Afternoon Announcements: Chicago Students Boycott State Exam

A number of Chicago high school students plan to boycott a state exam, saying that it’s unfair that their results will be used to judge the quality of their school. Two student-led groups have organized the protest – Voices of Youth in Chicago Education and Chicago Students Organizing to Save Our Schools. WBEZ

House Republicans are asking questions about No Child Left Behind Waiver implementation. They’ve sent their questions to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, along with state chiefs who were approved for the flexibility from provisions in the law. Politics K-12

New research from the Pew Research Center shows that American students aren’t doing as poorly on international science tests as the public thinks. Many Americans surveyed incorrectly assumed that U.S. 15-year-olds scored near the bottom on international science tests. Huffington Post

An interesting feature looks into how standardized testing can help low-income students. It looks into the Atlanta teaching scandal, refuting the misplaced idea that teachers need to cheat in order for low-income students to “pass” exams. The Atlantic Read Entire Post

Afternoon announcements: Teachers rank highest in 'well-being' among professionals

Chicago teachers, public school supporters, and even students rallied and marched against the closing of 53 elementary schools. The Chicago Teachers Union organized the protest, which saw 127 people detained. Chicago Tribune

Providence, Massachusetts received a $5 million prize in the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge, and they plan to use it to study the “word gap,” or how the difference in the amount of language a baby is exposed to advances their academic success. They’ll give low-income families recording devices to calculate how many words the children hear, compared to higher-income families, and coach parents on how to boost language exposure. The Boston Globe

The U.S. Department of Education will pre-screen applications for the fourth round of the Investing in Innovation grants. The awards are worth $3 million and are part of the larger $150 million contest. The deadline to apply is April 26th, and the contest looks for innovative ideas to solve problems in education. Politics K-12

New analysis shows that teachers may be some of the happiest professionals, despite recent debates on teacher pensions, salaries, and performance reviews. The research examined teachers’ “well-being,” measured by physical and emotional health, job satisfaction, and feelings of community and safety. Physicians ranked second after teachers. New York Times Read Entire Post

Afternoon announcements: Students protest Chicago school closings

Nine school districts in California have submitted a No Child Left Behind waiver application to the U.S. Department of Education. State officials have approved it, though reluctantly. Politics K-12

The Common Core State Standards offer educators a way to teach beyond worksheets and textbooks. One algebra teacher shares his excitement. Education Week

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval is under attack from those who believe his $14 million program to help English-language learners is not enough. Struggling students need more resources, the opponents of the Governor’s program argue. Las Vegas Sun

Students have taken up the cause of fighting against Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to close 54 public schools in the city. One student believes that shifting students from schools with higher violence rates will negatively influence safety at the remaining schools. Chicago Tribune Read Entire Post

Afternoon announcements: Obama gets graded on education policy

In an Upper West Side elementary school, where black and Hispanic students make up the majority, gifted, or advanced classes, are predominantly white. New York Times

Glenda Ritz, new Indiana superintendent of schools, who defeated Tony Bennett, during November’s election, may look to overturn some of the state’s reform initiatives. “Without a doubt there is going to be a difference for how we approach school improvements in Indiana with the election of the new superintendent,” David Dresslar, executive director of the Center of Excellent in Leadership of Learning at the University of Indianapolis, said. Education Daily

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is serving on the Obama administration’s task force on school gun violence, and his background in Chicago may influence his recommendations. As school chief in Chicago from 2001-2008, he dealt with multiple gun deaths. Education Week

The tireless debate over extending the U.S. school year continues on with new proposals to lengthen the school year. It would mean longer intermittent breaks but a shorter summer vacation for students. US News & World Report

Last week, Education Week released their rankings of states based on education policy and attainment. This week, is it time to grade Obama on education? Huffington Post Read Entire Post

Afternoon announcements: Jon Stewart talks public education

The Daily Show host Jon Stewart took on public school education in Thursday night’s episode. In a discussion on the documentary, “Brooklyn Castle” – a story of how budget cuts changed a successful chess program at a New York City middle school with the director and a student, he discussed budgets, teachers, learning and more. Washington Post

