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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis:
K-12 Aid Faces Uncertain Future, Despite ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Deal
Education programs would be spared the prospect of the largest across-the-board cuts in history, but only temporarily, under a bill to avert much of the so-called “fiscal cliff,” overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. Senate early Tuesday morning. UPDATE: The House approved the measure late Tuesday by a vote of 257 to 167. Nearly every Democrat voted for the bill, while 85 Republicans supported it. Sixteen Democrats, and 151 Republicans voted against the measure. (Education Week – Politics K-12)
The 10 Most-Viewed EdWeek Stories of 2012
To give a sense of what was high on our readers’ priority lists in 2012, the editors at Education Week compiled a list of our ten most-viewed articles. Below, those stories are ordered by the number of online page views they generated. Take a look at what other readers saw as the most interesting pieces of the year, and catch up on news you may have missed in 2012. (Education Week)
Texas among 10 states facing lawsuits over education funding
This month in an Austin courtroom, two-thirds of the school districts in Texas will resume their argument that the state’s school-financing system is inadequate and inequitable and that it creates a de facto statewide property tax, forbidden by the state constitution. (Washington Post)
Brown plans extensive changes for school funding in 2013
Gov. Jerry Brown will push this year to upend the way schools are funded in California, hoping to shift more money to poorer districts and end requirements that billions of dollars be spent on particular programs. (Los Angeles Times)
Pennsylvania:
Philadelphia School District Plans to Close Dozens of Schools
Like many public schools here, University City High School is underused, underfinanced and underperforming. Nearly 80 percent of its 11th-grade students read below grade level in statewide tests this year, while 85 percent failed to make the grade in math. Last year, about only a quarter of its students participated in precollege testing like the SAT. (New York Times)
View Points:
Rick Hess: Ten Edu-Stories We’ll Be Reading in 2013
Last year, I took a shot at predicting some of the key edu-headlines we’d be reading in 2012. You can check ’em here to score my accuracy for yourself. Meanwhile, here’s a guess at some of the key edu-headlines we’ll be reading in 2013. (Education Week – Rick Hess Straight Up)