2011 NAEP Science data available: 8th grade

Data from the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) find that our nation’s eighth-grade students have made gains in science since 2009. The Nation’s Report Card: Science 2011 presents results for the nation, all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Department of Defense Schools.

Key findings from The Nation’s Report Card: Science 2011 include:

• In 2011, a higher percentage of students performed at or above the Basic and Proficient achievement levels than in 2009.

• The achievement gap between Black and White students narrowed between 2009 and 2011, with average scores since 2009 rising by 1 point for White students and by 3 points for Black students.

• The achievement gap between Hispanic and White students also narrowed between 2009 and 2011, with average scores since 2009 rising by 1 point for White students and by 5 points for Hispanic students.

• Public school students in 16 states and jurisdictions have made gains since 2009.

• No state scored lower in 2011 than in 2009.

• Public school students in 28 states scored higher than their peers in the nation; students in 15 states and the District of Columbia scored lower than their peers nationally.

The Nation’s Report Card is a product of the National Center for Education Statistics at the Institute of Education Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Education.

To view the full science report please visit
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012465

Number & types of public school agencies

Two more sets of data from the 2010-11 Common Core... (NCES)

Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Local Education Agencies From the Common Core of Data: School Year 2010-11, presents findings on the numbers and types of public elementary and secondary local education agencies in the United States and the territories in the 2010-11 school year. Findings include:

• There were 17,911 operating local education agencies in the 2010-11 school year, and among those agencies, 13,592 were regular school districts.

• Twenty-six of the 13,592 active regular school districts enrolled 100,000 or more students.

• Approximately 953,000 students were enrolled in the 2,359 independent charter agencies, districts in which all schools were charter schools."

To view the full First Look report please visit
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012326

Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools From the Common Core of Data: School Year 2010–11, presents findings on the numbers and types of public elementary and secondary schools in the United States and the territories in the 2010-11 school year. Findings include:

• There were 98,817 operating public elementary/secondary schools in the 2010-11 school year. Of those schools, 88,929 were regular schools.

• By 2010-2011, charter schools had been established in 40 states and the District of Columbia. Charter schools enrolled about 1.8 million students.

• Across all regular public schools that had membership, the overall pupil/teacher ratio in 2010–11 was 15.7.

The Common Core of Data and this report are products of the National Center for Education Statistics at the Institute of Education Sciences.

To view the full First Look report please visit
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012325


 

New data on school enrollment & staff counts

Public Elementary and Secondary School Student Enrollment and Staff Counts from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2010–11, presents findings on the numbers and types of public elementary and secondary state-level data in the United States and the territories in the 2010-11 school year. Findings include:

• Public elementary and secondary schools enrolled 49.5 million students.

• Public elementary and secondary schools and local education agencies employed a total of 6.2 million full-time-equivalent (FTE) staff.

• The student/teacher ratio (i.e., the number of students for every teacher FTE) in public schools is 16.0.

The Common Core of Data and this report are products of the National Center for Education Statistics at the Institute of Education Sciences.

To view the full First Look report please visit
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012327

