Number of students taking ASVAB continues to decline.
The Philadelphia Inquirer (8/6, Hardy, Purcell) reported that “school districts have in recent years been opting out of the” Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), which in the past has served as a “recruiting tool for the Pentagon” and the military. “An analysis of Pentagon data” indicates that “[n]ationally, the number of students taking the test has dropped 19 percent in the last five years, accelerating a decline that began in 1990.” In the past, “[t]est takers [had] no say in whether their information” was forwarded “to the military, and parents [weren't] required to give their approval.” Now, however, “in a growing number of districts…protests and privacy concerns have led to new rules requiring parental permission.” In still other districts, the ASVAB is given only to students who sign up to take it. Yet some “support giving the ASVAB,” comparing it to other standardized tests “for college-prep kids.” The ASVAB, proponents say, provides “a similar test for a trade union or an apprenticeship program.”
In the Classroom
Alaska educators study ways to promote art in the classroom.
The AP (8/6) reported on the Visual Arts Institute in Fairbanks, Alaska, which is holding “a crash course on different art techniques and performing arts exercises” for teachers around the state to help them “learn about ways to promote art in the classroom.” Over the course of two weeks, educators were taught “how use ‘art kits’ developed by the district’s art coordinators. The kits include directions, images and other instructional materials to help teachers conduct art lessons.” In terms of performing arts, the teachers prepared and performed a drama, which they said “conjured up feelings of shyness and nerves much like what students feel.” The AP noted, “The institute has five instructors: four for visual arts and one teacher for drama,” and “was made possible by grants received by the Alaska Art Consortium (AAC) totaling $2.7 million.” The AAC also offers “workshops for primary, intermediate and a more in-depth workshop for educators who have an arts background and want to learn more.”
Results of Arizona’s AIMS test mixed.
The Arizona Republic (8/6, Kossan, Wynn) reported, “A higher percentage of Arizona students passed the AIMS (Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards) reading and math portions this year than did last year at nearly every grade level, while the percentage passing the essay section fell in every grade except eighth grade.” The state “has yet to get 75 percent of students at any grade level to pass the math and reading sections, but it is creeping toward that goal.” The Republic noted, “Over the past three years, writing scores have fluctuated, but state officials said the scores are stabilizing.”
Mississippi raises standards for state tests.
Education Week (8/6) reported, “The Mississippi Department of Education…is raising its testing standards to more accurately measure how [its] students…compare with their peers elsewhere in the country.” In the past, Mississippi has faced “a considerable gap between students’ overall performance on state tests intended to satisfy NCLB requirements and those on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).” Last year, average scores on the NAEP were “below the national average,” while “about 90 percent of Mississippi’s 4th graders were rated as either advanced or proficient in reading” based on state tests. The new standards “are intended to be more closely aligned with NAEP,” but will therefore “mean that fewer of the state’s 493,000 students are likely to score proficient on the state tests.” State board officials “acknowledged there could be a backlash if many more schools are labeled as failing” as a result of the raised standards, but added that “in the long run it will be beneficial to the students.”
Tennessee county suspends field trips.
The AP (8/6) reported that schools in Maury County, Tennessee have suspended field trips. Previously, teachers had “tried to arrange at least one field trip for students each quarter.” Sharon Kinnard, a spokeswoman for the schools “said the system needs to save wear on the buses until the County Commission acts on its budget.” Kinnard explained that, while “parents pay for fuel and drivers for the trips, the funds do not cover equipment wear.”
Arizona opens new technology academy.
The Arizona Republic (8/6, Gordon) reported that “one of the first K-5 technology academies” in Arizona “opened its doors to students” this week. “Scales Technology Academy (STA) in Tempe boasts a 1-1 ratio of students to laptop computers,” and according to the school’s principal “it is the first Arizona elementary school to do so.” STA “is part of a growing trend within state districts to incorporate technology into classrooms,” with a number of Arizona districts seeking to use technology they had previously banned, such as iPods, “as a way to educate students.” In addition to laptops and Smart Boards, schools are using the “Nintendo Wii for fitness and education games,” as well as “podcasts and Internet resources such as YouTube and Google Earth.” Some parents and educators are concerned that technology is a “convenient curriculum,” and may be overused. Educators at STA, however, stressed that technology is “an added resource” used “to enhance” rather than replace the standard curriculum.
