Check this out at CBS News. The overall CBS report hits a lot of very exposed nails squarely on the head. Unions are standing in the way of progress. Training for both teachers and principals needs improvement. Schools need to be run in a more orderly and business-like manner. And, it can work. CBS News…
Massachusetts probably has the best education standards in the country today. Not only does the state rank at the top on the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress assessments, but its education standards have received high marks from many reviewers. Thus, today’s editorial from the Boston Globe is catching the attention of education watchers around…
– Knox County wants even more money? – Do ALL Kentuckians have a stake here? In our ‘Why would parents prefer’ series, we’ve been talking about the academic performance of schools in the Knox County and the Corbin Independent School Districts. Knox County recently cancelled a long-standing student transfer agreement with Corbin, which allowed parents…
– Look at the difference in high school graduation rates Here’s another reason why parents would clearly prefer the Corbin Independent Schools to those in the Knox County School District. High school graduation rates in the two school districts are light-years apart. The formula used to compute the ‘Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate’ (AFGR) has been…
Kentucky reporter/commentator Ronnie Ellis writes there is growing and sharp discord between the governor’s office and key legislators. The rift could have important implications on the development of the state’s troubled budget. Ellis writes there are general feelings of disgust on both sides. Things are now deteriorated to the point where legislators must threaten subpoenas…
– Myth: Charter schools fail minorities, especially in Massachusetts On the January 18, 2010 KET Kentucky Tonight show on charter schools, Jefferson County Public Schools superintendent Sheldon Berman said in his early comments: “The data on charter schools is that it’s, it’s truly a failed reform, particularly for African-American students, particularly for low income students.”…
The Knox County Public School System remains locked in a battle for control of students with the Corbin Independent School District and the parents from Knox County who much prefer to send their children to the Corbin schools. The graphs below provide simple evidence why parents in Knox County want choice and will undoubtedly fight…
According to former school superintendent Diana Lam, “What happens when teachers and management have the opportunity to create a contract from scratch? At my school, the Conservatory Lab Charter School in Boston, we recently had that opportunity, and discovered what is possible when there is a shared school mission and no previous binding agreements.” Ms.…
Education Week reports (subscription) that a new study in Chicago shows that when principals got more authority to fire non-tenured teachers, the attendance rate of those teachers improved notably. The article also says, “In addition, principals were more likely to get rid of teachers whose students had shown less value-added achievement compared with those of…
ABC News is reporting on a new study that says girls are good at math, but teachers may make them anxious about it. Math anxious female teachers are passing along their phobias to the girls in the classroom. Boys, somehow, are not so impacted. This is an important issue because about 90 percent of elementary…