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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis:
The Illusion of the “Gifted” Child
When news broke late last week that behemoth education company Pearson had bungled the scoring of standardized tests used for admissions to gifted education programs in New York City, it united Gotham’s quarrelling education community — everyone was outraged. Parents, teachers, and city officials all had good reason to be, as the scoring errors would have denied admission to 2,700 students who qualified. But the incident also highlighted the arbitrary nature of how we decide which students are so superior academically that they are essentially funnelled into an elite group of schools with a specialized, advanced curriculum. (Time Ideas)
Study: There may not be a shortage of American STEM graduates after all
If there’s one thing that everyone can agree on in Washington, it’s that the country has a woeful shortage of workers trained in science, technology, engineering and math — what’s referred to as STEM. (Washington Post)
21st-Century Teacher Education
For almost as long as there have been institutions dedicated to the preparation of new teachers, the endeavor has come in for criticism. Teacher education has long struggled both to professionalize and to fully integrate itself into mainstream academia. At the core of this struggle was a perception that there was no body of specialized knowledge for teaching that justified specialized training. (Education Next)
National Assessment Of Educational Progress In Economics Finds Less Than Half Of 12th Graders ‘Proficient’
Fewer than half of high school seniors are proficient in economics, according to the results of the 2012 National Assessment of Educational Progress exam released Wednesday. This statistic is causing alarm among educators and advocates, especially in an era marked by economic crisis. (Huffington Post)
Pennsylvania:
Three Philly schools get grants to expand
Three of Philadelphia’s most innovative traditional public schools are set to expand, thanks to $6 million in grants from the nonprofit Philadelphia School Partnership. (The Notebook)