Refining Educator Learning Through Effective Resources
By Joellen Killion, Senior Advisor, Learning Forward
As states and districts move toward full implementation of the Common Core Standards, developing educators’ understanding of the standards and building their capacity to revamp instruction to incorporate deeper and authentic application of learning is critical. Yet, despite educators’ call for professional learning, policy and decision makers repeatedly question the impact of professional learning and its ability to produce deep change in educator practice and student achievement. One reason for these questions is a commonly held misconception that all professional learning is equivalent in quality, regardless of its length, design, and alignment with educator and student outcomes.
Read More →Turnaround Offers RTT-D Blueprint for School Districts
By Pamela Cantor, M.D., President and CEO Turnaround for Children
Through the Race to the Top – District (RTT-D) competition, the federal government is again promoting and prioritizing efforts to accelerate student achievement through the development of personalized models of teaching and learning. To win, districts must present a clear vision and high-quality plan for establishing fortified learning environments equipped with strategies, practices, and supports to address the social, emotional, and academic needs of all children.
Read More →Saving the Common Core and America’s Education
Leo Casey, executive director of the Albert Shanker Institute, a nonprofit that honors the life and legacy of the late president of the American Federation of Teachers, shares his view on “The Promise of The Common Core” and how it has been misconceived and under attack.
Read More →The Battle of The ‘Core’
“Tens of millions of dollars are pouring into the battle over the Common Core academic standards, which aim to set a course for students’ progression in math and language arts from kindergarten through 12th grade,” writes Politico education reporter Stephanie Simon and editor Nirvi Shah in the article, “The Common Core Money War.”
Simon and Shah call the “money war” over the Common Core “one of the most expensive political fights in America.” In the article, they discuss the financial supporters and advocacy groups of the Common Core controversy and the views both opponents have about the development and implementation of the standards.
Read More →Uncivil Discord in D.C.
By Maria Ferguson, Executive Director of the Center on Education Policy at George Washington University.
(This blog was also published in the September 2013 issue of Kappan Magazine.)
Washington gridlock is real and is being fueled by the flood social media bloggers and posters who are drowning efforts that could result in compromise. Their latest row is over the Common Core State Standards, probably the most significant education debate since desegregation. As successful as the forces of gridlock have been in stymieing policy and legislative advance, they are not likely to succeed in stopping the Common Core. Too many states want it and too many feel the country needs it to compete globally in the 21st century.
This is especially true in the education sector. Many of us who lead or work for education organizations have known one another for years. We may have changed jobs or wear different hats from time to time, but we remain part of the same network of people who spend an inordinate amount of time thinking and talking about education.
Throughout the almost 50 years since the 1965 passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), a great many of us — researchers, policy makers, lawmakers, program officers, advocates, and, of course, lobbyists — have engaged in this work to reach a common end: to make education in this country everything it should and can be for all students, regardless of their race, gender, family income, or disability. We may come at it from different positions and focus on different pieces of the puzzle, but undergirding all that effort is a common belief that a quality education is the best and clearest pathway to opportunity and equality.
Read More →‘Sunny Days’ for Sesame Street as it extends its focus
In the last four years, there have been sunnier days for Sesame Street as it has extended its programing to include more scientific ideas and methods for children. An article in The New York Times, “Sesame Street Widens Its Focus,” by Elizabeth Jensen, explains that Sesame Street set a goal to introduce to its preschool audience a variety of concepts – such as math, science, and problem solving.
Read More →The widespread adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) presents an unprecedented opportunity for systemic improvement in mathematics education in the United States. The Common Core State Standards offer a foundation for the development of more rigorous, focused, and coherent mathematics curricula, instruction, and assessments that promote conceptual understanding and reasoning as well as skill fluency. This foundation will help to ensure that all students are ready for college and careers when they graduate from high school and that they are prepared to take their place as productive, full participants in society.
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