stimulus

Washington's Race to the Top Plan

maureen — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:47:29 -0500

Washington's Race to the Top Plan
The Washington STEM Initiative: Answering a National Call to Action
National Council on Teacher Quality Releases Report on Seattle Public Schools

Washington's Race to the Top Plan

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was designed to stimulate the economy and create jobs, as well as provide critically needed funding for many sectors of the economy, including education. The ARRA provides $4.35 billion for the Race to the Top (RTTT) Fund, a competitive federal stimulus package designed to drive education reform across the country—and provide an unprecedented opportunity for meaningful reform in Washington.

Washington state education advocates are applauding Governor Gregoire, State Superintendent Randy Dorn and the State Board of Education, all of whom have committed to apply for the first phase of RTTT funding. With strong leadership from our state leaders, there is no reason why Washington cannot enact the right policies and bold plans needed to win.

Partnership for Learning, along with a number of state education advocates, stresses that even if money were not on the table, the RTTT reforms – setting high expectations for students, getting great teachers and leaders, using data for improvement, and helping struggling schools – are the right thing to do to make sure every Washington student is set up for success after high school.

If our state leaders put forth bold RTTT plans and we make two legislative changes this coming session, we will be an even stronger contender for federal support.

The two legislative barriers to be addressed are:

(1) Washington’s teacher evaluation system can’t distinguish between the most and least effective teachers, and;
(2) State law prohibits intervention in chronically underperforming schools.

The combination of a robust RTTT application and the needed legislative fixes will help ensure our students receive the effective teachers and academic rigor they deserve regardless of where they live.

To learn more about Washington’s Race to the Top application, please visit the following websites:

U.S. Department of Education Race to the Top website
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction website--a special link from the main page is being developed for RTTT updates and information.
The Governor’s Office is establishing a special RTTT website that is expected to be active in a few weeks. The site will include a Question and Answer link, specific avenues for public and stakeholder group input and the most current information on the state application process. Go to www.recovery.wa.gov. This page will have a RTTT link once it is active.

The Washington STEM Initiative: Answering a National Call to Action

Speaking before the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan outlined the Obama administration’s commitment to dramatically improving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education throughout our nation’s public schools.

The case for STEM is strong, particularly in a state like Washington with our robust information technology, aerospace and global health industries. Students with strong math and science skills, and the abilities associated with STEM fields—such as critical-thinking and problem-solving—are more likely to succeed in college and careers. Job growth in STEM industries is a bright spot in the current economic downturn.

Washington state is not currently prepared to offer students the opportunities they deserve. Too many of our students are not meeting rigorous math and science standards, and too many students are bored or intimidated in these classes. We need many more well-trained math and science teachers who can bring STEM to life for students. Our state ranks fourth in the country in technology-based corporations, but 46th in participation in science and engineering graduate degree programs. Students of color earn less than 5 percent of postsecondary STEM degrees in Washington.

According to Duncan, great teachers are the key to success. As a country and a state, we need effective teachers who are passionate about STEM fields and possess deep content knowledge. Great teachers can raise students’ excitement, performance, and college and career readiness. Duncan urged states to make sure they are attracting, supporting and rewarding the best and brightest STEM teachers.

To support a focus on effective teaching, Duncan called for the following:

The creation of a national STEM educational network to encourage innovation and scale best practices within and across states;
Great principals who create the conditions for excellent teaching;
Rigorous, relevant and engaging curricula; and
Business community partnerships to encourage real-world internships for students and training with STEM industry professionals for teachers.

(Watch Duncan’s Webcast)

We could not agree with Secretary Duncan more. That’s why Partnership for Learning has been working closely with business, education and community partners to design an initiative to improve STEM instruction throughout Washington. Through its focus on effective teaching, the Washington STEM Initiative will catalyze innovative models of teaching and learning and share best practices from around the state, country and world.

The goals of this initiative are: Higher math and science achievement; making sure every student is prepared for college, work and life; and increasing the number of students succeeding in postsecondary STEM degree programs or jobs.

To learn more about the Washington STEM Initiative visit our website.

