District Administration articles from April 2007

District Administration archives from April 2007

Re- re- re- reform: new reports show 12th-graders are learning less than they did fifteen years ago.(Editorial)
April 1, 2007... Throughout my career in education, it seems that we have been reforming the K12 curriculum each year. It also seems that movements to make the curriculum more liberal or more conservative are soon replaced by movements in the opposite...

2008 education budget gives and takes away.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)
April 1, 2007... President Bush's proposed 2008 education budget offers a mixed bag for school districts, increasing Title I money for high schools but cutting funds for vocational education and a technology assistance program. In its budget the Bush...

Center for American Progress report examines teacher compensation.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... A new report from the Center for American Progress, "Teacher Compensation in Charter and Private Schools," examines teacher compensation policies for lessons to help public schools more effectively recruit and keep high-quality teachers. ...

Ohio district eases high school transition for students.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)
April 1, 2007... One of life's more challenging transitions is being made just a little easier for eighth- and ninth-graders in the Cleveland Municipal School District (www.cmsdnet.net) in Ohio, thanks to a five-year United Way Vision Council grant given in...

Fruit tree tour rolls through California.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)
April 1, 2007... Inner-city students throughout California are learning about sustainable ecology and turning their barren schoolyards into abundant orchards of apples, pears, cherries, plums and more, through the Common Vision (www.commonvision.org) fourth...

AASA superintendent of the year announced.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)(Krista Parent, American Association of School Administrators)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Krista Parent, superintendent of the South Lane School District in cottage Grove, Ore., was named the 2007 National Superintendent of the Year at the March AASA conference. Parent was featured in DA's March Update as a Superintendent of the...

Wired for success: discovering the potential of category 5 cable.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)(making use of full potential of twisted pair wiring by school districts)
April 1, 2007... Many school districts throughout the U.S. have installed category 5 cabling to move voice, video and data that can enhance the way they teach and operate. However, many district administrators are not aware of its potential for new and emerging...

Nike grants support schools in its Oregon home.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)(Nike School Innovation Fund )(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Free Oregon districts-Portland Public Schools, Hillsboro Public Schools and the Beaverton School District--in January received grants from the Nike School Innovation Fund (NSIF) totaling $9 million to support innovative schooling methods...

New Dell Web site to share educational technology ideas.(Update: NEWS, STATS AND FAST FACTS)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Dell Chairman and CEO Michael Dell said at a statewide education summit in Texas in February that today's Internet generation is poised to use technology in revolutionary ways, but we must work to ensure they can translate that technical...

Indianapolis district streamlines NCLB tutoring.(Inside the Law)(Indianapolis Public Schools, No Child Left Behind Act)
April 1, 2007... It's one thing for struggling schools to provide free tutoring services to low-income students under the No Child Left Behind law. Ensuring that students have the resources to take advantage of the opportunities is another matter. To meet...

AASA responds to NCLB commission report.(Inside the Law)(American Association of School Administrators, No Child Left Behind Act)
April 1, 2007... The bipartisan Commission on No Child Left Behind issued the 230-page "Beyond NCLB" report in February, a blueprint of seventy-five recommendations on how Congress should revamp the federal law, and quickly drew fire from the American...

Charter schools to revamp public schools and close achievement gap.(Inside the Law)(National Alliance for Public Charter Schools)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... While policymakers fervently discuss often contrasting ways to renew the No Child Left Behind law, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools President Nelson Smith is calling for a "new schools" strategy that would use charter laws to...

Stretching the digital canvas.(Curriculum Update)(Painter X from Corel )(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Painter X from Corel makes it possible for art teachers to leave the traditional art room for the digital workspace that many professional artists use today. It comes with a free curriculum created by Stephanie Reese, an accredited high school...

Handhelds in Hawaii.(Curriculum Update)(Indigo Learning Systems used in elementary schools)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... A pilot program funded by the Jacoby Group of Companies and supported by the Hawaii State Department of Education in 2005 supplied 1,000 students with Indigo Learning System wireless devices from LearningSoft. Teachers at Konawaena Elementary...

A personalized reading coach.(Curriculum Update)(Stapleton Elementary School uses Soliloquy Reading Assistant software)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Remedial readers are able to increase accuracy, fluency, comprehension and confidence using a microphone headset, computer and Soliloquy Reading Assistant software by Soliloquy Learning. Stapleton Elementary School in Framingham, Mass. has been...

Cleveland's universal student desktops.(Curriculum Update)(Cleveland Municipal School District uses AppStream software)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... In December 2006, the Cleveland Municipal School District deployed AppStream software to simplify software application management. It allows the district to stream educational applications to 12,000 desktops in more than 100 buildings without...

