Quick Hits

KEA Campaigns To Avoid Cuts In Public Education: As Kentucky legislators prepare to meet on Tuesday, a media campaign is kicking off by the Kentucky Education Association asking lawmakers not to make deep cuts in public education. (KyPost.com)

First Lady rallies U.S. Education Department: First Lady Michelle Obama visited the U.S. Education Department Monday to thank employees for their work and say there is still more work ahead to turn around many of the country's struggling schools. "The Department of Education is going to be at the forefront of many of the things that we have to do in this administration and we're going to need that energy in these times of economic challenge," Obama said. (The Washington Post)

J. Graham Brown Foundation grant to fund parent leadership institute with a STEM focus: A $275,000 grant from the James Graham Brown Foundation to the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence will fund creation and implementation over two years of the Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. (Prichard Committee)

Draud's new job - recovery: Jon Draud was eager to get started as Kentucky's education commissioner when he was hired in November 2007. Having been a school superintendent and state legislator, he felt he brought a unique combination of experience that would help improve public school education. But less than 10 months later, life got in the way....Draud will spend his free time reading and may eventually go back to teaching. He said Thursday that he's considering a run for Kenton County judge-executive. (Enquirer)

Vermont commissioner aims to prepare students for 21st century: Armando Vilaseca, Vermont's new schools commissioner, became interested in education as a high school senior participating in an innovative New Jersey teaching program, and he hopes to create similar opportunities for Vermont's students. "To me what I lived through is exactly what I believe that we as an education community need to be doing ... providing kids with relevancy in their schooling," he said. "America's education system -- including the system in Vermont -- is simply not adapting quickly enough to what has become a knowledge-based economy, nor is it keeping pace with continuing technological advances or the societal shifts of a growing, global economy." (The Times Argus)

Texas parents face fines for children's truancy: The Dallas and Fort Worth school districts together brought more than 1,800 parents to court in 2008 for "contributing to truancy," a misdemeanor that can carry a fine of up to $500 a day, according to district information reported to the Texas education department. "It's critical that the parent is a part of [the process]; otherwise, it makes no impact on the child," said Robyn Winnett, director of Fort Worth's truancy-intervention initiative. "You've got to do more than drop them off at school. Maybe you should walk them into the school." (The Dallas Morning News)

Study examines correlation between SAT scores and lead levels: The rise and fall in average SAT scores from 1953 to 2003 may be tied to the levels of lead found in the blood of U.S. children, according to a study to be published this winter. Some 45% of the variation in the average verbal scores and 65% of the variation in math scores may be due to lead, said researcher Rick Nevin, an economist. Drops in lead levels were also tied to declines in intellectual disabilities, Nevin found. (USA Today)

Teachers engage students by building relationships: More Michigan school districts are placing emphasis on establishing personal connections with students, believing that if students know their teacher cares about them, they will work harder to avoid disappointing their teacher. Educators have been trained in the "Capturing Kids' Hearts" program, which includes signing a social contract, sharing happy news before each class and high-fiving or sharing inspirational messages as students exit the classroom. (The Grand Rapids Press)

Teacher uses water balloons, pizza to prepare students for algebra: A California teacher is showing his students that algebra can be fun by having them use math to compete in water balloon fights, sing songs and divide pizza into triangles. Steve Norton's students say his visual, hands-on methods -- known as a "constructionist" approach -- are helping them learn. (North County Times)

Georgia bill would extend vouchers to all public school students: Georgia parents could get about $5,000 each for private-school tuition under a bill introduced Monday in the state Senate that was decried by some lawmakers. Supporters say the bill would force public schools to improve; critics say vouchers would exacerbate the state's inadequate funding of its public schools. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Perspectives/All Teachers Can Learn: "If teachers aren't raising test scores sufficiently, reformers say they should be weeded out," says ASCD book author Robyn Jackson. "The same people believe that 'All students can learn.' Why don't they start believing that 'all teachers can learn'?" Jackson examines the many ways that educators can improve their practice and refresh their mind-set, starting with the idea of embracing professional learning communities. (Educational Leadership)

Proposed grants would allow Duncan to reward ambitious states: U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan's plans to improve schools may include a discretionary $15 billion incentive-grant fund that would be used, in part, for states and districts that set high educational standards. "This is absolutely a historic opportunity to reward excellence," Duncan said. "We want to reward rigor and challenge the status quo." (Education Week - subscription)

Former teacher introduces bill to protect students' rights: A judge's ruling last month that permitted school administrators to discipline a student for a non-threatening blog post has inspired a former teacher turned lawmaker to introduce a bill he says would protect students' right to free speech. "This is like saying you can't write on a piece of paper and distribute that piece of paper outside the school," said Connecticut state Sen. Gary LeBeau, who used to teach civics. "I'm really disappointed in the courts." (The Hartford Courant)

Study: Students must learn scientific-reasoning skills: College freshmen in China know more about science than their U.S. counterparts, but neither group is particularly good at scientific reasoning, according to a new study of more than 6,000 students at seven universities, published in the journal Science. "Even when students are rigorously taught the facts, they don't necessarily develop the reasoning skills they need to succeed," said lead author Lei Bao, an Ohio State University associate physics professor. "Because students need both knowledge and reasoning, we need to explore teaching methods that target both." (ScienceDaily)

Indiana bill could avert frivolous lawsuits questioning teachers' decisions: Special educator Angela Williams' students increasingly threaten to sue when she attempts to control disruptive students. That's sort of issue has prompted some Indiana lawmakers to introduce a bill that would give teachers qualified immunity as long as they act reasonably to keep order in their classrooms. (Chicago Tribune)

Duncan: Education aid could revitalize country's work force: Some $141 billion for schools and colleges presents "an extraordinary opportunity" to dramatically improve U.S. schools by more fully funding Title I and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, said new U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan. "This is righting a historical injustice, a historical wrong," he said. "These have been desperately underfunded, in some cases for decades." (USA Today)

Technology alters students' learning: Computers, video games and multitasking may have helped improve people's visual skills, but they also appear to have contributed to an erosion in critical-thinking and analysis skills, according to new research published in the journal Science. Reading, however, develops the imagination as well as deductive, reflection and critical-thinking stills, said researcher and UCLA psychology professor Patricia Greenfield, who also directs the Children's Digital Media Center of Los Angeles. "No one medium is good for everything," she said. "If we want to develop a variety of skills, we need a balanced media diet." (ScienceDaily)