National Council on Teacher Quality Releases Report on Seattle Public Schools

Last week, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) issued a report on the ability of the Seattle Public Schools (SPS) to attract, develop, retain and evaluate teachers, concluding that many SPS and Washington state teacher policies hinder improved student achievement.

The report includes the first in-depth look at the new Seattle Education Association and Seattle Public Schools contract, which sets many of the policies that govern teachers' work lives.

To reach its conclusions, NCTQ spent four months analyzing the rules and regulations governing Seattle teachers, including the most recent teacher contracts. It also talked with local stakeholders, examined personnel data and trends, and compared what it found with other public school districts both in the Puget Sound area and across the nation.

The 81-page report only focuses on the four areas governing the profession that can be transformed by better local and state policies, including: 1) compensation; 2) transfer and assignment; 3) the teacher work day and year, and 4) developing effective teachers and exiting ineffective teachers.

Among the primary findings:

In nearly every respect, Seattle students are shortchanged on learning time, receiving fewer school days this year than state law requires and suffering high teacher absentee rates (an average of 16 days per teacher). Seattle elementary students have the shortest school day in the region and theirs is among the shortest in the nation.
After a number of significant recent pay raises, Seattle's teacher salaries are now largely competitive with other Puget Sound districts, but only if teachers agree to take a lot more advanced coursework than what is typically required of teachers. In fact Seattle spends 22 percent of its annual teacher payroll to incentivize teachers to take more courses, despite research that requiring teachers to do so does not necessarily improve student learning.
When teachers receive their annual pay raises, the biggest pay raises are reserved for the longest serving teachers, an inequitable system that works against retention of newer teachers and which is a practice not found in most other large districts in the nation.
Seattle does better than other districts across the nation in attracting teachers with stronger academic backgrounds but does not do enough to aggressively recruit teachers early enough in the year, especially in shortage areas.
In spite of a policy that gives principals final say over who can teach in their buildings, principals are often forced to take teachers they have not chosen or approved.
Seattle is not doing a thorough job evaluating teachers’ performance, giving short shrift to teachers’ impact on student learning and identifying 99.5 percent of the workforce as satisfactory in the most recent school year.

NCTQ's recommendations for specific action by both the district and Washington state include:

Guarantee students 180 days of instruction. The state should not waive this requirement absent unforeseen emergency.
Immediately lengthen the elementary school day for teachers to 7.5 hours and work towards an 8 hour on-site work day for all teachers.
As other districts are doing, rethink teacher pay by gradually eliminating more pay for any coursework and experimenting with pay outside the traditional salary schedule. The state should abandon its own failed efforts to equalize pay across districts, such as the TRI pay structure.
Reform teachers’ traditional seniority rights so that no school is forced to accept a teacher who may not be a good fit and so the district can factor in teachers’ performance when layoffs must occur.
More closely monitor teacher absentee patterns at each school and hold principals accountable for improving teachers' attendance.
Make teacher evaluations a meaningful process that requires principals to differentiate the levels of talent in their buildings, rewards the highest performing teachers and generates support and real consequences for under performers. Meaningful evaluation will also require that the Washington State legislature rewrites its burdensome and costly laws on teacher dismissal, and that both the state and district lift existing prohibitions on pay for performance.

To read the report and learn more, visit the National Council on Teacher Quality’s website.

Anne Luce: Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers

maureen — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:08:34 -0500

Meet our new guest blogger, Anne Luce! For the next few weeks, Anne will be focusing on recent developments surrounding the Department of Education’s $4.35 billion Race to the Top fund.

Anne is a graduate student at Seattle University earning a master’s degree in public administration, with a focus on education. With experience in both politics and nonprofit organizations, Anne is focusing her master’s thesis on policies that will improve Washington states’ schools, student achievement and the state's competitiveness for Race to the Top funds.

Seattle Public Schools Top Ten List: Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers

Effective teachers matter. They matter to the school district, to the school, and, most importantly, to the student. It is difficult to deny the impact of an effective teacher.

What is constantly up for discussion though is how an effective teacher is defined, retained, recruited as well as how to develop and attract effective teachers.

