Teacher turnover has a significant and negative effect on student achievement in both math and English/Language Arts. That is the finding of a research team led by Matthew Ronfeldt of the University of Michigan in their recently released study, How Teacher Turnover Harms Student Achievement. Two weeks ago, I wrote here about recent research connecting…
Last week my colleague, Kyle, discussed the importance of leadership in education. (And he may have mentioned something about Peyton Manning too…) I would like to follow suit and focus on the importance of empowering principals with data. I have written quite a few times about how essential it is to put data in the…
(Nashville) – The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) today released the 2011-12 State of Education in Tennessee report, the organization’s annual assessment of K-12 public education in Tennessee. SCORE Chairman and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist presented the report at West End Middle School during SCORE’s quarterly Steering Committee meeting of major education…
This Op-Ed originally appeared in the 3/17/12 Knoxville News Sentinel. When someone mentions the word “school,” what do you think of? Your children’s school? The school you attend currently? Or do you think of the school that is embedded in your childhood memories? When we think about iconic institutions in our society such as schools…
We talk a lot about leaders. The nation is considering who best to serve as its next president. Fans are analyzing the playing styles put in place by the coaches of their favored NCAA basketball tournament teams. Speculation abounds about where Peyton Manning will next play as quarterback. We tend to think a lot about…
Trey entered seventh grade the year I entered teaching. Unfortunately, Trey was not concerned with his grades. For his erratic behavior, Trey spent over 80 days in suspension. On Tennessee’s 2010 TCAP tests, he SCOREd basic and below basic in every subject. I was his geography teacher, and Trey was failing. For many in education,…
The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) will release our annual State of Education in Tennessee report on Tuesday, March 20. SCORE Chairman and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist will present the report at a press conference at the beginning of SCORE’s quarterly Steering Committee meeting. The 2011-12 State of Education in Tennessee…
The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) today launched the Rural Education Network, a group of education leaders from throughout Tennessee and the nation that is committed to improving public education in rural communities. The network will help identify, spread, and share best practices in rural education, foster learning among network members, and provide SCORE…
Eliza teaches math to one third of the students in sixth grade, some of whom are also in her homeroom class. During her 25-minute homeroom, Eliza takes attendance, goes over announcements, usually does a short activity with her students, and then lines them up to go on to their next classes. In her math classes…
Questions posed by an Alabama school superintendent in a letter addressed to his successor in 50 years present many of the most vexing present questions in education policy. Superintendent Cranford Burns of Mobile wrote the letter to be inserted in a time capsule for release in 50 years. Superintendent Burns’ questions include: Should the school…
In a February 20, 2012 New York Times article entitled, “States Try to Fix Quirks in Teacher Evaluations,” Tennessee’s new teacher evaluations figured prominently. The Times reporter traveled across TN, interviewing state leaders, principals, teachers – all who described the promise, pitfalls, and potential to improve teacher quality with an evaluation framework that expands dramatically…
This post is part of a series of blog posts authored by winners and finalists of the 2011 SCORE Prize. These posts highlight an aspect of their work that has dramatically improved student achievement. Upon entering Jo Byrns High School, our students are greeted with the motto “Your Graduation is Our Expectation.” This motto, which…
“Poverty is not a learning disability,” declared Pedro Noguera of New York University during a recent guest lecture at Vanderbilt. His presentation on economic influences on student achievement advocated a community-wide focus to improving schools and educational outcomes for students in predominately low-income areas. Although he oriented much of his discussion around models in urban…
This morning Governor Bill Haslam announced he will not be moving forward this year with a proposal to give local school districts flexibility from the state-mandated teacher pay schedule. Developing pay structures that recognize a teacher’s ability to raise student achievement is an important way that school districts can develop, support, and retain great teaching….
Last week I represented the state of Tennessee as the 2012 Teacher of the Year at the 2012 National Teacher of the Year Program Conference in Dallas, Texas. The National Teacher of the Year Program, sponsored by ING and Target, is a project of the Council of Chief State School Officers in partnership with the…
Last month, SCORE President and CEO Jamie Woodson joined education leaders from 11 states and the District of Columbia at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. to discuss education reform implementation. Discussion topics focused on teacher and leader effectiveness initiatives in the context of college- and career-ready standards. Watch the highlight video from…
Last Saturday, hundreds of attendees gathered on the campus of Fisk University in Nashville to participate in Teach For America’s Southern Educational Equity Summit, an all-day conversation about promoting reform across the South. The setting befit the occasion, as many of the most prominent leaders of the Nashville and national civil rights movements began their…
In two weeks, 100 teachers from throughout Middle Tennessee will come together to identify and discuss major issues affecting the high school graduation rates in their schools. As part of the national American Graduate: Let’s Make it Happen initiative, Nashville Public Television, in partnership with SCORE and Alignment Nashville, is convening a teacher town tall…
No Child Left Behind is like a swear word in some circles. You may be convinced that it is a rousing success or that it is an epic failure. What I think it does extremely well is put a laser-like focus on those persistently low-achieving subgroups that had persistently been ignored. It does this by…
Today Education Week posted the final part in a series of posts by Neerav Kingsland, chief strategy officer for New Schools for New Orleans. Kingsland’s writing, in the form of an open letter to urban superintendents, is meant to persuade district leaders that: the single most important reform strategy you can undertake is to increase…