Publications News Desk (LD News: March 2007)
We Can Do Better: NACCRRA's Ranking of State Child Care Center Standards and Oversight
The National Association for Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) has released a new publication rating and ranking the licensing standards and enforcement efforts of all 50 states, the District of Columbia and centers operated by the Department of Defense. The top five ranking jurisdictions are the Department of Defense, New York, Illinois, Washington, and Maryland.
2007 Summer Institute on Student Progress Monitoring
The U.S. Office of Special Education Programs has announced that the 2007 Summer Institute on Student Progress Monitoring will be held on July 10 and 11, 2007, in Nashville, Tennessee, and will cover ways to apply Curriculum-Based Measurement to such areas as reading, math, spelling and written expression.
Analyzing the Costs and Benefits of Education (PDF, 26 pages)
A recent report from the Center for Benefit-Cost Studies of Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, examines the benefits versus the costs of investing in educational programs that increase high school graduation rates.
Suggestions on How to Use Federal Funding
A new paper from Brookings Institution scholar Julie Isaacs discusses the benefits of increasing federal funding in the areas of high quality early education programs, home-nurse visiting programs for prenatal care and child development, and school reform focusing on high-poverty areas and programs to reduce teenage pregnancy.
Working with Children to Improve the Future of the Workforce and Economy
The Annual Building the Economic Case for Investments in Children conference was held on March 7, 2007, gathering business leaders, policymakers and members of the nonprofit community to discuss how investments in children can have longstanding results in the nation's workforce and economy.
Eight for 2008: Education Policy Guidebook for Presidential Candidates
A new guidebook from Education Sector provides eight education ideas for the 2008 presidential campaign, presenting solutions to both the Democratic and Republican parties. Among the ideas are creating a core of "super principals," rewarding hard-working immigrant students and helping students help others.
Senator to Host Briefing on Demographic Portrait of Young Hispanics in the U.S.
The National Task Force on Early Childhood Education for Hispanics has released a demographic portrait of young Hispanics in the United States. United States Senator Jeff Bingaman hosted a briefing for the release of the report on March 8, 2007 at the United States Capitol.
"My LD:" Children's Voices on the Internet (PDF, 16 pages)
A new study of young people with learning disabilities on the Sparktop.org Web site, run by the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, of San Mateo, Calif., indicates that the internet can be a safe place for young people with LD to seek support and share their experiences with others.
ETS Warns of "Perfect Storm" Changing Our Nation's Future
A new report from the Educational Testing Service (ETS) looks at the convergence of three sociological and economical forces that will threaten families' abilities to succeed -- gaps in skill levels in reading and math, widening of gaps in wages and less education.
Schools Rate Business as Most Important Community Partners
According to a "Community/School Partnerships: A National Survey," schools and district officials rank businesses as their most important community partners, over parent organizations, booster clubs and foundations.
Major Reform to the Framework of Education Policy Proposed
A new paper from the Brookings Institution indicates that America's educational system, although not in crisis, is not reaching its full potential, and calls for new investments and structural reform in areas such as early education and the teacher tenure system.
Promoting Effective Early Learning: What Every Policymaker and Educator Should Know
The National Center for Children in Poverty has published a summary of research offering teaching strategies and effective preschool curricula to help low-income young children close the achievement gap in early literacy and math.
Special Education Funding Not a Threat to Non-Disabled Student Budgets
A new study from Education Next disproves the common misperception that rising special education costs take away from resources for non-disabled public education students -- finding that placing special education students in private schools at public expense is in fact not causing excessive damage to public school budgets.
Hitting Home: Quality, Cost and Access Challenges Confronting Higher Education Today (PDF, 9 pages)
A new study by the Making Opportunity Affordable project estimates that the United States needs to increase the amount of individuals who obtain bachelor's or associate degrees by 37% by 2025 in order to keep up with international competitors.
Math Education: Critical Skills for the 21st Century
In February, the U.S. Department of Education hosted a television broadcast featuring Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings; Chair of the National Math Panel, Dr. Larry Faulkner; and other award-winning school practitioners and business leaders. The program, discussing such issues as NCLB's impact on math and science, is now available in Webcast format.
Enrollment in Online High School Programs Increasing Yearly
According to the North American Council for Online Learning, enrollment in high school virtual schooling has increased twenty-fold in seven years and is expected to continue increasing 30% annually. The University of California is launching an effort to assure that online courses are aligned with traditional classroom instruction.
Department of Education to Expand Data Collection in Higher Ed
The U.S. Education Department has proposed an expansion of the data it collects from colleges through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), particularly in the creation of a new section on compliance with accountability and assessment measures.
Toward Proficiency: From "Basic" To "Proficient"
In response to the NCLB call for proficiency in mathematics by 2014, "Voices in Urban Education," an article from the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, offers five different perspectives on what "proficiency" really means for our children.
Teacher Attrition and Mobility: Results from the 2004-05 Teacher Follow-up Survey (PDF, 63 pages)
The Institute of Education Sciences has released the results of the 2004-05 Teacher Follow-up Survey, finding that 84% of teachers remained in the same school, 8% moved to different schools and 8% left the profession altogether during the 2003-04 school year.
Confronting Ableism
In this article from the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Thomas Hehir, a former Director of OSEP, USDOE, and member of NCLD's Professional Advisory Board, discusses "ableism," a term that he uses to describe society's negative attitude about disability, and the ways in which it can make the world unwelcoming and inaccessible for individuals with disabilities.
NIH Announces New Program to Fund Highly Innovative Research
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., has announced a special program to fund the highly innovative research projects of new investigators that could have a great impact on biomedical or behavioral science, offering grants of up to $1.5 million. The application period opens April 25 and closes May 22 2007.
