It’s time for charter schools: Karen
Karen Martinez is the mother of seven children, the first five of whom she says struggled to succeed in the traditional education system. By the time her second youngest was in first grade, Karen says she was too frustrated to stay in the traditional school anymore. Now, after attending Rocketship Charter Schools, her daughter is [...]
House committee hears testimony on rating system for child care centers
Early this morning, parents, activists, and early learning advocates from across the state were in Olympia to testify in favor of HB 2569, also known as QRIS, at the House Early Learning & Human Services Committee. The passage of QRIS is would mean implementing a voluntary quality rating and improvement system for child care centers [...]
It’s time for charter schools: Anne
Anne, a parent of three, talked with us about her experience with Rocketship Charter Schools. She says that her two adopted children from China and her one biological child all are benefiting from the multicultural atmosphere of their school. Anne says she finds the quality of education at their charter school is “a good way [...]
Six-word essay contest on great teachers
A six-word essay contest to describe great teachers is generating some great submissions on Twitter (#6wordessay) . A sampling: Not a Twitter person? You can enter your submission online. The contest runs through Friday and is sponsored by Students First. Details here.
Teachers, parents speak up for stronger teacher & principal evaluations
The House Education Committee heard testimony on bills before the legislature on establishing a statewide plan for implementing revised teacher and principal evaluations. In particular, teachers spoke up on behalf of HB 2427, which specifically includes student performance in evaluations. Teacher Caine Lowery, whose students once said that he was “the reason [they] got out [...]
President Obama on education
In his State of the Union address last night, President Obama made some strong remarks on education. He talks about supporting and rewarding strong teachers and giving schools the flexibility they need to replace teachers who aren’t helping kids learn. In case you missed it, you can see what he has to say on education [...]
More research shows that black students are over-represented in the school – to- prison pipeline
Law professor, civil rights activist, and author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, Michelle Alexander discusses the prevalence of black children in the school-to-prison pipeline. Alexander backs up this point with data published by the Children’s Defense Fund that states that black children are “almost three times as likely [...]
Preschool for all
Sonja Lennox is a mother of two from the city of Tacoma. She is an advocate for early learning and parent engagement across the state of Washington. She has traveled to Washington, DC and given presentations on the importance of family involvement in children’s education. Both of my children have attended Head Start. I am [...]
The Olympian: Improved teacher evaluations are key to better education
From an editorial in The Olympian: Anyone who has had students in this state’s K-12 education system knows that there are effective teachers who inspire and motivate their students. The result is students who reach for academic success. Unfortunately, there are also teachers who seem to have lost their passion, lost their drive and simply [...]
Mom knows best: The importance of preschool
Sarah Ramsdell is a mother of two and lives in the Vancouver, Washington area. Everyone knows children don’t come with instruction manuals. I imagine, at some point, every parent has wished their child had. Regardless of the lack of an instruction manual, every parent is conscious of the fact that the first years of a [...]