Buffalo (N.Y.) public schools: partnering with higher ed.(District Profile)
April 1, 2007... There are 20 colleges and universities in Buffalo, N.Y., and the school district has a partnership with almost all of them. Buffalo Public Schools has been capitalizing on its proximity to these institutions with a series of partnerships that...

Mike Horan, Sarasota County public schools: a district & county alliance.(Administrator Profile)
April 1, 2007... In 2005 Sarasota's Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gary Norris and County Administrator Jim Ley lamented some of the issues each saw in his work. Realizing that many of their processes and costs were being replicated, the administrator made a...

"See you in court!" The words every administrator hates can be avoided if you know how to play the game. Here's how.(THE LAW)
April 1, 2007... Almost every school attorney--and plenty of school administrators--can tell you about a lawsuit that seems right out of a Franz Kafka novel. In one case, "a girl's father sued because she wasn't allowed to sit at the lunch table she wanted,"...

Lost in translation: fewer than 50,000 American students study Chinese, compared to 200 million Chinese students studying English, but the gap is beginning to narrow.(CURRICULUM)(Cover story)
April 1, 2007... IN 2002, THE CHINESE AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL School, a private preK-8 school in San Francisco, cosponsored a one-day workshop for Chinese language teachers from the Bay Area. Most of the 40 teachers who attended came from heritage schools, which...

Bonding agents: administrators have more input on district bond ratings than they realize.(ADMINISTRATIVE SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... It might feel as if getting a bond rating for your district is a sign about how good or bad your teachers and schools are, but at the heart of it, those letters are just a measure to investors of how risky it is to lend a district money Get...

Certifying AP courses: districts bear the burden of new Advanced Placement audit requirements.(STANDARDS & ASSESSMENT)
April 1, 2007... About 100,000 teachers of Advanced Placement courses, most of them in U.S. high schools, have an extra on their desks this spring. for them, not their students. their courses designated as "AP" in the 2007-2008 academic year, so they can be...

Hunting for talent: Part 2 in a series on recruiting as the number of highly qualified administrators shrinks, school recruiters are changing how they do business.(HUMAN RESOURCES)
April 1, 2007... Four years ago, when Larry Leverett was being recruited for superintendent at Greenwich Public Schools in Connecticut, members of the search committee did something he didn't expect. They invited him and his wife to dinner. Committee...

Buying power: E-procurement systems help districts save time and money.(FINANCIAL SERVICES)
April 1, 2007... Procurement can be complicated and time consuming, as everyone from librarians to teachers to administrators navigate through multiple printed forms, thick product catalogs, numerous vendors, time-sensitive price lists, as well as purchase...

The musty bookshelf Dyrli takes a jaundiced look at "must read" professional books for educators.(HUMOR: APRIL FOOLS' BONUS)
April 1, 2007... Note that unpopular selections will be reissued under new titles, so watch for them. COLLECTED CONFERENCE CONCLUSIONS edited by Travis T. Hourbul Committees should be free to talk and not waste valuable time taking notes and arguing...

Math Intervention Curriculum: Camelot Learning.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.camelotlearning.com Curriculum, $349 Each of this curriculum's 120 lessons fit within a traditional classroom period. Social development and team building are enhanced as students are motivated to share and interact through small group...

Get Test Smart! Scholastic.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.scholastic.com Book, $6.99 The book's author, Dr. Laurie Rozakis, who is also an experienced teacher, provides students between the ages of 9 and 12 with concrete advice about strategies to use on test day, including how they can get...

New LCD projectors: Panasonic.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.panasonic.com/projectors, Hardware, $4,399-$4,999 Panasonic's three new LCD projectors--PT-F100U, PT-F100NTU and PT-FW100NTU--offer lens shift and 2x power zoom capabilities that help reduce installation costs by allowing the projectors...

NetOp School 5.0.: Danware.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.netop.com, Software, $727/one teacher and I0 students NetOp School 5.0 enables teachers to monitor student activities and to simultaneously broadcast their or any student's screen image to every PC in the class. With the improved test...

Podium: RM Educational Software.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.rmeducation.com, Software, Starts at $499 With Podium, students can create, edit and publish podcasts from a simple interface. Through its scripting tool, they can also record an extract from a classic, such as Shakespeare, for one of...

Wireless Management Suite 5.0.: Airwave Wireless.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.airwave.com Software, Starts at $5,000 This management suite supports a broad range of WiFi solutions, including controller-based systems and autonomous access points. It now encompasses mesh and WiMax infrastructure. Its Universal...

