Curriculum Administrator articles from August 2001

Curriculum Administrator archives from August 2001

Making Standards Work. (Editor's Letter)
August 1, 2001... There may not be a more complex, polarizing issue in education today than standards. Indeed in this issue of Curriculum Administrator alone, a variety of people--from Rod Paige to Alfie Kohn to Mickey Revenaugh and other educators--tackle this...

Survey: As Pressures Increase, More High School Students Turn to Cheating. (News Connection)
August 1, 2001... According to a recent three-quarters of the nation's high school students admit to cheating at least once or regularly in the past year, an alarmingly high percentage that the author of the study says may not decrease any time soon. By all...

Report: school vouchers are losing support from the public. (news Connection).(Brief Article)
August 1, 2001... No wonder President George W. Bush has long since stopped using the term when speaking about school choice. According to a recent study sponsored by the Teachers' Insurance Plan, about 65 percent of the roughly 1,000 people surveyed by phone...

New York school bars pesky parent from premises. (news Connection).
August 1, 2001... What does it take for a parent to be prohibited from his child's school? For PS 165 in New York City, apparently constant complaints to administrators and the city's education headquarters. Sid Blauner, whose son, Ethan, is slated to...

Summer School Attendance Is Up Significantly in Chicago and Baltimore; 60,000 to Attend This Year. (News Connection)
August 1, 2001... More than 29,000 of Chicago's 430,000 public school students are required to attend summer school this year before they can go on to the next grade, according to school officials. Baltimore faces virtually the same problem with about 30,000...

Urban Schools Show Progress in Math and Reading, Study Says. (News Connection)
August 1, 2001... Students in the nation's 55 largest urban districts are making solid strides in math and reading, according to data tabulated by the Council of the Great City Schools. In a report titled "Beating the Odds," the council says that of the 55...

Timothy Magner is SIF's new director. (News Connection).
August 1, 2001... The Schools Interoperability Framework's new director, Timothy Magner, says he is hoping to balance the first several months in his new role with concentrating on making the compliance program operational and continuing to spread the message...

Industry veteran Sue Collins joins Apex Learning. (News Connection).
August 1, 2001... Sue Collins, most recently with the educational Internet portal company Bigchalk.com, was named earlier this summer the chief education officer for the Internet virtual school company Apex Learning. The move comes as Apex Learning, a...

Survey: Americans Say Many Teachers Are Incompetent. (Teacher Quality)
August 1, 2001... Approximately 95 percent of adults in the U.S. say there are various levels of widespread incompetence among K-12 teachers throughout the nation, but they are optimistic that the teaching force will improve, according to a new survey released by...

WRC Media Inks Deal with ThinkBox to Boost Internet Presence. (Technology Update)
August 1, 2001... Companies looking to expand into new markets---or further into markets where they already have a presence--is certainly nothing new in the education arena. You don't need to look past the pages of this magazine to see stories of McGraw-Hill...

CTB/McGraw-Hill and Missouri Pilot Online Test Grading Initiative. (Technology Update)
August 1, 2001... In an effort to make the state's achievement tests easier to tabulate, 24 teachers from around Missouri this summer graded Missouri Assessment Program tests online. Only a small percentage of tests were handled this way under the pilot...

Religious high school begins offering all its courses online. (technology Update).
August 1, 2001... In an effort to offer a technologically advanced curriculum and cut down on transportation expenses from around the region, a Mesa, Ariz., high school will begin offering all its academic course work online later this month. Students at...

Paul Allen foundation gives $10 million for school's laptops. (technology Update).
August 1, 2001... The 83-year-old Lakeside School, a private school in Seattle, has received a grant of $10 million from the Paul G. Allen Charitable Foundation. The school plans to use it to help pay for a laptop computer program for students and faculty. ...

Microchip Giant Intel Teams with Accelerated Schools Project to Offer Technology Training to 3,600 K-12 Teachers. (Technology Update)
August 1, 2001... Earmarking millions of dollars toward the effort, and with a huge donation of software from Microsoft, Intel recently launched a teacher training initiative with the Accelerated Schools Project. More than 3,600 K-12 teachers will receive free...

