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May 4, 2007 Sign up Forward Archive Advertise News for the Education Profession     Eye on Curriculum    Maryland to expand use of comics in schools Maryland's top education official wants to expand the use of illustrated novels and comic strips to middle schools throughout the state, following a well-received yearlong pilot project in eight elementary schools. The program would give teachers another way to entice reluctant readers, said Maryland superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick. The Sun (Baltimore) (5/3) Arizona lawmakers offer $1,500 to seniors who finish early Arizona lawmakers this week signed off on giving $1,500 scholarships to students who complete necessary high school course work by the middle of their senior year. Lawmakers hope the measure will encourage high school students to buckle down; schools will continue to receive student funding for the whole year less the $1,500 advanced to the student. Arizona Daily Star (Tucson)/Capitol Media Services (5/3) Column: Dropping language requirement the wrong choice In a world where a knowledge of languages is increasingly critical, a North Carolina State Board of Education committee's decision to drop a foreign-language graduation requirement for high schoolers is the wrong move, writes columnist Ruth Sheehan. The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) (5/3) Other News Orlando-area tests to determine teacher merit pay riddled with errors Orlando Sentinel (Fla.) (5/4) "The best single book on the first days of school — The First Six Weeks of School. I give copies to my K-6 teachers now to jump start the new year." Concrete strategies for turning intention into practice. Guidelines, daily lesson plans, sample activities. Click here for details.   Professional Leadership    Louisiana, West Virginia educators rally for better pay Thousands of New Orleans educators crowded the Capitol in Baton Rouge and hundreds of West Virginia teachers marched on the Capitol in Charleston to demand pay on par with that of surrounding states. At least seven Louisiana districts canceled classes because so many teachers attended the rally. Enterprise-Journal (McComb, Miss.)/Associated Press (5/3) , The Gazette (Charleston, W.Va.)/Associated Press (free registration) (5/4) Retirement didn't stick for champion Colorado chemistry teacher A 30-year chemistry teacher came out of retirement this spring to coach his five-member Science Bowl team to a national championship. Jack Lundt graduated from the Poudre School District and Colorado State University, married his high school sweetheart and both eventually settled down to teach at their alma matter. His wife is now principal at Poudre High School. Fort Collins Coloradoan (Colo.) (5/3) Other News New Orleans superintendent to return to U.S. Education Department Houston Chronicle/Associated Press (5/3) "Should be required reading for reading teachers dealing with K-5 English language learners" (Education Review). Regardless of how many ELL students you have, Balancing Reading and Language Learning is an invaluable guide to the best classroom practices and research on teaching reading and language acquisition. Click here to browse Chapter 1!   Technology Solutions    Some schools phasing out student laptop programs As students show limited academic improvement and schools struggle to fix laptop technology and prevent student abuse, increasing numbers of districts nationally are ending experiments in providing students with leased laptops. "After seven years, there was literally no evidence it had any impact on student achievement -- none," said Mark Lawson, the school board president in Liverpool, N.Y., one of the first districts to experiment with laptops. "Teachers were telling us ... it's a distraction to the educational process." The New York Times (5/4) Korean teens "addicted" to text messaging South Korean teens send an average 60.1 text messages per day, according to figures released Wednesday by Korea's National Statistical Office. Some 46% of middle and high school students send text messages in class, according to the Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity & Promotion. The Chosun Ilbo (5/3) Students developing key phonemic awareness skills are motivated through sight, touch, and sound with the LeapDeskTM workstation. The LeapDesk also assesses progress and provides explicit instruction in The Literacy Center early reading program. Click here to learn more.   Policy Watch  Fla. results mean no promotion for many third-graders, seniors After reading scores on Florida's high-stakes third-grade test dropped, nearly one in five students -- 4,200 children -- in Florida's Broward County district may be held back. Some 2,300, or 13%, of Broward seniors and 4,300, or 19%, of Miami-Dade seniors won't be allowed to graduate after repeatedly failing the reading or math exit exams; few high school students who repeat the exams pass. The Miami Herald (free registration) (5/3) , The Miami Herald (free registration) (5/3) Utah voucher program delayed, legal challenge expected The broadest school voucher program in the country probably won't start this fall as expected, after the Utah Board of Education opted to seek legal counsel before adopting program rules. Voucher supporters suggested a lawsuit over the delay could be imminent. The Salt Lake Tribune (Utah) (5/4) L.A. mayor backs school board candidates Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is pouring money into the city's school board election, backing two candidates who support major district reform. Los Angeles Times (5/4) , Los Angeles Daily News (5/3) , Los Angeles Times (5/4) The Buzz(CORPORATE ANNOUNCEMENTS) 12,000 educational leaders can't be wrong! Subscribe to Just for the ASKing!, a free on-line monthly newsletter with practical and timely tips for the busy administrator. Read suggestions for growth-producing conferences, the power of high visibility, and creating a culture for learning. Subscribe now -- It's FREE! Free K-12 class resources, customized to what you teach, delivered to you personally. TeachAde is the first Web 2.0 site to send you daily resources from trusted content providers matched to your specific teaching interests. No more sifting through multiple websites - TeachAde does the work for you. To begin receiving relevant resources, visit www.teachade.com. Interested in learning more about advertising in ASCD SmartBrief? Contact Joe Riddle at (202) 737-5500 x228 or jriddle@smartbrief.com.     In the Field  Study: One in four children don't receive regular health care Some 9 million children are completely uninsured, another 11.5 million go without medical care for at least part of the year, and another 3 million have no way to secure a ride to the doctor. Although Medicaid and mobile health care units help many uninsured children, the gap found by the Children's Health Fund is twice as big as experts believed. CBS News (5/2) Florida approves daily physical education for elementary students Florida Gov. Charlie Crist's personal campaign to require elementary students to take a half-hour physical-education class daily is headed to his desk for final approval. Florida elementary and middle schools are not currently required to offer physical education, and some concerns have been raised about finding time in the crowded school day for the new requirement. St. Petersburg Times (Fla.) (5/4)   Association News  Understanding by Design, Expanded 2nd Edition Since 1998, thousands of educators have used Understanding by Design to create more rigorous and engaging curriculums. This expanded second edition provides more tools and strategies for results-oriented teaching, more specific guidelines on how to frame primary concepts for better student comprehension, and more examples across all grade levels and subjects of how schools have used the UbD framework to maximize student understanding. See sample chapters. Related ASCD Resources: Understanding by Design. 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