Center for Education Reform Newswire Vol. 9, No. 4 January 30, 2007 ________________________________________ A weekly wrap-up of education news and commentary, spiced with a dash of irreverence, from the nation's leading voice in school reform. See our Newswire Library for an archive of back issues. ________________________________________ STANDARDS AND ACCOUNTABILITY STATE OF EDUCATION. Conflict makes for good story-telling. That could be why national education reporters locked on to a single aspect of President Bush's education plans outlined in his State of the Union Address - vouchers. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings was even booed by the National School Boards Association for advocating the policy position that students in failing schools be permitted to attend private ones as one option (nice model behavior), even though that is but one part of the Administration's new NCLB proposal. Digging deeper, the new plans for the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act are wide-ranging and should appeal to parents, students, and politicians on both sides of the aisle. From adding science to NCLB testing in 2008, to greater accountability and more choices for students stuck in failing schools, the plans outlined in the State of the Union offer far more than what was covered in the media. To learn more about the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind, read CER President Jeanne Allen's statement. MERIT PAY, A DIFFERENT WAY. For weeks, merit pay for teachers has been an issue in the media across the country. In Florida, 12 districts have adopted pay-for-performance plans. Why can't the same concept work for the students themselves? Ben Chavis, principal at American Indian Public Charter in Oakland, California, has been using that method successfully for years. At his charter school, students are given cash rewards for perfect attendance. Now, a small Ohio school district is experimenting with a similar idea. Thanks to funding from local businessman Robert Simpson, Coshocton, Ohio schools are offering 3rd-through-6th grade students $15 for every "proficient" score and $20 for every "accelerated" or "advanced" score. The schools are in their third year of the program and parents, teachers, and students are seeing the enthusiasm grow. "The first couple of years, I was not really sure how much of an incentive it was," one teacher told Education Week. "But this year's kids were so excited right off the bat." To prevent problems from arising, including parents using the money students have earned, the district decided to reward students with "Coshocton Bucks," coupons they can redeem at local businesses, instead of cash. A study of the first three years of the program is due out sometime this year. BLOG REPORT THE PEOPLE'S BILL. These days, news and public opinion has made a dramatic shift to the online world. In the classrooms, most students learn from online news sites or from blogs. Now Utah Representative Steve Urquhart (R-St. George) is taking the legislative process to the online forum. The forward-thinking representative, whose school voucher bill is set to go before the Utah Legislature, has decided to post his proposal on his blog for the public to comment on. Urquhart promises to consider all convincing arguments against the proposal and even says he will change the bill if someone offers valuable adjustments. So far, he has received 49 responses to the bill and has even posted some of his own exchanges with people who commented. While many who comment appear adamantly against any school choice, Urquhart quickly and eloquently responded to naysayers. One respondent, though, hit the nail on the head, saying, "Thanks for taking on this issue on behalf of the parents and those who wish to have more control of our children's education. You have my best wishes on withstanding all the rhetoric from those who wish to keep the status quo and will fight against you." Click here to read the bill and make your own comments. YOU TUBE GENERATION. The video sharing/blogging site YouTube.com is changing the face of television and marketing around the world. Local news is no longer just for one community, it is streamed on-demand for people across the globe. And charter schools are among the beneficiaries of that open sharing of information. Nearly 150 people have already viewed a recent local news story about Harlem Success Academy and its overwhelming success. "I walked into this school and I was amazed," the reporter boasts. "Dedicated teachers, supercharged students - the atmosphere was electric." Another video posted by a budding documentary filmmaker chronicles the work of Bronx Charter School for Excellence. With YouTube videos and blogs, the grassroots charter school movement can reach the masses. If you have a video about your charter school, don't hesitate to post it on the site. CHARTER SCHOOLS DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TOPATHFINDER. San Jose, California's Pathfinder High charter school is a different kind of charter school, but just like many charter schools, the disparity in funding it receives is alarming. A day school for at-risk young adults, it takes in students who have dropped out or been expelled from the conventional public school system and offers them challenging, personalized, one-on-one counseling, and a community environment. Unfortunately, they are not funded the same way as similar district schools and officials at Pathfinder have had to make the difficult decision to close the school. While similar community day schools run by the district are given roughly $12,000 per pupil (thousands more than conventional public schools), Pathfinder is given funds equal to "average" charters that do not require the same level and time allotted to services. While it's too late to save Pathfinder, Assemblyman Joe Coto is fighting to save the hundreds of at-risk students who are in need of similar schools. Coto is introducing a new system that would fund charter day schools equally with conventional day schools. ROCK FOR MONEY. Charter schools innovate in lots of ways, including raising money. Faced with lower-than expected enrollment but much in demand with enrolled families, Watershed High School, an arts-based charter school in Minneapolis, Minnesota, recently discovered it needed to raise $43,700 by the end of the month to avoid laying off several teachers. It can't rely on the district to simply fund the difference as is so often the case with conventional public schools. So naturally, the dedicated students did what they knew best to save their teachers. They used their creativity. Students organized "one helluva bake sale," and an all-day benefit concert they dubbed "Rock on Water." The events raised $4,600 and students plan to continue their efforts to save the teachers. Even Education Commissioner Alice Seagren has said that Watershed is doing everything they should be doing to set things right. To learn more, go to www.watershedhs.org/donation.htm. A SHOUT OUT A BUDDING HOLLY. Holly Academy in Michigan outperformed all other area charter schools and conventional public schools in 2006 Michigan Education Assessment Program (MAEP) tests, scoring 88 percent proficient. Holly Academy even edged perennial top-dog Grand Blanc School District, pushing it to second place with 84.9 percent proficiency. "It's not just the teachers - even though they are a huge part of it - but also the students and parents alike, because we have parents that are very involved," the school's deputy director said. Kudos Holly Academy. In Other News AN EMPIRE PLAN. New York Governor Spitzer announced his plans to push for growth in charter schools in the Empire State and the removal of boards and personnel in schools that consistently fail. (Did he get booed too? Could be a trend...)