N2H2 taps ex-Microsoft executive as new CEO. (Technology Update).
August 1, 2001... Internet filtering company N2H2 recently named Philip Welt, an enterprise service industry veteran and former Microsoft executive, as president and chief executive officer. He replaces Peter Nickerson, who will move into the role of chairman...

Mindsurf Networks buys Discourse Technologies. (Technology Update).
August 1, 2001... In a move to expand its delivery options, wireless education network provider Mindsurf Networks recently acquired Discourse Technologies in a stock deal for an undisclosed amount. Discourse sells software application products that let...

Seven Questions with NSTA's Executive Director Gerald Wheeler. (Science)
August 1, 2001... Q: What trends in science education should administrators recognize? A: The trends continue to be focused on reform. Released in 1996, the National Science Education Standards, which established inquiry-based learning as the key to effective...

Math deficiency? No, just the jitters. (Mathematics).
August 1, 2001... Unlearning math anxiety, not learning more about math, may be most effective in boosting math performance, according to a new study. Researchers at Cleveland State University examined "The Relationships Among Working Memory, Math Anxiety and...

Study Spurs More Debate on How to Teach Reading. (Language Arts)
August 1, 2001... The education community had mixed reactions to a recent study on reading, which analyzed student scores based on factors such as how much they read at school and at home, how often they discuss what they read and how often they receive reading...

America's Legislators go back to school. (Social Studies).
August 1, 2001... Future voters and leaders in schools throughout the U.S. will again have the chance to meet state legislators and learn first-hand about the processes, pressures, debate, negotiation and compromise inherent in representative democracy....

Computer Driven: This Urban Administrator Gives Children a Head Start with a High-Tech Vision. (Administrator Profile)
August 1, 2001... Angela Caruso had a vision two decades ago that set her apart from most others in her field. A former student in Newark, N.J., public schools, Caruso pursued her career in the same district and brought with her what could be a crystal ball of...

Raising Minority Achievement: This District Boosted Poor Test Scores by Increasing Class Time, Enhancing Academics and Pinpointing Learning Plans for Each Child. (District Profile)
August 1, 2001... It was during the 1998-99 school year when students in Fairfax County, Va., took the state's Standards of Learning test; their results gave the administrators and teachers something to gasp about. The good news is that about 114 schools in...

When Mega-Trends Converge: What Do Technology and Testing Have to Do with One Another? (21St Century Assessment)
August 1, 2001... If you had to pick the two driving forces that shape today's schools--that make education in the 21st century different from what went before--you'd be on safe ground if you chose assessment and technology. TESTING, TESTING, 123... More and...

Meeting Colleagues Online: Here Are Some Ways to Extend Your Professional Reach through Web-Based Communities. (the Online Edge)
August 1, 2001... One of my greatest privileges in doing Web-based staff development programs in school systems throughout the United States is working with some of the most talented and dedicated technology coordinators. These too-often unheralded education...

Coming to a Classroom near You: One Seventh Grader's Journey Includes Learning Math through Scooby-Doo. (Speaking Out)
August 1, 2001... At our annual family dinner to celebrate the end of another school year, each of our children reflected upon the lessons learned and the obstacles overt come during the previous 10 months. Our seventh-grade daughter, who will be referred to by...

Overhauling an Early Education Program; How One District Reversed the Fortunes of Its Elementary Students by Creating a Full-Day Preschool and Kindergarten Program. (Early Education)(Cover Story)
August 1, 2001... When Michael J. Frechette started his job as superintendent of the economically disadvantaged Norwich (Conn.) Public Schools more than four years ago, he yearned to revamp the elementary curriculum. His vision wasn't about bringing in more...

Spread the Word: As Support for Foreign Language Learning in Elementary Schools Grows, Experts in the Field Urge Districts to Look, Listen and Learn-Since a Well-Planned Program Is the Best Recipe for Success. (Early Education)
August 1, 2001... It's not uncommon for administrators to look back on their own educational experiences when making decisions. But when it comes to the experience of foreign language classes, the memories often shed dark light over a bright idea. "I took four...

High Stakes Testing: Debating the Standards Movement. (Standards)
August 1, 2001... "Anyone who opposes annual testing of students is an apologist for a broken system of education that dismisses certain children and classes of children as unteachable," asserts Rod Paige, U.S. Secretary of Education, in virtually any forum he...

