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Though the U.S. Supreme Court today rejected school diversity plans that use race as a factor in the case involving voluntary integration plans in school districts in Louisville, Ky. and Seattle, the ruling didn't stop bloggers from opining about the Justices' opinion. In addition to Education Week's extensive coverage, check out SCOTUSblog which recaps the term-ending case and provides solid analysis. The NAACP's Legal Defense Fund school integration blog cites Justice Anthony M. Kennedy’s support of allowing school districts to pursue integrated schools despite his agreement in parts with the majority opinion. The Volokh Conspiracy also has plenty to say about Justice Kennedy's stance and the reactions expressed by readers of the blog are also a good read.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Terry Gross, the host of NPR's Fresh Air, interviews two veteran Philadelphia public school teachers who were attacked and seriously injured by students in separate incidents. The two teachers talk about the rewards and perils of teaching in inner-city schools and discuss ways that school violence can be curbed. The two teachers are articulate in stating their love for teaching and students, particularly disadvantaged students, as well as describing the horrible attacks that left them bloody and battered.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

On June 23, Title IX celebrated its 35th anniversary and columnists and bloggers have plenty to say about the landmark federal law that requires equal treatment for girls and boys on the playing field and at institutions that receive federal money. This Salon.com column points out the athletic limits once placed on girls which would now be unthinkable. In The Huffington Post attorney Emily J. Martin looks beyond athletics to the issue of single-sex education, also governed by the law. But the San Francisco Chronicle says the law is facing a mid-life crisis that includes a loss of leadership in women's athletics. Sports Illustrated calls for a dose of common sense when it comes to enforcement of the law, tackling complaints from many male athletes who say their sports (like gymnastics and wrestling) are being scrapped so colleges and universities can comply with the law's requirements.

What's your opinion on Title IX? Has the law made it possible for girls to get an equal education and find equal footing on the athetics field at your school? Have you seen male sports eliminated due to enforcement? We'd like to hear from you.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you're tech-savvy and always on the cutting edge of the latest technology advances for schools and districts, or if you know you need to learn more about everything from virtual schools to online professional development for teachers, take some time to check out Education Week's new publication Digital Directions. (Full disclosure here: I wrote several of the stories.) The publication is a great collection of information on the latest advancements in technology, and features stories about the ways math and science teachers are using high-tech gadgets and gizmos to reach out to students; methods for making online testing work in your school; and the latest on what to look for in virtual classes for students.

If you want even more on the subject, keep your eyes open for information on the Education Week Web site about a chat with the experts on the topics raised in Digital Directions scheduled for Thursday of this week.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Do you know someone who's feeling blue about the end of the school year? Maybe they're acting out, being difficult as the school calendar counts down? Well, they're not alone, it turns out. "Transitionitis," as a blogger at The Boston Globe calls it, affects more students than you might suspect. "Children of all ages have a love-hate relationship with the end of school. The culture tells them they are supposed to be happy (no more pencils, no more books!) but what many of them actually feel is sad and confused," Barbara Meltz writes in her Child Caring blog. The best remedy is to talk with kids about their feelings and to acknowledge that it's OK to miss school or some aspect of it. "Even then, a 3rd or 4th grade boy may not share with you, but you've at least normalized the feelings for him, "Meltz says.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Bush administration is apparently fighting back against critics of its federally funded sex education programs, which mostly contain the abstinence-only message. The Washington Post reports that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has come out with a 40-page report on sex education programs that feature the use of condoms and other protective measures. The report criticizes these programs for not stressing the failure rates of such protections when it comes to pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.

This is just the latest salvo in this war. In April, a separate federal study found there was no evidence that sexual-abstinence programs were effective in changing the sexual behavior of teenagers. Some states had already come to that conclusion themselves and were turning down federal grants (how often does that happen?) for these abstinence only program.

Will the latest report allow abstinence-only programs to regain a measure of support? That remains to be seen.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

So, how do superintendents spend their summer vacations? Well, in Tulsa, the superintendent is running an algebra camp. And, he promises it will be fun! According to the Tulsa World, Superintendent Michael Zolkoski is holding his class in a middle school cafeteria and expects lots of class participation. One student offered praise—albeit slight muted praise—for the camp: "It's something to take up my time," said Emily Stanton, a seventh-grader. "Otherwise, I'd probably be going on the computer or swimming. And I can do that later."