In an effort to identify and address these issues the Seattle Public Schools, in collaboration with the Alliance for Education, an independent organization working in conjuncture with Seattle Public Schools, commissioned the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) to analyze Seattle’s teacher policies linked most directly to teacher effectiveness.

What resulted of this study is the report, “Human Capital in Seattle Public Schools: Rethinking How to Attract, Develop, and Retain Effective Teachers” and ten specific policy goals for Seattle Public Schools to implement that, arguably, will improve teacher quality. These policy goals and recommendations are challenging but must be put into action – or at the least seriously considered – by the Seattle Public Schools. Without doing so teacher quality and student achievement will continue to be lackluster.

In the “Late Night Show” fashion, here are the top ten effective teaching policy recommendations for Seattle Public Schools…

10. Support for Struggling Teachers;
9. Make Tenure Meaningful;
8. Stronger Teacher Evaluations;
7. Improve Teacher Induction;
6. Keep Teachers in the Classroom;
5. Modify Teacher Schedule;
4. Equitably Distribute Experienced Teachers;
3. Adjust Hiring and Assigning Timeline;
2. Site-Based Teacher Assignment;
1. Refine Teacher Compensation

See details on “Top Ten” by clicking each link.

10. Support for Struggling Teachers
Seattle needs to develop systems that will identify poor-performing teachers. It is only then that the districts teacher remedial support program will really be beneficial.
Seattle Public Schools can’t be effective in improving teacher quality if it is unable to identify poor-performing teachers. Seattle is currently ineffectively by providing teacher remediation without having identified what teachers need remediation. This has got to change.

9. Make Tenure Meaningful
Seattle’s tenure policy is weak in terms of it serving as a mechanism to identify and reward effective teaching. Seattle needs to involve district officials in tenure decisions, recognize tenured teachers with significant pay increases, and lengthen teacher provisional period to three years.
Teacher tenure reform is needed so that it has weight and meaning to teachers. The tenure design Seattle has doesn’t use tenure as a reward or incentive. For example, currently 40 states wait at least three years before tenure is conferred. Tenure is earned and not just granted. It is time to place value behind teacher tenure in Seattle.

Back to List>>

8. Stronger Teacher Evaluations
Seattle needs to modify its teacher evaluation system if the district seeks to be able to identify effective teachers. Key modifications include: holding teachers accountable to student achievement and instructional impact, increasing the number of unscheduled teacher observations, using outside observers to assess teacher ratings, and holding principals responsible for evaluations ratings.
Without strong teacher evaluations Seattle will struggle to obtain objective data surrounding teacher performance. The best objective data available is that of student achievement gains and student growth and Seattle’s best bet to strengthen teacher evaluations is to implement the use of an instrument that will link student performance to teachers. Let’s start recognizing teachers for their students’ gains and holding them accountable to achieving student growth in a classroom.

7. Improve Teacher Induction Program
Seattle needs to strengthen teacher induction support by modifying current programs like STAR (Staff Training Assistance and Review) and lengthening the amount of time teacher mentor support is provided.
Seattle’s teacher induction program is strong but can be stronger. Every teacher should be assigned a mentor – not just a selected few – mentorship needs to be available for teachers outside their first year, and the district needs to recruit more teacher mentors.

6. Keep Teachers In the Classroom
Seattle teachers use nearly every sick day, max-out their personal leave allowance and specific schools have abnormally high teacher absentee rates – simply stated, teachers are away from the classroom too often. Seattle needs to consider the use of incentives to change this behavior.
Based upon data collected in NCTQ’s report Seattle teachers appear to be taking a higher number of sick leave days (absent rate of 6 percent a year) compared to what other professionals report their employees take (absent rate of 3 percent a year). This is not acceptable. We need to provide incentives and create conditions that will get teachers excited about going to work everyday.

