Fensterwald: Carrot for changing teacher evaluations [Educated Guess, 12/17/10]: Last month, State Board of Education President Ted Mitchell couldn’t get any votes for his plan to encourage districts to change the way they evaluate teachers and administrators. Education groups didn’t like the proposal any better.

Fensterwald: AG asked to pursue ‘trigger’ complaints [Educated Guess, 12/17/10]: State School Board President Ted Mitchell intends to ask the state Attorney General’s Office to investigate charges of harassment and intimidation of Compton Unified parents who have petitioned to turn their low-performing elementary school into a charter school. Another story is in the Capitol Alert blog.

Teachers union officials say they are not 'villains of education' [LA Daily News, 12/16/10]: After receiving several public bashings amid unprecedented political and community pressure for school reform, leaders of the Los Angeles teacher's union said Wednesday that they are not "the villains of education." Union leaders also laid out their plan to push for teacher-led reforms, as they prepare for a new round of salary negotiations with school district officials.

School Boards Group Questions U.S. Guidance on Bullying [School Law Blog, 12/15/10]: The general counsel of the National School Boards Association is warning the U.S. Department of Education that recent federal guidance to schools on bullying and harassment expands the standard of liability for school officials and "will invite misguided litigation."

Judge leaning toward approving changes in teacher seniority rules in L.A. Unified [LA Times, 12/15/10]: A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Tuesday stuck to a tentative ruling that would change the "last hired, first fired" rules that control which teachers get laid off during budget cutbacks in the L.A. Unified School District.

Brown promises austere budget at forum focused on education [Capitol Alert / Sac Bee, 12/15/10]: Gov.-elect Jerry Brown had some words of advice for those gearing up for the budget he will propose next month: "Please sit down if you're reading the stories on the budget on Jan. 10. If you're driving, fasten your seat belt because it's going to be a rough ride." For the full story, go to:

Fensterwald: Educators to Brown: give us flexibility [Educated Guess, 12/15/10]: Gov.-elect Jerry Brown warned educators at a forum at UCLA on Tuesday that they, along with everyone else, should brace for bad news (“Please sit down if you’re reading the stories on the budget on Jan. 10”) when he releases next year’s budget.

McRae: Value-added evaluations can be designed but can limitations be understood? [TOPEd, 12/14/10]: The notion of using student test scores for teacher evaluations has been a professional dilemma for me for many years. On the one hand, using student gains to evaluate teacher effectiveness, as in various “value added” schemes, seems to be a no-brainer, logical thing to do. On the other hand, implementing such schemes seems to violate professional standards for valid, reliable, and fair use of student test scores.

U.S. sues district for denying teacher time off for Mecca pilgrimage [AP, 12/14/10]: The federal government sued a suburban Chicago school district yesterday for denying a Muslim middle school teacher unpaid leave to make a pilgrimage to Mecca that is a central part of her religion. The lawsuit claims that by refusing to grant Safoorah Khan unpaid leave, Illinois school district forced her to choose between her job and her religious beliefs.

Fensterwald: State of state’s teachers is bleak [Educated Guess, 12/14/10]: An annual report on the status of the teaching profession in California has found severe stresses in the system of hiring and retaining teachers, just at a time when, through budget cuts and layoffs, teachers are being asked to teach larger classes and to do more with less. There is also an item in the California Watch.

Education fills big space on Brown's chalkboard [LA Times, 12/13/10]: As the governor-elect prepares to take office, California's schools are confronted by a lack of funding that threatens to further harm pupils and a controversial reform movement that could dramatically reshape how classrooms are run. There is also an item in the “Fox and Hounds” blog.

NYC schools unveil new teacher-tenure system [NY Times, 12/13/10]: New York City schools will implement a new system for granting teacher tenure that will base part of that decision on student achievement on standardized tests. Officials say they expect fewer teachers to be granted tenure under the new system. In 2005, fewer than 1% of eligible teachers failed to receive tenure; this year, more than 11% are expected to fall short. The president of the United Federation of Teachers said the school system should focus more efforts on supporting new teachers rather than devising ways to grant tenure.

Fensterwald: Judge in Robles-Wong case needs convincing [Educated Guess, 12/13/10]: Lawyers for education groups and low-income students say they are confident that, if given the chance, they would prove that California’s school funding system is irrational and insufficient and therefore that the state should be forced to redesign and fund it.

State Sets Few Rules When Home = School [San Diego Union-Tribune, 12/13/10]: Something had long bothered Laura Tate. Her mother had started home schooling her three younger siblings when Tate was still in public high school. When Tate went back to visit her family in Ramona, it looked to her like her mother never taught the three teens.

Kansas school drops 'boobie' bracelet ban [AP / First Amendment Center, 12/10/10]: District's lawyer tells ACLU that Junction City High School will take no further action against students wearing rubber wristbands, T-shirts that support Keep A Breast Foundation.