One out of three public school educators report pressure from bosses, parents or others to change grades, and nearly 30% say pressure to cheat on standardized tests is a problem at their school, according to a voluntary Free Press survey of Michigan educators, reports the Detroit Free Press. At schools that don’t meet federal standards, the tension is higher: About 50% say pressure to change grades is an issue, and 46% say pressure to cheat on the tests is a problem…
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Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.
New database aims to help Michigan schools stop dropouts
One in every four Michigan students will not graduate from high school with their class, a fact that is forcing the state to take a new approach to preventing dropouts, reports the Detroit Free Press. Starting this fall, the state is introducing a database that for the first time pulls together in one place three dropout indicators referred to as the ABCs. These are attendance, behavior, and classwork. About 70 percent of students who display problems in one of these areas is in danger of dropping out, according to the Michigan Department of Education. Previously, grades, attendance, and behavior problems were tracked, but not in the same place. The goal is to make it easier for schools to identify students at risk of dropping out—and to do it at a younger age, in middle school or even elementary school. “Dropouts are not born, they are created,” state Superintendent Mike Flanagan said Aug. 11. Typically, he said, dropouts display one or more of the ABC symptoms for a period of years. This means the dropout crisis should be solvable, especially if schools have time to intervene earlier…
…Read MoreCyber high school program reaches at-risk teens
Westwood Cyber High School, which caters to dropouts or potential dropouts, is one of a handful of Michigan schools in which all students learn online. But what makes the school unique is its emphasis on what educators call project-based learning, reports the Detroit Free Press—and many are watching this year-old online school to see if it offers a new model for reaching students in danger of dropping out. At this school, students—called researchers—learn by doing projects, but it’s no cakewalk. These projects must be sophisticated enough to show students have learned the same concepts students in traditional classes learn. In the beginning, Samantha Chapman found it hard to adjust to the new way of learning at Westwood Cyber High. Up until September, school meant having textbooks, teachers standing at the front of the classroom, and structure. At the cyber high school, her home is her classroom, her computer her textbook, and there are no teachers giving her direct instruction. Plus, getting credit requires doing a bunch of projects, instead of the typical classroom assignments and tests. “I was kind of lost. I didn’t know what to do,” said Samantha, 16, of Dearborn Heights. But she quickly adjusted and said she thinks the focus on projects is a better fit. “A lot of the things they teach you in school you don’t use in life,” she said…
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