The Council would like to thank our corporate partners for their support of Chiefline and CCSSO.
CCSSO 2009 Summer Institute Meeting Videos and Presentations Available
CCSSO’s annual 2009 Summer Insitute provided chiefs with an opportunity to discuss the imperative to transform state educational systems, while addressing critical opportunities for states in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in relation to the Council's four strategic initiatives.
The meeting theme was “Summer of Opportunity: From Promise to Action,” which was woven into presentations by insightful speakers such as Tony Wagner, Clayton Christensen, and Michael Horn. Meeting material from these speakers and additional sessions at the Summer Institute are posted online here.
If you have questions about the program, please contact Bevin Kennedy at bevink@ccsso.org or 202-336-7014.
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Association & Related News
Join the Largest-Ever Study of American Youth: Gallup Student Poll Measures Students’ Hope, Engagement, and Well-being
Education Newsbriefs
"Public Schools Improve State Profile" (AZ)
"State Proposes Revamp of Teacher Licensing" (IN)
"Regents, Department of Education Form Data-Sharing Partnership" (KS)
"New Schools Chief Calls for Tougher Teacher Standards" (NY)
"Communities of Color: A Critical Perspective in the Common Standards Movement"
Association & Related News
Join the Largest-Ever Study of American Youth: Gallup Student Poll Measures Students’ Hope, Engagement, and Well-being
Launched by Gallup, America’s Promise Alliance, and the American Association of School Administrators, the Gallup Student Poll is an effort to engage the largest-ever group of students in grades 5 through 12 to measure their hope for the future, engagement with the world, and well-being in the community. The poll captures the voice of America's youth, a critical but often missing part of the national dialogue surrounding dropout prevention and college readiness.
The Gallup Student Poll would provide users, including chiefs, administrators, teachers, and community leaders with an accurate, meaningful, and dynamic understanding of students’ everyday experiences and future desires. Research has shown that hope, engagement, and well-being are reliable, actionable indicators of future success for students, schools, and communities. The variables strongly correlate with future attendance, credits earned, and GPA of students, and are more robust predictors of college performance than high school GPA, SAT, or ACT scores.
Available in English and Spanish and free of charge to participating districts, the Gallup Student Poll will provide users with real-time results within two weeks of the survey period. A simple online scorecard will highlight key insights about students’ future performance, to anticipate problems before they happen and identify effective interventions. By participating in the poll, users will have access to the Gallup Student Poll Solutions Center, which presents community-based solutions that can lead to increased graduation rates, better teacher effectiveness, and higher student aspirations for college and careers.
To register for the Gallup Student Poll’s October polling period or for more information about the study, visit www.gallupstudentpoll.com. For other questions, please contact Jonathan Zaff, America’s Promise Alliance Vice President for Research and Policy Development, at jonz@americaspromise.org or -617-627-5526.
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Education Newsbriefs
Public Schools Improve State Profile
Yuma Sun (AZ) (08/02/09) Roller, William
The Arizona Department of Education says the AZ Learns public school assessment tool shows an increase in school performance. According to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne, "We have a record number of schools excelling this year, going from 17 percent in 2008 to 21 percent in 2009." In addition to the gains in the number of "excelling" schools, the number of "performing plus" schools rose to 32 percent from 21 percent, while the number of "highly performing" and "failing" schools held steady at 13 percent and 1 percent, respectively. The number of "underperforming" schools fell to 3 percent from 8 percent, while the number of "performing" schools slipped from 39 percent to 30 percent. Horne says the state's 542 "performing" and "excelling" schools should help attract businesses.
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State Proposes Revamp of Teacher Licensing
Evansville Courier & Press (IN) (07/29/09) Bradner, Eric
Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Charles A. (Tony) Bennett recently proposed teacher licensing reforms to "put the focus on teachers' content knowledge and instructional skill while giving teachers and administrators greater flexibility and freedom to improve instructional quality." Among the recommendations, Bennett suggests that licensed teachers passing a leadership test could become a principal, while those passing the test and having a master's degree could apply for superintendent positions. Teachers eager to try different fields of study can do so without taking university education classes, so long as they complete and become certified by an American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence program. Teachers should spend less time on education courses and more time on content or subject areas, according to the recommendations. Secondary education teachers should focus their education in a subject they wish to teach and minor in education, while elementary teachers can major or minor in education and also major or minor in a content area. Bennett's recommendations also include replacing the portfolio and mentoring programs with a teacher residency program and extending teacher licenses to three years from two years.
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Regents, Department of Education Form Data-Sharing Partnership
Wichita Business Journal (07/31/09) Heck, Josh
The Kansas Department of Education and the Kansas Board of Regents recently entered into a data-sharing agreement to monitor student achievement and assess education programs. State Education Commissioner Dr. Alexa Posny says, "By building a statewide network for increased data-sharing and collaboration across all levels of education, we can begin operating as a whole system not as separate sectors. An integrated quality education system prepares all Kansas students for success, and we're pleased to enter into this collaborative enterprise."
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New Schools Chief Calls for Tougher Teacher Standards
New York Newsday (07/27/09) Hildebrand, John
David Milton Steiner, who was approved by the New York State Board of Regents to replace Richard Mills as state education commissioner, has been described as "an innovative academic thinker" and "a true reformer" by several of the Regents. In his introductory news conference on July 27, Steiner said teams of experts would be sent to struggling schools to increase graduation rates and push for other improvements. He also took issue with the state's teacher certification test, indicating that the cutoff score allows a 92 percent pass rate. "It seems to me that a gateway certification test with a passage rate that high should give us pause," Steiner remarked. "I hope we can do something about that."
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Communities of Color: A Critical Perspective in the Common Standards Movement
Campaign for High School Equity (07/24/09)
At a recent Campaign for High School Equity congressional briefing, "Communities of Color: A Critical Perspective in the Common Standards Movement," Council of Chief State School Officers Executive Director Gene Wilhoit and other panelists discussed the need for communities of color to take part in the development, implementation, evaluation, and validation of common education standards. Minority students often are impacted more severely than other groups by low academic standards, and establishing common standards could address achievement gaps and the dropout crisis. Common standards must be set to challenge all students equally to ensure their success in college and the workplace, according to the campaign. Once standards are created and are adopted, states must be held accountable for meeting the needs of minority communities.
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