US falls behind other nations in the global knowledge economy, says 46-country report Hechinger Report: The United States continues to fall behind internationally in producing a college-educated workforce as other nations send more of their citizens to university. And in the very early years, many countries are now sending a much higher percentage of their kids to preschool than the United States. See also US News, AP, HuffPost.
Sen. Murray: Revised No Child Left Behind law ‘great step forward’ Seattle Times: One day after House and Senate negotiators reached an agreement about a revised No Child Left Behind law, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray spoke about the law and its effect on Washington schools.
Chicago Teachers Union chief tells rallying teachers: ‘When we must, we will withhold our labor’ Sun-Times: In front of a screaming crowd of thousands who braved a frigid night to show their strength, and joined by legislators, pastors and other labor leaders, Lewis said, “It is time for us to act.”
Admissions Quota Proposed in Brooklyn School Rezoning NYT: The Education Department said that students receiving subsidized lunches would be given admissions priority for half the seats at a Brooklyn school that is the subject of a contested rezoning proposal. See also WNYC: Decision to Rezone Two Brooklyn Schools Now Rests with Parent Council.
Virginia Should Scale Back Standards Of Learning Tests, Recommends Committee WAMU: In the wake of a backlash, education leaders in Virginia are trying to rethink how the state approaches its Standards of Learning standardized tests, including reducing the length of tests and revising graduation requirements.
California suspension rates way down, study finds KPCC: Statewide, there were 709,580 suspensions in the 2011-2012 academic year. Two years later that number declined nearly a third, to 503,101. Los Angeles Unified School District’s suspensions dropped by nearly two-thirds. African-American students saw the biggest suspension drop of any ethnic or racial group. See also HuffPost.
Family of Muslim Teen Seeks $15M in Clock Incident AP: A law firm representing Ahmed Mohamed sent letters Monday demanding $10 million from the city of Irving and $5 million from the Irving Independent School District. The letters also threaten lawsuits and seek written apologies.
