NJ Spotlight--Legislators re-evaluate standardized student testing
Lawmakers hear about possible next steps after court ruling that PARCC test is unconstitutional
Standardized testing has long been held as an effective way to measure student success, but the state’s use of the PARCC exam as a graduation requirement has been the issue of debate since it was first required in 2016. Just this year, the courts ruled it unconstitutional under state law. Now, legislators are trying to determine where to go from here.
Joanna Gagis | NJTV News | May 15, 2019
Star Ledger—Op-Ed-The math on the formula to fund schools is backward, superintendent says. We need a better solution.
There is a tremendous amount of confusion regarding the state funding formula for school aid, also known as the SFRA. It’s not as simple as taking money from the “overfunded” and giving it to the “underfunded." A cartoon May 6 portraying the so-called “overfunded” districts as a spoiled child who doesn’t want to share perpetuates a simplistic explanation of a very complex problem.
John J. Marciante Jr.| Star-Ledger Guest Columnist| Posted May 14, 10:17 AM
Jersey Journal--At last minute, plan introduced to prevent most Jersey City school layoffs
JERSEY CITY — Jersey City’s school board adopted its $638 million budget for 2019-20 late Monday, with a promise from Board of Education President Sudhan Thomas that the district will not fire hundreds of teachers who received layoff warnings.
Terrence T. McDonald | The Jersey Journal| Updated May 14, 11:35 PM; Posted May 14, 11:18 AM
Chalkbeat--New Democratic divide on charter schools emerges, as support plummets among white Democrats
There’s a sharp racial divide among Democrats on charter schools, according to national data newly released to Chalkbeat.
A separate poll commissioned by Democrats For Education Reform, an advocacy group that backs charter schools, was the first to illustrate a racial divide among Democrats on the issue. It found that white Democrats are strongly opposed to charters, while black and Hispanic Democrats are modestly in favor.
https://www.chalkbeat.org/posts/us/2019/05/14/charter-schools-democrats-race-polling-divide/
Matt Barnum| May 14, 20-19
Education Week--How Schools Can Spend Time More Wisely: 4 Big Tips From Daniel Pink
School and district leaders love using research to decide which curriculum to adopt or what kind of professional development to offer.
But educators—and professionals in just about every other field—often ignore research when it comes to thinking through how to use another precious resource: Time.
In fact, almost everyone, including K-12 leaders, think timing and scheduling is an “art,” said Daniel Pink, the best-selling author of When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. But really, it’s a “science.”
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2019/05/13/how-schools-can-spend-time-more-wisely.html
Alyson Klein| May 13, 2019