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--- Friday --- January 19, 1996 --- Vol. 6 --- No. 4 ---
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THE NATIONAL UPDATE ON AMERICA'S EDUCATION REFORM EFFORTS
A service of the National Education Goals Panel
__________ __________
HOT STOCKS | SPOTLIGHT |
MONEY Magazine's Junius Ellis | |
is hot on three shares that | ALL IN THE FAMILY |
cater to a "potentially huge | |
market of consumers fed up with | Parental involvement in |
America's most hidebound sacred | school is critical for a |
cow -- our $400B system of | child's academic success, |
public education." (January | claim numerous educators. |
1996) | Yet most families struggle |
He recommends DeVry, a 65- | daily to juggle work with |
year-old Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. | the various needs of their |
firm -- a "leading provider of | child. Often the child-as- |
degrees in technical subjects;" | student becomes the lost |
ITT Educational Services, a 27- | ball in the juggling act. |
year-old Indianapolis firm spun | |
off from ITT; and, his | Some businesses recognize |
favorite, Nobel Education | the significance of parent- |
Dynamics of Media Pa., an 11- | al support in the schools |
year-old chain of child-care | and are making a promise to |
centers. | help rather than hinder |
| parent involvement. Busi- |
YEAR ROUND EDUCATION | ness leaders from Marriott |
Prince William County, the | and GTE to Pizza Hut and |
fourth-largest school system in | Hewlett-Packard have joined |
Va., is moving toward a year- | Ed Sec Riley and taken the |
round schedule that would be | pledge of the "Employer |
phased in over a three-year | Promise for Learning" |
period, beginning in fall 1997 | campaign. They promise to |
(Wee, WASH POST, 1/12). | make life easier for work- |
Superintendent Edward Kelly | ing parents by offering |
recently unveiled his year- | flexible hours and |
round plan as part of a | promoting other initiatives |
strategy to relieve over- | to keep education in the |
crowded schools and address an | family. (#4) |
$8M budget shortfall. |_____________________________|
============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"Some of the biggest winners in the Nebraska Lottery aren't even
old enough to play." -- Neb. Gov Ben Nelson, praising the state's
Education Innovation Fund, funded by Lottery proceeds. (#3)
_______________________________________________________________
| A service of the National Education Goals Panel |
| Published by the Education Policy Network |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Wash, D.C.; 20037; 202/632-0952 |
| The DRC hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgement. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
| |
|_______________________________________________________________|
============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============
GOAL FOUR: TEACHER EDUCATION/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
TEACHER BEWARE: Corporate marketing guised as lessons.(#1)
GOAL SEVEN: SAFE SCHOOLS
COPS: School law enforcement, El Paso style. (#2)
STATESIDE
THE NEBRASKA LOTTERY: Funds education innovation. (#3)
PARTNERS IN EDUCATION
A PROMISE FOR LEARNING: Corporations sign off. (#4)
THE PRIVATE EYE
A CAUTIONARY TALE: EAI and Baltimore schools. (#5)
PROMISING PRACTICES
COMER SCHOOLS: Changing school culture. (#6)
SITE-BASED MANAGEMENT: Dos and don'ts. (#7)
===== GOAL FOUR: TEACHER EDUCATION/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT =====
*1 TEACHER BEWARE: CORPORATE MARKETING GUISED AS LESSON PLANS
The National Education Association is urging teachers to
thoughtfully review lesson plans produced by businesses, special
interest groups and foreign governments before using them in the
classroom (AP/N.Y. TIMES, 1/18). Some of these lesson plans are
"slick marketing" that targets school-age children, according to
the NEA, writes the paper. "I see the problem as bad and getting
worse," said Kathleen Lyons, spokeswoman for the nation's largest
teachers' union. "What it has to do with is declining school
budgets and corporate savvy."
NEA officials note that tighter school budgets have forced
many teachers to use ready-made lesson plans. The union
developed guidelines for its members to help them evaluate the
educational content of the material. According to the TIMES, the
union is particularly skeptical of plans that require the
purchase of a product "or using students, tachers or parents for
product promotion."
The paper also mentions an article in the February issue of
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING that reports on incidents of "influence-
peddling in schools." For example, some commercial sponsors
awarded teachers trips, gifts and other prizes for using their
material.
===== GOAL SEVEN: SAFE SCHOOLS =====
*2 COPS: SCHOOL LAW ENFORCEMENT, EL PASO STYLE
An El Paso elementary school uses COPS to patrol the school
for violations (URBAN EDUCATOR, Council of Great City Schools,
Dec. 1995). COPS stands for Children Observing Peers in School,
and is the model used at Bonham Elementary School. Students on
the Safety Patrol monitor the school and issue tickets and
written warnings to children in kindergarten through second grade
who are in violation of school rules.
