There is a must-read commentary for anyone interested in education reform by newly appointed Chancellor of the Washington, DC school system, Michelle Rhee, that appears in the most recent copy of Forbes. Here are some choice quotes:
Though we have among the highest per-pupil expenditures, we have among the lowest academic performance levels…. We have […]
Archive for January, 2008
Fantastic Commentary in Forbes from Michelle Rhee
Published by January 25th, 2008 in Great Leadership, Mayors, No Excuses and Urban Schools. 0 CommentsReport Underscores Success of Merit Pay
Published by January 24th, 2008 in Merit Pay, Teacher Effectiveness and Teacher Quality. 1 CommentIn Rhode Island, teachers are paid not on the basis of their ability in the classroom, or their demonstrated performance in raising student achievement. Instead, teachers are compensated based solely on their years of service in the job (i.e. seniority). The system typically employs 10 “steps,” with pay hikes for each step. […]
The Sheldon Whitehouse Middle School?
Published by January 18th, 2008 in Charter Schools, Failed Leadership, KIPP, No Excuses and Urban Schools. 0 CommentsUS Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has plans to obtain a special federal appropriation to open a new urban middle school in Rhode Island. His office has examined the problem of low achievement in urban schools, and determined a significant part of the challenge to be our struggling middle schools. Bravo, we all agree. […]
Cranston Moving to K-6 Grade Configuration
Published by January 18th, 2008 in Cranston and Middle Schools. 0 CommentsThe ProJo has an article today on Cranston schools moving to a K-6 grade configuration, allowing the district to operate more efficiently with less staff. The question on whether K-6/7-9 is better than K-5/6-9 or K-8 is an open one. Some studies suggest K-8 has advantages. Nearby, Boston has moved to K-8 […]
State Funding Formula: DOA
Published by January 16th, 2008 in Adequacy, Failed Leadership, Funding, Legislature, Providence and Urban Schools. 0 CommentsThe Projo writes that plans for a statewide funding formula face an “uncertain future.” It is “not a priority” for the Governor’s office (despite their support last year). Meanwhile, the coalition of groups supporting the work has split apart, disagreeing over the future, with Education Partnership explaining that in the absence of increased […]
RI Secondary Charter Schools Outperform District Peers
Published by January 15th, 2008 in Central Falls, Charter Schools, High Schools, Legislature, Middle Schools, NCLB, Pawtucket, Providence, Urban Schools and Woonsocket. 0 CommentsWe recently put together a quick summary of where secondary (i.e. grades 6-12) charter schools in Rhode Island stand and thought we would share it here. Among Rhode Island’s eleven charter schools, eight serve kids in these grades. All demonstrate strong evidence of Rhode Island’s success in chartering high quality secondary […]
Providence School Dept. Has no Organizational Chart?
Published by January 11th, 2008 in Failed Leadership, Mayors, Providence, Urban Schools and Wasteful Spending. 0 CommentsThe ProJo has an article this week citing the Providence Public School Department’s failure to provide the city council with a copy of fairly basic documents that nearly any business would have: an organizational chart, job descriptions and salary data. Quoting the article:
Igliozzi said he sent two letters to School Supt. Donnie Evans, one […]
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