Resisting corporate-backed ed-reform in NYC

New Coalition to Challenge Bloomberg’s Education Policies

The group is planning an ambitious effort to support mayoral candidates who pledge to reverse some of the mayor’s more contentious policies.

Confluence Charters Under Review

JEFFERSON CITY • The Missouri State Board of Education voted Tuesday to renew the charter of Confluence Academy but review it in one year while the low-performing schools undergo changes meant to improve academics.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/state-board-renews-charter-school-with-conditions/article_28978aaa-9efc-11e1-821e-0019bb30f31a.html#ixzz1v9vCBTF4

Charter school advocate says he's ready to open one in Riverview Gardens

Charter school advocate says he's ready to open one in Riverview Gardens

Mo. lawmakers approve expansion of charter schools

Mo. lawmakers approve expansion of charter schools

Charter school bill

Charter school bill

State board renews charter school, with conditions

State board renews charter school, with conditions

Blacks' test scores show some schools in city excel

Blacks' test scores show some schools in city excel

SLPS: Death by Friendly Fire

McClellan: City's public schools face yet another test

Teachers in Perspective

NY Times Op-Ed on Teacher Appreciation

East St. Louis to Lose Elected School Board

Illinois to oust East St. Louis school board


The state superintendent of Illinois schools says he intends to oust the elected board of East St. Louis Schools in the next 60 days for not acting in the best interest of students.

Imagine demise in St. Louis may signal end of era

Imagine demise in St. Louis may signal end of era

St. Louis Public Schools looks to expand to take in Imagine students

St. Louis Public Schools looks to expand to take in Imagine students

ST LOUIS SCHOOLS WATCH UPDATE

By Susan Turk.
Report on the SAB meeting of May 3, and on the closing of Imagine charters and the SLPS response: see; http://slpswatch.tumblr.com/

LEGISLATIVE ATTACK ON PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS' LABOR RIGHTS

HOUSE PASSES BILL UNDERMINING PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS AFTER AGGRESSIVE SINQUEFIELD AND STUDENTS FIRST LOBBYING EFFORT.  The House has given initial approval to a very stripped down bill dealing with teacher layoffs. Language dealing with teacher tenure was stripped out of the proposal. What remains is a change to what is often called "last in, first out." The proposed new policy would require administrators to decide what teachers to cut based first on performance, as well as training and certification, but not on salaries or seniority. 

• AP: Mo. House advances bill on teacher layoffs
• Missourinet: House advances changes to teacher layoff criteria (AUDIO)
• Missourian Opinion: DAVID ROSMAN: Missouri legislators should support teachers, not scare them off
• KMOX: Lawmakers Debate Bill on Teacher Layoffs

Turner v Clayton Decision

Breaking News on Turner v. Clayton Decision

What You Need To Know About ALEC - Diane Ravitch - Education Week

What You Need To Know About ALEC - Bridging Differences - Education Week

MORE ON MO SCHOOL FUNDING

School funding plan crumbles under economic, political strain

GAIL COLLINS ON PRIVATIZATION OF EDUCATION

A Very Pricey Pineapple

Did that headline hook you? Who can turn away from a lovely pineapple? (Now let’s tackle the topic of privatization of public education.)

LETTER FROM NATL SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOC PRESIDENT TO PRES OBAMA

Some thoughts on the direction of public education in the United States
Sent by Mary Broderick

FROM ST LOUIS SCHOOLS WATCH: THE AUDIT & OTHER NEWS

By Commonsense Publishing/Susan Turk (sls_watch@yahoo.com)

