Quick Hits

Report - U.S. graduation rate increases: The national graduation rate climbed from 72% in 2001 to 75% in 2008 as states shuttered schools that had become "dropout factories," according to a report by America's Promise Alliance and two other groups. The report also found that black, Hispanic and Native American students showed the most improvement in graduation rates. Overall progress, however, has been uneven, with southwestern states such as Arizona, Nevada and Utah graduating students less often. (The New York Times) (Education Week)

Wisconsin high school, college join forces over science: Students at a Wisconsin high school and the University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc are working together on zebra fish research as part of a program to get the high-schoolers interested in science, technology, engineering and math. The high-school students also are participating in hands-on learning, a benefit from their teacher's two-year fellowship with the Milwaukee School of Engineering. (Herald Times Reporter) (Herald Times Reporter)

N.J. class sizes grow, thanks to teacher layoffs: Tighter budgets have led New Jersey school districts to slash teaching positions, resulting in larger classes. In the Edison district, which cut 150 teaching jobs, the size of the average math class has grown from 22 to 25 or 26. The larger class sizes are worrying educators and parents, who say student learning is harmed. "Most of the time is devoted to organization, not instruction," one teacher said. "It's very difficult." (The Star-Ledger)

Can poker help teach math? A Virginia high school is betting on it: Students at Virginia's George Mason High School are learning math through playing poker. The school's extracurricular poker club started in September and is used to teach students about probability and statistics. The club doesn't use real money, but it's still being criticized by anti-gambling activists, who say the school is teaching bad habits to teens. (The Washington Post)

Colo. district aims to help students achieve career success: A Colorado school district announced a five-year plan to align its curriculum with economic development to help prepare more students for career success. The plan is part of a public-private partnership involving schools and community groups and is designed to increase the number of high-school graduates throughout the state who enroll in college. "We want a system that is seamless," Gov. Bill Ritter said. "We have to think about this from preschool all the way to postgraduate." (The Denver Post)

Charter-district partnership seeks to train teachers, principals: A network of charter schools is teaming up with a public-school district in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas to create a training center for teachers and principals. The initiative mirrors a trend of similar charter-district partnerships and is designed to help educators prepare for the challenges of teaching in a low-income, rural area. (TexasTribune)

How Baltimore's schools are being transformed: Baltimore schools have improved significantly under the leadership of Superintendent Andres Alonso, who took the reins in 2007. Alonso ushered in reforms that reorganized the school system, shuttered long-struggling schools and reduced suspensions. He also downsized administration and replaced 75% of the principals. "It's a test case for what's possible," Alonso said. "There were incredible opportunities because the troubles were so big." (The New York Times)

Will larger class sizes negatively effect learning?: Average class sizes in U.S. schools are expected to rise, in part, because of budget constraints. One New York City school is embracing the change with four educators -- two special-educators and two generalists, all of whom are bilingual -- teaching 60 students together in one classroom. Other schools are taking the "all-hands-on-deck" approach by having many adults in the building involved in classroom instruction. Critics of such plans say larger classes will have a negative effect on student achievement. (Education Week)

Can business executives improve schools?: A number of large, urban districts under mayoral control are choosing business executives to lead their schools. "The nontraditional has become traditional," says American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten. "It's almost as if educators need not apply." While critics of the approach say schools need leaders with direct educational experience, some observers say it's not yet clear whether market-driven reforms promoted by business leaders will help improve these districts. (The Christian Science Monitor)

Education leaders from 5 states form group to push for reforms: Five state-education chiefs have formed a group to promote their visions of school reform. The "Chiefs for Change" is comprised of the education leaders from Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Rhode Island and Virginia. The leaders, who also are members of the Council of Chief State School Officers, said they will promote a subset of policies that include "value-added" evaluations for educators and a "cutting-edge, pushing-the-envelope way of putting children at the top of all of our decisions." (State EdWatch blog)

