By Guest Contributor, on July 16th, 2018 This crosspost from Valerie Jablow is for all those DC education advocates who really want to understand some of what would be needed to have effective reform in DCPS. Good teachers need to be trained, recruited and supported.
Cross-Posted from EducationDC
written by Valerie Jablow
We know that teachers are the single most important school-based factor affecting student learning (Rice, 2003). Ensuring that students in all schools have access to effective teachers is critical for academic success. Yet, as in many other school districts, high-poverty schools in DCPS have fewer highly effective teachers compared with lower poverty schools (Gordon, Kane, & Staiger, 2006; Jackson, 2013; Sass et al., 2012).
Credit: Betsy Wolf, 2018. Graph was created using data Mary Levy obtained from DCPS responses to questions from the city council during performance hearings. The drop box with this information is posted on the council website.
Credit: Betsy Wolf, 2018. Graph was created using data Mary Levy obtained from DCPS responses to questions from the city council during performance hearings. The drop box with this information is posted on the council website.
One reason for such inequity is higher teacher turnover in schools with larger percentages of low-income students and students with low test scores, who are not on grade level–which affects many schools in DC.
Credit: Betsy Wolf, 2018. Turnover data for all staff (not just teachers) here is from the public drop box for the council education committee. PARCC data is from OSSE.
As DC public school analyst Mary Levy has documented, DCPS’s new hires alone leave at a rate of 25% per year, with staff leaving the 40 lowest-performing (and highest poverty) DCPS schools at an average rate of 33% per year. Studies of other jurisdictions have found similar results. For instance, a typical school in Chicago will lose half of its teachers within five years, and the 100 most disadvantaged schools there will lose 25% of their teachers each year (Allensworth, Ponisciak, & Mazzeo, 2009).
Credit: Betsy Wolf, 2018. Graph was created using data obtained via FOIA by Mary Levy from DCPS in SY2017–18.
As the graph above shows, teachers in high-poverty schools in DCPS have fewer years of experience in the system. That means that teachers are either moving to more affluent schools or leaving the system altogether, which creates teacher churn in our most disadvantaged schools.
The effects of such teacher churn are particularly pernicious, given that most of our publicly funded schools, particularly in DCPS, have large proportions of low-income students.
As it is, schools with high-poverty populations often have challenges that high-income schools don’t and thus need more instructional resources, including effective teachers, to increase student achievement. Yet in DC, low-income schools most often have fewer instructional resources—and less effective teachers—on average than high-income schools. Continue reading How To Have Effective Teachers In Every School (Or, What DC Doesn’t Do–But Should)
By Sarah Livingston, on March 12th, 2018
For those following the ins and outs of District of Columbia Public Schools, here in it’s entirety is the March 2018 edition of the Citizen Reader.
 I  PUBLIC EDUCATION
The Association of School Superintendents (www.aasa.org), joined by more than twenty other national education organizations, is hosting the National Public Schools Week March 12 through 16, 2018. The week’s events are being co-chaired by six members of Congress who will give speeches in the Senate and House of Representatives and hold a press conference.
A statement on the above website explains the purpose of Public Schools Week saying “With the mounting changes in the education landscape, this campaign creates a platform for Americans to join together and express their strong feelings toward public education and why its success is a key determinant when it comes to our country’s future.”
The senators and representatives are Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA), Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO), Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) and Senator John Testor (D-MT).
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS WEEK March 12 – 16, 2018
● Morning of TUESDAY (3/13): Speeches on the floor of the Senate celebrating the great things happening in public education.
● Evening of TUESDAY (3/13): 1-minute speeches during which House Members share a story about the great things happening in a public school or with public schools students in his/her Congressional District.
● Afternoon of WEDNESDAY (3/14) at 2 pm in the Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 430: Press Conference for Public Schools Week. House and Senate Co-Chairs of Public Schools Week will share their support for public schools and specific legislation that supports public schools.
● Morning of THURSDAY (3/15): Speeches on the floor of the Senate and House if applicable celebrating the great things happening in public education.
