In the News the Week of May 12-16, 2008
United Way's 10-year goals include aiding education
School Funding Litigation/Policy
CA school districts are deciding how to cope with state
budget cuts
State Roundup
D.C. Schools Chancellor plans to replace principals and
teachers, hire private education-management firms and install instructional
programs to boost student achievement in academically troubled schools
D.C. school system will try a new approach to special
education
27,000 FL seniors may not earn a diploma
because they failed to pass sophomore-level reading and math tests
SC is a step closer to revamping its education accountability
system and eliminating the standardized Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test
given to public school students
Twenty percent of UT’s high school seniors failed the state
exit exam, but achievement gaps between some groups narrowed
UT's graduation test could see some changes in the near
future, lawmakers want failure to equal loss of diploma
In the News on May 15, 2008
Attorney General appeals judge's dismissal of CT's lawsuit
challenging NCLB, and pledges to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court if
necessary
Study suggests that relationship between preschool
teachers and students might be more important to learning than class size
School Funding Litigation/Policy
CA governor may have backed off a worst-case
scenario for public education in a new budget proposal, but administrators say
his plan still could leave classrooms shorthanded
LA house votes to spend $10 million in taxpayer money to get
New Orleans children out of failing schools and into private schools
NH school funding amendment is voted down
State Roundup
FL teachers union will sue to keep off the ballot two
proposals designed to expand vouchers that let students attend private schools
at public expense
ID task force hopes to improve middle schools
PA senators are skeptical about spending millions of dollars
on proposed state graduation testing program
In the News on May 14, 2008
Commentary –
“Accountability that works:” an accurate and fair school
accountability system remains elusive
School Funding Litigation/Policy
MO approves an additional $130 million for K-12 education in
fiscal budget, an increase of 2.5 percent
In order to pass,
proposal for NH school funding amendment has
to clear a high bar
State Roundup
Salary increase for AR teachers in the 2004-05 school year,
a result of the state’s landmark school funding case, appears to be paying off
in terms of teacher retention
AZ senators vote to extend the ability of high school
seniors to use their grades to supplement their AIMS scores and graduate with
their classmates
FL teachers union gears up to campaign against amendment
that would authorize school vouchers
MS tells superintendents “fix your low-performing school
districts within a two-year period, or you’re out”
PA plan to require high school students to pass graduation
competency exams sparks debate
Critics have often accused NCLB of being too harsh, but when
it comes to the worst-performing schools, “the 2001 law hasn't shown much bite”
FL gets a C+ for difficulty on NCLB reading and math tests
School Funding Litigation/Policy
TX school officials say school funding system does not
provide money to cover rising costs and the plan’s tax revenue straightjacket
will allow inflation to push school districts into bankruptcy
State Roundup
AR State Department of Education will pay millions of
dollars to several school districts in the coming months to align with a 2007
school-funding law
Former mayor says D.C. school system has become one of the
nation's worst in terms of educating children, and supports a school voucher
program
SC senator says education experts, not lawmakers, should be
responsible for what kind of test public school students take to hold schools
accountable
SC develops pilot
program to give low-income students laptops
TX educators say students should be measured on progress and
not punitive measures
In the News on May 12, 2008
Pay-for-performance programs for school leaders should look
beyond high-stakes exams to award bonuses, says the National Association of
Secondary School Principals
U.S. Department of
Education calls for consistent ELL measures
School Funding Litigation/Policy
New documents justifying the hundreds of
earmarks in the proposed $2.3 billion state capital budget describe AK school
grounds fraught with peril for children
NC governor will
propose increasing state government spending by less than half as much as last
year, as he tries to provide for his signature education programs
Audits of NJ's most troubled school systems question over
$83 million in spending by the heavily state-subsidized districts
State Roundup
Advocates say some of
CA’s most gifted students are being ignored
Study says helping students in poor and urban schools should
be MA’s top priority
Published Monday, May. 19, 2008