Reform ideologies: Ravitch responds to criticisms by Gates Education expert and author Diane Ravitch responds to criticisms lobbied at her by Microsoft founder and education reformer Bill Gates in an interview with Newsweek. Ravitch agrees that more needs to be done to improve the country's schools, but criticizes policies and reforms that demoralize teachers or "narrow the curriculum" by emphasizing higher standardized test scores. Among other things, Ravitch also argues that many so-called "dropout factories" are actually educating many high-needs students and should not be stigmatized for their significant efforts. (The Answer Sheet) (Newsweek)

More than half of Fla. districts fail to meet class-size limits: Education officials in Florida reported that 35 of the state's 67 school districts are out of compliance with the state's class-size limits, and some districts could face millions of dollars in fines. School districts have until Dec. 17 to appeal the class-size calculations used by state officials. The limits were approved by a 2002 referendum and have been gradually implemented. (Orlando Sentinel)

Schools turn to standards-based grading for accurate assessments: Educators at a Minnesota middle school found that in some cases, teachers were grading students based on behavior -- rather than content mastery -- after four years of data showed that the students with the worst grades sometimes performed better on final exams than their peers. The school adopted a standards-based grading approach that assesses students according to whether they know the material, not on how well-behaved they are. "We need to stop overlooking kids who can do the work and falsely inflate grades of kids who can't but who look good," one superintendent said. (The New York Times)

What will draw the best teachers to struggling schools?: Milwaukee Public Schools officials have renewed their focus on drawing the best teachers to the neediest schools, saying their students will benefit most from highly effective teachers. Wisconsin has offered extra pay to some top educators who teach in the neediest schools and has revamped teacher licensing, but those efforts and other initiatives have had little effect. Officials are considering other options, such as improving the school environment, other teacher incentives, teacher training and changes in educator recruitment. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Cyberschool option proves costly for Pennsylvania districts: Pennsylvania law requires school districts to pay for online-school tuition for students -- a mandate that has become costly for many districts. The Williamsport Area School District alone spent $1.03 million in the past year. However, officials say the system gives school districts little control over the cost or the schools that students choose. The state sets the price of tuition and also approves the charters under which the state's online schools operate. (Williamsport Sun-Gazette)

Is school reform losing steam?: The school-reform movement, once buoyed by stimulus funds and the Race to the Top competition, may be stagnating as states face budget shortfalls and a new wave of executive leadership from the Nov. 2 elections. Implementing reform curricula can be expensive, especially considering that many states' stimulus support has ended. Meanwhile, a new political environment could undo changes, as incoming Republican governors vow to limit federal involvement in education. (Stateline.org)

Educators question whether they should comply with NCLB: Despite a requirement in the No Child Left Behind federal law that all students test at or above grade level in reading and math by 2014, more educators believe that 100% proficiency is unreachable. NCLB's rigid benchmarks and lack of flexibility make some educators wonder whether the law is losing its relevancy. (Billings Gazette)

Education reformer tells Colo. business leaders to "step forward": Education reformer Geoffrey Canada, speaking Tuesday in Denver, encouraged business leaders to take an active role in the future of education. Canada, the founder and leader of the Harlem Children's Zone, was featured prominently in the recent documentary "Waiting for Superman." "In the end, the question of whether or not these systems change will rest with the business community," he said. "This is the time to step forward and challenge your community." (The Denver Post)

L.A. schools lay off, shuffle thousands of workers: Nearly 1,000 employees -- excluding teachers -- are being laid off from Los Angeles schools because of budget cuts, and thousands of others are being transferred, possibly to jobs with fewer hours or lower pay. Library aides, many of whom are affected by the layoffs and moves, criticized administrators for the move. "I know every kid's name. I know their parents, their siblings," one aide said. "You're part of the DNA of the school, you're part of the makeup." (Los Angeles Times)

Court rules parents can sue Calif. schools for not meeting PE rules: A California Court of Appeal ruled that parents may sue a school or district that is not providing students the minimum amount of physical education mandated by state law. One small survey showed that more than half the state's schools were not providing the required 200 minutes every 10 days for elementary-school students, or 400 minutes over that period for middle- and high-schoolers. (San Francisco Chronicle)