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The Charter Blog
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Wednesday, January 26, 2011
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Obama's Challenge
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Last night’s briskly-delivered State of the Union address capped a dizzying few months for President Obama. He was looking out at 84 new GOP House of Representatives members -- 63 of whom were occupying seats previously held by Democrats. However, he was enjoying a rebound in personal popularity, coming off a surprisingly productive lame-duck session, and hoping to sustain and leverage the shift in national mood following the Tucson tragedy.
It was not the night to play the usual SOTU games – how many times did he mention “X” – and so the absence of the words “charter schools” didn’t bother me a bit. The key points on education weren’t drawn from a laundry list of programs; instead he tried to frame the challenge and leave the details for the upcoming budget message. Some of the key education passages:
The rules have changed. In a single generation, revolutions in technology have transformed the way we live, work and do business. Steel mills that once needed 1,000 workers can now do the same work with 100. Today, just about any company can set up shop, hire workers and sell their products wherever there’s an Internet connection.
Nations like China and India realized that with some changes of their own, they could compete in this new world. And so they started educating their children earlier and longer, with greater emphasis on math and science.
Over the next 10 years, nearly half of all new jobs will require education that goes beyond a high school education. And yet, as many as a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school. The quality of our math and science education lags behind many other nations. America has fallen to ninth in the proportion of young people with a college degree. And so the question is whether all of us –- as citizens, and as parents –- are willing to do what’s necessary to give every child a chance to succeed.
The task for charter folks is to show that our schools are part of the solution...that our kids leave 12th grade ready for college --and ready to succeed in college and beyond. Let's show that we’re using our freedom not just to get rid of paperwork, but to equip kids with the knowledge and habits of mind to lead an international economy.
And if a charter school is part of the problem, we need to take action. Now.
Without saying exactly how, the President did also say that “Race to the Top should be the approach we follow this year as we replace No Child Left Behind with a law that’s more flexible and focused on what’s best for our kids.” I trust that means the Administration will continue pressing states for facilities aid, fiscal equity and an end to caps. It will be interesting to see how those proposals fare in a Congress that generally wants to expand state rather than federal authority.
By the way, today’s New York Times has a cool seating chart illustrating the "new civility," with some odd couples listening to the speech: Schumer and Coburn; Patty Murray and John Cornyn; Louie Gohmert and Carolyn Maloney. Let’s hope the era of good feelings persists.
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Posted by:
Nelson Smith
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6:00 AM
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Monday, January 24, 2011
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It's National School Choice Week!
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Today, folks across the country are kicking off the first-ever National School Choice Week. The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is proud to join more than 150 other organizations in acknowledging the need for greater educational options for America’s children.
I celebrated the start of the week by participating in a Town Hall meeting in Charlotte, N.C., today. I was proud to join a group of community leaders, parents and elected officials who are committed to making sure all students have access to a high quality education. I was even more proud to see that charter schools are recognized as a critical component of school choice. North Carolina has had a cap of 100 charter schools since its charter law was enacted in 1996. That cap, which was reached more than a decade ago, has effectively halted charter school growth and replication in the state. But after what I saw today, I am encouraged and I hope the cap is going to be lifted soon.
I was also encouraged to hear about some of the fantastic work happening in other states. Here are just a couple of the events going on this week:
- A bipartisan coalition of Missouri legislators called today for changes aimed to help failing urban schools and give parents more choices. Among the items on the agenda: Expanding charter schools, which are now permitted only in St. Louis and Kansas City, to the rest of the state.
- Grandmas for Charter Schools will host Coffee House meetings daily during National School Choice Week. These ladies will be giving out information on school choice options in Albany, N.Y., signing up folks for the Parent Army and registering parents to vote!
- Grammy Award-winning recording artist Patti Austin will host an evening of entertainment at the “Get Real about Education Musical Town Hall,” an event to inspire a vision for the future of Dallas-area public schools.
There are tons of other great things happening, and if you’d like to tell us about yours…please post a comment below. We’d love to hear about it!
Comment
Submitted by Ted Fujimoto (not verified) on Fri, 01/28/2011 - 4:08am.
For Dallas Event with Patti Austin, RSVP at http://getrealabouteducationdallas-estw.eventbrite.com
Enjoy an evening of entertainment and inspiration toward a vision for the future of Dallas area public schools with Grammy winner Patti Austin, local artist Matt Wilson, and inspirational speakers.
The event will also launch the Right to Succeed Dallas Chapter, an effort to transform public education in the Dallas area and cut the dropout rate in half over the next five years. This free family event is open to all ages.
Click to view the powerful video about the Right to Succeed and the National School Choice Week cause!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CIPm1pxHWw
www.RightToSucceed.org
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Posted by:
Peter C. Groff
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6:00 AM
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Wednesday, January 05, 2011
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Perfection First, Change Last
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Over the holidays the NY Times ran a piece about NYC’s use of student data in teacher rankings, and the tug of war that’s emerging over so-called “value-added” evaluations. Among a slew of letters it generated was one from Deputy Chancellor John White, concluding with this biting comment: “Shame on unions and school districts charged with improving antiquated evaluation systems if they hide behind sideline critics advocating perfection first and change last. No system is perfect, but the status quo is not fair to children.”
Researcher Dan Goldhaber, subbing for Rick Hess over at Straight Up, makes a similar point: “I am continually struck by the fact that policy debates over a whole variety of issues focus almost entirely on the downside risks of reform, while massively ignoring the costs or downsides of business as usual.” Citing work he and co-authors contributed to a recent Brookings report, he says “much of the debate about using value-added for teacher evaluation is framed around the potential consequences for teachers rather than focusing on the known or potential consequences for students,” and adds: “The counterfactual matters and we are not comparing reform to an existing nirvana.”
White and Goldhaber aren’t talking about charter schools, but we need to keep their argument handy. Sure there are imperfections in charter schools – we worry more about them than anyone else does. But parents who choose them know the “counterfactual” all too well.
Here’s a suggestion for the new year. When you hear someone railing about the dangers of public charter schools, hit them with the question a parent asks: “Compared to what?”
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Posted by:
Nelson Smith
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6:00 AM
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