February 14, 2011
Kansas could lose up to $26 million in federal special education funds if a plan to cut spending is adopted by the state Legislature, according to lawmakers critical of the proposal. Earlier this week, the House passed a series of spending reductions in the current year budget that affected schools, workers’ paychecks and a variety […]
February 14, 2011
Two years after his appointment as emergency financial manager for the Detroit Public Schools, Robert Bobb has outsourced many services, unearthed corruption and closed a number of schools. Yet the district’s mammoth deficit has continued to grow amid the state’s downturn and growing pension and debt obligations, and the city’s schools are still grappling with […]
February 14, 2011
After a decade, many of Missouri’s charter schools are not doing much better than traditional public schools, a national watchdog group concluded. & #x0A;Two reasons: not getting their fair share of education money or enough monitoring, contends a report by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Chronically low-performing charter schools, the report concluded, should […]
February 14, 2011
The funding and policy control of Iowa schools are slated to get significant attention in the state Legislature this week. On the Senate side, majority Democrats plan to move ahead with a 2 percent increase in base per-pupil funding for Iowa’s 359 K-12 public school districts, an amount that backers say will provide about $65 […]
February 11, 2011
Teachers in the Houston school district would be held much more accountable for their students’ learning under a highly anticipated proposal to change the way they are evaluated. Under the draft plan, released for public comment this month, roughly half a teacher’s rating would be based on student test scores and other evidence of academic […]
February 11, 2011
Lawmakers are coalescing around alternative ideas that would limit cuts to K-12 education in the next budget, and Gov. Dennis Daugaard signaled Thursday that he is willing to consider at least two of those ideas. Lawmakers have proposed allowing schools to tap their capital outlay budgets to help with general fund expenditures. A second proposal […]
February 11, 2011
Jackie Davis asked his California middle school students to tackle the sample math problem in their dig ital textbooks during a recent lesson about solving a system of linear equations. The teacher’s request prompted the students to turn to their iPads, scroll to the problem in the e-textbook, and begin tapping notes on the screen. […]
February 11, 2011
Georgia families soon may have the option of forcing school districts to adopt drastic reforms to turn around troubled schools. A bill introduced in the Georgia Legislature on Thursday would allow parents to petition local districts to overhaul schools that consistently fall below federal benchmarks. Parents can choose among converting the school to a charter, […]
February 11, 2011
The Minnesota Senate has approved a two-year pay freeze for employees in Minnesota public and charter schools. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Dave Thompson, says that without the freeze, districts would be forced to lay off some teachers so they could afford to pay the raises for the rest. It does not apply to current contracts. […]
February 11, 2011
Democratic lawmakers vowed Thursday to fight for more Iowa school aid, saying superintendents have told them that a funding freeze would lead to widespread layoffs and larger classes. The Republican-controlled House approved a measure Tuesday that would freeze basic state aid for public education for the next two years, and it has Republican Gov. Terry […]