EDUCATION & EQUITY NEWS    

NATIONAL

Language Barrier Keeps Some
From Getting Needed Special Ed
The Washington Post, June 12, 2001

According to a U.S. Department of Education report and interviews with dozens of experts, educators and families, thousands of children with the double needs of special education and English skills languish in regular classes for years before getting help -- and others are placed in the wrong programs.

Educators Are Split Over Separate
Schools for Children of Homeless
The Los Angeles Times, June 12, 2001

Educators are engaged in a fierce debate about whether to teach homeless children in separate schools or to integrate them in regular schools and classrooms. Currently, approximately 1.35 million children across the United States are homeless.

Lawmakers Move to Improve
Literacy, The 'New Civil Right'
USA Today, June 11, 2001

President Bush's education plan would give money to local school districts and states to train teachers in effective methods of teaching reading.

Bully-Boy Focus Overlooks Vicious Acts By Girls
USA Today, June 12, 2001

A large study of U.S. students grades six through ten published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that boys were more likely than girls to bully and be bullied. Nonetheless, 13.7% of girls said they were bullied at least ''sometimes,'' if not weekly or even more regularly, and an equal percentage said they had bullied someone that often. Another 22.5% of girls reported being bullied ''once or twice'' during their current term.

Opinion: If You Hate Standards,
Learn To Love The Bell Curve
Education Week, June 6, 2001

Douglas B. Reeves, President of the Center for Performance Assessment, asks rhetorically, "If standards and testing disappeared tomorrow, what would be the alternative?"

Sun Hopes to Add Amendment to Education Bill
The Industry Standard, June 6, 2001

Sun Microsystems is lobbying Congress to add an amendment to the education reform bill which would encourage school districts to develop plans for integrating technology and computer systems with teacher training and curriculum development.

Democrats Put Bush Education Plan on Fast Track
iWon/Reuters, June 7, 2001

Reaching out to the White House after taking control of the Senate, Democratic leaders on Wednesday put education reform on the legislative fast track, promising to push for passage next week of a bipartisan bill touted as President Bush's top domestic priority.

  See also:

Voucher Defeat Likely, But Reforms Afoot
The Los Angeles Times, June 10, 2001

Ohio Grapples With Fair Funding for All Schools
CNN.com, June 12, 2001

Facing a court's deadline this week, Ohio lawmakers must figure out how to fund their public education system fairly. In 1997 and again last year, the court ruled that the state's method of paying for education relied too much on local property taxes, creating disparities between rich and poor districts.

WASHINGTON,D.C. METRO AREA

At District High Schools, Many Missing the Bell
The Washington Post, June 11, 2001

Principals or teachers at 10 high schools in D.C. said that unexcused tardiness is a serious problem at their school, cutting into time when students should be learning.

MARYLAND

Administrative Judge Backs
City's Plan to Close 9 Schools
The Baltimore Sun, June 12, 2001

A state administrative law judge recommended yesterday that the city school board's decision to close nine of its schools be upheld. Lawyers for the city school board had argued that the closings were warranted because of a declining student population. The city has room for more than 130,000 students; about 98,000 are enrolled this year.

Schools May Need Big Boost in Funding
The Baltimore Sun, June 8, 2001

According to two independent analyses, Maryland needs to spend as much as $2.6 billion more on its public schools to meet its constitutional requirement of providing an adequate education for all children.

Proposal Seeks to Aid Potential State Teachers
The Baltimore Sun, June 8, 2001

The Maryland Higher Education Commission will vote on a proposal to create an associate of arts in teaching degree, which effectively allows for a more seamless transfer of credits from two-year schools to four-year schools and makes it easier for potential teachers to get their degrees.

30,000 Facing Summer School
The Baltimore Sun, June 7, 2001

More than 30,000 children - nearly one-third of Baltimore's public school population - have failed to meet tough new promotion standards and are being directed to summer school.

PENNSYLVANIA

Graduating No Longer As Easy As ABC
The Philadelphia Daily News, June 12, 2001

Despite an uncertain financial future, the Philadelphia Board of Education yesterday stuck with its plans to increase promotion and graduation requirements for fourth-, eighth- and 12th-graders.

School Board Lets 4 Charter Schools Delay Opening
The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 12, 2001

Philadelphia's Board of Education has agreed to allow the West Philadelphia Achievement Charter Elementary School, Wissahickon Charter School, Hope Charter, and a school connected to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union Local 98 to delay their opening until September 2002.

Residency Rule for City Teachers Begins a Debate
The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 6, 2001

Facing a critical teacher shortage, the Philadelphia School District is thinking about eliminating the rule which requires teachers in Philadelphia's public schools to live in the city.

SPECIAL ARTICLES & REPORTS

Conversion of a Standardized Test Skeptic
The Hoover Institution, June 2001

In Praise of Mediocrity: Tattered Blue
Ribbons at the Department of Education
The Brookings Institution, Summer 2001

New Tax Bill Contains Some Important
Benefits for Low-Income Families
National Women's Law Center, June 2001

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