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund has launched a new blog tracking two key cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and the broader theme of school integration. The blog bills itself as a "national clearinghouse of Supreme Court School Integration information" and keeps an eye on integration developments from around the country as it awaits decisions in Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District and Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education—both of which challenge the legality of school districts' race-conscious student-assignment practices. The court is expected to issue decisions in both cases by July.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 9:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Bloggers have been weighing in regarding the announcement last week that Michelle Rhee will be the next chancellor of the troubled Washington D.C. public school system. Some are criticizing Ms. Rhee’s lack of school leadership experience—she only spent three years as a teacher through the Teach For America program—and has little experience overseeing a huge, bureaucratic organization like a school system.

But others say that’s just what the D.C. schools need—a fresh eye and an innovator. Over at Going to the Mat, Matt Johnston says Ms. Rhee’s appointment is cause for cautious hope. Marc Fisher of The Washington Post says Ms. Rhee will face an uphill climb gaining acceptance from principals and teachers in the district. And the Quick and the Ed provide a primer on Ms. Rhee's qualifications, predicting that she will focus on staffing.

Education Week readers weigh in here with their opinions. For the basics on Ms. Rhee, see this Associated Press story.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 1:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Georgia's colleges and universities are not graduating enough potential math and science teachers to satisfy the state's growing needs, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. According to a new study, "out of 25,000 public college graduates [in Georgia] in 2006, just three became high school physics teachers and nine became chemistry teachers," reporter Andrea Jones writes. "By 2010, Georgia will need more than 4,500 middle and high school math and science teachers. In 2006, the most recent statistics available, the University System produced just 678 in those fields."

On the Journal-Constitution's Get Schooled blog, Bridget Gutierrez points out that "this is happening at the same time state officials are rolling out what’s supposed to be a tougher new curriculum that expects students to learn advanced math and science concepts at earlier grades."

The Georgia findings dovetail with a new report from the Business-Higher Education Forum calling for a concerted effort by many parties to combat a national shortage in math and science teachers.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In an opinion piece in the New York Sun this week, Diane Ravitch charges that people too frequently blame teachers but neglect to consider the role of popular culture and a lack of student drive as culprits in American students' failure to compete globally. "It's time to stop beating up on teachers and ask why so many of our children arrive in school with poor attitudes toward learning," she writes. "If the students aren't willing to work hard, if they aren't hungry to succeed, then even the best teachers in the world—laden with merit pay, bonuses, and other perks—are not going to make them learn."

The slacker attitude has been much on Ravitch's mind of late. She has written about in her Education Week blog, Bridging Differences, and on The Huffington Post. What's your feeling about student attitudes? Do American students have a hunger for learning?

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

With the U.S. Department of Education’s clarification of the rules on single sex-education last year, which made it clear that public schools could legally educate boys and girls separately, the number of such public school programs is on the rise, reports the Hartford Courant in Connecticut. The article takes a look at Hartford’s Fox Middle School, one of the oldest single-sex public school programs in the country, but also points out that the research on single-sex education is very mixed. Researchers have been unable to say definitively that educating girls and boys apart increases (or decreases) academic achievement. But some of those in the programs are clearly pleased. “Girls can be mad annoying,” says a New Haven, Conn. fifth-grader who is in a boys-only class.

For more information on the growing number of single-sex public programs in the country, check out the Web site for the National Association for Single Sex Public Education, which promotes such programs. For the other side, take a peek at the National Women’s Law Center’s information on gender equity in education.

Do you teach in a single-sex classroom? Does your school offer such programs? Has it worked in your area? We’d like to hear more about how single-gender education is playing out across the country.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Nine specialty schools that cater to dropouts in Detroit will have to prove their effectiveness in order to stay open, The Detroit News reports.

The district's contracting office has notified the schools that their contracts won't be renewed because of questions about their effectiveness and the accuracy of their attendance figures. A district spokesman told the News that the district has paid $4.5 million this year to the schools, which are run by church groups and community organization and reportedly serve about 1,200 students. School officials will be allowed to reapply for new contracts. "It's alarming," board member Paula Johnson told the News. "There are some questions, quite frankly, about if they have students, about the performance of some of them and things of that nature."

