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    At Beginning and End, Bus Tour Focuses on Civil Rights

The “Courage in the Classroom” bus tour started at a landmark of the civil rights movement.

And it ended today in Portland, Maine, with middle school students telling Secretary Duncan about their in-depth research project on how people in their community participated in that movement.

At the stop at King Middle School in Portland, a group of three rising 8th graders made a poster presentation to the secretary about how they interviewed local residents about their participation in marches and protests to advance civil rights.
The project, completed last spring, was an interdisciplinary effort. The students learned the history of the movement. They practiced interviewing skills with family members. They interviewed local residents. They published a book about their project.

The capstone of the project was an assembly where they presented their findings to the community, including many of their interview subjects.

“I learned that people in Portland that made a difference, not just people down South,” said Joanna Quinn, who presented about the project along with classmates Kelly Martinez and Mohamed Nur.

Source EDU

New York, Georgia, and American Samoa Will Receive Funds to Support Education Jobs

August 31, 2010

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced that New York will receive $607.6 million, Georgia will receive $322.3 million, and American Samoa will receive $8,324,352 to support education jobs.

"There is a huge sense of urgency to get these funds out the door. I commend these states for being among the first to submit their applications and thank our team at the Department for making funds available within a matter of days," said Duncan. "These education dollars will help these states keep thousands of teachers in the classroom working with our students this school year."

The $10 billion education fund will support education jobs in the 2010-11 school year and be distributed to states by a formula based on population figures. States can distribute their funding to school districts based on their own primary funding formula or districts' relative share of federal Title I funds.

Over the last two years, the Department has been able to support 300,000 education jobs through stimulus funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. At this time, seven states have drawn down 100 percent of previously allocated jobs funding, while 18 states total have drawn down 80 percent or more. A July report from the independent Center on Education Policy found that 75 percent of school districts that received stimulus funds expect to cut teaching positions in the upcoming school year.

Source EDU

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced that California will receive $1.2 billion to support education jobs.

"There is a huge sense of urgency to get these funds out the door. I commend California for being the first state to submit their application and thank our team at the Department for making funds available within a matter of days," said Duncan. "These education dollars will help California keep thousands of teachers in the classroom working with our students this school year."

The $10 billion education fund will support education jobs in the 2010-11 school year and be distributed to states by a formula based on population figures. States can distribute their funding to school districts based on their own primary funding formula or districts' relative share of federal Title I funds.

Over the last two years, the Department has been able to support 300,000 education jobs through stimulus funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. At this time, 7 states have drawn down 100% of previously allocated jobs funding, while 18 states total have drawn down 80% or more. A July report from the independent Center on Education Policy found that 75% of school districts that received stimulus funds expect to cut teaching positions in the upcoming school year.

Source EDU

WASHINGTON –U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Department

of Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate announced today the final agreement for the obligation of $1.84 billion dollars in funding for the state of Louisiana's Recovery School District (RSD) and Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) for the repair and replacement of public schools in Orleans Parish, including the City of New Orleans, damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

"Today, we are very pleased to announce that we have completed the final agreement to obligate a total of more than $1.8 billion dollars in funding for the state of Louisiana's Recovery School District and Orleans Parish School Board to repair and replace public schools damaged by Hurricane Katrina," Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said. "This announcement reflects this Administration's ongoing commitment to cut through red tape, resolve disputes and strengthen coordination across all levels of government to expedite recovery in the Gulf Coast."

"New Orleans has made remarkable progress rebuilding and reforming its schools over the past five years. The hard work there has served as an inspiration and a model for reform for cities across the country," Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "But there's still work to be done. With this new money, the Obama administration is supporting New Orleans schools so they can provide a world-class education to all students in the city."

This announcement is the result of a comprehensive agreement between FEMA, the State of Louisiana, RSD and OPSB for all eligible Public Assistance costs for these school systems and reflects the administration's ongoing commitment to cutting through red tape and ensuring close coordination across all levels of government in the ongoing recovery process.

The Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP), Recovery School Distinct (RSD), the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) and FEMA developed an alternate project agreement to repair, replace, and rehabilitate the original 127 damaged campuses and, over an eight year timeline, return RSD and OPSB to operation with a total of 87 campuses.

The Obama administration recognizes that quality schools help provide a foundation for stable and prosperous communities, a foundation that is especially critical in communities working to recover from disasters. The administration also continues to work to improve disaster preparedness, response, and recovery nationwide, so that the Gulf Coast and all other regions of the country will be more resilient and better prepared for future disasters.

See the White House fact sheet for further background on Gulf Coast hurricane recovery and nationwide disaster preparedness and response efforts.

On Sunday, August 29, President Obama will travel to New Orleans, La., to mark the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The visit will include remarks by the President at Xavier University of Louisiana.

“Teaching must be a much more revered profession,”

Imagine you’re a studying to be a teacher, and on the first day of the new semester, the U.S. Secretary of Education arrives to ask your opinions about the future of the teaching profession.

That’s what happened at Keene State College in New Hampshire on Monday’s evening stop on the “Courage in the Classroom” bus tour.

During the discussion, Secretary Duncan had more questions than answers for the class of that included undergraduates preparing to be teachers and current teachers working toward a master’s degree.

How do we recruit one million new teachers over the next four years?

How do we retain them in the profession?

How do we improve the way we prepare teachers?

Will better preparation programs lead to higher retention rates because teachers feel better prepared for success in the classroom?

One current teacher said that teacher preparation programs should focus on classroom-based experiences rather than philosophical discussions.

So many of a teacher’s daily tasks—such as managing a classroom, working with parents, and planning lessons—are best learned by doing the work yourself or watching an experienced professional, said Denis Jobin, who teaches English learners in Milford, N.H.

“You can talk about those things, but it’s interactive to learn them,” Jobin said.

Secretary Duncan agreed that teacher colleges need to find ways to integrate real-life teaching experiences into their preparation programs.

But he believes that the larger challenge is to improve the status of the profession so that teachers feel respected and valued.

“Teaching must be a much more revered profession,” he told the group. “Teachers haven’t been revered for a while.”

http://www.ed.gov/blog/2010/08/duncan-asks-how-do-we-improve-the-teaching-profession/

                                                     Give your views right here at BPN

The education Secretary has made a clear point.

Teachers alone cannot do the job it takes to make a successful student.

Parental involvement is the real key to students’ suscess.

If you as a parent cannot help your child or children, get some outside help.

Join in the discussions here on parental involvement.

Do you believe  children with more parental involvement do better in school?

Whatever their race, children with parental guidance will accomplish more in school than the child with no parental involvement.

The real question,what does parental involment means?