Before It's Too Late. (Standards)
August 1, 2001... In the old days, a fifth-grade teacher who administered a standardized test in May waited for the results in October to discover a student was still mis-multiplying fractions. By then, it was too late to intervene; the student was already in...

Ordering Curriculum to Go: Distance Learning and Online Curriculum Packages Offer School Districts Many Ways to Boost Their Class Offerings
August 1, 2001... Prediction: Classrooms without teachers, often without fellow students where all assignments are completed via electronic connection to remote instructors; where students spend their school days in front of computers instead of a live human...

Discounted video equipment for schools.
August 1, 2001... The Electronic Mailbox, www.specialtyvideosupply.com, Internet, Free A new Web site designed specifically for schools and other organizations is offering video editing and production products from several manufacturers at discounted...

Problem-solving with graphs.
August 1, 2001... Tom Snyder Productions, www.tomsnyder.com, Software, $59.95 ($79.95 after Aug. 31) With Graph Master, middle school students learn to solve problems by graphing and analyzing data. Students collect and enter data, then select the...

Guiding future careers paths.
August 1, 2001... Vocational Research Institute, www.vri.org, Software, $100 and up The CareerScope Interest Inventory, which operates on Windows-based computers, accesses both interest and aptitude. The system is made up of 145 task statements that allow...

Helping librarians help others.
August 1, 2001... Linworth Publishing, Inc. www.linworth.com, Book, $39.95 Where Do I Start? A School Library Handbook gives librarians and media specialists an overview of today's school library system. Written by Susan Martimo Choi, manager of...

Take students on an Internet Safari. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Heartsoft, www.internet-safari.com, Software, Single copy $29.95; $139.95 for set of 6; $459.95 for set of 12; plus $15 each additional license Internet Safari is a browser specifically designed for children's cognitive thinking skills...

Conquering AP Exams. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Apex Learning Inc., www.apexlearning.com, Internet, $49 per subject Apex Learning Inc. and The College Board have partnered to create AP Exam Review, an intensive online advanced placement exam preparation program. Students who enroll in...

Manage textbook inventory. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Hayes Software, www.hayessoft.com, Software, $995 per campus Designed for use at a district office, in a district warehouse or at a school building, TIP for Windows is designed to help you get a grip on textbook inventory management. You...

Automated scoring with E-rater. (new products).
August 1, 2001... ETS Technologies, www.etstechnologies.com, Software/$2 per essay, $2 and up per student for unlimited submissions ETS Technologies has released E-rater, an automated scoring system designed to analyze essays. The system, which isn't meant...

Grades as easy as A, B, C. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Jackson Software, www.jacksoncorp.com/gquick.html, Software, $69.95 for stand-alone PC or Mac ($119.90 for both), school and district licenses available The GradeQuick program was created to look and feel like a paper grade book for...

Looking at race. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Scarecrow Press, www.scarecroweducation.com, Book, $22.95 How do race, poverty and privilege really affect students? And what can a teacher do? Author Julie Landsman says she wrote A White Teacher Talks About Race to "celebrate the lives...

Online assessment tools. (new products).
August 1, 2001... EdVISION Corp., www.edvision.com, Internet, $12 per student/year Two new online assessment and tracking tools from the Performance Series are now available. The series is an Internet-based assessment tool that utilizes Standards-Based...

Painless presentations. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Samsung, www.samsung.com, Hardware, $2,200 for ST, $2,800 for DX (educational discounts available) Giving presentations with overhead illustrations can be a frustrating experience of shuffling, focusing and fumbling. The 5500ST and...

Keeping parents in the loop. (new products).
August 1, 2001... Parlant Technology, www.parlant.com, Internet, $8,000 and up Parlant Technology has launched ParentLink XP, a new system providing students, parents and teachers instant access to school-related information. ParentLink XP provides...

K-12 supplemental materials. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... See one of the world's largest collections of supplemental materials to extend and update basal textbooks, enrich classroom instruction, and encourage reading and research. With Harcourt Brace as its parent company, Steck-Vaughn is...

Career planning starts here. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... The CareerScope Interest Inventory--the easy-to-use and affordable interest assessment. Measures and identifies career preferences that correspond to the U.S. Department of Labor's interest areas. Individualized results are provided on the...

