Charter School Achievement on the 2003 National Assessment of Educational Progress*

QUESTION
Reader A: Do you really want to include the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) report on charter test scores? It has been widely criticized, as has the NYT for printing it, for its lack of sound methodology.

Reader B: Your inclusion of the AFT study on charters, which has been much criticized, without comment makes me wonder if the SEO's position on charters is negative. It's important to have negative news about charters, but I thought the SEO was supposed to be neutral about them, and so should have an obligation to show both sides.

ANSWER from the Editors
Our goal with the Ed Digest is to provide access to documents and reports so that individuals are able to use them in whatever way they find useful. To this end, we plan to cast the net pretty broadly. The SEO is committed to being objective and we did not mean to portray any sentiment favoring or opposing the AFT report. In the future, we will try to balance controversial reports by showing both sides. Learn about challenges to the AFT report from the national Center for Education Reform and locally-based Friends of Choice in Urban Schools.

ECS NCLB Database Select District of Columbia and Show All 

QUESTION

Throughout [the System wide Accountability] section of the NCLB [State Snapshot for the District of Columbia], the comment is made that for DC "no written evidence could be found, not even in draft form." Does anyone know the status of DC's NCLB accountability plan? Where might one access it?

ANSWER from the Editors
According to the Consolidated State Application Accountability Workbook submitted by DCPS to the Department of Education on June 3, 2003, the accountability plans are “approved by the State Superintendent and School Board. Implementation at the SEA and LEA level will be through Superintendent directive and Board Rule."

QUESTION
I would like to see some articles regarding home schooling your child in Washington, DC.  Also, are there any financial resources or assistance available to parents for educational needs (i.e. supplies)?

ANSWER from the Editors 
Please see How Many Home Schoolers Are There? in the January 2005 issue by Clive Belfield of the National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education, and note that we will be looking for more articles on this topic.

It does not appear that there are any financial resources available for District parents who are home schooling their children.  However, there appears to be a wealth of information about home schooling on the Internet.  These sites may provide you with additional information about the availability of financial resources.

P-16 (Preschool through Higher Education) 

QUESTION
Reader A: I work in higher education, I would like the digest to devote more space to those concerns that concern academia.

Reader B: Even though the contents of the Digest demonstrate a commitment to issues in post-secondary education, the stated purpose of the digest is to target issues in K-12 education.  However, a students' education and the efforts of educational institutions across the city focus on education continuing beyond the 12th grade to include a transition to the college years.  I would encourage the Digest to officially include resources extending from K to 16, in order to include the post-secondary education of our city's residents.

ANSWER from the Editors 
The mission of the digest has been updated to reflect the P-16 continuum, from preschool through higher education, for the reasons you suggest.  Stay tuned for articles that highlight a specific point along the education continuum such as those in Early Childhood Research & Practice , along with articles that bridge the transitions between preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education.

The State Education Office reserves the right to edit questions and comments for grammar and content.

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