Blog posts are the opinions of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of A+ Colorado.
School has just begun for many Denver students and we are excited as more schools are providing much needed extended learning time with longer days and a longer school year. Last week was a good week for Denver with the latest TCAP (formerly CSAP) scores confirming that many of the schools DPS targeted for improvement…
Originally posted on EdNewsColorado, July 19th, 2012. Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org Read here. Written by Jason Callegari. Jason Callegari, A+ Denver’s policy director, argues for a renewed focus on arts education and outlines a task force created by the advocacy group to bolster the arts in Denver schools. A+ Denver recently created a task force to…
Originally posted on EdNewsColorado, July 11, 2012. Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org Read here. Written by Van Schoales. Van Schoales, head of A+ Denver, weighs in on what he sees as a diminishing focus on quality education in Douglas County. With all the drama about teacher unions and vouchers in Douglas County, it makes you wonder what…
Originally posted on EdNewsColorado, June 29th, 2012. Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org Read here. Written by Robert Reichardt. Researcher Robert Reichardt has taken a close look at data gleaned from Denver’s new SchoolChoice process, and he has discerned some interesting trends. This year Denver Public Schools implemented a new process to facilitate students’ ability to choice out…
Last week was an extremely busy and important week for Denver Public Schools. The board and the administration tackled challenging issues and one of our higher education institutions made headlines with a landmark policy change. Collaboration I’d like to start by thanking the DPS administration and DCTA for working together on a new teacher contract.…
Originally posted on EdNewsColorado, June 13th, 2012. Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org Read here. Written by EdNews Staff. What’s churning: A second and final report on Denver Public Schools’ new enrollment process, called SchoolChoice, says the new school selection plan worked for most participating families. Findings of the second report, available here , are largely positive, as were…
Originally posted on EdWeek, June 6, 2012. Copyright © edweek.org Written by Jason Tomassini. One year into an aggressive, expensive school turnaround initiative, some of Denver’s lowest-performing public schools are showing marked academic improvement by providing an education nearly identical to that of the highest-performing charter schools in the country. All the schools that now…
Originally posted on Democrats for Education Reform, June 6, 2012. Copyright © DFER.org Read here. Written by Van Schoales. It’s that magical time of the year when school comes to a close and high school graduates step out onto the wonderful and scary stage of adulthood to start careers, enter college, and begin new, independent…
Originally posted on EdNewsColorado, May 23, 2012. Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org Written by Nancy Mitchell. The report, True North: Goals for Denver Public Schools, states the five broad goals outlined in the district’s current strategic plan “lack rigor, structure and consistency” and that “too few of these goals … either focus on or prioritize academic achievement.”…
Originally posted on Denver Post May 22, 2012. Copyright © denverpost.com Read here. Written by Karen Auge. Despite years of effort, an infusion of resources and some improvement, Denver Public Schools “is far behind and not rapidly making the grade,” a report by a consortium of influential education non-profits and advocates concludes. The report by…