November 18, 2014
Delaware News
The News Journal
State panel says close two charter schools
A state panel has recommended that Secretary of Education Mark Murphy and the State Board of Education should close the Reach Academy for Girls and Gateway Lab School charter schools at the end of the school year, citing poor academic performance. The Charter School Accountability Committee’s recommendation now goes to Murphy and the board, who must choose whether they will renew the schools’ charters or accept the committee’s recommendation and close them. That decision will be made at the board’s Dec. 18 meeting.
Bonus money for teachers is not the right answer
An op-ed by Donald L. Gephardt, Professor/Dean Emeritus, Rowan University
The Race to the Top idea of giving bonus money to teachers who are highly rated or who choose to stay in low-scoring schools does not work. The answer to improving the schools is to institute specific practices that would engage the teachers in a profession – not a factory assembly line, which K-12 teaching often resembles.
WDDE
STEM educators honored for excellence and innovation
The Delaware STEM Council held its inaugural education awards ceremony Monday night, celebrating teachers working in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. A total of 21 First State teachers applied for the awards.
WHYY NewsWorks
Fine idea, flawed execution – our approach to testing deserves an ‘F’
Sometimes a perfectly reasonable idea, if carried out badly, ends up seeming dumb. I speak, of course, of the push to use standardized tests to hold schools accountable for whether kids learn.
Delaware Department of Education
Charter School Accountability Committee issues recommendations on Reach Academy, Gateway Lab’s futures
A press release
The Delaware Department of Education’s Charter School Accountability Committee today recommended not to renew Reach Academy and Gateway Lab School’s charters at the end of this academic year because of poor academic performance at both schools. A public hearing is scheduled for December 10 in Wilmington with public comment accepted through that date as well.
National News
U.S. News and World Report
Education Department drops new NCLB waiver guidance
The Department of Education is letting states apply to renew their waivers from No Child Left Behind for three and in some cases four more years, but they’ll have to do more to show they’re turning around low-performing schools and closing student achievement gaps.
The Leaf-Chronicle
Bill would repeal Common Core in Tennessee
Two Tennessee state senators filed legislation to repeal the state’s Common Core standards even though Gov. Bill Haslam has called for a public review of the higher benchmarks in English and math.
Education Week
Cutoff scores set for Common-Core tests
The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium test has four achievement categories. Students must score at Level 3 or higher to be considered proficient in the skills and knowledge for their grades. According to cut scores approved Friday night by the 22-state consortium, 41 percent of 11th graders will show proficiency in English/language arts, and 33 percent will do so in math. In elementary and middle school, 38 percent to 44 percent will meet the proficiency mark in English/language arts, and 32 percent to 39 percent will do so in math.
Aiken Standard
On-time graduation rate increases again in S.C.
South Carolina’s on-time high school graduation rate is at an all-time high with more than 80 percent of students graduating within four years, new report cards show.
ABC News
Denver-area seniors protest new state tests
Thousands of Denver-area high school seniors are refusing to take new state standardized tests, saying they’re a distraction as they work to get into college and a waste of time and money.