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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
When Neil J. McNeill Jr., principal of the Middle School for Art and Philosophy in Brooklyn, learned that fewer than 4 percent of his students had passed state exams in math last year, he was frustrated. (New York Times)
TEA PARTY opposition to the new education standards in the Common Core is getting a lot of attention. Far more threatening is the less-noticed pushback from teachers’ unions. Even as union leaders profess support for rigorous standards, local and state affiliates are working to weaken, delay or undermine them. (Washington Post)
Kansas lawmakers have passed a bill to make it easier to fire teachers. The legislation will take away some of the employment protections offered to teachers. Supporters say school administrators need the flexibility to remove teachers who aren’t performing, but as Kansas Public Radio’s Stephen Koranda reports, teachers argue this will allow them to be fired for unfair reasons. (NPR)
New Jersey
Camden teachers rallied in the face of deep staff cuts Monday night. The crowd got so loud at the Board of Education meeting that Superintendent Paymon Rouhanifard refrained from speaking and went right to the public comment portion of the session. (Courier Post)
Pennsylvania
A proposed new formula for special education funding in Pennsylvania will better tailor resources to fit diverse levels of student need, lawmakers say. (Watchdog.org)