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Wednesday, November 11, 2009 -Veterans' Day (US) Report on Innovation A new report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Center for American Progress, and Frederick M. Hess of the American Enterprise Institute seems to be the big news in education this week. Leaders and Laggards: A State-By-State Report Card of Educational Innovation grades states on school management, finance, hiring and evaluation of staff, removing ineffective teachers, data, pipeline to postsecondary, and technology. The authors state, "We believe innovation to be the process of leveraging new tools, talent, and management strategies to craft solutions that were not possible or necessary in an earlier era." While I'm a bit of a luddite on education reform because I still believe we must address some societal issues if efforts to reform schools are to be successful, I found the the authors' sense of caution in endorsing various reforms refreshing. Related links:
On Science@NASA
Postings on Science@NASA are written in vocabulary appropriate for middle through high school students. They also have audio files and other language versions available as well as being available as podcasts on iTunes Odds 'n' Ends
A big thanks to reader Ed Harris for nominating Educators' News for Jay Mathews and Valerie Strauss's Best Education Blogs of 2009.
In the middle of all of that, I started a switchover on my computer setup to include a new KVM box. I went with the IOGear GCS1104 4-Port DVI KVMP Switch So we're back online. I just hope I don't infect you over the web with whatever it is that I have! Stay healthy! Send Feedback to |
. So far, it appears to be a good one. My old KVM box, a Dr. Bott Moniswitch, died a few weeks ago. The imperative to get a new one connected is because I back up to surplus drive space on an old G4 QuickSilver that shares my main computer's mouse, keyboard, and display. While cleaning everything, I also managed to kill my best keyboard with CRT cleaner! |
Requirements for Race to the Top and Additional Stimulus Funds Released Separate announcements this week tell of the final application requirements for Race to the Top grants and the final $11.5 billion in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. Sam Dillon describes the final Race to the Top requirements in After Criticism, the Administration Is Praised for Final Rules on Education Grants in the New York Times. More stimulus money coming - with strings attached on eSchool News and a DOE press release, Application Requirements for Final $11.5 Billion in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds Available Now, relate the tightened requirements for the final ARRA funds for education. Both sets of requirements emphasize "tougher academic standards, better ways to recruit and keep effective teachers, a method of tracking student performance, and a plan of action to turn around failing schools." Dillon outlines the key points as being "charter schools, using standardized test scores in teacher evaluation and merit pay systems, and encouraging local districts to dismiss entire staffs of thousands of failing schools." With all the press these items receive, it might be easy for the public to forget that the current recession has caused state governments across the country to slash school funding. Even with the funds mentioned above, classes are larger and programs are being cut to balance local school budgets. But the federal government and many reformers continue to hammer performance pay tied to student test scores despite the disastrous teach the test effect of No Child Left Behind. Suggestions such as Paul Krugman's in The Uneducated American last month for a new round of stimulus or rescue funding for education fall on deaf ears. I fear we're headed in the wrong direction. I mentioned Jay Mathews and Valerie Strauss's Best Education Blogs of 2009 yesterday. As a writer of an education blog (or whatever EdNews is), I enjoy reading other folks' stuff online. The listings at the end of Mathews's column swallowed up the better part of my day yesterday. While I won't steal Mathews and Strauss's thunder listing all the nominees, I'll share a few links here that I really liked. And I can't wait until the release their top ten, as I'll be in education blog heaven for days digesting all of them.
Odds 'n' Ends I reported the bug I'd found in Magnum Opus to John Stevens after I wrote yesterday's posting. I received a prompt response from John that he was aware of the issue and working with some users on a solution. He hopes to release another beta of the puzzle maker application next month. EarthShots
NASA Stuff
• Space.com: Space Shuttle On Track for Monday Launch by Clara Moskowitz NASA announced today that the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) that was crashed into the moon October 9, 2009, did find the signs of water on the moon it was looking for. Space.com's Andrea Thompson tells the story in "Significant Amount" of Water Found on Moon. She quotes NASA's Anthony Colaprete saying, "Indeed, yes, we found water. And we didn't find just a little bit, we found a significant amount." Technology Stuff eSchool News had a couple of good articles this week on technology in education. PC trends in education: Thin is in and Ed-tech showcase inspires lawmakers are both worth a look. CSTA Executive Director Chris Stephenson sent out a mailing announcing that the U.S. House of Representatives has designated December 6-12, 2009, as National Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek) "to recognize the transformative role of computing and the need to bolster computer science at all educational levels." He wrote that the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM ) and its partners are developing a Web site, www.CSedweek.org, to serve as the interactive and central resource hub for CSEdWeek." When I checked the site yesterday morning, it just read, "It works!" By last night, they had a bit more up with the promise of more to come. Here in Indiana, Governor Mitch Daniels has declared by proclamation that today, November 13, 2009, is Technology Coordinators Day. It comes as many of the state's techies are meeting at the Hoosier Educational Computer Coordinators Conference in Indianapolis. Those men and women are stretched just as thin, maybe thinner, than classroom teachers are due to budget constraints. They're also part of a group of people that when I was teaching, I always wanted to befriend. You can live with a hostile principal, superintendent, etc., but techies, janitors, and school secretaries you always want on your side. Race to the Top Stuff The release yesterday of the final application for Race to the Top grant funds produced editorials from both the Washington Post, Racing to reform, and the New York Times, The "Highly Qualified Teacher" Dodge. The Post notes the changes states have already made to position themselves to receive grants. The Times takes on the Obama Administration and Secretary Duncan over allowing states "to define away the problem by re-labeling the existing, inadequate teacher corps as 'highly qualified.'" Silly Stuff Massachusetts Danvers High School Principal Thomas Murray banned the word "Meep" this week in response to students repeatedly saying it to interrupt school. Mass. school principal bans 'Meep' relates "that parents recently got an automated call about "Meep!" from Murray. He warned them that students who said or displayed the word at school could be suspended." News sources across the nation picked up the story inspired by the Muppet character, Beaker, and to a lesser extent, the Road Runner. And, I guess, we did too! The story One middle school's fundraising strategy: Sell grades was just "too good" to last long. Plans by the parent advisory council of Rosewood Middle School in North Carolina to give "a student 20 test points - 10 extra points on two tests of the student's choosing" for a $20 donation were quickly quashed. "Wayne County school administrators stopped the fundraiser," according to District nixes cash-for-grades fundraiser and issued a terse press release about the affair. Multiple news outlets are reporting that D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee and Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson are engaged. The former NBA star Johnson and the dragon lady of superintendents Rhee "say they have no immediate plans for a wedding and will continue their cross-country courtship." And all those D.C. teachers were hoping...! No More Stuff
And no, I didn't miss the swipe at teachers by the New York Times in the quote above, "by re-labeling the existing, inadequate teacher corps..." It's become the thing to write about teachers. Shame on the New York Times! So let me start your weekend (I'm sure you've earned it!) by sharing with you a little bit of my serenity. I took the evening sky overlooking our garden shot last month. As I write today, a big yellow combine is sweeping away the soybeans.
Have a great weekend!
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©2009 Steven L. Wood