Back to List>>

5. Modify Teacher Schedule
The teacher schedule has not been strategically developed by Seattle. The amount of time teachers are with students is far too little, there is not enough planning and preparation time, and the amount of days teachers work are too few. Seattle needs to lengthen the teacher workday to a full 8-hour, provide teachers with more designated planning time, use staff meetings for collaborative planning, and meet the Washington state legal requirement of 180 student instructional days.
The fact that Seattle Public School District has not thought strategically about how to structure a teachers day is concerning. More concerning is the fact that Seattle has reduced the number of school days from 180 to 177. It is critical that Seattle make reforms that will provide teachers with quality time to develop and collaborate on lesson plans as well as increase the amount of instruction time our students are receiving.

4. Equitably Distribute Experienced Teachers
Seattle needs to address the current ratio of experienced and inexperienced teachers in schools to ensure that every student in a Seattle Public School receives the best teacher possible. By distributing Seattle’s effective and experienced teachers to schools with high poverty rates or to low-performing schools the district can start to address both the high teacher turnover rates at low-performing schools and low student achievement rates.
Not surprisingly, schools serving a high percentage of low-income students are more likely to have inexperienced teachers. In contrast, schools with less than 25 percent of students in poverty have less than 1 percent of inexperienced teachers on staff. It’s time to level out the playing field so every student can have access to an experienced, and likely, effective teacher.

Back to List>>

3. Adjust Hiring and Assigning Timeline
Seattle currently allows teachers until the end of the summer to give notice of their intention to depart. What comes of this? The district is left scrambling to fill vacancies at the beginning of the school year and, as such, less attractive candidates remain to select from. Establishing early notification incentives for teachers who are resigning or retiring will help encourage teachers to give notice before the end of the summer and allow Seattle the opportunity to seek more qualified candidates.
This seems like a simple fix – require teachers to give notice in the Spring or at the end of the school year. In order to improve teacher quality and effectiveness Seattle needs to start recruiting talented new teachers and if left to the end of summer filing critical shortage areas with strong talent will continue to be difficult.

2. Site-Based Teacher Assignment
Seattle needs to modify its current system that reassigns and transfers teachers. Currently seniority is the means by which teachers are allowed the opportunity can change positions within a school. Seattle should examine the possibility of providing principals greater input on a teacher assignment and site-based hiring.
Who knows the needs of the school better than principals? And, why not allow transfer positions available to all teachers and base hiring off of experience, expertise and qualifications? Principals should have decision making authority surrounding teacher assignments.

1. Refine Teacher Compensation
Seattle needs to take drastic strides with its current teacher compensation system. Specific measures that need modification are:
•   Remove teacher advanced degree incentives;
•   Equalize pay raises that newer teachers receive;
•   Provide higher pay raises to teachers once they earn tenure; and
•   Reallocate degree based compensation to the most effective teachers.
Without addressing the current teacher compensation system Seattle will not be able to identify, recruit, reward or retain effective teachers. Teacher compensation and incentive systems need to be redesigned so that teacher salaries are competitive and recognize effective teachers.

Back to List>>

Washington in the Slow Lane for Race to the Top, according to TNTP

maureen — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:58:38 -0500

As states near the mid-point in the public comment period for federal Race to the Top (RTTT) fund requirements, a whole slew of material is being released in regards to the competitiveness—or lack thereof—of certain states in the application process. Though the verdict remains unclear, as expected, it appears that Washington will likely struggle to compete for RTTT funds due to our ban on charter schools, lack of incentives for high-performing teachers and inability to intervene in low-performing schools.

One of the better of these analyses was released last week by The New Teacher Project. To read the complete analysis click on the map above (a hint, Washington isn't one of the "green states.")

Update: KPLU/NPR reports that Washington will need a "rabid dog" to RTTT to be competitive. Yep, its true.

Gather round, Kati Haycock is coming to town!

maureen — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:33:09 -0500

If you’ve ever seen education crusader and Ed Trust President Kati Haycock in action, you know how powerful and compelling her arguments for closing the achievement gap can be. And, if you haven’t, you’re about to get your chance: The League of Education Voters, with help from Partnership for Learning, is bringing Kati to town on Monday, May 18th to speak at the Seattle Public Library.

Kati, as well as others from Ed Trust, played a crucial role in brokering the terms of the federal education stimulus and I, for one, am super excited to hear her dish on the process. Hope to see you there!