However, when older students in the third- through fifth-
grades are caught violating rules, they must appear before Kid's
Court, "complete with judge, jury, bailiff and 'kid attorneys,'"
writes the newsletter.
Martha Munoz, chairperson of the El Paso Independent School
District's PTA Council on Youth and Safety Protection explains
that COPS helps solve safety issues while encouraging student
participation in a judiciary system. "We just want to emphasize
that we all need to follow rules," she said.
Students who break rules are given a sentence that requires
them to help their teacher or school office staff for 15 minutes.
Parents who violate parking rules or "set a bad example for
students by jaywalking" are fined between 25 cents and $1, with
proceeds delivered to the Parent Teachers Association fund, notes
the newsletter.
===== STATESIDE =====
*3 THE NEBRASKA LOTTERY: FUNDS EDUCATION INNOVATION
Neb. Gov Ben Nelson (R) last month announced the recipients
of 13 minigrants worth $67,362 and funded by the Education
Innovation Fund through proceeds from the Nebraska Lottery
(Nelson press release, 12/14). Each school district could
receive up to $5,000 each to assist with "strategic school
improvement planning," writes the release.
"Strategic school improvement plans can serve as a
springboard for creativity and innovation," said Nelson. "Once
these plans are in place, districts are eligible to apply for
major competitive grants to fund innovative strategies to address
the needs that were identified in the planning process."
The minigrants can be used to support major planning
processes that involve staff and community input and collection
and analysis of data to help select improvement goals and assess
best practices. Recipients can use the funds to develop new
improvement plans or update existing ones.
According to the release, school districts that have a
strategic school improvement plan in place are eligible to apply
for a Major Competitive Grant from the same trust fund. Major
grant projects may address the following: restructuring schools
and classrooms; creating the ability to design and implement
change; provide equitable opportunity and equal access.
Nelson: "Some of the biggest winners in the Nebraska
Lottery aren't even old enough to play. They are students from
all across the state who have benefitted from projects funded
with lottery proceeds." He added that "we can't all hit the
jackpot and become instant millionaires. But as long as lottery
proceeds are going to worthwhile projects that prepare our young
people for the future, we are all winners."
===== PARTNERS IN EDUCATION =====
*4 A PROMISE FOR LEARNING: CORPORATIONS SIGN OFF
A group of business executives joined U.S. Ed Sec Richard
Riley last month to kick off the "Employer Promise for Learning"
campaign (DoEd press release, 12/11/95). The initiative is part
of the DoEd's Family Involvement Partnership for Learning, an
informal coalition of more than 170 national organizations that
promote children's learning through the development of family-
school-community partnerships.
"These business leaders understand that being family
friendly is not just the right thing to do, but the smart thing
to do," said Riley. "It can help an employer recruit and keep
top workers, improve productivity, and increase employee
motivation and loyalty. It is one of the best investments an
employer can make in the future," he added.
By signing the promise, business leaders agree to "identify
a contact person, authorized to explore and develop options for
company involvement in our family-school-community initiatives;
take action to implement programs; share best practices after
evaluating programs annually; and form partnerships to promote,
implement and improve family-friendly policies and practices."
Ways family friendly employers promote family involvement in
learning include: allowing time for employees to get involved in
schools; initiating, implementing and supporting specific
programs that promote family involvement in education; and
providing resources to employees about how to become more
involved in their own children's education, writes the release.
Examples of family friendly programs include: Marriott's
Parent Resource Center and parenting information series that
provides employees with expert information on parenting, child-
care and work/family issues; GTE Corporation's "College Planning
Seminar for Employees and their Families," which is a day-long,
interactive seminar transmitted via satellite linking college
admissions and financial planing experts with GTE employee
families to help them plan for their child's college education
and Pizza Hut's "Kids Hall of Fame," which offers post-secondary
scholarships to children who make a difference in their family
and community, reports the release.
The release also notes Hewlett-Packard's flexible work hours
that allow employees to stagger their start time to accommodate
their children's schedules and volunteer at the corporation's on-
site elementary school.
Business leaders present with Riley at the signing of the
Promise include: J.W. Marriott, Jr., president and CEO of
Marriott International; Charles Lee, chairman and CEO of GTE
Corporation; Allan Huston, president and CEO of Pizza Hut Corp.;
the Honorable Togo D.West, Jr., Secretary fo the Army; Terry
Ehrich, CEO of Hemmings Motor News; Daniel Spalding, president of
School Specialty; and John Lewis, president of Pargon Furniture.
Also in attendance were representatives from John Hancock
Financial Services, Hewlett-Packard, American College Testing and
United Airlines.
Southern California Edison, Motorola, Walt Disney World Co.,
and Turner Educational Services also support the Promise.