Advertisement
Students build underwater vehicles at marine science camp.
The AP (8/6) reported that 25 students from the Alaska’s Pribilof Islands took part last month in the “first-ever Pribilof Marine Science Camp.” Michelle Ridgeway, a marine ecologist “who led the camp,” described the program as a “science boot camp. … ‘We just went ahead and skipped biology 101 and went for the 600 level.’” The campers “built robots to explore” what they “couldn’t see and collect,” and in the process, may have become “the first students to construct remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROV) in Alaska.” The campers began their day by “comb[ing] the beaches and us[ing] a ROV to gather underwater samples.” According to the AP, “Scientists and local experts came to talk with the students about the marine and island ecosystem.” One of the camp’s highlights was “when students constructed and launched” the “ROVs, which came through a project granted to them by the Society of Naval Architects and Maritime Engineers, using raw materials and a manual designed by MIT engineers.”
California educators discuss how to prepare CTE students for college, careers.
California’s Press Democrat (8/7, Benefield) reports that approximately 200 educators from throughout California’s North Bay region “gathered Wednesday to wrestle with how to prepare high school students who take” career and technical education (CTE) “classes for both careers and college.” According to the Press Democrat, the panelists “from Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Marin and Contra Costa counties challenged the notion that” CTE courses “make students any less ready to not only apply to college but excel once enrolled.” They pointed out that these classes “feature cutting-edge technology and career courses that offer students job-shadow opportunities” and “should not be considered watered-down versions of college-prep courses.” CTE courses and career pathways are not about forcing kids to choose a career at” at a young age, said Gary Hoachlander, president of ConnectEd, the California Center for College and Career. He explained, “The point is to give students the academic foundation, technical foundation for any postsecondary or career choice they make. And most of the young people today will have multiple careers.”
On the Job
Texas district proposes 20 percent salary increase for entry-level teachers.
Texas’s Express News (8/6, De La Rosa) reported, “San Antonio Independent School District (SAISD) officials want to boost the entry-level teacher salary to $50,000 — an ambitious plan that will go nowhere without a voter-approved property tax increase.” The idea was proposed “along with a second proposal that calls for extending the school day in 2009-10.” The proposed salary “would be a 20 percent increase over the 2007-08 beginning salary of $41,525, and would be phased in over three years, starting this year. It would apply to teachers who hold a bachelor’s degree and have zero years of experience.” It “would also likely make SAISD the highest-paying district for entry-level teachers among Bexar County’s 16 school systems, barring an infusion of money from the state that could help boost salaries in the North East and Northside school districts, which currently have the highest beginning teacher salaries — $45,500 and $45,250, respectively.”
Law & Policy
Virginia governor to review school accreditation proposal.
The Washington Post (8/7, LZ06, Jenkins) reports, “Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) is reviewing a plan that would require all Virginia high schools to meet certain graduation-rate requirements by 2014 to receive accreditation under a new assessment system.” The proposal would require “state officials [to] use a computer system to track students throughout their academic careers to determine the number of diplomas, GEDs, and other certificates that schools award during any given year. ” Then, “schools would be rated” and “receive accreditation based on” scores stemming from those figures. “For instance, schools would be awarded 100 points for each student who received a diploma; the school would earn 75 points if a student received a general equivalency diploma.” The Post notes that the school “board approved the plan late last year and sent it to Kaine’s office for review. … If approved, the change would begin with the 2009-10 academic year.”
Special Needs
New school specially designed for children with autism.
