California Referendum Would Tie Teacher Layoffs To Performance

KERO-TV Bakersfield, CA (1/3) reports that a California ballot initiative backed by StudentsFirst “would require teachers layoffs to be based on performance rather than seniority.” The piece notes that the group and other supporters are set to begin seeking petition signatures.

USDA Relaxes Healthier School Lunch Guidelines

Reuters (1/3, Cooney, Krasny) reports that USDA has announced that it is making permanent a decision late last year to relax new school lunch calorie and portion restrictions, quoting USDA Undersecretary Kevin Concannon saying, “Earlier this school year, USDA made a commitment to school nutrition professionals that we would make the meat and grain flexibility permanent and provide needed stability for long-term planning. We have delivered on that promise.”

Incoming New York Chancellor Signals Middle School Focus

The AP (1/3, Peltz) reports that as she began her job on Thursday, New York City Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina stressed “that middle schools would be an early focus of her tenure,” telling students “in a rather animated Bronx classroom that she likes it when learning makes some noise.” Noting that Farina will face significant challenges in supporting middle school education and backing Mayor Bill de Blasio’s pledges to improve parental engagement, the AP reports that Farina said that “improving students’ engagement in middle school...increases their chances of progressing to and graduating from high school.”

 

Philadelphia Schools Struggling To Cope With Fiscal Crisis

The Philadelphia Inquirer (1/6, Graham) reports on the difficulty administrators at Philadelphia’s Kensington High School for the Creative and Performing Arts have in covering the jobs that were left vacant when climate managers, counselors, assistant principals, and other aides were laid off as a result of “the Philadelphia School District’s financial implosion.” Noting that the district cut “hundreds of millions” from its budget to try to deal with its massive deficit, the Inquirer adds that many schools “lack counselors, extracurricular activities, and key programs.”

Common Core

Mathews: Teachers Want Common Core, So Keep It.

In his “Class Struggle” column in the Washington Post (1/6), Jay Mathews writes that the Common Core Standards will not do anything to change the main indicators of academic success, which he lists as family income, teacher proficiency, and student effort. However, he writes that this does not mean that “we should dump the new standards,” because surveys suggest that most teachers “want to try them anyway.” he writes that this is important because teachers’ job satisfaction and confidence are “crucial to schools’ success.”

 

Common Core Criticism Complicates North Carolina Testing Plans.

The Charlotte (NC) Observer (1/2) reports that though North Carolina has been part of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, the “backlash” against the Common Core Standards “has complicated the decision on whether to adopt the national tests” the consortium generates. The piece notes that the legislature has barred the state Board of Education “from spending any money on new tests linked to the standards, including SMARTER Balanced,” without legislative approval. Meanwhile, the BOE has postponed a vote on the issue that had been scheduled for next week to “get more information on options and what other states are doing.”

Common Core Faces Myriad Criticisms.

The AP (1/6, Elliott) reports on the “relentless warnings” from Common Core critics, who “say they were written in private and never tested in real classrooms, and that educators aren’t familiar enough with” them. Moreover, critics also cite the “multi-billion dollar price tag” that come with the standards. Opponents also pan the unfamiliar classroom content, but supporters say that such“worries are overblown and miss nuances” of the standards. Critics also “argue that states were pressured to sign onto the Common Core standards to get federal economic stimulus money to keep teachers on the job.” The article notes, near the end, that Education Secretary Arne Duncan “has little patience for the criticism,” noting that he has pushed back against accusations that the Common Core constitutes a “federal takeover of the curriculum.”

Common Core Inspires “Strange Bedfellows.”

The AP (1/4, Elliott) reports that both opposition to and support for the Common Core Standards have “yielded strange bedfellows,” noting that teachers unions are “linking arms with tea partyers” in opposition, while President Obama is “working in tandem with the US Chamber of Commerce and energy giant Exxon.” Meanwhile, the AP reports that there has been significant GOP infighting over the standards, reporting that once small-government desiring tea party activists gained prominence, “they targeted the standards and forced lawmakers to choose between the business wing of the Republican Party and them.”

Mississippi Common Core Opponents Preparing Legislative Push.

