Five education issues to watch as state legislators convene this week
Likely to lead the 2020 agenda will be proposals to improve students’ reading skills and increase teacher compensation, two needs that most every lawmaker can agree on.
Topic: Achievement School District
RSSThere are 58 article(s) tagged Achievement School District:
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January 2020
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Turnaround schools should move to new charter commission, lawmaker says
State Rep. Mark White says charter schools in the Achievement School District should be under the charter commission, but state Rep. Antonio Parkinson says all 30 schools should return to local districts in Memphis and Nashville.
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Frayser charter operators have questions after ASD proposal
All 30 schools under the state's Achievement School District would return to their local school districts by 2022, but the process and details of such a transition remain unclear.
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Tennessee unveils plan for low performing schools
Eve Carney, the state’s chief districts and schools officer, said the state would consider more than just test scores and academic growth when placing schools on three "tiers," or levels of intervention. “Just to be frank, we will be in your schools, we will be in your business,” Carney said.
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All 30 schools in Tennessee turnaround district would exit by 2022 under plan
According to a copy of the proposal obtained by Chalkbeat, the transition is part of a massive reset for the embattled turnaround model known as the Achievement School District, which has fallen woefully short of its goal to improve student performance since launching in 2012.
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December 2019
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State-run district adds to list of Memphis school buildings with high lead levels
Three Memphis schools joined a list of buildings with water sources that contain unsafe lead levels. Many schools in the district have yet to be tested.
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November 2019
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Charter leaders call special education funding a ‘Band-Aid solution’
Leaders in the Achievement School District, charter schools that took over historically low-performing schools, fear further state cuts would seriously affect special education programs for students with some of the highest needs.
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October 2019
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Behind the Headlines Podcast: Journalist round table
A round table of journalists discusses some of the biggest stories in Memphis, including the impact of the sales tax referendum, the achievement school district, a natural hair discrimination ban and more.
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Three Memphis schools may exit Tennessee Achievement District
The Memphis schools have shown enough improvement to be eligible to leave the Tennessee Achievement School district next school year. Since that's never happened before, no one knows how that should work.
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September 2019
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Memphis state-run school improves math scores 9 percentage points in one year
Cornerstone Prep Denver’s student achievement is the highest of all 30 schools in the Achievement School District, the district of charter schools tasked with turning around Tennessee’s lowest-performing schools.
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August 2019
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School turnaround model has not improved student achievement, research finds
The state-run district took over low-performing schools in Memphis and Nashville with a goal of vaulting them out of the state’s bottom 5% and into the top 25% academically. The schools – 28 in Memphis and two in Nashville – have performed no better or worse than comparable struggling schools outside of the district.
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Achievement School District scores remain stubbornly low
Only 3.4% of high schoolers in the Achievement School District met the state’s proficiency standards on this year’s math and English exams, while 12.6% of elementary students reached that benchmark.
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Pressure is on SCS to fulfill pledge, close third-grade literacy gap
Special Report: Memphis' Reading Test
PART 1: Meeting goals for third-grade reading proficiency in Tennessee is a daunting task unless dramatic improvements occur in Shelby County, where the hurdles are high and the challenges complex. And in Memphis, a city where nearly four in five children in public schools aren't reading on grade level, the undertaking is monumental.
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July 2019
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In a reversal, Memphis charter network to stay with state district for now
Freedom Preparatory Academy will continue operating its Westwood neighborhood elementary school as part of the state turnaround district instead of moving the school to Shelby County Schools oversight.
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Education leaders offer advice about Tennessee’s turnaround schools
A dozen people from other states answered Tennessee school chief Penny Schwinn’s request to meet in Nashville and talk about the Achievement School District. Seven years after its creation, the Tennessee district’s third leader recently left; a study found the program has not improved student achievement; and Schwinn said no new schools will join this year.
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After seven years, state’s Achievement School District struggles to show results
Political support for the Tennessee achievement district could be waning. After the district’s high profile leader Sharon Griffin left this month, some state lawmakers are calling for hearings on its future.
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June 2019
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With Sharon Griffin out after a year, Achievement School District seeks stability
Sharon Griffin was the fourth ASD leader in seven years. Katie Poulos, the state’s new chief of schools overseeing turnaround efforts, said there will be a national search for a permanent replacement.
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Sharon Griffin resigns as head of Achievement School District
Sharon Griffin’s resignation as chief of the Achievement School District reflects growing tension between the state and Griffin on how to improve the turnaround district.
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High-profile principal departs Georgian Hills Achievement Elementary
Yolanda Dandridge is leaving for charter operator Memphis Scholars. She will take charge of the Memphis-based charter organization’s Caldwell Guthrie Elementary School. She’s been at Georgian Hills as a teacher, assistant principal and principal since 2013.
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High hopes for Achievement School District give way to tension
ASD chief Sharon Griffin wants to play a bigger role in the day-to-day operations of charter schools than past leaders have. She wants charter and school leaders to improve test scores, to bolster teacher recruitment and training. But school leaders say they were promised autonomy to run their charter schools as they see fit.
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May 2019
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What happens if Aspire leaves Memphis but keeps its four schools open
The Achievement School District has dealt with a spin-off like this before with Memphis Scholars, which runs three schools in the state district. But this is the first time Shelby County Schools has dealt with a question like this.
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Third-grade goals putting SCS teachers to the test
PART 2: High-stakes testing has shifted the focus of kindergarten from what's developmentally appropriate to get kids ready for school, to what's academically required to prepare students for their first standardized achievement tests in third grade.
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April 2019
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Longtime Memphian Bobby White out as official at state-run turnaround district
A senior official in Tennessee’s Achievement School District was ousted Thursday morning – the first major shakeup the district has seen under leader Sharon Griffin.
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March 2019
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Schwinn faces critical decisions on TNReady online achievement testing
Tennessee education leaders can now track glitches with the revamped TNReady testing system in real time. But the state education commissioner says she still must decide whether to throw the switch or wait another year to resume online achievement tests.
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Griffin: More certified teachers, better K-2 instructors top priorities for ASD
In a presentation to Memphis parents this week, Griffin said: “The life of the ASD is at stake. We either fix it and show improvement or it’s not going to exist….”
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