St. Louis Schools Watch April 10, 2012 Board of Education meeting SLPS Audit Announced By Susan Turk St. Louis--April 25, 2012--Mark Reuther, a representative from State Auditor Tom Schweich's office announced that St. Louis Public Schools are going to be audited. Reuther and the two other auditor's office staff members who will perform the actual field work attended the meeting. A state audit is deeper than the annual financial audits of the district.   Five areas will be reviewed.   They are contracts, bidding, information reporting, compliance with district policies and MAP procedures.   He said that additional areas might be reviewed if suggestions from the public brought more concerns to light.   Field work to gather evidence for a written audit report will take several months. Unless given reason to go back further, they will only review fiscal information for the years 2011 and 2012.   The fieldwork team will meet with members of both the SAB and the BOE in closed sessions to go over the draft report before it is made public.   Any responses to findings made by any of the board members will be included in the final report.   The evidence gathering and report writing process takes several months.   It could be complete by the fall of 2012 but it could take until early 2013.   If the findings are significant, there will be a formal follow up nine days after the release of the final report to determine if the district has implemented findings. Board members asked Reuther questions which clarified more about how and what would be done.   Member Emile Bradford-Taylor asked if individual school budgets would be reviewed.   Reuther responded that in general only the district budget would be addressed unless a specific request from the public brought something about a particular school to their attention.   Reuther offered to talk privately to board members about specific issues. Member Bill Haas asked if they would review whether the SAB was in compliance with the following statutory mandate. "MRS 162.1100.6(4) No student shall be promoted to a higher grade level unless that student has a reading ability at or above one grade level below the student's grade level; except that the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to students receiving special education services pursuant to sections 162.670 to 162.999; " Board members also asked about overlap, duplication and consistency versus inconsistency with the more than 1300 programs implemented within the district.  Board Member Chad Beffa asked Reuther whether the auditor's staff would be able to fulfill their obligations to the tax payers if they had to settle for only the information an entity they were auditing was willing to give them.   The answer was, "No."  Auditor's staff expect and get unfettered access to information.   The BOE has asked for unfettered access to district information.   The SAB has barred them from receiving it. The BOE approached the auditor's office 17 months ago and requested an audit because the SAB would not allow them to see information necessary for the fulfillment of their statutory obligations to audit and report on the district as stipulated in MRS162.621.2. Reuther said there would be an official announcement of the audit within a few days.  At this time, two weeks after his appearance before the board of education, the official announcement has not been made. Board President Katherine Wessling thanked the auditor's office for assisting the BOE with their auditing powers, which they have had "great trouble" complying with. Other BOE News from their April 10, 2012 meeting Member Rebecca Rogers reported on the district curriculum committee.   The district's policy on promotion and retention is being rewritten for the first time since 2001.   The language on the requirement that students read no more than one level below their grade level is being addressed but it is still vague. Bill Haas interjected that the legislature mandating district retention policy seems like "overreach" and "legislative micromanagement".   He also raised the specter of the Hancock Amendment's requirement that legislative mandates be paid for.   He questioned whether the legislature had the statutory authority to require retention.   He suggested a test case and a lawsuit funded by the teachers' union might be in order. Rogers spoke about a bill, (HB1425?) which dictates what school districts have to do to assist students who are below grade level in reading. It removes any flexibility from the decisions educators must make regarding retention decisions and specifies minute details for reporting to parents and interventions to assist the student. (The SAB has withheld microphones from BOE meetings for more than a year making it very difficult for those in the audience to hear what board members are saying.)  Board Member Donna Jones, asked about whether there were added resources for retained students. Becky Rogers stressed that spending millions of dollars on reading programs, a requirement of the legislation, "won't work".   The need is for adequate resources.   The legislation assumes teachers are not doing everything possible now.  Indeed the requirements in the bill are strategies which this reporter witnessed being applied in the SLPS years ago On another subject, one of the accreditation standards the district needs to achieve to regain accreditation quantifies the percentage of district graduates who either attend college or find employment after high school graduation. To achieve this accreditation point, DESE performance standard 9.4 must be met. On page 27 of theMSIP Standards and Indicators Manual it states, "9.4 Career Preparation - The percent of students demonstrating adequate preparation for postsecondary education and/or employment is high or increasing....The percent of students who complete career education programs approved by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and are placed in occupations relating to their training, continue their education, or are in the military services is high or increasing." Board members discussed the feasibility of this when the number of available seats in colleges is not keeping pace with demand and jobs are scarce in the current economy.   Indeed, half of recent college graduates are either unemployed or underemployed. Chad Beffa asked, if every SLPS graduate met the requirements for college entrance or had appropriate skills to enter the work force, could they find jobs or get into a college? Board Member David Jackson reported that parents from Peabody Elementary had complained to him that their children had been sent home from school for not having updated dental records.   One student missed a week of school because of the time needed to get a dental appointment.   