News from NEW:
"We the people..." Sound familiar? Well, not to very many
of today's students. The Center for Civic Education wants to put civics
back into schools in a variety of ways--including the "We the
People" program for K-12 students. The program includes simulated
congressional hearings, free lesson plans for teachers, and summer
workshops. |
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CONTENTS
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COMMUNITIES
- ELECTION
CONNECTION: NYC Program Encourages Political Participation
- REGIONAL
CREDENTIALS: Mid-Atlantic States Discuss Regional Teaching License
STATES
- HIGH
SCORES IN VIRGINIA: First-Time Majority of Students Meet State Standards
- ALL
IN THE FAMILY: Governor's Group Pitches Family Literacy Programs
THE NATION
- CRIB
TO CLASSROOM: U.S. Funds Early Childhood Teacher Training
- VOCATIONAL
EDUCATION'S FUTURE: Report Looks Ahead to Program's Review
RESEARCH AND EDUCATION PRACTICE
- WAR
OF THE WORDS: Pros and Cons of Reading Recovery
- ALL-DAY
PROGRESS: Kindergarten Helps Close Literacy Gaps
WEEKLY FEATURE
- SUPPLEMENTING
SERVICES: Parents Get Guidance on Tutoring Help Under ESEA
COMMUNITIES
- ELECTION
CONNECTION: A catchy title for a program designed to inspire
young people to take their citizenship responsibilities seriously. Election
Connection, financed by the New York City Council and the Consolidated
Edison Company of New York, operates in the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens,
and Staten Island boroughs of New York City. This year, students were
able to vote in their own mock online election. They also analyzed campaign
ads, followed polling data, and learned about the media's role
in covering campaigns and elections. Another program targeting young
people and their voting responsibilities is Vote for Children, operated
by the Service Employees International Union Education and Support Fund
and the Sierra Club. It is up and running in 13 cities nationwide.
http://www.atschool.org/election/
- REGIONAL
CREDENTIALS: Education leaders in Delaware, the District of
Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia are trying to forge an
unprecedented agreement that would allow new teachers to pursue a regional
teaching license. Like racers speeding down a hurdle course, the officials
are not guaranteed success, although they hope to have a voluntary regional
credential in place during 2003. Here are some of the obstacles they
face: Each state's governing board that oversees teacher licensure must
approve any change in state code. Many state leaders prefer to set their
own standards for teacher certification. The big-dollar issue of pensions--licensure
and pensions go hand-in-hand because teachers receive pensions from
the state in which they are teaching. Pamela Nichols, spokeswoman for
the Delaware State Education Association, expressed another concern:
``One negative is that the counties contiguous to us in Maryland, Pennsylvania,
and New Jersey by and large pay more than Delaware. So, should all of
this happen, we should see an exodus [of teachers].''
(Education Week, 11/6)
http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=10move.h22
http://deeds.doe.state.de.us/shd/doc/deeds_doc_ruleschap6.asp
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/newvdoe/licroute.htm
https://certification.msde.state.md.us/Certification/CertObtain.html
http://www.teaching.state.pa.us/teaching/cwp/view.asp?a=3&Q=22613&teachingPNavCtr=|#2536
http://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/teachdc/certification.html
STATES
- HIGH
SCORES IN VIRGINIA: High fives are in order from Arlington
to the southern tip of the Shenandoah Valley. For the first time since
the Standards of Learning (SOL) testing began, a majority of Virginia
schools are meeting the state's accreditation standards. Nearly
two-thirds, 64.2 percent, of the schools are fully accredited based
on their students' scores on the SOL tests--a huge leap from
1998 when only a sliver of schools (2 percent) met the standard. One
superintendent credited the improvement in some of her district's
schools to paying more attention to habitually troublemaking students.
Some districts also purchased systems that allow teachers to track student
progress each month to target academic weaknesses. But just when you
put on your party hat to celebrate good times in Virginia, Mickey Vanderwerker
of Parents Across Virginia United to Reform SOLs, says that the higher
SOL pass rates may not reflect higher student achievement. ``Ups and
downs in these figures do not necessarily mean improvement and declines
in teaching and learning for many reasons,'' she said, including test
score volatility, changes in Virginia formulas for calculating pass
rates and accreditation ratings, and the lowering of the cut scores
for some tests.