The Chicago Tribune (8/7, Huppke) reports that “the Easter Seals Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research, a $32 million facility believed to be one of the first in the country tailor-made for the unique needs of children with autism,…opened last month” in Chicago. The school “can accommodate 150 students,” and “combin[es] education and training for independent living.” Because “the senses of people with autism are often heightened, making them easily overwhelmed or distracted by” noise and light, the “walls and hallways of the school are designed to dampen sound.” In addition, the classrooms “have wide windows to let in natural light, but they are mounted high on the walls so students won’t be distracted by anything outdoors. The walls are all light colors, coated with a non-glare paint.” The specially designed air vents eliminate “buzzing or humming.” Autism researcher Stephen Porges, director of the Brain-Body Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said, “As far as I know, this is the first school for autism that was designed for kids with autism from the ground up.”
Pennsylvania district fails to meet standards because of special education students’ scores, superintendent says.
Pennsylvania’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (8/6, Smydo) reported, “The Pittsburgh Public Schools came close to meeting the federal achievement standards this year for the first time in six years, but likely fell short because of the performance of middle-grade special education students.” Superintendent Mark Roosevelt said that “the district had made substantial progress in most areas of the” state standardized tests, “which measure math and reading ability of students in grade 11 and grades three through eight.” For instance, the district “met the test score goals” for “grades six through eight — for all students except those in special education. If the scores of special education students in grades six through eight had been higher, [Roosevelt] said, the district would have made AYP for the first time in six years.” Still, “Mr. Roosevelt downplayed the possibility of state intervention, saying: ‘We believe the state is very committed to the direction we are taking.’”
Also in the News
Many schools discouraging students from driving cars on campus.
USA Today (8/7, Purdom) reports, “High schools and colleges are steering students away from cars to save money on gas, save the environment, and promote physical fitness.” For instance, “[m]ore bike racks, new speed limit signs, and a parent carpooling system are among the changes being considered at Hanover Park High School in East Hanover, N.J., to reduce car traffic and to improve students’ safety.” Furthermore, “Faculty and students at three high schools in Marin County, Calif., are working with their local Safe Routes to Schools program to improve intersections, designate walk-or-bike-to-school days, and use bikes as transportation for field trips.” Mike Martin, executive director of the National Association of Pupil Transportation, said of the student-supported efforts, “Today’s teenagers deserve a lot of credit. They’re socially aware, they’re environmentally conscious.”
College Board to introduce eighth-grade assessment exam.
The Los Angeles Times (8/8, Holland) reports, “The College Board, which owns the SAT, PSAT and other tests, plans to introduce an eighth-grade college assessment exam in 2010,” according to College Board official Wayne Camara, who noted that “[t]he new test would be voluntary.” The Times points out that “younger students have been signing up for the PSAT in growing numbers, either to establish eligibility for gifted or enrichment programs, or to measure college readiness.” Camara explained that the new test “would put students on notice to start lining up the rigorous courses required by selective colleges,” since “[b]y the time they’re taking the PSAT…it’s much too late to determine” which “important gatekeeper classes [are] needed for college.” Some educators have “welcome[d] the opportunity to get students…into the college game early.” Critics, however, “noted that the PSAT…was taken last year by 3.4 million students, and said the new test would just boost the pressures for students considering college.”
In the Classroom
North Carolina online education program growing.
The AP (8/8, Robinson) reports on the North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS) program, through which students can take over 70 “online courses, recover missing credits, earn college credit or get to college faster.” The program is “available statewide to public middle school and high school students.” NCVPS officials note that, “[o]f the 72 courses offered online, students have mostly taken advantage of Advanced Placement and foreign language courses,” which they attribute to those subjects not being “available at all of North Carolina’s public schools.” The program “use[s] technology such as Skype software that allows for Internet phone calls, live video chats, real-time assessments and live messaging for the coursework, and allow[s] students the flexibility to work from home or school.” In addition, it “includes the state’s Learn and Earn Online program, which enables students…to attend community colleges as part of their school day.” The AP notes, “Interest has ballooned since the program was created by the Legislature in 2006,” with enrollment rising from “4,968 in summer 2007 to nearly 13,000 in spring 2008.”
