Bennett silent on dramatic graduation gains

A letter to the editor at the IndyStar points to the troubling evidence that more is going on with Supt. Bennett/Mitch Daniels and their education agenda.  Certainly statistics can be manipulated (a critique offered in the comments) but NCLB has improved our ability to report on actual student achievement.  The problem is that findings showing progress don't fit the party line of blaming teachers and claiming the system is irretreivably broken.  We all need to be asking these hard questions as this agenda moves forward.
___________________________________
I'd like to congratulate the public school students and teachers in Marion County and across the state for the dramatic gain in the graduation rates. As a recently retired teacher who was involved in implementing the tougher state standards that are now in place, it is heartwarming to see students and schools meet the challenges and succeed.


There will always be those who say the rate is still too low. Fine. Of course we want all students to graduate, so we just keep working toward that goal.

What I find most disappointing is the lack of acknowledgement from state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett about this accomplishment. Bennett's silence, when taken in the context of the agenda he intends to put forward in the next legislative session, is further evidence that his unspoken intention is to dismantle the public school system in the state.

What other conclusion could be drawn? An acknowledgment of successful and improving public schools certainly doesn't support the need for more charter schools.

Jay Hill,  Indianapolis

What does the future hold for Urban Education in Marion County?

Public, Private, or Charter Schools?



What does the future hold for Urban Education in Marion County?
__________________________________________________________________________
Monday, January 10, 2011,  (6:00-8:00 p.m.)


Pike High School – (Pike Freshman Center)
5401 West 71st Street
Indianapolis, IN. 46268

Panelists (1st Session)
• Dr. Khaula Murtadha, Associate Vice Chancellor for Life Long Learning, IUPUI

• Dr. Eugene White, Superintendent of Indianapolis Public Schools

• Nakia Douglas, Assistant Principal and Director of Special Education - Charles A. Tindley

• Pat Payne, IPS Director of Multicultural Education

• Clete Ladd- Director, Indianapolis Metropolitan High School

• Mariama Shaheed-Carson Principal, Snacks Crossing Elementary School



Panelists (2nd Session)
• Nate Jones, Superintendent of MSD of Pike Township Schools

• Marcus Robinson -Principal/CEO, Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School

• Carol Craig, Indianapolis NAACP Education Co-Chair andState Co-Chair

• Brandon Cosby -Principal, Shortridge Magnet High School for Law & Public Policy

• Dr. Diana Daniels President of National Council on Educating Black Children

• Sherlynn Pillow Principal, Holy Angels School


Note:

• This event is FREE and open to the public. Refreshments and reception: 5:30 p.m.

• All parents, students, educators, and community members are welcome to attend.

For more information:

• Dr. Cathi Cornelius - 317-955-6139 - ccr@marian.edu
• Leroy Robinson -317-502-0272 - educationdoesmatter@hotmail.com


Sponsored by:

• IndianapolisAlliance of Black School Educators (IABSE)

• The INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER NEWSPAPER

Making the grade for IU's School of Education

Only above-average students make the grade for IU's
education school
a letter to the editor in response to the misinformation in a recent column by Andrea Neal....it is important to stay diligent and get the facts as we all work for better schools in Indiana--misrepresentation, political spin, and distortions get us nowhere.  Ms. Neal should not only be embarrased but she should apologize.

I am writing in response to Andrea Neal's Nov. 24 column on raising teacher standards. I agree that the way to improve schools is to improve teachers. To do that, as Neal suggested, it is essential to recruit the best and brightest into teaching and prepare them well to be effective teachers. But spreading misinformation about schools of education dilutes that effort.


In her column, Neal mistakenly suggests that U.S. teachers come disproportionately from the bottom third of their high-school cohort groups. She adds that Indiana University accepts into its teacher education program students with cumulative GPAs as low as 2.5 on a 4-point scale. The implication is that IU education students are selected from the bottom third of high school graduates.

The fact is that before students are admitted to the IU School of Education they first must earn admission to IU. On the Bloomington campus, the average high school GPA of entering freshmen this fall was 3.69 on a 4-point scale and their average SAT score was 1199. This puts the majority of IU entering freshmen in the top 10 percent of high school graduates in Indiana.

Among these top-ranked students admitted to IU, those interested in education as a major must apply to the School of Education and meet additional admissions requirements. These requirements include at least a 2.5 average GPA in freshmen and sophomore arts and science college courses and no grade lower than "C" in pre-professional education courses. In addition, students must pass the math, reading and writing portions of the Praxis teacher license test of basic skills, and complete specific requirements in the content field they will teach.

The actual average college GPA of students admitted to the School of Education in Bloomington this fall was 3.39 on a 4-point scale. The requirement of at least 2.5 GPA in college courses before admission to the School of Education is higher than that of most other academic units on the Bloomington campus, which typically require a minimum 2.0 GPA.

To attract even more high-performing students, last year the School of Education in Bloomington instituted a new Direct Admits Scholars program that guarantees admission to entering IU freshmen who have distinguished themselves as outstanding students in high school. The average high school GPA of students admitted to the School of Education through this program is 3.82 on a 4-point scale.

