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A
comprehensive look at the opportunities to learn in the U.S.
The Schott Foundation for Public Education has released a new
50-state report on the opportunity to learn in America. "Lost
Opportunity" is a state-by-state analysis of student performance
data reported by state departments of education that determines the
opportunity to learn in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
The Schott Foundation used resource models to identify the four core
minimum resources that are necessary if a child -- regardless of
race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status -- is to have a fair and
substantive opportunity to learn: high-quality early childhood
education; highly qualified teachers and instructors in grades K-12;
college preparatory curricula that will prepare all youth for
college, work, and community; and equitable instructional resources.
As the nation observes the 55th anniversary of the landmark Brown v.
Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court decision, the study shows that
minority and low-income students have half the opportunity to learn
in public schools that their white, non-Latino peers do. The report
also gives a state-by-state comparison of both academic proficiency
(percentage of students scoring at or above proficient on eighth
grade NAEP reading measures) and equity (as measured by a tool
created by the Schott Foundation, called the Opportunity to Learn
Index).
The limits of transparency
Transparency is useful but will not, on its own, bring reform,
writes Andrew J. Rotherham in U.S. News & World Report. This was
shown with the No Child Left Behind Act, whose architects now
concede they thought information alone would in large part drive
change. In fact, says Rotherham, over the past half-century,
"federal education policy has succeeded only when coupled with civil
rights laws or linked to clear conditions and enforcement." For this
reason, he finds aspects of the Obama education policy
"disconcerting." The $100 billon in stimulus education spending, an
amount close to 16 percent of annual federal expenditures on public
schools, requires that states supply data on student performance and
make "assurances" they'll work toward improvement. The bill does
not, however, require actual change. In Rotherham's view, "parents
and students lose in the policy battles more often than they win
because information alone does not force change on powerful
stakeholders or the formidable array of special-interest groups
resisting reforms with costs for the groups they represent. In that
way, education reform is an old story in a representative democracy
like ours: The unorganized general interest is often trumped by
organized special interests."
Cradle-to-prison, not cradle-to-college
In The San Francisco Examiner, columnist Caroline Grannon asks: Why
are so many black boys disrupting class? She reproduces a post on
the blog Perimeter Primate, which deems these kids part of "the
incarcerated class" -- those who are pre-, currently, or
post-incarcerated, and their offspring. This echoes a recent essay
by Marion Wright Edelman on a cradle-to-prison cycle that entraps
many of the urban poor. To the blogger's mind, "The extreme
numerical escalation of this group is what feeds the interest in
charter schools. The non-I.C. parents who live in areas where
members of this class are numerous are desperate to separate their
kids from the offspring of the incarcerated class." I.C. kids are an
expanding population in public schools, yet educators are failing to
meet the specific challenges these students bring. "Legal arguments
and important civil rights concerns have all restrained public
schools from developing the strategies that would be necessary for
dealing with large numbers of kids from the subgroup of children
experiencing risk factors that increase the likelihood that they
will end up in prison." In her opinion, their behaviors are a social
disability, and treatment should be funded accordingly. "Bad school
climates are what drive parents away. Public schools will need a
great deal of help to manage their increasing numbers of this
most-difficult-to-educate population."
Read the blog post at:
http://perimeterprimate.blogspot.com/2009/04/where-sociology-criminology-and-charter.html
See Wright Edelman's essay at:
http://www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/marian-wright-edelman-child-watch-column/Cradle-to-prison-pipeline-americas-new-apartheid.html
Drastic times demand drastic characterizations in support of mayoral
control
In his recent visit to Detroit, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
declared the city's school system "ground zero" for education in the
United States, comparing it to New Orleans' after Katrina, minus the
hurricane, The Associated Press reports. The visit was the second in
Duncan's national "Listening and Learning Tour." Duncan is a strong
proponent of mayoral control for this and other ailing systems, and
said he is encouraged by Mayor Dave Bing's interest in turning
around the Detroit Public Schools. An elected school board currently
runs the system, and Detroit voters in 2004 overwhelmingly turned
down a proposal to hand power to the mayor, but the zeitgeist is
changing the views of the electorate. "It's going to be a
legislative effort," Bing said of mayoral control. "But I think the
mood of this city and its citizens has really changed since five
years ago. Everybody is pretty much outraged with the outcomes at
this point, and a change is necessary." Gov. Jennifer Granholm
recently appointed a district emergency financial manager, whose
control over the system's budget and hiring decisions has sapped
much of the school board's power.
