Idaho law favors tech over teacher salaries
The governor signed into law Friday the centerpiece of a major education reform plan that shifts money from salaries to fund new technology and teacher merit pay.
School Reform News
NYC schools chancellor quits in a blow to mayor’s vision
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said former publishing executive Cathie Black was the perfect choice to head the city's 1.1 million-student school system, because she was "a…
Indiana GOP pushes ahead with big voucher program
Indiana's Republican leadership is pushing ahead with a proposal that would be the nation's broadest use of school vouchers, allowing even middle-class families to use taxpayer money to…
Obama says too much testing makes education boring
President Barack Obama said Monday that students should take fewer standardized tests and school performance should be measured in other ways than just exam results. Too much testing…
Ousted principals quickly find new education jobs
After Red Lake High School was labeled one of Minnesota's worst schools, its board moved quickly to dismiss the principal. It didn't take long for Ev Arnold to…
What the U.S. can learn about improving teacher effectiveness
U.S. policy makers and educators should look to high-performing global education systems for valuable lessons as they seek to develop systems that improve teacher and school leader effectiveness,…
Stakeholders differ on college and career readiness
A new report reveals that while teachers, parents, students, and executives believe that college- and career-readiness is essential to students’ post-high school success, the groups rate this differently…
A call for curricular support as Common Core standards take hold
A diverse group of educators and stakeholders is calling for clear curricular guidance to complement the new Common Core State Standards that most states have adopted, including examples…
Viewpoint: School leaders need more help, and not red tape, to transform education
Our public system of education seems to be under constant attack from the media and self-appointed “reformers.” Regardless of the opinion those outside of education might hold, it…
Readers weigh in on treating education as a business
While many readers argue that schools could learn a lot from business, a majority agree with the premise that businesses and schools have fundamentally different missions and therefore…
ED to unions, districts: Can’t we all just get along?
Despite frequent reports of labor-management strife in the nation’s schools, there are many school systems in which teachers and district leaders are working together to improve public education—and…
Wisconsin protests grow as teachers balk at proposed legislation
Republicans who swept into power in state capitols this year with promises to cut spending and bolster the business climate now are beginning to usher in a new…
Expert: Federal school reform plan is wrong
The president is wrong. Arne Duncan is wrong. The media are wrong. Many state administrators are wrong: This was the message on the current state of school reform…
Report: Blended learning could hit or miss
Blended learning has the ability to transform education, according to a new report—but if certain guidelines and practices aren’t ensured, blended learning could become just another add-on to…
Viewpoint: How we should improve on NCLB
From Feb. 17-19, the “Great Education Conversation” will take place in Denver as part of the American Association of School Administrators’ national conference. It will be a dialogue…
Study: Students need more paths to career success
The current U.S. education system is failing to prepare millions of young adults for successful careers by providing a one-size-fits-all approach, and it should take a cue from…
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.…
Forum explores how to spur school innovation
Innovation was a key theme of President Obama’s State of the Union address on Jan. 25, and it also was the theme of a recent forum in Washington,…
Feds launch new education data tool
The federal Education Department has launched a new website that aims to provide easy access to key state and national education data for all school stakeholders.
If education were a business…
A controversial new study published by the Center for American Progress analyzes K-12 school districts based on their productivity: the academic achievement a district produces relative to its…
Trouble lurking ahead for Obama’s education focus
Signs of trouble are arising for President Barack Obama's plan to put education overhaul at the forefront of his agenda as he adjusts to the new reality of…
The best of eSN.TV from 2010
The past year has brought dozens of changes and ideas to improve education and ed tech—some good, and some controversial. The editors of eSchool News have assembled this…
Ed tech vs. larger class sizes: Worth the trade-off?
Thrusting his state into the center of the debate over education reform, Idaho public schools chief Tom Luna called for more educational technology in the classroom and a…
Troubled R.I. school hits bumps on road to education reform
The teachers at Central Falls High School in Central Falls, RI, struck a deal to get their jobs back last year after the entire staff was fired in…
States having problems with Common Core standards
As states move forward in their adoption of the Common Core State Standards, a new survey reveals that thorough implementation of these standards is still years away, and…
U.S. public wants an easier way to fire bad teachers
An overwhelming majority of Americans are frustrated that it's too difficult to get rid of bad teachers, while most also believe that teachers aren't paid enough, a new…
730 U.S. schools trying to reinvent themselves
The federal government has enticed 730 schools across the nation to reinvent themselves this school year, and nearly a third have chosen the most difficult paths to get…
Panel: Remove barriers to digital learning
Digital and blended learning have the potential to improve U.S. education dramatically, because they can help teachers provide a more personal learning experience for their students. But for…
States that lost school money face reform dilemmas
It's like buying a fancy dress but having no date to the prom--dozens of states that crafted new education policies to compete for a share of the $3.4…
Have stimulus funds helped spur educational technology gains?
Nearly two years after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was passed, two new reports offer varying perspectives on how successful the billions of dollars in federal…
High school graduation rate is increasing, report shows
Higher standards, better data use, and more parent engagement are among the strategies responsible for the first significant improvement in America's high school graduation rate in 40 years,…
NYC schools chancellor pick will get waiver, official says
New York's state education commissioner will grant media executive Cathie Black a waiver to serve as chancellor of New York City schools, an official with knowledge of the…
More public schools trying single-sex education
Single-sex education appears to be making a comeback, but with a new twist: A small but growing number of traditional public schools are experimenting with separate instruction for…
New effort aims to turn teacher education ‘upside down’
Eight states are beginning a national pilot program to transform teacher education and preparation to emphasize far more in-field, intensive training—as is common practice in medical schools.
With divided Congress, school reform faces a tough road ahead
The Obama administration has pushed an ambitious education agenda in the last two years, sending $100 billion to states thorough the stimulus package and spurring reform in many…
Growth of online instruction continues, though unevenly
Online instruction continues to grow quickly overall, according to the latest snapshot of online education programs in grades K-12. But the shape and pace of this growth remains…
Teachers take charge to save ailing public schools
Fed up with being blamed for failing students, classroom teachers from Boston to Los Angeles are taking over their schools in a small but growing trend in the…
Students, ed-tech company form extraordinary partnership
The educational search-engine firm netTrekker Inc. is part of a new initiative at one Ohio high school not only to spur community support for education, but also to…
Publishing exec to lead nation’s largest school system
In another striking example of the belief that public education should be run more like a business, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has named a top publishing…
ED releases final version of National Ed-Tech Plan
The final version of the new National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) includes a focus on individualized instruction and connectivity, and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said meeting…