But the real test of a high-quality teacher education program is the performance of graduates. This year eight of the 10 finalists for Indiana Teacher of the Year were alumni of the IU School of Education in Bloomington and Indianapolis. The Teacher of the Year and the runner--up are graduates of the Bloomington program. Two of the four Indiana finalists for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching announced a few weeks ago are IU School of Education alumni. That award is the highest recognition that a mathematics or science teacher may receive for outstanding teaching in the United States, an award won by an alumna two years ago.

We should indeed learn from international comparisons, find ways to increase starting pay for teachers, and continuously strive to improve the pipeline of professionals for the classroom. A productive discussion, however, has to be based on facts and a more thorough understanding of how successful American schools of education prepare teachers. It serves no purpose to spread misinformation about schools that are doing an excellent job preparing teachers. To do so only undermines the effort to recruit top students into teaching.

Gonzalez is dean of the Indiana University School of Education.

Grading Education Reform

....an interesting presentation of some of the faulty logic in contemporary school reform.  Something similar was suggested when the IDOE decided to get in the business of mandated the curriculum of Schools of Education--would it even be thinkable to imagine that the state would do this for the School of Medicine?  Thoughts?

My View: Instead of slogans, try this to improve schools

Written by Steve Fox

For their efforts in school reform, I would like to award a grade of F to: Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Arne Duncan, all members of Congress who have voted for No Child Left Behind
legislation, all state governors and legislators who have supported standardized testing, accountability and choice as the answers to education problems, and all state superintendents of public instruction who have supported those simplistic answers.

That grade should result, at the minimum, in lowered pay for these policymakers, possibly reassignment to new jobs or, in some cases, dismissal. If any are already retired or have been fired by the voters, then we can require them to do public service, assisting teachers in their overcrowded, underfunded classrooms.

I apologize for any hurt feelings or damaged careers that result from my rigorous grading. However, we must put students at the center and not worry about the concerns of adults.

Now let's move on to some meaningful school reform.
Students are people, not widgets. We cannot evaluate student learning the way we might evaluate production on an assembly line. Try this interesting analogy. Give all the doctors in Indianapolis 180
patients each. These doctors have one year to work with these patients and improve their health. By the end of the year, we would ideally like to see 100 percent of those patients with passing scores on all
their medical tests. And we would like the doctors to spend at least 25 percent of their time with each patient doing repeated tests. Also, these doctors must follow medical and health procedures designed by policymakers who have no medical training. These doctors should not belong to the American Medical Association, because we all know the AMA is a selfish organization that cares only about defending bad doctors. Also, we are not interested in the patients' overall health, or any squishy talk about holistic medicine or mind-body connections or social conditions that affect health.

Just deliver the results, please.

Getting the Data Right--Progress in Indiana

Here, Here!  No one we know supports the status quo....but accurate reporting and resisting political spin has to insisted upon.

Data tell story of progress in our public schools


Written by John Ellis

Gov. Mitch Daniels, in his Nov. 7 opinion piece ("Student-centered learning should be our top focus") regarding education in Indiana, stated: "Only the most selfish special interests still insist on defending the status quo." No argument there. Our students deserve the best, and we know all schools are not as good as all of our students deserve.

I commend the governor for his support to require highly effective teachers for all of our children and improved accountability for all schools. Those are big issues and worthy of our time, debate and efforts to make significant improvements. However, we won't get there by ignoring Indiana's educational successes.  The governor stated: "Indiana has led the nation in many areas lately . . . but we can make no such claim about K-12 education."

Indiana's public schools have improved in several important measures over the past two decades, according to data from the Indiana Department of Education, the College Board, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and ACT Inc. It is a risk, when speaking to facts, that one is likely to be labeled as a defender of the status quo. But facts are not controlled by opinion.


On the NAEP, the "national reading and math test," Indiana has consistently outperformed the nation on all 35 assessments since 1990. Indiana's composite score on the ACT rose to 22.2 in 2008-09, the highest mark in state history. Indiana ACT scores have exceeded national averages in all 20 years of the study.

Verbal SAT scores rose from 490 in 1988-89 to an historic high of 504 in 2004-05. Since then, a revised SAT shows reading and writing scores separately. Reading has fallen to 496 in 2008-09, down from 498 in 2005-06. Writing has fallen to 480 in 2008-09, down from 486 in 2005-06. These scores came while Indiana tested 63 percent of all graduates, 17 percent more than the nation as a whole, thus giving more marginal students a chance at college. SAT math scores on the old SAT went up from 487 in 1988-89 to 508 in 2004-05, another top performance in state history. In the four years of the revised SAT, Indiana scored 509, 507, 508 and 507 respectively, maintaining a high performance level on a more difficult test.

The dropout rate was 8.7 percent for the Class of 2009, improving from 10.3 percent, 11.9 percent and 11.2 percent in three previous years of the new system that tracks every student. Hoosier public schools have successfully raised daily attendance in 15 of the past 20 years to the highest level in our state history. In the four years of the revised SAT, Indiana scored 509, 507, 508 and 507 respectively, maintaining a high performance level on a more difficult test.

