Disproving the “Failing” Label

By Amy Buffenbarger Educators and staff at many priority schools have seen their school ranked, labeled and listed on a recurring basis that’s rarely positive. Kit Carson Elementary School is no stranger to that trend. The school is located in West Las Vegas, Nevada, the state with the highest home foreclosure rate in the country. With an unemployment [...]

Reform Decisions Echo NEA Approach to School Improvement

By Kevin Hart Fire the teachers. That’s become the mantra of many self-proclaimed education reformers, who have tried to blame dedicated teachers for the litany of problems faced at lower-performing priority schools. But as the federal School Improvement Grants process gives lower-performing schools unprecedented ability to fire staff, the overwhelming majority of school districts are [...]

Slow SIG Process Leaves Lower-Performing Schools Scrambling

By Amy Buffenbarger U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan called for bold and aggressive reforms when he announced the final requirements for the $3.5 billion Title I School Improvement Grants (SIG) program last December. But as the school year approaches, many lower-performing schools still don’t know whether they will receive grants to fund their planned reforms. [...]

Digging Into the Alphabet Soup of Education Policy

By Will Potter Can’t tell your RTTT from your AYP? Here is a quick primer to help decipher the alphabet soup of education policy. ESEA The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 was one of the key pillars of President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty. It created the Title I federal aid program [...]

Finding the Best Road to School Reform

By Cynthia McCabe March 4, 2010 – It grabbed headlines around the country: Seventy two teachers and staffers at Central Falls High in Rhode Island fired by the school board at the superintendent’s behest, for reasons many would argue were beyond their control. Now imagine a different headline capturing national attention: Teachers, school board and [...]