OCDE Education in the News

Tuesday, August 21, 2018

ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Reorganized, refocused La Habra schools welcome students back

La Habra City School District’s slogan last year was “R U Ready?” This year, it’s “#WeAreReady.” In the past 15 months, the district overhauled how its nine schools are organized, created a specialized focus for each campus, reassigned 167 teachers and moved 145 classrooms.

https://www.ocregister.com/2018/08/20/reorganized-refocused-la-habra-schools-welcome-students-back/

Summer program makes STEM success part of the equation

“They’re on their toes. They’re thinking about their future.” That’s how Cal State Fullerton math professor David Pagni sums up the high school girls who take part in Project MISS (Mathematics Intensive Summer Session) each summer. The program, which Pagni started in 1990, brings teens to campus for seven-hour days during which they sharpen their algebraic and precalculus skills.

https://www.ocregister.com/2018/08/20/summer-program-makes-stem-success-part-of-the-equation/

VOICE OF SAN DIEGO

A Small Pot of School Funds Is Regularly Mismanaged and Sometimes Abused

Associated Student Body funds can be a meaningful boost for individual schools. In theory, the money is at least partially controlled by students and spent fully for their benefit. In practice, the funds are often mismanaged and sometimes spent on staff-only events like parties or teacher training, according to a recent internal audit.

https://www.voiceofsandiego.org/topics/education/a-small-pot-of-school-funds-is-regularly-mismanaged-and-sometimes-abused/

NEW YORK TIMES

How Do You Get Better Schools? Take the State to Court, More Advocates Say

The legal complaints have different areas of focus — from school funding to segregation to literacy — but all of them argue that the states are violating their constitutions by denying children a quality education.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/21/us/school-segregation-funding-lawsuits.html

SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS

Study: Teens text and use social media instead of reading books

A new study has alarming findings but is probably not surprising to anyone who knows a teenager: High schoolers today are texting, scrolling and using social media instead of reading books and magazines. In the 1970s, about 60 percent of high school seniors reported reading a book, magazine or newspaper every day. Four decades later, in 2016, 16 percent of high school seniors reported doing so.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/08/20/study-teens-text-and-use-social-media-instead-of-reading-books/

EDSOURCE

Fewer Californians than residents nationwide favor raising teacher pay

The plight of teachers in the half-dozen states who went out on strike over wages last spring resonated across the nation. A near-majority of people now favor raising teachers’ pay — a significant increase over a year ago — according to a poll by the education journal Education Next. An exception, though, is California — at least when those surveyed were told how much teachers in the state currently earn.

https://edsource.org/2018/fewer-californians-than-residents-nationwide-favor-raising-teacher-pay/601480

California community colleges urged to plan now for fewer students in remedial courses

While a 2016 report estimated 80 percent of students were placed in remedial education, “a majority of students will be placed directly into transfer-level courses” under the recommendations from the chancellor’s office.

https://edsource.org/2018/california-community-colleges-urged-to-plan-now-for-fewer-students-in-remedial-courses/600905

SI&A CABINET REPORT

Schools limit kids’ exposure to smoke from CA wildfires

Northern California schools forced to delay the start of the year due to wildfires are opening their doors this week, but experts warn that even though the flames have mostly settled, there remains a toxic mix of substances in the air that can still be harmful.

https://k-12daily.org/human-resources/schools-limit-kids-exposure-to-smoke-from-ca-wildfires

HuffPost

5 Teachers Share What They Actually Buy For Their Classrooms

Kleenex tissues and hand sanitizer are basics, but the list of what they need goes on.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/teachers-school-supplies-classroom_us_5b7acd3ee4b018b93e961131

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