School testing reform faces pass/fail exam in Florida House

After several days of private collaboration among lawmakers, one major late-night rewrite and some last-minute tweaks, senators unanimously passed a sweeping education bill—the main feature of which is to address excessive testing in Florida's public schools. Read more>>

Black applicants for Fairfax County teaching positions in a recent school year were far less likely than white candidates to get job offers even though they had on average more advanced degrees and classroom experience, according to a new study that is drawing intense scrutiny within the Virginia school system. Read more>>

With so many kids carrying phones to school these days and social media just a click away, educators and students alike find themselves navigating a new landscape in schools across the country. Earlier this week, controversy erupted at a North Carolina high school when a student posted a racial slur on a social media site. Read more>>

The Puyallup School District has agreed to pay $3.75 million to the families of five former special needs students at Ridgecrest Elementary School. The settlement payment averts a trial on the families claim that the district was negligent in reporting and investigating allegations that another student was molesting his classmates. Read more>>

Nine districts with the lowest-performing schools in Michigan have initiated turnaround efforts after signing partnership agreements with the state, according to the Michigan Department of Education. The arrangements spare 37 under-performing schools from state-mandated closure this year. Read more>>

When state Sen. Owen Hill proposed an amendment to Colorado’s annual school funding bill, he told his colleagues on the Senate Education Committee that the language was a carbon copy of another bill, currently stalled, that would benefit charter schools. It wasn’t. What Hill didn’t say was that his approved amendment included an additional $15 million for state-authorized charter schools. Read more>>

There is no other state with comparable populations and demographics that has this low a number of proposed superintendents. Rather than making more sweeping cuts in education, we would do better to invest in building Maine’s capacity for visionary leaders that will ensure that our schools continue on a steep trajectory of continuous improvement. You get what you give. Read more>>

With all the sweeping changes the Republican House bill would impose, little attention has been paid to its potential impact on education. School districts rely on Medicaid, the federal health care program for the poor, to provide costly services to millions of students with disabilities across the country. Read more>>

There are good reasons to have reservations about increased intertemporal choice in education. Our existing system doesn't provide easy ways for families to choose to pick and choose among certain costs or components of schooling. Family mobility and disparities in education spending add complications. These are fundamental flaws that make intertemporal choice in education nonviable. Read more>>

Learnosity has launched Learnosity Partner Network, a global network aiming to foster greater collaboration among technology companies, developers and content providers in the education technology community. The network will initially cover three distinct partner categories: content, customization and integration, and technical and features. Read more>>

The Project Based Learning tutorials are designed for use with the company's advanced digital devices, including mills, desktop vinyl cutters and digital inkjet printers. The digital fabrication tutorials include a variety of engineering, design and art-related projects that give students a better understanding of technology and software. Read more>>

Teaching Channel’s library of more than 1,000 teaching videos will now seamlessly integrate into the Performance Matters Platform. Within the Performance Matters Educator Growth and Student Growth solutions, teachers now have instant access to the online library, which can be searched by Common Core State Standard, grade level, subject, topic or teaching strategy. Read more>>

Named as superintendent, effective immediately, Lisa Herring was also one of three finalists for Birmingham City Schools superintendent back in 2015. The job, though, was given to Kelley Castlin-Gacutan, who was let go in September 2016 after 16 months. For the last eight months, Herring has served as chief academic officer at Jefferson County Public Schools. Read more>>

The New Haven USD's board has appointed Arlando Smith as its new superintendent. He has been with the California school district since 2012, first serving as chief academic officer and then as co-superintendent since 2013. Read more>>

The New York school district has promoted assistant superintendent Daniel Milgate to the top job. Milgate has been assistant superintendent since 2011 and worked in Spencerport CSD since 1995. He will replace retiring Superintendent Mike Crumb. Read more>>

Westerly's Superintendent of Schools Roy Seitsinger Jr., who announced in February that he was retiring from the Rhode Island district, has decided to take a position as the new superintendent in Preston, Conn. He will replace Preston's Superintendent John Welch, who is leaving at the end of the school year. Read more>>