For more information, contact the Family Involvement
Partnership for Learning at 1/800/USA-LEARN.
===== THE PRIVATE EYE =====
*5 A CAUTIONARY TALE: EAI AND BALTIMORE SCHOOLS
The failure of the Minnesota-based Education Alternatives
Inc., to turn around Baltimore city schools should serve as a
warning for other districts contemplating a public-private
partnership for reform (Silverman, THE NEW REPUBLIC, 1/29).
Silverman remarks that EAI performed "cosmetic surgery -- at best
-- on a school system badly in need of a major transplant."
According to Silverman, while school voucher systems promise
choice to parents, privatization guarantees choice to school
boards. Many school boards already contract out administrative
services to private firms. "Yet teaching math, grammar or even
laissez-faire economics is a far cry from trash pickup or mail
delivery, and some consumers question whether its value comes
with a hidden price tag," writes Silverman. Baltimore's woes
with EAI should bolster concern, she concludes.
Silverman points to an independent evaluation of EAI in
Baltimore conducted by the Center for Educational Research at the
U of Maryland Baltimore County. The report found that despite
the enormous amount of attention paid to physical plant upgrading
and staff development "EAI schools were generally on a par with
Baltimore public schools in similar neighborhoods," writes
Silverman. Standardized test scores in EAI schools actually
dropped during the first two years the firm took over. Last
year, the third year of EAI rule, scores climbed back to the city
average.
However, EAI initially claimed test scores had soared in
their schools, notes Silverman. Finally, it was revealed that
the EAI numbers were based on a "small and unrepresentative group
of students," and EAI "backpedaled" on its claim of rising
scores, writes the author. The firm also is faulted for "errors"
on student attendance. EAI touted a 22.2% increase in attendance
at one school; but soon after "sheepishly admitted" that the
increase was actually 2.2%, pens Silverman.
EAI's inability to deliver on thrift is even more startling
than the firm's failure to raise quality, according to Silverman.
EAI initially promised to improve student learning without
spending more than what the city was spending on schools. The
reality: EAI received almost $18M more over the past three years
than comparable city schools, asserts Silverman.
Audits by the accounting firm Arthur Andersen revealed that
"EAI did make good on one of its promises: it racked up at least
$2.6M in gross profits in 1992-93 and $4.3M in 1993-94," reports
Silverman. The local teachers' union chastises EAI for making a
profit by cutting curricula including art, music and special
education and "by pocketing Chapter I money," writes Silverman.
Silverman points out that while EAI maintained the
curriculum already in place in Baltimore, the successful Calvert
school curriculum was available as a model for curriculum reform.
One inner-city elementary school, Barclay, five years ago adopted
the private Calvert school curriculum, with highly touted
results. Calvert's emphasis is on the basics: phonics,
spelling, grammar, reading, writing and math "rather than on test
preparation, experimental teaching methods or even computers,"
writes Silverman. Barclay's Principal Gertrude Williams: "We
don't need self-esteem exercises; the students build it
organically through the curriculum." Test scores of Barclay
students consistently exceed the city average, notes Silverman.
Silverman makes note of EAI's second setback: the Hartford
Board of Education recently reversed its original decision to
hire EAI to manage 32 of its schools. Instead, EAI only will
operate six schools. And the November FORBES Magazine rated EAI
one of its worst-performing stocks, reports Silverman. Yet,
these dismal results have not dampened the spirits of other
districts intent on privatizing public schools, concludes
Silverman.
==== PROMISING PRACTICES ====
*6 COMER SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM: CHANGING SCHOOL CULTURE
The School Development Program, a school improvement model
developed by Yale U psychiatrist Dr. James Comer, has been
successful in improving children's well-being in a variety of
areas -- including personal relationships, mental health,
academic achievement and behavior (Squires and Kranyik,
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP, Dec./Jan. 95). According to the
magazine, the Comer approach works for two reasons: it supports
change in the school culture; and it focuses on children's total
development, rather than on just their speech, language and
intellectual capabilities.
The Comer School Development Program, which is administered
through the Yale U Child Study Center, consists of three teams:
the parents' program; the mental health team; and the school
planning and management team. The goal of the parents' program
is to increase parents' communication with teachers and students
and break down "the professional insularity that separates the
functions of home and school in children's development," writes
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP. As a result, the parents' program works
to make the school inviting and welcoming for parents. Although
the mental health team is involved in case-by-case management of
some students, it generally encourages broad-based preventive
measures directed at the entire school. The mental health team
examines root causes of schoolwide mental health problems, as
well as ways of improving the school climate and building
positive relationships among school members. The school planning
and management team coordinates the work of the other two teams
by establishing policy guidelines and helping coordinate school
operations. Such planning helps "break the norm of program
isolation and seat-of-the-pants planning," pens the magazine.
