OCDE Education in the News

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

OCDE NEWSROOM

Irvine Unified School District presents first live State of the District

It’s no secret that education is what attracts young families from around the globe to this still-developing master-planned community. At the heart of it is the Irvine Unified School District, whose schools are consistently ranked among the best in California. The district’s core founding principle, “Outrageous expectations should be standard,” has run through the district’s blood until this day, Superintendent Terry Walker said.

http://www.ocregister.com/2017/11/06/irvine-unified-school-district-presents-first-live-state-of-the-district/

Anaheim’s Savanna High mascot Johnny Rebel will be altered to eliminate any perception of Confederacy links

Students at Savanna High School will continue to call themselves the Rebels, but their longtime mascot, Johnny Rebel, will become a thing of the past. Supporters of the Anaheim Union High School District board’s decision Monday, including more than half of current students, hope to remove any perception of connections to the Confederacy.

http://www.ocregister.com/2017/11/06/anaheims-savanna-high-mascot-johnny-rebel-will-be-altered-to-eliminate-any-perception-of-confederacy-links/

SACRAMENTO BEE

Sacramento teacher strike averted. Union, city district reach deal ahead of planned walkout

The Sacramento City Unified School District and its teachers union reached an agreement Monday on a new contract that gives teachers up to an 11 percent raise over the three-year deal and averts a strike for the 43,000-student district. The deal was finalized after being brokered over the weekend by Mayor Darrell Steinberg, school district Superintendent Jorge Aguilar and the Sacramento City Teachers Association.

http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article183073406.html

EDSOURCE

California State board asked to reject textbooks that fall short on LGBT contributions

For the first time, the State Board of Education on Thursday will consider recommending history social science textbooks that include ‘fair, accurate, inclusive and respectful representations’ of people with disabilities and people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

https://edsource.org/2017/state-board-asked-to-reject-history-textbooks-that-fall-short-on-lgbt-contributions/589871

Stagnant California test scores pose problem; state board may rejigger how to rate districts

Stagnant test results on the third year of the Smarter Balanced tests are posing an unexpected challenge for the State Board of Education: Hundreds of school districts may require county assistance because they failed to raise their scores in English language arts and math on the tests they took last spring.

https://edsource.org/2017/stagnant-test-scores-pose-problem-state-board-may-rejigger-how-to-rate-districts/589870

SI&A CABINET REPORT

State mulls adjustment to how math scores are counted

An unexpected dip in math scores across California has state officials considering adjustments to the new school accountability system that otherwise would tarnish many schools with failing grades. Because the new performance system is limited to just three years of data, analysts at the California Department of Education said the results from math testing in 2017 were lower enough from the prior two years to be potentially inaccurate once all the numbers are plugged into the final reporting vehicle, the California Dashboard.

https://www.cabinetreport.com/curriculum-instruction/state-mulls-adjustment-to-how-math-scores-are-counted

KPCC

Charter schools, LAUSD reach deal to end 'game of chicken' that jeopardized schools' futures

to vote to deny 14 charter schools the permission they need to open or to remain open — an unprecedented number of charter denials for a single year, let alone a single board meeting. Now, ahead of that vote on Tuesday, top L.A. Unified officials are prepared to reverse themselves and recommend the board approve 11 of those 14 charter applications after reaching a deal with leading charter school representatives, according to three sources with knowledge of the negotiations.

https://www.scpr.org/news/2017/11/06/77468/charter-schools-lausd-reach-deal-to-end-game-of-ch/

Anaheim high school to rebrand Confederate mascot

The Anaheim Union High School District voted Monday night to rebrand a high school mascot that depicts a Confederate soldier. A group of mostly African American students and community members had asked the board to replace the “Johnny Rebel” mascot at Savanna High School, saying it was offensive.

https://www.scpr.org/news/2017/11/06/77466/anaheim-school-board-votes-to-change-johnny-rebel/

SACRAMENTO BEE

Growing number of OC districts offer free SAT, PSAT to students

For many students, taking the SAT offers the first experience into the college application process. The exam also provides them with a sense of how prepared they might be for the more rigorous college coursework. As school districts across Orange County work to boost the number of students who are college and career ready, more of them are now offering the SAT for free to all their students. Juniors and seniors at dozens of high schools across the county now can take the exam without forking over the up to $104 application fee.

http://newsroom.ocde.us/growing-number-of-oc-districts-offer-free-sat-psat-to-students/

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