J ackson requested that the superintendent be asked whether this was district policy.   He also wanted to know who was responsible for payment since, to his knowledge, there are no public subsidies for dental work. Board Member Bill Haas reported on the request for a joint meeting with the SAB about working to oppose legislation harmful to the district.   The SAB asked the BOE to provide specific concerns for discussion.    Haas surmised the SAB did not think the BOE would be helpful.                                                                                       Something New and Positive: Missouri Public School Advocates A new statewide non-profit organization whose intent is to fortify public education in Missouri is in the formative stages. Its name is Missouri Public School Advocates. According to their website, ( http://mopublicschooladvocates.org )   their stated mission is, "To stabilize and strengthen support for Missouri Public Schools."   Their goals are ·          To educate the general public about the importance of and achievements of the public schools. ·          To vigorously promote the state's responsibility for supporting the public schools. ·          To assist in securing adequate resources for the public schools. ·          To assist in recruiting the brightest and best students to become teachers and administrators in the public schools. ·          To assist in retaining the present teaching and administrative force employed by the public schools. ·          To be active in the process of determining the best state policies for the operation and administration of the public schools. According to an introductory pamphlet they, "believe the Public School is the institution which has done the most to make our country great.   This institution has provided an opportunity for every child to acquire an education and to become a productive and self-supporting human being…Our state constitution places a high priority on the public schools and makes the STATE responsible for providing adequate funding for one FREE UNIVERSAL K-12 PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM which is accessible to all children." With a board of directors made up of prominent citizens from across the state of Missouri, MPSA is getting off to a propitious start.   Its president, chief organizer and spokesman, Gary Sharpe is a former teacher, member of the Missouri House of Representatives from Hannibal and executive director of the Missouri Council of School Administrators .   He also served as the Jefferson City lobbyist for the SLPS prior to Steve Carroll. Sharpe is passionate about reversing the trend in legislation coming out of Jefferson City, legislation that is harmful to public school teachers and districts.   As a consequence, MPSA intends to impact state political culture.   They will recruit public school supporters to run for public office and work to get them elected.   If they are successful, that will change the mindset in the legislature on more issues than just education. This is a long term project.   It may take several years to achieve.   As a former state legislator, Sharpe has the institutional knowledge and political acumen to successfully guide this effort. Putting supporters of public education in office will take financial support.   To build funding, they are asking people who share their vision to join MPSA.   Members can join the effort for as little as $10. They intend for the organization to eventually represent thousands of Missourians.   A membership form follows. Missouri Public School Advocates Membership Information *Name: __________________________ Email:__________________________________ Address:________________________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________________ Cell:___________________________________ Type of Membership:   (check appropriate box) Supporting:              $10   1           $25   1           $50   1 Sustaining:               $100   1 Founding:                  $1000               1 Business:                  $1000   1 Checks and cash acceptable. Make checks payable to:        Missouri Public School Advocates Remit payment to:                    Gary Sharpe                                                       14373 Conway Meadows Ct. E                                                       Chesterfield, MO 63017 Questions or information:    contact Gary Sharpe at 573-230-3388 *Members names will be listed on the MPSA website unless members request anonymity. Calendar May 03, Thursday, irregular bi-monthly SAB meeting, 6 p.m., 801 North 11th Street, room 108. May 08, Tuesday, regular monthly Board of Education meeting, 7 p.m., Carr Lane VPA Middle School, 1004 North Jefferson. Enter from the parking lot.  May 17, Thursday, irregular bi-monthly SAB meeting, 6 p.m., 801 North 11th Street, room 108. Please note, The Schools Watch has a new mailing address, P.O. Box 1983, St. Louis, MO 63118. Our email address continues to be SLS_Watch@yahoo.com Questions for the Watch? Letters to the Editor? Stories to contribute? News tips? Send them to SLS_Watch@yahoo.com ____________________________________________________________ Please Subscribe to the SLS Watch. If you have never subscribed because friends have forwarded The Watch to you, please consider subscribing now. Internet newsletter mailing and management services are not free. The Watch has always concentrated its efforts on getting you the news and analysis of the SLPS that you value rather than on keeping itself in the black. But in order to pay our bills, we do need your subscription. For a dollar a month, you will get news, opinion, and analysis that you won't see elsewhere in the media. Please write a check today. _________________________________________________________________ Subscribe to the St. Louis Schools Watch. Name:____________________________________________ Street No.:________________________________________ City:_____________________________________________ State/Zip:________________________________________ Telephone:_______________________________________ Email:___________________________________________ I am enclosing:_____$12 for a 1-year subscription (make checks payable to Commonsense, P.O. Box 1983, St. Louis, MO 63118) _________________________________________________________________ The St. Louis Schools Watch was founded on the premises that parental and community involvement are needed for good schools to flourish, and that public participation is a cornerstone of democracy. St. Louis Schools Watch offers information and analysis that we hope contributes to a public debate over what changes are necessary to improve St. Louis public schools and what works.

