Charter Schools and Special Ed, Ohio Vouchers, and More: Friday's Ed News Roundup

October 4, 2013

Joy Pullmann


Friday's ed news

NEW YORK: A study finds charter schools have fewer disabled students because fewer apply and because charters are less likely to label kids disabled. 

OHIO: The reach of a state vouchers program has doubled in the last six months. 

FLORIDA: Common Core supporters turn to talk radio ads

MARYLAND: Facebook allows school bureaucrats to decide what speech is acceptable online in the name of preventing bullying.

STEM: Why the push for more science programs and graduates is overrated

HIGHER ED: Why college is declining. Another problem: giving loans to everyone, regardless of their likely ability to pay. 

PENNSYLVANIA: An overheard cell phone conversation wrongly shuts down two school districts.


Thursday's ed news

LOUISIANA: A new study shows the state's voucher program reduces desegregation, counter to the Obama administration's claims and lawsuit.

CALIFORNIA: Schools balk at new rules requiring them to give the state individual student data and collect the Social Security numbers of their parents.

CALIFORNIA: Gov. Jerry Brown thumbs his nose at the feds and signs a bill suspending state tests for a year

TENNESSEE: ObamaCare means less work for substitute teachers.

UNIONS: The Supreme Court will hear a case on whether families should be forced to unionize for taking state money to care for their disabled kids.

EMPATHY: History and literature naturally impart empathy better than touchy-feely programs.

WASHINGTON DC: The district sues a charter school, alleging its leaders diverted funds into their pockets. 

GEORGIA: Lawmakers ask teachers how to sell the public on a tax hike for schools.

SPORTS: Actually, research shows they're good for academics

NEVADA: A poll shows Nevadans are unhappy with their K-12 education system.


Wednesday's ed news

ARIZONA: An appeals court upholds the state's education savings accounts 3-0.

INDIANA: Lawmakers tasked with making a recommendation on Common Core can't come to an agreement. 

SQUISHY CLASSROOMS: Why traditional teaching is more effective

PHILADELPHIA: The school district is in trouble because of gross financial mismanagement. 

ALABAMA: A state school board member fights to discover what data the state collects about kids.

CURRICULUM: Why politics shouldn't control what kids learn--say, by reviewing textbooks. 

PENNSYLVANIA: A bill requiring schools to offer online courses passes the House education committee. 

UTAH: Parents who review state tests should be allowed to talk about it, says a lawmaker. 


Tuesday's ed news

LOUISIANA: Inside the nation's biggest school choice city.

USDOE: The federal government's shutdown will mostly impact federal bureaucrats, not schools

LOUISIANA: The state decides it doesn't want federal dollars for preschool

TEXAS: The state gets a No Child Left Behind waiver. 

NEW JERSEY: Lawmakers have introduced legislation to pause and rethink Common Core

CONNECTICUT: A state university applies for permission to watch its campus using drones

CALIFORNIA: Inside Los Angeles' $1 billion iPad 'disaster.'

WEST VIRGINIA: Time for the feds to butt out of school lunches, says the Charleston Daily Mail.


Monday's ed news

INDIANA: Twenty thousand children apply for school vouchers this year, a four-fold increase from two years ago. 

LOUISIANA: The Obama administration tries to do damage control on its lawsuit against vouchers that help poor, black kids.

INDIA: Illiterate parents can and do make good choices about education for their kids. 

MINNESOTA: How the state is rapidly destroying its education system.

WISCONSIN: The anti-voucher state superintendent says voucher schools must use Common Core tests and student data tracking.

COLORADO: A school board election in trailblazing Douglas County is shaping up as a major referendum on school choice.

LOUISIANA: Democrats come out swinging against Common Core.

PENNSYLVANIA: Superintendents ask the state to delay releasing test results, citing concerns over data quality. 

CURSIVE: How handwriting helped this woman’s autistic son.

CALIFORNIA: More problems with the $1 billion iPad experiment in Los Angeles schools: Students figured how to hack the tablets within three days.

SCHOOL REFORM: Why changing the laws is only a first step.

PENNSLVANIA: Activists gear up to push for more state K-12 spending



For last week's School Reform News roundup, click here.
For other top-notch school reform news selections, visit: 

Image by Mo Riza.

Joy Pullmann