The dropout rate was 8.7 percent for the Class of 2009, improving from 10.3 percent, 11.9 percent and 11.2 percent in three previous years of the new system that tracks every student. Hoosier public schools have successfully raised daily attendance in 15 of the past 20 years to the highest level in our state's history, 96.1 percent. The percent of graduates aspiring to go to college went up 19 of the 20 years to reach 76.9 percent in 2008-09, the highest level in state history. The need for this improvement has had consistently strong support from the governor.

The data show improvement in Indiana's public schools. Let's build from there, knowing that continuous improvement is never concluded, but ongoing, and needs to be consistently and accurately measured and reported.


Ellis is executive director of the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents.

Thoughful Moderator in Education Reform

An editorial from the Indy Star unusually offers a bit of a voice of reason in the fervor to "reform" Indiana's schools.  Good cautions here but if you've been following the Daniels/Bennett agenda, "a thoughtful moderator" doesn't seem likely.
Thoughts?

Strike balance in push to better educate children- Indy Star

Gov. Mitch Daniels and the Indiana General Assembly need to move quickly but also thoughtfully to overhaul Indiana's educational system.  Last week's election results gave the governor and his Republican allies in the Statehouse a clear path to pursue reforms they've long desired, including merit pay for teachers, less rigidity in union work rules, and more freedom to open charter schools.

Much of Daniels' agenda makes sense, at least on paper.  But the governor, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett and legislative leaders still need to show how ideas such as bonus pay for top-performing teachers will work in real-life schools.

And although the push to provide parents with additional options for educating their children is certainly welcome, the track record for charter schools is mixed. Some charters, like some traditional schools, are outstanding [19%, that's one in five people]. Others are mediocre at best. [and some are criminally negligent]

Teachers unions in Indiana have long brandished too much power in the General Assembly. Year after year, they've persuaded allies such as outgoing House Speaker Pat Bauer to kill good ideas and to promote measures that favor adults' interests over children's. Curtailing the unions' power is long overdue.

Yet, a balance must be struck. Veteran teachers need enough job security to ensure that they're not driven from classrooms because of the failure of others, including administrators and parents. Accountability is a vital concept, but it's critical that results are measured accurately and rewards and demerits are meted out fairly.

On Tuesday, the governor and the state superintendent were given a clear opportunity to move aggressively. They can't waste it.  But every reform-minded leader needs someone who is able to moderate excesses and promote accountability.

With Democrats reduced to the point of irrelevancy in the Statehouse, and deservedly so because of their absolute refusal to confront Indiana's educational problems, others must emerge to vet ideas driven by Daniels and Bennett.

It wouldn't be disloyal but prudent for Republican leaders such as likely House Education Committee Chairman Robert Behning and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Luke Kenley to take the lead on ensuring that reform measures aren't rushed through the legislative process.

Educators in the state's public and private universities also can help evaluate the flood of new proposals, including one that would provide financial incentives for some students to skip their senior year of high school to start college early.

Is the status quo acceptable in Indiana's schools? Absolutely not. But not every reform idea has merit.

Daniels and Bennett clearly understand the task ahead of them. They will be aggressive agents of change on behalf of the state's children. The key job of thoughtful moderator, however, is for now vacant.

Dark Days in Indiana

Q: Who's the biggest loser in November's election?
A: Public Education (Ann Delany, Indiana Week in Review)

Nov. 2nd Vote on the end of Public Education

A critical piece of commentary on the future of public education in Indiana.  Read it, take some notes, and pass it too a friend--then, for God's sake, VOTE.___________________________
The House Republicans of the Indiana House of Representatives, in their election agenda issued in early September, have called for private school vouchers and expanded private school tax credits if they gain control of the House in the November 2nd elections.


I oppose private school vouchers and tax credits, which would divert public money to private schools and insure the slow death of public schools through the gradual loss of both funding and community support. Therefore I must oppose the efforts of House Republican to win a majority in the House with my vote and with my voice.

Specifically, House Republicans call for public dollars to fund “grants” to allow students in “failing schools” to attend private schools, ignoring numerous public and charter options already available. They also call for an expansion of the tax credit program passed in the 2009 budget which diverts $2.5 million in state tax money to fund private school scholarships for “low-income families”. “Low-income” as defined in the 2009 law includes those making up to $81,586 for a family of four. Is that really “low income”?

Control of the House has been determined by a razor thin margin for years. Currently, Democrats hold the advantage 52-48. In 2005, when Republicans last recaptured the Indiana House by a 52-48 margin, I witnessed an epic legislative battle for several months on a bill to establish both private school vouchers and tax credits. Finally on April 7th, an amendment to remove vouchers from the bill passed 57-41 vote, with 10 courageous Republicans bucking their caucus leaders to resist private school vouchers.

Now, after retirements and primary election defeats, only two of those ten are still in the legislature. More recently in the 2010 short session, an amendment to SB309 was offered to allow tax credits for contributions to private schools, and only two Republican representatives opposed it.

The picture is clear. If they are in control, the Republican leadership will not fail in their efforts to bring private school vouchers and expanded tax credits to Indiana.  Therefore, the Nov. 2nd election is a referendum on the blockbuster issue of our generation: privatizing schools by supporting private schools with public funds.

