Anchorage has dedicated more space for elementary schools than it currently needs, and it is making ASD less effective than it could be.
Click to read more:
Anchorage Needs to Consolidate Its Classroom Space

“Closing the Education Achievement Gap” 

Dr. Ben Chavis, founder of the American Indian Model (AIM) Charter School in Oakland, California will present on the topic of motivating students, especially minority and lower income students, to achieve their maximum potential. His AIM middle school is now the #1 achieving middle school in all of California. Ninety-two percent of the students speak English as a second language, 97% qualify for free/reduced lunch, and 98% of the students are minorities. How does he do this?

Many would call his method “tough love.” Whatever it is, it seems to work, and work very well. He insists on high student expectations, personal responsibility from each student, structured classrooms, and enforced discipline. Dr. Chavis has been featured on John Stossel’s “Stupid in America” series which focused on education successes in America. Some say Dr. Chavis is not politically correct; he would say his only concern is for the kids in his schools, not the political correctness of his views and methods. He is concerned with outcomes and ensuring all his students achieve their maximum potential.

An Inspiring Story

When Dr. Chavis became the principal of the middle school, it was sometimes referred to as the zoo. Neighbors hated it because the students were out of control and wreaked havoc in the area. It was the worst middle school in Oakland. Chavis realigned the culture of the school from one of low expectations/high self esteem to one of highest expectations/maximum achievement.

Join us to hear what Dr. Chavis has to say about our education system and solutions that he has made work in his schools. It will be an outstanding evening!

Wilda Marston Theater/Loussac Library

Tuesday, January, 24, 2012

6:30-9:00PM

Earlier in November, the Alaska Policy Forum released a report card for the schools in the Anchorage School District. With that report card as a starting point, the Forum created a more improved rating system, and integrated it into a clickable map for easier navigation. If you have questions or comments about this map, feel free to email

Bob Griffin, Education Research Fellow, Alaska Policy Forum at bgriffin at alaskapolicyforum dot org  

or

David Boyle, Research Associate, Alaska Policy Forum at dboyle at alaskapolicyforum dot org.

Take me to the ASD Report Card

From the 2009-10 to the 2010-2011 school year, the Alaska Native Cultural Charter School in the Anchorage School District saw the most improvement in their performance. Based on the Standard Based Assessment test scores, the charter school saw a gain of 8.7 points.

To view the change in performance for all schools in the Anchorage School District click here (PDF).

Anchorage, Alaska – Alaska’s grassroots movement for parental choice in education received a significant boost the other day with the endorsement by delegates to the 2011 Annual Convention of the Alaska Federation of Natives, according to Jeremy Thompson, executive director of the Alaska Policy Forum.

“This resolution from AFN could not have come at a better time,” said Thompson. “Lawmakers are preparing to return to Juneau in January for a new session and will have before them proposals to establish a parental choice scholarship program in Alaska.  The AFN endorsement is a loud message that the people of the state want them to act.”

The resolution submitted by the AFN Board of Directors, after being sent in by the Kenaitze Indian Tribe, states that delegates endorse parental choice because it “allows Native parents flexibility to start new schools, or select other schools or methods designed to best respond to their children’s need.”

House Bill 145 and its companion Senate Bill 106 authorize public funding to be used to pay for the cost of K-12 education at a public or private school selected by a child’s parent.  The school of choice, according to the legislation, would receive the amount of funding the school district in which the student resides would have received.

According to Jonathon Ross, President of Tsiltan Management Group, the legislation will create opportunities to meet the educational, cultural and social needs of Native children.

“Alaska Native peoples have distinct cultures, languages, traditional knowledge, and a rich history that are a valuable resource to all Alaskans, and should be part of a child’s education in Alaska,” Ross said.  “For years the tide has been going out under the current educational systems, but in the Dena’ina language of Southcentral Alaska there is a word, naqantughedu\, which means the tide has turned around and it is coming back in, and with it a resurgence of our cultures, languages, traditions, and values that have sustained Alaska Native peoples for thousands of years. That time is here now, and it is time to make significant changes to how education happens for all Alaskans.”

Earlier this year during its first session the Legislature held a number of hearings on the educational choice proposals. “When lawmakers start work again in early 2012, we want them to pass these bills and send them to the governor for his signature,” Ross said.  “Our children deserve the opportunity to attend the schools that best meet their educational needs. This legislation will go a long way to help accomplish that.”