See an abstract of the study:
http://www.freep.com/article/20090515/NEWS01/90515072/1001/news/33+Detroit+principals+fired+in+school+shakeup
Weight bias in the classroom: tools for educators
Overweight or obese children are vulnerable to weight bias and may
be the target of stereotypes, prejudice, and unfair treatment
because of their weight. A new resource from the Rudd Center for
Food Policy and Obesity helps schools and educators think about and
intervene in weight bias issues. Weight bias can be expressed in
different ways among students: verbal comments (e.g., name-calling,
derogatory comments, and teasing); physical aggression (e.g., being
pushed, shoved, kicked, and bullied); and social exclusion (e.g.,
being avoided, ignored, and excluded by others). The bias most often
occurs in the school setting, according to the center, but teachers
can play an important role in reducing it. Studies show that
overweight and obese children who are victimized because of their
weight are more susceptible to depression, low self-esteem, and poor
body image. Some research has also demonstrated that victimized
obese youth are two to three times more likely to engage in suicidal
thoughts and behaviors than overweight children who are not
victimized. Weight bias also limits children's social relationships,
making them more likely to be socially isolated and less likely to
be chosen as friends.
Merit pay has new detractors
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) cautions that
merit pay for teachers may not be all it's cracked up to be,
according to Education Week. Incentive plans are less common than
the current debate in education implies, the report says, and
research suggests that pay-for-performance schemes can have contrary
results. John S. Heywood, an economist who co-wrote part of the
study, is a skeptic: "A general lesson from [the private sector] is
that when you have jobs where it's hard to identify all the
dimensions of productivity, and when it's hard to measure all the
individual contributions of productivity, formulaic pay plans tend
to be suspect and do more harm than good." Part of the problem,
according to economist Richard Rothstein, is that bonus plans based
on narrow indicators often lead to unintended, negative consequences
-- workers may game the system, or the measures themselves may
induce perverse incentives. For instance, researchers documented
with health-care "report cards" listing mortality rates on a
hospital-by-hospital basis that some providers declined to treat
more difficult, severely ill patients. The EPI report is the first
of three on teacher merit-pay programs, aiming to add context to the
current pay-for-teacher-performance debate.
See the report:
http://www.epi.org/page/-/pdf/20090514_merit_pay_pr.pdf
Related:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/051809dntexmerit.4530d1d.html
ETS parses the achievement gap, again
A new report by the Educational Testing Service follows up on a 2003
study that examined how life experiences and life conditions
correlated to cognitive development and student achievement.
"Parsing the Achievement Gap II" brings the synthesis of research up
to date, and further asks if the gap among various population
subgroups has narrowed in the intervening years. (Answer: no.) As
with the first report, the follow-up identifies 16 factors as they
correlate to achievement. These break down into three clusters --
school factors, home and school connection, and factors present
before and beyond school. School factors are curriculum rigor,
teacher preparation, teacher experience, teacher absence and
turnover, class size, availability of instructional technology, and
school climate. The home-school factor concerns parent
participation. Factors before and beyond school are frequent
changing of schools, low birth weight, environmental damage,
nutrition, talking and reading to babies, excessive television
watching, parent-pupil ratio, and summer achievement gain/loss. As
Debbie Viadero points out in her Education Week blog, the report
doesn't sound like breaking news, but it yields some startling
statistics. For instance, in 2007, more than half of
African-American 8th graders, compared with a fifth of white 8th
graders, had a teacher who left before the end of the school year.
Among students poor enough to qualify for federal free-lunch
programs, two-thirds had teachers who failed to finish out that
year.
