Individual teacher grade cards show room for improvement statewide
The Ohio Department of Education released the first individual teacher report cards, Yahoo! News reports.
Assessments
How should tests assess teachers? Arne Duncan and Dennis Van Roekel weigh in
When Secretary of Education Arne Duncan presented the Obama administration's reforms to teacher training programs before the D.C.-based think tank Education Sector last Friday, he was joined by…
Study: Rate teachers together, not one by one
Standardized tests should rank students by percentile and rate teachers in teams, according to a new policy brief by Derek Neal, an economics professor at the University of…
New ways students cheat on tests
Are we in a cheating epidemic? Asks the Washington Post.
SAT cheating scandal: Are stakes getting too high for college admission?
The case of a Great Neck, N.Y., man accused of being paid to take the SAT for high school students is once again prompting questions nationwide about how…
New assessment and data management solutions for schools
With a strong federal focus on assessment and accountability in education, many ed-tech companies have released new products designed to help educators test their students’ understanding and track…
More cheating uncovered in city schools
The Baltimore Sun broke a story revealing that an egregious level of cheating had taken place during state assessment testing at two city schools, and one of the…
SAT’s reality TV essay stumps some
Every year, the SAT reduces more than a few teenage test-takers to tears, the New York Times reports. But few questions on the so-called Big Test appear to…
Readers sound off on value-added model, district efficiency
In recent eSchool News stories, we asked readers if teachers should be evaluated using the value-added model, and whether school districts should be judged based on their efficiency.…
The top 10 ed-tech stories of 2010: No. 6
Spurred on by the goal of having students graduate from high school ready for college or a career, the Education Department doled out $330 million in grants to…
Classroom license helps California Partnership Academy satisfy state requirements
The Westlake Information Technology Academy (WIT) is a California Partnership Academy that combines high quality academic instruction with work-based learning experiences. WIT is a unique “school within a…
State is likely to ease a rule on extra help for students
The New York State Board of Regents is set to excuse school districts from a requirement to provide extra help to all students who fail the state’s standardized…
4,100 students prove ‘small is better’ rule wrong
With 4,100 students, Massachusetts’ Brockton High School is an exception to what has become conventional wisdom in many educational circles, reports the New York Times: that small is…
Putting our ideas of assessment to the test
Here’s a pop quiz: What are the skills that today’s students will need to be successful in tomorrow’s workplace? The answer to this question has enormous implications for…
Spell-check use on writing exam prompts debate
A decision by the Oregon Department of Education to let students use a computer spell-check feature when taking an online version of the state’s writing exam this year…
Forget what you know about good study habits
Psychologists have discovered that some of the most hallowed advice on study habits is flat wrong, reports the New York Times. Traditional studying advice is cheap and all…
States given millions for new assessments
Education Secretary Arne Duncan on Sept. 2 announced the recipients of millions of dollars in federal grants to provide new state assessment systems to test students’ 21st-century skills.…
ACT results show slight increase in college, career readiness
Only 24 percent of 2010 high school graduates who took the ACT met or surpassed all four of the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, and while there is much…
Graduation rates weighted higher in latest U.S. News rankings
Harvard pulled ahead of Ivy League rival Princeton in the latest edition of the influential U.S. News & World Report ... Read more
Technology takes formative assessment to a whole new level
Promethean has unveiled new software that could take student response system technology to a whole new level—something the company calls “real-time personalized intervention.”
Oregon school computer labs overwhelmed by demands
It used to be students needed only a No. 2 pencil to take the Oregon state assessment, but now it requires a computer. At the same time, the…
Finally–schools to get long-delayed FCAT scores
According to South Florida News, South Florida school districts which have been waiting for results from the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) will receive them late Monday or…
States collaborate on new national exams
Two large coalitions of states are competing for federal “Race to the Top” dollars to create a series of new national academic tests to replace the current patchwork…
Feds to shape the future of assessment
Federal officials are leading the charge to develop a new generation of summative, end-of-year exams that are delivered and scored by computer; focus on a deeper understanding of…
New test measures students’ digital literacy
Employers are looking for candidates who can navigate, critically evaluate, and make sense of the wealth of information available through digital media—and now educators have a new way…
Reading scores hold steady on nationwide test
The reading scores for fourth- and eighth-grade students on a national test held mostly steady last year, continuing a stubborn trend of minimal improvement across most racial, economic,…
Fresno State students get high-tech writing help
More than 140 Fresno State professors are trying out a computer tool that taps into video-game competitiveness to improve student writing, reports the Fresno Bee.
Superintendent of the Year shares the keys to her success
For National Superintendent of the Year winner Betty Morgan, who pilots the helm of Maryland’s Washington County School District, technology is integral to a school system’s efficiency.
Obama offers blueprint for rewriting NCLB
President Barack Obama on March 13 unveiled a plan to overhaul the 2002 No Child Left Behind education law championed by President George W. Bush.
Critics: Obama’s ed policies no better than Bush’s
When it comes to education policy, President Obama is repeating the most grievous errors of his predecessor, charge a trio of venerable education policy analysts, including one—Diane Ravitch—best…
Hawaii officials tout online school testing
Hawaii public schools have begun testing a new online version of the state's annual assessment exam, which officials say will be a better gauge of student progress than…
Teachers share their views on how to improve education
In one of the largest national surveys of public school teachers, thousands of educators agreed that today’s students aren’t college-ready when they graduate from high school. Teachers' suggestions…
Computerized state assessments to save time, money
Kansas is requiring its students to take math, reading, and writing tests on a computer this year, reports the Wichita Eagle.
Commentary: Data undermining
Unions are taking heat for their stance on using data to measure teacher quality, but school districts bear some responsibility, too.
Expansion of A.P. tests also brings more failures
The College Board’s Advanced Placement program is expanding in American high schools, but as it moves from being a program primarily for elite students, the number of test-takers…
Education chief: Don’t teach to test
Public schools in the United States need to try to spark creative thinking in children and move away from curriculums that just teach to standardized tests, U.S. Education…
Viewpoint: Failure is not an option in our schools
On Jan. 28, a group of inspiring educators from four diverse school districts came together to share their experiences on how they have turned their underperforming schools around,…
Washington state achievement tests go online
Washington officials say 364 middle schools will give state achievement tests online this spring, reports the Associated Press.