Common Sense Solutions For Education Reform
Florida gets it:
Utah gets it:In Florida, the State Senate has proposed legislation in two committees to strengthen merit pay for teachers and end tenure.
The question is: Why doesn't Alabama get it?Utah has also taken a serious step in the direction of responsible education reform. The Utah State Senate passed a bill recently to ban the social promotion of first, second, and third graders who are not yet reading on grade level. The majority noted that reading skills are the fundamental building blocks of future learning.
Diane Ravitch and Charter Schools
In short, many charter schools come closer in aspiration and often in practice to the image that Diane has of what defines functioning schools. And more importantly, if we close down all the charter schools and wait for neighborhood public schools to improve, who pays the costs? Middle class parents will move to the suburbs or send their kids to private schools, leaving the burden of bad schools to fall on the usual less affluent victims.The book tells a depressingly familiar story of a field wracked by fads and innovations that have gone off the track. Her diagnosis of where we’ve gone wrong is often brilliant—although as noted she got choice and charter schools wrong.
AL House "Indefinitely Postponed" Charter School Bill
Vote was 13-2
Voting to "indefinitely postpone" were: Lindsey, Rogers, Bentley, Boothe, Buskey, Graham, Greeson, Kennedy, McLaughlin, Oden, Spicer, Taylor, and Thomas.
Voting to take a vote on the charter school bill were: Reps. Mac Gipson and Mary Sue McClurkin.
Thanks to Reps. Mac Gipson and Mary Sue McClurkin for standing up to Paul Hubbert and the AEA. Their commitment to bettering education in Alabama is much appreciated.
The only strange vote was Rep. Robert Bentley, who is also a Republican Gubernatorial candidate. It was not a wise move for Dr. Bentley in a republican primary where most voters favor more school choice.
Cam Ward ReCaps Education Budget
- The cost of retirement benefits for all education personnel went from $300 million in 2004 to an estimated $780 million in 2010.
- Overall the cost of the entire health insurance benefits package for education employees will cost $960 million in 2010.
- From 2005 to 2010 the state saw the cost of health insurance per education employee go from $6,996 to $9,024 per employee.
Alabama teachers have one of the best benefits packages in the nation. The state MUST do something to address the rising costs. Raising taxes is not an option--especially in this economy. Cuts are going to have to be made. I just hope legislators will face the cold, hard facts.
Riley Asks State Board of Education to Endorse Charter Schools
Unfortunately, Paul Hubbert and the AEA are doing everything they can to make sure the state legislature doesn’t let a bill pass.
This is definitely an issue to watch in the coming legislative session.
The Promise of Charter Schools
The Promise of Charter Schools
“Alabama has a tremendous opportunity to quickly improve the quality of education outcomes in the state. If we want to answer the questions, “What does Alabama have to do to succeed in the next five to ten years?’ and “What do we want our education outcomes to look like in five to ten years?” with bold vision, it is obvious we need to take dramatic actions. Preparing our students for meaningful lives and 21st century challenges cannot be accomplished within the constraints of our current one-size-fits all public school model.”