January 2, 2008: Tutors Offering Organizational Programs For Boys

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fyi - please pass on to mentioned states - terry

January 2, 2008: Tutors Offering Organizational Programs For Boys

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Customized Briefing for THERESA CAVANAUGHJanuary 2, 2008

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In the Classroom

On the Job

Law & Policy

Special Needs

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Also in the News

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Some tutors offering organizational programs for boys.

The New York Times (1/1, A9, Finder) reported that many " high-priced tutors

and college counselors have " begun " charging as much as $100 an hour and up "

to help middle- and high-school boys learn to organize their school work and

manage their time as part of preparation for college. " With girls

outperforming boys these days in high school and college, " education experts

have begun to ask " whether there is a crisis in the education of boys. " The

Times characterized the trend in gender-specific tutoring as a response to a

general trend in education toward " more single-sex schools, more male role

models or new teaching techniques. " Tutors who offer programs specifically

for boys " say their main focus is organizational skills because boys seem

generally to have more difficulty getting organized and multitasking than

girls do. "

Single-sex education expands in New Orleans. The New Orleans

Times-Picayune (12/27, Carr) reported on the growth of single-sex education

in New Orleans, where " two schools in the Algiers Charter Schools

Association are trying single-sex classes this year. " In December, " the

state board of education approved plans for two all-boys charter schools to

open in New Orleans next fall. " Also, " some Baton Rouge schools have added

single-sex programs during the past few years. " Critics " say the trend stems

from the 'pop' psychology of advocates. "

Florida school experiments with single-gender classrooms. Florida's

Tampa Tribune (1/2, Pastor) reports that " Hillsborough County is

experimenting with single-gender classrooms in a pilot program " at

Woodbridge Elementary School. " For the past two years, the school has split

most of its fifth grade by gender, creating two girls' classes, two boys'

classes and a coeducational one for parents who prefer the traditional

arrangement. " Data from the 2006-07 school year shows that " test scores

rose, especially among boys, and discipline problems dropped, but school and

district administrators say it will take at least three years to identify

trends. " The National Association for Single-Sex Public Education estimates

that 366 U.S. schools have initiated single-sex classrooms.

In the Classroom

Comic books increasingly used as a literacy tool.

On the front page of its Metro section, the New York Times (12/26, B1,

Gootman) reported that " a growing cadre of educators is looking to comics as

part of the solution " to " low reading scores and the much-lamented decline

in reading for pleasure. " land's state Department of Education is

" expanding a new comics-based literacy curriculum, after a small pilot

program yielded promising results, " while a New York City group has " applied

to open a new small high school that would be based around a comics theme

and named after the creators of Superman. " The Teachers College at Columbia

University, meanwhile, operates the Comic Book Project, which " has children

create their own comic strips as an 'alternative pathway to literacy.' " The

project, begun in one elementary school in 2001, " has expanded to 860

schools across the country. " Advocates say that comic books " can lure

struggling readers who may be intimidated by pages crammed with text, " and

that the format's " visual cues and panel-by-panel sequencing, are uniquely

situated to reinforce key elements of literacy, like story structure and

tone. " Skeptics, however, worry that " comics could become simply a vehicle

for watering down lessons. "

Online college lectures growing in popularity.

In a front-page story, the Washington Post (12/31, A1, Kinzie) reported that

" many universities are using technology to offer online classes and open up

archives, " free of charge. Through such online tools as YouTube and iTunes,

" tens of millions " of people are said to have downloaded video and audio

recordings of classes from universities. " For schools, the courses can bring

benefits, luring applicants, spreading the university's name, impressing

donors, keeping alumni engaged. " Some skeptical professors are concerned

about " intellectual property issues, " as well as " careless comments being

immortalized forever or random snippets winding up who knows where. " But

advocates say the trend is " a return to the broader mission of higher

education: to offer knowledge to everyone. "

The AP (12/31, Pope) added that " more than 100 universities

worldwide, including s Hopkins, Tufts and Notre Dame, have joined MIT in

a consortium of schools promoting their own open courseware. " The schools

are said to have made " a key insight: Elite universities can separate their

credential from their teaching -- and give at least parts of their teaching

away as a public service. " The article noted that college professors around

the world as well as students and teachers at other levels are making use of

these lectures in their own coursework. It also noted that prospective

students and alumni are making use of the courses.