WebLessons: Learners Online.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.weblessons.com, System, Starts at $750 WebLessons offers students a step-by-step learning path complete with instructions, study questions, vocabulary, quizzes and inquiry-based projects. Students can turn in their work online and also...

Kids Works Deluxe: Knowledge Adventure.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.knowledgeadventure.com Software, $30/license Kids Works Deluxe has been upgraded to run on Windows Vista and Macintosh OSX systems. Its all-in-one publishing tool combines a word processor and paint program. Elementary school students...

vRoom: Elluminate.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.getvroom.com, Software, Free; This free version allows online interaction for up to three users for communication, collaboration and education through Web conferencing. Users can offer online tutoring or schedule virtual office hours...

Prosper assessment system: Pearson Assessments.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.pearsonassessments.com Software, Starts at $1,695/single computer license The latest version of the Prosper assessment system includes new reports that allow teachers and school administrators to identify at-risk students as well as...

PassagePoint EDU: STOPware.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.stopware.com, Software, $1,685 Using this security software, school staff can badge visitors and volunteers and also pre-register visitors and groups by pre-printing badges. It works with TEMPbadge's expiring school badges and includes...

ELLIS Essentials 2.6.: Pearson Digital Learning.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.pearsondigital.com, Web-based software, $65-$76 per year This English language learning software is categorized into three age-appropriate modules that gauge the abilities of elementary grade students, prescribe targeted instruction and...

Odyssey Assessment Solution: CompassLearning.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.compasslearning.com Software, Starts at $220 Odyssey's PreK-12 standards-aligned curriculum provides interactive and self-paced activities that promote exploration and individual and cooperative learning through problem solving,...

Modero Trench Panel (NDX-1000Vi): AMX.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.amx.com Hardware, $6,300 This touch panel now comes with an intercom with Voice over Internet Protocol technology. The intercom capabilities enable users to place panel-to-panel calls and broadcast a message to all touch panels within...

Science Court: Tom Snyder Productions.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.tomsnydercom. Software, $45 per title This program helps elementary school students build an understanding of hard-to-teach science concepts and tackles scientific fallacies through guided discussion, written worksheets, multimedia and...

Toast 8 Titanium: Roxio.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.roxio.com, Software, $99 Toast 8 Titanium targets users of CD, DVD and Blu-Ray burners and iPod owners. It includes Blu-ray Disc burning support, automatic disc cataloging, cross-platform data spanning and disc restoration....

Virtual PRS: Interwrite Learning.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.interwriteleaming.com, Software, $29 per user Virtual PRS is designed to be used with networked computers or Windows-based PDAs in a classroom with or without the company's PRS RF clickers. It functions as a virtual clicker, allowing...

American Anthem Power Presentations with Video CD-ROM: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.hrw.com, Curriculum, $193.75 These support materials complement the American Anthem textbook programs for students in grades 9-12. The CD-ROM contains a variety of resources that help teachers infuse visual elements and multimedia into...

CCC! Video On Demand 2.0.: New Dimension Media.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.cccvod.com, Video, Starts, at $2,995 The 2.0 version integrates with iTunes, allowing students and teachers to watch K12 core curriculum content anywhere on their IPods. Webcasts of classroom sessions, school sporting events, cultural...

TeacherLine: PBS.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.pbs.org/teacherline Online courses, $169/15 hours, $249/45 hours WGBH Education Foundation in Boston has partnered with PBS to bring its Teachers' Domain online science courses to PBS TeacherLine's national online professional...

Pokemon Learning League: Pokemon USA.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.pokemonleamingleague.com Online lessons, $145 per classroom The Learning League suite of animated, interactive lessons helps teachers reinforce core curriculum topics in language arts, math, science and life skills for grades 3-6. The...

The Literary Center: LeapFrog SchoolHouse.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.leapfrogschoolhouse.com/ theliteracycenter Software, Starts at $1,895 This new version for English language learners includes interactive books with Spanish language support and new teacher resources for multilanguage classrooms. It...

iRespond: Wireless eSystems.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.irespond.com, System, $1,223-$4,753 The wireless scoring and reporting system automates the creation and distribution of assessment. Teachers can instantaneously identify and track each student's comprehension level, modify any lesson...

Holt Mathematics Online Editions: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.hrw.com, Online textbook, $53.95-$63.95 The online series includes Courses 1-3, Algebra 1, Geometry and Algebra 2 for students in middle school and high school. Teachers can choose from ready-made exams that are correlated to the...