For more on the impact of dropping out of school, see the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's report on "The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts." And, for more on graduation rates nationwide, see the just-released Diplomas Count from Education Week.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 7:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

At racetrack Belmont Park on Long Island, there’s a lot more than horse racing going on. National Public Radio reports on the track’s model preschool, Anna House, where the children of racetrack workers can go for quality care while their parents are working. Racetrack workers, who spent their days exercising thoroughbreds and cleaning stalls, drop their children off as early as 5 a.m. The school takes about 50 children from infants to age 5—nearly all Hispanic—and though the teachers are bilingual, the instruction is in English. One parents reports that this has made it possible for her daughter, a graduate of the preschool, to speak English fluently in elementary school. Parents are charged a weekly fee based on income, which may be as little as $5, but the school is mainly supported by donations. One horse fan donated $1 million and asked that the school be named after his daughter, hence the name Anna House. The owner of winning race horse Barbaro donated $250,000 to a scholarship program to help the school educate the children of the poorest racetrack workers.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A girls-only event offered Muslim teens in Minnesota a fun alternative to the more traditional proms some forgo for religious or cultural reasons, according to a story in the Pioneer Press.

The Saturday night PROM—Party foR Only Muslimahs, or Muslim girls—was organized by the Muslim Youth of Minnesota and co-sponsored by the University of Minnesota’s Al-Madinah Cultural Center. “I’d hate to miss this,” Sabrina Wazwaz, 15, a freshman who goes to Twin Cities Academy in St. Paul, Minn., told the Pioneer Press. “I think it’s really nice how they thought of the Muslim girls who can’t go to the American prom, so they made this for us.” The organizers plan on repeating the event annually.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 2:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Edutopia features a fascinating video look at Heifer International’s Global Village in Perryville, Ak. A humanitarian organization, Heifer International works to end world hunger. The group is best-known for its work using donations to purchase livestock, like cows, goats and chickens, for residents of poverty stricken areas in 125 countries to provide a sustainable food source and sometimes a source of income for families. But here in the United States, the group also runs its Heifer Ranch in Arkansas as well as some other domestic learning centers.

The Edutopia video features a class of Colorado middle school students who spend 24 hours at the Arkansas ranch and spend the night in one of four areas designed to mimic conditions in Guatemala, Thailand, Zambia, a generic urban area, or a refugee camp. The students have to barter with each other for food, water and firewood, and have to cook their own meals. If they are chosen as part of the refugee camp, they can’t speak English in order to barter and don’t start out the evening with any supplies.

The impact the students’ experience has on them is well worth watching. Heifer International also provides a number of education-related activities on its Web site, including cool reading activities like these for students and some activities that can be incorporated into a middle school curriculum.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 11:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Austin (Texas) school officials have launched a survey to gauge support for a new public all-boys school. "The proposed Young Men’s Leadership Academy would be a college prep school offering advanced courses in communications, technology, math, and science," according to the homeroom blog on the Austin American-Statesman Web site. Austin already plans to open the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders this fall.

Last fall, Education Week reported on new regulations from the U.S. Department of Education that stated definitively that it is legal to educate boys and girls separately under certain conditions. According to the National Association for Single Sex Public Education, those new rules have significantly boosted interest in the option. According to the association, as of March 2007, at least 262 public schools in the United States offered gender-separate educational opportunities—in most cases, this meant providing single-gender classrooms within schools serving both boys and girls.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The highly personal issue of school bathroom breaks is explored in a USA Today story about schools who don't let kids go any time they want. In attempts to crack down on kids who see bathroom breaks as a convenient way to meet friends and misbehave, some schools are limiting how many times students can head to the restroom. But these limits can sometime have "dire consequences" for children who really do need to use the bathroom, the newspaper reports. The story seems to have touched a nerve based on some of the comments posted on the USA Today Web site.

For more on the subject, the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics offers schools some thoughts on bathroom issues. Teachnet.com also provides teachers' real-world solutions to the question of what to do when children ask to be excused for a bathroom break.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The Observer reports that many English schools are "sleepwalking" toward segregation. In many communities—particularly those in mill towns in northern England—students rarely attend class with children of a different ethnic background.

According to the Department for Education and Skills, in Blackburn, four secondary schools out of nine there attract more than 90 percent of their pupils from just one ethnic group, the Observer reports. (The Observer is the Sunday edition of The Guardian.)

