December 3, 2014
Education Week, Vol. 34, Issue 13
School & District Management
Tech. Vendors Cloudy on K-12 Buying Needs
Many districts use needs assessments and pilot tests to set ed-tech priorities, but those efforts tend to produce little useful information for companies, the report says.
Every Student Succeeds Act
States Get Fresh Guidance on NCLB Waiver Renewal
Those seeking continued leeway from provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act will largely be able to stay the course in key policy areas, federal guidance says.
Equity & Diversity
Obama Shields Immigrant Parents From Deportation
The nearly 4 million K-12 students who have at least one undocumented parent stand to benefit from the president’s executive action.
Curriculum
Opinion
Art, for Children's Sake
Arts represent a vital piece of the K-12 education experience, Jean Hendrickson writes.
Curriculum
Opinion
Arts Education Matters: We Know, We Measured It
Jay P. Greene and a team of researchers studied and measured how arts experiences boost critical thinking for students.
Reading & Literacy
Opinion
The Power of Poetry in the Classroom
When his students write poems, they reveal the gap between who they are and who they might become, teacher Kip Zegers says.
Science
Opinion
STEM + Art: A Brilliant Combination
Interweaving arts and sciences curriculum can build student strengths across subject areas, writes arts education officer John Ceschini.
Curriculum
Opinion
Understanding the Mind of a Young Artist
Illustrator Jeff Dekal shares his perspective on being a young artist in the K-12 classroom.
School Climate & Safety
Letter to the Editor
Tracking Hostility to LGBT Youths Will Help in Efforts to Support Them
To the Editor:
Tracking school climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students is crucial to illuminate a problem historically ignored or played down ("Efforts Build to Track Climate for LGBT Students").
Tracking school climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students is crucial to illuminate a problem historically ignored or played down ("Efforts Build to Track Climate for LGBT Students").
College & Workforce Readiness
Letter to the Editor
Wash. State Colleges Well Aware of Value of 'Stacking' Certificates
To the Editor:
"Payoff Found to Be Slim for Short-Term Certificates From Community Colleges" included good, balanced quotes about the value of short-term certificates.
"Payoff Found to Be Slim for Short-Term Certificates From Community Colleges" included good, balanced quotes about the value of short-term certificates.
Families & the Community
Report Roundup
States Are Expanding Access to K-12 Data, Group Says
Seventeen states—up from eight three years ago—now provide data so that parents can track their children's academic progress, says the Data Quality Campaign.
Federal
Obituary
Obituaries
Annette Polly Williams, the longtime Wisconsin lawmaker credited with the 1989 creation of the pioneering Milwaukee school voucher program, died Nov. 9. She was 77.
Education
News in Brief
Transitions
Randy Watson, the superintendent of the McPherson Unified School District 418 in Kansas, has been named the state's new education commissioner.
School Climate & Safety
Report Roundup
Student Nutrition
Lunches served by schools participating in the National School Lunch program contain less fat and saturated fat than meals students bring from home, a new study by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University finds, but they also contain less iron.
Equity & Diversity
Report Roundup
Ethnic Studies
Researchers at the University of Arizona have updated a provocative study on the Tucson, Ariz., school district's controversial Mexican-American studies program.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
Teacher Preparation
A new report outlines what makes certain teacher "residency" programs stand out, offering lessons for other residency programs and the teacher-preparation field as a whole.
College & Workforce Readiness
Report Roundup
Higher Education
While high school students are all about what college they want to get into, a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center looks at how many actually finish.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
Digital Education
Contrary to conventional wisdom, teachers use technology more frequently than their students, according to a recent study.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
STEM Teachers
Many high school students are interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, but very few of them want to teach in those fields, according to a new study.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
St. Louis-Area Schools Close in Wake of Ferguson Decision
In the hours before a St. Louis County, Mo., grand jury returned its decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the August shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager, school district officials in the region had already canceled classes and after-school activities in an effort to keep students safe.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Colo. Schools Hire Workers Using Pot Revenues
Colorado has awarded nearly $1 million in grants to schools to hire health workers using revenue generated by a sales tax on marijuana, which is legal in the state.
Social Studies
News in Brief
Texas Board Approves Most Contested Texts
Nearly all the social studies textbooks that were being considered by the Texas school board have been approved for use next school year.
Assessment
News in Brief
Denver-Area Seniors Refuse to Take New State Tests
Thousands of Denver-area high school seniors refused to take new state standardized science and social studies tests, saying they're a distraction as they work to get into college and don't align with their curriculum.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
S.C. High Court Rules for Poor, Rural Students
A 21-year-old legal battle waged by more than two dozen districts that accused the state of South Carolina of failing to provide a "minimally adequate" education for poor and rural students has come to an end, after the state Supreme Court ruled in the districts' favor.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
Sandy Hook Shooter's Needs Went Unmet by Schools
A review of the mental-health and educational history of Newtown, Conn., school shooter Adam Lanza paints a picture of repeated missed opportunities by schools, relatives, and mental-health professionals.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
L.A. to Pay $139 Million to Child-Abuse Victims
The Los Angeles school district will pay $139 million in settlements to victims of the Miramonte Elementary School child-abuse scandal.
Education Funding
News in Brief
FCC Chairman Urges Boost in Funding for E-Rate
The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission has proposed a major increase in the amount of money flowing to the E-rate program.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Researchers Publish Letter Urging Spending on Early Ed.
In an open letter to policymakers, more than 500 researchers have urged the expansion of and increased public investment in early-childhood education.