News
Schools with fewer needy students decry California funding change
LA Times - June 17, 2013
An article in the LA Times on the recently approved new funding formula for schools references a study Associate Professor Heather Rose wrote for the Public Policy Institute of California this spring. In it they quote Rose.
“‘There’s a lot of uncertainty. Nobody really knows’ how much money it will take to boost needy students, she added.”
Learning to Teach: A Four-Pronged Approach
Chris Faltis - OpEducation Blog, Education Week - June 12, 2013
Education Week’s OpEducation Blog invited six teacher preparation experts to respond to the following questions:
Are New Teachers Ready to Teach?
“Teacher preparation has been a hot topic for years in the education community. But now more than ever the nation seems focused on teacher quality and performance in the classroom. How well are teacher education programs preparing future teachers? What elements are essential for the successful preparation of novice teachers entering the classroom?”
Viewpoints: Collaboration can get us beyond tired debate over school funding
Editorial, Sacramento Bee, May 28, 2013
Professor Thomas Timar argues in an op-ed in the Sacramento Bee (May 28, 2013) for a more collaborative approach to funding California’s K-12 schools. “Given the governor’s proposal for a new school finance system based on a pupil-weighted formula and his proposal to spend $1 billion on the implementation of Common Core, this might be an opportune time to move beyond the restricted-unrestricted dilemma to other, more promising approaches to funding.” Read the entire editorial here.
Philanthropists Who Established School’s First Endowed Chair Make a Gift to the Power of 10 Scholarship Fund
Dolly and David Fiddyment, who established the UC Davis School of Education’s first endowed chair in 2006—the Dolly and David Fiddyment Chair in Teacher Education—recently made a gift of $3,000 to support the Power of 10 Scholarship Fund. Here they share their reasons for supporting the fund and their hopes that others will continue to help the School grow the fund between now and June 30, 2013.
Moving Toward a Coherent School Finance System
Article by Heather Rose in Leadership - May/June 2013
UC Davis School of Education Associate Professor Heather Rose has written an article mapping out the principals for a rational school finance system in California. In the article, she describes how Governor Jerry Brown’s Local Control Funding Formula meet many of the principals outlined and juxtaposes the new proposal against California’s current system. The article appears in the May/June 2013 issue of Leadership, a magazine published by the Association of California School Administrators. Access the magazine online here. Rose’s article appears on pp. 12-15.
School of Education Alumni Receive Soderquist Award for Exceptional Support to UC Davis
Redenbach and Gelatt also To Be Honored at School's Honoring Educators Awards Ceremony on May 21, 2013
Sandi Redenbach (BA ’72, Credential ’73) and Ken Gelatt (BS 67, Credential ’68) have been selected as the 2013 recipients of the Charles J. Soderquist Award at UC Davis.
The Soderquist Award was named in honor of the late Charles “Charlie” Soderquist—a UC Davis alumnus, management professor, and well-known Sacramento-area entrepreneur and philanthropist. The award, which was created by a philanthropic gift from the Soderquist estate, recognizes exceptional volunteer leadership and support of philanthropy at UC Davis, and honors UC Davis supporters whose efforts as volunteers have made a significant and lasting impact on the university.
“We are both so honored by this recognition,” said Redenbach. “We’re still in a little bit of shock.”
Jamal Abedi Shares Expertise on the Assessment of English Learners in Ed Week
April 25, 2013
In an Ed Week article “Testing Consortia Struggle with ELL Provisions,” Lesli A. Maxwell writes about the work being done by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium and the work that School of Education professor Jamal Abedi and his colleagues are doing to ensure that accommodations on new Common Core assessments will be fair and relevant for English learners.
“It’s one of the major misconceptions in accommodations,” Abedi says in the article. “States use these tools for the sake of accommodations with no consideration of whether it actually makes the assessments more accessible to ELLs.” Read the article here.
