Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Chicago-Style School Reform a National Model?

There are indeed radically different opinions as to how Arne Duncan has succeeded in creating lasting school reform in Chicago. Some say we should use his and Mayor Daley's Renaissance 2010 reform as a national model, while others have poited out the dissapoitments and contradictions apparent from the intiative. Here are two examples of professional opinions each highlighting their understanding of Chicago-style reform. I think the disagreements highlight why it is crucial to try a different type of reform that is saving money and giving parents the freedom to choose.

An article from the Washington Post today explains (kind of) why Chicago could be used as a National model and describes Duncan's reform tactics and his personal ambition:
"What sets Duncan apart, education experts said, is his willingness to embrace a range of reforms and his ability to work with people who hold diverging, often conflicting views on how to fix schools. He has straddled the reform divide: On one side are advocates of dramatic shake-ups and tough accountability, and on the other are teachers unions and some educators who want more flexibility, support and money." -Maria Glod Washington Post Staff Writer
On the other hand, here is a commentary in today's Chicago Sun-Times by Julie Woestehoff, Executive Director of P.U.R.E. (Parents United for Responsible Education) calling for the end of Renaissance 2010's school closings, policy under Arne Duncan. She proposes that these closings have done much more harm then good for students and that unfortunately, test scores that may have improved at several Renaissance 2010 schools are merely results of a change in student population.

"A close look at Sherman (Elementary) shows less than exciting results, which also are compromised by a significant alteration in the student population as evidenced by the enrollment drop and the drop in the school's low-income rate, from 99 percent in 2006, the year before the takeover, to 84.2 percent in 2008."
What is significant about both the Washington Post article as well as the commentary from a well respected parent and public advocate, is that there simply are mixed results as well as mixed feelings across the board as how well the initiative is working. Many newspapers are touting the Chicago-Style Reform as a clear path, while plenty are also speaking out against such a move, or that it simply won't happen.

Although Duncan an Daley have done a great deal in exercising more innovative approaches to education reform by creating some exciting new Charter schools, this has not opened up enough options for parents. Unfortunately most of the Charter schools that have opened have limited space, and students (even if they live in the neighborhood), are regularly put on a waiting list. Why not focus on reform initiatives that have proven to work? If the local charter does not have enough space, or if the local neighborhood public school is not performing up to high-quality standards, we should be giving parents the options to send their child to a high-performing charter, private or public school outside of their neighborhood. By using a corporate tax-credit scholarship program such as in Florida, parents could potentially send their child to private schools with a tuition, or charter and public schools that require more resources (i.e.; transportation) then their neighborhood school would.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

20 of city's public schools slated to close or merge CPS | 8-12 face 'turnaround' for poor performance

"Some schools will be reopened as part of Mayor Daley's Renaissance 2010 initiative to create 100 new schools by 2010, Pickens said. But other schools that close at the end of the school year "will remain dormant for years...''
This is what a National Model looks like? Parent's are not only left without choices, but now with less and less schools to choose from.

Monday, December 29, 2008

In Need of Improvement: Revising NCLB's School Choice Provision

This report by Erin Dillon of Education Sector, is an interesting analysis of how the Choice provision in NCLB is missing the mark when it comes to giving students the options to transfer schools. The report goes into depth of what can be done in order to reach the lowest-achieving students, giving the most disadvanataged the options first.

"By targeting choice to the lowest-performing schools and students, offering incentives to encourage higher-performing schools to accept transferring students, and providing additional supports to students in their first years at a new school, we may begin to see more robust results from school choice under NCLB."


Colorado Group Sets Out to Build Many New, Small, High-Quality Schools

Written By: Jillian Melchior
Published In: School Reform News > December 2008
Publication date: 12/01/2008
Publisher: The Heartland Institute

Arizona Supreme Court to Decide Future Of Scholarships for Special Needs and Foster Children


“These scholarships have provided educational opportunity and real hope for a better life for hundreds of Arizona schoolchildren—and they are completely consistent with our state Constitution and policy traditions,”
-Tim Keller, executive director of the Institute for Justice Arizona Chapter. Keller argued before the court in defense of the programs on behalf of scholarship families.

Watch a video
from the Institute of Justice that explains the significance of the Tax Scholarship Program for Special Needs Children in Arizona.