KOCH BROTHERS, DEMOCRACY AND PUBLIC EDUCATION

CUNNINGHAM BILL = CAMEL EXCREMENT?

The thrills of political discourse in the Missouri Senate.

http://rturner229.blogspot.com/2012/04/springfield-senator-compares-jane.html

MORE ON ALEC: Controversial Policy Group Casts Long K-12 Shadow

Controversial Policy Group Casts Long K-12 Shadow

CONFESSIONS OF A "BAD" TEACHER

Why we should humanize and historicize the current working lives and conditions of public school teachers, instead of being seduced by the facile escape of 'blame the teacher.'

Confessions of a ‘Bad’ Teacher

By WILLIAM JOHNSON

Published: March 3, 2012

Until we provide equal educational resources to students and teachers, we can’t say how well or poorly they’re performing.

CHICAGO: LEWIS, TEACHERS UNION PRESIDENT, DEFENDS TEACHERS

Our fight for better schools

CHICAGO: CHICAGO TRIBUNE ON TEACHERS

The next teachers contract

EDUCATION FUNDING IN MO IN DEBATE

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/suburban-rural-senators-battle-over-k-12-funding-mo

APARTHEID EDUCATION IN NEW YORK CITY

On redlining and defacto apartheid education, an issue which also affects St Louis, the Schott Foundation released an analytical report on New York City today.

Apartheid Education in New York City - Democracy and Education - Education Week

and from the Schott Foundation; and the link to the report, here: http://schottfoundation.org/publications-reports/education-redlining

CHARTERS: IMAGINE GETTING CLOSED DOWN

Board Approves Closing Imagine Academies in St. Louis

DIANE RAVITCH ON MICHELLE RHEE

I Don't Understand Michelle Rhee - Bridging Differences - Education Week

The Campaign to Privatize the World | Common Dreams

The Campaign to Privatize the World | Common Dreams

CHARTERS AND TENURE

8TH GRADE TEACHER FIRED FOR TEACHING HER STUDENTS ABOUT TRAYVON MARTIN

HUMAN RIGHTS: AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE CORPORATE MODEL OF SCHOOLING

iCOPE's Getting Out From Under - A Human Rights Alternative

EQUALITY IN EDUCATION (PENNSYLVANIA)

Joanne Barkan: HOW TO BUY AND SELL SCHOOL REFORM

Dissent Magazine - Spring 2012 Issue - Hired Guns on Astrotur...

CONDY RICE ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS

http://www.cfr.org/united-states/us-education-reform-national-security/p27618

Among other gems:

"Human capital will determine power in the current century, and the failure to produce that capital will undermine America's security," the report states. "Large, undereducated swaths of the population damage the ability of the United States to physically defend itself, protect its secure information, conduct diplomacy, and grow its economy."

