Teach For America is Vulnerable to Union Protests But Can Provide Unique Teachers

by Mike Smith

Published October 20, 2009 @ 08:46AM PT

Getting college graduates to teach in high-need classrooms has long been criticized for a way to replacing costly and experienced teacher with younger, cheaper, under-prepared teachers. The Boston Teachers Union recently filed a complaint that their contract deal has few of the benefits that Teach For America teachers enjoy (though some TFA teachers are in the union.)

The superintendent of Boston schools agreed that the preferential contract for TFA teachers was unfair. But that's not the end of it explains Chadwick Matlin, he says "The Boston union’s victory is a potential bellwether for the rest of the country." With teacher unions keen to protect jobs it's expected that similar complaints will be filed nationwide. But TFA continues to grow, filling 10-30 percent of new teacher positions, with its program hugely oversubscribed — 35,000 applications for 4,100 positions. Stimulus funds won't last for ever, and TFA may continue to come into indirect conflict with the unions as the money runs out and cheaper teachers are sought.

But of course, TFA students aren't always college graduates who's lack of experience is a problem. We recently heard of a Navy submarine commander now working in Indianapolis. And this week the Times featured a profile of Tom Dunn who went from working with death-row inmates (Troy Davis was one of his former clients) to teaching at Martin Luther King Jr School in Atlanta, explaining “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”

Some explain that teachers who go through TFA programs struggle to deal with more complicated problems in the classroom such as learning difficulties, but Tom Dunn chose to specialize in helping these exact students. Though he's likely the exception to the rule, he and the program should be applauded. And the more applications TFA can attract, the better.

Photo credit: Carnavalet

Stimulus Funds Create and Save 250,000 Education Jobs

by Mike Smith

Published October 19, 2009 @ 01:44PM PT

To fill gaps in education budgets and invest in reform, schools have been busy spending over $100 billion. The $100 billion dedicated to education investment is good news for teachers old and new, with as many as 250,000 jobs safeguarded and new positions created. Arne Duncan explained in a statement that innovation is happening alongside the investment: "Early feedback from states also tells us that many districts are using stimulus dollars in ways that will move us beyond the status quo."

Duncan and the Obama administration will be hoping that critical reforms pay off, as a true test of both their education and recovery policies. They're also hoping that the investment can keep class sizes down, with some schools using the money to ensure Math classes in particularly are prioritized and kept small to give more individual attention to students. A White House blog post explains: "It's always hard to step back and gauge the entire impact of the Recovery Act, but this is one area where the benefits to the country and our children are beyond dispute."

Photo credit: Digital Sextant

Republican Demands Resignation of Obama's Safe Schools Official

by Mike Smith

Published October 16, 2009 @ 07:09AM PT

Republicans are demanding the resignation of someone Education Secretary Arne Duncan called "uniquely qualified for his job." Kevin Jennings, who is charged with promoting school safety is being targeted due to his sexuality, with the Republican Steve King leading the campaign saying “These are people on the fringe. And I think it is likely that there are others out there that are part of this administration."

And this is the problem: King isn't interested in Jennings' ability to do the job of making our schools safe, but simply spouts the vague Us Vs Them sort of bigotry that the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools is working to end. Indeed: "The only thing Jennings is guilty of is trying to make schools safer for children," with 90% of LGBT students having experienced bullying in the past year, explains Joe Mirabella for the Seattle PI.

Photo credit: jglsongs

Teaching More About Climate Change Could Reinvigorate Science Education

by Mike Smith

category: Teachers

Published October 15, 2009 @ 03:55PM PT

Earlier this year, a congressman in California thought it about time that children were taught more about climate change in school. Mike Honda, a former high school science teacher, introduced the "Global Warming Education Act," hoping that the bill would allow teachers access to a range of resources created by the National Science Foundation. Some would consider this to be a politically loaded issue — indeed the bill never made it past committee — but this isn't about political opinion. Siding with the best scientists of the best institutions around the world who all agree climate change is happening, is a serious threat, and that we're too blame, isn't a political viewpoint. It's a rational one.

