Click here to return to OFCN's Main Index Page.
--- Friday --- February 21, 1997 --- Vol. 7 --- No. 16 ---
D #### ##### #### ### #### #### ##### ### #### ####
A ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ##
I #### #### #### ## ## #### ## ## ##### #### ## ##
L ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ##
Y ## ## ##### ## ### ## ## ## ##### ## ## ## ## ####
THE NATIONAL UPDATE ON AMERICA'S EDUCATION REFORM EFFORTS
A service of the National Education Goals Panel
__________ __________
A GLOBAL AFFAIR | SPOTLIGHT |
Select students from around | |
the world were invited to join | BOYCOTT |
U.S. Secretary of State | |
Madeleine Albright for an | A student boycott of |
Internet discussion on | school is underway in |
international affairs and | Philadelphia. Students are |
environmental issues. The | protesting what they |
discussion, which took place | consider to be the unfair |
yesterday, is the first-ever | decision of Superintendent |
Internet discussion hosted by a | Hornbeck to reassign the |
Secretary of State. | vast majority of their |
Participating students are | teachers to other schools. |
part of the Global Learning and | |
Observations to Benefit the | Hornbeck's response: |
Environment (GLOBE) program. | "Folks have been rattled by |
GLOBE, initiated by Vice | this, and that's the idea." |
President Al Gore, is an | His order to dismantle the |
education and science program | faculty is his way of |
that joins students, educators | protesting the schools' |
and scientists around the | bleak performance -- |
world. GLOBE is a public- | barely one out of 20 11th- |
private partnership managed by | grade students can read at |
the National Oceanic and | the basic level. |
Atmospheric Administration, | |
NASA, the National Science | Teacher union leaders |
Foundation, the Environmental | also are denouncing Horn- |
Protection Agency and the DoEd | beck's decision, challeng- |
and the State Dept. K-12 | ing his move on technical |
students in more than 3,000 | grounds. They also may |
school in 48 countries are | wonder why they are should- |
involved in GLOBE. | ering the burden when |
The GLOBE Program is located | multitudinous factors are |
at 744 Jackson Place, Wash., | to blame. (#5) |
D.C. 20603; 202/395-7600. |_____________________________|
============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"We're not going to do something dumb like suspend them."
Philadelphia School Superintendent David Hornbeck, on what he
does not plan to do about students boycotting classes over his
decision to reassign many of their school's teachers. (#5)
_______________________________________________________________
| 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 PAY: Barely keeping up with inflation. (#1)
TAKING STOCK
WE NEED TO TALK: What kids want to say to their parents.(#2)
CHARTING A NEW COURSE
THE WHITTLE WAY: A charter school in Duluth. (#3)
CHOOSING SCHOOLS
THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE: A winner in Lincoln Park, NJ.. (#4)
ACCOUNTABILITY
KEYSTONE SCHOOLS: Hornbeck decision causes student protest.(#5)
FROM COURTHOUSE TO SCHOOL HOUSE
REJECTED: High Court turns down community service case. (#6)
==== GOAL FOUR: TEACHER EDUCATION/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ====
*1 TEACHER PAY: BARELY KEEPING UP WITH INFLATION
A National Education Association report found that teacher
salaries are barely keeping up with inflation. "The salary
outlook for teachers is troubling," commented NEA President Bob
Chase.
Chase continued: "The nation needs 2 million new teachers
over the next 10 years, and how are we going to attract qualified
people to the teaching profession without attractive salaries?
. . . We must do better if we want to attract the best. We
can't talk about the need for quality teachers when we're not
offering them adequate salaries."
According to the report, average teacher salaries fell in
two states last year: N.C.'s average teacher pay dropped 1.2%,
while Hawaii's dropped 7% in 1995-1996 from the previous year.
Sixteen states and the District of Columbia showed a decline in
average salary over the past ten years after adjusting for
inflation. The states are: Alaska, Mont., Texas, D.C., Ariz.,
La., Okla., N.M., Minn., Ala., Utah, N.C., Colo., Hawaii, and
Nev.
The average U.S. teacher salary for 1995-1996 was $37,685.
For 1994-1995, it was $36,605. The national average teacher
salary increased 3% between 1994-1995 and 1995-1996, while
inflation increased 2.7% during the same time period. Adjusting
for inflation, the average salary of public school teachers has
grown 5.1% from 1985-1986 to 1995-1996, writes the report.
Other trends described in the report: an enrollment that is
growing; an increase in the number of classroom teachers; states
assuming a larger share of education funding; state tax burdens
are remaining constant; and equity among states in education
spending appears to be improving.
"Rankings of the States" is an annual NEA report, published
since the 1960s. It includes rank-ordered statistics for the 50
states and the District of Columbia. The report also includes
data other than teacher salaries such as: average per pupil
expenditures, percent of school costs borne by each level of
government, per-capita income, population, class size and data on
other factors that affect school resources and quality.
