October 30, 2013

Local News

WDDE
Delaware Readiness Teams collaborate to improve early childhood education
A collaboration between educators and community members to improve early childhood education in Delaware is getting off the ground. The Delaware Office of Early Learning hosted 19 Delaware Readiness Teams from across the state in Dover Tuesday to offer a progress report. The Readiness Teams consist of representatives from school districts, early learning programs, and various community organizations. Their goal is create and modify programs for Delaware’s youngest students by examining each community’s strengths and challenges.

The News Journal
Delaware’s Teacher of the Year named
Appoquinimink School District’s Lea Wainwright was named Delaware’s Teacher of the Year on Tuesday night during an annual ceremony that draws the state’s top leaders to honor educators. She teaches French for ninth through twelfth graders at Appoquinimink High School.

National News

Education Week
Education issues animate N.J., Va. Governors’ races
Although the slate of state elections this year is relatively small, gubernatorial and legislative races in New Jersey and Virginia could affect the direction of school choice and parent-driven education changes in those states, as well as significant shifts in K-12 spending levels. Separately, a referendum on an income-tax increase for Colorado public schools is also garnering attention.

The New York Times
A bold bid for better schools
An op-ed by Frank Bruni
If there’s a key to this nation’s sustained competitiveness, it’s education. And if there’s a key to the kind of social mobility that’s integral to our country’s cherished narrative, to its soul, it’s giving kids from all walks of life teachers and classrooms that beckon them toward excellence.

Los Angeles Times
John Deasy to stay on as L.A. Unified schools chief
L.A. schools chief John Deasy will continue to lead the nation’s second-largest school district through June 2016, the district’s legal counsel announced Tuesday, ending days of speculation about his future.

EdSource
Feds set price of defiance on standardized tests: at least $15 million
The state now knows how much federal funding it stands to lose by declining to give state standardized tests in math and English language arts next spring to all students: at least $15 million – and potentially tens of millions of dollars more. An assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Education cited that figure and warned that the fine and the impact on school districts could be greater in a letter released Monday to State Board of Education Michael Kirst and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson.

Memphis Commercial-Appeal
Interest running high in Mississippi preschool funding
The competition for $3 million in Mississippi funding for preschool programs looks fierce. The education department announced that 72 groups have indicated interest in the money, which is supposed to fund at least 1,325 spots statewide. Mississippi was the only Southern state and one of only 11 nationwide with no state-funded preschool program when lawmakers created the Early Learning Collaborative this year.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Half of virtual charter schools judged in new report cards miss mark
Virtual charter schools are on the rise in Wisconsin, but new accountability standards do not paint a flattering picture. According to state 2012-13 school report cards, 50% of the children in virtual schools were attending one that was not meeting performance expectations, largely because of low graduation and test participation rates and high dropout rates. Only eight of the state’s 28 virtual charters received report cards.