[Ohiogift] Public Education NewsBlast - June 11, 2013

[Art Snyder]

                June 11, 2013 - In This Issue:
       Hope springs eternal for the ESEA
  Graduation rates catch up with 1973
  Colorado's revolutionary funding reform
  Pre-K funding: room to grow
  The coming crisis with teacher pensions
  Camden: Four's a charm?
  Brave new teacher evaluations in LAUSD
  Door-opening data
  BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA
  BRIEFLY NOTED
  GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
                                            Hope springs eternal for the ESEA
Renewing efforts to revise No Child Left Behind (NCLB), the signature Bush-era federal education law, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has introduced a new version he says would "replace the failed tenets" of the law, The New York Times reports. NCLB, the most recent version of the 50-year-old Elementary and Secondary Education Act, has been up for reauthorization since 2007. At its core, Harkin's bill retains the most controversial plank of the current law: the requirement that states test all students in reading and math every year from third through eighth grades, and once in high school. Schools must report test scores as well as how subgroups perform against annual goals. The bill stops short of mandating use of student test scores in teacher performance ratings, but over the past two years, many states have imposed teacher-evaluation systems based in part on standardized test scores as a means to qualify for federal grants or waivers issued by the Department of Education. The department has relieved 37 states from the NCLB provision that requires all students to be proficient in math and reading by 2014. Harkin's 1,150-page bill must pass a fractured House, and Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, ranking Republican on the education committee, is introducing a competing version.?More


 
Graduation rates catch up with 1973
A new analysis from the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center finds the graduation rate for America's public schools was approximately 75 percent for the class of 2010, the most recent year for which data are available. The graduation rate rose nearly 2 full percentage points from the previous year, and 8 points over the past decade, reaching its highest point since 1973. However, it is projected a million students from this year's class will not graduate -- 5,500 students lost per school day, or a student every 31 seconds. For Latinos, graduation rates rose 16 points during the past decade, to 68 percent for 2010. Rates for black students, now 62 percent, rose 13 points over the same period. Native Americans experienced modest improvements -- an increase of 3 percentage points, but a downward trend since 2008. Rates for whites and Asian-Americans increased by 6 and 5 points to 80 and 81 percent, respectively. The white-Latino diploma gap nearly halved since 2000, with the black-white gap shrinking 30 percent. Across states, a 28-point gap separates Vermont (graduating 85 percent of students) from the District of Columbia (57 percent). Among the nation's largest school districts, Fairfax County, Virginia ranks first with a graduation rate of 85 percent; Maryland's Baltimore and Montgomery counties follow closely at 84 percent each.?More


Colorado's revolutionary funding reform

A new issue brief from the Center for American Progress looks at Colorado's newly redesigned school-funding system (pending approval by voters), which it says will significantly further equitable school funding and targeted investments in essential areas. The legislation has aspects that are similar to other states' funding formulas, with certain refinements, but a key difference is how the state will assess a given community's ability to raise funds supplemental to state funds through local (usually property) taxes. The state department of education will determine each district's total -- state and local -- funding allocation, then calculate the amount a district is expected to raise locally. The department will take into account the district's property valuation per pupil, median income, and percentage of children who qualify for the free or reduced-price lunch program. The state will then subtract this expected local amount from the district's total funding allocation. A district is not required to levy a specific property-tax rate; it is up to each district to decide how much funding to raise locally. If a district reaches a certain threshold in additional revenue raised locally, that additional revenue would be used to replace categorical program funding the district would otherwise receive from the state. Moreover, in some cases, the state will provide additional funding to a district so as to ensure that the total revenue amount raised by a district's mill-levy rate is equal to the statewide average revenue per pupil for that mill rate, 2.5 mills.?More


Pre-K funding: room to grow

An analysis by the Education Commission of the States (ECS) finds that the majority of states nationally have spared pre-K funding from the chopping block, and in about half of states, increased it -- impressive, given that at least 26 states cut K-12 spending on a per-student basis in 2012-13, and on average state budgets grew only 2.2% this year -- about half the typical rate. Funding for pre-K programs serving 4-year-olds increased by $181 million (3.6%) to a total of $5.3 billion. Of 40 states that fund pre-K, 23 plus the District of Columbia increased funding, eight kept levels the same, and eight made cuts. Eleven states still provide no funding for pre-kindergarten, but some are considering it. For instance, Hawaii passed legislation in 2012 to create an office of early learning, which will develop a plan for universal access to pre-K for the state's 4-year-olds. And states that currently invest in pre-K programs have room to grow: Colorado's pre-K program serves 67 percent of the state's low-income students; a proposal to re-work the Colorado School Finance Act funding formula would expand the program to all of Colorado's low-income students. ECS's brief includes a chart that breaks down funding by state, program name, funding for 2011-12 versus 2012-13, percentage change, and specific program notes.?More


