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Fix public education

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Seattle Times - By Donald P. Nielsen - May. 07 (Editorial) - In other words, if only 20 percent of our children receive the education needed, then 80 percent of our children will not be adequately prepared for the world in which they will live.

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The Instigator

Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

New Yorker - By Douglas McGray - May. 04 (Special Report) - In the past decade, Barr has opened seventeen charter high schools—small, locally managed institutions that aim for a high degree of teacher autonomy and parent involvement—in some of the poorest neighborhoods in Los Angeles, as well as one in the Bronx.

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New Orleans Charter Schools Produce Mixed Results

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

NewsHour - May. 07 (Special Report) - Is a change in management enough to transform some of the worst schools in the country? New Orleans superintendent Paul Vallas seems to think so. But while charters are outperforming other schools in New Orleans, there's evidence they may be abusing their freedom.

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Graduates Brace For Worst Job Market In Years

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

National Public Radio - By Larry Abramson - May. 07 (News Report) - In the coming weeks, college seniors across the country will get their caps and gowns, accept their diplomas and enter the worst job market in modern memory.

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Student-loan overhaul key to Obama's goals

Tue, 05 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Seattle Times - By Shailagh Murray - May. 05 (News Report) - At stake is a plan to expand the Pell Grant Program, making it an entitlement akin to Medicare and Social Security. Key to the effort is a consolidation of student lending that would give the U.S. Department of Education a near monopoly over the practice — a proposal that has mobilized the private loan industry, which lent $55.3 billion to 6.4 million students in the 2007-08 school year.

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Gentrification, Education, and School Reform

Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

indypendent.org - By Alex Kane - May. 04 (News Report) - gentrification not only transforms the social and economic infrastructure of poor neighborhoods, but may also displace the existing school system.”

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Klein Orders New York Schools to Stop Hiring From Outside

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Javier C. Hernandez - May. 07 (Special Report) - Anticipating significant budget cuts to New York City schools in the coming year, Chancellor Joel I. Klein ordered principals on Wednesday to stop hiring teachers from outside the system, a move that will force them to look internally at a pool that, according to an independent report, includes many subpar teachers.

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Budget Outlines Funding for Teacher Merit Pay Programs

Fri, 08 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Washington Post - By Maria Gold - May. 08 (Special Report) - President Obama is seeking to add hundreds of millions for teacher merit pay programs, an investment in a reform that has often drawn criticism from teachers unions. Even as education officials have eliminated 12 programs they say are not proven to benefit students -- a savings of $550 million -- the department is seeking $517 million for performance pay grants, up from $97 million in last year's budget. In addition, the stimulus law included an additional $200 million for such programs.

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College-School Partnerships Offer Head Start on Higher Education

Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Washington Post - By Maria Glod - May. 06 (Special Report) - Mayra Avila is looking forward to her high school prom. She's also a college student taking government and English composition courses.

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Should the mayor take over Houston schools?

Sun, 10 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Houston Chronicle - By Ericka Mellon - May. 10 (Special Report) - As the Houston school board searches for a superintendent, a national movement is growing to yield that power — and more — to local mayors or boards they appoint. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan sent shock waves through public school systems this year when, shortly after taking office, he urged mayors to take over struggling urban districts. “At the end of my tenure, if only seven mayors are in control, I think I will have failed,” said Duncan, former CEO of the Chicago school district, which has been under the mayor’s power since 1995.

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Why do millions of Americans struggle with reading and writing?

Sat, 09 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Christian Science Monitor - By Stacy Teicher Khadaroo - May. 09 (Special Report) - For the first time, a detailed portrait of America's least literate adults is emerging. About 30 million people – 14 percent of the US population 16 and older – have trouble with basic reading and writing. Correlating factors that were explored in a new government report include poverty, ethnicity, native language background, and disabilities. Of these 30 million people, 7 million are considered "nonliterate" in English because their reading abilities are so low. When shown the label for an over-the-counter drug, for instance, many in this subgroup cannot read the word "adult" or a sentence explaining what to do in the event of an overdose.