Painter X: Corel.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.corel.com/painterx Software, Starts at $99/education edition This painting and illustration software uses a RealBristle Painting System that replicates traditional art media with individual bristles that blend and splay. It also...

Maps101.com: Nystrom.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)
April 1, 2007... www.maps101.com Classroom materials Annual subscription, $579 per school This online resource for K12 classrooms offers more than 4,000 maps that are easy to print or can be downloaded. Educators can access over 200 lesson plans, daily and...

NAG Connector: Maplesoft.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... www.maplesoft.com, Software tools, $295 Maplesoft partnered with the Numerical Algorithms Group (NAG) to produce this toolbox. When used with its flagship product--which solves complex math problems and creates rich technical documents--it...

Student Response System: Qwizdom.(New Products: THE LATEST OFFERINGS IN BOOKS, HARDWARE, INTERNET AND SOFTWARE)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... www.qwizdom.com Hardware, $2,170-$2,993, Curriculum packages, $75-$485 The student response system tracks performance in both group and individual learning environments. While students can respond to questions posed during lessons,...

Generation Yes: Visions to Action: Adding Student Leadership to Your Technology Plan.(Leadership Books)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... VISIONS TO ACTION: ADDING STUDENT LEADERSHIP TO YOUR TECHNOLOGY PLAN Generation Yes www.genyes.com, Free Written by Dr. Dennis Harper, this eight-page document can be downloaded from the GenYES Web site. It can help teachers make sure that...

Teachers College Press: Community in the Making: Lincoln Center Institute, The Arts and Teacher Education.(Leadership Books)(Community in the Making: Lincoln Center Institute, the Arts and Teacher Education)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... COMMUNITY IN THE MAKING: LINCOLN CENTER INSTITUTE, THE ARTS AND TEACHER EDUCATION Teachers College Press www.tcpress.com $26 This essay collection describes collaboration between eight colleges and universities of teacher education and...

Linworth Publishing: Managing Curriculum and Assessment: A Practitioner's Guide.(Leadership Books)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... MANAGING CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT: A PRACTITIONER'S GUIDE Linworth Publishing www.linworth.com $49.95 A guide with CD provides the basic elements of a curriculum management system. It emphasizes alignment of written and tested curriculum,...

Linworth Publishing: Copyright for Schools: A Practical Guide.(Leadership Books)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... COPYRIGHT FOR SCHOOLS: A PRACTICAL GUIDE Linworth Publishing www.linworth.com $44.95 This fourth edition provides an authoritative presentation and analysis of copyright for both print and digital information, related specifically to K12...

R&L Education: The Expert School Leader: Accelerating Accountability.(Leadership Books)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... THE EXPERT SCHOOL LEADER: ACCELERATING ACCOUNTABILITY R&L Education www.rowmanandeducation.com $24.95 The authors detail a new approach to identifying, analyzing, acquiring and using specific competencies that are needed for effective and...

Good books and bad reactions: the Newbery Medal was awarded to a book in which the word "scrotum" appears, How are schools responding? Badly!(Speaking Out)
April 1, 2007... "Angus Solomon." sighed Ms Lowry. "Is that a penis you've drawn in your exercise book?" Angus jumped, startled, and remembered where he was. Ms Lowry was standing next to his desk, staring down at the page. Other kids were sniggering....

Administrators who blog: give administrators in your district online voices.(The Online Edge)
April 1, 2007... Six months after starting the blog "G-Town Talks,' which chronicles her experiences and thinking as principal of Gowanda (N.Y.) High School, Kimberly Moritz got a request from her district superintendent to add a disclaimer to her site: "The...

Navigating mathematics.(Problem/Solution)
April 1, 2007... Problem: In 2004, at-risk students at Lake Highlands Junior High School (LHJH) in the Richardson Independent School District (RISD), Texas, were falling behind mathematically, with none passing the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills...

Calendar of events.(Calendar)
April 1, 2007... APRIL 2007 * National School Boards Association (NSBA) April 14-17 San Francisco, Calif. www.nsba.nrg American Association of School Administrators (AASA) Legislative Advocacy Conference April 18-20 Washington, D.C. www.aasa.org ...

Extreme makeover: school technology: we must ensure that technology in our schools gets priority equal to the rest of the district infrastructure.(Overheard On The Pulse)(Viewpoint essay)
April 1, 2007... At what point do we as educational leaders begin to take technology as seriously as the other components of our school infrastructure? Are You Wincing? Wince every time you hear of untrained custodians or well-meaning students wiring...