A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

A biweekly look at progress on the Secretary's priorities

Table of Contents Helping All Children Read Well... Voluntary National Tests A Talented, Dedicated, Well-Prepared Teacher in Every Classroom All Classrooms Connected to the Internet... Every School Strong, Safe, Drug-Free & Disciplined Reauthorization of the Elementary & Secondary Act Congressional Action Lower Interest Rates on Student Loans Year 2000 New Online Credits

HELPING ALL CHILDREN READ WELL BY THE END OF 3RD GRADE Sixteen conferences designed to promote strong literacy-tutoring programs will be conducted by the Department's Regional Educational Laboratories between July & September. Participants will focus on tutor training, management, & support, as well as developing & maintaining tutorial partnerships. For conference locations, a brochure, conference pre-registration form, & more, please see: http://www.ed.gov/inits/americareads/training.html ONE THOUSAND COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES have joined the America Reads Challenge by committing to send college work-study students to tutor children in reading, the President announced last month. As of July 1, 1998, the federal government will pay 100% of the wages of federal work-study students tutoring children and/or their parents in family literacy programs. Family literacy programs and colleges & universities are invited to take advantage of this opportunity. For more information on the federal work study program, please see: http://www.ed.gov/inits/americareads/arc-fwsi.html READ*WRITE*NOW! & SUMMER READING programs are being established by America Reads with organizations in all 50 states. Programs pair children with learning partners to encourage them to read & write for 30 minutes each day. This effort was begun to help prevent the "summer reading drop-off," which has a negative impact on student achievement. To become a learning partner for your own child or a child in your community this summer, call 1-800-USA-LEARN & order your own Read*Write*Now! kit. For a fact sheet on summer reading or more information on the America Reads Challenge, see: http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/06-1998/rwnwhy.html http://www.ed.gov/inits/americareads/

VOLUNTARY NATIONAL TESTS Results from a National Academy of Sciences study released last month found that it is not technically feasible to compare student achievement when students take different state or commercial tests. This study, Secretary Riley said, "clearly shows that work on developing voluntary national tests must continue." Last fall, the President & Congress agreed that this study should be conducted to inform Congressional action on voluntary national testing. For the press release, see: http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/06-1998/vnt6-11.html For additional information on Voluntary National Tests, please see the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) website at: http://www.nagb.org/

A TALENTED, DEDICATED, WELL-PREPARED TEACHER IN EVERY CLASSROOM Trying to Beat the Clock: Uses of Teacher Professional Time in 3 Countries compares how teachers use their planning time in 21 different elementary schools in the U.S., Germany, & Japan, and highlights reform efforts. It examines ways to restructure the time teachers spend planning, preparing, assessing, & collaborating with each other in order to better serve students. Key findings include... Japanese teachers work 8 to 9 hours a day & have 1.25 more hours of planning time than U.S. teachers, which is structured in extended blocks after students leave. German teachers spend only 5 to 5.5 hours a day with students, & are expected to spend almost the same amount of time planning on their own each day. They usually work alone, although they have the option to work with colleagues. In the majority of U.S. schools studied, teachers work 7 to 8 hours, & blocks of planning time rarely last longer than 45 minutes or allow teachers to work together. Some innovative schools in the U.S. are emphasizing collaboration, flexibility, & professionalism as they experiment with the use of planning time. Ideas include team teaching, back-to-back planning periods, & a shortened day once a week. The study was conducted by Policy Studies Associates, Inc. in collaboration with researchers from the National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools & Teaching (NCREST) at Teachers college, Columbia University, & with researchers from the Center for Human Growth & Development at the University of Michigan. To receive a copy, please call 1-877-4-ED-PUBS.

ALL CLASSROOMS CONNECTED TO THE INTERNET; ALL STUDENTS TECHNOLOGICALLY LITERATE The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decided on June 12 to fund the E-Rate program, which offers K-12 schools & libraries 20 to 90% discounts (depending on poverty level) on telecommunications & information services such as Internet access, telephone service, & internal wiring. Although the Administration is pleased the program is being funded, it is disappointed that the FCC voted to collect just $1.28 billion in 1998 for the program, which falls well short of the $2.02 billion in funding requested from 30,000 schools & libraries this year. Aware that the money being collected does not satisfy demand, the FCC has established rules of priority which will fund all of the telecommunications & Internet services & give preference to the most economically disadvantaged applicants for inside wiring. For more information, call 1-888-203-8100 or visit: http://www.sl.universalservice.org/ http://www.fcc.gov LAST MONTH, in a commencement address at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, President Clinton challenged states to make technology literacy a requirement for middle school graduation. To help states achieve this goal, the President has proposed... providing $180 million over 3 years to create a team of technology-trained teachers to train other teachers creating competitions to encourage the development of high-quality educational software & educational websites by students, university faculty, commercial software companies, & others.

