Series 2558: Constituent Correspondence, 2000-2003
38863
From: NEGPWEEK <NEGPWEEK@westat.com> To: "drcweekly@listserv2.westat.com".Net.GOV_MAIL Created: 2/17/2000 2:49 PM Subject: NEGP Weekly for February 17, 2000 Message: *******************THE NEGP WEEKLY**************** A weekly news update on America's Education Goals and school improvement efforts across America from the NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL Thursday - February 17, 2000 -- Vol. 2 -- No. 43 *************************************************** CONTENTS **STATE POLICY 1.) ADULT LEARNING: THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY (Goal 6) 2.) NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL TO HOLD NATIONWIDE TELECONFERENCE 3.) CLASS SIZE: GOING SMALL IN TEXAS (Goal 3) **COMMUNITY AND LOCAL NEWS 4.) MENTORING: A HELPING HAND FOR NEW TEACHERS (Goal 4) 5.) "STRAIGHT SCOOP:" KIDS TO KIDS ON DRUGS (Goal 6) **FEDERAL POLICY NEWS 6.) CHARTER SCHOOLS: EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW (Goal 3) 7.) 2001 EDUCATION BUDGET: RILEY PRAISES THE "GOOD NEWS" (All Goals) **RESEARCH AND EDUCATION PRACTICE 8.) ON-LINE LEARNING: N.Y. TIMES' NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION (Goals 3 and 4) 9.) HOMEWORK: A QUESTION OF QUALITY (Goal 3) **FEATURE STORY 10.) CHILD CARE WOES: SAME AS YESTERYEAR (Goal 1) ***FACT OF THE WEEK*** Between 1990 and 1997, 4 states (out of 51) significantly increased the percentages of 18- to 24-year-olds who have a high school credential. These states were California, Maryland, Michigan, and Tennessee. --The National Education Goals Report: Building a nation of learners, 1999 ******************** STATE POLICY NEWS ******************** 1.) ******** ADULT LEARNING: THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY (Goal Six: Adult Literacy and Lifelong Learning) A new initiative, a joint venture between the National Governors' Association Center for Best Practices (NGA) and the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) plans to examine the impact of technology on adult work-related learning and to consider the public policies necessary to support this new system for acquiring skills and knowledge. The new Commission on Technology and Adult Learning will: > identify critical trends and best practices in the public and private sectors for promoting access to information technology for adult learning > describe the appropriate public and private sector roles and responsibilities that will facilitate the use of information technology for lifelong learning > connect this work to similar activities focused on K-12 education The Commission is scheduled to finish its work in early 2001. At that time, the NGA will publish an interactive, electronic report of the Commission's findings. The report's findings will be presented and discussed during a series of public meetings around the nation. A future Commission web site will incorporate the Commission's findings and facilitate an ongoing interactive discussion on technology and adult learning. For more information, visit the NGA at http://www.nga.org , or the ASTD at http://www.astd.org. 2.) ******** NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL TO HOLD NATIONWIDE TELECONFERENCE The National Education Goals Panel is sponsoring a nationwide teleconference on April 13, 2000 at 1 P.M. EST. The teleconference, "Creating a Framework for High Achieving Schools: Aligning Education Rhetoric, Resolve and Results" will focus on the implementation of Total Quality Management and the Baldrige criteria in education. Quality practices are well established in the business world, yet these same principles are nothing short of revolutionary in the educational arena. The application of Baldrige criteria in education creates a new framework for students to set their own goals and plans for achieving success. Where they are being successfully employed, quality principles and the Baldrige criteria are producing dramatic and rapid gains in student achievement. The teleconference will showcase successful education initiatives in Florida, Indiana, Maine, North Carolina and Texas. Chief state school officers, district superintendents, principals, teachers and students will talk about how they have implemented Baldrige criteria and raised student achievement. Governors, state legislators, Board of Education members, and chief state school officers are invited to participate, as are superintendents, principals, teachers, members of the business community and others interested in education improvement efforts. If you are interested in attending or hosting a downlink site, contact Burt Glassman at 202/724-0078 or e-mail at Burt_glassman@ed.gov. For additional information, please visit the Goals Panel Web site at http://WWW.NEGP.GOV 3.) ******** CLASS SIZE: GOING SMALL IN TEXAS (Goal Three: Student Achievement and Citizenship) Texas schools that are low-performing will find it harder to secure repeated exemptions from state class-size limits (Galley, EDUCATION WEEK, 2/9). Current state policy calls for a pupil-teacher ratio of no more than 22-to-1 in grades K-4. In a letter to school administrators, the Texas Education Agency explained that schools applying for waivers for more than four consecutive semesters are "expected to have an acceptable accountability rating." The state's accountability system is based on test scores, attendance and dropout rates and ranks schools as exemplary, recognized, acceptable or low performing. Visit the Texas Education Agency at http://www.tea.state.tx.us. ************************* Community and Local News ************************* 4.) ******** MENTORING: A HELPING HAND FOR NEW TEACHERS (Goal Four: Teacher Education and Professional Development) The WASHINGTON POST reports on the benefits of mentoring programs that assign a veteran teacher to help beginning teachers (Samuels, 2/7). While informal mentoring among teachers has occurred for years, formal mentoring programs are becoming more widespread. The POST reports that last year Virginia lawmakers made it mandatory for first-year teachers and teachers new to the