Far from being something controversial, climate change, green technology, conservation and greenhouse gas reduction could inspire many kids to get involved in science — seeing the issue on the news everyday, and being able to relate the work they're doing to the real world. That's an opinion shared by education Prof. Randy McGinnis who explains that climate change "is becoming one of the most crucial science topics for this generation of young learners. When students see how scientific knowledge can be applied to decision-making about a specific issue like climate change, it makes the importance of science (and math) become apparent." Considering how desperately we need improvements in science and math education, climate change could be the incentive and inspiration teachers have been searching for.

(Today is Blog Action Day for Climate Change)

Photo credit: A.gonzalez

Sweden's "Free Schools" Incentivize Innovation, Better Prepare Kids for Future

by Mike Smith

category: Charter Schools

Published October 14, 2009 @ 02:46PM PT

When the economy recovers, graduates will breath a sign of relief, but will they have skills good enough to find work? Reihan Salam, a Schwartz Fellow at the New America Foundation, writes in Forbes that the offshoring of many services — including education — may leave a generation with the wrong skills for a domestic market that has offshored so much to countries with cheaper labor.

Salam suggests that this alone is reason enough to transform the education system in the U.S. to focus more on so called 'soft skills' like creativity, problem solving, and team-work, rather than more mechanical tasks that can be done on a calculator, or rote memorization, from afar.

He cites Sweden as an example of a country that's revolutionizing its schools. Anyone — parents, non profits, or for-profits — can set up schools that have more freedom and less standardization. So called "free schools" can experiment, and compete for students, with the profit motive of attracting students having the effect of incentivizing successful innovation. We don't necessarily need to go down the privatization route, and can keep them non-profit — but is working for a profit such a bad thing?

Photo Credit: Solarthermienator

Math Courses Suggest Rigor, But Scores Stagnating Since 1993

by Mike Smith

Published October 12, 2009 @ 12:58PM PT

American high schools are failing to educate their students in math and science. The long term trend in math skills has remained stationary since 1993 on one metric. And worse, similar international assessments show other countries improving in that time. "What American high school students know and what they can do in math have barely changed over the course of thirty years and not at all over the last fifteen," explained Mark Schneider. He argues that there's a delusion of rigor, with the grades attained on supposedly more complex courses not being reflected by an objective increase in skills.

It may be too late to regain ground internationally. Many are skeptical of comparing national and international standards, suggesting various methods and studies are flawed, but that doesn't negate the fact that every year that we fail to raise our test scores gives the rest of the world more time to catch up, or accelerate further into the distance.

Kenneth G Brill compares US failures on education to the Sputnik program — taking his cue from Thomas Freidman. But this time it's not just the Space Race that we're losing. "Unless we invest massively and now in math and science education ... we may find that we have eaten so much of our technology seed corn that we can't recover in time to win the upcoming energy race with China," he explains. Of course, this isn't just about China and the race to provide clean-energy, but the whole developing world finding themselves in a better position to challenge the U.S. with a new generation of smarter scientists.

Photo credit: Akash_K

DonorsChoose.org Launch 2009 Social Media Challenge for Education

by Mike Smith

Published October 11, 2009 @ 03:03PM PT

Donors Choose are one week into their 2009 social media campaign to help fund public school projects through donations. But these are not just any donations. You can see the exact school project and every item that your money will help fund. Want to help fund media skills by donating towards graphic novels? Do it! When the amount required is reached, Donor Choose donate the material and the generous givers help change lives. All donors get photos and a thank-you from the teacher.

The social media campaign challenges various niches (tech blogs, music blogs, Twitter) to raise the most money. They will be trying hard to beat last year's total of $270,000 which benefited 65,000 students. One week into the month-long push, and they've already raised $120,000.

Photo credit: Editor B