In case you missed Monday's announcement, be sure to check out this week's Ohio Gadfly to learn why Fordham is merging its charter school sponsorship (aka, ?authorizing?) effort with the ESC of Central Ohio. Find out why economy of scale is an important piece of high-quality charter sponsorship and how Ohio, a state with a whopping 67 (mostly small-scale) sponsors, would benefit greatly from the presence of a large, high-capacity sponsor that is results-focused.
Also tune in for analysis about innovative teacher personnel policies (in DC and elsewhere) and bipartisan support for ending policies such as ?last hired, first fired.? Ohio cities could learn a lot from such smart personnel policies, especially with the tidal wave of pink slips across the state. A report from the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) ranks Ohio 30th in terms of four-year-olds' access to public preschool. Find out whether Ohioans should worry about this ranking, and why thinking about targeted early learning opportunities is paramount.
On the standards front, Ohio's new science standards are the topic of debate between a science expert and a Buckeye standards developer. Read what they think are the most important scientific topics to cover, whether Ohio's new science standards are an improvement over the old ones, and more in a Gadfly Q&A.
For an on-the-ground story about science, check out Buddy 2.0, an award-winning robot created by junior-high students at one Fordham-sponsored school. And the next video in our ?Needles in a Haystack? series features McGregor Elementary, an elementary school in Canton serving economically disadvantaged students and achieving at consistently high levels.
On tap for reviews: Paul Hill's new book on school choice, EdWeek's E-Learning report, and the National Center for Education Statistics' report on trends in school choice. ?Last but certainly not least, check out Editor's Extras to find out what Ohio locations will be featuring two great edu-films, The Cartel and The Lottery, as well as recommended commentary on professional teaching standards, and what education will look like in 2030.