state to participate in a teacher mentoring program. Although Maryland has no statewide requirement, state officials last year created a $5 million grant program with the goal of increasing mentoring, particularly in schools with high numbers of new teachers or disadvantaged students, writes the paper. At the district level, Prince George's County, Maryland, has placed 30 "master teachers" in struggling schools to "bolster the teaching staff there," reports the POST. Tom Ganser, director of field experiences at the University of Wisconsin in Whitewater, said mentoring is more than a "feel-good notion." "Mentoring has to be more than just consolation and help with how to organize field trips," he said. "Teaching is pretty tough. Support for people starting out is logical," he said. For more information on mentoring first-year teachers, visit the National Education Goals Panel at http://www.negp.gov to see the February NEGP Monthly, which is devoted to this topic. 5.) ******** "STRAIGHT SCOOP:" KIDS TO KIDS ON DRUGS (Goal Six: Safe Schools) A 30-minute documentary made by students for students warns of the danger of drugs and urges young people to not start a habit they may not be able to stop (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/9). "Straight Scoop: Kids Talking to Kids About Drugs" is a joint production of the White House Office of the National Drug Control Policy and cable company MediaOne. Last summer, six teenagers who participated in MediaOne's Cub Reporters program joined a professional camera crew and traveled through Miami, Jacksonville, Atlanta and Richmond to interview kids about drugs. The student reporters found that drugs are everywhere - from the most affluent to disadvantaged families - and that many teens are "oblivious" to the dangers posed by drugs. "Kids seemed to have this thought that they are invincible to the bad effects of drugs," said one student reporter. The documentary will be shown in 16 markets nationwide, including on MediaOne cable access channels in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Visit MediaOne at http://www.mediaone.com. ********************* Federal Policy News ********************* 6.) ******** CHARTER SCHOOLS: EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW (Goal Three: Student Achievement and Citizenship) Fewer charter schools are reporting that the lack of start-up funds is a major difficulty, according to a new study released by the U.S. Department of Education. While securing start-up funds remains the number one challenge facing charter schools, federal funds are making a difference, notes the DoEd in a press release (2/11). The National Study of Charter Schools is the final in a four-year research program designed to document and analyze the charter school movement. Findings from this report include: > more than a quarter-million students are attending some 1,700 charter schools > demand for these schools is high, with seven in 10 charter schools reporting a waiting list > most charter schools seek an alternative vision of schooling and one-quarter are created to serve special populations of students > the number of students in charter schools increased in the 1998-1999 school year by nearly 90,000 to more than 250,000 students. Copies of the report are available online at http://www.uscharterschools.org. 7.) ******** 2001 EDUCATION BUDGET: RILEY PRAISES THE "GOOD NEWS" (All Goals) Earlier this month, President Clinton released his fiscal year 2001 budget request for education. "This budget represents the largest jump in discretionary spending in the history of the Department of Education," said U.S. Education Secretary Richard Riley. The White House is requesting $40.1 billion, an increase of $4.5 billion or 12.6 percent over fiscal year 2000 spending. Riley hailed Clinton's request as "a good news budget for parents and teachers, a budget that is investing in the future of this nation." Clinton's budget sets priorities for moving standards into the classroom, building on school reform programs "that are working and in great demand," including reducing class size and improving teacher quality. He also places an emphasis on providing funds for "safe, disciplined and modern learning environments" and giving greater public school choice for parents. Opening the doors of college to more students by doubling financial aid available for students also is featured in Clinton's budget request. "The budget is a fitting start for a new century - the Education Era," said Riley. Copies of the President's budget request are available at http://www.ed.gov and http://www.whitehouse.gov. Riley's comments on the budget can be found at http://www.ed.gov. ********************************* Research and Education Practices ********************************* 8.) ******** ON-LINE LEARNING: N.Y. TIMES' NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION (Goal 3: Student Achievement and Citizenship and Goal 4: Teacher Education and Professional Development) A key aspect of the N.Y. TIMES' Newspaper in Education program is the company's Learning Network web site. The Learning Network is an education web site and on-line resource for educators, parents and students in grades 6 through 12. Each day a new lesson plan is posted on the Web site, accompanied by "comprehensive interactive resources based on the content of the newspaper," writes the N.Y. TIMES. From the paper: "Research ... indicate[s] that thousands of teachers across the country use the New York Times as a teaching tool in the classroom. The Learning Network is used to aid and encourage that effort." Visit The Learning Network at http://www.nytimes.com/learning. 