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In the News
February 6, 2012
Wall Street Journal

 Connecticut would pump more money into charter schools and increase their numbers under a legislative proposal Gov. Dannel Malloy plans to unveil Monday.

February 5, 2012
Hartford Business Journal Online

 Thanks to its strong educational system and manufacturing industry, Connecticut will pace America’s high tech-sector for the next generation.

January 25, 2012
Hartford Courant

 After about two years of wrangling, a group representing teachers, school administrators and school boards agreed Wednesday on a new way to evaluate teachers that places a strong emphasis on student achievement.

Members of the state Performance Evaluation Advisory Council said the breakthrough in their discussions on the contentious issue occurred in the past few months under the leadership of Education Commissioner Stefan Pryor.

January 25, 2012
Connecticut Mirror

Years of disagreement have stalled efforts to grade teachers and dismiss those who are ineffective. That all changed Wednesday when a group of educators -- including teachers' unions, superintendent and school board groups -- agreed on how to properly evaluate teachers so those who are struggling are identified and put on a path to improve or be dismissed.

 

January 24, 2012
Associated Press

 Connecticut's policies to improve the quality of teaching in its public schools are mediocre at best, and particularly fall short in efforts to keep the best teachers and remove those who are ineffective, according to a new nationwide assessment of states' regulations. 

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Two days before deadline, ConnCAN analyzes need for new teacher, principal laws

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- March 22, 2010
Contact: 
Karen Rutzick, ConnCAN
Tel: 
203-772-4017 x19
Cell: 
202-406-0456
Email: 
Karen.Rutzick@conncan.org
New Haven, Conn

Two days before the deadline for the legislature’s Education Committee to pass two critical bills regarding Connecticut’s system for certifying and evaluating teachers and principals, the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) releases a new paper detailing the broken system and underscoring the need for change.

Click here to download ConnCAN’s new issue brief, “Teachers, Principals & Race to the Top.”

“When 99 percent of Hartford teachers receive a satisfactory rating, but less than half of students are reading at grade level, something needs to change,” said Alex Johnston, ConnCAN Chief Executive Officer. “Race to the Top is Connecticut’s chance to follow New Haven’s lead and institute meaningful teacher and principal evaluations.”

S.B. 440, “An act concerning school districts and teacher performance programs,” would institute a better data system that defines principal and teacher effectiveness in terms of student achievement growth and links teacher and principal training programs to the classroom effectiveness of their graduates.

Text of this bill is available here.

Section three of H.B. 5491, “An act concerning certain school district reforms to reduce the achievement gap in Connecticut,” requires schools districts to incorporate student achievement growth into their teacher and principal evaluation systems by July 1, 2011.

Text of that bill is available here.

The last day for the Connecticut General Assembly’s Education Committee to pass these bills out of committee is Wednesday, March 24.

In early March, Connecticut was rejected from the first round of the Race to the Top, the federal government’s highly coveted $4 billion competition to reward states that aggressively reform their public schools.

Round 2 of the Race to the Top is due June 1. ConnCAN’s campaign, “Our Race to the Top” is calling for four reforms to help Connecticut win the Race to the Top: measuring effectiveness, superstar principals, world-class standards and money follows the child. 

Detailed policy goals and other information are available on www.ourracetothetop.org.

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The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) is an advocacy organization building a new movement of concerned Connecticut citizens working to create fundamental change in our education system. To learn more visit: www.conncan.org.

 

 

 

 

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