● THURSDAY from 1-3 pm (3/15): Tweet storm using #PublicSchoolsWeek! We will be lifting up the floor speeches via social media.
● FRIDAY from 10-11 am (3/16) at the Rayburn House Office Building Room 2044: Panel Discussion “Understanding the funding streams that impact public school students” featuring: Bruce Lesley, President of First Focus; Stan Collender, Executive Vice President at Qorvis MSLGroup; and Sharron Parrot, Senior Fellow and Senior Counselor, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Moderated by Lauren Camera, National Education Reporter U.S. News and World Report.
 Monday, MARCH 19, 10 am in Room 412, at Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The Committee on Education will hold a Public Oversight Roundtable on The Future of School Reform in the District of Columbia. The purpose, according to the announcement on the Council’s website, “is to focus specifically on improvements to the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act and other cross-sector issues.”
In addition, “it will be the first in a series of roundtables that will be scheduled during both daytime and evening hours to get the full engagement of the public.”
To testify, sign up online at http://bit.do/educationhearings or call 202-724-8061 by 5 pm Friday March 15. Written statements for those who can’t testify in person can be submitted by email to astrange@dccouncil.us or postal mailed to Committee on Education, Council of the District of Columbia, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW 20004. Closing date for written statements to be determined.
On March 24, the kids and families of March For Our Lives will take to the streets of Washington DC to demand that their lives and safety become a priority and that we end gun violence and mass shootings in our schools today. March with us in Washington DC or march in your own community. On March 24, the collective voices of the March For Our Lives movement will be heard.
 in conjunction with Ward 6 DC Council Member Charles Allen
Ward 6 Representative Joe Weedon, State Board of Education, and
Capitol Hill Public Schools Parent Organization
Monday, April 9, 2018
6:30 to 8:30 pm at the North East Neighborhood Library, 330 7th Street NE
The information in this workshop will be provided in three ways.
1–Know Your Rights Discussion–lead by the Office of Student Advocate Team. 2–Individualized Mini-Sessions–to help answer your specific questions about the needs of your student(s).
3–Special Education Resources–list of special education resources including 504 plans v. IEPs (Individualized Education Plans), how to make a request for evaluation, annual reviews, and connections for organizational support.
RSVP at http://bit.ly/2g4BeJU For more information, email student.advocate@dc.gov or call 202-741-4692.
DCPS Performance Oversight Hearing Government Witness, March 1, 2018
Interim chancellor Amanda Alexander gave the government witness testimony on the performance of DCPS during Fiscal Years ’17 and ’18 to date. In her prepared statement she spoke of her experience in DCPS beginning as a kindergarten teacher in 1998 and going on to serve as principal of Bunker Hill and Ross Elementary Schools. She also led the redesign of DCPS’s principal supervision structure and served as an instructional superintendent of a group of elementary schools. From there she became deputy Chief of Schools, managing literacy initiatives and a district-wide task force to identify and implement strategies to improve student performance. Most recently, she served as chief of the Office of Elementary Schools leading the system’s elementary support and early childhood programs.
She gave three examples of changes in DCPS over the past decade—the overhaul of all aspects of the teaching corps, implementation of Common-Core aligned curriculum to determine if students were mastering basic skills, and increasing enrollment and opening of new schools.
While acknowledging the many problems that still exist, she said “DCPS is definitely not the
same district it used to be.”
In response to a question from committee member Robert White as to how, in light of
recently revealed problems, people can be confident that DCPS is on the right track, Ms. Alexander reported some information from a recent meeting between her team and the Instructional Superintendents.
The purpose of the meeting was to review the middle of the year (moy) literacy data. She explained that the data is viewed in quintiles, or five segments, that range from Well Below Average to Below Average to Average to Above Average to Well Above Average. They found that 23 schools had hit the Above Average and Well Above Average mark.
