L.A.’s Revamped Teacher Evaluation System Getting Mixed Grades Teachers are finding value in the new evaluation system as it rolls out, but administrators doing the reviews complain about how time-consuming they are. LA Times LAUSD Moves to Speed English Learners Into Mainstream Triggered by a federal civil rights investigation, Los Angeles Unified has launched a...

LA Charter First In KIPP Network To Embrace Blended Learning At KIPP Empower, that model calls for kindergartners to spend roughly 11 percent of their extended, 8 1/2 -hour school day working on reading or math exercises on a laptop computer. But classes at the school feel, by and large, similar to other early-elementary classrooms...

Fiscal cliff not imminent for school districts The one education cut that would take effect Jan. 1 affects Impact Aid, which involves payments in lieu of property taxes to districts where federal facilities are located. EdSource Teacher accused of fondling student pleads not guilty A former Miramonte Elementary School teacher pleaded not guilty Monday to...

New L.A. teachers too often placed with neediest students, study finds  More so than in the other districts, Los Angeles schools also disproportionately placed newer teachers with less-proficient students  –-  who are an average six months behind peers assigned to more experienced instructors. Los Angeles Times Schools eat up challenge of new federal nutrition standards...

Analysis Examines L.A. Teacher Characteristics The difference in performance between top- and bottom-performing elementary math teachers was one-quarter of a standard deviation, or nearly eight months of learning, a figure the report characterizes as larger than in other districts that have been studied. Teacher Beat  Deadline to Apply for LAUSD Magnet Schools Is Friday The...

Los Angeles Tops Nation in Charter School Enrollment More students from Los Angeles Unified attend charter schools than from any other district in America – by far. Nearly one out of seven LAUSD students now attend charters. Ed Source Deasy’s $17.5M Request for Computer Tablet Funds Nixed The panel that oversees spending of Los Angeles...

LAUSD Restores Full Academic Year and Full Pay The actions were made possible by passage of Proposition 30. Members also approve a resolution to charge fees when charters claim more space on traditional campuses than they need. LA Times See also  ABC 7, KTLA, CBS, Daily News, KPCC, & LA School Report LAUSD Rejects Voluntary Moratorium on...

Budget Shortfall Latest Threat to Schools, Even With Promise of Prop 30 Around the Capitol, attention has turned to the annual revenue forecast, due from the non-partisan Legislative Analyst this week, that also offers the first hard look at the size of next year’s budget deficit. SI&A Cabinet Report Brown to Schools: Expect Fiscal Reform,...

Candidates File Papers to Run For L.A. School Board The March election could change the course of a new teacher evaluation system, the union’s dealings with charters and, possibly, the future of Supt. John Deasy. LA Times Mother of Twins, Lawyer and Activist Goes After Anti-Charter Zimmer Kate Anderson, an activist mom and successful attorney...

Lawsuit Against Teacher Tenure Poised to Move Forward A lawsuit to overturn teacher tenure laws and seniority rights remained on track Thursday when a Los Angeles Superior Court judge issued a tentative ruling allowing the litigation to move forward. LA Times [read full text here] Local Votes of Confidence: Most Bonds, Parcel Taxes Pass Proposition 30,...