Los Angeles redux. The performance data of 18,000 New York City public school teachers is now in the public’s hands, and SchoolBook has been updating here, where they also plan to publish all of the rankings. Side note: helpful (unrelated), color-coded graphic showing which states link student performance data to teacher evaluation scores. (New York Times/NewsDay)
Extending the school year. The Orange County, Calif., education superintendent wants a longer school year—by 15 days. The extra three weeks, he says, would allow for more training for essential, high-demand STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers. True enough, Education Sector’s Elena Silva would say. But she’d also caution: extended learning time doesn’t always equate to better student performance. (Orange County Register)
Big blow to charter operator sends message. The Ohio Department of Education denied four of six applications from the “Goliath of Ohio’s charter school operators,” White Hat Management. The folks at the Fordham Institute say it’s a sign of higher demands for quality and accountability in the state’s charter system. (Ohio Gadly Daily)
Viewing classrooms through a different lens. Mark Anderson, a New York City teacher and Teacher Sector participant, says we need to move away from viewing schools as “knowledge manufacturing facilities” and instead, see them as “dynamic learning ecosystems.” (Schools as Ecosystems)
