In a speech on March 10, President Barack Obama revealed five pillars for reforming education in American schools: 1) investing in early childhood initiatives, 2) implementing better standards and assessments, 3) recruiting, preparing, and rewarding outstanding teachers, 4) encouraging innovation and excellence, and 5) providing every American with a quality higher education.
 
The full speech [...]

For information about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and how it applies to public education, visit http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/index.html.
The site provides 1) an overview of the ARRA, 2) resources that explain how the Act will be implemented, 3) agency plans and reports, 4) information about how ARRA funds can be used for school modernization, 5) [...]

The report, Wells Academy: School in Steubenville, Ohio Beats Academic Odds Year after Year, contains hopeful news about one of Ohio’s highest performing public schools, Wells Academy in Steubenville. In 2008, few other elementary schools in the state did better academically— and Wells did it with a student body that faces significant challenges.
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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 [...]

We recently asked community leaders what reading materials they recommend to better understand and stay abreast of education issues. Here are a few of the responses that we received.