By signing into law a series of education reform bills, Gov. Quinn positions Illinois to be more competitive for the $4.35 billion in U.S. Department of Education’s “Race to the Top” funds.  The signings come just days after Secretary Arne Duncan announced the proposed criteria for evaluating state applications for the Race to the Top grants.  The bills –lifting the charter school cap, establishing a longitudinal data system, and forming a task force to develop recommendations around struggling schools – address two of the four areas of reform outlined in Sec. Duncan’s speech. Read More →

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On Friday, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan unveiled the criteria for the competitive “Race to the Top” funding for states.  The Secretary pushed states to take bold action in four areas: Standards and Assessments, Data Systems to Support Instruction, Great Teachers and Leaders, and Turning Around Struggling Schools.  Gov. Quinn is expected to sign key pieces of education legislation that may help position Illinois for some of those federal dollars.  Still, much more work is necessary if Illinois is to establish itself as a leader in this Race to the Top.  More details from the Department of Education here and here.  Washington Post editoral by Secretary Duncan here and EdWeek has coverage here (article access compliments of EdWeek)

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As mentioned in our report We Can Do Better, here in Illinois, we spend over $400 million to reward teachers for advanced degrees despite the fact that such degrees appear to have no effect on student achievement.  A new report from the Center on Reinventing Public Education and the Center for American Progress says that states are misspending $8 billion annually on these salary bumps.  Advance Illinois wants to see this money stay with teachers, but used more strategically as rewards for teaching in high-needs fields, outstanding performance, or coaching new or struggling teachers.  The CRPE and CAP report is here, with coverage from Education Week here. (article access compliments of edweek.org)

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