Middle Tennessee high school named the best in the state for a second consecutive year
Rutherford County’s Central Magnet School was named for the second year in a row the top Tennessee public high schools, according to a 2018 U.S. News & World Report ranking.
Four other Middle Tennessee public schools also sit atop the annual rankings of high schools in the state. Last year, seven of the region’s public schools topped the list.
This year, a Knox County School broke into the top six of all public high schools statewide.
The yearly state rankings by U.S. News & World Report consider performance on the math and reading portions of state proficiency tests, graduation rates, college readiness and proof that schools serve all students well.
Central Magnet was also named the 44th best public high school in the country, according to the ranking. [Read more at Tennessean]
Read MoreWhy American Students Haven’t Gotten Better at Reading in 20 Years
Math scores have been flat since 2009 and reading scores since 1998, with just a third or so of students performing at a level the NAEP defines as “proficient.” Performance gaps between lower-income students and their more affluent peers, among other demographic discrepancies, have remained stubbornly wide.
Among the likely culprits for the stalled progress in math scores: a misalignment between what the NAEP tests and what state standards require teachers to cover at specific grade levels. But what’s the reason for the utter lack of progress in reading scores?
“Research shows that music and arts education enhances students’ overall academic performance and improves their attendance and engagement in school, building well-rounded students ready to compete in tomorrow’s workforce.”
Gov. Bill HaslamTennessee districts could get the chance for an infusion of money to support arts and music in their schools.
Tennessee Gov. Haslam and the Country Music Association Foundation announced Thursday the launch of a competitive, statewide grant that seeks to expand student access to music and arts.
The $1 million will fund, in its first year, eight grants. The State of the Arts program is expected to last three years and kickoff in the 2018-19 school year, according to a news release. [Read more at The Tennessean]
Read MoreGov. Bill Haslam unveils $3.5M plan to improve leadership skills for school principals
Tennessee wants to spend more than $3.5 million next year to improve the state’s principal pipeline.
Gov. Bill Haslam said the money, earmarked in his January budget proposal, will be used for three principal leadership initiatives — preparation, retention and development. The funds are boosted by $600,000 in donations from private groups.
Haslam said at a news conference that a leader is one of the most important factors in the success of a school.
The money will be spent on three initiatives:
- $1.25 million in recurring funds to help colleges create best practices in training school leaders, including through mentoring, residency programs and partnerships with school districts. The state also will partner on the initiative with philanthropy groups through $600,000 in one-time money.
- $1.92 million in one-time money to help struggling schools by providing incentives for effective principals to stay and lead Tennessee’s lowest-performing schools.
- $500,000 in one-time money to create a program that would support the development of rural school leaders, including scholarships to participate in networking and training. [Read more at The Tennessean]
Three of Tennessee’s largest teacher training programs improve on state report card
Three of Tennessee’s 10 largest teacher training programs increased their scores on a state report card that seeks to capture how well new teachers are being prepared for the classroom based on state goals.
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville became the first public university to achieve a top score under the State Board of Education’s new grading system, now in its second year. And Middle Tennessee State University and East Tennessee State University also improved their scores.
But most of Tennessee’s 39 programs scored the same in 2017 as in 2016. Those included the University of Memphis and Austin Peay State University. [Read more at Chalkbeat Tennessee]
Read MoreClimate and culture survey to help Nashville public schools address expectations, academics
The majority of Nashville schools teachers view the district as having a favorable work climate.
But Metro Nashville Public Schools teacher opinion lags in how they view the effectiveness of school leadership and the resources they are allotted within the classroom, according to the survey.
The results are part of a Metro Nashville Public Schools push to better understand just what teachers, students and families think about its schools. Experts say by tracking that information, the district can place accountability on school climate and culture for the district.
The survey effort isn’t the first of its kind, but the new, ongoing report is more robust than in previous years, school officials said.
Special attention is being paid to how the district can better classroom environments to eventually impact academic outcomes. For instance, students across the district don’t often feel engaged in lessons, the survey shows.
“We noticed student engagement was one of the things that we see in our walkthroughs that is lower than we would like it to be,” said Tina Stenson, Metro Schools director of research. “We are talking about how to infuse opportunities for true engagement with students.”
The district has tallied teacher perception in past years
The hiring of Panorama Education for the survey cost the district $90,000, and the company and district are tailoring the survey to tell the district more about school perceptions.
Previous climate surveys were tallied by the district, but it didn’t include students and family perception, Stenson said.
Also, through Panorama, the district can look at how other teachers around the nation feel about their schools versus in Metro Schools. And the district can comparatively view the feelings of teachers at clusters of Nashville schools or within individual buildings.
Stenson said the district is working on understanding what works best within the district and nation to help inspire school changes. Nashville schools officials are also looking for disparities in opinions across the district.
“For example, even though there are areas that might be largely favorable in some schools when compared to other schools, it (might not be favorable),” she said. [Read More at Tennessean]
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