Town hall with Kati Haycock
Date: Monday, May 18th
Time: 7 to 9 p.m.
Location: Seattle Public Library, Microsoft Auditorium, 1000 4th Avenue, Seattle, WA
Cost: FREE!

RSVP: katie@educationvoters.org

For more information, view the League of Education Voter’s invite.

Just your daily dose of stimulus…

maureen — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 11:28:22 -0500

In case you missed it, Ed Sec Arne Duncan penned a great op-ed in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal. While I would love to post the whole thing, citing point after point of right on calls for accountability, common standards and charter schools, I’m not exactly keen on having Rupert Murdoch break down my door in the middle of the night. I will, however, leave you with this (in case there was any doubt as to the way in which stimulus competitive grants will be awarded):

“Through the guidance we have published on our Web site, we explicitly told governors, state education chiefs, mayors and district superintendents that the application for competitive grants will begin by asking how noncompetitive grant funds are being spent. If they used the funding to invest in more of the same ineffective programs, they will not receive grant money.”

Sending a Message to Olympia: State Business, Education and Nonprofit Leaders Call for Reforms Necessary for Stimulus Funds

maureen — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:54:06 -0500

State Business, Education and Nonprofit Leaders Call for Reforms Necessary for Stimulus Funds
Basic Education Finance Bill Passes in the House and Senate
What's Happenning in Washington Education

State Business, Education and Nonprofit Leaders Call for Reforms Necessary for Stimulus Funds

Last week, a coalition of business, education and nonprofit leaders sent a letter to the governor and legislature calling for the education reforms necessary for Washington to receive it's full share of nearly a billion dollars in education stabilization funds and compete for more than $5 billion in competitive grants from the federal stimulus.

The coalition asked the governor and legislature to pass legislation, as part of their redefinition of basic education, that:

Defines basic education based on college and work ready standards;
Authorizes the state to take action related to chronically low-performing schools;
Enables a data system to track student learning and success across the P-20 education spectrum; and
Expands performance-based teacher certification and evaluation.

The coalition’s message is clear: This one-time opportunity for funding may be lost for Washington students if lawmakers do not pass basic education legislation aligned with the reform principles of the ARRA.

Unless the legislature acts, the letter states, two streams of money are at risk:

Approximately $330 million that our state anticipates receiving this fall from the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) to help school districts plug deficits and avoid layoffs.
Hundreds of millions in additional dollars that Washington can compete for from the $4.35 billion “Race to the Top Fund,” the $650 million “Invest in What Works and Innovation Fund” and over $550 million in other competitive grants to help school districts and the state accelerate student performance.

The first round of SFSF funds—roughly $670 million—will be released soon based on Governor Gregoire’s assurance that the state will act in four areas: Making progress towards college and work ready standards and assessments; providing effective interventions to improve achievement in low-performing schools; gathering data to improve student and teacher performance; and making improvements in teacher effectiveness to ensure that all schools have highly qualified teachers.

The federal government will not release the second round of SFSF funds—the extra $330 million—unless Washington “demonstrates that it collects the required data [related to the four reforms], and that it will make the data easily accessible to the public.” But, without legislative action this session, Washington will not be eligible for additional funding, at a time when the state’s budget deficit nears $9 billion.

Click the image to read the letter.

Basic Education Finance Bill Passes in the House and Senate

Last week, the Senate passed ESHB 2261, moving Washington one step closer to a new definition of basic education. And, on Monday, the House followed suit. Now, all that stands between our students and a meaningful, college and work ready diploma is the signature of the Governor, who is expected to sign the bill into law soon.

What will change when this new definition of basic education is enacted? Most importantly, Washington’s definition of basic education will be updated to “the opportunity for students to graduate with a meaningful high school diploma.” This means that all Washington schools are expected to graduate students who are prepared for the world of college and work.

The bill also begins the implementation of the State Board of Education’s CORE 24 proposal, which will raise minimum high school graduation requirements from 19 to 24 credits and align them with minimum four-year college entry requirements. Additional provisions called for in the bill include:

Early learning support for low-income students;
Continued roll out of all-day Kindergarten;
Programs for highly capable students;
A data system that ties teacher performance to student performance; and
An accountability system with state authority to intervene in the lowest performing schools and districts.

