Illustrative Mathematics (IM) and Family Engagement Lab have partnered to bridge classroom curriculum and at-home learning in elementary school mathematics. Through this partnership, Family Engagement Lab will align its FASTalk (Families and Schools Talk) family engagement tool with the IM K–5 Math curriculum. Together, the two nonprofits will collaborate with Partnership for Los Angeles Schools to make the new tool available at participating pilot sites in Los Angeles Unified School District starting this month.…Read More
Podcast Series: Innovations in Education
Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.
Truancy ticketing in high schools: ‘We fought for fairness and won!’
One morning in December 2010 I was leaving for school and as soon as I took one step out the door, I realized I forgot the fundraising papers I needed to turn in that day for a college trip, says Maceo Bradley, 17, from Animo Locke HS #3 in L.A. I searched everywhere in the living room and my bedroom but I couldn’t find them. After 20 minutes I called my mom. She said she put them in a cabinet the night before. At this point I knew I would be about 20 minutes late to school. As someone who had been late four times (at most) in two-and-a-half years, I figured that I’d get a warning or at worst I’d get one day of detention. As soon as I stepped into the main office at school a Los Angeles Police Department officer asked if I was late and I said yeah. He told me to have a seat. I was nervous. We’re used to having Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies on campus because they’re the school security. But seeing four LAPD officers made me think something was wrong at school…
…Read MoreHighly rated instructors go beyond teaching to the standardized test
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Los Angeles teachers union seeks to halt new evaluation pilot
As different districts and states re-imagine the way teachers should be graded, the country’s second largest school system has hit a roadblock, reports the Huffington Post. Los Angeles’ schools chief John Deasy wants to revamp teacher evaluations–but the local union isn’t having any of it. Deasy’s plan includes a new system that would evaluate teachers partially based on their students’ standardized test scores. Though both the city’s Board of Education and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa support it, the Los Angeles teachers union filed a complaint seeking an injunction to halt the the program, claiming the school district never entered into sufficient negotiations with teachers over its terms…
…Read MoreBudget cuts more painful at inner-city LA schools
When state budget cuts imperiled city schools, a group of parents fought back by enlisting Hollywood stars to spread a message targeting one of their own, Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneggar, reports the Associated Press. The satirical video featuring actors Megan Fox and fiancee Brian Austin Green highlights how funding shortfalls have killed jobs for librarians, nurses, translators, janitors and teachers. While the video was filmed in the affluent hills above Hollywood where Green’s son attends Wonderland Avenue Elementary School, the cuts are more deeply felt at an inner-city school like Markham Middle School. Both schools have been highlighted as the Los Angeles Unified School District has grappled with $1.5 billion in budget cuts and nearly 3,000 teacher layoffs during the past two years. But comparing the two schools shows a remarkably uneven impact, and just how much depends on factors ranging from income and parent involvement to teacher tenure. The state’s education funding crisis, now entering its third school year, only promises to widen the breech between the haves and have-nots in the nation’s second-largest school district…
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