Published on January 7, 2010 by Lindsey Burke
In a November address to the National Association for the Education of Young Children, Education Secretary Arne Duncan talked about doing a better job of working with Health and Human Services to ensure successful early education reform. Duncan stated, "If we are going to do what works – and abandon what doesn’t – early learning systems need to document, assess and adapt more readily." If Duncan is serious about doing what works and abandoning what doesn’t, he should be interested in the long-overdue findings of the government’s largest early education initiative – the federal Head Start program.
This shouldn’t be a problem for the education secretary, who in the same speech lauded the new "willing partnership" between his Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services managed by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. But does this new partnership mean that Duncan has all of the information he needs to implement meaningful early education reform?
Is Secretary Duncan aware that a crucial, federally-mandated evaluation of the Head Start program is long overdue?
With the Obama administration on the verge of one of the biggest expansions of the federal government’s role in early childhood education since the creation of Head Start in 1965, it would seem an evaluation of the annual $7 billion preschool program would be relevant for the President’s decision to dramatically increase early childhood spending.
In 1998, Congress mandated an evaluation of the program, which was completed in 2005. The 2005 evaluation showed some gains for Head Start participants, but provided no information on the program’s long-term impact. To answer that question, data was collected on cohorts of first- and third-grade students who had been through the program as preschoolers. First-grade data collection was completed in 2006 and third-grade data collection was due out in March of 2009. Neither the first- nor third-grade data has been made public.
Author: School Bot
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Historically, American students’ learning opportunities have been limited and shaped by factors beyond their control. Geography has been an important factor. Does the child live near a good school? If not, do her parents have the financial means to place her in a quality learning environment? Access to quality instruction has been another factor. Was the child placed in a class with the best teacher? Are the teacher’s lessons–designed to instruct a classroom of 16 or more students–tailored to her level, learning style, and interests?
The development and proliferation of online learning and virtual learning options is beginning to break down these barriers. In the future, students will be able to receive customized instruction from teachers anywhere in the United States or even in the world. The best teachers will use technology to reach many more students. Virtual and blended-learning programs will enable mass customization in education, allowing students to learn at their own pace in ways that are tailored to their learning styles and interests. -
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You don’t need a grade book to realize that our public education system is failing to properly prepare our future leaders. With the national dropout rate at almost 30 percent (nearly 50 percent for African American and Hispanic students), the writing is on the chalkboard.
Still, there seems little urgency in Congress to address the sorry state of our country’s education system.
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Head Start Earns an F: No Lasting Impact for Children by First Grade
On 01.20.10 08:00 PM posted by[1]Dan Lips, "Reforming and Improving Federal Preschool and Child Care Programs Without Increasing the Deficit," Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 2297, July 13,
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The documentary won an Honorable Mention Long Form Award and will be screened at Oviatt Library’s Presentation room on Wednesday, March 17, at 4 p.m. as part of the annual Erlandson International Symposium. It will be followed by a question and answer period with Koury.
Koury, a student in the Journalism Department’s Mass Communication program, spent the summer and fall of 2008 in Beirut interviewing an eclectic range of musicians from an opera singer to heavy metal band members to younger artists who perform on the streets. He aimed to tell a story of the Middle Eastern country beyond its war-torn image.
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The BEA is the professional association for professors, industry professionals and graduate students who are interested in teaching and research related to electronic media and multimedia enterprises. Over 1,600 professors, students and media professionals are currently individual members and approximately 275 colleges and university departments and schools are institutional members.