DC Chancellor Fires 250 Teachers Deemed Ineffecive

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee fired approximately 250 tenured and new instructors last week for poor performance or failure to obtain a license.  It was believed that about 60 of those terminated were first- or second-year teachers on probation,  80 were experienced teachers who had been placed on improvement plans and the remaining 110 individuals failed to obtain proper certification.










About 3,500 classroom teachers work in D.C. public schools. The union would appeal the firings in instances in which it believes teachers did not receive adequate support on the 90-day plan.

Do Teaching Credentials Still Matter?

 

As entry into the field of education varies in terms of preparation and training, one may ask do teaching credentials really matter.  In a study through Duke University, the researcher focused on high school achievement and found the following:

• After five years on the job, another year of experience did not impact success.
• Teachers who graduated from more-selective colleges generated bigger learning compared with those from less-selective schools.
• Teachers who had earned a master's degree before entering the field were no more effective than those without master's degrees. 
• Teachers who attained a  master's degree after teaching were more effective than their less-educated teaching peers.
• Teachers who worked in-field were found to be more effective than those who were not.

For more information about this article, please see full article. 

Some Schools Not Accepting Undocumented Immigrants

Three decades after the Supreme Court ruled that students could not be denied access to a public school due to immigration status, the New York Times reported that 1 in 5 school districts in their state are requiring a child’s immigration papers as a prerequisite to enrollment, or asking parents for information that only lawful immigrants could provide.

The ACLU is involved in battling this practice and it appears that the reason for this problem may revolve around the unintentional, routine practices of various districts.  Conversely, after the Haitian earthquake, target districts in other parts of the country not only accepted the victims but relaxed their requirements beyond the normal standards.  

Where is the Least Educated City in America?

According to Brookings Institute, Bakersfield, California is the least educated metropolitan area in the country.  In particular, Bakersfield had the lowest rate of adults 25 and over with a bachelor's degree and the second-lowest rate of adults 25 and over with a high school diploma. In fact, 3 of the 4 least educated cities resided in California.  The two most educated cities were Washington D.C. and Bridgeport, Connecticut. 

In terms of growth, the fastest growing educational areas were Worchester, MA and Southern Florida, while the area with the slowest growth was New Orleans which may come as no surprise due to Hurricane Katrina and other factors.  

To see the full report click here.

19 People Arrested at North Carolina School Board Meeting

At the Wake County, NC School Board meeting on Tuesday, several protesters and police scuffled  over claims that a new busing system would resegregate schools.  The conflict led to 19 arrests and increased racial tension.  Fox News reported that the head of state NAACP chapter was banned from the meeting due to a trespassing arrest at last month's session.


Every school district has strict diversity guidelines which link with the landmark case from Brown vs. Board of Education.  One can assume that there will be more coverage on this case as this matter will proceed through the court system.  


For more information about this case, please see the article in The Daily Tarheel. 

Should We Rethink The Way We Group Students?

With the push for mastery for our low performers and enrichment for our higher functioning students, should we group students more by ability as opposed to grade level.  According to Teacher Magazine, this has become an increased practice.  Much of the positive research focused on middle and senior high and addressed the academic benefits.   With states that have non-spiraling standards, I am curious how this measure would work in elementary schools. 

Scarcity of resources and class-size compliance may make the doubters more receptive to this practice. This also opens the debate to heterogeneous vs. homogeneous grouping.  What do you think?

Do Something Drive

DoSomething.org and Staples are teaming up for the 3rd annual Staples/Do Something 101 national school supply drive. All school supplies and donations will be given locally to the Boys & Girls Clubs in your area. The drive will continue through September 18. For more information, contact the Staples store in your area or go to http://www.dosomething.org/

Report : Teacher Layoffs Among Most School Districts Next Year

The Center on Education Policy reported that while stimulus funding buffered employees and saved jobs, that money in many cases was already utilized and not available in future years. The ability to comply with class-size requirements in certain states, along with covering state funding shortfalls, supplemental IDEA and Title 1 funding have impacted the problem. This past year, the stimulus did not prevent layoffs everywhere.  It was reported that 45 percent of school districts cut teaching jobs in the 2009-10 school year. 

Another issue revolves around the mandate of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).  The federal accountability law for K-12 education has a goal of all students demonstrating proficiency in math and reading by 2014.  With the increased scarcity of resources, many districts are not clear how they will meet the federal demands while remaining solvent.

Teacher Fired, Administrators Disclipined Over Student Field-Trip Drowning

Last week, a teacher was fired and two administrators were disciplined after the results of an investigation found that a 12 yr old student's death may have been the result of the school’s poor planning and supervision during a field trip.


An investigation found that officials at the school did a poor job planning the trip and failed to obtain the required parental consent forms. It was believed that the teacher chaperoning the trip should have noticed the beach was closed to swimmers and that no lifeguards were on duty. The school seemed to also be aware that some of the students did not know how to swim.

School employees must follow the designated procedures for their school and district. This was an easily preventable situation.




To read the New York Times version of this story, click here.

FCAT testing company also has problems in Minnesota

Several sources reported that the troubled testing company, which had several problems with Florida's FCAT, incorrectly scored the state-mandated science tests given to fifth- and eighth-grade students Minnesota.  Pearson, who facilitates these assessments, confirmed the issue and was working to resolve it, according to correspondence between the testing company and the Minnesota Department of Education.

The news comes a week after the Florida Department of Education hired two independent auditors to review this year's FCAT scores after finding widespread irregularities in the data.

Details to come.