“Then Raise Taxes!”

Eduflack accountability, Achievement gap

There is no question we are asking our states, school districts, and schools to do far more with fewer resources.  The boom years for public education are over, perhaps best emphasized by the end of the multi-billion-dollar Reading First program years ago.  The economic downturn of 2008 and 2009, now coupled with the end of ARRA money for the states means school districts are already pinching the skinniest of pennies.

Regardless of whether I am wearing my ed reformer hat, my school board chairman hat, my pundit hat, or my parent hat, I hate hearing the “do more with less mantra.”  At the end of the day, this is not an issue of doing more.  This is an issue of doing better, pure and simple.  Throughout public education, we must do better with the resources we have, ensuring that those precious dollars are being spent on kids, instruction, and results.  We must demonstrate real return on our education investment, shown through the success of our students.  No ifs, ands, or buts.
That’s why it is so disheartening to continue to see those who defend the status quo crow that it is all about the dollars, that our schools would do more if they only had increased funding.  That the answer, as Diane Ravitch recently put it during a visit to Hartford, CT, is “then raise taxes!”
There is no question that poverty and performance in our public schools are closely linked.  One only needs to look at the achievement gap between wealthy and low-income students to see that reality.  But we also know there is no data that proves increasing the per-pupil expenditure results in improved student learning, student test scores, and student success. 
If it were only a matter of dollars, then cities like Washington, DC would have public schools that were all the envy of the wealthiest of suburbs.  If it were only a matter of funding, New Jersey’s Abbott Schools in Newark, Trenton, and Camden would be our nation’s top performers.  If it were all about the benjamins, the recent influx of NCLB dollars would have turned student test scores on its head, with our previously lowest-performing schools outperforming the world.
Don’t get me wrong, money helps.  It helps a great deal.  But it isn’t just about gross dollars, it is about how those gold coins are spent.  It is also about what one is teaching.  It is about who is teaching.  It is about how families are engaged in the learning process.  It is about empowering students and parents.  Yes, it is as much about how we spend the money as the money itself.
Organizations like Education Trust can provide detailed lists of schools in low-income communities, with low per-pupil expenditures who are succeeding against the odds.  In cities across the nation, we see charter schools (and let there be no mistake, charters are also public schools) that are posting top student performance numbers, despite spending only one-half or two-thirds of what is being spent in a low-performing traditional public school in the same city.  Not only can we do better with less, we have true exemplars that are already doing it.
Yes, it would be fabulous if we were able to wave a magic wand and inject billions of additional dollars into our public schools.  It would be terrific if resources weren’t an issue and poverty weren’t a concern that every educator and community leader needed to worry about.  And it would be great if every child could ride a unicorn to school.
Like it or not, we are now in the new normal.  We must do better with the resources we have.  We must ensure all kids have strong, effective teachers leading their classrooms, and those teachers are adequately supported.  We must ensure all students have access to great public schools, regardless of their zip code.  And we must ensure that all of those in the learning process — be they teachers, administrators, students, parents, or even those dreaded reformers — are focused on the true outcomes of public education, and not just on the inputs.
  

Some Nutmeg on the NAEP

Eduflack accountability, Achievement gap, assessment, NAEP, National Journal

Last week, the U.S. Department of Education released the latest round of NAEP scores, offering the most recent snapshot on how our nation’s students are doing when it comes to reading and math.  The results were downright depressing, with the majority of kids still failing to post proficient scores and the achievement gaps growing in far too many areas.

National Journal is running its weekly blog on those very same NAEP results.  You can check out Eduflack’s post on the scores, their impact in Connecticut in particular, and how if these latest scores don’t signify an urgent call, I don’t know what will.
We often think of Connecticut, the Nutmeg State, as the land of plentiful budgets and bountiful student success.  But the numbers tell a vastly different picture.  While Connecticut is indeed in the top 10 when it comes to per-pupil expenditure, it is tops when it comes to achievement gaps.  From my National Journal post:
For those looking to strap on the pom-poms for number one rankings, Connecticut did score first in seven of the 16 disaggregated categories. Of course, that’s a first place for largest gaps. And we’re in the top 10 for every single one of those 16.

As always, this week’s debate is worth checking out, as are the actual reports, breakdowns and official government statements on the 2011 Nation’s Report Cards on reading and math, as released by the National Assessment Governing Board.

