Federal Update - March 28, 2008
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to you by your voice at the national level,
the Association of American
Educators.
Threat of Collective Bargaining Being Expanded in Iowa
Differentiated Accountability Under NCLB Announced
Lawsuit Brought by the ACLU Over Low Graduation Rates
Are Smaller Class Sizes Better for Kids?
Changes Suggested for Math Curriculum
Variances in State Graduation Rates
Threat of Collective Bargaining Being Expanded in Iowa
When majority of teachers in Iowa and other Iowans were out of the state on spring break last week, the Democrat controlled Assembly in Iowa hastily passed HF 2645, a bill that expands collective bargaining. Republicans, the minority party, in the Senate went into a closed door caucus on Thursday morning and remained until Monday in an effort to delay a vote on the bill, therefore attempting to give the public time to have input. On Monday, March 24, a deal was reached between the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate allowing six hours of debate on the bill. After fierce debate the bill passed with a vote of 27-23 mostly along party lines except for three Democrats who voted with Republicans to oppose the bill.
Iowa Governor Chet Culver (D) has not yet received the bill from the Senate but has indicated his displeasure with the Senate’s refusal to allow further public input on the bill. On Monday, March 24, the Governor joined Republicans in urging the Senate leadership to slow down proceedings on the bill but that call was ignored by leadership and a vote was held that night.
If signed into law HF 2645 will open the scope of issues unions will be able to bargain for including class sizes, preparation time, work shift schedules and insurance carriers. Further impact of this legislation could mean that elected officials including school board members, city council members, and county supervisors will not have input in the final cost of collective bargaining agreements, instead an unelected adjudicator will decide, leaving Iowa citizens to the possibility of increased property taxes without the ability to hold elected officials accountable for the fate of the state.
Governor Culver has signified that there is the possibility that he will veto the bill and appears to be soliciting public comments before making a decision.
The Professional Educators of Iowa, a state partner of AAE, has worked diligently on this issue and has urged Governor Culver to veto the bill. To read the PEI press release, please read, “Professional Educators of Iowa Calls on Governor to Veto Controversial Labor Bill,” at http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-25-2008/0004779987&EDATE=.
To read more about HF 2645, please read the article titled, “Bill Giving More Sway to Unions Advances in Senate,” at http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080325/NEWS10/803250370/1056/NEWS09.
Also, please read American for Tax Reform’s statement on the issue at http://friendsofatr.blogspot.com/2008/03/union-puppet-test-will-gov-culver-d-ia.html.
Differentiated Accountability Under NCLB Announced
An issue of concern for many states and school districts with NCLB has been the fact that schools face the same sanctions from the federal government if they are underperforming regardless if the school needs minor or wholesale changes. On March 18 Secretary Spellings announced that this practice will be changed with the implementation of a “differentiated accountability” program.
Under the new pilot program ten states will be given the opportunity from the U.S. Department of Education to put into practice a system that makes distinctions between schools that have barely missed their goals and schools that need greater interventions. Schools that participate in the pilot program will still need to meet the goal of having all students reading and doing math on grade level by 2014 but they will be given greater flexibility in meeting the goal. States that have made strives in accountability such as Maryland, North Dakota, Louisiana, and South Dakota, will be given first priority in applying for the pilot program. Massachusetts will also be given priority due to their work on standards.
“The goal is to help educators act now to help schools in every stage of improvement. We can't afford to let struggling students continue to slide downhill,” stated Education Secretary Margaret Spellings.
In order to be eligible to apply for the pilot program, states must have 1) their state standards and assessment programs fully approved; 2) no significant monitoring findings; 3) a highly qualified teacher plan that has been approved; and, 4) adequate yearly progress information that is available to the public.
To apply to participate in the pilot program states must submit their plans by May 2, 2008.
For more information about the differentiated accountability program, please read the fact sheet from the U.S. Department of Education at http://www.ed.gov/nclb/accountability/differentiated/factsheet.html.
Also, please read Secretary Spellings' speech about the issue at http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2008/03/03182008.html.
Lawsuit Brought by the ACLU Over Low Graduation Rates
For the first time a school district has been sued for having low graduation rates among minorities. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has recently filed a lawsuit against the Palm Beach County School District in Florida for this reason. The 170,000 school district had a 71.4 percent graduation rate; however, the graduation rate among African-Americans was 29 points lower and among Hispanics it was 20 points lower than the total graduation rate. The ACLU contends that the district could close this gap arguing that the district needs to “live up to its constitutional obligations [in Florida] to provide a uniform, efficient, safe, secure, and high-quality education.”