The legislation also creates a number of work groups that will continue to expand this effort—one of which will look specifically at educator certification and compensation, including performance pay for teachers. The remaining work to be done will continue over the next several years with the goal of fully implementing the new definition of basic education no later than 2018.

Many of the elements of ESHB 2261 have long been called for by education advocates and for those who have fought hard to ensure all our students graduate ready for college and work—no matter what path they choose—this is a huge step forward.

For a helpful synthesis of the bill, read this summary prepared by the House Office of Program Research.

What's Happening in Washington Education

College Bound Scholarship Deadline Approaches

Washington currently ranks 32nd nationally in the percentage of low-income students who participate in postsecondary education, at a time when the state's need for highly educated and highly skilled workers is growing rapidly. But the Higher Education Coordinating Board's (HECB) College Bound Scholarship hopes to turn this trend around in Washington state.

The scholarship will cover the cost of college tuition, fees and books for those who sign a pledge in 7th or 8th grade promising to graduate from high school with at least a 2.0 grade point average and demonstrate good citizenship. Their family income must also remain at 65 percent or less of the state's median income by the time of high school graduation to permit a scholarship award.

There are more than 56,000 Washington students potentially eligible for this scholarship. Are you one of them or do you know someone who is? Large sign-up events are planned in Seattle (May 9), Vancouver (May 2), Spokane, and Tri-Cities. The deadline for application is June 30, 2009. Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity! Visit the HECB website for more information.

Get Involved in Arts Education Month

Everyone can be a part of Arts Education Month this May. The question is: How will you participate?

Visit ArtsEd Washington to discover a host of resources available for you to make the most of the month in your school and community, including tips and templates to request a city proclamation and invite local leaders and press to your Arts Education Month event. Don't forget to let ArtsEd Washington know your plans. They will send out a post-event report to Governor Gregoire, state and regional decision-makers, and statewide media to demonstrate the deep and wide impact of Arts Education Month.

Help kick off Arts Education Month on Monday, May 4, 5:30 p.m., at the Seattle Center. Be inspired by author, speaker, and State Board of Education member Eric Liu; then collaborate and create new strategies to advance arts learning in your school and community. Visit www.ArtsEdWashington.org for details.

A Week in the Life of Partnership for Learning

maureen — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 13:30:08 -0500

Monday: Along with a diverse group of supporters, we announced sending a letter to the governor and legislature urging them to pass key reforms in basic education necessary for Washington to compete for education stimulus funds. Publicola has a great take, check it out.

Tuesday: The Washington Education Association (WEA) responds with a letter of their own stating, “Washington does not need to pass legislation this session to assure receipt of the ARRA stabilization funds” and “In two years there will be no stimulus money, just a deep funding hole to be filled.”

Wednesday: We respond to the WEA letter’s mischaracterization of the stimulus and its intent with a follow-up letter to the governor and legislature, stating “Our goal this session should be to do everything we can to improve our education system and position Washington to be competitive for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds—not to do as little as possible or to defend the status-quo.”

Today: The Senate is set to debate on the basic education finance bill this morning (ESSB 2261). The session started at 10:30 a.m. and the bill is scheduled to come up during the morning session. You can view it online through TVW. Anything could happen, so stay tuned.

Tommorrow: Is Friday. Thank goodness.

Theme of the Week: Given our state’s $9 billion deficit, we cannot afford to leave federal money on the table. And, given that slightly less than 50 percent of our 10th graders meet state standards in math, we cannot afford to walk away from an opportunity to boldly enact new reforms.

Update: If you think Washington is the only state that will need to make crucial education reforms in order to be competitive for stimulus funds, check out this article from the Chicago Tribune, in which Arne Duncan warns: "I would love to see Illinois compete, but Illinois has to change its behavior." The writing is on the wall.

