Education Archive (6)
District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) officials have expressed satisfaction at recently-released test results which indicate "solid gains" in math and reading at the 7th-and 8th- grade levels. Further, math scores at the high school level have risen since 2007, and every grade has performed better in math since then.
Preliminary results of the 2011 District of Columbia Comprehensive Assessment System (CAS) show that while scores for elementary students remained unchanged, there were dramatic improvements in grades 7 and 8. Forty-nine percent of 7th- graders and 51 percent of 8th-graders scored proficiently (an increase of 4 and 8 percentage points, respectively, over 2010), said Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson.
"In 2007, our seventh-and eighth-grade students were the lowest-performing in the District. Today, seventh and eighth graders have shown they can move us forward by making steady progress in reading and climbing to the top in math proficiency," Henderson, 40, said. "We will work hard as a school district in the next school year to build on the progress we have made. We have a long way to go in reaching our goals, but our seventh and eighth graders have proven we can make steady progress."
Higher Achievement's 6th Annual Olympics of the Mind celebrates summer learning
For 500 DC area students, school might have ended in June - but the hard work of academic learning continued through the summer. Today, Higher Achievement hosted its 6th annual Olympics of the Mind, a full day of friendly academic competition that showcased the remarkable academic skills Higher Achievement's young people have built throughout the summer - including math, science, social studies, and history.
The event took place at George Washington Middle School in Alexandria, VA, and was sponsored by FedEx Express and Capital Source. It comes at the end of Higher Achievement's summer academy, which has been in session five days a week, eight hours a day since June 27.
Courtesy photo.When District of Columbia Public Schools officials announced the latest round of teacher lay-offs in mid-July, Kadesha Bonds understood the range of emotions of those affected.
The Alexandria, Va., resident used to teach radio production to 11th- and 12th-graders at McKinley High School in Northeast. Bonds said she loved her job and enjoyed interacting with her students. Then on August 2, 2008, two weeks before the start of school, she received a certified letter telling her that she had been fired. She was one of 78 teachers terminated by former D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee.
Secretary of Education Arne DuncanPressing business elsewhere prohibited President Barack Obama from addressing several thousand delegates at the Progressive National Baptist Convention's (PNBC) gala in Northwest Washington, but his designee's message Wednesday evening stirred the crowd.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan may not have had the gestures and cadences of a Baptist preacher but the images he painted of the dire state of education, and his repeated exhortations to those present to help reverse the downward spiral struck a nerve.
"Education is the civil rights issue of our generation. (It) is the most pressing issue facing America," said the 46-year-old Chicago native. "Education is a moral and economic imperative (and) it is the only way to reach a more equal and just society."
Armstrong Senior High Class of ‘51 stroll the halls of the school during a 60th anniversary celebration, Sat., Aug. 20 in Northwest, D.C. / Photo by Roy LewisWhat if you could go back and walk the halls of your youth?
On Aug. 20 a group of 23 members of Armstrong Technical High School's Class of 1951 gathered and did just that. They boarded a bus for a tour around their old haunts in Washington, D.C., in celebration of their 60th reunion.
"This is our 60th anniversary graduating from Armstrong Technical. There were two classes, which graduated that year, one in February and another in June. This group is a mixture of both classes," said Marlboro Sharpe, corresponding secretary for the group.
Parents and Teachers Voice Support for PRCs
For Mildred Lockridge, it's always been about the children. For the past 55 years, she has served as an instructor, principal, assistant principal, math resource teacher and demonstration teacher, all in the interest of children, primarily those in Ward 8.
Last Thursday, September 1, she counted among a group of more than 50 parents, teachers, mentors and others who grilled District of Columbia Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson for about 90 minutes at M.C. Terrell Elementary School in Southeast. The gathering, precipitated by the closing of three Parent Resource Centers (PRCs) in August, remained a sticking point between parents and school officials.
ADVERTISMENT
ADVERTISMENT