Contents of this issue:
- Michigan's education system is average
- Senate proposal would let governor appoint state superintendent
- Race achievement gap still exists in Michigan
- President Bush pushes for increased education spending
- Bush endorses D.C. voucher proposal
- State cuts deal with district over missing MEAP tests
MICHIGAN'S EDUCATION SYSTEM IS AVERAGE
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A report comparing the education systems of
all 50 states and the District of Columbia placed Michigan at the
national average overall, with good grades in standards and
accountability but a poor grade in improving teacher quality.
The annual report, published by Washington-based Education Week,
a national education weekly, gave Michigan a C in school climate,
a B-plus for spending, a C for equity in spending and a D-plus
for improving teacher quality. Michigan's overall score was a C-plus, the national average.
Martin Ackley, spokesman for the Michigan Department of
Education, told the Detroit Free Press that the report does not
give the state credit for its recent improvements in teacher
quality. "We do all of this to an extent. But apparently, the
graders of the report didn't accept our evidence, so we'll just
continue to keep working toward teacher quality," Ackley said.
David Hecker, president of the Michigan Federation of Teachers,
also questioned the report's findings but agreed that
improvements can be made. "I really don't see how they came to
that," he said. "Does more need to be done? Absolutely."
SOURCES:
Detroit Free Press, "State gets mixed grades on schools,"
Jan. 8, 2004
https://www.freep.com/news/education/card8_20040108.htm
Detroit News, "Michigan's education system gets so-so grade,"
Jan. 8, 2004
https://www.detroitnews.com/2004/schools/0401/09/c01-30267.htm
Michigan Education Report, "Michigan lagging in teacher quality
says federal agency," Early Fall 2002
https://www.educationreport.org/4603
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Teacher Shortage Forces
States to Relax Rules for Educators," Nov. 1, 2002
https://www.mackinac.org/pubs/mer/3112
SENATE PROPOSAL WOULD LET GOVERNOR APPOINT STATE SUPERINTENDENT
LANSING, Mich. — A new state Senate proposal would let the
governor appoint the state school superintendent, transferring
power currently held by the state Board of Education.
Sen. Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland, introduced the proposal with the
support of several other Senate Republicans. Residents are not as
familiar with the state Board of Education as they are with the
governor, which would give a governor-appointed superintendent
more credibility, said Kuipers. "To me it's a governance issue,"
Kuipers told the Holland Sentinel. "It is important for us to
have a person that we can hold responsible for education ... the
buck stops with the governor under this proposal. They can then
hire the person they believe supports good public policy for
education."
Currently, the governor appoints directors to every state
department besides education, which has the largest budget of any
state department, at $14 billion. "This governor on the campaign
trail wanted to be known as the education governor," Kuipers
said. "This would give her the opportunity to be just that,
because she would have the ability to appoint the person that she
feels the most comfortable with."
The proposal would require an amendment to the state
constitution, which, to pass, must garner a two-thirds vote from
both state houses and a majority vote of Michigan citizens.
SOURCE:
Holland Sentinel, "Proposal would let governor choose state
superintendent," Jan. 9, 2004
http://hollandsentinel.com/stories/010904/loc_010904009.shtml
ACHIEVEMENT GAP PERSISTS IN MICHIGAN
DETROIT, Mich. — Although 50 years have passed since the Brown v.
Board of Education decision, a performance gap still exists
between white and African-American students, according to
Michigan's latest standardized test scores.
This year's Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) test
shows that 43 percent of black children in the state met or
exceeded the proficient level on the math portion of the test,
while 73 percent of white students achieved the same level of
proficiency. The gap was nearly as pronounced in the language
portion of the test.
Equality in education is a priority for public education, say
state leaders, but urban officials say the quality of schools
between the suburbs and the inner cities varies greatly. "Let's
face it, if you look at a school in the inner city of Detroit and
you look at a school in the outer ring of suburbs, it's not
equal, and it's still quite separate," Rev. Edgar Vann, a Detroit
minister, told the Detroit News.