The Biloxi (MS) Sun Herald (1/4) reports that opponents of the Common Core Standards “have been trying over the past year to build opposition to” the standards, and are now “bringing that opposition to the Capitol,” with a rally planned for this week at the state Capitol. However, “key lawmakers continue to signal support.”

New York Regents Task Force Analyzing Comments From Common Core Forums.

The AP (1/6, Thompson) reports that a new task force of the New York Board of Regents is planning to analyze public comments from “a series of volatile public forums” on changes related to the state’s rollout of the Common Core Standards. The AP reports that the intention is to generate “ideas for smoothing the way forward” on Common Core implementation, noting that at the meetings, “parents, teachers and students described excessive and stressful student testing and a loss of creativity in the classroom.”

Florida Preparing To Transition To Common Core Assessments.

The Tampa Bay (FL) Times (1/6) reports that the Florida Department of Education is preparing for the “herculean task” of “choosing, and then deploying, the next generation of standardized tests.” The piece notes that the state is replacing its Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test with Common Core-aligned assessments, adding that state officials say that the plan to make the switch in the next 18 months is on schedule. The article notes that though Florida had been participating in the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, Gov. Rick Scott in September “raised concerns about the cost and technology requirements, and directed the state Education Department to consider other options.”

New York Education Chief Defends Common Core.

The Huffington Post (1/2, Klein) reports that New York Education Commissioner John King has written a letter to superintendents and other administrators around the state to “defend” the Common Core Standards and to “clear up what he called ‘misinformation’ being spread about them.” King concedes in his letter that the rollout of the standards has caused some problems in the state, and the Post notes that he has “faced backlash from citizens who felt the process was rushed and done without transparency.”

Delaware Governor Touts Early Childhood Education Progress.

The AP (12/20) reports that Delaware Gov. Jack Markell says his state “is making progress in improving early childhood education, particularly for low-income children,” saying that the “proportion of low-income kids in high-quality early learning programs has grown from one in 20 to one in three” over the past three years. The AP notes parenthetically that Delaware won a Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge grant in 2011.

Los Angeles Officials Reduce Number Of iPads Requested For Testing.

The Los Angeles Times (12/20, Blume) reports that officials in the Los Angeles USD “have sharply reduced the number of iPads they say are needed to carry out new state standardized tests,” noting that despite the $25 million in savings from the move, “examination of the testing plan has raised more questions about the $1-billion effort to provide the devices to every student, teacher and school administrator in the nation’s second-largest school system.”

Mississippi Schools Adapting To Common Core.

Hechinger Report (12/23, Mader) reports on classroom-level changes taking place in Mississippi under the Common Core Standards, “which are slowly transforming the approach to teaching and learning” in the state. The piece explains that most districts in the state are phasing in the standards “just in kindergarten, first- and second-grades over the past two years” to avoid “the pressure of standardized testing, which begins in third grade.” The piece notes that Mississippi is likely to face added challenges because “its old standards are so weak compared to those in other states.”

Common Core Debate Intensifies In North Carolina.

The Statesville (NC) Record & Landmark (12/23) reports that the debate over whether to withdraw from the Common Core Standards “kicked into high gear this week” in North Carolina, noting that the state legislature’s Research Commission Common Core Study Committee “met for the first time Tuesday in Raleigh.” Witnesses on both sides of the issue “presented their thoughts and research,” the paper reports.

Many Ohio Districts Lack Technology Capacity For Common Core Tests.

The Columbus (OH) Dispatch (12/22) reports that over a third of Ohio districts recently surveyed “say they are not ‘technology ready’” to give online tests aligned with the Common Core Standards. The piece notes that a group of state lawmakers are drafting language to “push back the start of online tests so schools can address technology issues.” The article describes schools with both a dearth of computers and unreliable Internet access.

Maryland Parents Complain Standardized Tests Are Outdated.

The Washington Post (12/23, George) reports that parents in Montgomery County, Maryland are complaining that their children are taking “outdated exams that no longer reflect their classroom teaching,” and are calling for the cancellation of next spring’s Maryland School Assessments. The piece describes the grassroots opposition to the tests, which critics say “lack purpose — and take away time that could be used for instruction — because they do not reflect the Common Core standards now being taught.”

