We’re hearing lots of commentary about switching the country over from fossil fuel energy to other sources. One of the most frequently mentioned is wind generation. Well, that may not be quite as viable an option as some would like us to believe. Aside from many interesting technical issues involved with creating and maintaining a…
The Courier-Journal reports about the anticipated impact of increased admissions requirements in Kentucky’s public colleges next year. This is very bad news, as Kentucky’s college remediation rates are already high. The largest impact of the new change will probably be felt in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, which handles most of the state’s…
The Center for Responsive Politics just released a new report and database on the top political campaign donors. Heading the list is —- The National Education Association, the parent of the Kentucky Education Association – the teachers union. The NEA gave a total of $56,349,269 to federal and state campaigns in 2007-08. Of that, the…
I got a question from the post yesterday about how Jefferson County’s reading performance doesn’t stack up against the real scoring from the Kentucky Core Content Tests. So, I am going to add to the discussion, this time using examples from the eighth grade EXPLORE reading tests from the ACT, Incorporated. First, as this graph…
– US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan Quoted in Education Week (subscription) Secretary Duncan continues, “…teacher evaluation is divorced largely from student progress, student success, how do you defend that?” Here in Kentucky no teacher has ever lost a license due to fundamental inability to teach. Not one. Unless they commit a crime, it is…
– Others chime in I wrote yesterday about the interesting bait and switch of earmarked dollars at the Phelps High School. Now, the Lexington Herald-Leader is asking questions, as well.
WAVE 3 TV in Louisville reports that about $60,000 of a $120,000 included in the state budget to enhance academics at Phelps High School (Pike County) actually ended up in the athletics department. Apparently, still other funds could not be accounted for. We’ve written plenty about the very poor MUNIS education financial accounting system in…
Jim Waters just posted an excellent commentary on the deceptive reading test results that the Jefferson County Public School system has been handing out through the Every1Reads program. Jefferson County turned true reading scores from the Kentucky Core Content Tests (KCCT) part of the state’s CATS assessments on their ear. Instead, Jefferson County invented its…
Penny Sanders, Kentucky’s first-ever director of the Office of Education Accountability, has been involved with KERA from the get-go. So, comments in her post about “Unfinished Business” are worth everyone’s time to read. I talked to Penny about “Unfinished Business,” and she definitely thinks it is time to look at charter schools as a way…
The Alliance for Excellent Education just published an analysis of the economic costs of high school dropouts for 50 of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. That includes this report for the Louisville area. High schools in Louisville and the surrounding 13 counties lost over 30 percent of their students prior to graduation according to the…