Andreas Schleicher, a special advisor to the secretary general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), gives an interview to the New York Times. He answers questions on his role in the OECD’s annual review, “Education at a Glance.” New York Times

As many as 100 Chicago public schools may close, given a $1 billion budget deficit. The Atlantic

The Kansas State Board of Education may soon provide a formal definition of “college- and career-ready.” They’ll discuss the issue in their regularly monthly meeting Tuesday and Wednesday in Topeka. Lawrence Journal-World

“Digital learning” has become a contentious phrase, with those against it arguing that technology will replace teachers and traditional classrooms. One opinion writer argues that, on the contrary, technology will set students free. Huffington Post

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Afternoon Announcements: July 23, 2012

Monday, you’re back so soon! It seems like we just saw you so recently…alas. In any event, we’ve got some afternoon announcements for you today, and here they are!

The New York Times picked up an article from The Texas Tribune on the Lone Star state’s dropout rate. School districts in Texas have been reporting rising graduation rates for three to four years. For example, the state’s second largest district, Dallas Independent, increases graduation rates by 14 percentage points since 2007. Good news!

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Afternoon Announcements: May 18, 2012

Stateline.org reports that Delaware Governor Jack Markell defended the new Common Core English and math state standards at a meeting in Philadelphia on Thursday. The article says Markell dismissed the contention that national benchmarks for what students should be learning are part of a “high-level conspiracy from the federal government” to impose its standards on states.

The Philadelphia Public Schools Notebook reports on the city's broken pipeline to college. It notes that only seventeen of the 145 students who started ninth grade at North Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin High School in fall 2005 enrolled in a four-year college. Citywide, only 25 percent of students who started 9th grade in one of Philadelphia's neighborhood high schools that year enrolled in any postsecondary education, compared to almost 80 percent of students who started at the city's most selective magnet high schools. Of those 145 students, seventy-two earned a high school diploma--seventy-three have not.

The New York Times reports that New York City officials have have abandoned plans to negotiate with the union for the removal of some 830 teachers who do not have permanent jobs, but are still salaried, costing the city millions of dollars each year. Instead, Chancellor Dennis M. Walcott proposed on Thursday to offer buyouts to those teachers to leave the system.

The PBS NewsHour spotlights a journalism program in Florida that gives students a reason to stay in school.

 

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Afternoon Announcements: January 3, 2012

Happy New Year! The Alliance wishes you a prosperous and eventful 2012 and will continue to bring you new information and developments in the world of educational policy and reform.

Peer pressure and fear of ridicule is common for school-aged students, especially for those from lower economic backgrounds. The Chicago Tribune reports that, based on a new study, pressure and fear may also prevent many working-class students from asking questions in class. The study finds that kids from working-class families are less likely to ask questions in class than their middle-class peers.

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Afternoon Announcements: December 8, 2011

It's more like evening announcements since more than likely you're bolting for the door to get home or sitting in traffic attempting to get there but here are the "afternoon" announcements. The Alliance for Excellent Education brings you the latest in education news for the day.

In a reoccurring theme of the adverse effect dropping out of high school places on the American economy, the Associated Press details a new report released by a Chicago-based educational non-profit that indicates high school dropouts in the state of Illinois earn less during their lifetimes, cost government and the public more and are more likely to be incarcerated than those who graduate.

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Morning Announcements: November 22, 2010

The Sunshine News in Florida takes a look at Florida’s graduation rate and how it was calculated.

The New York Times writes about computers and cellphones and the constant stream of stimuli they offer as well as the challenges that they present to focusing and learning. Also in the Times, columnist Thomas Friedman discusses Arne Duncan’s “national teacher campaign”, an effort to take the profession much more seriously and elevate it to where it should be.

In the Providence Journal, education columnist Julia Steiny writes, “Written word builds bridges between school and home.”

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