West Virginia district renews class credit policy for transfer students.
Maryland’s Cumberland Times-News (8/7, Beavers) reported that in West Virginia, “Mineral County’s policy on accepting class credits from outside sources will remain the same.” This week, the Mineral County Board of Education “voted unanimously to approve the policy,…which includes an outline of which class credits will be accepted when a student transfers from either another school system or an accredited program.” It “stipulates that credits will be accepted only from ‘all public secondary schools and credited nonpublic schools.’” This means that “credit for secondary courses taught in home schools” will not be transferable to Mineral County public schools, according to Superintendent Skip Hackworth. The “board members discussed a possible policy allowing home-schooled students to take a test to determine placement in a particular class if they would choose to enroll in the system,” but they decided “that once a home-schooled student enrolls full time in public school, he would fall under” state and county policies that allow full-time students to “‘test out’ of a class.”
Michigan standardized test scores improve.
The AP (8/7) reported, “High school students made slight improvements in the second year of Michigan’s revamped standardized testing program,” the Michigan Merit Exam. The exam uses “an ACT college entrance exam” as a component. “The percentage of public school students who scored at the proficient or advanced levels improved slightly in reading, writing and science this year compared to 2007.” However, “[s]ocial studies scores declined,” while “math scores held steady.” The AP noted, “The exam, in its second year, is part of an effort to toughen the state’s high school graduation requirements and improve academic performance.” And, according to officials, “earlier indications are the effort is paying off.”
According to the Detroit Free Press (8/7, Higgins), however, “even with the light increases in the above subjects, there were still large percentages of students who failed those exams.” The Free Press called the results “another reminder that large numbers of Michigan teens are ill-prepared to successfully pursue a college degree.” The exam is important, the Free Press noted, “because students can qualify for the $4,000 Michigan Promise scholarship” based on their performance.
Michigan’s Grand Rapids Press (8/8) notes, “Statewide, 52 percent passed the reading and writing portions of the test, up from 51 percent last year; 46 percent passed the math test this year and last year; 57 percent passed the science test, up one percentage point from last year; and social studies scores fell three percentage points to 80 this year.” Additionally, “ACT scores remained unchanged from 2007. The average composite score was 18.8 out of a possible 36.”
Idaho schools show progress under NCLB.
The AP (8/7) reported that the Idaho Board of Education “says public schools are doing a lot better under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law than they did last year.” According to a report from the board, “the number of public schools making adequate yearly progress in 2008 under the law has more than doubled since 2007.” While in 2007, “only 168 of the state’s 626 public schools achieved adequate yearly progress under the law,” in 2008, “more than 360 of the 648 schools…met those goals.”
Illinois district struggles with school enrollment boom.
The Chicago Tribune (8/7, Hood) reported on the school district for Minooka, Illinois, which is growing at a faster rate than officials had expected. The district’s enrollment has “grow[n] by nearly 3,000 in five years,” up from 1,000 students in 2003, and “construction on two new schools won’t be completed until 2009.” As a result, the district has had to find “creative ways…to add more space.” In the past few years, “solutions have included converting broom closets and janitors’ rooms into offices for social workers and school psychologists,” and “old computer labs were stripped of their computers so that they could be used as classrooms,” in addition to other measures. However, officials say that they have few remaining avenues, and are concerned that the new schools will be quickly overpopulated as well. Even so, “school officials do not believe [the growth] has significantly affected how and what students are taught,” and note their strategies for keeping all programs going despite the challenges.
Intensive remedial instruction may help poor readers overcome deficits, study suggests.