State Business, Education and Nonprofit Leaders Call for Reforms Necessary for Stimulus Funds

maureen — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:45:55 -0500

Wondering what we’ve been up to the last couple of days at Partnership for Learning? Well, here’s your answer: Last Friday, we took the message we’ve been trying to shout to the rooftops to the next level and assembled a diverse group of the state’s education leaders to tell Gov. Gregoire and the Legislature that if Washington doesn’t pass key education reforms this session, our state won’t be competitive for crucial stimulus funding.

Click the image at right to read the letter our group sent to Gov. Gregiore.

On the Ed Stimulus: Duncan explains it all

maureen — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:01:01 -0500

Check out this great Washington Post interview with Ed Sec. Arne Duncan. The interviewer, Lois Romano, is no slouch about asking tough questions about the ed stimulus, but Duncan answers most questions honestly and affably. And if you ever questioned whether or not the stimulus would be used to leverage reform, your answer comes at about minute 1:20.

Positioning Education Washington for the Economic Stimulus

kathleen — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:25:23 -0500

Federal Dollars to Drive Innovation and Reward Results
Basic Education Bills Move Forward
High School Assessments and Graduation Requirements Remain Intact

Federal Dollars to Drive Innovation and Reward Results

The time for holding ourselves accountable is here. And what’s required is not simply new investments, but new reforms.

President Barack Obama

The education components of the $787 billion federal stimulus package passed last month promise both a reprieve from draconian budget cuts and unprecedented financial incentives for reform. Of the $48.7 billion in education stabilization funds intended to help states keep education funding at 2006 levels, Washington expects to receive $1.5 billion.

On the innovation front, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will oversee $5 billion in discretionary competitive grants. Dubbed the “Race to the Top Fund,” these grants aim to drive innovation and reward practices proven to accelerate student performance. An additional $250 million is set aside to help states implement longitudinal data systems, while another $200 million can be used by states or districts to pilot pay-for-performance initiatives.

While final guidelines for the competitive grants have not yet been issued, criteria are likely to include a state’s commitment to innovative reforms (e.g. charter schools, pay-for-performance), the enactment of college and work ready standards and assessments, track record in improving student performance and closing achievement gaps, and robust data and accountability systems. We are encouraged to see the Obama administration embracing many of our long-standing education priorities. Partnership for Learning intends to leverage the stimulus package by pushing for reforms that both position our state to compete for federal dollars and strengthen the quality of our education system.

Basic Education Bills Move Forward

Both the House and the Senate have moved beyond "title/intent only" bills (SB 6048 and HB 2261) on basic education finance and, last night, the House passed HB 2261 with amendments to include all day Kindergarten and increased graduation requirements. The bills now lay out a “roadmap” for fully funding the instructional program of basic education.

While the two versions differ in some aspects, they do share an approach to funding using "model schools" as the example. Both bills would also create workgroups to further develop school funding models and programs to support learning assistance for struggling students, bilingual education and a special education funding safety net.

Partnership for Learning is working to ensure that any effort to redefine basic education:

focus on the stated goal that all students will graduate from high school college and work ready,
include a state-of-the-art data system that can be leveraged to drive instructional practice, track student achievement and ensure accountability for results, and
include a clear and transparent system of accountability for the state, districts and schools and provide the state with authority to intervene when districts and schools fail to make progress.

High School Assessments and Graduation Requirements Remain Intact

The House Education Appropriations Subcommittee has adopted amendments to a bill (SB 1646), which would have delayed the assessment graduation requirement for math and science to 2014 or potentially later. Further delays to Washington's graduation requirements are a major step backward and would only bring us closer to abandoning the promises made to our students of a world-class education.

Accordingly, Partnership for Learning is pleased that the amendments accomplish two things:

The state will no longer require OSPI to develop and administer end-of-course assessments in Integrated Math I and II. Algebra I and Geometry end-of-course tests will still be developed. This modification simplifies for students and schools what is required for students to meet state standards in math without losing any rigor in the requirement.
Solidifies the requirement that students must pass a state assessment in math and science in order to graduate from high school beginning in 2013. Students will be able to use the WASL or end-of-course assessments as a means of meeting the math requirement until 2015. This is particularly important because it provides reassurance that any delays in the development or administration of end-of-course assessments will not further delay implementation of the graduation requirement.