According to Jeremy Thompson, legislators need to hear support from other state organizations and individual Alaskans.  “We believe that parental choice in education is the best contribution we can make for the future of our kids.”

To read the full AFN resolution, visit: http://www.alaskapolicyforum.org/wp-content/uploads/AFN-Convention-Resolution-11-05.pdf

UPDATE, Monday November 28, 2011:

Alaska Policy Forum has revised the letter grades that were assigned to the SBA averages for each school in the Anchorage School District. The new system is as follows:

We feel this grading system to be a better representation of the SBA testing results. We have also created a clickable map to better display the grades and make the information more accessible (Flash required). To view the new map, visit here:

http://www.alaskapolicyforum.org/resources/anchorage-school-district-report-card/

END UPDATE

We all remember the days when report cards were given to us by teachers and the great anxieties those days held. This was especially true when the grades were not good and we had to show them to our parents so they could sign off on the report card. Some of us even tried to hide our “achievements”!  If students are graded and held accountabl for their achievements,then school districts should be accountable and receive grades, as well.

For example, Florida has graded all its schools since 1999 on an A to F scale, resulting in dramatic improvements in student achievement. These schools are required to prominently post the school grade at the school. We have developed a grading system for the ASD based on results of the Standards Based Assessment (SBA) tests administered to public school students in grades 3 through 9. Students in tenth grade are required to take a combined SBA/HSGQE test. Per the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development,  ”the SBA in grades 3 through 10 measure student achievement in relation to the performance standards/grade level expectations.”  All students in grades 3-10 are assessed in reading, writing and mathematics.

This report card only considers scores in mathematics and language arts, with the reading and writing scores combined for an average into a language arts score. The scores in language arts and mathematics were averaged together and a school grade was assigned based on the following: see above.

Folks in Interior Alaska now know about the Friedman Foundation survey results which show Alaskans support school vouchers by a 2 to 1 margin thanks to the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. The results are eye-opening and indicate that if given the choice, Alaskans by a large margin endorse the idea of school choice. Native Alaskans support school choice by 69%. 

(Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)FAIRBANKS — A recent survey suggests Alaskans approve of the idea of school choice, which would provide state tuition vouchers for families whose students try alternatives to regular public schools.

The survey was called the Alaska K-12 and School Choice Survey, sponsored by The Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice. About 1,000 people were surveyed over the telephone in September to get their views on the state’s education issues.

The survey’s margin of error was plus or minus 3.1 percent. Braun Research Incorporated, the survey organization, used a sample frame of registered voters from around the state.

People were quizzed on their knowledge of education in Alaska and asked for their opinion on the current public school system.

People were asked, “If it were your decision and you could select any type of school, what type of school would you select in order to obtain the best education for your child?”

Of Alaskans surveyed, 39 percent answered regular public school, 30 percent answered private school, 15 percent answered charter school and 11 percent answered home school. Another option was virtual school.

Currently, about 94 percent of Alaska’s students are in public schools, while about 3.7 percent are in charter schools and 2.5 percent are in private schools, according to information provided in the survey’s results.

The survey’s question number 15 stated, “A school voucher system allows parents the option of sending their child to the school of their choice, whether that school is public or private, including both religious and non-religious schools. If this policy were adopted, tax dollars currently allocated to a school district would be allocated to parents in the form of a ‘school voucher”’ to pay partial or full tuition for their child’s school. In general do you favor or oppose a school voucher system?”

Sixty-four percent favored the system and 29 percent opposed it.

Question 17 stated, “A proposal has been made that would amend Alaska’s constitution to allow state and local tax money to be allocated directly to parents, who could then use the money to send their child to the school of their choice, whether that school is public or private, including both religious and non-religious schools. In general, do you favor or oppose this kind of constitutional amendment?”

Fifty-five percent of participants favored the amendment, while 37 percent opposed it.

A House Bill proposed in February this year could have created the “Parental Choice Scholarship Program,” which could have provided public funds to schools that typically don’t receive per-pupil funding.

The National Education Association-Alaska was against the bill because, as President Barb Angaiak wrote in a message in the association’s newsletter, there is an abundance of education diversity available in public schools.

