AM News: Close Looks At Teacher Evaluation & Professional Development

Detailed Review of 10 Teacher-Evaluation Systems Unveiled Teacher Beat: Education advocacy group ConnCAN, in partnership with 50CAN and research group Public Impact, has released a new and extremely comprehensive review of 10 different teacher evaluation systems operated by states, school districts, charter schools, and one teacher preparation program.

Teacher Training Programs Lack Oversight Hechinger/ Schoolbook: With the spotlight on teacher performance, we take a closer look at the world of professional development which is supposed to help teachers improve and stay on top of their game.

Chicago schools battle closely studied across country Chicago Tribune: Mayor Rahm Emanuel's star power within theDemocratic Party has put a national spotlight on the fight over the future of public schools in Chicago and attracted support from education reform groups eager to see how much change can be effected in a pro-labor city.

For a High Price, SAT Available in Summer NYT:  For the first time, the exam will be offered outside the school year — but only to students enrolled in a $4,500 summer program for gifted students on the Amherst College campus.

How One Dad Turned His Daughter Into The National Spelling Bee Champion AP:  A coin collector and Sherlock Holmes fan, Snigdha aced the word "guetapens," a French-derived word that means an ambush or a trap, to outlast eight other finalists and claim the trophy along with more than $40,000 in cash and prizes.

MORE NEWS ITEMS INSIDE

SRC adopts $2.5 billion budget at wild meeting Philadelphia Inquirer: Over the objections of hundreds, Philly school officials approved a $2.5 billion budget Thursday.

Bill Targets Improved Education For Foster Children AP via HuffPost: Federal lawmakers proposed a bill Thursday that would give social workers better access to school records in an effort to improve education for foster children.

How Will Feds Pay for Keeping Loans Stable? Politics K12: If you haven't been paying attention to action in Congress on how to keep interest rates on student loans stable for another year, you haven't missed much, unless you're a big fan of political squabbling and grandstanding.

Two L.A. education groups back test scores as part of teacher reviews LAT: Teach Plus and Our Schools, Our Voice announce separate proposals to incorporate student test scores into teacher evaluations in the LAUSD.

Two city principals suspected of cheating are cleared Baltimore Sun: Independent hearing officers rule that there's no evidence that cheating occurred and criticize state's investigation

Bills on table take diverse approaches to teacher rating shield GothamSchools: With just weeks left in the legislative session, bills to shield teachers’ ratings from public scrutiny are still on the table in Albany. But no consensus has yet formed about exactly what that shield would look like — if one is constructed at all.

Comments

[Sarah]

So... for $4,500, you can buy an extra SAT time, essentially? That trods rather hilariously on the purpose of the test, doesn’t it?

[Sarah]

And it’s good to see politicians are locked in their eternal education loan stalemate still. Wouldn’t want to see progress be made, that’d be too shocking for the general public to handle. And no, I’m not being sarcastic. Not at all.