This fundamental issue should not get lost in the din of campaign ads on other topics. With a legal mission to teach the Constitution and the attributes of good citizenship, public schools have been the key institution responsible for perpetuating our democracy. Giving public incentives to attend private and parochial schools will ultimately weaken public schools and destroy the community support that they must have to give all students who show up at the door a quality education. It will accelerate the fragmentation of our society along sectarian lines.

I believe that Indiana’s Constitution got it right in Article 1:”No money shall be drawn from the treasury, for the benefit of any religious or theological institution.” Our public policies must avoid financial entanglements with religious schools.

Advocates for public education who agree with me need to be aware that those supporting private school vouchers believe they are on the brink of success for a goal they have pursued for years. Whether public dollars stay with public schools or will be diverted to private schools will be determined in the all-important November 2nd election. Those who wish to protect public schools from these privatization strategies should actively participate in the election for members of the Indiana House of Representatives. On this crucial issue, the battle lines are clear.

LINK:

The ineffectiveness of Merit Pay

Remember this as the Bennett DOE continues to follow the path of market-based reforms.  Paying for performance sounds good and seems to make sense--except for the pesky little detail that it doesn't work.

Study: Teacher Bonuses Fail To Boost Test Scores

by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

text size A A A

ATLANTA September 21, 2010, 04:33 pm ET

Offering big bonuses to teachers failed to raise students' test scores in a three-year study released Tuesday that calls into question the Obama administration's push for merit pay to improve education.

The study, conducted in the metropolitan Nashville school system by Vanderbilt University's National Center on Performance Incentives, was described by the researchers as the nation's first scientifically rigorous look at merit pay for teachers.

It found that students whose teachers were offered bonuses of up to $15,000 a year for improved test scores registered the same gains on standardized exams as those whose teachers were given no such incentives.

"I think most people agree today that the current way in which we compensate teachers is broken," said Matthew Springer, executive director of the Vanderbilt center and lead researcher on the study. "But we don't know what the better way is yet."

The study comes as the Obama administration encourages school systems to link teacher pay and tenure to how students perform on tests and other measures of achievement.

The researchers looked at fifth- through eighth-grade math teachers from 2007 to 2009. A group of about 300 teachers started out in the study; half were eligible for the bonuses, the other half were not.

The bonuses were given out based on improvements in scores on Tennessee's standardized exam, which is used by the state as part of the federal No Child Left Behind requirements.

Springer was quick to point out that his study looked only at individual bonuses, not extra pay doled out to teams of teachers or an entire school. He said more research is needed.

"Some people were initially disappointed when they saw the results, but quickly turned around and said, 'Well, at least we finally have an answer,'" he said. "It means pay can't do it alone."

The U.S. Education Department called the study too narrowly focused.

"It only looked at the narrow question of whether more pay motivates teachers to try harder," said spokeswoman Sandra Abrevaya. "What we are trying to do is change the culture of teaching by giving all educators the feedback they need to get better while rewarding and incentivizing the best to teach in high-need schools, hard-to-staff subjects."

The American Federation of Teachers praised the study and argued that teachers need other resources, including better training and more supportive administrators.

"Merit pay is not the panacea that some would like it to be. There are no quick fixes in education," said union president Randi Weingarten. "Providing individual bonuses for teachers standing alone does not work."

Teachers unions have historically opposed merit pay, arguing that test scores are not an accurate measure of student achievement, that financial rewards could pit teachers against each other, and that administrators could use bonuses to reward favorites and punish others.

Jennifer Conboy, a high school social studies teacher in Miami, called merit pay a "baseless fad."

"Merit pay is an excuse to resist the attempt of teachers to get fair pay in the first place," the 37-year-old Conboy said. "On a personal level, merit pay would do nothing to me. I took this job because I think education is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and if I cared about democracy — which I do — then I had a responsibility to do whatever I could to strengthen education."

Only a few schools and districts across the country have merit pay, and in some states the idea is effectively illegal. The Obama White House hoped to encourage more states to pass merit pay laws with its $4.35 billion "Race to the Top" grant competition.

Some states tried to enact merit bonuses for teachers, but most, like Georgia, were unable to get the necessary laws passed. Colorado passed a controversial law that ties teacher pay to student performance and allows the state to strip tenure from low-performing instructors, but the state did not win the Race to the Top grant money it was counting on to help carry out the law.

Only about half of the 300 teachers originally in the Nashville study were left at the end of the three years because some retired, moved to other schools or stopped teaching math. About 40 teachers got bonuses each year. Overall, the researchers said, test scores rose modestly for both groups of students during the three-year study, suggesting that the financial incentives made no difference.

"It's not enough to say, 'I'll pay you more if you do better.' You've got to help people know how to do better," said Amy Wilkins, vice president of the Education Trust, a Washington think tank. "Absolutely we should reward them once they do better, but to think merit pay alone will get them there is insane."

(This version CORRECTS amount of Race to the Top program.)

Corruption in Indiana Education "reform"

Let's not even talk for now about the foolishness of sending money to Teach for America (see Newteacher for new research)....this is just plain ol' nepotism and political corruption.  Here's to hoping the voters wake up.

Indiana's super connections


By Karen Francisco
The Journal Gazette

Plenty of education observers have pointed out State Superintendent Tony Bennett's enthusiastic and unquestioning support for charter schools and his wife's job as a school improvement consultant for the Indiana Public Charter Schools Association. Tina Bennett, a former school principal in Clark County, landed the job after her husband was elected to the state's top school post.