“We all want to see graduation rates rise,” Palm Beach County School District Superintendent Arthur Johnson said. “The suit is misguided and designed to get attention.”
Superintendent Johnson argued that students who drop out of high school do not necessarily do so because they are failing courses but because school is not an important part of their lives. He believes that creating a school that allows students to take classes in fields they are interested in such as construction and biotechnology would help increase graduation rates.
Many other controversial questions regarding whether schools, students, society or other factors are responsible for graduation rates in high schools have been speculated to be important aspects of the debate according to some educators and education experts.
For more information about the lawsuit, please read the article titled, “Low Graduation Rate Draws Florida Lawsuit,” at http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0326/p03s01-usju.htm.
Are Smaller Class Sizes Better for Kids?
Recently the affect of smaller class sizes on the way teachers teach and the degree at which students learn was studied by Adam Gamoran from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The findings indicated that students in smaller classes may benefit from the increased possibility of more time with the teacher and the ability to work in small groups with other students.
“Small classes are more engaging places for students because they’re able to have a more personal connection with teachers, simply by virtue of the fact that there are fewer kids in the classroom competing for that teacher’s attention,” stated Gamoran.
Teachers with smaller class sizes do not always modify their teaching styles to better fit the smaller class size. “There is not good evidence that teachers modify their instruction in response to changes in class size. Some teachers are taking advantage of small classes and others are not. There’s a lot of variability,” said Gamoran. “It’s not like you reduce classes so teachers do something different and achievement is higher. “That neat little package doesn’t exist.”
To read more about the affects of smaller class sizes, please go to http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2008-03-24-small-classes_N.htm.
Changes Suggested for Math Curriculum
It has become increasingly evident that the overall scores for American students in math do not measure up to many of the math scores of their counterparts worldwide. As a result of lagging American math scores, the National Mathematics Advisory Panel has issued a report with their suggestions about how the math curriculum in the United States can be improved.
“The sharp falloff in mathematics achievement in the U.S. begins as students reach late middle school, where, for more and more students, algebra course work begins,” said the panel. “Students who complete Algebra II are more than twice as likely to graduate from college compared to students with less mathematical preparation.”
The report suggests that by the end of third grade, students should be proficient in adding and subtracting whole numbers. Further, by the end of fifth grade, students should be able to multiply and divide them, and a year later they should be capable of multiplication and division of fractions and decimals.
The report also recommends that fewer topics should be included in math curriculums with the hope that students master the topics and so they do not have to be revisited in later grades.
For more information about the report please read the article,
“Report Urges Changes in Teaching Math,” at http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/14/education/14math.html?
ex=1363147200&en=fced6c729e37249d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss.
To read the report, please go to http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2008/03/03132008.html.
Variances in State Graduation Rates
Low graduation rates in high schools across the United States have been a cause for concern for educators and other stakeholders in education. However, another issue regarding graduation rates is gaining more attention - states reporting false graduation rates to avoid sanctions under NCLB. For example, Mississippi has reported graduation rates of 87 percent to Washington; however, another set of data puts the graduation rate at 63 percent.
According to the state schools superintendent, the lower number is closer to the truth. “We were losing about 13,000 dropouts a year, but publishing reports that said we had graduation rate percentages in the mid-80s. Mathematically, that just doesn’t work out.”
Mississippi is not the only state to have variances in their graduation rates. The official graduation rate California uses is 83 percent, but like Mississippi, other data in the state has the graduation rate at 67 percent. Delaware has also reported their graduation rates in the mid-80s but lower graduation rates have been published.
The discrepancies in graduation rates may be attempts by some states to hide their real graduation rates but in some cases the inconsistencies may be the result of not having adequate data-tracking systems.
To help end the discrepancies in graduation scores Secretary Spellings has indicated that she may have states calculate their graduation rates according to one federal formula. “I’m considering settling this once and for all,” she said, “by defining a single federal graduation rate and requesting states to report it that way. That would finally put this issue to rest.” Currently states are allowed to calculate their graduation scores using various methods.
For more information about graduation rates, please read the following article, “States’ Data Obscure How Few Finish High School,” at http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/education/20graduation.html?ref=education.