Now poor folks who have been shortchanged on the right to schooling become a national security threat.  Another front in the war on the poor?

RAVITCH ON PRIVATIZATION: CFR SAYS PRIVATIZATION OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS IS GOOD FOR NATIONAL SECURITY?

Ravitch: The toll of school reform on public education

From The Washington Post (Valerie Strauss)

Participatory Democracy: From the Port Huron Statement to Occupy Wall Street | The Nation

Participatory Democracy: From the Port Huron Statement to Occupy Wall Street | The Nation

BBC VIDEO ON SEGREGATION IN STL: DELMAR

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17361995

Growing Gaps Bring Focus on Poverty's Role in Schooling

Growing Gaps Bring Focus on Poverty's Role in Schooling

REX SINQUEFELD ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS

TURNER V CLAYTON: FORCING SCHOOLS INTO A CRISIS SITUATION

Clayton schools say conforming with student transfer law would be impossible

DANA GOLDSTEIN: US EDUCATION CULTURE WARS

A brief history.... (The Nation)

THE AMERICAN WAY: RIGHT TO ORGANIZE A UNION

OPINION A Civil Right to Unionize By RICHARD D. KAHLENBERG and MOSHE Z. MARVIT Published: February 29, 2012 It’s time to redefine the right to organize a union as a civil right.

ON THE DEFENSE OF PUBLIC EDUCATION, EUROPE

On the defense of public education, in Europe

Charter schools beyond St. Louis urban core?

Charter schools beyond St. Louis urban core?

DC CHARTERS: QUICK TO EXPEL

In other words, not public and not a solution, since not committed to the education of all students.

From the Washington Post.

MISSOURI SCHOOL LEGISLATION

http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2012/02/22/missouri-house-committee-adopts-education-package-bill/

BIG MONEY PROMOTES SCHOOL "CHOICE"

https://www.stlbeacon.org/#!/content/14137/proposals_could_bring_dramatic_changes_to_missouri_schools

CHARTERS: BUYING UP PUBLIC PROPERTY?

https://www.stlbeacon.org/#!/content/14053/charter_school_hits_bumpy_road_trying_to_buy_vacant_city_school_

FIREFIGHTERS BAIL OUT OF CITY SCHOOLS

https://www.stlbeacon.org/#!/content/11255/city_firefighters_sue_to_force_county_schools_to_accept_their_children

MISSOURI NCLB

https://www.stlbeacon.org/#!/content/22733/nclb_022112?coverpage=148

ST LOUIS' DILEMMA: THE HIGH SCHOOL QUESTION

A review of a book on the "Where'd you go to high school question," in the Post-Dispatch, and a humorous, insightful response, by the Riverfront Times

DIANE RAVITCH: SCHOOLS WE CAN ENVY

A review of: Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland? by Pasi Sahlberg, with a foreword by Andy Hargreaves Teachers College Press, 167 pp., $34.95 (paper) http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/mar/08/schools-we-can-envy/

Rhonda Broussard Immersion Schools | WUSTL Magazine | Washington University in St. Louis

Rhonda Broussard Immersion Schools | WUSTL Magazine | Washington University in St. Louis

Missouri NEA on New Charter Legislation

Missouri NEA Legislative Update
Week 6, No. 3, February 8, 2012

By Otto Fajen
MNEA Legislative Director


CHARTER SCHOOLS

The House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee approved a House Committee Subsititute (HCS) version of HB 1228 (Tishaura Jones) on February 8. The bill expands the authority for charter schools to cover the entire state, expands the list of entities allowed to sponsor charter schools, creates a statewide chartering commission and makes several changes designed to improve the accountability and transparency of charter sponsors and charter schools. The HCS version makes several technical changes in the language, but is substantially the same as the originally filed version of the bill in terms of both expansion of charter schools and sponsorship and accountability provisions.