Copies of the report, "Rankings of the States, 1996," may be
ordered from the NEA Professional Library; P.O. Box 509; West
Haven, Conn. 06516; 800/229-4200. The cost is $18.95.
===== TAKING STOCK =====
*2 WE NEED TO TALK: WHAT CHILDREN WANT TO SAY TO THEIR PARENTS
Most parents of 8-12 year-olds do not talk enough to their
children about topics such as: relationships and becoming
sexually active (77%), violence (75%), AIDS (68%), and alcohol
and drugs (67%), according to a recent survey conducted by the
Kaiser Family Foundation, Children Now and The Advertising
Council. In order to get that message to parents, the three
groups are promoting a national public service campaign featuring
print, television and radio advertisements.
"Sweeping tough issues under the rug will not prepare
children for today's world," said Drew Altman, president, Kaiser
Family Foundation. "Parents do not need to be told they are
failing yet again, but they do need the type of encouragement and
help this campaign offers."
The consortium has sought the help of twenty Boys and Girls
Clubs across the country that will bring the campaign messages to
local communities. The Boys and Girls Clubs also will hold town
hall meetings and parent clinics, encourage local newspapers and
television and radio stations to support the effort.
"The real hope of this initiative lies with our community
partners, the Boys and Girls Clubs across the nation, who will
work most closely with parents, children and the larger community
to stimulate better and more frequent discussions on these tough
issues," said Lois Salisbury, president, Children Now.
According to a press release, the ads will encourage parents
to talk with their children and to call the campaign's toll-free
number to get a free booklet to help them. The 60-page booklet,
"Talking With Kids About Touch Issues," was developed by Lynne
Duman, a social researcher and author of parenting books.
Other findings from the survey: by the time their child is
a teen, only 31% of parents surveyed said they talked about peer
pressure to have sex with their children, 30% talked about how to
prevent an unwanted pregnancy, and 23% about when the child might
be ready to have a sexual relationship; 54% of 10-12 year-olds
said their parents are an important resource for "other kids
their age" on issues including AIDS, violence, drugs and alcohol;
13-15 year-olds are less likely to name their parents (40%), and
more likely to name a friend as a common resource.
Another finding: both children and teens say today's youth
find out about issues including sex, AIDS, violence and drugs
from the entertainment media -- 57% of 10-12 year-olds and 61% of
13-15 year-olds. The campaign also has produced a booklet,
"Television As A Tool," to help parents use the media to get
their own message across to their children.
Single copies of "Talking With Kids About Tough Issues," is
available free-of-charge by calling 800-CHILD44. "Television As
A Tool" is available through the Kaiser Foundation's publications
request line at 800/656-4KFF. Ask for #1229.
===== CHARTING A NEW COURSE =====
*3 THE WHITTLE WAY: A CHARTER SCHOOL IN DULUTH
The Minn. state Board of Education recently voted to grant
charter school status to a proposal submitted by Chirs Whittle's
The Edison Project. According to the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE,
this is the first time a for-profit firm has been permitted to
manage a Minn. charter school (Smetanka, 2/9).
The Edison Project already runs 12 schools nationwide, six
of which are charters, writes the paper. All of Edison's schools
follow the same model: an extended school day and school year;
low student-teacher ratios; grouping students into academies to
"keep the setting intimate;" and keeping students with the same
teachers for several years, reports the paper.
In Duluth, the Edison school would have two campuses. One
school would be located at Kenwood School and would serve about
300 K through 5th-grade students. The other school would be
housed in the district's central office building and would enroll
nearly 300 students in grades 6 through 8.
The curricula would stress music, art, foreign language,
dance and drama. Teachers would be rewarded for excellent work
through a merit-pay program, notes the paper. Also, each teacher
and student are given a portable computer. According to the
paper, Edison invests about $1.5M in each of its schools for
technology, teacher training and materials.
Deborah McGriff, an Edison senior vice president, said the
firm relies on private investment to pay for the costs of
starting the schools. She expects Edison will earn a profit
"within the next two years."
However, earning a profit is troublesome to some critics of
The Edison Project. The Duluth Federation of Teachers opposes
the granting of charter school status to The Edison Project.
Sandy Peterson, president of the Minnesota Federation of
Teachers, told the DRC that her primary concern is the for-profit
nature of The Edison Project. According to Peterson, any extra
dollars earned in public schools should be recycled back to the
schools, not to stockholders in a company.
School board member Phil Storsteen is nonplused by the
concern over Edison earning a profit. He pointed out that
"everyone from textbook sellers to teachers to people who remove
snow from school parking lots makes money from education,"
reports the paper.