Poetry for STEM curricula and common core standards

April is National Poetry Month and Booklist (April 2012) offers lots of ideas for utilizing poetry to support and enhance lesson plans.
Poetry to support STEM curricula:
Bug Off!Creepy, Crawly Poems . By Jane Yolen. Illus. by Jason Stemple. 2012. 32p. Boyds Mills/Wordsong, $16.95 (9781590788622) 811. Gr. 1–5.
Incredible Inventions. Ed. by Lee Bennett Hopkins. Illus. by Julia Sarcone-Roach. 2009. 32p. Greenwillow, $17.99 (9780060872458). 811. Gr. 1–5.
A Leaf Can Be . . . By Laura Purdie Salas. Illus. by Violeta Dabija. 2012. 32p. Millbrook, $17.95 (9780761362036). K–Gr. 3.
One Big Rain:Poems for Rainy Days . Ed. by Rita Gray. Illus. by Ryan O’Rourke. 2010. 32p. Charlesbridge, $9.95 (9781570917165). 811.008. Gr. 2–4.
Steady Hands: Poems about Work. By Tracie Vaughn Zimmer. Illus. by Megan Halsey. 2009. 48p. Clarion, $16 (9780618903511). 811. Gr. 4–7.
Step Inside! A Look inside Animal Homes. By Catherine Ham. 2012. 32p. illus. EarlyLight, $14.95 (9780983201427). 591.56. K–Gr. 3.
Track That Scat! By Lisa Morlock. Illus. by Carrie Anne Bradshaw. 2012. 32p. Sleeping Bear, $15.95 (9781585365364). 591.479. Gr. 1–4.
Water Sings Blue:Ocean Poems . By Kate Coombs. Illus. by Meilo So. 2012. 32p. Chronicle, $16.99 (9780811872843). 811.6. Gr. 2–6.
What’s Looking at You, Kid? By J. Patrick Lewis. Illus. by Renee Graef. 2012. 32p. Sleeping Bear, $14.95 (9781585367931). PreS–K.
UnBEElievables: Honeybee Poems and Paintings. By Douglas Florian. Illus. by the author. 2012. 32p. Simon & Schuster/Beach Lane, $16.99 (9781442426528). 811. Gr. 2–5. 
Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature. By Nicola Davies. Illus. by Mark Hearld. 2012. 108p. Candlewick, $19.99 (9780763655495). 808.81. PreS–Gr. 2.
Out of This World: Poems and Facts about Space. By Amy E. Sklansky. Illus. by Stacey Schuett. 2012. 40p. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375864599); lib. ed., $20.99 (9780375964596). 811. Gr. 3–5. Swirl by Swirl. By Joyce Sidman. Illus. by Beth Krommes. 2011. 32p. Houghton, $16.99 (9780547315836). PreS–Gr. 3
A Mirror to Nature:Poems about Reflection . By Jane Yolen. Illus. by Jason Stemple. 2009. 31p. Boyds Mills/Wordsong, $17.95 (9781590786246). Gr. 2–5. 
Edgar Allan Poe's Pie: Math Puzzlers in Classic Poems. By J. Patrick Lewis. Illus. by Michael Slack. 2012. 40p. Harcourt, $16.99 (9780547513386). 811. Gr. 3–5.



Poetry to facilitate teaching Core Curriculum: (RL.1.4—RL.6.4)
RL.1.4. Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.
In the Wild. By David Elliott. Illus. by Holly Meade. 2010. 32p. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763644970). PreS–Gr. 2.

Peaceful Pieces: Poems and Quilts about Peace. By Anna Grossnickle Hines. Illus. by the author. 2011. 32p. Holt, $16.99 (9780805089967). Gr. 2–5.
Swirl by Swirl. By Joyce Sidman. Illus. by Beth Krommes. 2011. 32p. Houghton, $16.99 (9780547315836). PreS–Gr. 3.

RL.4.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including those that allude to significant characters found in mythology.
Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. By Joyce Sidman. Illus. by Rick Allen. 2010. 32p. Houghton, $16.99 (9780547152288). 811. Gr. 3–6.

A Foot in the Mouth: Poems to Speak, Sing, and Shout. Ed. by Paul B. Janeczko. Illus. by Chris Raschka. 2009. 61p. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763606633). 811. Gr. 4–7.

A Mirror to Nature:Poems about Reflection . By Jane Yolen. Illus. by Jason Stemple. 2009. 31p. Boyds Mills/Wordsong, $17.95 (9781590786246). Gr. 2–5.


RL.6.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.
Lemonadeand Other Poems Squeezed from a Single Word . By Bob Raczka. Illus. by Nancy Doniger. 2011. 48p. Roaring Brook, $16.99 (9781596435414). 811. Gr. 2–5.
Under the Mambo Moon. By Julia Durango. Illus. by Fabricio VandenBroeck. 2011. 48p. Charlesbridge, $12.95 (9781570917233). 811. Gr. 3–5.

Sweethearts of Rhythm: The Story of the Greatest All-Girl Swing Band in the World. By Marilyn Nelson. Illus. by Jerry Pinkney. 2009. 80p. Dial, $21.99 (9780803731875). 811. Gr. 5–8.
 

Income level gaps exceed racial ones in educational achievement

This article from today's (3/6/12) Education Week, "Growing Gaps Bring Focus on Poverty's Role in Schooling," had this quote which summarized findings from several studies,
"But upward mobility through the mechanism of a good education, which is a widely held value in this country that cuts across the political spectrum, is in serious jeopardy."
Based on standardized test scores in reading and math from 1960-2007, one expert found that, "The achievement gap between poor children and rich children has grown significantly over the past three decades and is now nearly twice as large as the black-white gap."
A new book, Whither opportunity: Rising inequality, schools, and children's life chances  (currently on order but also available through LINK+), summarizes similar research.

New source of school district data

I will also add this to the Statistics tab of the Education research guide, although at this point, no Nevada data is included.
School Attendance Boundary Information System (SABINS)

Free aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for school attendance areas, or school catchment areas, for selected areas in the United States for the 2009-2010 school year. Includes:

• grade-specific school attendance areas for thousands of school districts
  in the United States
• 2010 Redistricting data for the school attendance areas
• crosswalks linking the school attendance areas to the National Center for Education Statistics' Common Core of Data

Developed by the Minnesota Population Center of the
University of Minnesota.

