May 12, 2009: Obama Seeks To Overhaul 5,000 Low Performing Schools

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May 12, 2009: Obama Seeks To Overhaul 5,000 Low Performing Schools

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Customized Briefing for THERESA CAVANAUGHMay 12, 2009

Leading the News

In the Classroom

On the Job

Special Needs

Safety & Security

School Finance

Also in the News

NEA in the News

Leading the News

Obama Administration Seeks To Overhaul 5,000 Low Performing Schools.

The AP (5/12, Quaid) reports, " President Barack Obama intends to use $5

billion to prod local officials to close " 5,000 " failing schools and reopen

them with new teachers and principals. " Although the President does not

" have authority to close and reopen schools himself, " he does have " an

incentive in the economic stimulus law, which requires states to help

failing schools improve. " According to Education Secretary Arne Duncan,

reorganization " might mean firing an entire staff and bringing in a new one,

replacing a principal, or turning a school over to a charter school

operator. " The administration's main focus would be on middle schools and

high schools, especially " 'dropout factories' where two in five kids don't

make it to graduation. " The AP notes that " the turnaround program currently

receives about $500 million a year. The stimulus legislation boosted funding

to $3.5 billion. Obama's budget would add another $1.5 billion by shifting

dollars away from traditionally funded programs. " Bloomberg News (5/12,

) also covers the story.

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In the Classroom

Forensic Science Class Highly Demanded At New York High School.

On the front of its Science Times section, the New York Times (5/12, D1,

Angier) reports, " Many people fret these days about the supposedly feeble

state of science education in America, " but at New Rochelle High School in

New York, " one phylum of science class has proved a runaway success:

forensic science, the application of science to solving crimes. " In the

classes, students " end up getting a lot of serious science without

necessarily realizing it. " For instance, " there are forays into biology and

anatomy: the biology of blood, hair and skin, how fingerprints form, and how

DNA can be extracted from the tiniest personal remains. " New Rochelle's

forensic science program began 15 years ago, and today, demand is " so strong

that...the school offers seven different forensic classes, three of them so

advanced that the students receive college credits from Syracuse

University. "

BioKIDS Program Teaches Elementary Students To Think Like Scientists.

Education Week (5/11, Cavanagh) reported on the " curriculum and

professional-development program called BioKIDS, which seeks to build

students' skill in complex scientific reasoning. " BioKIDS places " a heavy

emphasis on " having students " devise scientific arguments based on evidence.

In other words, it's the work that actual scientists do. " One of the main

ideas " behind the program, which was created in 2001, is that early-grades

science tends not to challenge students to move beyond very basic facts and

reasoning. " According to Songer, BioKids design team lead,

" that shortcoming partly explains U.S. students' struggles as they move from

elementary to middle school science, as shown on international tests. "

Education Week points out that in Detroit, " science scores on the Michigan

state exam " have risen at the 22 public schools that take part in the

program.

Pennsylvania District Sees Improved Science Performance With Inquiry-Based

Curriculum.

Pennsylvania's Tribune Review (5/11, Crawford) reported on inquiry-based

learning, which " involves hands-on experiments and projects, with the goal

of getting kids engaged and excited about math and science. " For students at

the elementary and middle school level, " this involves scientific

experiments and projects that interweave academic subjects, as well as an

elective science and technology explorations class for eighth-graders. In

high school, students take career-oriented science classes and use

technology to investigate scientific principles. " The Derry Area School

District retooled its curriculum to include inquiry-based learning with the

help of Math and Science Partnerships, " a federal program that funds

continuing education for teachers. " According to Superintendent a

McCahan, since the new curriculum has been implemented, " more students [are]

doing well in science class than before. " She noted that " the benefits for

students with learning disabilities were especially apparent. "

Longer School Days Gaining Support Of Educators, Policymakers.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune (5/11, ) reported that longer school

days " are gaining support among educators and politicians, including

President Obama, who is calling for schools to rethink how they deliver

education. " Those who support longer school days, which may keep students in

school from about 7:30 am until 5 pm, " say it makes no sense to send

students to an empty home in the mid-afternoon when they could use the time

for educational activities. " Some experts point out that " low-income

children don't usually get music, dance or hockey lessons -- extracurricular

activities that help them develop socially and intellectually when they are

outside of school. " But opponents " point to increased costs that longer days

will bring as well as the potential for more burnout among students. " And

" some argue that longer school days will further cut down on precious family

time. "

On the Job

Teachers, Administrators At Six DC Schools Must Reapply For Jobs.