EVERY SCHOOL STRONG, SAFE, DRUG FREE & DISCIPLINED The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in conjunction with the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA), will launch its National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign on Thursday, July 9 from 9:30 AM - 2:00 PM EST (times subject to change). President Clinton, General Barry McCaffrey, Director of ONDCP, & Jim Burke, CEO of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, will announce the launch. The Community of Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA), in partnership with the National Guard, will host a satellite broadcast of the launch, which will serve as a "call for action" for communities across the country & can be a catalyst for community planning sessions to develop action plans to reduce youth substance abuse. You can join in this free, live broadcast from any site with a satellite dish having C-band or KU-band capabilities. For the agenda & information on how to participate, please see: http://www.CADCA.org

REAUTHORIZATION OF THE ELEMENTARY & SECONDARY ACT (ESEA) In a June 2 Federal Register notice, Secretary Riley invited written comments regarding the reauthorization of programs under the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, & Subtitle B of Title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (Education for Homeless Children & Youth). Individuals planning to comment are encouraged to read the entire notice, available at: http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/other/1998-2/060298a.html Written comments should be addressed to Judith Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary & Secondary Education, U. S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue, SW. (Portals Building, Room 4000), Washington, DC 20202-6132. Email responses may be sent to: Frances.Shadburn@ed.gov Comments must be received by the Department on or before July 17, 1998.

CONGRESSIONAL ACTION On June 23, the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its appropriations bill, which fell $2 billion short in providing funding for the President's education priorities. New initiatives not funded in this measure include.... America Reads Challenge, which would provide support for schools & communities to improve reading programs Technology Teacher Training, which would help train new teachers to use technology in the classroom Safe & Drug-Free Schools Coordinators, a prevention program that would place coordinators in middle schools High Hopes for College, a program that would reduce the barriers at-risk students face in preparing for & pursuing a postsecondary education. "The President & I will continue to fight for all of these initiatives," Secretary Riley said, "as well as our proposals to build, repair & modernize schools; reduce class size; help disadvantaged children prepare to go to college; & develop national standards of excellence through voluntary national tests in 4th-grade reading & 8th-grade math." This bill is expected to be considered by the full House Committee on Appropriations in mid July. For the Secretary's full statement & a PDF version of a detailed table showing the subcommittee action by program, please see: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OUS/budnews.html THE CONFERENCE REPORT of a bill authored by Senator Coverdell (Georgia), H.R.2646, which would allow tax-free savings accounts for K-12 education, passed both chambers of Congress last month. President Clinton said that he will veto this bill. The bill, Secretary Riley explained, "proposes a tax break that on average, will bring just $7 extra into the homes of Americans with public school children by 2002, & just $37 to taxpayers with children in private schools." The Administration proposed instead a plan that would provide $22 billion in tax free bonds to build, repair, & modernize schools.

LOWER INTEREST RATES ON STUDENT LOANS Interest rates on new federal student loans dropped almost a full percentage point from the current rate on July 1, 1998, saving students hundreds of dollars & in some cases thousands in the long term. Under the new rates, a typical 4-year college student with a $12,000 average debt would save $650 in interest over a standard 10-year repayment period. The low interest rate was adopted as part of a temporary, 3-month, bipartisan measure recently enacted by Congress & signed into law by the President on June 9. The Administration hopes to reach an agreement with Congress on a permanent interest rate change that would be included in the Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization bill. The Senate is expected to begin consideration of HEA as early as this week. For additional information, please see: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/PPI/Reauthor/ http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/06-1998/newloa.html

YEAR 2000 On June 10, Acting Deputy Secretary Marshall Smith testified on the Department's Year 2000 efforts before the Government Management, Information & Technology Subcommittee of the House Government Reform & Oversight Committee. Also, Acting Deputy Secretary Smith & National School Boards Association (NSBA) Executive Director Anne Bryant sent a letter in May to all school board presidents asking them to give immediate attention to the Year 2000 problem, which results from a common computer programming practice of representing dates with 6 digits instead of 8. For the testimony & letter -- as well as the Department's Year 2000 homepage, which includes frequently asked questions & promising practices -- please see: http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/99y2kms.html http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCIO/year/

NEW ONLINE The Formula for Success: A Business Leader's Guide to Supporting Math & Science Achievement provides strategies for how businesses can work with schools to improve math & science achievement. http://www.bcer.org/timss CD-ROM: Video Examples from the TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study: 8th Grade Mathematics in Germany, Japan, & the United States explores first-hand math lessons in Germany, Japan, & the U.S. It includes descriptions of the lessons & information on how to order the CD-ROM or VHS tape. The Condition of Education, 1998 is an annual report to Congress on 60 indicators considered to be the most significant national measures of the condition & progress of education at the time. (The paper version of this report will be issued August 1, 1998.) http://nces.ed.gov/pubs98/condition98/index.html The Office of Vocational & Adult Education's new homepage offers information on adult & vocational education, community colleges, correctional education, school-to-work programs, White House initiatives on tribal colleges & universities, & more. http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/ Issue Brief: Adult Participation in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) Classes examines how many adults speak something other than English as their primary language using data from the 1995 National Household Education Survey (NHES:95). http://nces.ed.gov/pubs98/98036.html

Have a comment or suggestion on ED Initiatives? Please send it to Kirk Winters in the Office of the Under Secretary at kirk.winters@ed.gov.

-###-

[Past Issues of ED Initiatives]