| The Center for Education Reform connects you to the latest education updates in the news and on the web. Friday, June 03, 2005 Detroit News, MI: Calif. Teen Spells His Way To Victory, June 3, 2005 "'Appoggiatura' was music to 13-year-old Anurag Kashyap's ears. Spelling the word that means melodic tone correctly, he clinched the 2005 national spelling bee championship...." Democrat & Chronicle, NY: Focusing on the Why of Math, Pupils Miss the How, June 3, 2005 "...it can't be overstated that conceptual curricula are a woeful replacement for standard math. The new elementary school curriculum means that pupils no longer learn or practice 'math facts' (addition, subtraction and multiplication), and are never exposed to basic algorithms such as addition with 'carrying,' subtraction with 'borrowing,' column-style multiplication and long division...." The Honolulu Advertiser, HI: State Helps Charter Schools by Boosting Spending Power, June 2, 2005 "More state money, and possibly greater oversight and accountability, is coming for charter schools under a bill signed into law yesterday by Gov. Linda Lingle. Although the increase in spending is far short of what charter school advocates had asked for before the session, the governor, state lawmakers and charter school administrators described it as a positive step toward equity for schools that have often fought to stay afloat...." New York Times: Study on Special Education Finds Low Graduation Rate, June 3, 2005 "...About 111,000 students who received special education services left the system from 1996 to 2004, and of those students, 13,672 - or 12.3 percent - graduated with Regents or local diplomas, according to Advocates for Children, the nonprofit group that issued the report, 'Leaving Empty-Handed.' In addition, 12 percent received an alternative certificate, an Individualized Education Program diploma...." Mercury News, CA: Hefty Charter School Backing, June 3, 2005 "...The Bullis-Purissima Elementary School Foundation announced Thursday it has raised the money from three donors to buy a permanent home for the new school, which was born when the Los Altos School District closed the town's only public school...." Philadelphia Inquirer, PA: Charter School Finds Proof In College Plans, June 3, 2005 "Since starting out in temporary quarters on North Broad Street four years ago, Mastery Charter High School has emerged as a success story among the city's high school charters. Mastery was recently named an exemplary charter school by the U.S. Department of Education. It received a $2.65 million grant from the NewSchools Venture Fund of California to open additional campuses over the next three years. And the Philadelphia School District has authorized Mastery to convert Thomas Middle School in South Philadelphia to a charter school in the fall...." Thursday, June 02, 2005 Los Angeles Times: 10 Districts Sue State Over Testing, June 2, 2005 "Ten California school districts sued the state Wednesday, accusing top officials of violating the federal No Child Left Behind education law by requiring students with limited English skills to take annual standardized tests in English rather than in their primary languages.
The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco Superior Court, alleges that such English-language tests produce invalid and unreliable test scores for California's 1.6-million students who are still learning the language...." New York Daily News: Tests Score for Mike, June 2, 2005 "...For the first time ever, half of all public school students passed the city's high-stakes reading and math exams - giving Mayor Bloomberg's reelection bid another boost. Bloomberg released reading test results yesterday showing that 55% of all students in the third, fifth, sixth and seventh grades passed - a 14-percentage-point gain from last year...." Arizona Republic, AZ: Early Intervention Vital In Education Process, June 2, 2005 "...'Lead with Five' recommends that every school, whether district or charter, have a powerful and effective strategy for supporting struggling students who need more time and help to get back on track...." The Washington Times, DC: Student Bodies Hit 49 Million, June 2, 2005 "Rising immigration and the 'baby boom echo' have boosted U.S. school enrollment to more than 49 million, according to two federal reports issued yesterday...." Milford Daily News, MA: Charter School Backers Say They Had To Recruit Outside Region, June 2, 2005 "Proponents of a controversial charter school say they were forced to recruit from outside the school's intended region because of the 'negative campaign' waged by local public schools against them. Parents fear going public about their decision to enroll their child at the Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School this fall because of the harassment some have experienced, said Katherine Hanson of Ashland, who has enrolled her sixth-grade daughter...." Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH: Military Charter School Faces Deadline, June 2, 2005 "...'When we see things that need to be changed, either they are changed or [the school's] closed down,' Baker said. 'We will protect the interest of kids.' The service center sponsors 100 charter schools across the state, Baker said...." Medford Transcript, MA: Mystic Valley Regional Charter School Scores on Exams, June 2, 2005 "Four Mystic Valley Regional Charter School students recently participated in several nationwide academic achievement exams. All received scores that marked significantly high achievement levels...." Voice of San Diego, CA: New San Diego Charter Schools Preparing for September Opening, June 2, 2005 "As hard as the fight was to win approval in March from San Diego Unified School District's Board of Education to transform Gompers and Keiller middle schools into charter schools, that was a cakewalk for parents, teachers and administrators, compared to the work now being undertaken to have the schools ready for business by September...." Tuesday, May 31, 2005 Laptop Learning: Schools Moving in with Students, May 28, 2005 "...More than 31,000 students were enrolled in 86 online charter schools in the United States at the end of last year, with 62 of them opening in 2000 or later, according to Lesley Heilman, deputy director of communications at the Center for Education Reform. More than 1,800 of them were Arizonans, according to the center, a pro-charter school reform group based in Washington, D.C...." Washington Post, D.C. Family Finds Voucher Journey Well Worth It, May 31, 2005 "...spending time with the Hammonds provides a glimpse of the benefits and the sacrifices that the program entails for one family. Thanks to their federal vouchers, the four children are getting a free education at a school where annual tuition normally would cost $4,500 for each of them -- a total of $18,000, which is more than Hammond's annual income. And Hammond is impressed by the differences between the Baptist-oriented Nannie Burroughs and the public school her children attended the previous year -- smaller classes, more enthusiastic teachers and fewer discipline problems. But the bus trips are long and crowded..."