ScienceDaily (8/7) reported, “A new Carnegie Mellon University brain imaging study of dyslexic students and other poor readers shows that the brain can permanently rewire itself and overcome reading deficits, if students are given 100 hours of intensive remedial instruction.” For the study, researchers observed “25 fifth-graders” with poor reading skills. The students “worked in groups of three for an hour a day with a teacher specialized in administering a remedial reading program.” Researchers then used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate “the changes in a number of cortical regions located in the parietotemporal area, which is responsible for decoding the sounds of written language and assembling them into words and phrases that make up a sentence.” The results indicated “that the remedial instruction resulted in an increase in brain activity in several cortical regions associated with reading, and that neural gains became further solidified during the year following instruction.”
On the Job
NBPTS program to support training of board-certified teachers.
Education Week (8/7, Honawar) reported, “The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is taking a hands-on approach to foster more board-certified teachers in high-need school districts.” The NBPTS’s “Targeted High Need Initiative Comprehensive Candidate Support Centers will give resources — both financial and professional — to a handful of partner school systems, teacher colleges, and professional groups such as teachers’ unions so they can create an infrastructure to recruit and train more teachers to become board-certified in districts seeking to raise student achievement.” In the past, “the program provided resources to high-need districts to offer support to teachers seeking the credential and to provide them with mentoring from trained board-certified teachers.” However, the revised support program “will provide aid to a teacher from the beginning [stages of board certification] all the way to their growth as a teacher leader,” NBPTS officials said.
School Finance
California school board decides not to ask voters for $300 million construction bond.
California’s Sun (8/7, Pfeiffer) reported that the San Bernardino City Unified school board “has rejected placing a $300 million construction bond on the November ballot.” School board vice president Danny Tillman “voted against placing the bond on the ballot because although he agrees there is a need to build more schools,” he said that “the timing for it is not right.” Tillman added, “With unemployment being at such a high rate, gas and food costing so much and with the foreclosure rate being so high, it did not seem like the right time to ask more people to spend more money on their property tax bill.” Still, “[t]he bond proposal could be revisited in 2009,” according to Tillman.
Michigan district alters payroll schedule by one day to save $1 million in fees.
Michigan’s Detroit News (8/7, Mrozowski) reported, “The cash-strapped Detroit Public Schools is delaying its payroll schedule by one day this month to avoid $1 million in fees to secure a short-term loan, according to a statement the district released Wednesday.” The pay date will be moved “from Aug. 19 to Aug. 20, the statement said.” According to the Detroit News, “[t]he school district, which recently approved $522 million in cuts over two years to stave off a massive deficit, has had trouble paying its vendors and has sought cash advances from the state.” School board president Joyce Hayes-Giles said of the decision, “This is another indication of the critical financial situation in the district, and while we always want to be able to pay employees on time, in this particular situation one day would save up to $1 million in loan fees.”
Also in the News
Family of student who brought gun to school faces deportation.
The Arizona Republic (8/7, Galvan, Pfauser) reported, “A 12-year-old boy in custody for bringing a loaded gun to his school Wednesday now has his family facing deportation after it was determined his parents are in the country illegally, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said.” The pistol was confiscated by a teacher who “saw the boy show the gun to other students.” The 12-year-old told police deputies “that he brought the gun in his backpack because another student was picking on him, according to the sheriff’s office. He was taken into custody and will be sent to a juvenile detention facility.” Although the boy was born in the U.S., “his parents and 10-year-old sibling are not” U.S. citizens. Because of this, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said, “I have no choice but to enforce the law. … Part of the family is here illegally so we are obliged to follow the law by arresting and deporting them.” According to the Queen Creek Unified School District superintendent, the incident “was the first” in which a “student brought a gun to any school in the district.”
NEA in the News
Teachers’ unions electing more female officials.