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Secretary Arne Duncan has $5 billion for transformation. What should he do?

Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Chicago Tribune - By Jeb Bush, James B. Hunt Jr. - May. 04 (Opinion) - As former governors from different political parties who remain passionate about the quality of education in America, we agree that Arne Duncan is one lucky guy. As part of the $787 billion spending package passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama in February, the new education secretary gets $5 billion to spend on projects that will transform America's education system. Called the "Race to the Top Fund," the money is to meant to pay for innovations that improve student achievement and ultimately revolutionize our economy and workforce for the 21st Century.

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Arne Duncan, golden boy of education | The golden boy and the blob

Sat, 09 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Economist - May. 09 (Special Report) - IT IS hard to find anybody with a bad word to say about Arne Duncan, Barack Obama’s young education secretary. Margaret Spellings, his predecessor in the Bush administration, calls him “a visionary leader and fellow reformer”. During his confirmation hearings Lamar Alexander, a senator from Tennessee and himself a former education secretary, sounded more like a lovesick schoolgirl than a member of the opposition party: “I think you’re the best.” Enthusiastic without being over-the-top, pragmatic without being a pushover, he is also the perfect embodiment of mens sana in corpore sano—tall and lean, clean-cut and athletic, a Thomas Arnold for the digital age.

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No child left to move ahead

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco Chronicle - By Matt Levinson - May. 07 (Opinion) - Several years ago, when I taught Advanced Placement U.S. history, I had a student who grossly underperformed during the school year, yet somehow managed to score a 5 on the AP exam. When I asked him how he managed to accomplish this feat, he said, "I spent two weeks straight studying, reading, and reviewing, and that's all I needed."

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School districts find out their cut of stimulus

Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco Chronicle - By Nanette Asimov - May. 06 (News Report) - California school districts are about to get their first hard cash from the federal stimulus package, their share of the nearly $1.2 billion in extra funding the state has so far received for educating low-income children and students with disabilities.

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How a Student-Friendly Kindle Could Change the Textbook Market

Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Chronicle of Higher Education - By Jeffrey R. Young - May. 06 (News Report) - Rumors that Amazon will introduce a wide-format Kindle have the news media and bloggers speculating about whether the new gadget will spark an electronic-textbook revolution and lighten backpacks nationwide.

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Education Reform's Big Stake

Fri, 08 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Huffington Post - By Marc Lampkin - May. 08 (Opinion) - America cannot afford to lose one more child to a substandard school. President Obama campaigned that he would drastically improve school quality and put more effective teachers in every classroom. And U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan is off to a strong start by demanding greater accountability from schools. But, we can't sit back and wait for leaders to act under their own steam. Parents and students must demand fundamental reform for their schools.

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Obama Offers Compromise on D.C. Tuition Vouchers

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Washington Post - By Bill Turque, Shailagh Murray - May. 07 (News Report) - President Obama will propose setting aside enough money for all 1,716 students in the District's voucher program to continue receiving grants for private school tuition until they graduate from high school, but he would allow no new students to join the program, administration officials said yesterday.

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Obama administration takes on school reform

Tue, 05 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco Chronicle - May. 05 (Editorial) - More spending, however, does not necessarily translate into better schools. Duncan's challenge is to spend the money quickly and strategically while ratcheting up accountability measures for both teachers and students.

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Barack Obama & the DC School Voucher Program

Tue, 05 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Reason Magazine - By Nick Gillespie - May. 05 (Special Report) - Mercedes Campbell is one of the 1,700 students in the Washington, D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, a school-voucher program authorized by Congress in 2004. The program gives students up to $7,500 to attend whatever school their parents choose. For kids like Mercedes, who now attends Georgetown Visitation Prep, the DC voucher program is a way out of one of the worst school districts in the country.

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