Act Early, Act Often on ECE

Eduflack Uncategorized

While Eduflack has spent a great part of the last half decade focused on high school redesign, the horrid state of drop-out factories, and the general college and career readiness pipeline, I’ve also called out for greater investment in early childhood education.  Like many others, I have recommended that we pay greater attention to high-quality ECE, particularly as it relates to pre-reading programs and a general embrace of evidence-based instruction for our youngest learners.

In January 2009, I wrote of the importance of expanding our literacy commitment to include PreK.  We had hope in mid-2009 as a Pew study showed a renewed interest in ECE.  And earlier this year, Eduflack praised President Obama for putting some muscle behind his early childhood rhetoric with the establishment of the Early Learning Challenge Fund.
Yet I always wondered if earlier calls to establish a U.S. Department of Education office committed to early childhood education (rather than letting Health & Human Services and its Head Start office having all of the ECE fun).  That wondering has now ceased, thanks to the announcement made late Friday by EdSec Arne Duncan’s ECE advisor, Jacqueline Jones, at the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Conference.  ED is now creating of Office of Early Learning, operating under the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE).
In his public announcement, Duncan cited:
Effective early learning programs are essential to prepare our children for success in school and beyond.  A dedicated early learning office will institutionalize, elevate and coordinate federal support for high-quality early learning, while enhancing support for state efforts to build high-performing early education systems.

And in an emailed note circulating over the weekend, the EdSec noted:

Improving early
learning programs for children birth through third grade is critical work and
plays a fundamental role in building a cradle to college and career education
system for our children. Research consistently shows that high-quality early
learning programs benefit children, our society, and our national prosperity.
It is simply one of the most cost-effective investments America can make in its
future.  

In this year’s State
of the Union address, the President posited that “if we raise expectations for
every child, and give them the best possible chance at an education, from the
day they are born until the last job they take – we will reach the goal that I
set two years ago:  By the end of the decade, America will once again have
the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.”

Our children deserve nothing
less than a strong start to a life filled with opportunity, and it all starts
with successful early learning programs. Through the courage, skill, and
commitment of states across the country, early learning has already begun its
transformation. An Office of Early Learning will allow our Department to better
support their efforts, deepen public awareness of the impact of this work, and
leverage early learning investments in ways that raise quality and expand
access for more children.


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First order of business, the new Office will focus on the administration of those Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge Grants.  Beyond that, the charge of the office is anyone’s guess.  But let there be no mistake.  This is an important step forward for both ECE and the P-20 learning continuum.  It is no secret that the percentage of students failing to read at at least grade level by third grade is remarkably similar to the high school drop-out rate.  And there is little question that those with a strong, evidence-based preK experience are far better prepared for hitting that early reading proficiency rates.  

Kudos for the EdSec for acting on early learning.  Now let’s make sure the new office is empowered to have real impact.

Education: A Federal Responsibility?

Eduflack 21CS, higher ed, Presidential campaign

What is the role of the federal government in public
education?  Whether it be the
stick/carrot arrangement promoted through NCLB, a calmer, gentler collaboration
offered through EdSec Duncan and his plans for ESEA, or the drumbeats for the
outright elimination of the U.S. Department of Education we’ve heard since the
creation of the U.S. Department of Education in 1979, it is a question
that is asked many a time, with little room for an answer we all agree to be
correct and answered completely.

The question was asked again yesterday of many of the
candidates for the Republican nomination for President of these here United
States at a NYC forum sponsored by News Corp. and the College Board.  And the responses represented the good (well,
ok, the mediocre), the bad, and the downright ugly.  The New York Post has the story here, while the Hechinger Report offers up its coverage here. 

After calling for the elimination of ED during his rise to
Speaker of the House in the mid-1990s, Newt Gingrich was actually the strongest
proponent for a federal role in public education.  Now an education reformer, Gingrich embraced
the need to favor “the most rapid possible learning by the widest number of
Americans.”  But it goes downhill from
there.

No surprise that former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum (PA), who
homeschools his brood, lashed out against public education in general and
testing and accountability in particular. 
And certainly no surprise that U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (MN) seeks to
end a federal role entirely, wanting to bypass the state, and hand over control of
public education directly to parents.

But what was truly surprising was the vitriol that Herman Cain,
former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza and a man who is leading or close to leading
many a GOP presidential poll, had for student loans and the federal
government’s social compact with regard to postsecondary education.

