Is the Social Emotional Leaning (SEL) craze on the right track? Before someone gets too excited with me, this blog’s title comes from an Op-Ed that Fordham Institute’s Chester Finn wrote for Education Week. Clearly, Finn is concerned. Among other things, he believes the current SEL program is just a rehash of the old self-esteem…
As Kentucky begins the debate about how to change its current Common Core State Standards-based Kentucky Education Standards into something better, I came across a very interesting report from the ACT, Inc. concerning Kentucky student interest in careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics – the so-called “STEM Careers.” ACT’s “The Condition of STEM Careers…
It has been a busy week for the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), and school choice decisions were definitely a part of the docket. Regarding the first decision, the Washington Post reports that SCOTUS ruled in a rather amazing 7-2 decision that the state of Missouri erred in denying funding to a church…
As Kentucky gets ready to launch yet another assessment and accountability system worked around yet another major education law from Washington, the Every Student Succeeds Act, we are hearing hearing once more about how “Research Shows” this or that education idea works. But, we can’t help thinking – again – that there is a TON…
Once again, Prof. Gary Houchens, a Bluegrass Institute Scholar and Kentucky Board of Education member as well as a professor at Western Kentucky University, has posted a great blog about the goals and limitations of education accountability. I highly recommend reading Dr. Houchens’ blog. By the way, at the risk of oversimplification, an education accountability…
Kentucky uses same contractor AP reports that Mississippi has fired NCS Pearson after that testing company made serious grading errors on high school tests that have impacted graduation for as many as 1,000 students. Some students who actually performed poorly on a high school history test erroneously got high scores while other students who actually…
A relatively new report from the Washington Examiner says that charter schools in Florida now significantly outperform the traditional schools in that state. Just of few of the comments include: On state exams, charter students outperformed their peers in traditional schools in 65 out of 77 comparisons; Charter students learned more from one year to…
Kentucky’s Department of Education is trying to get a handle on problems with labor union contracts negotiated by the state’s largest school district. Last month, the agency sent out a request for contractors to review the collective bargaining negotiations and agreements between Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) and its union. This is part of a…
Some sharp-eyed parents just caught my attention with their Facebook post about a very interesting section of the Boone County School District’s application to be one of Kentucky’s Districts of Innovation. Check out this waiver request (in red type) to the existing statute (in black type) to use teaching assistants (aides) in place of certified…
Thanks to a presentation on Common Core State Standards I did on Thursday, I’ve been looking at some financial information that relates to the cost changes for public education in the Common Core era in Kentucky. I have further expanded this analysis, now comparing education revenue during the last five years before Kentucky adopted Common…