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The coming crisis with teacher pensions
A new report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute finds that if state lawmakers fail to address the looming crisis of skyrocketing teacher-retirement costs, the impact on district budgets and classrooms will be substantial. The report analyzes costs and projects future retirement obligations in Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Cleveland, which it characterizes as cautiously optimistic (Milwaukee) to problematic (Cleveland) to bleak (Philadelphia). For example, the District of Philadelphia could find itself spending as much as $2,361 per pupil by 2020 on retiree costs alone, a tenfold increase from its current level. Leaders in two of the three states (Wisconsin and Ohio) passed impactful legislation that will place their districts on firmer financial footing, though they still face long-term uncertainty. In both Wisconsin and Ohio, employee pension contributions were raised and health benefits reduced, but by different methods. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee Public Schools was freed to cut retiree health costs without union assent. Ohio raised employee contributions, reduced benefits by increasing age and service eligibility requirements, eliminated an enhanced multiplier for teachers with more than thirty years of service, and reduced cost-of-living adjustments. Pennsylvania's long history of deferring pension funding presages disaster, according to the report.?More

     
Camden: Four's a charm?
The proposed state takeover of the Camden Public Schools sheds a spotlight on New Jersey's long -- and mostly unsuccessful -- record of intervening in struggling districts, writes Jaclyn Zubrzycki in Education Week. New Jersey enacted its state-takeover law in 1987, and 28 states have since followed suit. The state assumed control of Jersey City's schools in 1989; Paterson's in 1991; and Newark's in 1995. The situation in each district is different, but student outcomes have not improved notably after years of state oversight. If approved, the state will assume control of Camden late this month; a search for a new superintendent is ongoing. A state-run Regional Achievement Center already oversees some low-performing schools in the district, and a state monitor oversees some spending decisions. A full takeover could pave the way for bigger changes, although the state has not laid out a plan publicly. Some have suggested Camden could become all-charter or radically restructured. But Camden also has specific challenges, says Gordon MacInnes of New Jersey Policy Perspective: "You have one of the poorest and most violent cities in the United States. That should be reflected in your takeover," he said. "And you ought to acknowledge -- we didn't do a great job in the other three [districts], and this is a much harder, steeper, slipperier slope."?More



Brave new teacher evaluations in LAUSD
Los Angeles Unified is currently a testing ground for teacher-accountability measures, with the district and teacher union warily compromising on the latest pilot evaluation system, writes Ashly McGlone for The Hechinger Report. The evaluation includes the much-contested use of student test scores, but its main portion is based on intensive, time-consuming qualitative measures. In the pilot, undertaken by 1,100 administrators of 900 teachers, what was once four pages is now 26, with descriptions of what an "ineffective," "developing," "effective," and "highly effective" teacher looks like in 61 areas. (Based on feedback, the district limited reviews to 21 areas this year.) Principals must write exactly what they see and hear in the classroom as evidence and rationale for a teacher's evaluation, potentially tying them to their computers and unable to take in the entire class experience. Because principals are presently working with a single teacher in the pilot, the burden when all teachers will be observed is unclear. Teachers of grades and subjects not tested on a state exam, particularly in the early grades, must cobble together a variety of other performance measurements. Superintendent John Deasy has said the district will fully implement the changes tested in the pilot next school year.?More


Door-opening data

A report from the New America Foundation examines the federally funded efforts of Oregon and Delaware to implement data systems for use by teachers to improve instruction, assess student skills, and craft responsive lesson plans. The Oregon DATA Project (ODP) provides voluntary, job-embedded professional development opportunities to teachers grouped in Professional Learning Communities (PLCs), which are run by trained staff who guide the ODP-created curriculum. The Delaware Data Coach Program trains educators and school leaders to work with data in PLCs like those in Oregon, and is required for core subject teachers in grades 2 through 12. Both states found they could not train teachers effectively in the classroom through single, day-long professional development sessions -- data-focused professional development had to be embedded into the workday. Both used instructors and coaches from outside the school building to train teachers and develop long-term skills. The most successful schools in both Oregon and Delaware had administrators who fully embraced the power of data, integrating it into the school's culture, which generated greater teacher buy-in. Based on the experiences of Delaware and Oregon, the report concludes that if policymakers focus on student data at the classroom level and arm teachers with the necessary skills, it will open new doors for teachers and students alike. More

BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA
Reforming the unreformable?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Less than a year after convincing voters to approve a multi-billion dollar tax increase for the state's schools, Gov. Jerry Brown is on the verge of reforming a school finance system for years labeled inequitable, irrational, and excessively complex.?More
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Striking back
Teachers at the embattled Watts campus where the principal was recently ousted through a parent trigger are pledging to join forces with other schools to defend themselves from privately led overhaul efforts.?More
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Half bad
In California, only 48 percent of Head Start teachers hold a bachelor's degree.?More
BRIEFLY NOTED?
No kidding
An open letter to President Obama from America's Promise Alliance states that 4-year-olds are key to the future economy, and if they're not educated, problems will arise.?More
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Let them handle this
The top Republicans on Congress' education committees unveiled rewrites to NCLB that would give governors final responsibility for holding schools accountable and largely limit the Education Department to promoting the importance of learning.?More
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Which should give them pause
Michigan is poised to became the second state to "pause" implementation of the Common Core State Standards for math and language arts education after the state Senate approved a budget barring funding for the guidelines.?More
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Sort of sweeping
Iowa Gov. Branstad's new education plan creates leadership positions for teachers, but the final bill fails to link student performance to teacher evaluations or require Iowa high school students to pass end-of-course exams in core subjects.?More
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The enforcer
The New York State education commissioner has resolved a long and acrimonious impasse by imposing a new evaluation system that would rate New York City teachers in part on their students' test scores and streamline the disciplinary process, finally bringing New York City in line with state law.?More
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He wants the bandwidth
President Obama has called on the Federal Communications Commission to expand an existing program to provide discounted high-speed Internet service to schools and libraries, even if it means increasing fees that for years had been added to consumers' phone bills.?More

GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
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NASSP/MetLife: Breakthrough Schools
The National Association of Secondary School Principals and the MetLife Foundation Breakthrough Schools program highlights high-achieving middle or high schools, or schools that are making dramatic improvements in student achievement, whose best practices and outstanding results can inform other schools as they further their own improvement efforts. Maximum award: $5,000. Eligibility: high-achieving K-12 schools with 40% or more students eligible for free and reduced priced meals. Deadline: June 30, 2013.
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ESA: President's Prizes for Outstanding Achievement in Primary and Secondary Education
The Entomological Society of America's President's Prizes for Outstanding Achievement in Primary and Secondary Education recognize educators who have gone beyond the traditional teaching methods by using insects as educational tools. Maximum award: $400 to the winner's school to purchase teaching materials required to expand the use of insects in the teaching curriculum; $400 to the winner for expenses associated with travel required to present a paper or poster on the use of insects in primary or secondary educational programs at a peer professional venue of their choosing; gratis registration to attend ESA's annual meeting; and an $800 award to the winner for expenses associated with travel, hotel arrangements, and all other costs associated with attending the annual meeting. Eligibility: primary teachers (grades K-6) and secondary teachers (grades 7-12). Deadline: July 1, 2013.
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P. Buckley Moss Foundation: Grants for Teachers of Children Who Learn Differently
P. Buckley Moss Foundation Education Grants aid and support teachers who wish to establish an effective learning tool using the arts in teaching children with learning disabilities and other special needs. Maximum award: $1,000. Eligibility: new or evolving programs that integrate the arts into educational programming. Deadline: September 30, 2013.
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Do Something: Seed Grants
Do Something Seed Grants for youth can be used towards project ideas and programs that are just getting started, or to jump-start a program and realize ideas for the first time. These grants can also be used towards projects that are already developed and sustainable, towards the next steps of a project and organization as it looks to expand and grow impact. Maximum award: $500. Eligibility: community projects that are youth-led and driven. Deadline: rolling
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
"We've got to do a better job recognizing mental health issues in our children, and making it easier for Americans of all ages to seek help.?Today, less than 40 percent of people with mental illness receive treatment -- less than 40 percent.?Even though three-quarters of mental illnesses emerge by the age of 24, only about half of children with mental health problems receive treatment." -- President Barack Obama, in opening remarks for the National Conference on Mental Health, held at the White House.


 

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