Vice President Biden Celebrates One-Year Anniversary of Race to the Top Awards in Delaware

[Freddie Stubbs]

Source: White House

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan were in Wilmington, Delaware to celebrate the first year anniversary of the first Race to the Top awards, which marked the beginning of a transformative and highly successful investment in education. Nearly a year after being awarded over $100 million in Race to the Top funding, Delaware’s grant has significantly helped the state make progress toward improving its education system. Speaking at Howard High School of Technology, the Vice President and Secretary Duncan discussed the success of teacher collaboration in Delaware, as well as how winning the future in education will continue to require investments that promote a shared responsibility among everyone involved; reform at the state and local levels; and a focus on achieving results. They were joined in Wilmington by Governor Jack Markell, Senator Chris Coons, Representative John Carney and President of the Delaware State Education Association Diane Donohue.

“For less than one percent of what America spends on education each year, we were able to help jump-start some of the farthest reaching education reforms in history,” said Vice President Biden. “All across the country, Race to the Top is inspiring the same kind of change we’re seeing here in Delaware.”

“Nearly one year ago, Delaware won a Race to the Top award because it submitted an application that promised to reach into every corner of the state and had the full support of its teacher’s union,” said Secretary Duncan. “Today, we are here to celebrate the fact that Delaware has made good on its promise and is beginning to implement changes that are transforming the state of education for children throughout the state.”

Vice President Biden celebrated the progress Delaware has made since it received the Race to the Top award nearly one year ago at Howard High School—an active partner in the State’s Race to the Top plan. One of the critical elements of the State’s early accomplishments is the establishment of a Partnership Zone which gives low performing schools the help they need to turn around including instituting longer school days, increased instructional time, more flexibility in staffing decisions, and a greater role for teachers in implementing reforms. Howard is one of four Partnership Zone schools in the State and has made several key changes that are helping it transform.

Read more: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/03/21/vice-president-biden-celebrates-one-year-anniversary-race-top-awards-del

[msongs]

1. Not LBN... it is a PR piece and editorial - >

"...which marked the beginning of a transformative and highly successful investment in education." THAT is an editorial opinion, not news.

[Plucketeer]

2. "beginning to implement changes"

So it's still in the wishful thinking stage. Let's hear when it's paraded on the MSM like that flop of a Charter school that was featured on 60 minutes.

"Race to the top" RIGHT.

[sulphurdunn]

3. The entire piece

describes how RTTT funds are being used to implement procedures to assess teacher performance, but not a quantitative peep about actual student performance on the holy grail of standardized tests. Don't be surprised if test sores for RTTT schools are suddenly declared unimportant in divining competency and achievement when they don't rise. That would be a real incentive for all the states to jump on board for the money and to bust their unions, especially if they remained otherwise accountable for test scores.

[Freddie Stubbs]

4. Since the program in only one year old, it is likely that any benefits would not be able

to be measured yet.

[sulphurdunn]

5. The kids take the tests

whether the program is ready or not. There are or will be test results this year. With the sole exception of departmental planning there was little of anything about improving pedagogy or of assessing student performance, only teacher performance.

[Freddie Stubbs]

8. So, you are unhappy about no test results for tests which WILL be taken this year?

[sulphurdunn]

9. The is little if any evidence

of which I am aware that correlates improvements in student test scores with teacher training, teacher evaluation or data collection systems. The notion among the general public that such evidence exists is primarily a consequence of the mass dissemination of misinformation.

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. Kids and schools were measured under NCLB within a year

No waiting period was allowed. Within a year we had a list of 'failing' schools to cast shame upon. Why would RTTT be any different?

[Freddie Stubbs]

7. Perhaps they want to get more accurate results

[sulphurdunn]

10. Accurate data?

Within the educational profession their is considerable controversy about what standardized tests actually measure beyond their own reliability and validity.