Education News: February 6, 2009

Following are some of the top headlines from the world of education for the week ending February 6, 2009.

Ohio Governor Strickland Releases New Education Budget
(Cleveland Plain Dealer, February 2, 2009)  In the Governor of Ohio’s proposed education budget, released on Monday, he plans to boost state spending on education by $321.5 million in the first year, starting in July, and by $603.5 million the second year.  Under the proposal, during the first year 48 of the 97 districts would see no change in funding, with the other 49 seeing increases, none more than 15%.  In the second year, 52 districts would see a decrease, at most 2%, and the other 45 districts would see an increase.  The money would come with requirements, however, such as an additional 20 days of schooling and all-day kindergarten.  In the new model outlined in the proposal, money would be funneled to poor rural and urban schools, while getting rid of the “guarantee” that funding will not decrease.  The state would also use an Ohio Instructional Quality Index, based on student poverty, residents' incomes and property values, and the percentage of adults who go to college, to use additional resources to support districts that have difficulty retaining quality teachers.

Study Shows Correlation Between Lead Levels and SAT Scores
(USA Today, February 2, 2009)  Virginian economist Rick Nevin has developed a study, to be published this winter, linking lead levels in children’s blood to SAT scores.  Nevin’s compared national data of lead levels in the blood with sat scores 17 years later.  The study suggests that from 1953 to 2003, “the fall and rise of the average SAT math and verbal score has tracked the rise and fall of blood lead levels so closely that half of the change in scores over 50 years, and possibly more, probably is the result of lead.”  The study claims that lead explains 45% of the variation in verbal scores and 65% of the variation in math scores.  There is a large body of evidence over the past 30 years linking lead to intelligence, but this is the first time it has been compared with SAT scores.

Editorial on How to Target Stimulus Plan Funding
(New York Times, February 3, 2009)  The federal stimulus plan represents a unique opportunity for education, but the money needs to be targeted to ensure that states use the money to adopt reforms required under No Child Left Behind.  Congress must adopt the House’s stricter measure, which aims to stop the practice of placing the least qualified teachers in the highest needs schools.  Arne Duncan will need to use his discretionary budget to establish a rewards system for school that fall into step and he should aim to create a unified system of national standards.  One of the most important factors will be ensuring that states keep up their funding for education.  If they cut their spending and use federal money as a stopgap, it will lead to an overall decline in education spending.  The House bill does not allow for this by requiring that state funding remain at specified levels, but the Senate bill allows the secretary of education to waive the requirement.  Additionally, the House’s bill requires that for states to receive the money, they must comply with the NCLB law that poor and minority schools receive a fair share of experienced teachers.

NYC Union Aims to Weaken Mayor’s Power of Schools
(New York Times, February 3, 2009)  To limit the Mayor’s influence over New York City’s education system, on Monday the United Federation of Teachers union recommended that the Mayor only appoint five, as opposed to the current eight, members of the thirteen-member Panel for Education Policy.  This comes as Albany lawmakers prepare to renew and revise the 2002 law which gave Mayor Michael Bloomberg control over the schools, and is a popular concern amongst parents and other elected officials that too much power over NYC’s education system is in City Hall.  Union Head Randi Weingarten claimed that under their new proposal, the governor would retain total control over the day-to-day operations while also forcing more debate for major policy changes.  The three previously appointed spots would now be filled by the city’s public advocate, comptroller and speaker of the City Council, or an appointment one can send in his or her place.  The education department fears this would create difficulty in executing reforms measures.

Eleven-Year-Old Published Writer Lectures High School Students
(Chicago Tribune, February 4, 2009)  Eleven-year-old Adora Svitak from Redmond, WA, spent Tuesday addressing 135 of Chicago’s best students about her life as a writer.  Adora has written two books, over 200 short stories, dozens of poems, has a blog and has taught writing workshops throughout North America, Europe and Asia.  She is currently home schooled using a computer-based program developed by local school.  Included her talk, she advised “that if you are serious about writing and publishing that you limit the TV."

UC Admissions Reforms Drastically Increase Eligibility to Apply
(San Francisco Chronicle, February 5, 2009)  On Thursday, the UC Board of Regents approved a new set of eligibility rules which will make it possible for far more students to attend.  The changes include no longer requiring SAT II subject tests, increasing the number of applicants who are considered and only the top 9% of graduates, previously 12.5%, will be guaranteed entry.  All students will be considered who complete by the end of junior year at least 11 of 15 college prep courses required by UC, achieve a weighted 3.0 grade-point average, and take either the ACT with Writing or SAT Reasoning Examination.  The changes will take effect beginning with the incoming freshman class of 2012.  In 2007, 22,000 students were not eligible to apply because they hadn’t fulfilled the requirement of two SAT II subject tests.  The new set of rules was put together by the UC Academic Senate. 

Editorial on Effect of Hip-Hop Music and TV on Reading and Education
(Washington Post, February 5, 2009)  Many scholars have proposed that the significant drop in teenagers reading for pleasure in 1988 was a result of the increased popularity of rap music.  The question is whether those scholars, many of them from a much older generation, were passing judgment on something new with little to back it up.  While the scholars may be respected, the work of sociologist Meredith Phillips, from a younger generation, from UCLA offers a seemingly unbiased opinion that there is little to back up the concept that rap, crack and TV are killing reading.  Supporting the argument that rap, crack and TV indeed have had an influence is National Assessment of Educational Progress Long Term Trend samples which showed that from 1988 to 1992, the percentage of black 13-year-olds said they read for pleasure almost every day went from 37% to 15%, while white kids that age only declined by 8% points.  Phillips however, cites the National Education Longitudinal Study, which shows “no evidence that black students did less pleasure reading in 1992 than in 1988, or that black students did relatively less pleasure reading than white students.”  1988 is important because this is the year that the achievement gap stopped shrinking and began to widen.