But there's now another interesting connection between the Indiana Department of Education and the superintendent's wife. Tina Bennett supervises the Teach for America program at Marian University, which just landed a $500,000 contract from the DOE to run a program to train principals for turnaround schools.  A DOE spokeswoman told the Indianapolis Star that Tina Bennett had no involvement in developing the program at the university, which has an enrollment of about 1,800 full- and part-time students.

Last month, the DOE announced the award of $15.5 million in School Improvement Grants to four of the state's lowest-achieving schools. Two of the four were charter schools and members of the Indiana Public Charter Schools Association.

Indiana's lax conflict of interest laws require only that state officials declare the name (or names, in this case) of a spouse's employer, which Tony Bennett dutifully did on his 2009 financial disclosure statement. Voters, however, should note that -- within a three-week period -- the Department of Education has awarded $3.85 million in grants and contracts to entities with close ties to the superintendent's wife.

The Students End Up Losing

The good people at NUVO usually do a better job than this in their reporting (note that they only talked to politicians and union folks--how about some outside perspectives?).  Unfortunately, we need to clarify here: new standards mean new tests, which in this administration means outsourcing more public money out to private test companies.  BTW, there's no research at all that this move will improve achievement so, really, this is more smoke and mirrors, wasted effort that doesn't really help kids and teachers.  Another odd thing here is for Republicans to give up local control in education....hmm, it makes one wonder what's really going here in the Daniels strategy session.

Resetting the bar for state education

In the days preceding Indiana's adoption of new national education guidelines, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett's efforts at persuasion were met with what has come to typify teacher response to almost anything coming from the state: skepticism.

"It's very important to understand that this is a state-driven initiative," Bennett argued in an attempt to reassure a crowd assembled in Indianapolis earlier this month – part of the superintendent's recent statewide tour to meet with Indiana educators. "We have been on the ground floor in discussing these issues."

The new national guidelines, known as Common Core Standards, will eventually replace Indiana's current set of state mandates for gauging how and what students are taught. Earlier this month, Indiana became one of at least 33 states to have adopted the measure so far.

Bennett, like other local and federal officials, took pains to emphasize states' roles in crafting those standards at this month's meeting. But a cascade of guffaws and muffled laughs seemed to indicate not every teacher present was convinced the effort was locally-grown.

"That is the consensus from teachers around the state — that this was not really some local, home-grown decision," explained Teresa Meredith, vice president of the Indiana State Teachers Association (ISTA), a teachers union, and a teacher in Shelbyville. "But, hopefully, by working between Dr. Bennett and the ISTA, we can change that."

That the state is moving forward on Common Core at all is a change of pace given recent impasses between state and union leaders.

In April, Indiana educators failed to put together a bid for millions in cash from the federal government's Race to the Top program, aimed at spreading $4.35 billion among states that best exemplify the kinds of reform the government is looking for. The Common Core Standards were meant to be a part of that drive, and Indiana stood to gain up to $250 million in federal education subsidies for a winning bid.

But territorial issues between the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) and ISTA proved contentious. Disputes between the two groups torpedoed the bid at a time when the state has cut $297 million from schools for the current two-year budget – cuts that could get deeper if the latest state revenue numbers are any indication.

Such disputes have some wondering if state officials and educators will ever learn to get along – and how many more opportunities will fall by the wayside in the meantime.

Julie Havill-Weems, training director for the Indiana Parent and Information Resource Center (PIRC), a parents advocacy group, said it was "frustrating," when students missed out because state and union officials couldn't agree.  "When you aren't able to forge those strong partnerships that focus on student outcomes, with the loss of that prize, what we're really looking at is an example of the potential fallout that directly impacts our students," she said. "The students end up losing."

'A step in the right direction'

When President Barack Obama launched Race to the Top in 2009, his administration was careful distinguish it from the No Child Left Behind program put in place by his predecessor. Race to the Top, he explained, would focus instead on measuring growth and standardizing teaching, rather than on testing data.  Indiana got in line with 47 other states, each of which had to outline a plan for revamping its education program. The "Standards and Assessment" portion of the application was a major component for putting together a winning bid. It influenced Indiana's initial plan to adopt Common Core Standards as part of a reform package the state calls its Fast Forward plan.

Common Core was intended to better align Indiana's standards of instruction with those of schools across the nation. "We want to ensure our students are held to the highest academic standard," IDOE said in a statement at the time. "And we believe that the Common Core State Standards will position Indiana children well — nationally and internationally."

Indiana submitted its bid for round one of the program, but the initiative didn't get far. On March 15th, Bennett announced that Indiana was not selected as one of the 15 finalists.  IDOE soon began planning a second application, but announced April 22 that re-application would be virtually useless. Negotiations to curry support with the ISTA hadn't gained the necessary traction, and support from teacher unions was estimated at just 60 percent.

Today, although the state is no longer in the running for millions of federal dollars, Bennett says Common Core Standards are still worth implementing. He said federal money was never the primary draw: For example, that money could not have been used to fill the hole left by budget cuts, as some have suggested, only for costs associated with reform. It is unclear how those costs will be covered now.