The Association believes that charter schools need to meet the same standards of accountability, transparency and respect for the rights of students, parents and staff as apply to district-operated public schools. Currently, serious remedial action is needed to improve that accountability for sponsors and charter schools, and the state should adopt and implement those reforms and verify that they are working to ensure charter schools meet those standards before considering expansion of charter school territory or sponsorship. Accordingly, the Association opposes the bill and will seek to limit charter school legislation to correcting those deficiencies without concurrent expansion of either charter school geography or sponsorship.

Donna Jones on New Education Legislation

Watch Donna Jones Speak on New Education Legislation

Donna Jones on Education

http://www.youtube.com/user/STLSchoolsProject

SCHOOLS STRUGGLE WITH DWINDLING INTEREST

St. Louis Post Dispatch

by Jessica Bock

30 January 2012

Money in the bank used to generate a nice little piece of revenue for a school district — but that was before the recession.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/schools-struggle-with-dwindling-interest-income/article_4b54dda0-dc14-5a35-83bf-17ff1a2ffff0.html#ixzz1kxZ9vuZo

ST. LOUIS PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO SPONSOR CHARTERS

ST. LOUIS • St. Louis schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams announced plans Thursday to sponsor two charter schools, reversing the district's resistance to a movement that has lured thousands of students away from its schools this past decade.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/st-louis-public-schools-to-sponsor-charters/article_117a3ac1-5fa8-52ce-a1ce-6c5eeb23f191.html#ixzz1kxXUkcz3

ST. LOUIS FIREFIGHTERS SUE SCHOOL DISTRICTS OVER TRANSFERS

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

by Elisa Crouch

25 January 2012

ST. LOUIS • Members of the St. Louis Fire Department filed a lawsuit Tuesday against four school districts over their failure to allow students from unaccredited districts to attend better public schools without paying tuition.

Read More

RETIRED TEACHERS PUSH FOR COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT

St. Louis American

21 December 2011

by Rebecca Rivas

Retired union public schools teachers are asking for a raise. Retirees say they have not received an adjustment in their cost-of-living expenses (COLA) in five years. ..Read More

SLPS ACCREDITATION SINCE STATE APPOINTED BOARD

ST. LOUIS, MO, September 19, 2011 – The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has released the final Annual Performance Report (APR) data for all public school districts in Missouri. The St. Louis Public School District received six (6) APR points towards accreditation.

read more: http://www.slps.org/1962105199415040/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=56476

SLPS NEAR ACCREDITATION

JEFFERSON CITY • St. Louis Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams showed data to the state's school board Tuesday that indicate the school system is just a handful of students away from receiving the academic points needed to regain accreditation.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/st-louis-schools-are-near-reaccreditation-data-show/article_312a4e1c-8635-55ca-a302-dc11b1018da9.html#ixzz1k3E0xqAT

$96 Million to SLPS

The chief of St. Louis Public Schools on Monday ( Nov 21, 2011) announced moving one step closer to accreditation through a $96 million agreement that wipes out debt and will expand programs such as early childhood education.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/million-moves-st-louis-schools-closer-to-accreditation/article_a853b14c-1478-11e1-bd3b-001a4bcf6878.html#ixzz1k3Drb1ns

PRESSURE GROWS FOR ACTION ON SCHOOL TRANSFERS

Now that the state has stripped Kansas City Public Schools of accreditation, hundreds of parents are trying to transfer their children to better suburban districts only to find their requests denied.

Sound familiar?

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/pressure-grows-for-action-on-school-transfers/article_9e816e22-165b-524c-a9f7-cbadf1991cac.html#ixzz1k3DRntOB

IF TURNER COMES TRUE...

If parents in St. Louis could send their children tuition-free to any public school in St. Louis County, suburban schools would have an additional 13,500 students in their classrooms, a survey says.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/transfer-ruling-could-flood-st-louis-county-schools-study-says/article_cd98c969-88f3-5294-b12f-e29816d78996.html#ixzz1k3CBNpzv

High Standards for Charters

Charters Need to Do More than Not Fail

Suburbs of Kansas City Figure Out Role in Deaccreditation

Suburbs to run Kansas City Schools?