On April 1, with a hearing of House Bill 145 impending, the NEA-Alaska issued a statement that, “NEA-Alaska opposes the use of public funds for private or religious schools. Alaska’s constitution is crystal clear on this issue.”

Read more: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner – Survey Alaskans approve of school choice program

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Voters in Alaska decidedly favor school vouchers and other educational choice policies that would provide parents a range of options when it comes to educating their children, according to a poll released today by the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice.

A school voucher system allows parents the option of sending their child to the school of their choice, whether it’s a government or a non-government school, including both religious and non-religious schools.

The poll—“Alaska K-12 & School Choice Survey”—also reveals that Alaska voters underestimate how much is spent for public education. Very few respondents recognize that an average of more than $15,000 is being spent per student.

“This poll shows a large majority in Alaska supports educational choice,” said Robert Enlow, president and CEO of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice. “Whether they are displeased with the current state of education, or satisfied with the status quo, Alaskans say they deserve options to enable them the choose the best education for their children.”

The survey, commissioned by The Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice and conducted by Braun Research Incorporated (BRI), interviewed registered voters in Alaska. A total of 1,006 telephone interviews were conducted in English from September 10 – 18, 2011, by means of both landline and cell phone. Statistical results were weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. The margin of sampling error for the total sample of interviews is +3.1 percentage points.

Among the poll’s key findings:

• Alaska voters voiced clear, strong support for school vouchers. More than twice as many voters say they favor a school voucher system (64 percent) than oppose the idea (29 percent). In the final polling report, all examined demographic groups expressed favorable views on school vouchers, with no group dipping below the level of 57 percent favorable.
• Alaskans support a constitutional amendment that would allow school vouchers. 54 percent favor such an amendment, while only 37 percent oppose.
• While Alaska voters believe K-12 education is heading in the “right direction”, they still have an appetite for choice. 46 percent think K-12 education is heading in the “right direction” compared to being on the “wrong track” (39 percent). Yet, as outlined above, there is a strong desire for choice in the state.
• Most Alaska voters have no idea how much is spent in the public schools. Fewer than 1 out of 10 respondents (7 percent) could estimate the correct per-student spending range. The state spends more than $15,000 for each student in the public schools, but nearly a quarter of those interviewed thought the state spent less than $4,000 per student.
• When informed of actual per-student spending amounts, Alaska voters are more likely to say public school funding is at a level that is “about right” or “too high” than those without this information. In a split-sample experiment, those supplied with official spending data were less likely to say state spending is “too low” by 14 percentage points.
• Of all noted demographic groups, Alaska Natives and Asian Americans indicated they were most positive about school vouchers (69 percent and 73 percent favorable, respectively).  Alaska Natives are the most likely group to have a strongly-held positive opinion (40 percent “strongly favorable” vs. 19 percent “strongly oppose”).

According to former Anchorage Mayor Tom Fink, the survey results are reassuring. “We hear from many individual Alaskans who say they support educational options; this survey confirms the majority of Alaskans favor providing parents the opportunity to choose the school their child attends.”

To see a summary of survey results and a description of the methodology, visit http://www.EdChoice.org/AK-Survey.

If your child is having difficulties with the Everyday Math program or is doing well in the EDM program, then you should attend the community input meeting the School District is hosting and provide comments. This is your golden opportunity to help your child with math. The School District is reviewing the EDM program and soliciting input from parents as part of the decision making process of the selection/retention of a math program for K-6 students.

The Council of Great City Schools issued a report on the Everyday Math program in ASD in February of this year. There is a wealth of information in the report including comments from teachers and principals. In summary, the report places responsibility for poor implementation of the EDM program on the staff and Administration-and this is after nearly 15 years of the program in the ASD. It is hard to imagine that the District can improve this program with additional professional development in the near future.

So, if you or your children are having problems with Everyday Math in school, get to the community input meeting at Begich Middle School at 6pm, October 18th. Remember, this is about all the kids.  See you there.

(more info…)

Steve Jobs strongly favored school choice (vouchers) for every child as a means to improve educational opportunity for all. He believed that competition from “vouchered” schools would make the public schools either improve their product or go away. His strong endorsement of freedom of choice for all in selecting the best fit for their child is a shining light in the darkness of education and should encourage all to support school choice.
(read more…)