QUOTE OF THE MONTH

Dennis Van Roekel, President of the National Teacher’s Association, on the firing of the entire staff of the Central Falls, RI, High School

FAILING SCHOOLS/FAILING TEACHERS

The Obama administration has outlined a get-tough strategy for turning around 5,000 of the lowest-performing schools in the nation, which includes measures such as dismissing the principal and many teachers. Recently, the Central Falls School Committee of Central Falls, Rhode Island, fired its entire professional staff, from the teachers to the guidance counselors to the principal. Both President Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan applauded this measure.

BIAS ALERT: This solution presumes that the underlying cause of school failure lies solely with the educators. Are there no other factors to consider? It’s already hard enough to staff these schools. What principal or teacher would want to jeopardize his or her career and livelihood by working in the toughest schools?

Just asking.

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND LEFT BEHIND

On March 13, 2010, the Obama administration released its blueprint for revising the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). It calls for a broad overhaul of President George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind law. The plan calls for states to adopt new academic standards that build toward having all students ready for college and career by the time they leave high school. The focus for testing has also shifted from measuring the number of students in each grade level in each school who are proficient in reading and math to measuring each student’s growth, regardless of the performance level at which he or she starts.

Copies of the plan are available at

http://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/blueprint/index.html.

DRAFT K–12 COMMON CORE STANDARDS

On March 10, 2010, the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers released the new national K–12 common core standards in reading/language arts and math. The draft standards, developed by teachers, school administrators, and experts, seek to provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare children for college and the workforce. Interested parties are invited to submit their feedback by April 2, 2010. The standards are expected to be finalized in early spring.

The Fordham Institute has reviewed the draft Common Core K–12 education standards. Their analyses led to a grade of A– for the draft mathematics standards and B for those in English language arts. For the full report, visit http://edexcellence.net/index.cfm/news_review-of-the-draft-k-12-common-core-standards1.

The Obama administration is looking to tie federal Title I dollars to states’ adoption of the new standards. Massachusetts announced that it would reject the new standards, as they are not as rigorous as the state’s own current standards. Other states are voicing similar objections.

Stay tuned.

TEXAS ADOPTS NEW SOCIAL STUDIES STANDARDS

The Texas State Board of Education has proposed its new social studies curriculum standards, which reflect the conservative, Christian biases of the seven conservative Republicans on the board.

Among the recommendations is to emphasize the Judeo-Christian influences on the nation’s Founding Fathers—but not to highlight the separation of church and state; to describe the U.S. government as a “constitutional republic” rather than a democracy; to exclude Thomas Jefferson as a major contributor to the nation’s intellectual origins; to give a more positive portrayal of Cold War anticommunism; to reduce the scope of Latino history and culture; and to put greater emphasis on the conservative resurgence of the 1980s and 1990s. Hearings—pro and con—are under way, with a final vote coming in May. The ultimate decision will affect textbook content nationwide because Texas buys more books than any other state.

Publishers counter that digital publishing now allows for easier customization as per states’ requests.

DIANE RAVITCH MAKES A U-TURN

Whether or not you agree with her views, when Diane Ravitch speaks, you at least need to listen. In her new book, The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education, Ravitch does an about-face on almost every stand she once took on American schooling. Once an ardent supporter of No Child Left Behind and charter schools, Ravitch now warns that these approaches will destroy public education if allowed to continue unchecked. She criticizes “teaching to the test,” which she feels erodes the importance of subjects other than English, math, and science. Ravitch concludes that the best school reform would be for schools to put greater emphasis on a rich and well-planned curriculum in a public school setting.

WHITE OUT

The number of worldwide 2009 sales of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) was 747,572, up almost 34% from 2008. Futuresource Consulting predicts a 27% increase in 2010 to nearly 1 million IWBs sold. SMART sold nearly 200,000 IWBs in the U.S. in 2009, for an estimated 60.9% product category share.