Are Colo. School Districts Really Doing Better on New Global Report Card?

by Eddie | 2:26 pm, December 12, 2012

When confronted with the question of how well our schools are doing, too often we lack the full context needed to compare and understand what knowledge and skills students are acquiring to be strong citizens, competent workers, and trailblazing entrepreneurs for the next generation. Last year I told you about the Global Report Card, which [...]

Colorado K-12 Funding Debates REALLY Could Use Some Accepted Facts

by Eddie | 3:02 pm, November 29, 2012

A new Cato Institute education blogger, Jason Bedrick, highlights the work of the Independence Institute’s Education Policy Center in a posting today with a message that certainly needs to be repeated: “Public schools cost more than Americans think.” Bedrick cites Ben DeGrow’s recent interview with 9News disputing Colorado school funding figures, and makes a couple [...]

Food for Thought as Colorado Grinds Ahead Reforming Teacher Evaluations

by Eddie | 3:21 pm, November 27, 2012

With so much going on in Colorado’s world of education reform — and all sorts of new and shiny things taking place — it can be easy to forget the state is in the middle of a large-scale change to teacher evaluations.
The highly-charged debates over SB 191 in 2010 seem like a distant memory. [...]

Don’t Ask to “Show Me” Why K-12 Education Needs Differential Teacher Pay

by Eddie | 2:44 pm, November 1, 2012

If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you probably are well aware of the numerous flaws in the way our K-12 education system pays teachers. Most of the flaws emanate from the single salary schedule, which the vast majority of school districts use. Pay is differentiated almost exclusively by seniority and academic [...]

K-12 Education System as Jobs Program? Let’s Agree on Something Better

by Eddie | 4:24 pm, October 24, 2012

In a lot of the debates Colorado has had about school funding (and more are sure to be had), the question lurking in the back of my mind is: What do we want our education system to be? What do we want it to do? Well, a new study from the Friedman Foundation for Educational [...]

Where Exactly Can Denver Public Schools Save Money in Its Budget?

by Eddie | 11:17 am, October 5, 2012

Last week my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow came out with a short, fun, and kid-friendly paper called “Colorado K-12 Tax Hikes Challenged.” The paper looked at five large school districts asking voters for more tax funds on this fall’s ballot: Jefferson County, Denver, Cherry Creek, Aurora, and St. Vrain Valley.
DeGrow acknowledged that these [...]

Want to Improve K-12 Productivity? Avoid Baumol’s Disease Like Plague

by Eddie | 3:58 pm, October 3, 2012

It’s not uncommon for me to tell you about the great need for public schools to spend dollars more productively. A recent brief, colorful paper written by my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow makes the point with some great local significance for school districts asking voters for tax increases this fall.
But, you may ask, [...]

Is This Conservative Alternative to Federal Education Policy Just Too Sensible?

by Eddie | 10:15 am, September 25, 2012

Four months ago, while introducing you to the education policy blueprint of a major party presidential candidate, I noted that one of the hardest areas in which “it might be hard to make a contrast” between Obama and Romney is K-12 education.
Every time one of these major national elections comes up, serious questions and debates [...]

Mike Thomas’ Account Reminds Ed Reformers Hearts and Minds Can Change

by Eddie | 1:01 pm, September 20, 2012

(H/T Matt Ladner on Jay Greene’s blog) In the never-ending education reform debates, it’s important not to take for granted that prominent voices can change their minds. Mike Thomas used to be a Florida education news reporter notably skeptical of Jeb Bush’s bold and cutting-edge school reform program. After reviewing the evidence, much of it [...]

Winters’ Work on VAM Adds Value to Colorado Educator Effectiveness Policy

by Eddie | 11:25 am, September 6, 2012

I’m guessing that 2012 has been fairly busy for education policy researcher Dr. Marcus Winters. He started with the launch of his book Teachers Matter, which included visiting Denver as the first-ever speaker in the Independence Institute’s Brown Bag Lunch series. And he since has published work on school innovation and productivity, and the [...]

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