According to EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP, the teams function
according to three principles: no-fault problem-solving;
consensus decision-making; and collaborative decision-making.
"Collaboration changes school culture from an assembly line model
to one founded on the conviction that 'it takes a whole village
to raise a child,'" writes the magazine.
The Comer approach currently is being implemented in
Washington, D.C.; Prince George's County, Md.; Camden, N.J.;
Brooklyn, N.Y.; Dade County, Fla.; Charlotte and Greensboro,
N.C.; Chicago; Detroit; San Diego; and New Orleans. The Yale
Child Study Center provides staff development for teachers and
administrators. Dallas Superintendent Chad Woolery offered the
following suggestions for other school districts: start small
and build on successes; use peers to help prepare and train
others; redirect resources to local schools; restructure central
office staff to a school service orientation; value the child
support model; and collaborate with other entities that can help
support children and families.
*7 SITE-BASED MANAGEMENT: DOs AND DON'Ts
As school districts continue to decentralize authority and
implement site-based management, there are lessons to learn and
changes to be made, according to EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP. The
Dec./Jan. 1995 issue of the magazine is dedicated to site-based
management and offers suggestions based on the experiences of Ky.
and Boston.
Thomas Gusky, professor of education at the U of Kentucky,
and Kent Peterson, professor of education at the U of Wisconsin,
describe some of the problems faced by educators as they strive
to share decision-making and authority. Among the problems
identified include: the power problem, where true decision-
making remains in central administrations; the implementation
problem, caused by unclear governance structures and ill-defined
goals; the ambiguous mission problem; the time problem, which
occurs because teachers have little common time throughout the
school day and therefore must meet before or after school; the
expertise problem, due to lack of training and staff development;
the cultural constraints problem, where traditional roles are
redefined; the avoidance problem, in which school-based councils
ignore issues related to learning and instruction; and the
motivation problem, which arises from the perception that the
costs outweigh the benefits of site-based management.
To address these problems, Gusky and Peterson recommend 11
guidelines for improvement. They include: begin with a clear
mission that focuses on teaching and learning; set clear goals
for the decision-making process; ensure that school-based
decision-making is seen as a process for bringing about a broad
set of reforms; alter governance structures to give
administrators, teachers and parents real authority; be
responsive to parents' concerns; redesign schedules to gove
teachers time to participate in decion-making; invest in high-
quality professional development; obtain necessary expertise on
which to base decisions; ensure active support from all levels of
the organization; reward accomplishments; and work to establish a
collaborative school culture focused on improvement.
Jane Clark Lindle, also a professor at the U of Kentucky,
offers some insights into Ky.'s experience with site-based
management. According to the magazine, Ky. began implementing
site-based management in 1990 under the Kentucky Education Reform
Act (KERA). Lindle categorizes Ky.'s lessons about shared
decison-making into three areas: democratic, discussion and
decisions.
KERA authorized the creation of School-Based Decision-Making
Councils at each school. The SBDM councils, which have a great
deal of responsibility, consist of the principal, three teachers
and two parents. The exclusion of various constituencies from
council representation restricts the degree of open discussion.
In addition, schools have encountered political and professional
conflicts in implementing the councils.
Among the other obstacles confronted by the SBDM councils
include: councils had to spend a great deal of time initially
drafting by-laws and complying with regulations, leaving little
time for them to focus on issues related to teaching and
learning; councils pose a challenge to schools' prevailing
political structure; and achieving consensus and establishing a
collegial climate.
Boston's experience with site-based management also is
insightful, according to the magazine. In 1992 and 1993, the
Boston Public Schools and Boston Teachers' Union established
school-based management as a citywide policy. As a result,
school site councils were charged with setting the direction of
the school through an education plan; were given unprecendented
hiring and budgeting authority; were allowed to seek waivers for
practices that impeded innovative reform; and were able to access
a wide range of professional development activities. Now,
according to Sonia Caus Gleason, associate director of the Boston
Leadership Academy, Nick Donahue, special liason at the Regioanl
Laboratory for the Educational Improvement of the Northeast and
the Islands, and Gerald Leader, co-director of the Boston
Leadership Academy, the SSCs are beginning to focus on improving
student achievement.
In March 1994, the SBM/SDM Collaborative was chosen to
provide services to the SSCs. EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP writes that
the Collaborative developed a two-pronged approach to
implemention: develop the capacity of each SSC to effectively
manage the educational direction of its school; and help central
office staff define supporting procedures. In addition, the SSCs
participated in a series of workshops.
The Collaborative created a self-profile, which outlines the
critical elements of effective council operations and identifies
a series of practices that can help a council achieve its goals
efficiently and effectively. The Collaborative also used
Glickman's Focus of Governance chart to help SSCs identify
important issues and focus on their missions.
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