Washington Post

By Jay Mathews
It is important to ensure that schools raise achievement expectations for all students -- until high standards cause students to lose interest in subjects they previously enjoyed.

Blueprint is consistent in character with other school initiatives crafted by D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee that are designed to show visible results quickly.

The University of Louisville announced yesterday that it will investigate the awarding of a doctorate to John E. Deasy, now superintendent of Prince George's County schools, after reports that he completed his graduate work there on an unusually fast track in apparent departure from the university's standard practice.

I began paying annual Little League fees for my son Joe when he was 7. After that, the requests for checks from schools and organizations multiplied -- soccer league fees, tennis camp fees, field trip fees, lab equipment fees. Too many for me to remember. Joe is 35 now, no longer a burden on my bank...

Outside a kindergarten classroom at Lakewood Elementary School in Rockville, students used a bar graph to show how they felt about returning to school. Students placed green stickers on the graph to indicate whether they felt scared, nervous, okay, happy or thrilled.

Strategy Might Include New Evaluation Process, Linking Licenses to Classroom Performance. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee is preparing to bypass the Washington Teachers' Union in pursuit of the objective she considers essential to overhauling the District's public schools: the power to fire at will teachers she deems ineffective.

Michael Casserly
The failure of the D.C. public school system has been a team effort. In 1962, after the New York Mets had lost a record 120 games in the franchise's first year, Casey Stengel, the team's legendary manager, walked into the locker room and reportedly said, "I don't want you boys to feel bad about this. It's been a team effort. No one or two of you guys could have done all this by yourselves."

Peer2Peer, started five years ago by a then senior in high school, pairs struggling students with older teens. Tutor Danielle Reinhardt, 17, left, a senior at Churchill High School, helps Samantha Spears, 14, a freshman

New state test results show that Prince William County's third-graders are struggling to score at the highest level since the implementation of a controversial math program that was intended to boost performance.

I still lean toward the position of sleep to combat lethargic students who long for a later first class.

Virginia test results released last week showed rising scores in reading and math in Fairfax County and a skewed trajectory, as students' literacy skills outpaced their computational abilities.

D.C. public schools continue to fall woefully short in meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities and physical or behavioral challenges, according to the report of a federal court monitor.

In an era in which kids are more likely to use a computer to write a book report, there are still parents who believe that knowing how to write on paper is important. But sometimes, 6-year-old Ben writes his e's backward. And when 7-year-old Jason had long journal assignments in class last year, he had trouble gripping the pencil.

By Petula Dvorak
The District has taken $6M set aside for charter schools, interest and administrative salaries and redirected it to the ailing Child and Family Services Agency.

Jay Mathews
Put good educators in the rickety buildings we have. We can get the money we need to fix the facilities, once everyone sees that those are schools worth repairing.