Education Week (8/7, Honawar) reported, “At the national teachers’ unions, this is the year of the women.” Two of the National Education Association’s “three highest posts” are now occupied by women, and “all of the American Federation of Teachers’ top elected leaders are women.” While “more than 70 percent of teachers are women, the national unions have more often been led by men.” According to Education Week, these “leadership changes come at a crucial time for the unions, with battles over the renewal of the federal No Child Left Behind Act looming and interest mounting in the thorny issue of performance pay for teachers.” Education Week quoted Lily Eskelsen, the incoming NEA vice president, who was “[a]sked if women’s leadership can make a difference to the union.” Eskelsen said, “It’s not about bringing a different perspective [as a woman], but about the experiences I’ve had as a working mother. How do I balance home and work? It’s a question women are asked very often.”
International Baccalaureate programs increasingly popular in Michigan.
The Detroit News (8/11, Lewis) reported, “International Baccalaureate (IB) programs have exploded in Michigan in the last five years, as districts respond to requests from parents for more challenging curricula that prepare students to compete not only nationally, but also internationally for colleges.” To accommodate this increased interest, the number of IB schools in the state has risen from five to 12 over the past five years, and “[a]nother 27 schools are waiting final authorization to join the worldwide organization.” However, “becoming an IB school is not easy, or cheap.” Officials say that, “[d]epending on the school and the number of teachers involved, it could cost from $35,000 to $40,000″ to institute an IB program at a school. This includes the “initial application process,” as well as teacher training and curriculum set-up. The Detroit News noted several IB programs in the area, and described the processes other schools were going through to institute an IB program.
In the Classroom
Atlanta school faces challenges teaching refugee students.
The Christian Science Monitor (8/11, Wittenburg) reported on the International Community School (ICS) in Atlanta, Georgia, a public charter elementary school where “half of the 400 students…are refugees from the world’s war zones; the other half were born Americans.” The group of students “presents a host of challenges,” and “the school has done a remarkable job of meeting them. Armies of volunteers pitch in to tutor and take food to newly arrived refugees.” In terms of academics, “the school received a national award” last year “for closing the achievement gap between poor and wealthy students.” Even so, the school is “especially vulnerable” in the face of Georgia’s education cuts, and having failed last year “to meet the requirements of No Child Left Behind” because of a “complex” set of factors. The article explores the question of how fair this type of school is to nonrefugee students, as well as the challenges educators face teaching refugee students.
Michigan forum prepares educators to help students struggling with math.
Education Week (8/11, Cavanagh) reported that at the University of Michigan’s (UM) school of education in Ann Arbor, Mich., “the Elementary Mathematics Laboratory” was held “over a two-week period this summer.” The lab program, “now in its second year on this campus, brings together teachers, college students preparing for the teaching field, and academic researchers from across the country to observe and discuss the challenges elementary educators face in trying to help students struggling in math.” UM officials recruited “[m]ost of the students” from the “Ypsilanti school system, a nearby working-class district of 4,000 students.” Deborah Loewenberg Ball, the dean of the school of education and a well-known math scholar, “helped design the program along with other faculty members at the university.” According to Education Week, “[s]tudents sign ‘contracts’ agreeing to attend the lab and take it seriously. Transportation and meals are provided. After spending the morning in class, the children take part in an arts program in the afternoon and then engage in more one-on-one or small-group math activity.”
Oklahoma program introduces incoming sixth-graders to middle school.
The AP (8/11) reported on School Zone, a program at Sapulpa Middle School in Oklahoma “that introduces incoming sixth-graders to things such as traveling to eight different classrooms, meeting all new people and having a locker.” The three-day program, which costs $25 per student, “also added parent orientation sessions this year.” Amy Warner, the program’s director, “said coming to the middle school can make new students apprehensive because they have typically been in a one-room setting with the same classmates for the last six years.” Through the program, Warner explained, “We break them into groups so they’ll get to know people from other grade schools,” and “teach them how to read their schedule and also show them where their classes are.” Educators involved with School Zone say the program “makes [students] more at ease” and “eliminates some of [the] jitters” that come with the transition to middle school.
Michigan high school students to build “green” houses.