The Washington Post (5/12, Turque) reports, " Teachers and some

administrators at six academically troubled D.C. schools will have to

reapply for their jobs as part of overhauls mandated under the federal No

Child Left Behind law, Mayor M. Fenty (D) and Chancellor A.

Rhee announced yesterday. " The two high schools, ninth grade center, two

middle schools, and elementary school have each " undergone multiple waves of

retooling in recent years under NCLB. " But " reviews of school operations by

teams of outside evaluators indicated the need for further changes, the

officials said. " According to the Post, " the shakeup...will affect as many

as 330 teachers and staff members at the six schools. " And " those who are

not rehired or who decide not to return " will join the " excess staff pool

and reassigned to other schools. "

Seattle District Apologizes For Timing Of Letter Sent To Teachers About Pay.

The Seattle Times (5/12, Shaw) reports that " Seattle Public Schools

apologized Monday for sending a controversial letter to all its teachers

Friday, saying it mistakenly was mailed earlier than intended. " The letter,

sent out " on the last day of Teacher Appreciation Week, " notified teachers

" that the district intends to cut one training day during the 2009-10 school

year because state legislators cut funding to pay for it. That means

teachers would lose a day of pay. " In addition, it said that teachers'

contracts " for the upcoming school year would not be renewed, and [that]

they were being offered a new contract for 181 days instead of 182. "

District spokeswoman Patti Spencer said that " the letter was supposed to go

out this week, but a series of miscommunications led to the error. "

Meanwhile, the Seattle Education Association said that " if the district

doesn't rescind the letter this week...it will consider legal action. "

North Carolina District Officials Consider Hiring Disputed Grading

Consultant.

North Carolina's News & Observer (5/11, Hui) reported, " Wake County school

administrators may pay thousands of dollars to hire a consultant whose

recommendations include not reducing grades for cheating or missing a

deadline for handing in work. " Ken O'Connor, author of the book " A Repair

Kit for Grading: 15 Fixes for Broken Grades, " charges " $1,000 a day for

videoconferencing " and " $8,000 a day for an in-person visit. " He " was one of

the consultants brought in by Wake when elementary school report cards were

changed in 2004 from letter grades to a Level 1 through 4 scale. The report

cards eliminated classroom conduct and work habits from the grades. " But at

least one teacher has expressed concern that O'Connor's suggestions

undermine student accountability. Ken Branch, Wake's' senior director for

secondary education, acknowledged that " with hundreds of teachers facing not

being rehired and school employees taking pay cuts...bringing in O'Connor

might be a hard sell. "

Special Needs

Flint, Michigan, Public Schools Improve Mainstreaming Of Students With

Special Needs.

The Flint (MI) Journal (5/11, Longley) reports that due to the efforts of

Gilcrest-Frazier, director of learning support services for the

Flint School District, " more special needs students have been mainstreamed

into general education classes, coming closer to meeting federal

guidelines. " During " the 2005-06 school year, Flint lagged far behind

federal goals. " But " after Gilcrest-Frazier was named director in 2006, she

developed an improvement plan, changed the district's procedures, and made a

commitment to meeting the federal standard. " In 2008, " two-thirds of Flint's

special needs students " spent " 80 percent or more of their day in general

education classes, " exceeding the state average. In addition, the district

has " hired more certified and qualified special education teachers in recent

years and found alternative ways to support some students who had been

misidentified as special needs students because of troubled backgrounds. "

Safety & Security

Comedian Teaches Students About School Violence Prevention.

