Education Program
This Week in Education
November 8 - November 14, 2007
K-12
Spellings pushes on graduation figures
If Congress doesn't get the job done, Education Secretary Margaret Spellings says she'll consider using her authority to require states to report high school graduation rates in a more uniform and accurate way.
NCLB Supplemental Educational Services Policy Brief
The supplemental educational services (SES) provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act promise to expand educational opportunities by providing low-income families access to the private tutoring market. In this policy brief, the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles at UCLA reviewed data on participation in the program and found that demand for SES has either declined or leveled off after five years. This comes as the number of students eligible for services has increased.
Students Call Protest Punishment Too Harsh
A school superintendent’s decision to suspend, and perhaps expel, about two dozen students who took part in a protest against the Iraq war at a suburban high school drew criticism Tuesday from the students and their parents, who demanded that their children be allowed to return to classes.
Controversial voucher program making headway
About 900 disabled students left Georgia public schools this year seeking better educations on private and religious campuses using new state-approved vouchers to offset tuition costs, according to a report released this week by the state Department of Education. It is Georgia's first foray into controversial school vouchers. Last spring, state lawmakers created the special-needs scholarship to offer public school families a choice for educating their mentally, emotionally or physically disabled children.
Cyber bullying bedevils Japan
Schoolyard bullying has long bedeviled Japan and, as in other countries, has taken a high-tech twist in recent years. Ten percent of high school students said they have been harassed through e-mails, websites or blogs, a recent survey by the Hyogo Prefectual Board of Education showed.
Leadership
Study Examines Leadership Needs Education Week
Oct. 30---Principals and superintendents from high-needs districts believe that higher salaries and signing bonuses could help entice higher-quality leaders into school administration, but few think that money alone will keep them there, a study concludes.
Teacher
Data building better teachers: Districts use new methods to learn what works best for kids
The popular term for what's going on in the Richmond School District and other school systems throughout the region is data-driven decision making. How that plays out varies from school district to school district, from weekly meetings and annual data retreats to regular standardized assessments of student performance. What it means is educators are getting more scientific in how they approach teaching and learning in today's schools.
Assistance for New Teachers Education Week
Oct. 30---Intensive professional-support programs for new teachers help reduce teacher-turnover costs and enhance student learning, a policy brief from the Santa Cruz, Calif.-based New Teacher Center says.
"Rethinking How to Teach the New Teachers"
The Reach Institute for School Leadership has started an innovative teacher-credentialing program with the goal of attracting a new generation of committed educators, mentors and school administrators -- and keeping them for a lifetime. Instead of spending most of their time learning about being a teacher, Reach's students start the program at the front of the classroom from the very first day, with a teacher mentor by their side.
STEM
Maine’s Middle School Laptop Program: Creating Better Writers
Beginning in Fall 2002 the State of Maine, through the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI), implemented a one-to-one middle school laptop program by providing all 7th and 8th grade students and their teachers with laptop computers, and providing schools and teachers with technical assistance and professional development for integrating laptop technology into their curriculum and instruction. This Brief describes the findings from an examination of the impacts of the laptop program on student writing achievement.
Education Finance
Eyeballing the bang we get for our education buck
Two professors have cracked the nut of an old problem: How do you perform a cost-benefit analysis on education? Henry M. Levin and Clive R. Belfield examined the public costs of a high school dropout on Minnesota taxpayers, then looked at the cost of programs that boost high school graduation rates. Voila: a positive cost-benefit ratio.
Judge rules school salary allocation is inequitable
A King County judge ruled Friday that the way the state doles out salary money to school districts is uneven and unconstitutional, potentially forcing the Legislature to revamp how it funds education -- and giving a boost to the movement to increase school funding in the state.
Texas voters favored school funds to property tax cut
AUSTIN – More than three-fourths of Texas school districts that sought voter approval to hike their property tax rates were successful this week, paving the way for other districts across the state to consider their own tax elections next year.
|
