TN Common Core Fight, NYC Mayor, and More: Friday’s Ed News Roundup

Published March 21, 2014

Friday’s ed news

TENNESSEE: The governor and advocacy groups scramble to keep Common Core in the state. 

NEW YORK: Voters disapprove of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s anti-charter education policies. A federal official says New York will lose federal money if it slows Common Core

WISCONSIN: The Germantown school board votes to discard Common Core and create its own better curriculum standards. 

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM: How to let families have school choice without compelling taxpayers to pay for beliefs they abhor. 

MICHIGAN: Detroit’s schools deficit jumps $39 million in three months, due largely to declining tax revenue.

VERMONT: Lawmakers want to give voters more say over education spending

 

Thursday’s ed news

FLORIDA: Time to factcheck outrageous accusations against school choice

INDIANA: The state’s Common Core rewrite will take a little longer than previously planned. 

MAINE: An attempted ban of online charter schools fails.

THEATER: High school theater productions are turning to product placement to help cover their costs. 

RACE TO THE TOP: One of the biggest winners of the federal grants have been teacher retraining consultants states have hired in the wake of Common Core

NORTH CAROLINA: After a professor at a public university became a Christian, he’s been subject to professional harassment, a lawsuit alleges. 

WISCONSIN: Teachers with “moral conduct” issues often still keep their jobs and licenses, an investigation finds. 

SOUTH CAROLINA: A bill to require kids to learn cursive has passes a legislative panel unanimously.

 

Wednesday’s ed news

ACADEMIC DECLINE: Since 1972, adjusted SAT scores have declined 3 percent while inflation-adjusted K-12 spending has more than doubled, a new report finds.

LOUISIANA: Gov. Bobby Jindal says he’s skeptical  of national Common Core tests.

NATIONAL: Charter high school students have a 7-11 percent higher graduation rate and are more likely to pursue higher education than their traditional-school peers, finds a new study. See where your state’s charter school laws rank on the 2014 scorecard.

POLLS: Contrary to media and advocacy reports, polls show that people who are informed about Common Core tend to not support it.  

NEW YORK: Putting charter schools in the same building as another school doesn’t hurt student achievement, a study finds.

CALIFORNIA: Republicans try to woo Asian voters by blasting affirmative action and praising hard work.

HOMEWORK: Most high school students have less than a hour of homework each night, says a new study.

 

Tuesday’s ed news

PENNSYLVANIA: Dozens of Philadelphia school administrators make more money than the governor, despite the district’s persistent financial woes.  

HIGHER ED: Colleges struggle to prove that prospective students can find jobs if they enroll.

CALIFORNIA: Schools will find out if they’re technologically ready for Common Core pilot tests starting this week.

FLORIDA: Common Core opponents are turning up the heat on Gov. Rick Scott during his tight re-election race.

MASSACHUSETTS: ‘If you know it’s wrong but remain silent, you’re complicit in educational malpractice,’ a parent tells officials about Common Core

 

Monday’s ed news

ARIZONA: Bills to expand the state’s trailblazing school choice program advance in the legislature. They would open education savings accounts to as many as 1 million children.

CALIFORNIA: A lawsuit against teachers union rules could reverberate nationwide.

TENNESSEE: The House votes to delay Common Core national standards and tests.

CALIFORNIA: The U.S. Department of Education has backed down on forcing California to double-test students. Now no accountability results will be available for three years in the state.

GEORGIA: A pile of hostile amendments suffocated a Common Core repeal bill.

WYOMING: State lawmakers block an attempt to adopt global-warming heavy national science standards.

ILLINOIS: The number of school districts in financial distress has doubled, to 121. Lawmakers are suggesting requiring districts to pay their own teacher pensions.

FEDERAL OVERREACH: How the federal government tries to push states around on education policy

LOUISIANA: A bill would give high-performing principals more authority over their schools. 

 

For last week’s School Reform News roundup, click here.
For other top-notch school reform news selections, visit: 

Image by Mo Riza.