CHILE: STUDENTS RISING

CHICAGO: APPOINTED BOARD OCCUPIED

CHARTERS: IMAGINE THEM CLOSING

2 Imagine charter schools in St. Louis to close at end of school year

JON STEWART: KNOWS EDUCATION

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

FINLAND: WAY AHEAD OF THE U.S. ON PUBLIC EDUCATION

From Finland, an Intriguing School-Reform Model

By JENNY ANDERSON

Published: December 12, 2011

An educator from the Scandinavian country that ranks among the world’s leaders in school quality visited New York and explained his nation’s success.

"Profits and Questions at Online Charter Schools"

NY Times Article on (Failing) Online Charter Schools

“What we’re talking about here is the financialization of public education,” said Alex Molnar, a research professor at the University of Colorado Boulder School of Education who is affiliated with the education policy center. “These folks are fundamentally trying to do to public education what the banks did with home mortgages.”

FOOD SERVICES

Schools in St. Louis area returning to healthier, made-from-scratch meals

STATE TAKEOVER: LIKE CHARTERS, NO CURE-ALL

EDUCATION

State Takeovers of Other Districts Have Had Mixed Results

By WINNIE HU

Published: December 11, 2011

Turning control of districts over to the state has improved test scores in places like Philadelphia and Oakland, Calif., but hasn’t solved every problem.

STATE TAKEOVERS: COMMUNITIES FIGHTING BACK

EDUCATION

Growing Push in Newark to Retake School Reins

By WINNIE HU

Published: December 11, 2011

The state took over Newark schools in 1995, but with an influx of money, some parents and officials have begun to seek more local control.

"But the influx of money, and the attendant national spotlight, has galvanized a growing movement of parents, educators and elected officials who want the schools returned to local control 16 years after they were taken overamid low test scores, crumbling buildings and charges of mismanagement.
These critics say that the state has unilaterally imposed a controversial agenda — replacing principals, opening new schools, placing charter schools inside district buildings — dreamed up by outsiders and consultants who do not understand the needs of their children, and that there is not enough opportunity for input by parents and community-based advocates."

BUSINESS MODEL: DOESN'T WORK, TIME TO GET RID OF IT

Why Are the Rich So Interested in Public-School Reform?

They want to remake America's students in their own high-achieving image, but they're overlooking socioeconomics

By JUDITH WARNER

Read more: http://ideas.time.com/2011/12/09/why-are-the-rich-so-interested-in-public-school-reform/#ixzz1gKpIDsXz

CHARTERS: ON THE RISE, DESPITE CONCERNS

Number of Students Attending Charter Schools Soars

SCHOOL WARS: THE BRITISH WAY

Side by Side: On Britain's School Wars (by Stefan Collini)

A review of 

Melissa Benn. 2011. The Battle for Britain's Education. London: Verso.

DEBATES CONTINUE...

How to Rescue Education Reform

By FREDERICK M. HESS and LINDA DARLING-HAMMOND

Published: December 5, 2011

A coherent vision for federal education policy starts not by micromanaging schools, but by focusing on the four functions Washington alone can perform.

CHARTERS: MORE ON CHICAGO'S PARADOXES

Chicago's Charter Schools Facing More Scrutiny

CHARTERS: AUTONOMY DOES NOT RESOLVE DEEPER PROBLEMS

Report finds charters struggling like other CPS schools

KC: ATTEMPT TO RESIST STATE TAKEOVER EMERGING

Mayor leads attempt at community-driven plan for KC schools - KansasCity.com

The District Advisory Committee, made up of parents and community members, has said it wants the state to work with the current board still intact. The teachers union and the NAACP also want to keep the elected board.

Groups that have called for an appointed administrative board include the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City and the Mattie Rhodes Center.

The Urban Summit, an umbrella group of Kansas City organizations, joined in support of an appointed board and recommended people for the panel: Attorney Clinton Adams Jr., Urban League President Gwen Grant, the Rev. Wallace S. Hartsfield II and the Rev. Sam Mann. The group's memo to Nicastro also recommended that someone be appointed from the Latino community.

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT: RESOURCES, INEQUALITY, AND THE LAW

Drawing the Line on Parental Involvement