(Richmond Times-Dispatch, 11/8)
http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/education/MGBOAD9I98D.html
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/Assessment/2002SOLpassrates.html
- ALL
IN THE FAMILY: Strategies for states to promote family literacy
and learning are featured in an issue brief by the National Governor's
Association. "Family Literacy: A Strategy for Educational Improvement''
first defines family literacy and addresses the importance of involving
parents in their children's educational development. Family initiatives
from four states are highlighted in the report--Illinois, Kentucky,
Pennsylvania, and Washington--giving readers a sense of what worked
in each state to encourage family literacy programs. For example, in
Washington the Families That Work program grew out of Project Even Start,
a state program similar to the federal Even Start Program. Families
That Work incorporates the Equipped for the Future framework, an effort
of the National Institute for Literacy to address the needs of adult
learners in their primary roles of worker citizen and parent/family
member. The brief also refers to the National Center for Family Literacy's
Families in Schools program that works to build strong relationships
between the community and parents and between teachers and parents.
http://www.nga.org/center/divisions/1,1188,C_ISSUE_BRIEF^D_4629,00.html
http://www.famlit.org/
THE
NATION
- CRIB
TO CLASSROOM: The U.S. Department of Education recently announced
grants totaling $14.6 million to improve the knowledge and skills of
early childhood educators in communities with high concentrations of
poverty. Nine projects in California, Florida, Kansas, Mississippi,
New York, Oregon, Tennessee, and Texas received funding. Grants were
awarded to partnerships, including institutions of higher education
that provide professional development services for early childhood teachers.
The Department of Education also plans to share research and practical
ideas about cognitive development with pre-K teachers and child care
providers at four regional Early Childhood Educator Academies this fall
and spring. The academies will take place this week in Los Angeles (November
14-15); St. Louis (December 3-4); Miami (December 9-10);
and Lowell, Massachusetts (April 7-8).
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/11-2002/11042002.html
- VOCATIONAL
EDUCATION'S FUTURE: The Department of Education's National
Assessment of Vocational Education is out, and findings show that more
vocational ed programs and schools face increasing pressure from academic
reforms that stress rigorous standards, high school exit exams, and
lots of testing. Yet, the interim study reports a steady interest in
high school vocational education programs. Next year, Congress is scheduled
to re-examine the 1998 Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education
Act.
(Education Week, 11/6)
http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=10fed.h22
http://www.ed.gov./offices/OUS/PES/NAVE/exec_sum.pdf
RESEARCH
AND EDUCATION PRACTICE
- WAR
OF THE WORDS: A volley of attack/counterattack is keeping the education
community's head swinging from side to side. Initially, last spring,
came a critique of the Reading Recovery program posted on the National
Right to Read Foundation's Web site that was signed by many leading
reading experts across the country. According to the critique, studies
have found Reading Recovery to be unsuccessful with improving reading
among its targeted population of the lowest achieving students; it is
not cost effective; its efficacy studies do not use standard assessment
measures; and it has not used research to improve its program. Later,
another letter came, signed by many leading reading experts across the
country that countered the first letter and spelled out the pluses of
Reading Recovery. The debate heats up as states apply for federal dollars
to implement research-based reading programs for needy children, with
many states planning to use Reading Recovery in schools.
http://www.nrrf.org/rrletter_5-02.pdf
http://www.readingrecovery.org/pdfs/Letterfor%20Academicsforpdf.pdf
- ALL-DAY
PROGRESS: All-day kindergarten is helping to close the literacy
gap between white students and students of color in Minneapolis schools,
the district reports. Researchers saw that students of color who spend
a few more hours a day in kindergarten gain literacy skills faster than
those in half-day classes. The study suggests all-day kindergarten may
be an important tool to close the achievement gap, which has been a
key issue in Minnesota and the nation.
(Pioneer Press, 10/13)
http://www.twincities.com/mld/pioneerpress/4504749.htm
WEEKLY
FEATURE
-
SUPPLEMENTING SERVICES: "Making the right education
choices for your child can be overwhelming," said Reg Weaver, president
of the National Education Association (NEA). With the intent of helping
to make those choices easier, the NEA has published guidelines for parents
interested in choosing "supplemental service providers,'' in other
words--tutors. The concept of such providers has become critical
for many parents under Title 1 of the new Elementary and Secondary Education
Act (ESEA). The new law allows students who are struggling in reading,
language arts, and math to get extra help or tutoring. Children attending
schools that have been identified as "in need of improvement"
for three years by the state department of education are entitled to
these supplemental services. The NEA's Guide to Choosing Supplemental
Service Providers is "our way of helping America's parents
make the best choices," NEA officials say.
The guide addresses
questions of eligibility and how to choose a supplemental service
provider. Parents are briefed on what to expect from a supplemental
service provider and what type of supplemental services may be best
for their child. The guide offers questions parents may want to ask,
including:
- Will my child
have the same tutor or instructor on a daily or weekly basis?
- How many transitions
will my child have to make during the school day? Will she or he be
shuttled between school, tutoring, and a before- or after-school program
each day?
- Can supplemental
services be provided within my child's current before- or after-school
program?
- Does the provider
offer services on weekends or during the summer?
- Can the provider
come to my home?
This guide was developed by NEA Student Achievement to help parents
choose a supplemental service provider that meets their child's
educational needs.
--
Barbara Pape, Editor
Colorado:
Eighth-graders are writing their way to the top
Colorado eighth-grade students are among the top in the country in writing.
The proportion of eighth-grade students scoring at the highest two levels
of writing achievement is the sixth highest in the nation. (NCES, NAEP
1998 Writing: Report Card for the Nation and the States. September, 1999.)
http://www.nea.org/goodnews/co01.html
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