As Stephen Byers, a former schools minister, put it: Statistics "show that in parts of the country we are sleepwalking towards the segregation of schools on racial grounds."

In response, the Tories have outlined a "dramatic" plan, the newspaper says, to factor race into some school placement decisions. The plan would set "targets to ensure white and Asian pupils are educated together at any academies set up in northern towns such as Blackburn," political editor Nicholas Watt writes.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 8:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Most people know the that numbers of children being diagnosed with autism are on the rise and schools are developing programs aimed at helping many of these students go forward with their education. But the debate over what causes autism continues to rage. Some parents say their children’s autism was caused by vaccines, or more specifically thimerosal, a mercury-based vaccine preservative now banned from most vaccines. The debate over thimerosal is heated, with many health professionals saying there is no evidence the preservative has been linked to autism and many anguished parents who believe it to be a root cause. On June 11 a legal hearing over a case brought by parents of an autistic child is set to settle the matter (at least in a legal sense). This PointofLaw.com article says the case is to be heard in Washington in U.S. Federal Claims court. Emotions surrounding the case are definitely running high: the witness list is to remain secret so that the witnesses will not be harassed. Regardless of the outcome of the case, the debate is likely to continue.

However, outside the courtroom, real families are dealing with the hardships that autism presents. The Washington Post recently wrote this story about the Gaston family, with three triplet sons all with varying degrees of autism. Schools and states are also struggling to decide how to educate the rising number of autistic children. This debate in Arizona pits parents who want to use voucher money to send their kids to specialized private schools against those who think the public schools are the best place for autistic and special needs students. In Utah, the Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarships program was named after an autistic student there. This Education Week story sums up the debate over school vouchers for special needs students.

Posted by Michelle Davis, edweek.org at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A nonprofit known for its popular after-school science program has announced plans to shut down later this year after 27 years in operation—a victim, at least in part, officials say, of the drive to tie extracurricular activities to improved test scores. Hands On Science Outreach Founder Phyllis Katz told The Washington Post that her "recreational science" offerings did help children learn, but because the program was informal, "we didn't test the children so we couldn't tell you at the end of an eight-week session, 'The kids learned X amount.' " At one point, Hands On Science served 40,000 children a year nationwide. That number is now down to 21,000, according to the Post. Katz said feels good about the program's legacy: "We've had a 27-year run, and we've impacted hundreds of thousands of kids and tens of thousands of adults. We had an impact."

For more on after-school science programs generally, the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory offers a handy guide.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 8:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Recycling is a hot topic in many schools, but this month's issue of District Administration looks at recycling entire buildings for use as schools. In "RE-Construction," writer Peggy Bresnick Kendler looks at "adaptive reuse" where old or abandoned buildings are repurposed for use as schools. While not a trend, adaptive reuse is a viable and valuable option for schools, according to Molly Smith, associate vice president of NANA Consulting Services, an educational facilities planning consultant firm based in Mesa, Ariz. "A lot of districts just get in the mode of looking for land instead of looking at the resources within their communities," says Smith, who is quoted in the article. Before moving forward, however, districts should hire the right experts to make sure an old building isn't a fire hazard, Smith advises. The National Clearinghouse on Educational Facilities offers a more detailed look at the phenomenon in a 2003 briefing paper.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pay up, or all you'll get is a cheese sandwich. That's the story from The San Diego Union-Tribune, which reports on elementary schools in Chula Vista, Calif., where the method for getting deadbeat parents to pay their children's school-lunch fees is restricting their children to a cheese sandwich lunch. In Chula Vista, a school lunch costs $1.50. District officials say they racked up $285,000 in unpaid lunch bills just four years ago, but their new sandwich restriction cut that debt by more than $100,000 in 2003, the first year it was implemented.

When a student's lunch account falls into the red, school officials send a letter home informing the parents, call the parents, and ask the student to remind the parents to pay, Staff Writer Chris Moran writes. But if the parents fall three meals behind, their children are relegated to the cheese sandwich and refused other choices on the lunch menu. The strategy has proven effective, although some label the sandwich an unfair "scarlet letter" of shame for the children involved. School officials say the move has helped them continue to feed children while getting their parents to pay up. Poor children who are served by the federal free and reduced lunch program are not affected.

Posted by Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, edweek.org at 8:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)