“I do not believe that it is the responsibility of the
federal government to help fund a college education,” the New York Post
(another product of News Corp.) quotes Cain as saying. 

Really?  The federal
government has no responsibility, financial or otherwise, to support
postsecondary education?  We have no
responsibility, through the GI Bill, to the men and women who serve in our
Armed Forces?  We have no responsibility
to first-generation college seekers through Pell Grants?  With everything we’ve seen in the banking
industry in recent years, we have no responsibility to offer student loan
guarantees to students in financial need?

As a nation, we have declared that postsecondary education
is necessary for life success.  No longer
is a high school diploma sufficient to achieve in a 21st century
economy.  Whether it be career/technical
programs, community college, or four-year university, postsecondary education
is quickly becoming a non-negotiable when it comes to the path to potential
success.

So how can we say that the federal government has no
responsibility in providing that non-negotiable?  Setting aside the Santorums and the Bachmanns
of the world, most rational people recognize that the federal government has
some responsibility in K-12, even if it is just ensuring equity through Title I
funding, supporting students in need through IDEA, or just feeding our students
through USDA-supported lunch programs. 
We are now seeing a move toward early childhood education, with the feds
looking to extend the front end of the education continuum to a P-12
investment. 

When we factor in the economic factors, is there really any
question that there is a federal responsibility for a P-16 continuum?  At a time when the federal government should
be looking for real return on investment when it comes to our tax dollars, are
we really going to stand up and say that there is no ROI for postsecondary
investment?

If we expect our economy to grow and thrive, we need to
support investments that ensure we are educating today’s kids for the jobs and
opportunities of tomorrow.  A strong back
will soon no longer be enough to earn a good living.  We need strong minds as well.  And that demands postsecondary education
experience.

Sorry, Mr. Cain.  On
this exam, you clearly earn an F.  While
we can explore what the federal responsibility is in education, one cannot say
there is no role.  Your answer is
incorrect.  You did not show your
work.  And you really need to go back and
study.

 

The Hidden Costs of Community Colleges

Eduflack accountability, higher ed

There is little question that higher education is a worthwhile investment.  We regularly hear about the earning power of that college degree, and how those with a college education out-earn those with just a high school diploma by up to a million dollars over a lifetime.  And we can’t miss the regular drumbeat of how some form of postsecondary education is necessary in our 21st century economy, and that just a high school diploma will no longer cut it in our knowledge economy.

We also realize that college is an expensive endeavor.  With some private colleges charging more than $50,000 a year and too many students needing five or six years to complete an undergraduate degree, that worthwhile investment doesn’t necessarily come cheap.  It is no wonder that more and more are turning to community colleges as a a cost-effective path to higher education, whether it be to secure an associate’s degree as a path to a job or to earn a year or two of lower-cost credits before transferring to a four-year institution.  And in some states, we are even seeing community colleges beginning to offer bachelor’s degrees.
In all of this, we often don’t think of the cost of drop-outs in our community colleges.  We worry about those high school drop-out factories, and the third of students who fail to earn a high school diploma.  We fret about the growing number of students who fail to earn their bachelor’s degree, hoping their is a sheepskin effect and that even a year or three of college is of benefit, both intellectually and economically.  But what about community college?
A new study from the American Institutes for Research’s Mark Schneider offers a
startling picture of community college drop-outs, The Hidden Costs of Community Colleges.  Using data collected by the U.S. Department of Education and submitted by our institutions of higher education themselves, Schneider finds:
* Nearly $4 billion was spent by federal, state, and local governments over the last five years on first-year community college students who did not return for a second year of college.
* In 2008-09 (the last year of available data), nearly $1 billion was spent by government on first-year community college students who did not return for year two.  That is 35 percent higher than it was just five years earlier.
* About a fifth of full-time community college students do not return for their second years of college.
Of course, we also realize that these “drop out” numbers are imprecise.  Using federal IPEDS data is tricky business.  It is the best, worst, and only source of such higher education data.  So while we know when a student does not return for a second year at his or her selected community college, we don’t know where they went.  Did they transfer to another school?  Did they join the military?  Did they depart on missionary work?  Or did they just drop out?
Regardless, the data is still startling.  Why?  Tax dollars — particularly at the state and local level — are in short supply.  We are asking our educational institutions to do more and more with fewer resources.  And we face changing demands and increased requirements in the process.
That community college drop-out cost reflects $3 billion in state and locally appropriated money — read taxpayer dollars — that fails to deliver maximum return on investment.  It includes $240 million in direct grants from the state to the student, another investment that falls short.  And it includes $660 million in federal aid to students, at a time when Pell Grants are under direct assault.
And the costs don’t include the dollars spent by families and students for that first year of community college.  Nor does it include those students who are, or rather were, part-time community college students.  Nor does it include direct federal support or capital investments in those institutions, two other taxpayer-funded supports for the community college experience.
What is the grand takeaway from all of this?  Put simply, we need greater focus on our outcomes.  With taxpayer dollars at a premium and postsecondary degrees almost a non-negotiable in today’s economy, we need to be doing anything and everything to keep kids in school and increase the number earning their degrees.  
If we are serious about honoring President Obama’s promise that the United States will have the highest percentage of college graduates in the world, we must first focus on those who are already in the higher ed pipeline.  What do we do about the 20 percent of first-year community college students who never return for year two?  And how do we better spend that $1 billion a year in taxpayer funds to accomplish it?
(Full disclosure: Eduflack has advised AIR and Dr. Schneider over the years.)

