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From another
list, Public Education Network’s Weekly Newsblast @ http://www.publiceducation.org/index.asp
EDUCATION: LOG ON & LEARN What some parents might call
inappropriate, today’s "screenagers" call sex education.
Increasingly, the Internet is a cyberteacher outside, as well as inside, the
classroom. In the United States, for example, more than 78 percent of kids 12
to 17 go online, according to a 2002 study by the Pew Internet & American
Life Project. A lot of them are just surfing the Web and instant-messaging
their friends. But 94 percent of those online said they also used it for
schoolwork. Some of what they find surely expands their minds. But there is
also tremendous misinformation out there – and at times, remarkably little
guidance from teachers. "Computers and the Internet by themselves hold
little educational value," says John Bailey, director of educational
technology at the U.S. Department of Education. But when used well, technology
lets kids tap into a vast store of knowledge that was once almost inaccessible.
It can break down social cliques in the classroom and even bridge continental
divides through virtual study groups and international e-mail pals. With online
tutoring and virtual schools, technology is even allowing students to customize
their education. "In the long run, if I were a textbook publisher I'd be very
worried," says Doug Levin, senior analyst at American Institutes for Research,
who directed the Pew study. http://www.msnbc.com/news/953393.asp NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND LAW &
VOUCHERS FAIL TO GAIN PUBLIC SUPPORT Take schools that have strong
public support from the communities they serve. Impose
on those schools a major federal mandate that attempts to reach worthy goals
using strategies that lack public approval, and you have the ingredients for a
failed system. Recognizing the importance of the
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act and the extent
to which it involves the federal government in decisions affecting schools at
the K-12 level, Phi Delta Kappa International
and Gallup decided to focus their 2003 annual poll on NCLB. While the public sees improved student achievement as an important
goal, it rejects the strategies used in NCLB. The
report includes seven overarching conclusions: (1) The public has high regard
for the public schools, wants needed improvement to come through those schools, and has little interest
in seeking alternatives; (2) The public sees itself as uninformed on NCLB, with
69% saying they lack the information needed to say whether their impression of
the act is favorable or unfavorable; (3) Responses to questions related to
strategies associated with NCLB suggest that greater familiarity with the law
is unlikely to lead to greater public support; (4) The public is concerned about
getting and keeping good teachers, thinks teacher salaries are too low, and is
willing to see higher salaries paid to teachers teaching in more challenging
situations; (5) The public continues to believe that closing the achievement
gap between white students and black and Hispanic students is important but blames the gap on
factors unrelated to the quality of schooling; (6) The public is not convinced that narrowing the achievement
gap requires spending more money on low-achieving students ; (7) A majority of
respondents are opposed to vouchers and would oppose having their state adopt them,
despite the 2002 U.S. Supreme Court decision stating that voucher plans do not
violate the U.S. Constitution. These are times of opportunity and challenge for
the public schools. The opportunity springs from the growing awareness both
inside and outside the education community of the importance of having each
student move through the school experience and into adulthood armed with a high-quality
education. The challenge lies in the lack of agreement on the best means for
reaching that goal. http://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/kpollpdf.htm And from Governing.com, an
article about education funding ending up on ballot measures that mentions the
strong possibility of “adequacy lawsuits”
as an unintended consequence of the NCLB law. Says that these lawsuits are seldom won by schools. See http://stateline.org/story.do?storyId=321271 and the earlier related story from July, http://www.stateline.org/story.do?storyId=314988. Isn’t it interesting how the Bush
administration promotes tort reform and derides government through lawsuits but
inspires so many of them? Secrecy,
Education, Environment, Privacy. -
KWC |
