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Education Stimulus Funds to Arrive Soon Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced over the weekend "that $44 billion in stimulus funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) will be available to states in the next 30 to 45 days." A Department of Education press release, Education Department to Distribute $44 Billion in Stimulus Funds in 30 to 45 Days, relates that this "first round of funding will help avert hundreds of thousands of estimated teacher layoffs in schools and school districts while driving crucial education improvements, reforms, and results for students." Also see: Stimulus Funds to Reach Schools Within Weeks. It would appear that even the stimulus funds aren't going to be enough for some Oregon schools. Oregon schools face last resort: a shorter year tells of a school district that has already cut days and everything else possible and is still coming up short. Odds 'n' Ends Trout in the Classroom teaches city students about nature by Catherine Ho is a good read, as is Rescuing teens from economic ignorance. Send Feedback to |
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Obama Education Speech President Obama revealed some of his plans for education Tuesday in a speech to the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. The President called for better early childhood education programs, tougher teaching standards, increased pay for outstanding educators, an end to limits on the number of charter schools, and longer school days and school years.
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On the Road
Reactions to Obama's Education Speech Reactions around the web to President Obama's education speech on Tuesday have been fairly positive. While the President did tread upon some issues that teachers' unions traditionally oppose, merit pay and charter schools, he enjoyed a solid response from the national teachers' unions. Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, wrote, "The AFT stands ready to work with the president to make America the leader in public education. And we are grateful that, in Barack Obama, we have a president who is ready to work with us." If you missed the speech, the full text is available online. The AP's Libby Quaid also has an excellent summary of it in Obama backs teacher merit pay, charter schools.
Bob Somerby writing on the Daily Howler has taken issue in several posts this week with some of President Obama's statements. But other than that, it appears most stakeholders in education are pleased to have a President who can construct an effective sentence and is interested in improving schools.
With all the love floating around after President Obama's education speech, I feel a bit out of step, as I have some real reservations about merit or performance pay programs based on test scores. Like most people, I think accountability is important, but such programs invariably lead to teaching the test or worse. I hope our new President and Secretary of Education have some ideas for a merit pay system that is fair and actually works (to improve education). California Teacher Layoffs Today is the "magic" day in California where school districts by law must inform teachers, counselors, nurses and other school employees that they could be laid off at the end of the semester. While such RIF (reduction in force) notices are often rescinded as school budgets firm up, this year appears to be one in which many riffed teachers won't be called back due to California's budget woes. The San Francisco Chronicle predicts that school districts in California may send "at least 26,000 pink slips by today's deadline for warning teachers that they might be laid off." Here in Indiana, Governor Mitch Daniels is trying to force Democratic lawmakers to endorse his proposed property tax cap constitutional amendment so that we may share California's tax cap school funding woes. While schools and communities here are already having to cut essential services due to the tax cap law passed (and lack of promised state funding) last year, Daniels wants the state legislature to move on making the caps part of the Indiana Constitution to prevent "tinkering" with his disastrous policies in the future. Odds 'n' Ends Both liberal commentator Roland Martin and conservative writer David Brooks agree that the provision tucked into the recent omnibus spending bill to allow no new students into the Washington, D.C., voucher program is a bad idea.
The winners of the Intel Science Talent Search were announced this week. Teens honored for their science prowess tells of student projects including "designing and synthesizing a tumor-targeting drug for cancer treatment, studying underage drinking behavior and how it is tied to teen perceptions of parental drinking and parenting behaviors, and formulating a set of hydrodynamic equations that might provide a method to better understand the first movements of the universe and could aid in the development of a quantum theory of gravity."
I also took advantage of the good weather last week to get our spring peas into the ground. In our area, you can plant peas pretty much any time after March 1. I've even spread pea seed on frosty soil and pushed them into the soil one by one in the past. The warm-up last week made traditional planting possible.
I just scrape away the soil to the proper level, not laying any kind of foundation for the timbers. I anchor them in place with 3/8" x 22" pieces of rebar that are available precut at the lumber yard. So far, the timbers I put in last April have stayed in place. Have a great weekend!
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I'm a little late getting an update posted this week about President Obama's speech, as Annie and I have been on the road for a couple of days. We visited our daughter, Erica, in Chicago, where she performed Tuesday night at 
©2009 Steven L. Wood