Ed Reform Power Rests with the States

Eduflack accountability, ESEA, NCLB

Now that the dust has settled and we’ve been able to take the weekend to reflect on the lessons learned from last week’s U.S. Senate mark-up of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, what are the major takeaways and lessons learned?

That is the big question asked by the National Journal on its Education Experts Blog.  Check out my full post here.  For those looking for a little taste …
We will continue to look to our nation’s capital for bold rhetoric on education reform and for targeted funding for pilot efforts and the incubation of new ideas. But last week’s hearings (as well as much of the last decade) has made clear that real reform needs to come from state capitols, not from Washington, DC. States (and by extension, localities) are the captains of our educational fates.  

As always, the National Journal Blog is worth checking out, and the posts will just keep coming.

The Perfect, The Good, or The Unacceptable?

Eduflack accountability, ESEA, NCLB

All week, we have seen the kabuki theater that is the Senate HELP Committee debate the latest version of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.  From Sen. Harkin (IA) negotiating against himself by weakening teacher accountability provisions before the markup even began to the reams of amendments intended by Sen. Paul (KY) to Sen. Sanders (VT) intending to place scarlet letters on the chests of any educator who didn’t experience four or six years of a traditional education school experience, it was theater to say the least.

This week, Eduflack debuts over at the National Journal’s Education Experts Blog.  The topic?  Harkin’s ESEA draft.  Check out my thoughts on how this is no longer a “perfect being the enemy of the good” deal, particularly when the proposed accountability provisions serve as a significant step back.

ESEA: It’s Finally Here (sorta)

Eduflack accountability, Achievement gap, AYP, ESEA, NCLB

The day has finally come.  This afternoon, Senate HELP Chairman Tom Harkin (IA) officially unveiled his draft of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.  The bill offers the sexy title “Elementary and Secondary Education Reauthorization Act of 2011.”

The highlights: Adequate Yearly Progress is history.  Race to the Top and i3 are woven into the tapestry of ESEA.  HQT is gone, replaced by a plan to better evaluate teachers.  
Alyson Klein over at EdWeek’s Politics K-12 has a great summary of the bill and why we were offered what was released today.
Even in advance of the release, civil rights organizations expressed concern about the ESEA draft, worried that the death of AYP provides the potential for turning back recent accountability measures and expanding some already dreadful achievement gaps.  You can see the full letter sent by six civil rights orgs today to Senator Harkin here.  That drumbeat is likely only going to get louder as the language is further sliced and diced.
One big question remains — Is it necessary?  At this stage of the game, NCLB is known mostly for its testing provisions, and most of those remain in the draft.  Replacing AYP with another tool and funding RttT and i3 on an annual basis are steps the EdSec can take, with or without a new ESEA (as long as he has a congressional checkbook to support the latter).  And we won’t even raise the issue of how this fits with House Education Chairman John Kline (MN)’s piecemeal approach to reauth.
So while this finally puts a flag in the edu-ground for Harkin and Senate Democrats, no one should be rushing to schedule a bill signing any time soon.  And if we truly want to get it on the calendar now, there are probably some lovely openings in the spring of 2013 just waiting to be booked.  That sounds about right for an ESEA reauth signing.
But we have to start somewhere, don’t we?
 

