Posts Tagged ‘teacher pathways’

Daily Education News- 10/24/12

Posted by rodel

Here are several stories in today’s news about Delaware education and from across the nation:

Local News

The News Journal
State honors its top teacher
Known for his innovative approach to connecting with parents and students, Sussex Technical School District English teacher John Sell was named the 2013 state teacher of the year. He said collaborative meeting time with his fellow teachers lets him borrow great ideas of other educators. Sell taught last year’s teacher of the year, Amber Augustus of the Smyrna School District. She became a teacher in 2005 after making a career change.

Laurel School District budget out of negative, oversight
The Laurel School District announced Monday that it ended the fiscal year with a fund balance and it is no longer under the watch of the financial recovery team.

DDOE
Sussex Tech Teacher is Delaware State Teacher of the Year for 2013
Noted by his colleagues for his use of technology to connect with students and parents, Denby was the first teacher in his school to use online instructional activities and assessments in his daily instruction. He uploaded all of his course materials for student access in and out of school. He also is a lead teacher outside the classroom, serving as an original member of his school’s teacher leadership academy, a mentor for Sussex Tech’s new teacher program and a leader of a professional learning community (shared planning time for teachers).

National News

Charlotte Observer
ACT shows few N.C. students are ready for college  
Seniors across North Carolina have a lot of work to do, especially in science, to be ready for college, results of the first-ever statewide ACT testing show. Just less than one in eight of last year’s juniors, or 12.8%, met the benchmark scores considered a predictor of college success in English, math, reading, and science. Last year, the state started requiring all 11th graders to take the exam.

Education Week
Competency-based schools embrace digital learning  
Districts that are adopting competency-based education models will likely have a head start in preparing for the Common Core State Standards and in using technology to more effectively personalize learning. A new initiative called CompetencyWorks aims to promote competency-based education and provide resources for educators who are interested in learning more about the model.

District Race to the Top will consider emotional, behavioral services  
The $400 million district Race to the Top competition includes one item that hasn’t been a part of any previous iteration of the contest. Districts will be able to earn up to 10 bonus points if their applications include plans to collaborate with public and private partners to help improve the social, emotional, and behavioral needs of students.

Surveys probe generational attitudes of teaching force  
A new survey points to differences in how teachers with fewer than 10 years of experience—who now make up more than half the teaching force—view aspects of their profession, compared with their veteran peers. The new-majority teachers were generally more receptive to the accountability movement and its implications for teacher policy, but they also hold some traditional opinions on working conditions.

Inside Higher Ed
Performing under pressure  
A series of research papers and issue briefs by HCM Strategists and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are trying to help state lawmakers identify measures to more effectively tie public funding of higher education to colleges’ performance. Their Context for Success campaign is intended to give policymakers and colleges tools to better judge what works in higher education.

Daily Education News- 10/15/12

Posted by rodel

Here are several stories in today’s news about Delaware education and from across the nation:

Local News

The News Journal
World-class schools are here – in Delaware
An op-ed by Paul Herdman
The day-to-day classroom teaching we saw from Helsinki to Singapore didn’t look a lot different from what I’ve seen in strong schools from Indian River to Red Clay. The difference is that they systematically took what worked and then made it the norm. I am convinced that if we continue to bring to light what is working, and doing more of it, we can bring these good ideas to scale.

Ideas welcome at overcrowded school
An editorial
Come Sept. 30 of every year, public school districts spend time prepping for a possible deluge of new students. That’s the date when Delaware schools need to confirm enrollment numbers to align the related costs with their state and local income. There is adequate research to support the case for reducing class size to improve student outcomes. But to do this kind of large-scale reshuffling without input from parents and guardians would incite unnecessary rancor that could be as disruptive to these students as leaving them in overcrowded schools. 

National News

Education Week
On education, U.S. doesn’t match rhetoric with action, report says  
The United States seriously lags in keeping our youngest citizens healthy and ensuring they are ready to learn, according to a new report. The nation earned an average C- overall with lackluster grades in five separate categories: Economic security, early childhood, K-12 education, permanence and stability, and health and safety. Those factors all play heavily into outcomes in student learning, dropout prevention, and discipline.

More student data would inform teaching, report says  
Digital Learning Now! released its second report in a series that aims to provide guidance for states on implementing Common Core standards as well as transitioning to a digital learning environment. This report focuses on the sharing of student information and data, something the report contends is not being done well in today’s education system.

Orlando Sentinel
State seeks to double enrollment in charter schools  
The Florida state board adopted a new strategic plan that envisions about 17% of one-time public school students attending either charter or using taxpayer-funded vouchers to attend private schools by the 2017-18 school year. This year, about 9% of students are in charter schools or using Tax Credit or McKay scholarships.

The New York Times
Want to ruin teaching? Give ratings
An op-ed by Deborah Kenny, chief executive and founding principal of Harlem Village Academies and author of “Born to Rise: A Story of Children and Teachers Reaching Their Highest Potential”
For more than a decade I’ve been a strong proponent of teacher accountability. But the solution being considered by many states — having the government evaluate individual teachers — is a terrible idea that undermines principals and is demeaning to teachers. Principals need to create a culture of trust, teamwork and candid feedback that is essential to running an excellent school.

Daily Education News- 10/9/12

Posted by rodel

Here are several stories in today’s news about Delaware education and from across the nation:

Local News

Delaware Department of Education
Federal funds available for meals served in day care settings
Federal funds are available to help child and adult day care providers in Delaware serve nutritious, healthy meals to children and adults in their facilities. Started in 1968, the Child and Adult Care Food Program provided reimbursement for more than 16 million meals and snacks served to Delaware residents in fiscal year 2012.

National News

Hechinger Report
A solution to lost early childhood opportunities in Mississippi?  
Mississippi is the only state in the South that doesn’t fund pre-kindergarten. Recognizing the need for early education, the private sector started raising money for Building Block’s pilot program, hoping it might provide a partial solution. Over 500 early childhood programs in 31 counties have benefitted from free equipment, a research-based curriculum, training for teachers and parents, and business advice.

USA Today
Rethinking what leads to success in education  
After decades of failed education policies, scientists, economists, and educators are beginning to rethink their basic ideas about what it takes to succeed in school. They’re beginning to look at so-called “non-cognitive skills” — grit, perseverance, conscientiousness, and optimism, for instance — and wondering if they might be as important as cognitive skills.

Education Week
California program takes aim at ‘teacher-diversity gap’
Teach Tomorrow in Oakland, begun in 2008, guides adults from the city as they fulfill credential requirements, pass their licensing tests, navigate the hiring process, and—crucially—negotiate the tumultuous first few years in the classroom. Its manager, Rachelle Rogers-Ard, calls TTO a teacher-development program—a distinction underscoring that the initiative is not focused only, or even primarily, on recruiting teachers. In fact, the program requires recruits to commit to teaching in the district for at least five years.

Common Core catches on with private schools
With all but four states having adopted them since 2010, districts have little choice but to implement the Common Core State Standards. But many private schools are also making the transition. More than 100 Roman Catholic dioceses spanning the nation from Los Angeles to Philadelphia, have decided to adopt the standards, according to a recent survey from the National Catholic Educational Association. Even the El Paso Diocese in Texas, a state that wanted no part of the common standards, signaled last spring that it was signing on.

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