KidsOhio » Teacher Quality and Equity

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s poll of 40,000 teachers

ann — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 12:59:21 +0000

Click here to read the poll: Primary Sources: America\’s Teachers on America\’s Schools

Beyond Tinkering: Creating Real Opportunities for Today’s Learners and for Generations of Ohioans to Come, by Ohio Grantmakers Forum

ann — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 18:56:13 +0000

KidsOhio.org endorsed the education policy recomendations in Beyond Tinkering: Creating Real Opportunities for Today’s Learners and for Generations of Ohioans to Come. Recommendations have been shared with Governor Ted Strickland, the 128th Ohio General Assembly and the State Board of Education.

Read full report.

Education Trust report finds that some funding for low-income students in Ohio does not reach schools with greatest need

eric — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 22:22:33 +0000

A new report from the Education Trust (EdTrust) claims that additional funds intended for low-income students in Ohio often don’t reach the schools with the greatest needs. According to the EdTrust, Ohio has made some significant progress in improving equity across districts in student funding: “By 2006…Ohio districts with the highest poverty rates received $883 more per pupil in state and local funds than the districts with the lowest poverty rates.” The EdTrust’s analysis of the state’s largest 14 school districts, however, finds some funding inequities between schools within districts. For instance, the study found that within 11 of the 14 districts, the average teacher salary was higher in schools with lower rates of low-income students than in those schools with higher rates of low-income students. The report also examines differences in class size and spending per pupil on teacher salaries.

For a copy of the full report, click here.

Where can parents find information about the teachers in their child’s school?

ann — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 21:00:32 +0000

The Ohio Department of Education provides a teacher information database at the following web address, http://ilrc.ode.state.oh.us/Power_Users.asp. Simply click ‘Begin’ at the bottom of the page. When the next page appears, look for the icon entitled ‘Teacher Data.’ The database includes information about average teacher salary, student-to-teacher-ratio, teacher attendance, teacher certification, years of teacher experience, teacher higher education levels, and teacher mobility. All information is available at the building-, district- and state-levels.

Ohio Department of Education: Standards for Ohio Educators

ann — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:42:17 +0000

This document outlines Ohio’s standards for the teaching profession, for principals and for professional development, which were adopted in 2005. Standards for the teaching profession can be found on pages 12 to 39.
Read full report.

The Education Trust: Their Fair Share: How Teacher Salary Gaps Shortchange Poor Children in Texas

ann — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 15:53:58 +0000

According to this report by The Education Trust, “low-income students, Hispanic students and African-American students in the 50 largest school districts in Texas are less likely to be assigned to fully certified teachers, less likely to be assigned to experienced teachers, and less likely to attend a school with a stable teaching force than are other students educated in those very same districts.”

Read full report

Ohio gets grade of “C” on NCTQ’s 2008 State Teacher Policy Yearbook

eric — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:51:27 +0000

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) recently released their 2008 State Teacher Policy Yearbook. This year’s report focuses on teacher effectiveness. NCTQ gave each state and the District of Columbia a letter grade for (1) identifying effective teachers; (2) retaining effective teachers and (3) “exiting” ineffective teachers-as well as an overall letter grade. Most states received low marks, with 36 (71%) earning an overall grade of “D+” or lower. Ohio was one of six states to receive an overall grade of “C.” Only South Carolina was rated higher, earning a “B-.”

Click here to access the NCTQ’s full national report, and for an in-depth look at how Ohio fared, click here.

EducationSector Reports: Rush to Judgment: Teacher Evaluation in Public Education

ann — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 16:03:22 +0000

“This report… examines a number of national, state, and local [teacher] evaluation systems.”