"We think the reforms are essential and Indiana will be a national leader on implementing reforms without national money," Bennett said.

The new standards will stress depth-over-breadth-of-teaching more than the previous ones. It will also make teachers' specializations narrower, Meredith explained. Only time will tell if that's ultimately a good thing.

The standards and goals are spelled out very specifically. For example, an eighth grader would need to be able to "consult general and specialized reference materials, both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or to determine or clarify its precise meaning or part of speech." It's left to local administrators to determine how best to keep teachers and students in line with the standards.

"We don't really have any big concerns yet," Meredith said. "Probably more of a question than anything. There isn't any data yet that suggests that the Common Core Standards change learning in the classroom or are impacting students' lives outside. But with anything new, the data comes in a few years down the line."

State Rep. Gregory Porter, chairman of the House Education Committee, said the standards were "a step in the right direction," but said he had reservations. "Obviously since we've adopted this thing it's going to require some dollars behind it," he said.

As to changes in the quality of education, Porter said he was "eyeing it cautiously" for now. "My concern with this is when comparing all the students of different states, we're not all going to start at the same level."

Cautiously optimistic

Much of Indiana's failure to submit a viable bid for federal dollars can be attributed to tensions between IDOE and ISTA leadership, the latter of which withheld much of its support. Tennessee and Delaware – which, as Race to the Top winners received a combined $600 million for their education programs — had secured between 95-100 percent support from local teachers' unions.

The ISTA claims the only way to get its full support is to follow the lead of Tennessee and Delaware by better including unions in the process.  "The big problem we had with [the proposal] was that we were never invited to be a part of the conversation unless we would blindly agree to Fast Forward," said Meredith. "It's hard to agree to something if you can't even see it."

Porter took similar issue with what he characterized as unilateral action on the part of the IDOE .

"The main thing I'm concerned about is that this whole movement did not really involve the legislature," porter said. "Not once, not twice, but on numerous occasions I reached out to the Department of Education. We never really got any pertinent information."

As different subjects currently utilize standards implemented during different years, adoption of the new standards will take place gradually through 2013, as old standards are phased out. Regarding the future, ISTA insists its attitude is cautiously optimistic. Meredith said she anticipated a difficult 2011-2012 school year.

"I think teachers are confused," she said. "And the next year is going to be a challenging year for having two sets of standards and figuring out what to teach."

The Battle for Public Higher Education

Recent debate about how these dangerous education policies are at work in higher education as well....the battle has many fronts indeed.  Note that the Goldwater Institute's main priority is the privatization of public services; care about public colleges and universities?  Better start paying attention!

Cut public "subsidies" of higher education Indy Star:
http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/
That is the recommendation of an Op-Ed piece in this morning's (8/14/2010) Indianapolis Star. Its author, Jay P. Greene of the University of Arkansas and a fellow of the Goldwater Institute, bases this recommendation on his analysis of recent trends in higher education cost nationwide as well as in Indiana. Greene argues that
university in the past twenty years have shifted an increasing proportion of their funds away from paying salaries of instructors, researchers, and "service-providers" to pay for a growing number of
highly-paid administrators. The only solution to this "administrative bloat," according to Greene is to shift more of the bill for higher education onto students and their parents and away from public funds.
In his scenario, "cost-conscious" parents will then force the universities to trim their administrative expenses and shift more funds back to classroom education and research.

Greene might be correct about recent trends in the ways funds are spent
in our universities for administrative versus the more primary missions
of instruction and research. University faculty have witnessed teaching
"lines" disappear from academic departments and salaries being frozen
as the numbers of vice-chancellors, assistant deans, and their support
staffs have swelled in recent years. While the latter individuals do
perform invaluable functions in supporting the university's teaching
and research missions, perhaps the charge of "bloat" has an element of
merit that needs to be corrected. In a time of economic downturn, all
parts of the university should be prepare to retrench including the
administration.

Nevertheless, the solution that Greene proposes to reduce public subsidies to higher education is based upon an inaccurate analysis of the financing of Indiana's higher education system and its solution
seems more punitive than helpful towards faculty, researchers, students, and parents. The financial "subsidies" that Indiana taxpayers make of the state higher education system already have been in relative
decline in recent years and more of the cost of running the universities has been transferred to tuitions, private donations, and revenues from research. In fact state funding policies seem intended to
make all Indiana Universities and college "self-supporting" on their own revenue sources rather than public funds. Rather than acknowledging the benefit of "public education" for the Indiana public, state
mandates already have forced universities to raise tuitions to record levels. Expecting industries or philanthropic organizations to step in to help higher education at a time of serious economic recession is
unrealistic.

Following Professor Greene's recommendation of raising tuitions even higher would threaten to bar lower and even middle class students from enrolling. Higher tuitions are likely to drive away Indiana students from pursing college educations at a time when the state needs to increase its base of well-educated workers to compete in the intensely competitive world economy. Faith that the "market" of cost-conscious parents will reform problems in higher education spending is based on untested ideological assumptions that risk causing fatal damage to the state's public colleges and universities. There seems to be a major campaign in the works against public education at all levels and the future of our state is being placed in jeopardy.


