Quick Hits

Adaptive testing may keep educators abreast of student progress: A Utah pilot program that uses computerized, adaptive tests to track student progress is helping some teachers in two districts respond quickly to prevent students from falling behind, educators say. As part of that program, the districts dropped the Iowa Test of Basic Skills and Utah Basic Skills Competency Test and instead gave computerized, adaptive tests to students several times a year and college preparation tests to students in some grades. Unlike typical state tests, the adaptive tests change in difficulty as students take them, adapting to each student's skill level.
With adaptive tests, results are available quickly, allowing teachers to understand a student's strengths and weaknesses during the school year. The adaptive-testing program will expand next year, and some education leaders hope the Legislature will adopt the program for all of the state's public schools. (The Salt Lake Tribune)

Column: Teachers need better student data to improve instruction: For data-driven teaching methods to be more effective, the data need to be more useful to teachers, writes veteran Los Angeles teacher and literacy coach Kathie Marshall in this column. Test data are often not designed to help educators teach, she writes. (Teacher Magazine)

NYC charter hires 8 teachers at salaries of $125,000 each: Officials at a New York charter school are seeking the best teachers by paying them $125,000 annually, saying that it is the classroom teacher who is one of the biggest influences on student success. The eight teachers chosen for the school have a track record of engaging students in lessons and instilling an enthusiasm for learning in students. (N Y Times)

S.C. Supreme Court orders governor to accept stimulus funds: South Carolina schools will get the bulk of $700 million after the state's Supreme Court said Gov. Mark Sanford must take the stimulus funds. Educators were pleased by the decision, saying it would prevent harsh cuts and allow districts to invest in students. (The Post and Courier)

Research indicates exercise primes students for learning: Fit children may have less stress, longer attention spans, better memories and be more prepared to learn, according to recent research. Struggling students who took a physical-education class prior to an algebra class improved their test scores by 20.4%, compared with 3.9% improvement for other students, according to data from an Illinois high school. (Edutopia magazine)

Technology makes teenagers "dumbest generation," professor says: Emory University professor Mark Bauerlein says today's teens are part of America's dumbest generation. Bauerlein, who has written a book on the effects of the digital age on teenagers, says social-networking sites, text messaging and other technology do more harm than good. But one expert says today's teens are as smart as those from previous generations, but in different ways. (USA Today)

Has the Time Come for National Standards?: At the initiative of state governors, education leaders and the Obama administration, fresh efforts are under way to jump-start a conversation about developing national standards for U.S. schools. The latest Infobrief examines how adopting national standards would help students moving to different areas or school systems, describes how Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has challenged states to raise standards and become models for the rest of the nation, shares states' opinions on the issue and highlights some concerns about further federal involvement in education. The brief also looks at what national standards could look like, and how we can turn the vision into reality. (ASCD)