The schools are: Brightwood EC, Burroughs ES, C.W. Harris ES, Dorothy Height ES, Drew ES, Houston ES, Ketchum ES, Lafayette ES, Lasalle Backus EC, Malcom X ES, Marie Reed ES, Patterson ES, Payne ES, Ross ES, Seaton ES, Simon ES, Smothers ES, Thomson ES, Trusdell EC, Tyler ES, Walker-Jones EC, West EC and Whittier EC.
She concluded her response by saying that those increases in students’ literacy skills are the basis for her confidence that DCPS “is on the right track.”
Her full testimony can be read at www.dcps.dc.gov under the Testimonies tab at the bottom of the home page. In addition to the Oversight Hearing, the Committee on Education also sends questions to DCPS each year which it then responds to in writing and sends them back to the Committee where they are posted on the Council’s website www.dccouncil.us near the top of the home page. They provide many pages of detail on the inner workings of DCPS.
Recent education blog must reads
● At educationdc.net, https://educationdc.net/2018/02/28/gun-violence-our-dc-schools/ by blog master and DCPS parent Valerie Jablow and https://educationdc.net/2018/03/02/this-is- not-a-boat-accident/, a guest post by school advocate Peter McPherson comparing the mayor in the town depicted in the 1975 film Jaws with DC mayors’ needs for a certain narrative on school reform.
● From Guy Brandenburg at https://gfbrandenburg.wordpress.com/. Retired DCPS math teacher in a March 10 post entitled Ten Years of Educational Reform in DC—Results: Total MathCounts Collapse for the Public AND Charter Schools recounts his recent experience as a judge for the math competition for 7th and 8th graders which has dwindled to two students from past times when teams of four were common and won over private schools such as National Cathedral and Sidwell Friends. In addition he provides links to more than a half dozen articles detailing DCPS’s problems. One of them was written by Natalie Hopkinson, DC resident and writer, in the Atlantic magazine of September 15, 2010.
The Public’s testimony on the performance of DCPS at the Oversight Hearing on February 21, 2018 can accessed by video on the Council’s home page under Watch Hearings Live www.dccouncil.us. Some of the written public testimonies can be read at https://chpspo.org/. Scroll down past the Meeting Notes for February 20, 2018 to find them.
Speaking freely… A letter to the editor
Thank you for including the Network for Public Education’s “A Call to Action on April 20, 2018 for school safety against gun violence.” It is in the form of a letter from Diane Ravitch, a former education official in the federal government and the president of the Network.
I agree with the Network that gun violence in this country must be stopped, and I would urge that we, as citizens of the Nation’s capital city, show up on April 20 as Ms. Ravitch recommends.
I recommend, in particular, that those of us pushing for more effective gun regulations
press home the points to Congress and the White House that the crux of our gun problem is the easy availability of guns.
Within the Supreme Court’s guidance regarding the Second Amendment in the Heller v. District of Columbia case, written by Justice Antonin Scalia in 2008, it is legal and possible for the national government to take the following affirmative actions:
(1) Authorize and support research by the Centers for Disease Control into the incidence of death and injury attributable to the number of guns stored in residences, the number sold in a year in particular jurisdictions, or other measures which can inform us of the effects that guns have on our society;
(2) Establish, maintain, and at yearly intervals make available a national database, administered by the Department of Homeland Security with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, of registered gun sales and ownership;
(3) Require background checks for all gun purchasers, irrespective of whether guns are sold by individuals, by stores, at gun shows, or by any other means.
Similarly, I recommend that we focus on the following prohibitions:
(a) Carrying or transport of guns in or near schools, day-care centers, medical facilities, college campus grounds, concert venues, public parks, government properties, shopping malls and areas, and houses of worship;
(b) Interstate transport of guns or other weapons, except by military forces or state or local police forces which are in the process of collaborating in pursuit of one or more suspects across jurisdictional lines;
(c) Sale, possession, or use of AR-15 or other assault weapons, bump stocks, large
magazines (more than 5 bullets capacity).