Absolutely!

Indiana Education and the Democrats

While it is true the Indiana Democrats need to get motivated on education policy--quite frankly, they're letting Daniels completely control the whole conversation--the leaps of logic here are stunning.  There's not research that says that merit-pay works or that charter schools are the answer.  In fact, with only 19% of charter schools outperforming traditional public schools the whole premise seems like a bad bet....or maybe it's about a bigger political ideology.  Don't forget that Daniels has said that if he could privatize public education tomorrow, he'd do it.  Democrats need to speak out, get a candidate to beat Bennett and stop this reckless dismantling of Indiana education.


oh, and.....we should be very worried if Daniels and Obama's education plans are simpatico.

Education stand could hurt Dems

Gov. Mitch Daniels isn't on the ballot this election year. But in many ways, his education agenda is.

In recent years, Daniels and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett have struggled to push education reforms through the legislature because of strident opposition from House Democratic leaders. It's been a disappointing and somewhat surprising obstacle at a time when other Democrats in the state and nationally are fighting for similar reforms.For instance, President Barack Obama's education agenda focuses on many of the same ideas Daniels and Bennett have talked about.

As he sat in his office last week, Daniels noted that he has been able to work with House Speaker Pat Bauer and other Democratic caucus leaders on a range of issues, from property taxes to telecom reform. But on education, he said, House Democrats "like it as it is" and prevent reform bills from getting "to first base."

A big part of the problem is that House Democrats are an arm of the powerful teachers union lobby. So when Daniels argues for changes in teacher seniority rules that sometimes protect bad teachers at the expense of good ones, he gets nowhere. When he talks about changing pay structures, he hits a roadblock.

"The best teachers -- meaning those whose kids learn the most -- should be paid more for that," Daniels said. "The teachers whose kids do not grow year after year after year should not have permanent job protection. That doesn't exist anywhere else."

Again, the Democratic president's administration has advocated for similar ideas. In the Indiana House, though, partisanship prevails.

READ MORE:

Indiana's Resources and Questionable Programs

We certainly do need good ideas and good people to work on Indiana schools but the question here is a good one.   Why is IDOE partnering with private colleges (or now the Governor's outsourcing to Utah) when we have a fine higher education system to work with?  Will this be another high-speed, low-experience program that puts people in systems they don't understand?  Almost certainly, oh....and, Bennett's wife happens to have a new job at this particular private college.  Just sayin'

Do we really need a new program?

Posted by Susan Blackwell

The Indiana Department of Education announced recently that a small, local university was awarded half a million dollars to develop a principal leadership academy focused on using data and research to improve school performance. There is no doubt that effective leadership is fundamental to a school change process. And, if I were to survey the leadership programs already in existence in Indiana, I would learn that they already address the "innovative " elements cited in the Indianapolis Star story. So, then, I have to wonder: Why is the IDOE is giving money to start one program when multiple programs with the same focus already exist in abundance?

Current programs already teach the elements of leadership. These include best practices in teaching and teacher evaluation, data decision-making, conflict resolution, change processes, and supervision of employees. These are the basics of accredited programs.

Given the additional cuts in funding to schools, it is unclear how the IDOE can justify the promotion of one program (with the funding that accompanies it) that duplicates efforts already in existence at universities across the state. It is also unclear how this program is anchored in the research on effective leadership preparation. Finally, while school districts are cutting faculty and closing schools, parents and others should be asking about the use of state resources at this critical time.

Focusing on Learning in School Reform

Hey! How about some good news.  Here's an effort to really to work on instruction that values the expertise of teachers and gives them the time to work together on strategies for learning.  So much of reactionary, politicized efforts at school reform do the opposite: blame the teachers, pile on more paperwork, test & test again.  What we know works is giving teachers the space and time to work as the professionals they are.  The DOE could take a lesson.

June 29, 2010

Teacher-initiated reform

Posted by Susan Blackwell

This week more than 300 teachers and administrators from Indiana and beyond are participating in a project-based learning (PBL) workshop at Ben Davis High School. PBL reflects a reform effort coming from the efforts of educators, not politicians. Unfortunately, when politicians use the term "reform," they often mean increased competition and entrepreneurial schools. When educators use the term, they mean an increase in the quality of student learning.

IUPUI and CELL have taken a lead in providing the opportunities for educators to make meaningful changes in classrooms that address 21st century skills. PBL promotes rigorous projects that also engage community members in reviewing the work students create. My institution, University of Indianapolis, is focusing on PBL at the college level in teacher preparation, the medical professions, the arts, and the sciences. In particular, the UIndy Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship Program is preparing beginning teachers to teach with a project-based approach. Teachers at Tech High School, Decatur Central High School, and Ben Davis High School have made this commitment to more rigorous learning standards and are mentoring beginning teachers to do the same.

We educators understand that the quality of student work needs to become more rigorous. We know what needs to be done. It sometimes appears that educators are making little to no effort to reform schools. This initiative demonstrates that, despite the ongoing negative critique of teachers and schools, educators are looking at their methods so as to improve academic learning for all students.