SOURCES:
Detroit Free Press, "RACE IN EDUCATION: Gap still persists in
Michigan," Jan. 8, 2004
https://www.freep.com/news/education/bgap8_20040108.htm
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Less Government, Not More, Is
Key to Academic Achievement and Accountability," Oct. 3, 2001
https://www.mackinac.org/3786
PRESIDENT BUSH PUSHES FOR INCREASED EDUCATION SPENDING
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — On a road tour promoting the nation's
education system, President Bush promised to push for increased
federal spending on education in a spending bill he will send to
Congress next month.
Bush is expected to highlight this proposal in his State of the
Union address later this month. The president is expected to ask
for a $1 billion increase for Title I programs, which provide
money to inner-city schools. In addition, he will likely push for
a $138 million increase for reading programs and another $1
billion for special education.
The money will help schools to comply with new federal standards
set by the "No Child Left Behind" Act the president signed
in 2002. "Putting money into a system that believes in the worth
of every child and is focused on results is money well spent,"
said Bush.
SOURCES:
New York Times, "Renewing His Focus on Schools, Bush Proposes
Spending Increase," Jan. 9, 2004
https://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/09/education/
09BUSH.html?pagewanted=all
Michigan Education Report, "No Child Left Behind law demands
'adequate yearly progress' and offers school choice options for
parents," Fall 2002
https://www.educationreport.org/4846
Michigan Education Report, "President signs 'No Child Left Behind
Act,'" Winter 2002
https://www.educationreport.org/4082
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Will More Money Improve
Student Performance?" June 1998
https://www.mackinac.org/527
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "More Spending Not the
Solution to School Woes," December 1993
https://www.mackinac.org/137
BUSH ENDORSES D.C. VOUCHER PROPOSAL
WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Bush last week encouraged the Senate
to adopt a proposal to give the District of Columbia $14 million
that would create a tuition voucher program for low-income
children.
"For the sake of educational excellence and for the sake of
trusting parents to make the right decision for their children;
for the sake, really, of helping to begin a change of education
around the country . . . the Senate needs to pass this bill and
make school choice in Washington, D.C., a reality," Bush told 250
members of the National Catholic Education Association who were
in Washington to mark the group's 100th anniversary.
The comments marked the president's most forceful statement to
date on behalf of the plan to send public dollars to students
attending private schools.
The proposal is part of a $328 billion omnibus spending bill
currently under deliberation in the Senate, which may face a
filibuster by senators opposed to vouchers.
SOURCES:
Washington Post, "Bush Pushes for D.C. Vouchers," Jan. 10, 2004
https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A4750-2004Jan9
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Friedman Says Vouchers and
Tax Credits Useful Route to Greater School Choice,"
March 19, 2002
https://www.mackinac.org/4117
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "The Case for Choice in
Schooling: Restoring Parental Control of Education,"
Jan. 29, 2001
https://www.mackinac.org/3236
STATE CUTS DEAL WITH DISTRICT OVER MISSING M.E.A.P. TESTS
LANSING, Mich. — The state and officials of the Pinckney school
district have agreed to use other means to measure the progress
of student achievement, to deal with the fact that about 3,000
MEAP test scores were lost last year.
Tests also were lost for students in Detroit, Saline, Grand
Rapids, Battle Creek, Kalamazoo, Portage and Beal City.
Federal guidelines now use the MEAP tests to help measure
students' progress. And under the federal "No Child Left Behind"
Act, schools that don't show progress on the tests face
punishments up to a state takeover.
State Superintendent Tom Watkins said that students whose tests
were lost still will be eligible for the MEAP college
scholarships given to those students that perform at or above
state expectations on the tests.
SOURCE:
Detroit News, "Michigan settles case of lost tests," Jan. 9, 2004
https://www.detroitnews.com/2004/schools/0401/09/b01-31269.htm
MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education
Report (
https://www.educationreport.org), a quarterly newspaper
with a circulation of 130,000 published by the Mackinac Center
for Public Policy (
https://www.mackinac.org), a private,
nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational institute.
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