I believe these affirmative steps and prohibitions would bring down the incidence of gun- related deaths and injuries in this country. They ought to be regarded as a manifesto for our April 20 activities, moving the country in the direction of improved public safety. If enacted, these steps and prohibitions would constitute an effective resumption of our path toward “a more perfect Union” as contemplated in the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States.
C. Ellis, DC father and grandfather
Citizen Reader is a project of Livingview Communications—a citizens’ information service that is dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of democracy and the honor of all who have fought and died to equally participate in and protect it.
Contact ess.livingston@gmail.com with corrections, letters to the editor or request for email subscription. Thanks!
By Sarah Livingston, on April 29th, 2016 Cross-posted from the April Edition of the Citizen Reader.
Every year, as part of the Council’s oversight responsibilities, the various committees send out a list of questions to each of the agencies within their purview. The questions and agencies’ responses are then posted on the Council’s Home Page under Agency Responses providing the public with a wealth of information rarely seen elsewhere.
Because of Mayor Bowser’s changes in the office of the Deputy Mayor for Education (DME) when she took office last year, such as moving the DCPS chancellor and the Department of Parks and Recreation into the DME’s responsibilities, and because of the DME’s description of its mission, which says in part, “…responsibility for developing and implementing the Mayor’s vision for academic excellence and creating a high quality education…”, and because, though she has made numerous announcements of particular initiatives, the Mayor has not yet presented her own vision or over-all plan for education in DC to the public, it seems worthwhile to the Citizen Reader to give some attention to a few of the Committee on Education’s oversight questions of the DME’s office.
The Committee asked 49 questions which, together with the responses, take up 44 pages not including the many appendixes. Below are some of the questions in their original words in bold italics. The responses are summarized in regular type.
Q1. Discuss each of the programmatic and policy initiatives the DME has worked on in FY15 and FY16 to date. Please include details about a long-term strategic plan if there is one being developed.
The response lists and describes in detail the following: My School DC, (Supply, Demand, Need data), LEA Payment initiative, Equity Reports, since 2013, Truancy Task Force, Request for Offer (RFO), Transportation Working Group (TWG), Cross Sector Task Force, and ReEngagement Center evaluation.
The response does not mention a long-term strategic plan, but the details offered on the LEA Payment initiative say that the way that money is allocated to DCPS and the Charter Schools will change so that, beginning in SY16-17, both receive funds based on their audited enrollment rather than the Charters by audited and DCPS by projected enrollment.
Q4. In June, the National Academy of Sciences released it five-year evaluation of public education in the District of Columbia under mayoral control. Discuss and provide plans for how the DME intends to address each of the following three recommendations from the study:
– Recommendation 1: The District of Columbia should have a comprehensive data warehouse that makes basic information about the school system available in one place that is readily accessible online to parents, the community, and researchers.
The response mentions the Office of State Superintendent’s LearnDC website that provides “school level information on the metrics of federal accountability measures including assessments (report card tab), student enrollment, college-readiness, and growth in student achievement (profile tab), and how well schools equitably serve students including suspensions and expulsions and enrollment mobility and detailed subgroup presentation (equity reports tab).”
It also says that OSSE has requested $15 million for a 5-year capital investment, beginning in FY2017, and that OSSE’s staff and developers are meeting weekly to identify all the authoritative data that will be housed in the new data warehouse.
– Recommendation 2: The District of Columbia should establish institutional arrangements that will support ongoing independent evaluation of its public education system.
The response says the DME has met with various entities to discuss the best way to support ongoing evaluation including with the DC auditor and that the DME is also exploring best practice models from other jurisdictions.
– Recommendation 3: The District of Columbia’s primary objective for its public schools should be to address the serious and persistent disparities in learning opportunities and academic progress that are evident across student groups and neighborhoods, with equal attention to DCPS and public charter schools. To that end, the NRC Committee recommends that the city attend to:
Continue reading Questions for D.C.’s Deputy Mayor for Education
By Grassroots DC, on March 31st, 2016
DC “State” Board of Education has proposed changing the rules for District of Columbia Graduates. Rather than taking all the courses required to get their degree, students could simply pass the right tests and get their degree. With the exception of testing out of math and language courses, many educators think this is a bad idea. The following two articles, taken from the March Citizen Reader, published by Living View Communications, highlight the details.
