NJ Spotlight--Education Transition Report Delivers Some Details and Early Directions
Report touches on most of Murphy's education promises, but in some cases seems to step away from several high-profile goals
A new governor's transition reports probably should be taken with a grain of salt, more about broad approaches than detailed policy blueprints for the administration to come.
But when it comes to education, Gov. Phil Murphy's release of his transition committee's report on Friday did signal some early directions - and changes of direction - about what could be one of the high-profile issues of his tenure.
John Mooney | January 29, 2018
The Record--Lowry: From Paterson to Kentucky, children lost to violence
Last week, there were tears in Kentucky, and there were tears in Paterson.
The tears in Kentucky came after two high school students were killed and 18 other people wounded in a shooting at their school. That shooting, at Marshall County High School in western Kentucky, was widely reported to be the 11th school shooting in America this month.
The tears in Paterson came from a relatively old case, as a verdict came down in the trial of Tyheem Mayfield, the alleged “driver” involved in the 2014 fatal shooting of Nazerah Bugg, the 14-year-old with a wide smile who attended John F. Kennedy High School and had dreams of playing big-time basketball.
In America, such dreams are too often cut short.
Bruce Lowry, Opinion Columnist, @BruceLowry21 Published 6:00 a.m. ET Jan. 28, 2018
Education Week--Can Child-Care Benefits Keep Teachers in the Classroom?
Some school districts are finding a payoff in providing child care for educators
While school initiatives to boost teacher retention tend to focus on mentoring, instructional coaching, or salary bonuses, they rarely address one of the most common reasons teachers leave: family.
Yet a handful of districts nationwide have found that the upfront costs of providing child care for their teachers pay for themselves in greater teacher flexibility and retention.
"This is a huge need of that workforce," said Taryn Morrissey, an associate professor of public policy at American University who studies child-care and labor issues. "Teaching is actually not as family friendly a position as one might imagine. Your hours might match your kids' hours when you have school-age kids, but when you have little ones, there's very little flexibility."
Special Report: Getting & Keeping Good Teachers
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/01/24/can-child-care-benefits-keep-teachers-in-the.html
Sarah D. Sparks| January 23, 2018
Education Week--Five Common Traits of the Top School Systems
States that rank high on Quality Counts' annual report card—including this year's top five—typically share common strengths when it comes to supporting their education systems. They may enjoy good economic climates, for example, or built-in advantages like a large proportion of parents with strong educational backgrounds.
But while factors like a state's underlying economy or family demographics are important, some high-performing states also make the most of strategies that can prove useful to policymakers elsewhere, no matter what cards they're originally dealt. And even the high-performers can face daunting challenges in sustaining the factors that put them in the front of the pack.
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/01/17/five-common-traits-of-the-top-school.html
Daarel Burnette II| January 17, 2018