9.) ******** HOMEWORK: A QUESTION OF QUALITY (Goal 3: Student Achievement and Citizenship) Students apply themselves more to homework that is challenging, according to a study conducted by the Consortium on Chicago School Research (Mathews and Strauss, WASH POST, 2/15). Researchers called on outside teachers to evaluate the quality of 1,400 math and writing homework assignments given to students in grades 3, 6 and 8 at 12 elementary and middle schools. Teachers also graded student work on a scale of zero to 100. Researchers report that less than 30 percent of the assignments presented students with a significant degree of challenge. For example, notes the paper, 56 percent of the 8th-grade writing tasks and 71 percent of the math tasks were considered unchallenging or minimally challenging, with many assignments being worksheets. "The average difference in student performance between the classes with the greatest challenge and the least challenge - an average of 46 points - is amazing," said Fred Newmann, a University of Wisconsin professor and one of the study's three authors. For more information, visit http://www.consortium-chicago.org. ***************** Feature Story ***************** 10.) ******** CHILD CARE WOES: SAME AS YESTERYEAR (Goal One: Ready To Learn) Not much has changed since the National Council of Jewish Women released its report Windows on Day Care almost 30 years ago (Jacobson, ED WEEK, 2/9). A lack of progress on solving the nation's day-care problems is documented in the Council's latest report, in which working parents continue to struggle to find child care that is both affordable and of high-quality. The study found that 30 percent of mothers with children under age 6 were working in 1972; 60 percent of mothers with children under age 6 are in the workforce today. Only 6 percent of young children were in child care centers in 1972, compared with 30 percent today. The Council hopes their latest report will goad its members and others to address child care issues. A second study on child care, Remember the Children, also paints a dismal picture of child care, especially in light of the recent welfare-to-work program. Remember the Children, conducted by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and Yale University, examines child care arrangements of nearly 1,000 single mothers on welfare from cities in California, Connecticut and Florida. The study is distinguished from other studies because Remember the Children relies not only on surveys of mothers, but on on-site visits to the providers of day-care. Researchers found that both the child care centers and child care homes used by welfare mothers rated lower on measures of quality than child care arrangements used by the broader population. Opening a New Window on Child Care is available at http://www.ncjw.org Remember the Children is available for $25 from the Graduate School of Education-PACE, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; (510)642-7223. ************************************ The NEGP WEEKLY is a publication of: The National Education Goals Panel 1255 22nd Street NW, Suite 502 Washington, DC 20037; 202-724-0015 NEGP Executive Director: Ken Nelson Publisher: Barbara A. Pape http://www.negp.gov ************************************ The NEGP/ Daily Report Card (DRC) hereby authorizes further reproduction and distribution with proper acknowledgment. To subscribe to (or unsubscribe from) the NEGP Weekly, respond to this email or address an email message to: NEGPWEEK@westat.com and put subscribe or unsubscribe in the message portion of the e-mail. WHAT IS THE NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL? The National Education Goals Panel is a unique bipartisan body of state and federal officials created in 1990 by President Bush and the nation's Governors to report state and national progress and urge education improvement efforts to reach the National Education Goals. WHAT DOES THE GOALS PANEL DO? The Goals Panel has been charged to: * Report state and national progress toward the National Education Goals. * Work to establish a system of high academic standards and assessments. * Identify promising and effective reform strategies. * Recommend actions for state, federal, and local governments to take. * Build a nationwide, bipartisan consensus to achieve the Goals. WHAT ARE THE NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS? There are eight National Education Goals set for the year 2000. They are: 1) All children will start school ready to learn. 2) The high school graduation rate will increase to at least 90%. 3) All students will become competent in challenging subject matter. 4) Teachers will have the knowledge and skills they need. 5) U.S. students will be first in the world in math and science achievement. 6) Every adult American will be literate. 7) Schools will be safe, disciplined, and free of drugs, guns and alcohol. 8) Schools will promote parental involvement and participation. WHO SERVES ON THE GOALS PANEL AND HOW ARE THEY CHOSEN? Eight governors, four state legislators, four members of the U.S. Congress, and two members appointed by the President serve on the Goals Panel. Members are appointed by the leadership of the National Governors' Association, the National Conference of State Legislatures, the U.S. Senate and House, and the President. The number of Republicans and Democrats are made even by appointing five governors from the party that does not control the White House. The current Panel Members are Governors Paul E. Patton, KY, (Chair, 1999); John Engler, MI; Jim Geringer, WY; James B. Hunt, Jr., NC; Frank Keating, OK; Frank O'Bannon, IN; Tommy G. Thompson, WI; Cecil H. Underwood, WV; Secretary of Education Richard Riley; Michael Cohen, U.S. Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education; U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman, NM; U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords, VT; U.S. Representative William F. Goodling, PA; U.S. Representative Matthew G. Martinez, CA; Representative G. Spencer Coggs, WI; Representative Mary Lou Cowlishaw, IL; Representative Douglas R. Jones, ID; Senator Stephen Stoll, MO. The annual Goals Report and other publications of the Panel are available without charge upon request from the Goals Panel or at its web site http://www.negp.gov. Requests can be made by mail, fax, e-mail, or Internet. -- 30 -- - Attachment Filename: C:\archives\governor\mail\Governor Musgrove\_attach\NEGP Weekly for February 17, 2000\Mime.822
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