The kiddos will not be happy with me for saying this, but thank goodness spring break is winding down. There’s no break for school reporting:
- The Union-Tribune reports that a judge said that no, Helix High can’t stop Grossmont schools from trying to revoke its charter — at least, not yet. Grossmont is still weighing what to do after a Helix official violated its code of conduct.
- Also in the UT: Efforts to curb bullying seem to be working. And an editorial argues that the Obama Administration should focus reforms on more than just the worst schools.
- School board member John de Beck writes in SDNN that schools should start offering tangible rewards like cash for good behavior and grades.
- Poway schools may stop running buses to save money, the North County Times reports.
- The Los Angeles Times writes that Chinese government programs to help U.S. kids learn Mandarin have raised suspicions around Los Angeles, although there are a handful already operating in San Diego.
- Monterey County schools are looking south to Chula Vista as a beacon of hope for teaching English learners, the Herald in Monterey County reports.
- The San Jose Mercury News has more on student and parent protests of the book that gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner wrote about teaching at a San Jose high school.
- Educated Guess blogs that California got miserable marks for its science and math education when judges were poring over its application for more stimulus money for schools.
- The UC and CSU schools are waitlisting students for the first time, the Sacramento Bee writes.
- A former teacher writes in the San Francisco Chronicle that tricks for acing standardized tests are undercutting students’ work in college.
- Also in the Chron: Two education wonks argue that a 10th grade diploma is a bad idea.
- Education Week writes about what’s at stake in the second round of Race to the Top, with $3.4 billion left on the table.
- Losing states are questioning whether Race to the Top was fair, The New York Times reports. California might not even take part in the second round of the contest.
- Claus von Zastrow argues that the debate over school reform is putting too much value on ‘boldness’ and not enough on being effective.
- Parents in Utah are protesting schools’ use of the word “democracy”, saying they should be talking about the United States as a republic, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
- Eduwonk blogs that the media is overselling the idea that Race to the Top valued consensus with teachers unions over reform.
- And USA Today writes about what could be a watershed case of school bullying in Massachusetts.
— EMILY ALPERT