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--- Wednesday --- March 17, 1999 --- Vol. 2 --- No.10 ---
NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL
NEGP Weekly
THE UPDATE ON AMERICA'S NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS
in cooperation with the DAILY REPORT CARD
MODELS OF SUCCESS
U.S.News & World Report reviewed over 1,000 schools nationwide to find
models of excellence. According to reporter Thomas Toch, three trends are
driving today's school-accountability movement: "rising educational
requirements for good jobs, the public's frustration with the performance of
many public schools, and the spread of school choice."
Toch also cites research that shows key traits shared by top-notch schools,
including high academic standards, a core curriculum that prepares graduates
for college, highly qualified teachers, strong mentoring programs for new
teachers, partnerships between parents and schools, administrators and
teachers who know each child. For more information, visit www.usnews.com
for the ABC/U.S.NEWS survey on American high schools.
SPOTLIGHT
TRANSFORMATION
American education is undergoing major transformations, from the
implementation of more rigorous standards to zero-tolerance school
discipline policies. Governance structures and leadership roles also are in
a state of flux, as educators and policymakers grapple with how best to
improve student achievement.
Two reports describe new roles for urban school boards and school
superintendents. (#1, #5). A new commission intends to explore the
organization and management of America's schools. (#3)
============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"If my students ever had any training at home, they've forgotten it. Either
their parents don't have time to teach culture or manners or responsibility,
or they actually don't give a damn."
Arizona teacher, from "Playing Their Parts: Parents and Teachers Talk About
Parental Involvement in Public Schools.
_______________________________________________________________
| (c) by the Education Policy Network, Inc. |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Washington, D.C. 202/724-0124 |
| The DRC hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgment. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
|
|
|_______________________________________________________________|
============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============
GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
*1. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT: ROLE OF URBAN SCHOOL BOARDS
GOAL EIGHT: PARENTAL PARTICIPATION
*2. A PARENT'S ROLE: HOMEWORK OR HIRING
IN THE NEWS
*3. GOVERNANCE: BETTER WAYS TO ORGANIZE SCHOOLS
*4. GOP FLEXES MUSCLE: DENIES DEMOCRATS ON ED FLEX
*5. "THE INVISIBLE CEO:" AMERICA'S SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS
= GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP =
*1 STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT: ROLE OF URBAN SCHOOL BOARDS
Urban school boards can do more to improve student achievement,
according to a report recently issued by the National School Boards
Foundation. A year-long initiative of the National School Boards
Association, the Council of Urban Boards of Education, culminated in a
report that urges urban school boards to listen to what their communities
value and expect from their schools, and then focus on improving student
achievement.
"This report signals a call to action for all of us who care deeply
about urban education," said Michael Preston, board member, Seattle School
District #1, and chairman of the National School Board's Association's
Council of Urban Boards of Education.
The report, "Leadership Matters: Transforming Urban School Boards,"
calls for building an agenda in four areas:
Higher academic expectations, more resources and stronger accountability;
Active parent and public involvement;
Quality teachers;
Safe learning environments.
"The ultimate objective of this project is to provide urban board
members - who make policy affecting 12 million students - with a clear
understanding of these issues and with the tools and supports they need to
improve their effectiveness," said Terry Crane,
chairman of the National School Boards Foundation and president of Jostens
Learning Corporation.
"Leadership Matters" includes results from a national survey that
show there is a consistent, significant difference in perception between
urban school board members and the urban public in several key areas,
including:
Urban board members give schools much higher performance ratings than do
their constituencies. For example, 49% of the urban public believe schools
do a good or excellent job teaching reading, writing, and math, compared to
69% of school board members.
Only 39% of urban residents believe schools do a good or excellent job
involving parents in education, compared to 51% of school board members.
Forty-one percent of residents believe schools do a good or excellent job
hiring and keeping high-quality teachers, compared to 63% of school board
members.
Thirty-three percent of residents believe schools do a good or excellent job
keeping violence and drugs out of schools, compared to 82% of school board
members.
The BellSouth Foundation, The Ford Foundation, W.K. Kellogg
Foundation, and the Motorola Foundation funded the Urban School Boards
Initiative. The project was carried out in cooperation with the National
School Boards Association's Council of Urban Boards of Education.
Copies of the report are available by calling (800) 706-6722 (order
# 10-001). "Leadership Matters" also is available at www.nsbf.org
GOAL EIGHT: PARENTAL PARTICIPATION
*2 A PARENT'S ROLE: HOMEWORK OR HIRING
While a survey of parents and teachers finds mixed feelings about
parents taking part in a school's hiring and curriculum decisions, both
groups agree that parents can make a significant contribution to their
child's education by raising polite, disciplined children who come to school
ready to learn.