Michigan’s Muskegon Chronicle (8/11) reported that the “Muskegon Area Career Tech Center (CTC) has established a new construction program that will have high school students building ‘green’ houses in Muskegon Township.” The students will build the “first of seven environmentally friendly houses during the 2008-09 school year,” said CTC Principal Mike Carpenter. According to the Chronicle, the home “will be built of environmentally friendly materials — including recycled products and those with low chemical emissions — and will include such energy-saving features as high-efficiency heat pump heating, low-flow plumbing and a super-insulated basement.” The center, “which is operated by the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District, has purchased seven lots in a subdivision,” the Chronicle noted. While “[b]uilding houses is nothing new for CTC’s construction trades students,” the green house “project is different in several ways, including the fact [that] the house will be listed with a real estate agent once it’s completed.” The Chronicle pointed out that the “house will include three bedrooms, a two-car garage, and full finished basement.”
Program gives Alabama educators experience with hands-on science projects.
Alabama’s Huntsville Times (8/11, Newcomb) reported on the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative Summer Institute (AMSTI), where “teachers spent two weeks…playing with bugs, making miniature airplanes out of craft sticks and comparing the size of their feet to basketball great Shaquille O’Neal’s.” AMSTI “provides training and supplies, at no cost to schools, so teachers can use hands-on projects and experiments to engage their children in learning.” Further, “teachers in grades 9-12 can take advantage of the Science in Motion program, which brings volunteer scientists and engineers into the schools to teach more advanced concepts and to talk to students about how what they’re doing applies in the work place.” One of the educators involved with the program explained, “We take them step-by-step through each lesson they will teach their children.” The Alabama Department of Education “began in the AMSTI 2002 to combat abysmal math and science scores,” and the “program is now in every area of the state and in 573 schools.”
On the Job
Impact of Teacher Incentive Fund remains uncertain.
Education Week (8/11, Sawchuk) reported, “A variety of federally financed grants based on performance pay are providing insights into how districts and teachers can collaborate to implement sustainable programs designed to improve teaching and learning.” However, “the question of whether those Teacher Incentive Fund grants will yield measurably higher student achievement, applicant pools with better-qualified teachers and principals, and improved retention of effective teachers so far remains unanswered.” The fund was created two years ago, and “[t]he 34 grantees taking part…are still in the early stages of collecting and tracking data.” In that time, “they have focused on practical matters, including the creation of systems to link teacher and student data, the provision of professional-development offerings for teachers and school leaders, and the refinement of techniques for determining pay bonuses.” Despite several setbacks, officials with the U.S. Department of Education say the project has “advanced the field [of performance pay].”
Florida program matches novice, veteran teachers.
The Miami Herald (8/11, Isensee) reported on “an intensive three-day workshop” for Miami-Dade District teachers, in which the Support Network for Novice Teachers “matches teachers in their first, second and third year with veteran teachers who serve as their mentors. The program’s goal is to help the novices succeed in their classrooms and stay in the teaching field.” During the sessions, “veteran teachers answe[r] questions and concerns of other newcomers…and shar[e] tips on how to cope with other school situations.” Topics “rang[e] from the seemingly mundane: Where to put your desk — to pretty important, like what to do when an autistic student has an outburst in the classroom.” The Herald noted, “Novice teachers are matched with mentors and meet with them about half a dozen times: before open house, before the first grade report, before the FCAT and other key times.” The program’s creator, “an education professor at the University of Miami and former” high school math teacher, said that “[t]he mentor program…alleviates teachers’ biggest issue: isolation.”
South Dakota debuts e-mentoring program. South Dakota’s Argus Leader (8/11, Woster) reported, “First-year teachers in South Dakota will have an electronic mentor this fall, the state Education Department says. The Teacher-to-Teacher Support network is open to 110 first-year teachers and 55 mentors.” The network pairs new teachers with veteran educators, “who are expected to offer support and advice on topics from discipline to parent-teacher conferences.” All of the “[m]entoring will be done through e-mail, phone calls and a video conferencing system.” Melody Schopp, “director of accreditation and teacher quality for the state,” said, “This program is about supporting our newest teachers so that they are successful and remain dedicated to the profession.” According to the Argus Leader, “mentors will receive $1,000 for their work during the year,” and “[n]ew teachers will get $500.” The “[m]oney comes from a federal program aimed at improving teacher quality.”
