of the Muskegon Heights school district was dismissed after emergency manager Donald Weatherspoon hired Mosaica Education to manage the district.
Teacher Kim Woods works with 9th grader Takija Brewer in her U.S. History class at Muskegon Heights Public Academy High School. The entire staff of the Muskegon Heights school district was dismissed after emergency manager Donald Weatherspoon hired Mosaica Education to manage the district.
Brian Widdis for Education Week
School & District Management For-Profit Experiment Plays Out in Two Mich. Districts
Muskegon Heights and Highland Park are testing private companies' skill at running troubled public school systems.
Katie Ash, May 1, 2013
13 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
iStockphoto/Aurelio Scetta
Teaching Profession Opinion Want to Build a Better Teacher Evaluation? Ask a Teacher
Current efforts to improve the evaluation process will prove futile without input from classroom teachers, write Ross Wiener and Kasia Lundy.
Ross Wiener & Kasia Lundy, April 29, 2013
5 min read