Connecticut launches online course program for high school.

The AP (12/29) reported, " Connecticut high school students can now enroll in

online courses taught by state teachers. ... The idea is to allow students

who have fallen behind to catch up online rather than in summer school and

also to provide interesting electives that are not widely available. " The

program is " called the Connecticut Virtual Learning Center " and will offer

" 21 courses for its first semester, beginning Jan. 23. "

Opinion: International test scores are unrelated to competitiveness.

Walt Gardner, who taught for 28 years in the Los Angeles Unified School

District, wrote in the Christian Science Monitor (12/27) about the 2006

Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). In PISA scores released

last month, " the United States was outperformed by 16 other nations in

science and by 23 in math. " But Gardner argued, " Missing from the

coverage...was a healthy dose of skepticism about the validity of the test

results -- and broader context about the quality of American education. " The

scores, he wrote, were " a reflection primarily of nonschool factors. " He

concluded that " there is not a shred of credible evidence to support their

charge that PISA scores are linked to competitiveness. " Instead, " a dynamic

economy...is built on a culture that nurtures creative thinking, encourages

risk taking, and rewards success. "

Benchmark testing growing as means to raise achievement.

The Baltimore Sun (12/30, Kumar) reported, " For a few years, it seemed that

the 2001 federal No Child Left Behind law, with its sanctions for failing

schools, had made some educators resentful of too much testing. " But " some

educators are promoting a new philosophy: More testing, not less, might

improve teaching and learning. " They " are embracing benchmark testing to

alert teachers of lapses in learning well before students sit for state

tests. " The article examined efforts in land's Anne Arundel County to

implement regular benchmark testing.

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Girls narrowing achievement gaps in math and science.

Long Island Newsday (12/31, ) reported, " More girls and women are

getting involved -- and succeeding -- in math and science than ever before. "

Yet " persistent gaps between girls and boys in math and science standardized

test scores remain, as well as gaps, advocates say, in professional

opportunities. The gaps are narrowing, though, in part because of girls'

increasing involvement in math and science classes. "

Kansas City district works with community college on K-16 program.

The Kansas City Kansan (12/31, Hoskins) reported, " For many people,

education doesn't stop with a high school degree -- and a collaboration

between Kansas City Kansas Community College and the Kansas City, Kan.,

Public Schools District is trying to help. " The program " is designed to

prepare students for the academic rigors of college through exposure to the

intense curriculum required for earning a bachelor's degree, " as well as to

decrease the cost of college ,and the time it takes to earn a degree, by

allowing students to earn college credits in high school. The program also

hopes to " provide students with more realistic information about the

academic and social skills needed for academic and personal successes. "

Some physical education teachers using technology to enhance lessons.

Connecticut's Greenwich Time (1/1, Shaw) reported that " in the 21st century,

even gym class is being aided by technology. " Physical education teachers in

Connecticut's Greenwich Public Schools, for instance, use digital video

cameras to film students performing athletic skills, which they can use to

instruct students in how to improve their performance. They also use iPods

" to create song playlists so music can correspond to activities such as

dance instruction, " and give students pedometers and heart rate monitors to

track progress toward fitness goals. Program administrator Colleen Moery

says, " We're educators of kids who have grown up with technology all around

them. ... We have to stay current with their style. "

On the Job

Texas urged not to approve Institute for Creation Research's bid to certify

science teachers.

The Dallas Morning News (12/28) editorialized that it is " troubling...that

the Dallas-based Institute for Creation Research, which professes Genesis as

scientifically reliable, recently won a state advisory panel's approval for

its online master's degree program in science education. "

The Houston Chronicle (12/28) added in its editorial, " Visitors to

the Institute for Creation Research web page can quickly deduce that the

organization, founded in California and recently transplanted to Dallas, is

a Christian group dedicated to spreading the doctrine of divine creation of

the world and challenging the teaching of evolution as fact in public

schools. " Approving its program " would devalue the credentials of all

science teachers and misrepresent to the public the capabilities of teachers

with questionable diplomas. "

Law & Policy

Official says students will be involved in planning Los Angeles mayor's

school reform effort.

