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I think that the Courts acted appropriately here in NOT letting the student run for office after her offensive remarks. Nice balance, though, letting her wear the T-shirt.

The article reflects a study we looked at in 704. The study results were poorly written and due to the limitations of the system, etc., it seemed poorly prepared and implemented. That said, some relevant data emerged.

Articles and information for parents, educative and advocates re: Sped law, Ed law & advocacy for students with disabilities

A lot has been made of the success of KIPP students and schools. Their formula doesn't seem be revolutionary (longer hours = greater achievement), but their success relies on charter school laws that allow for their existence and provide for their substanially higher per-pupil costs.

While not technically about education, this article relates to the concept of connectivism and what we are teaching our students in our schools.

"Given the experience to date with an overwhelming focus on student achievement scores as a basis for high-stakes decisions, policymakers would do well to pause and carefully examine the issues that make teacher assessment so complex before implementing an assessment plan. To facilitate such examination, this brief reviews credible research exploring: the feasibility of combining formative assessment (a basis for professional growth) and summative assessment (a basis for high-stakes decisions like dismissal); the various tools that might be used to gather evidence of teacher effectiveness; and the various stakeholders who might play a role in a teacher assessment system. It also offers a brief overview of successful exemplars."

Teacher evaluation is a big topic of our upcoming negotiations. What concerns me most is that some administrators don't complete the triennial evaluations now; how are they going to complete annual evaluations on all staff? So many questions...

For me, the most interesting aspect of this article is the continuing segregation of students in our schools by income. It also have a brief summary of what has happened in the Wake County Schools

Not entirely opposed, we might need to try it to see if it works...I recall reading how Justice Clarence Thomas chose to support public funding to private relgious schools (some might say unconstitutional) in order to create a way for African Americans to leave poorly performing urban public schools. Sometimes, you have to make a choice between a rock and a hard place.

For a fourth consecutive year, Virginia students rank third in the nation in achievement on Advanced Placement (AP) tests. Go Virginia!!

An older talk, but it still has a lot of implications for education today.

Sir Ken said that in education "mistakes are the worst things you can make." He says that it educates creativity out of the students. I agree although it doesn't really educate the students at all. If you are not allowed to make mistakes it is pretty difficult to learn. :-( Great clip. Thanks for sharing!

Posted 03-Feb-2011: Empirical research on school boards

Many whites are taking advantage of the Michigan School Choice programs to move their children from more diverse schools to ones with fewer black students, The Detroit News reports. According to the most recent US census data, released on March 22, more than 184,000 African-Americans have moved out of Detroit in the past decade, most moving to the predominantly white suburban communities and the percentage of black students in those schools has jumped.

Calls for shared curriculum for the common standards have triggered renewed debates about who decides what students learn, and even about varied meanings of the word "curriculum," adding layers of complexity to the job of translating the broad learning goals into classroom teaching.

"It was found that the state test has far-reaching effects on teaching, curriculum, school climate, students, parents, and school administration. The ideology of testing as a positive reform idea and the practice of testing as a constant and tangible threat, form the two poles of an experiential field that these educators encounter as figure and ground. The avoidance of failure and the threat of failure push these educators toward an ideological commitment to testing."

Apparently, this is the first time in 15years that the Feds have "reformed" school lunch rules. All the special interest groups are have their hands in the school lunch kitchens. Our district has made changes in the caf. selections, already. Honestly, I like being able to choose hummus, salads, and soy beans over "deep-fried everything" and pizza. However, I'm not sure if the students agree.

Reduction in direct government activities-->more opportunities for students. Really?

State policies on integrating immigrants into schools

New poll captures discontent for teacher performance and public schools.