"What many policy makers and reformers are talking about - getting
parents involved in school governance - misses the most bedeviling concerns
teachers and parents face," said Deborah Wadsworth, executive director of
Public Agenda, the nonprofit group that conducted. "Most teachers and
parents see an urgent need for the type of parental involvement that starts
at home, promoting good behavior and a strong work ethic."
Eighty-three percent of parents surveyed for the report, "Playing
Their Parts: Parents and Teachers Talk about Parental Involvement in Public
Schools," said that the most important role they can play is checking
homework and encouraging their children to learn, with only 4% saying a
parent's first priority should be to help hire staff and design curriculum.
Teachers also are not keen on parents appointed to school governing
boards. Only 25% said they approve of parents taking part in staff hiring.
However, 65% of teachers who work in schools where parents evaluate teachers
approve of the practice.
"Playing Their Parts" also reports on the "nightly ritual of
homework." According to the survey, nearly 60% of teachers say parents
should at least check to make sure their children have completed assignments
and done so correctly, but only 16% say parents typically reach or surpass
that minimum level.
Half of parents, however, report that serious arguments erupt when
it is homework time. "I wanted this time to be quality time, and it
couldn't be because of this homework," said one Birmingham mother. Similar
concerns led one in every five parents to admit having done their children's
homework themselves.
Other findings from the survey:
Given a choice of 10 activities they could do at school, parents are most
likely to say they are very comfortable chaperoning a class trip or party
(73%). Only 25% say the same about helping plan the curriculum.
Only 34% of teachers surveyed say the level of parent attention to their
child's education is excellent or good. Eight out of 10 teachers complain
about parents who fail to set limits for their children or control how much
time they watch television.
Seventy-percent of parents say they do more for their child's education than
their parents did for them, but about the same percentage also wish they
could do more.
The survey also reveals parents' "conflicting approaches towards
raising children." For example, about nine in ten of the parents surveyed
say children who try hard should not feel bad about getting poor grades.
Yet, 93% of parents also say that children should learn to handle schoolwork
on their own as they grow older.
"The results show the incredible ambivalence parents feel, one
moment wanting to bolster their children's self-esteem and the next letting
them sink if they can't swim," said Wadsworth. "This contradiction has
profound implications for parental involvement, because it makes it hard for
parents to raise the type of hardworking children that teachers say are
needed in their classroom."
"Playing Their Parts" was sponsored by Kraft Foods, an operating
company of Philip Morris Companies Inc. It is based on surveys conducted in
the fall of 1998 of 1,220 randomly chosen parents of public school children
and 1,000 public school teachers from across the country. Public Agenda
also held eight focus groups and conducted 25 interviews with experts.
Copies are available for $12.50, shipping included, by calling (212)
686-6610. Excerpts will be available on Public Agenda Online at
www.publicagenda.org.
IN THE NEWS
*3 GOVERNANCE: BETTER WAYS TO ORGANIZE SCHOOLS
A new commission has emerged to examine school-governance structures
for K-12 schools. Created by the Education Commission of the States (ECS),
the National Commission on Governing America's Schools will "take a
critical, all-encompassing look at how America's schools are organized and
managed," (ECS press release, 2/26).
"This century has brought us the car, the airplane, the television,
the washing machine, and the computer. These innovations have demanded
adaptation. It is short-sighted to think our schools' management systems
don't deserve and need the same attention," said Kentucky Governor Paul E.
Patton, chairman of ECS. Patton and James Renier, former Honeywell CEO and
chairman, and current chairman of the Institute for Educational Leadership
(IEL), will co-chair the newly formed National Commission on Governing
America's Schools.
The commission's mission is to study K-12 governance issues in
search of ways for states and communities to "effectively organize to
provide students with an excellent education,' writes the release.
According to the release, many policymakers and educators believe a "more
flexible and accountable education system that welcomes diverse approaches
to both schooling and school governance can help improve student
achievement." Chicago and Cleveland, where the cities' mayors run the
schools, are cited as examples of unique governance structures worthy of
examination.
Renier: "Let's begin with the resolve to take a fresh look,
recognizing that 'plain vanilla' is more apt to be the result once again if
we do not direct our attention to the governance challenges actually faced
by public education in different communities."
The new commission is comprised of "diverse, experienced and
outspoken people who will ask tough questions as they develop meaningful
school governance options." The eighteen commission members, including
Patton and Renier, include: David Osborne, co-author of "Reinventing
Government" and managing partner of the Public Strategies Group; Neil
Peirce, syndicated columnist; and Deborah McGriff, senior vice president of
the Edison Project and former Detroit superintendent of schools.
A series of new governance reports issued by ECS will guide the
commission's initial discussions. These reports include: "Future Trends
Affecting Education;" Americans' Perceptions About Public Education;" "The
Invisible Hand of Ideology: Perspectives from the History of School
Governance;" "The Changing Landscape of Education Governance;" "Recent
Changes in Public-Sector Governance;" "Emerging Strategies for
Private-Sector Governance;" "Effective School Governance: A Look at Today's
Practice and Tomorrow's Promise."
