August 24, 2015
Delaware News
The News Journal
Delaware career pathways program expanding
Fifteen high schools are participating, with programs in computer science, engineering, culinary arts and biomedical sciences. The goal is to not just give students the “book-learning” and degrees they need to get a job, but also hands-on experience.
What will happen to Red Clay schools?
Opinion by Susan Arruda, a former teacher from Limestone Hills
As a taxpayer in the Red Clay Consolidated School District, a former teacher, and an advocate for children in foster care and community volunteer, I am disappointed by the recent signing of two bills by Gov. Markell regarding the redistricting of Wilmington schools.
Delaware State News
Bus contractors: More funding needed
Most public schools start this week or next week, beginning the annual cycle. From Talleyville to Delmar, school buses are nearly omnipresent at certain times of day. Contractors dispatch their fleets to transport students, and big yellow buses, an integral part of the education system, rumble across the roadways. But some contractors are frustrated over what they believe is a lack of support from the state. Their industry, they say, is struggling.
New Wesley College president puts emphasis on service
Robert E. Clark II started work in July as the college’s new president. And for his part, Mr. Clark can’t wait to meet all the students moving into the college. “A week from today, this place will be bustling,” he said in his office Monday. “And that’s why we exist — it’s the students.” In April, the Wesley board of trustees named Mr. Clark the 17th college president, succeeding Dr. William Johnston.
National News
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Battle brews over charter school compensation for special education students
When it comes to the way charter schools are paid for teaching children in special-education classes, critics say Pennsylvania has been flunking basic math for years – and unfairly subtracting hundreds of millions of dollars from taxpayers’ wallets.
NPR
Fact check: Is refinancing student debt really good policy?
Student loans have become an issue in the presidential campaign, especially on the Democratic side. And it’s no wonder. There are more than 40 million Americans with some $1.3 trillion in outstanding student loan debt. But people who study education finance say one widely popular proposal to help lessen the debt load may not be as good as it seems.
How the U.S. is neglecting its smartest kids
I talked with Chester E. Finn, Jr., co-author of Failing Our Brightest Kids: The Global Challenge of Educating High-Ability Students about the problems he sees in how high-ability students are taught in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Here are 10 eye-opening points drawn from our conversation.
The New York Times
The myth of the New Orleans school makeover
Opinion by Andrea Gabor, professor of business journalism at Baruch College, the City University of New York
Was Hurricane Katrina “the best thing that happened to the education system in New Orleans,” as Education Secretary Arne Duncan once said? Nearly 10 years after the disaster, this has become a dominant narrative among a number of school reformers and education scholars.
Associated Press
Tennessee officials: New test will better measure progress
State education officials said Thursday that new assessments in math and English for students in grades three through 11 will provide a better measurement of their progress and make sure they’re on track to succeed after graduation. Education Commissioner Candice McQueen and members of her staff met with reporters to discuss TNReady, which is part of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program.