The Wall Street Journal Classroom Edition. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Each month the Classroom Edition covers the business and financial scene expressly for teens. It's coverage that connects with their world and their interests. Thirty copies of the colorful monthly student newspaper, teacher guide with...

Special education software two FREE CD Demos. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... These two FREE CD Demos are designed to help you choose software for students with special needs. The Laureate Demo features 14 interactive programs and the Sentence Master Demo allows you to try our revolutionary approach for failed readers....

Lawrence Productions offers a variety of award-winning, curriculum-based educational software. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Lawrence Productions offers a variety of award-winning, curriculum-based educational software. Uniquely innovative in our creative solutions, we educate and inspire both children and young adults with such titles as Lawrence D. Duck,...

Free Perma-Bound 2001-2002 main catalog. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... With over 38,000 titles, Perma-Bound has the strongest title selections, teaching materials, educational software, and books on the market. We offer novel units, student packets, and exclusive Perma-Guides. We also offer Accelerated Reader...

New vantage pro weather stations. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Everything you need to study your own schoolyard weather. Monitor wind, rain, barometric pressure, temperature, humidity, UV, and more. You'll even get your local forecast! On-screen graphing provides instant analysis, or down-load to PC for...

Affordable Data Warehousing. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... for School Districts Data Driven Decisions e-[D.sup.3] integrates data from disparate system into an organized data warehouse. Circle Number 701 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Looking for ways to grab your students' attention? (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... The STARLAB Portable Planetarium is packed with interdisciplinary learning potential and is motivational for students, generating genuine enthusiasm. STARLAB is effective for everything from astronomy to literature and is a valuable tool for...

Now, all my students love math! (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Accelerated Math[R] math management software helps teachers dramatically increase student math achievement in grades 1 through calculus. Accelerated Math prints unique assignments tailored for each student's ability, scores papers...

Character education since 1992. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Join more than 4,000 schools nationwide. In just one minute a day, you can enhance your school climate while building character, self-esteem and a more caring community of learners. It's a simple program that gels results. Call us at...

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the United Nations. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... This informative and attractive booklet is a great tool for introducing children to the United Nations. It has been designed to enable students to learn more about the United Nations, its work and achievements. Grades K-8 Call toll-free (800)...

Free CD-ROM! motivate students to read. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Accelerated Reader[R] is the most effective program ever designed to help teachers motivate and manage literature-based reading practice. Now the newest version of the software--AR[TM] Universal--runs Recorded Voice Quizzes for pre-literate...

Recorded Books, LLC. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Over 4,000 complete and unabridged audiobooks for a multisensory or alternative approach to reading. Ideal support for "at risk," ESL, special needs, and inclusion students. All titles are professionally narrated and built to last. Call for a...

The Geometer's SKETCHPAD[R] version 4. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Named "The most valuable software for students" in a national survey of mathematics teachers. The first dynamic software package to fully integrate support for geometry, algebra, and calculus. Explore, analyze, and understand mathematics as...

The bookstore for today's educators. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... The NEA Professional Library is the nation's leading book publisher devoted exclusively to professional development resources for the education community. Each title is designed to inspire, guide and inform teachers and other educators on...

The Weather Channel. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Call 1-800-471-5544 to receive information about free educational materials from The Weather Channel, including The NEW Weather Classroom and Project SafeSide. Circle Number 713 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Digital interactive whiteboard. (Bulletin Board free catalogs and literature).
August 1, 2001... Interactive Presentation Manager (IPM) brings your multimedia classroom presentations to life with powerful and easy to use "Softkeys" that link to computer files for "on command launch." Using your PC and an LCD projector, the IPM provides...

Calendar of events.
August 1, 2001... SEPTEMBER 2001 OCTOBER 23-25 2001 Children's New Media Design Institute, Active Learning Associates, Inc. Lambertville, N.J. www.childrenssoftware.com/dustormagic OCTOBER 2001 OCTOBER 11-13 Computer Using Educators...

High Standards for All: School Accountability and More Frequent Tests Can Lead to Improved Student Performance. (U.S. Secretary of Education)
August 1, 2001... Several months ago, both houses of Congress passed bills calling for the most revolutionary reform of the federal role in education since the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Based on the president's plan for education reform, "No...