Baltimore schools place administrators in classroom to increase highly-qualified teacher count.
The Baltimore Sun (8/12, Neufield) reports, “Baltimore schools are poised to start the new academic year with teachers to spare, the result of a budget reorganization that sent central office administrators back to the classroom and cut staff positions in favor of tutoring, conflict-resolution and other programs.” The district currently has 141 extra teachers, who will be used “to fill the many vacancies that typically occur in the first few months of the year.” Though “the surplus has meant an anxiety-ridden summer for employees still waiting for assignments, it is expected to bring a substantial increase in the percentage of city teachers who are ‘highly qualified’ under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.” Last year, “about 55 percent of the city’s classroom teachers” were highly qualified, and school officials say that percentage will increase substantially. Also as a result of the reorganization, the average elementary school class size is expected to stay below the mandated cap of 22 students.
Law & Policy
Texas judge denies group’s attempt to block dropout grants.
In continuing coverage from previous editions of The Opening Bell, the AP (8/12, Castro) reports that a Texas district judge has “denied a teacher group’s request that the state be temporarily prohibited from giving state money to three nonprofit organizations for a dropout recovery program.” The Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) had filed suit “against the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and Education Commissioner Robert Scott last week, claiming the program’s grants to nonprofit organizations were an illegal attempt to facilitate private school vouchers.” In his ruling, Judge Stephen Yelenosky “agreed with attorneys for the state, who argued no irreparable harm would come from giving the grants to the schools.” A lawyer for the TSTA said, “‘We will continue to pursue our argument that the TEA does not have the authority’ to spend taxpayer dollars on private schools.”
Texas’s Austin American-Statesman (8/12, Alexander) notes, “TEA awarded grant money to 22 entities, including school districts, charter schools, community colleges and others. Each grant recipient will get up to $150,000 for startup costs, plus additional money for every student they move toward a high school diploma.” Education Week (8/11) also reported the story.
Some educators push for outdoor education funding.
The AP (8/12) reports, “Outdoor and environmental educators across the nation are ramping up pressure on Congress and their state lawmakers to add funding for nature learning. The effort dubbed ‘No Child Left Inside’ could mean millions more for environmental education — and a major windfall for nonprofits hoping for more federal help getting kids outside.” The “No Child Left Inside” bill’s lead sponsor, Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.), said he “hopes that when Congress revisits the No Child Left Behind law next year, they’ll revise it to include some $500 million over five years for outdoor education.” Advocates of the proposal, including “[e]nvironmental activism groups, say nature learning is crucial amid alarming rates of childhood obesity and a growing concern about the health of the outdoors.” The AP notes that currently, “[n]ew environmental literacy requirements are pending” in individual states, such as Maryland and Oregon.
Safety & Security
Alabama launches study to determine if seat belts make school buses safer.
The AP (8/11, Hunter) reported that the state of Alabama this week “launched an unprecedented three-year study to determine if” seatbelts make school buses safer. “Alabama is the first state to conduct such a study, which developed from debates following a Huntsville bus wreck that killed four Lee High School students in November 2006.” Research “will be conducted by the University of Alabama and cost $1.4 million.” For the study, “[t]welve seat belt-equipped buses were purchased for 10 participating school systems and six bus aides were hired to assist with compliance among students. Other costs include hiring more drivers and adding more buses to compensate for seating capacity that will be lost due to the addition of belts — buses with belts seat about 54 students while those without seat 72.” From the research, state “[o]fficials hope to learn the extent to which students will use the belts and their behavior on buses equipped with the restraints.”