New York Times: Students in Struggling Schools Start Getting Transfer Offers, May 28, 2005 "The New York City Education Department yesterday began notifying 183,000 children in public schools deemed failing by the state that they have the right to apply for a transfer to a better-performing school, officials said. The notifications, required under the federal No Child Left Behind Law, are going out more than four months earlier than last year, when the department did not offer the transfers until October, a month after the start of school...." New York Times: Devoid of Content, May 31, 2005 "...Students can't write clean English sentences because they are not being taught what sentences are...." The Ledger, FL: Justices To Decide Future of Vouchers, May 31, 2005 "For more than a decade, Jeb Bush has portrayed vouchers as a linchpin in an education revolution that would save Florida's schoolchildren from lackluster public schools. That legacy may not last past his final year in office. After two defeats in lower courts, the Florida Supreme Court is the last stop June 7 for the constitutionality of using taxpayer money to send children to religious schools...." Washington Post, DC: Eager for Flexibility, a Handful of Schools Drop AP, May 31, 2005 "...The anti-AP schools have excellent teachers and affluent, well-prepared students with good SAT or ACT scores, so they have not suffered in the competition for selective college admission -- even though they are rejecting courses those colleges like to see on transcripts. Their fortune lies with their students, some of whom are so accomplished that they take AP tests and do well even without formal AP courses...." Cincinnati Enquirer, OH: 'Helicopter Parents' Buzz Schools, May 31, 2005 "...Parents who hover too much. Some educators call them 'helicopter parents,' saying they can be over-involved, pushy, even an impediment to their children's education. Parents say they mean well and often don't realize when they've crossed the line...." WATE.com, TN: Charter School Bill Passes House, Returns to Senate, May 28, 2005 "Legislation that would broaden the eligibility of Tennessee charter schools has one more hurdle to cross before landing on the governor's desk. The bill passed the House 58-31 Friday...." The Common Denominator, DC: 19 Schools Seek Charters, May 30, 2005 "One school would mandate single-sex classrooms. Another would teach students to speak Chinese by sixth grade. One boarding school promises to show 'love' to the city's at-risk youth. These are among 19 potential public charter schools that are seeking approval from the D.C. Public Charter School Board, many with the hopes of opening their new schools by fall of 2006...." Long Beach Press-Telegram, CA: Charter Schools Get an A, May 30, 2005 "The last major study on charter schools, in 2004, produced an encouraging result: Charter students were on par with their public school counterparts academically, while enjoying a greater variety of music, art and other non-academic classes. And these results were coming at a lower per-pupil cost to taxpayers than at bureaucracy-heavy public schools. A new study released last week, from the nonpartisan EdSource, has even better news about California's charter schools: They are not merely matching public schools on academic performance any more, but exceeding them...." Monday, May 30, 2005 New York Times: Charter School 8th Graders Outdo City Public School Pupils, Data Shows, May 27, 2005 "Eighth graders in charter schools in New York City are more likely to be reading and writing at grade level than their counterparts in traditional public schools, according to an analysis of test results performed for The New York Times...." New York Times: School Law Spurs Efforts to End the Minority Gap, May 27, 2005 "Spurred by President Bush's No Child Left Behind law, educators across the nation are putting extraordinary effort into improving the achievement of minority students, who lag so sharply that by 12th grade, the average black or Hispanic student can read and do arithmetic only as well as the average eighth-grade white student...." Marblehead Reporter, MA: On 10th Anniversary, Charter Schools Toast Success, May 27, 2005 "...Romney has proposed removing the state cap on how many students can attend charter schools, and how much public funding the schools get. Last year, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives sustained Romney's veto of a proposed one-year moratorium on the schools...." Toledo Blade, OH: Ohio Lawmakers Aim To Curb Growth Of Charter Schools, May 27, 2005 "Even the biggest fans of Ohio's charter schools are trying to slow their proliferation, prohibiting mega-sponsors like the Lucas County Educational Services Center from taking on more. 'It is very clear to us that school choice is here to stay, but we want to make sure that whatever choice a parent makes for a child, it will be a quality choice,' said Sen. Joy Padgett (R., Coshocton), chairman of the Senate Education Committee...." |
