Posts tagged Charter Schools
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Catania says empowering parents is key to improving schools
DC Councilmember David Catania answered questions Monday night from Greater Greater Education contributors and readers. In the course of a wide-ranging discussion, he called for empowering parents, improving middle school options, and generally addressing DC’s education issues with a fierce sense of urgency. Drawing on an impressive fund of knowledge acquired… Keep reading…
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Morning bell: Education and the mayoral race
Catania ponders mayoral run: Councilmember David Catania, chair of the DC Council’s education committee, is launching an exploratory committee, saying he wants to see if he can do more for education as mayor. As an independent, he can wait until June, well after the April primary, to make a final decision. (City Paper) Mayoral hopeful Bowser jumps on middle school… Keep reading…
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Schools combine to extend language immersion
Thanks to a unique collaboration, students from some of DC’s most popular charter schools will join together to continue their Chinese, Spanish, or French immersion instruction through high school. Next fall, students from the 5 feeder schools will become part of the inaugural 6th- and 7th-grade classes at DC International School (DCI). For the first year the school… Keep reading…
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Catania, you had me at “Middle Schools”
The ongoing review of DC’s school boundaries and feeder patterns has captured the attention of the entire DC education community. One unexpected and vitally important development is Councilmember David Catania’s new focus on middle schools. While some are optimistic about the boundary review process, there’s also a lot of anxiety about whether… Keep reading…
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Troubled school improves without relying on suspensions
Four years ago, Stanton Elementary School in Anacostia was the lowest-performing elementary school in the District and in danger of being closed. But partly thanks to an innovative alternative to suspensions, Stanton is now on the rise. According to those who knew its “before” phase, Stanton now is almost unrecognizable. Before, says Ashley Johnson, who has… Keep reading…
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Morning bell: Middle schools in the spotlight
One DCPS middle school dies: Shaw MS entered a downward spiral after the murder of its principal in 2010 and was closed at the end of the last school year. (WAMU) And the birth of another is delayed: In the wake of controversy over the quality of DCPS’s middle school offerings, officials announced that the opening of Brookland MS will be delayed one year, until the fall of 2015. Keep reading…
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DC launches common school lottery website
The new common application and lottery system for DCPS and most charter schools has launched its website. You can’t apply or enroll yet, but you can start learning about how the process will work. The website, My School DC, is being rolled out in three phases: Learn, Apply, and Enroll. Families will be able to apply to schools through the site beginning December 16. There… Keep reading…
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Morning bell: What do parents want?
Test results every year?: With ongoing debate over whether new curriculum standards should justify a “testing holiday,” Jay Mathews asks parents to weigh in on whether they would be willing to go for a year without getting test results. (Post) No change in school boundaries?: Jonetta Rose Barras acknowledges anxiety among parents about the re-examination of… Keep reading…
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Options PCS cheated special ed students of services
Options Public Charter School routinely denied students with disabilities textbooks and placed them in overcrowded classrooms, according to current and former teachers at the school. The mounting allegations raise questions about the lack of special education oversight in DC. DC’s Attorney General has alleged that former managers of the school diverted… Keep reading…
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Why we opted out of public school (for now)
I’m an all-around believer in the public school system. Yet this fall I opted to send my son to a private school in Maryland. We failed at the charter school lottery, and our neighborhood school isn’t a good fit. And ultimately, my decision was made easier by the fact that next year, we can think it all over again. Keep reading…