Joshua Starr, the superintendent of the Montgomery County, MD, school system in suburban Washington, is no stranger to controversy over mandated testing. This blog covered his past attempt to delay testing aligned with Common Core in order to give his district teachers more time to prepare students for the changes associated with Common Core. Starr Read more about Superintendent to Parents: Upcoming State Tests Useless[…]
Wisconsin, a state of stark political contrasts, is the most recent state to face a contentious debate about whether to move forward with Common Core. A state with a strong base of liberals as well as one of the most notable conservative governors in Scott Walker, Wisconsin adopted Common Core three years ago and has Read more about Common Core on the brink in Wisconsin?[…]
According to a new issue brief by Taylor White of the Carnegie Foundation, many states and districts have begun to alter their original, one-size-fits-all evaluation processes to bring greater quality and efficiency to their evaluation systems. Evaluating Teachers More Strategically: Using Performance Results to Streamline Evaluation Systems explores differentiation strategies in nine districts, two charter Read more about Evaluating Teachers More Strategically: Using Performance Results to Streamline Evaluation Systems[…]
More than a dozen states are on track to assign A-F letter grades to schools, among the trends highlighted in a first-of-its-kind database published by the Education Commission of the States. The online database shows which indicators states are considering in gauging school performance and how state leaders are publicly reporting on that performance to Read more about ECS database highlights letter grades for schools[…]
A groundbreaking new policy guide provides state lawmakers and education advocates with a blueprint for practical changes to improve teaching quality in America — one of the most critical factors to support student success. The guide recommends research-based policies and state models that have been highly effective in developing and sustaining talented and diverse teaching Read more about Excellent Teachers for Each and Every Child[…]
With Common Core implementation imminent or underway, questions remain about the extent to which state education officials and teachers support Common Core and are working toward its implementation. Even among those who agree on the importance of Common Core, there is disagreement about how quickly tests aligned with Common Core should be implemented. One side, Read more about The Pace of Common Core Implementation[…]
With all 50 states having adopted college- and career-ready standards (CCR) in English language arts/literacy and mathematics, Achieve‘s eighth annual “Closing the Expectations Gap“ report shows how all states are aligning those standards with policies to send clear signals to students about what it means to be academically prepared for life after high school. Achieve Read more about Annual Achieve Report on College and Career Readiness[…]
Amidst all of the recent turmoil about Common Core, with some states changing the name of the standards, others considering pulling them, and others having already taken steps to pull back from the testing consortia, Kentucky stands out as a model state which has moved beyond any other state in piloting Common Core reform. We Read more about What Every Child Can Learn from Kentucky[…]
Teacher evaluation systems today are more refined and useful for improving teachers’ skills and connecting teachers to student achievement than past models, a new national report that examines states’ teacher evaluation policies by the National School Boards Association‘s (NSBA) Center for Public Education (CPE) finds. “Trends in Teacher Evaluation: How States are Measuring Teacher Performance,” Read more about K-12 Teacher Evaluation is Broader than a Test Score[…]
The state of Arizona has taken a novel approach amidst the Common Core wars. The state will not abandon the new standards; they will simply not call them by the same name. Instead of Common Core, they will now be known as “Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards.’’ The idea of changing the name by Read more about Common Core name changes, standards remain[…]
A few weeks ago, the state of Florida, while stopping short of withdrawing from participation in Common Core, revoked its participation in PARCC, the joint state-run assessment service employed by many states to assess how students are meeting the demands of the new Common Core curriculum.The Council for Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) has responded Read more about Florida withdraws from PARCC; CCSSO responds[…]
Public schools are supposed to be funded by public tax dollars, right? It turns out that many wealthy school districts or town-run schools within larger districts, especially in California, regularly garner significant funds from private donations. For example, in Hillsborough, CA, public funds spread to a total of $13,500 in spending per student, but private Read more about Private Funds and Public Schools in California[…]
Catherine Gewertz of Education Week has delved into the complicated issue of how testing for Common Core will be administered, and the results suggest that the prices of those tests, while probably fair for what they offer, may prove prohibitive for some states. What we already know is this: “Now that the new tests are Read more about Comparing PARCC and Smarter Balanced Test Costs: Are they prohibitive for some states?[…]
The Obama administration recently approved eight California school districts (Fresno Unified, Long Beach Unified, Los Angeles Unified, Oakland Unified, Sacramento City Unified, San Francisco Unified, Sanger Unified, and Santa Ana Unified) for a one year district waiver from No Child Left Behind (NCLB), in exchange for locally developed plans to prepare all students for college Read more about Waivers for States, Waivers for Districts?[…]
Schools are now being expected to implement comprehensive and complex reforms. What systemic supports exist for this transformational change? Recently, reformers have turned their attention to the governance structures that support or stand in the way of meaningful reform. In this month’s issue brief, we explore the topic of Education Governance. How should education systems Read more about August Issue Brief – Education Governance[…]
Because education is such a key element driving economic growth, states realize the need to prioritize education, but are often short on answers when facing large budget deficits. Andrew P. Kelly and Daniel K. Lautzenheiser of AEI Education recently released a new report entitled, “Taking charge: A state-level agenda for higher education reform,” that provides Read more about Taking Charge: A State-level Agenda for Higher Education Reform[…]