2010 IDEA National Assessment Implementation Study

"This congressionally mandated study provides a national picture of state agency implementation of early intervention programs for infants and toddlers (IDEA Part C) and both state and school district implementation of special education programs for preschool- and school-age children (IDEA Part B). "
Links to an executive summary and the final report are here: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/pubs/20114026/

Nation's Report Card: Civics 2010

"This report presents results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 2010 civics assessment. National results for representative samples of students at grades 4, 8, and 12 are reported as average scale scores and as a percentage of students performing at or above three achievement levels: Basic, Proficient, and Advanced. Scores are also reported at selected percentiles, showing changes in the performance of lower-, middle-, and higher-performing students. Results for student demographic groups defined by various background characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, gender, and students’ eligibility for free or reduced-price school lunch) are included, as well as sample assessment questions with examples of student responses. Results from the 2010 assessment are compared to those from two previous assessments in 1998 and 2006."
Full report is linked here: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2011466

New enrollment figures for elementary/secondary schools

Some highlights from the new NCES report on the  2009-2010 year.


• About 49 million students attended 98,817 operating public elementary/secondary schools in the 2009–10 school year.

• Almost 1.6 million students were enrolled in 4,952 charter schools in 2009-10.

• Across all active regular public schools with students, the pupil/teacher ratio in 2009-10 was 16.1. Pupil/teacher ratio ranged from 10.9 in Vermont to 23.4 in Utah. [ Nevada's overall ratio was 19.4]

Full report is available here: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2011345

REL Study Examines Student Bullying and Victimization in Grades 3–8

photo © 2008 Eddie~S | more info (via: Wylio)
The study examined aggression, victimization, and approval of aggression among elementary and middle grades students in two Oregon counties. Data for the study were collected in 2005 through surveys; participation was voluntary. Students reported on beliefs about aggression, how frequently they were the victims or the perpetrators of either overt aggression (verbal and physically aggressive behavior intended to threaten or physically harm another student) or relational aggression (behaviors intended to harm another student’s relationships with others). Iincludes detailed summaries of students’ responses to specific questions about victimization and bullying.

Click here http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/projects/project.asp?projectID=248 to view this new release by the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance.

Projections of Education Statistics to 2019

New report out from NCES that covers "statistics on enrollment, graduates, teachers, and expenditures in elementary and secondary schools, and enrollment and earned degrees conferred expenditures of degree-granting institutions. For the Nation, the tables, figures, and text contain data on enrollment, teachers, graduates, and expenditures for the past 14 years and projections to the year 2019. For the 50 States and the District of Columbia, the tables, figures, and text contain data on projections of public elementary and secondary enrollment and public high school graduates to the year 2019."
I will also put a link to this source in the Education subject guide on the "Statistics and Demographics" page. http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2011017

Shared curricula recommended to address new Common Core Standards

A diverse group of signatories representing all levels of education, both sides of the political spectrum and business are promoting the developing of "lean" curriculum guidelines to help link the new common core standards to teaching. “To be clear, by ‘curriculum,’ we mean a coherent, sequential set of guidelines in the core academic disciplines, specifying the content knowledge and skills that all students are expected to learn, over time, in a thoughtful progression across the grades,” the document says. “We do not mean performance standards, textbook offerings, daily lesson plans, or rigid pedagogical prescriptions.” The full text of the statement along with the names/affiliations of the signatories are available here:
http://www.ashankerinst.org/curriculum.html

Gloomy results persist in science performance

An article in today's edition of EdWeek reports on the continuing dismal performance of K-12 students in science, this time according to the NAEP results. Only 20 percent of 12th graders scored as "proficient" in science, lower than the proficient percentages for 8th graders ( 30% ) or 4th graders ( 34% ). These results confirm the mediocre science and math performance documented by the PISA results at the end of last year. Even more disturbing are the huge discrepancies in performance based on race/ethnicity and SES. Per the article in EdWeek, "At the 4th grade, for example, 47 percent of white students scored proficient or above, compared with 11 percent of African-American and 14 percent of Hispanic students. Meanwhile, only 15 percent of 4th graders eligible for a free lunch and 25 percent for a reduced-price lunch scored proficient or higher on the exam, compared with 48 percent of 8th graders ineligible for either."
Large percentages of students at all levels don't even reach basic levels in science, "The figure was highest at the 12th grade, where 40 percent were below basic, compared with 37 percent of 8th graders and 28 percent of 4th graders." And very few perform at high levels on the NAEP, "Only 1 percent of 4th and 12th graders earned an advanced score, and 2 percent at the 8th grade." Links to the 2009 report are here: http://nationsreportcard.gov/science_2009/

