Category Archives: Student Achievement

The False Dawn of Denver’s School Performance

Posted on October 4, 2013 by axooms

Denver Public Schools has released their 2013 School Performance Framework (SPF). The summary is mixed — the distribution of performance has stretched, so there are more kids in both the highest-quality and the lowest-quality schools. When aggregated, the gains are … Continue reading →

Posted in Charter Schools, District Performance, Poverty, School Performance, Student Achievement | Tagged , | 4 Comments

How to Improve Denver’s School Performance Framework

Posted on September 13, 2013 by axooms

At some point very soon, DPS will issue its 2013 School Performance Framework (SPF). The SPF performs a valuable function by aggregating multiple metrics on school performance and presenting the data so that both parents can understand it at a … Continue reading →

Posted in District Performance, School Performance, Student Achievement | Tagged | Leave a comment

DougCo: Sound and Fury Signifying Something?

Posted on July 1, 2013 by axooms

In my experience, School Board members are rarely reliable commentators on the academic quality of their districts.  So an Op-Ed in yesterday’s Denver Post by a sitting Douglas County school board member caught my eye, particularly given the amount of … Continue reading →

Posted in District Performance, Student Achievement, Teacher Unions | Tagged | 2 Comments

Standardized March Madness

Posted on April 10, 2013 by axooms

March brings with it two education rituals: college becomes young adults trying to get an orange ball through an iron circle, and K-12 public education transforms into students filling in small circles of multiple choice questions. The month-long NCAA tournament … Continue reading →

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Our obsession with growth

Posted on May 23, 2012 by axooms

The move towards increased accountability coupled with the creation and collection of new data mean K-12 education is constantly sorting through a variety of metrics to better understand what is working and what is not.  But the layers of additional … Continue reading →

Posted in District Performance, Student Achievement | Tagged | 2 Comments

ELL students and changing minds

Posted on December 20, 2011 by axooms

Additional attention to English Language Learner (ELL) students is unquestionably a good thing. Particularly given the large percentages of ELL students both in Denver and across Colorado, there can be no doubt that this is a critical issue.  There is simply not … Continue reading →

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Public schools aren’t all that

Posted on August 15, 2010 by axooms

This month in Denver, six new public schools open their doors. Both innovation and charter schools operating autonomously from certain district and union regulations, these programs offer novel approaches ranging from environmental sustainability to language immersion in Mandarin Chinese. Their … Continue reading →

Posted in Charter Schools, Engagement, Innovation, School Performance, Student Achievement | Tagged | Leave a comment