Misunderstanding Advanced Placement

In another ill-thought and under-researched move the IDOE is pushing for higher numbers in AP classes.  A little history might be helpful here: AP classes were designed for the top 2 percent of students, those capable of taking a college-level class.  With the push for more classes and higher enrollment, the state (and others as well) are pushing folks to water down the curriculum and its showing in passing rates (i.e. they're going down). All of these pushes for AP, early college, and dual credit actually have absymal performance rates and show the pathology of looking for easy fixes and cheap answers.  Ultimately it hurts kids....what's wrong with a high school kid doing high school work??


AP quota spells trouble for ill-prepared students


Posted: July 1, 2010
I have read with interest opinions about Advanced Placement classes in Indiana high schools, . As an experienced AP teacher in Indianapolis Public Schools, I can offer insight into this discussion, which is based on Indiana Department of Education's assertion that one-quarter of all high school students should pass at least one AP exam. Unfortunately, that is forcing schools to water down the curriculums to accommodate the lowest functioning children, and the result is ever-lower passing rates on the national exams.


I had one student enrolled in my AP class who could barely read and write. When I told the principal that he needed to be removed, she dismissed my suggestion, claiming he was just being lazy. He failed the class, which doubled as his senior English class, postponing his graduation. Unfortunately, this young man was not the only one in that predicament. To appease their higher-ups, administrators and superintendents are pushing more and more unprepared students into these college-level courses and then are surprised when they fail the exam or even the course.

For students to be successful in AP courses, they must begin preparation in middle, or even elementary, school. That is where bright children should be encouraged to enroll in accelerated or honors classes. Sticking low-performing or unmotivated students into AP classes to fulfill someone's quota is a travesty.


An Indiana AP Teacher

A Teacher Speaks Back to Daniels & Bennett

An Indiana AP teacher speaks back to the reckless spin of the Daniels/Bennett machine.  And look!  She actually brings data to a question about education!  Daniels lack of understanding or even concern for public education never ceases to amaze (and how Bennett can sleep at night is beyond us).  AP isn't the answer and it wasn't designed to be.  Historically, AP classes where for those top 2% students that might be ready to take college level classes.  For Daniels (and apparently Bennett) all education is for is a piece of paper that leads to a job--if that's true then rush these kids through, put them in classes that they're not ready for, and make it look good for the paper.

Cheers to this brave and thoughtful teacher!  We need more to speak out!!

AP classes don't always equal upward mobility

Lynette Enz Liberge

Posted: June 13, 2010

In a recent ceremony honoring 12 Indiana high schools for having at least 25 percent of their students pass an Advanced Placement exam, Gov. Mitch Daniels praised the schools for "preserving the opportunity for upward mobility in our state and our society." That seems an odd choice of words, given the socioeconomic data of those schools.

According to the Indiana Youth Institute, the percentage of Hoosier students receiving free and reduced lunch was 42 percent in 2009. By contrast, the school corporations of the 12 high schools in question averaged only 16 percent. In fact, seven of the 12 schools are in districts with the six lowest percentages in the state.

Similarly, the website STATS Indiana reports that in 2000 only 19 percent of our state's adults had a bachelor's degree or higher. In the same year, 58 percent of adults in Carmel had four-year degrees, as did 60 percent of adults in Zionsville and Fishers and 70 percent in West Lafayette.

The fact that these 12 high schools have such a high percentage of advanced students is laudable. It is not, however, a sign of upward mobility. At best, it shows maintenance of the status quo. It might even be argued that Martinsville High School's 9 percent AP pass rate in a district with fewer than 12 percent of adults with four-year degrees actually shows more promise of upward mobility than does Carmel's 31 percent pass rate in its more highly educated township.

I do not mean to diminish the great things going on in those 12 schools. Daniels was right to praise the schools, teachers, principals and superintendents. However, his admonition for other educators to "take notice" is not only insulting, but may ultimately be detrimental to the very students he wishes to help.

The Indiana Department of Education has a goal of doubling the number of students passing AP exams in the next two years. It wants all schools to meet the 25 percent benchmark. This is unreasonable. The governor can't simply will a mediocre student to be prepared for an AP-level class from one year to the next. The skills, knowledge, work ethic and mind-set of an advanced student develop throughout the student's life, both at home and at school.

In many school districts, a majority of parents do not value education, rarely read to their children and never help them with their homework. Just as the high expectations displayed in Zionsville and West Lafayette are passed from generation to generation, these negative patterns are also entrenched in families and in certain areas. Short of some sudden and vast societal change, these districts will not have a 25 percent AP pass rate in 20 years, much less two.

In order to meet state expectations, school administrators and counselors are likely to push students to take classes for which they are not qualified. In order not to lose those students, the teacher will be forced to move at a slower pace or water down the course, hurting those students who were prepared for the class in the first place.

(If the quality of the curriculum falls low enough, the College Board could even pull the school's right to call it an AP course, thus depriving all students of the opportunity to take it.)

Through this unrealistic goal, the state is already cheapening Indiana's AP program in word; its implementation could cheapen the program in substance.

I only wish that educators had the power that Daniels and the DOE seem to believe we do: that with a little more work, a little more training, a little more researchinto the best methods and a little more accountability, teachers can turn things around for all students. Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of many dedicated people throughout the state, the path to true upward mobility seems to be a little more difficult to find than that.