Measuring student engagement: K-12

A new report from REL Southeast:  "Measuring Student Engagement in Upper Elementary through High School: A Description of 21 Instruments, presents the results of a literature review of available instruments for measuring student engagement (behavioral, emotional and cognitive) in upper elementary through high school. The study describes 21 instruments that include student self-reports, teacher reports, and observation measures.
The report summarizes what is measured, instrument purposes and uses, and available technical information. In addition, instrument abstracts describe the main features of each instrument, including the developer, population, method, background, administration, constructs measured, scoring and reporting, reliability and validity, and use. References are listed for each instrument. The report is descriptive and is not intended to assess the quality of each instrument or identify strengths or weaknesses."


To view this report, see http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/projects/project.asp?projectID=268

Newest data on 100 largest public school districts (2008-09)

This annual report provides information from the Common Core of Data about the nation's largest public school districts in the 2008-09 school year. The data include such characteristics as the number of students and teachers, number of high school completers, the averaged freshman graduation rate, and revenues and expenditures. Clark County and Washoe are both included in this group. Clark County still comes in at #6. There were some astounding variations in annual per pupil expenditures, i.e., these ranged from a low of $6,363 in the Granite District, Utah to a high of $23,298 in Boston, Massachusetts.

The full report is found here: http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2011/2011301.pdf

Report on the world's best-performing school systems

A record for this report, "How the world's best-performing school systems come out on top," examining 25 school systems, has been added to the UNLV Libraries catalog or is available here:
http://www.mckinsey.com/App_Media/Reports/SSO/Worlds_School_Systems_Final.pdf
They found 3 things that matter most: (1) getting the right people to become teachers, (2) developing them into effective instructors, and (3) ensuring that the system is able to deliver the best possible instruction for every child. Success is not strictly related to cost; for example, Singapore is among the top performers and yet spends less on primary education than 27 of the 30 OECD countries.

Clark County SD in the news

An article in the New York Times, "Given Money, Schools Wait on Rehiring Teachers," quoted Jeff Weiler, chief financial officer for Clark County schools, "“We’re a little wary about hiring people if we only have money for a year, but we know that’s the intent of this bill.” The article goes on to suggest the stimulus monies may not have the desired effect because of this collective financial caution among school administrators. Teachers unions, are of course, pushing for the money to be used to rehire laid off teachers and reduce class size.

WWC review of "Accelerated Reader" effectiveness

 This brief summary from IES is remarkable for at least a couple of reasons. First, of 318 studies reviewed, only two met their evidence standards (one with reservations)! Second, this is such a widely used program and yet they found "no discernible effects"... Hmmm

"The Accelerated Reader™ guided reading intervention uses reading practice and computerized quizzes to supplement regular K–12 reading instruction. The WWC reviewed 318 studies on Accelerated Reader™. One study, a randomized controlled trial, meets WWC evidence standards. A second study, a quasi-experimental design, meets WWC evidence standards with reservations. The two studies include 2,877 students in grades 4 to 8 in Oregon and Texas. Based on these studies, the WWC found the Accelerated Reader™ to have no discernible effects on reading fluency or comprehension for adolescent learners. Read the full WWC report now at http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/reports/adolescent_literacy/accel_read/"

Study finds EARLY absenteeism significantly affects academic performance

Children with chronic absenteeism in kindergarten show deficits in reading and math performance throughout their school career. A study sponsored by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, "Present, Engaged, and Accounted For," found that a pattern of absence in kindergarten significantly lowered reading and math scores in first and still in fifth grade. Additionally, these patterns are strong predictors of later dropping out of school--even better predictors than test performance. The decrements were especially significant for children who missed more than 10% of classes and according to the report, 10% of kindergarten and first grade students miss a month of school a year. Strategies to address this often overlooked problem are offered. See also the Attendance Counts website which has some great videos on projects to reduce absenteeism.

Updated public school data (2008-2009)

NCES has released the 2008-09 school year data from the State Nonfiscal Survey of Public Elementary/Secondary Education Survey of the Common Core of Data (CCD) survey system. The accompanying First Look presents national and state level data on student enrollment by grade and by race/ethnicity within grade, the numbers of teachers and other education staff, and several student/staff ratios for the school year.


To view the full First Look report please visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2010347