More students get state to pay private tuition

This article from the Orlando Sentinel outlines Florida's corporate tax-credit program.

Offer vouchers for special education: It would save money and improve quality


A special education voucher program has the potential not only to help disabled students learn, but also to save scarce state and city dollars. A senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, Marcus Winters, explains how the voucher program in Florida accomplishes just this.
"...all disabled students are eligible for a voucher that is worth the lesser of the amount the public school would have spent on them or the tuition at a chosen private school. The value of the average voucher for disabled students there is $7,295. Not only is this far less than what the state spends to educate a disabled student in a public school, it is even below the state's much lower average per-pupil cost of educating all students, both disabled and regular enrollment. In other words, the public system actually saves money when it pays for students to attend private school, and even more money when those students are disabled."

Editorial: Choice Pays Off


School Choice option working for kids in D.C.

Flordia tax-payers save $39 million from Corporate Tax Credit School Scholarships


According to an editorial in the Panama City News Herald:
"Giving students and their parents more opportunities to attend the schools of their choice is first and foremost a fundamental issue of freedom. But a new government study suggests that policy also has fiscal benefits."
Florida's legislature watch dog agency, the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Governmental Accountability put out a report that the state's Corporate Tax-Credit Program has saved Flordia tax payers $38.9 million dollars, which is considerable, particularly when state's budget's are tightening so significantly. It seems that if the research shows that this does indeed save tax-payers money, and almost 20,000 students are benefiting at the same time, why shouldn't students and tax payers in Illinois be able to benefit as well?

To read the full report, visit: http://tinyurl.com/4t2slb

Flordia's Choice Program


Here is some useful information that the Friedman Foundation has published regarding Florida's corporate tax credit. Data from 2006-2007 show that there were a total of 19,416 scholarships given out, (valued at $3,750 per student) with 906 private schools participating in the program.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Arne Duncan. Bridging the divide?


This article from the Washington Post describes how the new Education Secretary, Arne Duncan has reached out to both sides of the spectrum when it comes to finding solutions to reform Chicago's schools.

So Obama sends his kids to private school...big deal?

Rather then exposing the so-called 'hypocrisy' of our new President Elect, I think it is more interesting to perhaps expose the hypocrisy of the system we are living in. Our Constitution and our legal system, the backbone of upholding civil liberties and rights in this country, preach equality and opportunity for all. Unfortunately, outside of the legislature, there is a stark reality of systematically established, institutional hierarchies in almost all realms of the social. In the case of education, those that are less fortunate are stuck in under performing, under invested educational institutions, while those that are privileged have the option to choose from pristine college prep schools, with highly qualified teachers, the best resources available and an overall healthy learning environment.

Obama's choice highlights the very controversial issues surrounding education reform and the School Choice Movement. It is not that the President Elect doesn't support private schools and charter schools, but he also supports public education, and most importantly, what public education stands for in our society, and it's purpose in a democracy. Without free, K-12 public education we do indeed take the risk of controlling who has access to knowledge, therefore taking the risk of who has access to the democratic process.

Unfortunately, we are already living in a society that is creating this type of hierarchy based on privilege, and School Choice Illinois understands this. When our free public schools are not performing up to the standards of private institutions, and those institutions are only available if you have the means to attend, there becomes a two-tier educational system of haves and have-nots.

School Choice Illinois and other school choice advocacy groups across the nation are creating awareness about this crucial issue, as well as creating viable solutions as to how parents can have more control over their child's education. Unfortunately, as long as the issue of school choice is viewed as an issue between the right and the left or the "reformers" versus the "status quo," or even private versus public schools, people will remain uneducated about their rights and about what they can do to fight and advocate for more educational options across the state and the country. As far as we are concerned, as long as there remains a crisis in public education, and as long as solutions to the problems facing public education are solved, parents that might not have the financial options to send their children to different schools MUST have other options. Otherwise, we are leaving the most disadvantaged children behind, as well as creating an environment where the democratic process becomes irrelevant.

Bi-partisan Support


Here are some articles relating to the growing bi-partisan support of School Choice. We believe strongly that it is necessary to gain support from a broad spectrum of political affiliates in order advance this issue in Illinois. For School Choice Illinois, the issue is not a right or left concept....it is about creating more opportunities for students and communities.

Hispanic Wire
Washington Post/Congress
Friedman Foundation