It’s 2010, the Future is Here, What About More Brain Skills Testing?
Did you miss me while I was gone for a couple weeks there? Okay, hopefully not too much. One of the articles I nearly missed right before Christmas makes the case for a type of reform that could be easily overlooked in the Race to the Top. From December 21 of last year (last decade […]
Don’t Let Union and Congress Grinches Stop D.C. Opportunity Scholarships
Remember the poor kids in our nation’s capital who benefit from the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program?
Last night D.C. Parents for School Choice Executive Director Virginia Walden Ford sent out an email alerting supporters about a new troubling development from Capitol Hill:
Just an hour ago, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the omnibus bill that kills […]
Colorado Still Strong in Charter School Law, But There’s Room to Improve
Every year the Center for Education Reform rates the quality of different states’ charter school laws based on their flexibility and equity. This week they released the new edition, and the news again is good for Colorado — one of only 13 states with “strong laws that do not require significant revisions.”
But I’m never satisfied […]
As Bad Schools Close, Milwaukee’s Voucher Market Shows It’s Working
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports some interesting developments in that city’s nearly two decades old voucher program (H/T Joanne Jacobs).
Four Milwaukee voucher schools — including the fast-growing independent Atlas Preparatory Academy — now have more than 750 students each. More than 21,000 students total are enrolled in 111 voucher schools this year. But what’s really […]
Michigan Voters: Schools Underfunded — But Do They Know Actual Spending?
This week the Detroit News reported on one of the measured reactions Michiganders have to proposals to address that state’s budget crisis:
Local public school districts have too little funding to provide a quality education, according to 60 percent of voters surveyed in an exclusive Detroit News/WXYZ (Channel 7) poll released Tuesday.
Only 23 percent of respondents […]
Arizona Shows K-12 Tax Credit Program Saves State Millions of Dollars
Should Colorado enact a K-12 scholarship tax credit program that empowers families to choose private schools? It may sound crazy politically, yet the idea would make sense not only to expand choice for families but also to help the state save money during an especially tough budget year.
What, you say, you don’t believe that it […]
Real Alternative Certification May Actually Help Boost Student Learning
I’ve told you before about groups like ABCTE that are reaching out to top-notch professionals and making it easier for them to make an effective transition into classroom teaching. But where’s the proof this is a good idea for the bottom line of education?
In the new edition of Education Next, Daniel Nadler and Paul Peterson […]
Is There a Third Way in the Debate over Teacher Pensions?
Over at Education Next (one of my favorite stops these days), professors Robert Costrell and Michael Podgursky say there may be a way to make a positive move beyond the traditional debate over teacher pensions:
The critics of DB [defined benefit plans] are correct that current plans are seriously underfunded in part because benefits are not […]
