By Sallie Owen Gowan

Today was a celebration for the 3rd group of A+ College Ready schools. These 20 schools have signed on for a big challenge – promising to collectively boost their Advanced Placement (AP) enrollment by 85% in math, science and English.

To celebrate their commitment to this big goal, we organized a ceremony in the State Capitol with Gov. Bob Riley and State Superintendent Dr. Joe Morton.

Here’s the news release... Read More...

By John Norton

(We are delighted to welcome John Norton, the former vice president for communications at the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), to our new website and blog.)

A series of stories about districtwide accountability and reform in the magazine of the American Association of School Administrators has me thinking about the leadership of Roy Nichols in Mobile County.

The February issue of “School Administrator” features a cover article by Harvard professor Robert Kaplan, who co-created a progress-monitoring tool for business called “The Balanced Scorecard” and has since helped adapt it for school districts. In the story, Kaplan and co-author Dylan Miyake describe how the Atlanta Public Schools system has used the tool to drive many positive improvements in the past decade.

Over at the Public School Insights blog, Claus von Zastrow hailed the scorecard as an example of educators learning the right lessons from business. Claus also highlighted Atlanta’s progress using the Balanced Scorecard, but he could have looked to an Alabama example ...
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By Cathy Gassenheimer

I just finished reading a thought-provoking article in the February issue of Educational Leadership titled “Start Where Your Students Are,” by Robyn R. Jackson. She posits that to get all students to learn, teachers need to understand their “currency.” She defines currency as “any behavior that students use to acquire the knowledge and skills important to your class.” She gives examples such as students who want approval from the teacher tend to ...
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By Cathy Gassenheimer

Many educators dream of a school environment where the curriculum is driven by projects and problem-based activities that challenge all students to learn more deeply and apply what they learn to the real world.

Some educators believe this kind of schooling simply isn’t possible in today’s high-stakes accountability environment. Winterboro School in rural Talladega County is out to prove them wrong.

Winterboro serves students in grades 5-12, about 85 percent of whom are on free or reduced lunch. As far as state testing benchmarks, the school has consistently met those, but it didn't take a fortune teller to see problems lying ahead... Read More...

By Betsy Rogers
Guest Blogger

I recently had the opportunity to travel for the fourth time as a People to People citizen ambassador. This time our destination was South Africa -- a country I had longed to visit – and the experience was more powerful than I could have ever imagined.

If you’re not familiar with People to People (PTP), the program was founded in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower as part of the U.S. Information Agency. The purpose has always been to enhance international understanding and friendship by promoting the exchange of ideas and experiences directly among peoples of different countries and diverse cultures. It’s important that Eisenhower, one of the great warriors of the 20th century, offered this explanation for his support: "I have long believed, as have many before me, that peaceful relations between nations requires understanding and mutual respect between individuals."

My PTP focus, as you might guess, has been around education. I love the description you’ll find on the Education page at the People to People website. It reads:

Teachers become students as they step into a classroom in a distant land. For education professionals, lifelong learning is the key to excellent teaching ... Read More...

By Cathy Gassenheimer

Take a minute and look at the photos scrolling at the top of this page. With the exception of the results graphic, all of these pictures feature Alabama students and educators. Spend a little more time looking at the picture of a student reading with a retired educator. There’s a story there.

Cameron is a fifth grader at Wrights Mill Road Elementary School in Auburn. He has big dreams... Read More...

Legislation to allow charter schools, or independently operated public schools, is currently pending in the Alabama legislature. So we pulled together some basic information that could help answer any questions you may have on the issue.

• A Frequently Asked Questions (or FAQ) about charter school explains the relationship of Race to the Top grants Read More...

You told us that you wanted a user-friendly, “one-stop shopping” website, and today we are launching our best effort to meet your needs. Highlights include:

• Easy online registration, right from the homepage
• What We’re Reading tool lists resources ...

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As we search for ways to help schools achieve more, it’s tempting to frame solutions as “either/or” choices. So often we take sides and expend a lot of time and energy insisting that our choice is the answer and must prevail. For example:

• Either we teach students to read using phonics OR we employ whole language.

• Either we teach kids to memorize important math facts OR we focus on the why and how of math. Read More...