California's Valley Tribune (5/12, Tedford) reports that last month, two

Covina High School, California, " students were arrested...on suspicion of

bringing guns to school and conspiring to murder classmates. Police later

learned that fellow students knew about the guns but failed to tell

administrators. " On Monday, comedian Pritchard addressed " half the

student body " in his discussion " about violence, bullying, communication,

and matters of the heart in an effort to teach them 'life skills.' "

Pritchard said, " We are trying to connect them and show we are all

responsible for each other. " During the assembly, he told students " of

school fights that ended in death and how the bullied, awkward teen of today

may be the doctor who saves a family member in the future. " Pritchard also

" gave students case by case examples of incidents where actions in their

daily lives promote violence or negative behavior. "

School Finance

Texas Districts Make Varied Uses Of Funds Aimed At Raising Graduation Rate.

The Dallas Morning News (5/12, Hacker) reports, " State money aimed at

helping prepare students for college is in some cases paying for school

office supplies and utility bills -- and it's perfectly legal. " A Texas fund

created in 2006 " gives school districts $275 per high school student "

intended " to help students finish high school and prepare for college. " The

only restrictions are that the money cannot be used for " administrative

costs and athletic programs. " A 2006-07 survey by the Texas Education Agency

shows that districts throughout Texas used the money to offer " more

college-prep classes, " purchase " graphing calculators for math students, "

and pay " SAT, ACT and Advanced Placement exam " fees. According to the Dallas

Morning News, other " expenses...did not appear directly related to college

readiness. " One district " spent its money in 2006-07 on teacher salaries and

stipends, technology and textbooks, " and some schools used the money to

purchase printing supplies and other supplies.

Also in the News

Deputy Education Secretary Nominee Equipped With Extensive Business

Experience.

Education Week (5/12, Klein) reports that " in naming Tony to fill the

No. 2 slot at the U.S. Department of Education, President Barack Obama has

turned to a manager with extensive business experience as the department

tackles the challenge of overseeing some $100 billion in economic-stimulus

aid to education. " 's nomination was announced late last month. He has

served as " an informal adviser to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan " from

" the beginning of the new administration. " Prior to that, " served as

a director of Silver Lake, a leading private investment firm...with more

than $15 billion in capital. " He also " spent 10 years with McKinsey & Co.,

where he was a partner specializing in performance improvement, cost

cutting, and company restructuring. "

NEA in the News

Indiana Law Immunizes Teachers From Lawsuits Over Student Discipline.

The Indianapolis Star (5/12, Gammill) reports that Indiana Gov. Mitch

s ® " on Monday signed into law a bill that will give teachers

immunity from lawsuits over student discipline -- as long as they acted

reasonably. " In order for teachers to maintain discipline in the classroom,

they " have to be reasonably certain that they're not going to be sued for

every frivolous case that comes up, " said Indianapolis Education Association

President Al Wolting. As such, the law aims " to take the apprehension or --

to use the educators' word -- fear out of the process of bringing order to

the classroom, " s said. Although the law does allow for teachers to be

sued, it requires that a " judge...dismiss the lawsuit if he or she

determined the teacher acted in good faith. " In addition, the law " requires

national criminal background checks for any school employee to be hired and

on almost all teachers within five years. "

California Teachers Association Backs Education Funding Ballot Measures.

Education Week (5/11) reported, " California's rolling budget disaster goes

before the voters next week in the form of two linked ballot propositions. "

Proposition 1B " would require the state to pay $7.9 billion that education

groups say schools are owed for the current fiscal year under a 1988 ballot

measure, Proposition 98, which set a minimum school funding guarantee. "

However, in order for Proposition 1B to be adopted, voters must also approve

Proposition A, " which would cap state spending and increase the rainy-day

budget-reserve fund. " The California Teachers Association, an NEA affiliate,

" has contributed a total of $8.5 million in support of both " propositions.

CTA President said, " This is money that's owed to the schools

to the tune of $9.3 billion. It needs to be put back in schools. " Education

Week noted that " the latest survey by the California-based Field Poll shows

both measures trailing among likely voters. "

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