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U.S. Ed Department agrees to review 9 districts’ plan for NCLB waiver
The nine California districts seeking a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind Act have gotten their foot in the door. On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it has accepted their waiver application and will treat it as they would an application from other states, with a formal review. Given that the districts “collectively serve 1.2 million students – more than most states – we believe their request merits careful consideration,” the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Common Core standards, Evaluations, Featured, No Child Left Behind, Reporting & Analysis, Turning around failing schools
Most State Board members back districts’ NCLB waiver
A majority of State Board of Education members expressed strong support at their meeting Thursday for a consortium of districts’ unconventional request for a waiver from constraints of the federal No Child Left Behind law. “Congratulations,” Board member Carl Cohn told two superintendents representing the nine districts in the California Office to Reform Education, or CORE, seeking the waiver. “This restores our state’s reputation for bold experimentation. It will be interesting to see the extent to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Common Core standards, Evaluations, Featured, No Child Left Behind, Reporting & Analysis, Teacher Unions
Nine districts submit waiver for relief from NCLB
A collaborative of nine California school districts is submitting today a first-of-its-kind waiver seeking relief from the harshest sanctions of the No Child Left Behind law. The proposal would commit the participating districts to a new accountability system, focusing on student achievement but deemphasizing standardized test scores. The existing requirements and penalties would remain in effect for all of the other districts in the state. If U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan consents, the districts in … Read entire article »
Filed under: Discipline, Equity issues, Evaluations, Featured, No Child Left Behind, Reporting & Analysis, Teachers, Tests & Assessments, U.S. Education Policy
EdWatch 2013: Teacher evaluation law will be taken on again
Breakthrough agreements in two California school districts and a much anticipated report on improving teacher effectiveness have raised expectations that it might actually be possible to amend or rewrite the state’s outdated and ineffective state law on teacher evaluations in a way that can work for both unions and school districts. Prospects looked bleak four months ago. A frenetic effort to rewrite California’s 40-year-old Stull Act died when Assemblymember Felipe Fuentes, a San Fernando Democrat, withdrew … Read entire article »
Filed under: Evaluation, Evaluations, Featured, Reporting & Analysis, Teacher Collaboration, Teacher Unions
Los Angeles Unified, union cut deal on test scores and evaluations
Facing a court-ordered deadline, Los Angeles Unified and its teachers union have agreed on a framework for evaluating teachers that will include using student scores on local and state standardized tests – but only to a limited, as yet undetermined extent. The tentative agreement announced Friday, responds to a Superior Court ruling in June that found the district had failed to comply with a state law requiring that measures of student academic progress be factored into a … Read entire article »
Filed under: Evaluations, Featured, Reporting & Analysis, Teacher Unions
Report: Transform teaching by providing career opportunities
With about one-third of all new teachers in the United States leaving the profession within five years, California can stem this loss and improve teacher quality by extending time to train new teachers and providing more opportunities for career growth, a report released last week by Accomplished California Teachers (ACT) concluded. “Money alone will not transform teaching,” according to ACT. “Higher compensation should be logically tied to new professional roles and greater responsibilities as teachers progress along … Read entire article »
Filed under: Evaluations, Reporting & Analysis, Teachers
New Assembly Education chair skeptical of plan for weighted funding
Any bill to change the way that California funds its public schools will have to go through Joan Buchanan, and that could present problems for Gov. Jerry Brown. Buchanan is the new chair of the Assembly Education Committee, and, as she made clear in a lengthy interview with EdSource Today (see transcript), she’s skeptical of Brown’s weighted student formula, which he plans to reintroduce next year. Her views reflect those of suburban and demographically better off school … Read entire article »
Filed under: Charter Schools, Common Core standards, Equity issues, Evaluations, Facilities, Featured, Funding and Taxation, Getting Down To Facts studies, Reporting & Analysis, Student spending, Teacher Pay, Teacher Unions, Technology, Tests & Assessments, Weighted Student Funding (Local Control Funding Formula)
Analysis shows differences in teacher effectiveness in LAUSD
In Los Angeles Unified, novice teachers tend to be assigned students who are academically farther behind those assigned to experienced teachers. Before they depart, usually after only two years, Teach for America teachers have a bigger impact on students than that of other new teachers. And National Board Certified teachers significantly outperform other teachers in LAUSD. These are among the findings of an extensive six-year study of about a third of teachers in LAUSD by the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Evaluations, Featured, Preparation, Reporting & Analysis, Tenure, Tests & Assessments
San Jose Unified, teachers reach breakthrough evaluation, pay plan
The superintendent of San Jose Unified and leaders of the district’s teachers union have agreed on an innovative evaluation and compensation system that, if implemented, would be significantly different from any in California. With education groups in Sacramento and legislators still bruised over a grueling, failed effort to revise the state’s teacher evaluation law last summer, the San Jose plan offers hope that a progressive compromise on divisive issues is possible. Among the significant features in … Read entire article »
Filed under: Evaluations, Featured, Parents, Reporting & Analysis, Teacher Pay, Teacher Unions
Contrary to common wisdom, nothing is ‘away’ from the classroom
October 14th, 2012 | 3 Comments | By Seth Rosenblatt / commentary
Readers of my posts know that I often challenge the conventional wisdom within public education circles – a public sector “mythbuster” if you will – whether it be the myth of furlough days or the hollow critique of “waste, fraud, and abuse.” Another of my favorite examples is the all too often stated “truism” that if a school district needs to make budget cuts (as we all have had to do recently), it’s best to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Commentary, Evaluations, Parents, Principals and Administrators, School Boards