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Education Bills Up for Debate in Committees on Wednesday

As of the end of Day 11 in Week 5 of the 2015 session, we are following 100 education-related bills. A total of 782 bills have been filed. Here’s a look at the agendas for committee meetings on Wednesday, April 8, in the Alabama legislature. UPDATE 9:00 p.m., April 7: Room...
Posted On Apr 07 2015
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English and Math Standards Review Results: LIVE BLOG

Thursday’s State Board of Education work session is where we can expect to hear the results of the public’s review of the Math and English language arts standards last fall, according to the agenda published for the work session. The work session starts at 8:30 a.m....
Posted On Feb 11 2015
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What You Wanted to Read About Education in 2014

Time to look back and…keep looking ahead. Here is what you were most interested in reading about in 2014. #1 – ACT Aspire Results: What to Do with Them – September 25, 2014 [All articles on the ACT Aspire] #2 – The Principal, the Test Scores, and the...
Posted On Jan 07 2015
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After the Primary, Who Is Heading to Montgomery?

After the primary, we now know who 63 of our 105 state House representatives and 16 of our 35 state Senators are for the next four years. The primary election was held on June 3. Twenty-five winning candidates (23 House and 2 Senate) are heading to Montgomery since they face no...
Posted On Jun 09 2014
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Who Decides What Gets Taught in Our Classrooms?

What our children learn in Alabama’s classrooms is shaped by the Alabama course of study (COS) and the textbooks that are chosen to frame the subject’s study. Two separate committees are formed at the state level  (1) to determine the COS and (2) to approve a list of...
Posted On Oct 07 2013
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What Data Is Collected on Our School Children and How Is That Data Governed?

So just what data DO our public schools collect on our children? How is it housed? How, to whom, and in what form is it reported? These are data privacy issues and are burning questions in education in Alabama. This is a longer-than-average post, but stick with it, and you will...
Posted On Sep 30 2013
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School District Happenings: Learn What’s Going On

Change in public education continues to come at a fast and furious pace here in Alabama. From the new requirements for a high school diploma to Plan 2020 to the waiver from No Child Left Behind to the flexibility plans to the wave of technology many school districts are...
Posted On Sep 18 2013
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ACT with Writing Is Back On Again

Proving once again it’s who you know, the ACT with Writing has been un-uninstated, or re-instated, for the 2013-2014 school year. It will be administered to all Alabama public school 11th graders on April 23, 2014. Makeup tests will be administered on May 7, 2014. In a memo...
Posted On Aug 07 2013
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High School Student Achievement Tests Change Again – Blamed on Budget

Alabama’s high school students’ standardized tests just changed. Again. Appears money is to blame. The first change involves the ACT. Instead of requiring 11th graders to take the ACT plus writing in the spring of 2014, only the ACT will be given. No writing. (UPDATE:...
Posted On Jul 15 2013
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Math Standards and Other Tidbits from the State Board of Education Work Session

I must apologize, but there is just simply no way for me to write up all that transpired at the 3-hour-plus work session last Thursday. There is just too much to share. Check out the Tales from the Meeting blog for the Storify (all tweets compiled in one easy viewing) version of...
Posted On Jul 02 2013
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The State Board of Education Work Session: Tell Us How You Really Feel

C’mon, y’all. Tell us how you really feel. If you want to know how State Board of Education (SBOE) members really feel about the recently-concluded 2013 legislative session, look no further than the video of the May 23 Work Session. Here are my notes on the meeting,...
Posted On Jun 03 2013
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Common Core State Standards in the State of Alabama – Why Is This Such a Big Deal?

By now, you have likely heard of the controversy surrounding the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and are probably wondering why they’re such a big deal. Let’s start with basic facts: At this point, CCSS only exist for Math and English Language Arts (ELA). Alabama...
Posted On Apr 23 2013
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New Tests for Our Children in Alabama’s K-12 Public Schools

UPDATE 9/6/14: Tests have been updated again. Go here to see the latest. UPDATE 3/9/14: Found the most recent updated list, revised November 15, 2013, of all standardized tests for Alabama’s children. Here’s a link to the PDF and the image is displayed below. Two new...
Posted On Apr 16 2013
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Interesting Pieces of Legislation This Session – Part 2

Here are a few more interesting pieces of legislation this session.  If you have an opinion about how you’d like your legislator to vote on any of these, Raise Your Voice (see the place on the home page where you can enter your ZIP code to be given an easy way to send...
Posted On Mar 08 2013
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The Fight Over Who Controls the K-12 Curriculum in Alabama

There’s a fight a-brewin’ in the halls of the Alabama legislature.  In one corner we have the Alabama State Board of Education and in the other, a delegation of the Republican Senate and House.  What’s the fight about?  The fight is over which body controls the...
Posted On Feb 26 2013
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League of Women Voters of Greater Tuscaloosa Presentation Materials Posted Here

I had the pleasure of sharing information about the changes that happened, and are happening, from the top-down in Alabama’s K-12 schools with the League of Women Voters of Greater Tuscaloosa on January 8.  Just wanted to share this powerpoint with y’all as well. The...
Posted On Jan 20 2013
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2012 Year in Review for Alabama’s K-12 Public Schools

It might be simpler to post what didn’t change in 2012.  Students, teachers, principals, curriculum….all have had major changes this year.  Many more changes are in the works, but have not yet been approved and/or implemented.  And while I know that many of these...
Posted On Jan 01 2013
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If Not AYP to Measure Progress, Then What?? Alabama’s ESEA Waiver Request

Let’s face it.  Schools and education officials never liked AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress). The pass/fail method placed what many believed was an unfair label on schools who failed to meet the benchmarks set under No Child Left Behind (NCLB).  As we inched toward the...
Posted On Dec 04 2012
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Test Performance Data – How Are Your Community’s Children Performing?

The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama provides a simple, color-coded look at how the children in grades 3 through 8 in Alabama’s schools perform on the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test (ARMT).  I shared the 2011 data analyses earlier this year, looking...
Posted On Nov 13 2012
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Video of Special Education Forum Now Online!

Last week, Alabama’s state school superintendent Dr. Tommy Bice spoke with families of children with special needs (and there were quite a few teachers and administrators in the audience as well!) about changes that have happened and will happen in special education in...
Posted On Oct 04 2012
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New Math Standards in Place – Do You Know What Your Child Is Learning?

A new math course of study has begun this school year.  It is based in part on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which were developed NOT by the federal government, as many have assumed, but by the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors’...
Posted On Sep 26 2012
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