Copies of the papers are available (prices range from $4.00 to
$8.50) by contacting the ECS Distribution Center; 707 17th Street; Suite
2700; Denver, Colorado 80202-3427; (303) 299-3692; (303)296-8332 (FAX).
Visit ECS's Web page at: www.ecs.org.
*4 GOP FLEXES MUSCLE: DENIES DEMOCRATS ON ED FLEX
The U.S. Senate last week agreed with House members to expand the
Education Flexibility Demonstration Program (Ed Flex) to cover all 50
states, but voted down many Democratic amendments to the bill. Ed Flex,
initially a pilot program running in 12 states, allows states to waive
federal requirements under several federal programs, including: Title 1,
teacher training, anti-drug programs, and vocational education programs.
Before the voting was over, the Senate rejected several amendments
sponsored by Democratic Senators. Left on the cutting-room floor are
proposals that would have authorized $2.5B over five years for remedial
education programs; $600M annually for after-school initiatives; $150M for
dropout prevention programs; and $11.4B over six years to continue President
Clinton's teacher-hiring program, reports EDUCATION DAILY (Cahir, 3/15).
Republican lawmakers did provide more funding for special education and made
changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
One amendment that passed on a vote of 60-39, would allow school
districts to spend class-size reduction funding on either hiring more
teachers or IDEA programs. Another amendment that garnered Senate support
would let school staff transfer disabled students to alternative programs
for up to 45 days if they carry or possess weapons or drugs at school. ED
DAILY explains that IDEA already allows alternative placement for disabled
students who carry weapons or drugs to school, but it never mentions
"possession," according to EDUCATION DAILY. "Schools want to know whether
that language means they can change the placement of a child whom they found
to be in 'possession' of a weapon,' said Senator John Ashcroft (R-Mo.).
"They are afraid that the language of the statute sets up a distinction that
is going to create a big loophole which kids can jump through to avoid the
45-day [placement] change."
U.S. Ed Secretary Richard Riley expressed "deep disappointment" for
failing to make a long-term commitment to class-size reduction. But House
Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Illinois) said he was "very pleased [with] the
House passed legislation ... to give governors and local school districts a
break - a break from Washington-always-knows-best regulations," reports ED
DAILY.
A conference committee comprised of House and Senate members will
hash out differences between each house's version of Ed Flex, which
primarily concerns the special education issues addressed in the Senate, but
not in the House, version.
*5 "THE INVISIBLE CEO:" AMERICA'S SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS
An "alarming" lack of diversity among school superintendents plagues
the nation, according to a new report issued by the Superintendents Prepared
Consortium in collaboration with the American Association of School
Administrators (AASA). The lack of diversity persists despite the greater
gender and race diversity present in the superintendents' candidate pool.
"This isn't about diversity for diversity's sake," said Floretta
Dukes McKenzie, chairwoman and CEO of The McKenzie Group, Inc., a member of
the Superintendents Prepared Consortium. "It's about getting the best
people to fill these essential leadership jobs. The individual ultimately
responsible for the teaching and learning process and student outcomes is
the local school superintendent."
Dr. Harold "Bud" Hodgkinson and Dr. Zenia Montenegro, co-authors of
"The U.S. School Superintendent in 1998: The Invisible CEO," write that "the
route to the superintendency almost always involves becoming a teacher, then
a principal, then a stint in a central office job before becoming a
superintendent." The report adds that although the "pipeline" leading to
the superintendent's office is comprised of a greater percentage of woman
and minorities than are represented in the final tally of superintendents,
the numbers are not high: assistant superintendents are 33% female and 13%
minority; central office administrators are 57% female and 14% minority;
principals are 41% female and 17% minority.
"These figures point to a need for recruitment processes by school
boards, headhunters and others that ensure the development of diverse
candidates," said Michael Usdan, president of IEL, another Consortium
member. "Superintendents themselves, who are in the best position to groom
their staff for the top position, also need to act," he adds.
The report recommends:
More regular collection of data by government in concert with trade groups
such as the AASA and National School Boards Association so that this
problem can be acknowledged and regularly monitored.
Specialized training opportunities and mentoring for aspiring
superintendents by colleges of education, trade groups, and sitting
superintendents.
Broader support to increase and diversify the pool of superintendents by
influential non-education sectors of the society, such as the business and
political leadership.
Superintendents Prepared has operated for five years under
the auspices of the Superintendents Prepared Consortium comprised of IEL,
The McKenzie Group, and the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.
Copies of "The Invisible CEO," which was funded by the Ford Foundation, are
available for $12.00 by calling: (202)822-8405, ext.19.
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