Jamal Abedi Receives Honor
April 2013
Professor Jamal Abedi, an internationally respected scholar in area of educational testing and assessment, has been selected for a 2013 Outstanding Achievement Award by the National Association of Test Directors. He was nominated by Dr. Zollie Stevenson of the U.S. Department of Education.
Cassandra Hart Study Cited on PBS News Hour
Should Public Money Be Used for Private Schools? April 1, 2013
In a story on the the Indiana Supreme Court’s ruling on a law allowing taxpayer money to be used for private schools through vouchers, Kevin Chavous, executive counsel for American Federation for Children, cited a study School of Education Assistant Professor Cassandra Hart co-wrote while she was Northwestern University. Hart is an expert on school choice.
Prize-Winning Author Will Discuss Her Cuban, American Roots
By Jeff Hudson, Davis Enterprise - Feb. 8, 2013
Margarita Engle, the 2013 featured author in the School’s annual Words Take Wing children’s literature lecture series, is the focus of this article by Jeff Hudson of the Davis Enterprise. Engle spoke on campus on Tuesday, February 12.
National Science Teachers Association Recommends Book by School’s Director of Sacramento Area Science Project
Success in Science through Dialogue, Reading and Writing
by Arthur Beauchamp, Judi Kusnick, Rick McCallum
A new book on the use of literacy to teach science, co-authored by Sacramento Area Science Project director Arthur Beauchamp, has been recommended by the National Science Teachers Association.
Alumnus Makes $5,000 Matching Gift to Power of 10 Scholarship Fund
John Brown (Credential '72)
Inspired by his fellow alumna Sandi Redenbach, who made a $5,000 matching gift to the School’s Power of 10 Scholarship Fund in November, John Brown (Credential ‘72) has made an additional gift of $5,000. Every gift to the fund will be matched dollar-for-dollar by John’s gift.
John, who served as a jet fighter pilot in the Air Force, knows how hard it is to juggle life’s demands while also pursuing the dream of college and a career in teaching.
Focus Should Be on Attainment, Not Scores
Opinion: November 2012 Report on High School Graduation Rates
Federal and state leaders need to focus more on policies that improve educational attainment and college and career success and less on test scores
In November, the U.S. Department of Education released new high school graduation rates for each state, using what the department called a “common, rigorous measure.” The picture is bleak for California, which ranks 32 among other states in high school completion. More troubling are the persistent disparities between racial/ethnic groups; white graduation rate is 85 percent, whereas Latino and African American graduation rates are 70 percent and 63 percent respectively.
Integrating Digital and STEM Practices
Article by Tobin White and Lee Martin in Leadership - December 2012
Professors Tobin White and Lee Martin have penned an article on how schools can leverage the ways students are already using mobile digital devices to organize and support learning activities in STEM content areas in the November/December 2012 issue of Leadership, a magazine published by the Association of California School Administrators.
Their article, which “calls attention to opportunities, often missed, to capitalize on emerging media for innovative and even transformative educational use,” appears on pp. 22-26. Access the magazine online here.
Student Services Staff Provide Lead Gifts in Launch of Power of 10 Scholarship Fund
As the School embarks on a special effort to raise scholarship funds for students through its Power of 10 Scholarship Fund, the School’s entire Student Services staff have teamed up to make the lead gifts. Hoping to inspire their colleagues and our alumni and friends, they share their thoughts on why they give and the impact they hope this fund can have on our students’ ability to pursue their dreams.
Jamal Abedi To Serve on Common Core Assessment Group
Edweek, September 7, 2012
Deemed a “heavy-hitter” in the field of assessment for student with disabilities and English learners, Professor Jamal Abedi will serve on a panel of experts charged with advising on the validity and fairness of new assessments tied to Common Core Standards. Read the story here. You can read more about the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium here.
Study finds too many variables with eighth-grade algebra policy
Davis Enterprise, September 9, 2012
Paul Heckman, associate dean of the School of Education, is interviewed extensively in this article highlighting research conducted by Heckman and Professor Jamal Abedi. Read the full article by Jeff Hudson here.