==== CHOOSING SCHOOLS ====
*4 THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE: A WINNER IN LINCOLN PARK, N.J.
The Lincoln Park School District last week voted 7-2 to give
parents the right to choose where to send their children to high
school. Their choice could be any public, private or religious
school (CENTER FOR EDUCATION REFORM press release, 2/12). The
blue-collar suburb joins Lake Travis, Texas, and Chittenden, Vt.,
as local school districts that have voted thumbs up for school
choice, writes the release.
"This is local control at its finest," commented Jeanne
Allen, president of the Center for Education Reform. "Boards and
citizens should be allowed to access any means available to give
children a fine education Lincoln Park is among a growing band
of local officials who are taking bold steps on behalf of their
children's future," she added.
According to the release, Lincoln Park does not have its own
high school and students were forced to attend neighboring
Boonton High School. Boonton receives $9,200 per pupil from
Lincoln Park to pay for education. From the release: "Growing
tensions between Boonton and Lincoln Park school boards, and the
inadequate education being received in Boonton, has caused
Lincoln Park's School board to vote to allow its 325 high school
age students to attend a high school fo their choice -- public,
private or religious."
The new voucher system would be phased in grade-by-grade
beginning in the 1997-1998 school year. However, Lincoln Park
may run into mounting opposition led by the ACLU, according to
the release.
==== ACCOUNTABILITY ====
*5 KEYSTONE SCHOOLS: HORNBECK DECISION CAUSES STUDENT PROTEST
Students at Philadelphia's Olney High School have boycotted
classes for two days in a row to protest Superintendent David
Hornbeck's decision to "gut the staffs at two of the city's
lowest performing high schools," writes the Philadelphia INQUIRER
(Jones, 2/19). The student protest is amplified by complaints
made by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. The teachers'
union is seeking a temporary restraining order from the Common
Pleas Court, arbitration with the American Arbitration
Association and has filed a complaint with the state Labor
Relations Board.
"We believe the superintendent acted improperly in
implementing the Keystone schools plan," said Ralph Teti, lawyer
for the PFT. "[Hornbeck] didn't follow the procedure," echoed
Ted Kirsch, president of the union. "He never said why Olney,
why Audenried. We believe that this was a totally arbitrary
decision by the superintendent."
According to the paper, Hornbeck "invoked the so-called
'Keystone Schools' clause in the teachers' contract, ,which gives
the district the authority to replace as much as three-fourths of
a school's faculty if students achievement falls below a standard
set by the district." Hornbeck said he used indicators including
student attendance, dropout rates and standardized test scores to
determine which school faculty would be dismantled. The
indicators show that barely one out of 20 eleventh-grade students
at Olney can read at the basic level, writes the paper.
Union leaders charge that Hornbeck never notified them of
the criteria. In their suit, the PFT claims that Hornbeck
"improperly invoked" the Keystone schools clause because the
contract demands that he notify them of the criteria used to
classify schools, reports the paper.
Hornbeck and Kirsch, who are "bitter foes," joined together
at a press conference to request that students stop their boycott
and return to class. "They have worked to make a statement.
They've made a statement. Now, it's time for them all to get
back to work," said Hornbeck. "We urge the students to go back
to school," added Kirsch. "Their education is what this fight is
all about, and they can only be successful if they're in the
classroom."
Hornbeck was asked if he would mete out any punishment for
students who continue to protest by remaining out of school. His
response: "We're not going to do something dumb like suspend
them."
A judge is expected to hear the case within 10 days, writes
the paper.
==== FROM COURTHOUSE TO SCHOOLHOUSE ====
*6 REJECTED AGAIN: HIGH COURT TURNS DOWN COMMUNITY SERVICE CASE
The U.S. Supreme once again refused to hear a case
protesting a mandatory community service requirement for public
high school students (Carelli, AP/Philadelphia INQUIRER, 2/19).
Without comment, the court turned down a N.C. family's appeal
that mandatory community service violated the rights of students
and their parents, writes the paper.
According to the paper, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Board
of Education will require all graduation classes beginning in
1997 to complete 50 hours of community service in order to earn a
diploma. The plaintiffs in Reinhard vs. Chapel Hill-Carrboro
City Board of Education charged that the requirement resulted in
"slavery, or involuntary servitude," reports the paper. The
Reinhard family also complained that the requirement violated
their right to "direct their son's education and violated his
personal freedom," according to the INQUIRER.
Last year and in 1993, the Supreme Court rejected other
lawsuits waged against mandatory community service programs
underway in Pa. and N.Y. public schools.
Click here to return to The 1997 Daily Report Card
Click here to return to OFCN's
Academy Program
Click here to return to OFCN's Main Index Page.
John Kurilecjmk@ofcn.org