A Great Public School for All Children

Eduflack Achievement gap, AYP, charter schools, Parents, teachers

For the past four and a half years, Eduflack has written about education reform.  What is working.  What is not.  How successful are we communicating our efforts to improve our public schools.  For the most part, I’ve done so from the cheap seats, observing from the sidelines, watching through the eyes of an observer, a consultant, or an advisor.

This morning, ConnCAN (the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now) formally announced me as its new CEO.  This is a tremendously exciting opportunity.  For years now, I have seen ConnCAN as the gold standard in state-based education advocacy organizations.  From its school report cards to its reports to its community engagement and advocacy, ConnCAN has demonstrated a clear path for how a state (and a nation) can provide a great public school for all children.
More importantly, ConnCAN isn’t shy about tackling the tough issues.  Many organizations in the education sector often struggle with the question of whether it is better to lose big or win small.  Over the years, ConnCAN has been able to win big on issues that matter to real families and real communities.  And its “no fear” attitude allows it to advocate for bigger and more significant agendas each and every year, priorities that can directly impact our communities and our economies.
Through recent efforts, the organization has made clear that the status quo in public education simply cannot stand.  If we are serious about closing the achievement gap, improving opportunities, and providing a great public education to all students, we must take bold steps.  Tinkering around the edges will not cut it.  Real change demands real action.  And that means implementing a school funding formula that addresses the needs of today and tomorrow, not the expectations of the past.  It means a great focus on teacher quality, where every student — regardless of race, socio-economic status, or zip code — has educators who are effective and supported.  And it means a community that is united in its vision to improve the quality of public education for all, recognizing there are NO excuses for achievement and instructional gaps.
I am incredibly fortunate to be working with such a terrific team, each and every one committed to bringing real change and real improvement to our public schools.  I am incredibly fortunate to work with a board equally committed to such improvement.  And I am honored to be working with a network of advocates, friends, partners, teachers, parents, and policymakers all dedicated to improving our schools and charting new, more effective paths to lasting school improvement. 
As the son of educators, I was raised to believe that there was nothing more important than a good education.  Through organizations like ConnCAN, we can clearly see how fixing our schools is possible and the social, economic, and community benefits that come from such a commitment. 
 

Yes, We 50CAN!

Eduflack Achievement gap, Social media

For years now, Eduflack has written about how real, meaningful educational change happens at the state level.  Yes, the Feds have the bully pulpit, as evidenced by today’s expected White House announcement to provide waivers to those state willing to play ball with regard to AYP and student achievement.  But it ultimately falls to individual states to set the agenda, develop the policies, fund the plan, and implement real improvements with fidelity.

Programs like Race to the Top help jumpstart the process, but after the last check is cashed, it falls to those governors, state departments of education, and state boards of education to follow through.  And don’t forget about the superintendents, school boards, teachers, and advocates who make it happen.
Even the most well-meaning state, though, can use a little support, assistance, encouragement, and, if necessary, someone to hold feet to the fire.  
Yesterday was the official launch of just such a broker, with the formal unveiling of 50CAN, the 50-state campaign for achievement now.  50CAN’s new website is chock full of information on what is possible when it comes to real, state-level education reform.  It also spotlights four state CAN organizations — Maryland, Minnesota, New York, and Rhode Island — which have been built upon the groundbreaking work of ConnCAN in Connecticut.
In rolling out 50CAN’s new website, 50CAN President and Co-Founder Marc Porter Magee says it best:

50CAN’s mission is to identify and support local leaders who build movements within their states to ensure that every child has access to a great public school.  As 50CAN board member and National Council of La Raza Senior Vice President Delia Pompa says on our new website, “The job going forward is to create a larger podium for those who are guided by the interests of children.”

That’s what 50CAN is all about. We provide amazing local leaders with the tools to build powerful advocacy movements in their state, including national-caliber communications and research such as websites, lobbying strategies, policy expertise and social media savvy. By empowering local leaders, we are helping create a lasting, research-grounded education reform movement capable of tackling 50 sets of education policy challenges in 50 states.

The website and 50CAN’s twitter feed (@fiftycan) are well worth the look if you are serious education reform.  And the work being done through the CAN network is where the lasting state-based school improvement work will be percolating first and offering real longevity.