April 2, 2014
Education Week, Vol. 33, Issue 27
School Climate & Safety
New State Laws Require More Sex-Abuse Training in Schools
A growing number of states are passing "Erin's Laws" requiring schools to take an active role in preventing child sexual abuse.
IT Infrastructure & Management
Opinion
Why Data Is Education's 'Killer App'
Using student data that is protected and centered on personalizing learning is the key to true education transformation, writes Michael King.
Classroom Technology
Ed. Startups Navigate the Hard Market Realities for Sustaining Success
Following the thrill of launching new businesses, two ed-tech startups are facing the challenges of making smart decisions to attract more customers and grow revenues.
Mathematics
STEM Hubs Emerge to Bolster Math, Science Ed.
The regional coalitions bring together K-12 schools, universities, businesses, museums, and others to catalyze and better connect STEM education efforts in local communities.
Classroom Technology
K12 Inc. Building a New Identity for Part of the Company
The virtual education provider says the move is intended to regroup similar resources under a single banner, and not to distance some of its services from a spate of critical news.
Accountability
Despite Lofty Scores, Massachusetts Advised to Set New Ed. Goals
A business group says Massachusetts risks growing complacent in its academic status if state officials don't make fundamental changes in school autonomy, funding, and other areas.
Special Education
House Education Chairman to Push for More Special Education Aid
Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., the chairman of the House education committee, plans to pour new energy into bolstering funding for special education.
Teaching Profession
Opinion
Teacher Quality Is a New National-Security Issue
William J. Sims suggests shifting 1 percent of the federal defense budget and applying it to teacher training and quality.
Teaching Profession
Opinion
Take the Time to Evaluate Teacher Evaluation
Before student assessments are used to judge teacher quality, it's critical to assess whether the tests are well-designed for the task, a group of psychometricians writes.
Education
News in Brief
Transitions
Thomas M. Brady, a former superintendent of the Providence, R.I., school district, has been named director of the Department of Defense Education Activity.
Assessment
News in Brief
Indiana Governor Voids Common-Core Adoption
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence announced last month that he had signed legislation voiding the state board of education's adoption of the Common Core State Standards back in 2010.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
Closing Arguments Heard In Calif. Teacher-Tenure Case
Attorneys for a group seeking to eliminate tenure protection for California teachers argued last week that such iron-clad job security makes it almost impossible to fire an incompetent instructor.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Philadelphia to Skirt Seniority in Hiring
Unable to reach an agreement with the local teachers' union on revisions to seniority policies, Philadelphia schools Superintendent William Hite said last week that he will institute new work rules that allow principals to take other factors into consideration when selecting and assigning teachers.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
Appeals Court Upholds Corporal Punishment
A federal appeals court has rejected the lawsuit of a Mississippi 8th grader whose misbehavior led to a paddling by a school administrator. After the paddling, the student fainted and fell face first to the floor, breaking his jaw and five teeth, court papers say.
College & Workforce Readiness
News in Brief
Civil Rights Office Probing Fla. Scholarship Program
The U.S. Department of Education's office for civil rights is investigating a scholarship program in Florida over allegations that its method of deciding who gets tuition assistance is unfair for minority groups.
Teaching Profession
News in Brief
Aspiring Teachers Could Get More Shots at Skills Test
Teacher-candidates in Illinois are expected to get more chances to pass the state's basic-skills test.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Chicago Students Asked About Opting Out of Tests
Chicago school officials are under fire for allowing investigators to interview elementary students without parent permission about last month's state test boycott.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
N.J. Schools Can Bring Alleged Bullies Into Lawsuit
Eleven students and their parents have been brought into a suit filed by a New Jersey teenager who accused two districts of not doing enough to stop eight years of bullying.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Education Reporters Slam Public Information Officers
A survey of education reporters finds that many believe public information officers for districts and other education groups often put up barriers to the free flow of information.
Federal
News in Brief
White House Hosts Summits To Boost Black Achievement
The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African-Americans and Ebony magazine are hosting a series of meetings to emphasize the importance of supporting the nation's black youths as they seek academically rigorous schooling to prepare them for their future careers.
School & District Management
News in Brief
'Promise Zone' Projects Could Get Grant Advantage
The U.S. Department of Education may give applicants an advantage in competitive-grant programs if their proposals mesh with the goals of the Obama administration's interdepartmental "Promise Zone" initiative, which is aimed at helping revitalize high-poverty communities, according to a notice in the Federal Register last week.
Education
Correction
Corrections
A story in the March 21, 2014, issue of Education Week about the field-testing of common-core exams misspelled the name of Jesse Register, the director of schools for the Nashville, Tenn., school district.
School Climate & Safety
Report Roundup
Youth Behavior
A study published this month illustrates the long-term detrimental effects of joining a gang in adolescence.
School & District Management
Report Roundup
School Boards
Districts that "beat the odds" academically have school board members who are focused narrowly on improving student learning, according to a new report.
School & District Management
Report Roundup
Arts Learning
Forty-one states now have instructional requirements for arts education at the elementary, middle, and high school levels, though only 17 states have policies on assessment in the subject, according to a new report by the Arts Education Partnership.
College & Workforce Readiness
Report Roundup
College Readiness
Most college-going African-American students aren't getting the education they need to succeed there, according to a new study from the ACT testing company.
Special Education
Report Roundup
Research Report: Special Education
About 1 in 68 children in 10 states monitored by the Centers for Disease Control have been identified with an autism spectrum disorder, the highest prevalence of the diagnosis since the agency first started monitoring it in 2000.
Equity & Diversity
Report Roundup
Study Finds N.Y. State Schools Are Most Racially Isolated
New York state is home to the nation's most-segregated public schools, with the share of black students who attend "intensely segregated" schools—those where fewer than 10 percent of students are white—having increased steadily since the late 1980s, according to a new study.