Update on Proposed Rules
by Sarah Livingston
As reported last month, the State Board of Education and the State Superintendent of Education proposed a set of rules on January 22 that would radically alter high school by allowing students to acquire credit by passing OSSE approved tests, among other provisions.
According to a memo from the Superintendent to the Board dated February 26, 2016, twenty-five comments were received. After reviewing them, the superintendent made “certain clarifying technical amendments” which were determined by the Attorney General to not constitute substantial changes. However, the memo continues, the comments raised enough questions about subsection 2203.7 that the “OSSE believes further discussion on this topic would be beneficial,” and proposes to put that section in “reserve.” Meanwhile, she is requesting that the Board give final approval to the remainder of the rules as amended.
The Board is scheduled to vote on the matter at its meeting on March 16 in the Old Council Chambers at 441 4th St. NW. The meeting begins at 5:30 pm and the agenda includes time for public comments. See www.sboe.dc.gov for the full agenda.
Citizens Petition Against Proposed Rules
by Sarah Livingston
Shortly after the Citizen Reader came out last month, Cathy Reilly, Executive Director of the Senior High Alliance for Parents, Principles and Educators (SHAPPE) posted a petition against the proposed rules on-line. To date, it has been signed by close to 300 people. The preamble to the petition gives a
By Sarah Livingston, on February 17th, 2016
The following is taken from the February edition of the Citizen Reader, a newsletter published by Grassroots DC Education Contributor Sarah Livingston. Sarah Livingston is a native of Mississippi who ardently believes that democracy is the best thing we have going for us in America and that good, helpful information is essential to the most inclusive and most equal participation of *all* citizens in it. From that belief, Livingview Communications–A Citizens Information Service was born. *Citizen Reader* is LVC’s third project since 2004.
State Superintendent proposes dramatic changes to graduation requirements
In recent years, both the State Board of Education and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education have discussed alternate ways of awarding credit for courses taken toward high school graduation. Much of the discussion has centered on “competency-based” learning or CBL. The current method awards credit in Carnegie units that are based on time in class. CBL awards credit for demonstrated mastery of a subject regardless of time.
Last summer, the Board convened a task force to study “high school credit flexibility” and at its December 16, 2015 public meeting, unanimously adopted a Resolution approving four recommendations, based on the study, to change how credits toward graduation are awarded. It advised the State Superintendent “to initiate rulemaking to implement the recommendations endorsed in this resolution.” Below are the recommendations as stated in that resolution:
1. Create a waiver process for schools wishing to pursue competency-based learning;
2. Allow students to receive credit for demonstrated knowledge in world languages and mathematics;
3. Maintain Carnegie units as the default means for earning credit where neither of the two above conditions apply;
4. Consistent with the benefits of student self-based learning associated with competency-based models, remove the requirement that students enroll in Algebra 1 by 9th grade.
When OSSE published its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the DC Register of January 22, 2016 for the thirty-day public comment period, numbers 2 and 4 of the recommendations had been altered extensively from their original wording in the Resolution. The proposed rules would radically change the way students would be educated in the city’s high schools. The comment period, which closes on February 20, 2016, is the time for citizens to consider the proposed rules, what they would mean, and to have their say about them. • To find the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and submit comments online go to:
http://www.dcregs.dc.gov/Gateway/NoticeHome.aspx?noticeid=5833888
OR
• Pick up copies and mail or hand deliver comments to the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), 810 First St. NE 9th Floor, WDC 20002 Attn: Jamai Deuberry re: Graduation Requirements and Diplomas or email: ossecomments.proposedregulations@dc.gov
Continue reading State Superintendent Proposes Dramatic Changes to DCPS Graduation Requirements
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