Education Week, February 25, 2020, by Matt Lieberman A growing body of research provides evidence that schools can benefit from rethinking their schedules, whether by pushing the start time to later in the day, eliminating one day a week, or otherwise reshuffling how students and teachers spend their time together. Before districts and schools can pull the […]
Did Indianapolis students do better after struggling schools were restarted? A new study takes a look.
Chalkbeat, November 1, 2019, by Stephanie Wang When Indianapolis Public Schools “restarted” chronically struggling schools, students who stayed under the new management sometimes made smaller gains on tests compared to their classmates who left, a new study finds. Over time, however, students at the restarted schools closed some of the gaps. The study by Public […]
Of Course Money Matters, Now What?
Education Week, October, 14, 2019, by Rick Hess One of the more frustrating education debates of the past quarter century has been the debate about, as Gary Burtless’s Brookings volume put it back in 1996, Does Money Matter? I mean, it’s tough to think of anywhere else in American life where we’d even have that discussion. If […]
How Can We Extend the Reach of Great Teachers? A Q&A with Stephanie Dean on Opportunity Culture
Ahead of the Heard, August 14, 2019, by Chad Aldeman How should we train teachers? How do we ensure that all students have access to great teaching? Those questions are at the heart of many education policy debates. While it may be difficult to “raise the bar” on the teaching profession by erecting barriers to entry, […]
Strong Teachers, Good Design Important for Virtual Charters to Succeed
Education Dive, July 11, 2019, by Shawna De La Rosa Students in online charter schools have generally performed less well than their peers in brick-and-mortar classrooms, but this doesn’t have to be the case. With specific strategies, online schools can be a viable alternative to traditional public education, according to a new report from Public […]
Forging Parent Partnerships to Better Serve Students with Special Needs
Walton Family Foundation, July, 9, 2019, by Johannah Chase Report details how charter schools and parents can work together to improve outcomes for students with disabilities Parents are the experts on their children. They know the hidden strengths they possess, talents that schools might not easily unearth. They understand the unique challenges their children experience in a […]
Parent Power: To Improve Special Education in Charter Schools, Tap Students’ Original Advocates — Their Families — Report Says
The 74, June 28, 2019, by Beth Hawkins When it comes to living up to their obligation to serve students with disabilities, public charter schools face a host of challenges. In addition to the perennial headache of underfunding, there are bureaucratic constraints, a woeful lack of teacher preparation in special education and difficulty finding and […]
Teacher Awarded $175,000 Grant
Rocky Mount Telegram, March 12, 2019, by Amelia Harper One Phillips Middle School teacher received the surprise of a lifetime Monday when she was told she had just won a $175,000 grant for herself, her school and for Edgecombe County Public Schools. Casandra Cherry is in her second year as the math multi-classroom leader at […]
Are You Really Personalizing Learning?
Christensen Institute, March 7, 2019, by Thomas Arnett and Julia Freeland Fisher In a recent post, we shed light on the difference between blended learning—an instructional modality that describes integrating technology to deliver some content—and personalized learning—a philosophy that believes in a combination of modalities and goals for better and (and in some cases, new) […]
Opportunity Culture Dashboard Updates Data on Nationwide Initiative
EdNC, March 6, 2019 Public Impact, which created and leads the national Opportunity Culture initiative, updates the Opportunity Culture dashboard annually and today released the latest results from 2018–19, showing that student learning continues to benefit, and teachers want to keep and grow Opportunity Culture. The national Opportunity Culture initiative extends the reach of excellent teachers and […]
Rethinking the Teaching Profession
American Enterprise Institute, February 8, 2019, by Frederick M. Hess and Amy Cummings
Frustration with teacher pay is widespread. This is true even considering that school spending (per pupil, adjusted for inflation) has grown by more than 30 percent since 1992.
Coker-Wimberly: Setting Kindergarteners Up for Success Starts Day One
EdNC, February 6, 2019, by Liz Bell
When children come to the first day of kindergarten, they come with a variety of needs, personalities, abilities, and backgrounds. The most important thing in those first few weeks is building a routine, said Annette Kent, a kindergarten teacher at Coker-Wimberly Elementary School in Edgecombe County.