Idaho Students To Take SBAC Exam In March.

The Idaho Statesman (12/21) reports that Idaho students will take “the hardest, most demanding and likely longest statewide assessment ever given” in the state in three months’ time, as districts implement the test crafted by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium. The piece notes that a group of superintendents with concerns about technology issues and the length of the tests met with state Superintendent Tom Luna last week “to air their worries and ask for changes to the exams.”

Mississippi Executive Order May Have Eased Common Core’s Implementation.

An AP (12/22, Amy) analysis reports that Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant “may have been doing supporters of the Common Core standards a favor” by issuing a recent executive order “inveighing against a possible federal takeover of education in Mississippi.” The piece explains that the order did nothing to stymie implementation of the standards, and may have lessened pressure on “fence-sitting lawmakers, blocking progress on legislation that would reverse or stall Mississippi’s implementation of the standards.”

Mathews: Many Teachers Give More Homework Than Necessary.

In his “Class Struggle” column in the Washington Post (12/23), Jay Mathews writes about complaints that teachers often give larger or more burdensome homework assignments than are necessary to reinforce lessons, noting that even seasoned educators are critical of giving too much homework, saying that it can be an attempt to persuade parents that they are teaching with rigor.

Utah Teacher Pay Highest In Decades.

Pay The Provo (UT) Daily Herald (12/23) reports that according to recent teacher pay data, “Utah’s teacher pay is the best it’s been since 1980.” The piece explains that the average teacher in Utah earns $49,393, noting that this is still “18th below the national average.” The piece notes that while this is lower than the national average, it is “on par when compared to the region.”

Paper Laments Low North Carolina Teacher Pay.

The Hampton Roads (VA) Virginian Pilot (12/23) editorializes that though North Carolina was “once a beacon of education in the South,” NCES data show that the state ranks 48th in the nation in teacher pay. Moreover, NEA data show that average teacher pay in North Carolina “declined 15.7 percent between 2002 and 2012,” leading to “the highest departure rate in five years.”

IBM, Exxon Criticize Texas For Backing Away From Math Standards.

Bloomberg News (12/23) reports that Texas in 2006 “became the first state to require advanced algebra for high-school students,” noting that the policy resulted in “higher average test scores” and less need for remediation in college. The piece notes that other states followed suit, but that Texas now is “rolling back the requirement for Algebra II under pressure from lawmakers, some educators and business trade associations.” However, “a coalition of corporate interests including IBM Corp. (IBM), Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and the Texas Association of Business” oppose the move.

New York School Goes Fully Digital For Textbooks.

The AP (12/23, Fitzgerald) profiles Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York, where “nearly every book—from freshman biology to senior calculus—is now digital, accessible on students’ laptops and tablets.” The article reports that the per-student cost of books dropped from $600 to $150, and notes that with some exceptions, “all the texts the school uses are part of a digital bookshelf kept on an Internet cloud.” The piece quotes Vice Principal Frank Portanova saying, “We went to digital because it makes for better learning. This is the way kids learn today. And the online content is a lot richer. You’ve got assessments, you’ve got virtual labs, you’ve got blogging.”

Philadelphia Taking Part In Early Literacy Campaign.

The Philadelphia Daily News (12/23, Leach) reports that Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and Superintendent William Hite have announced that the city “has signed on to take part in a national campaign to boost literacy in the early grades.” The piece explains that the goal of the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is “to double the number of students reading at grade level by the end of third grade...by 2020.”

Missouri Legislator Calls For September To May School Calendar.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (12/23) reports on a bill in the Missouri Legislature to “ensure schools don’t start until September and end before June.” Moreover, the bill would “make summer school attendance mandatory for students who score less than proficient on statewide tests.”

Education Experts Concerned About GED Overhaul.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (12/23, Vitez) reports that as the GED test is overhauled at the beginning of the year, with a focus on promoting better job skills, “many experts fear thousands, especially older Americans, will have little hope of passing the new test.” The paper notes that there has been “a mad rush across the region of people trying to pass all five parts of the exam before it expires.”