The Los Angeles Times (1/2, Helfland, Blume) reports, " Even as Mayor

Villaraigosa promises to enlist teachers and parents in his reform plan for

Los Angeles schools, he has largely overlooked another group with a stake in

his new enterprise: students. " Deputy Mayor for Education Ramon C. Cortines

told the Times that " he thinks it was wrong not to give them at least an

advisory voice in the recent elections. " Cortines " insists now that they

will be included in planning sessions that begin this month for the five

schools that chose to join the mayor's partnership, " though no specific plan

for a student advisory body has been released.

Special Needs

Growing movement seeks to use early-intervention strategy to reduce costs of

special education.

On the front page of its Metro section, the Washington Post (12/31, B1,

Chandler) reported that " a growing national movement " seeks to contain the

costs of serving students with learning disabilities through a " cost-saving

method...known as 'response to intervention,' " or RTI. The RTI method

" targets students with problems early on, offering them instruction beyond

the general curriculum, such as tutoring or additional math or reading

programs. " Students are given access to " a series of increasingly intensive "

assistance measured before they are considered for special education

services. In December, " the U.S. Education Department organized a national

summit in Arlington County [Virginia] for educators to learn about the RTI

strategy, " and the agency " plans to spend $14 million over five years to

help states launch the new approach. " Skeptics worry that there is " too

little research about how the RTI strategy works for middle or high school

students and not enough teacher preparation, " while some " parents worry that

their children will tread water in regular classrooms while disabilities go

undiagnosed. "

School Finance

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Medicaid rule to cut reimbursement for some services for students with

disabilities.

In continuing coverage from previous briefings, the AP (12/28) reported,

" The Bush administration issued a new rule Friday that eliminates Medicaid

reimbursement for certain transportation and administrative tasks undertaken

by schools on behalf of students with disabilities. " The new rule restricts

" when schools can bill the federal government for clerical duties associated

with providing health care, " and ends reimbursements for " transporting

students getting speech or physical therapy to school or back home. " Members

of Congress " were so concerned about the rule that they passed legislation

this past week that placed a six-month moratorium on it. " Though more than

1,200 people wrote the agency to comment on the proposal, with most opposing

the measure, Medicaid officials said " that most of the comments validated

their concern that schools were improperly using Medicaid funding to pay for

services 'that are clearly educational in nature.' "

Also in the News

Obesity fight in schools countered by close proximity of restaurants, study

says.

The New York Times (12/28, Washington) reported, " In one of the largest

studies of its kind, researchers from the University of Illinois have mapped

out the locations of more than 31,000 middle schools and high schools and

compared them to the locations of 129,000 fast-food restaurants and

convenience stores. ... The study, published in the January issue of Health

& Place, found that more than one-third of middle and high schools are

located within a half-mile of a fast-food outlet or convenience store. " The

Times adds, " The most recent study is important because it shows that

efforts to fight obesity and encourage healthful eating inside school

cafeterias is likely undermined by the easy availability of fast food within

walking distance of many schools. 'Attention has appropriately focused on

food service, Ã la carte foods, vending machines and stores in schools,'

write the study authors. 'Yet, efforts to change the food environment within

schools may be ineffective in reducing adolescent overweight if the

surrounding neighborhood food environment is neglected.' "

Many small businesses and nonprofits look to improve nutrition of school

lunches.

The Chicago Tribune (12/31, Meyer) reported that research on childhood

obesity " is spurring a growing number of small-business owners to look for

ways to make a difference by becoming involved with local causes or forming

non-profits. " Most of the projects focus on school nutrition programs, as

" health-conscious entrepreneurs see mediocre school lunches as a problem in

need of a solution. " The Tribune profiled several such efforts, including

the Chicago-based Healthy Schools Campaign, which " is sponsoring The Quick &

Easy Guide to School Wellness, available online at

HealthySchoolsCampaign.org, offering tips on fitness and nutrition. " The

Organic School Project, meanwhile, is negotiating with Chicago Public

Schools to resume a program that uses organic gardens in schools to teach

children " where healthy food comes from, " and " to inspire them to eat more

nutritiously. "

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