Dallas isn’t the only place with charges of tutoring fraud
Dallas ISD officials suspect that five tutoring companies may have bilked the district out of more than $500,000, we reported Sunday. The allegations — which owners of three companies deny — include...
View ArticleFar majority of Dallas ISD schools fail to meet tougher federal academic ratings
Seventy-five percent of Dallas ISD schools failed to meet tougher federal academic standards last school year, according to data released Wednesday. A total of 165 of the district’s 220 schools failed...
View ArticleTexas’ NCLB waiver shouldn’t mean a retreat from school accountability
Gov. Rick Perry is asking a general waiver from the Education Department so that Texas can have some flexibility in meeting the ultimate goal of No Child Left Behind: every child shall be proficient...
View ArticleThe 35,000 foot view of education in 2013
The study I’m linking to here provides a good overview of what’s likely to happen in education in Washington and around the country this year. The review was put together by the education team at the...
View ArticleTexas request for waiver from No Child Left Behind rests on a ‘robust’ but...
You may have seen last week that Texas has joined the throng of states asking for waivers to No Child Left Behind federal accountability requirements. The application is loooooooong. You can see it...
View ArticleRead Dallas, Garland and San Antonio ISD complaints about tutoring companies
We reported today that the Texas Education Agency booted two Hurst companies from the state’s approved list of tutoring providers. TEA determined that the companies, Avenue Academy and Boost Academy,...
View ArticleRhetoric heats up statewide about Texas schools accountability testing
It’s getting to look a lot like STAAR season. Not only are the state tests looming, but the Texas Lege is discussing tweaks almost daily. Which means the arguments about testing are being hashed and...
View ArticleState investigators: 3 Dallas-area tutoring companies fraudulently billed...
Three local tutoring companies submitted fraudulent bills to the Garland and San Antonio school districts, according to state investigations. Diverse Learning, Avenue Academy and Boost Academy sent...
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Testing of high-performing students would be reduced under House bill
House members voted Thursday to scale back testing for higher performing students in elementary and middle schools, but the move would be contingent on Texas getting approval from the U.S. Department...
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HB 2824: How is it fair for some schools to be part of Texas’ accountability...
If HB 2824 makes it through the Legislature this week, you can pretty much say goodbye to Texas’ method of measuring schools and holding … [visit site to read more]
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Perry was right to veto HB 2824, which would have created a two-tiered system...
Rick Perry made the right call Friday in vetoing HB 2824. The legislation would have exempted 23 school … [visit site to read more]
View ArticleI’m looking for teachers willing to talk to me about ‘teaching to the test’
I’ve written several stories about the high-accountability testing culture in Texas and how that culture was overturned a bit by the most recent legislative session. I’ll be writing more about this....
View ArticleYou know how Texas HB 5 was supposed to cut STAAR tests? 8th graders, not so...
This morning, Education Commissioner Michael Williams sent out a news release and a letter to school districts about HB 5 and other legislation and what the Texas Education Agency is doing in...
View ArticleDecision on Texas STAAR double-testing eighth grade math likely to have...
The set-up for this is a little complicated: All eighth graders are required to take the STAAR math test, required by the federal No Child Left Behind law. And all Algebra I students are required to...
View ArticleReport discusses the limits of “value added models” to evaluate teachers
Earlier this month, the American Statistical Association weighed in on one of the more contentious issues in education policy these days: How to measure the effectiveness of individual teachers....
View ArticleMajor changes coming next year for math classes and STAAR tests for lower grades
Teachers handling math in grades 3-8 will be working very differently next school year. Changes in the math TEKS approved by the State Board Of Education in 2012 go into effect for the 2014-2015...
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Tutoring firm owners plead guilty to defrauding Dallas and Fort Worth ISDs
In 2012, Dallas ISD officials alleged some companies were not tutoring their students as required, like at this Apostolic Assembly church on Hume Drive. Two tutor firm owners pleaded guilty Tuesday to...
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Feds kick Texas NCLB waiver down the road until next year
When No Child Left Behind was passed a bazillion years ago (actually in 2001), it was supposed to have sharp teeth: States that failed to bring every student up to an acceptable standard in math and...
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From 'No Child Left Behind' to 'Every Student Succeeds,' new education law on...
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