See the report:
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/inside-school-research/2009/05/getting_at_the_causes_for_naep_1.html
Study pinpoints indicators for dropping out as early as 6th grade
A new study from Johns Hopkins finds that Denver students who get at
least one failing grade on their report cards, even in sixth grade,
are at higher risk of dropping out of school later. The study
analyzed data from the 3,657 students who dropped out of Denver
schools in the 2006-07 year, finding common characteristics. In
ninth grade, most dropouts had gotten at least one F that year, a
third had four or more F's in a semester, and two-thirds had missed
20 or more days of school. In sixth grade, one third of the dropouts
had been failing at least one course, 44 percent had missed more
than 20 days of school, and one in five had at least one suspension.
Most dropouts were male, 61 percent were Latino, and 84 percent quit
in high school, with most kids leaving freshman year. While the
overall gist of the report is not news to Denver educators, it
underscores the urgency of the issue and the need to reengage
disaffected teens and intervene as early as possible. "Part of the
solution is paying attention," said Steve Dobo, director of Colorado
Youth for a Change, a nonprofit that works on the dropout problem.
Related:
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site36/2009/0515/20090515_122610_Denver_Dropout_Report_Final.pdf
BRIEFLY NOTED
Public education's odd couple
Newt Gingrich and the Rev. Al Sharpton team up for education reform.
What, no Joel Klein?
L.A. high school dropout rate climbs to 35 percent
Rates rose in the city, where more than one-third of students are
officially classified as dropouts.
A wild idea, but it just might work
Suburban Chicago high school teacher leads class in chi-renewing
exercises before each lesson.
In with the new in North Carolina
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will bring in 100 new Teach For
America cadets as the district lays off experienced teachers next
school year.
Helping kids learn what it takes, post-graduation
New Colorado legislation requires that every ninth-grader sign up
for a state-run website that helps them plan their post-secondary
life, academically and financially.
Delaware teachers walk out on the bell
In school districts across the state, teachers and other school
employees are participating in a "Bell to Bell" demonstration to
protest Gov. Jack Markell's proposed eight percent salary cut for
all state employees.
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"Youth
Service America: Gladys Marinelli Coccia Awards"
Youth Service America is launching its first annual Gladys Marinelli
Coccia Awards to recognize young female social entrepreneurs whose
initiatives serve the common good. Maximum award: $2,000 for the
winner's social enterprise, travel to and registration for Youth
Service Institute, an invitation to serve on the executive board of
Girls Helping Girls, and access to YSA's resources to support and
expand social enterprise. Eligibility: girls between the ages of 14
and 17 (as of December 31, 2009) who reside in the United States and
have their own social enterprise. Deadline: June 15, 2009.
"Disney/YSA:
Minnie Grants for youth-led service projects"
Disney Minnie Grants fund children's efforts to improve their
communities via youth-led service projects that address the issues of poverty,
hunger, education, environment, global citizenship, sustainable community
development, and disaster prevention and relief. Funded projects must take place
between September and November 2009. Maximum award: $500. Eligibility: children
between the ages of 5 and 14, or the organizations that engage them.
Applications are accepted from all over the world. Applicants from India, China,
and Russia are especially encouraged to apply. Deadline: June 15, 2009.
"Save-the-Redwoods
League: grants for redwood education"
The Save-the-Redwoods League, a nonprofit organization that works to
protect the ancient redwood forest from destruction, will grant funds to
schools, interpretive associations, and other qualified nonprofits engaged in
quality redwood education. Grants are designed to foster and encourage public
awareness of redwoods, redwood ecology, and forest stewardship. Maximum award:
$5,000. Eligibility: schools and 501(c)3 organizations. Deadline: June 30, 2009.
"KnowledgeWorks/American
Architectural Foundation: Richard Riley Award"
KnowledgeWorks Foundation and the American Architectural Foundation
seek submissions for the Richard Riley Award, which recognizes design and
educational excellence in "schools as centers of community" -- schools that
provide an array of social, civic, recreational, and artistic opportunities to
the broader community and to students, often clustering educational and
municipal buildings together. Maximum award: $10,000. Eligibility: all existing
elementary and secondary public schools. Deadline: July 1, 2009.
"American
Legion: Grants for Child Welfare"
American Legion Child Welfare Foundation Grants to Help Children
fund proposals that contribute to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual
welfare of children through innovative organizations and/or their programs
designed to benefit youth. Maximum award: $70,000. Eligibility: 501(c)3
organizations. Deadline: July 15, 2009.
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