Coloradoan Says Tax-Limiting Initiative There Has Worked
Polls reveal that Colorado citizens support the TABOR Amendment by a greater majority today than when it was enacted.
Boulder Teachers Union Files Strike Notice… What’s Next?
The teachers union in Boulder this week filed an official strike notice with the state. Does it mean teachers will be walking picket lines soon? What will happen next? And have any lessons been learned from the last teachers strike in Colorado, the October 1994 Denver walkout? Listen to education policy analyst Ben DeGrow discuss these issues and more.
Getting a Picture of Online Education in the Early Grades
Many parents may have considered enrolling a younger child in a cyberschool, but weren’t sure what it was all about. Colorado’s Online Elementary Teacher of the Year Christina Narayan explains how she delivers instruction and promotes interaction among her Branson School Online kindergarteners and 1st-graders throughout the state, and discusses how online education is growing and changing to meet the needs of younger children.
9/21/09
Newsletter September 21 2009
Should the NEA and AFT Teachers Unions Stop Sending Member Dues Money to ACORN?
If you are a member of the teachers union — whether the National Education Association or American Federation of Teachers — you may find this news disturbing:
Teachers unions have contributed over $1.3 million to ACORN and its affiliates, since 2005, according to U.S. Labor Department financial disclosure forms.
But there is no guarantee that the $1,333,112 […]
The Problem with Courts Making Education Policy
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs professor Joshua Dunn talks about the tremendous impact the judicial branch has had on education policymaking in recent years, and about court-ordered education spending in particular. Dunn is the author of the new book Complex Justice, and recently co-edited the volume From Schoolhouse to Courthouse: The Judiciary’s Role in American Education.
Working Together to Enhance the Cyberschool Experience
Judith Stokes of the Colorado Cyberschools Association and Lori Cooney of the Colorado Coalition of Cyberschool Families discuss how their two groups are working together to benefit students in the online education setting. Colorado’s fast-growing cyberschool sector and strong, effective collaboration between groups representing families and providers has become a model for other states across the nation.
Health Care Is Not a Privilege … Nor Is It a Right
A popular but flawed argument is that “health care is a right, not a privilege.” Health care is neither a right nor a privilege. Rather, we all have the right to seek medical treatment through voluntary trade or charity.
Stapleton School Shortage Needs Creative Thinking
With future Stapleton schools seemingly unaffordable for Denver Public Schools, many moms and dads in the booming neighborhood wonder where they will enroll their young children. Parent power and public-private partnerships offer some promising solutions.
CDE Gathers Feedback on Social Studies Standards
Colorado is making major revisions to the state’s academic standards. At the Independence Institute, we’re especially interested in the Social Studies standards. Our own Ben DeGrow has served on the subcommittee to draft new standards for h…
Whose Business is Your Health Care?
Our ongoing debate about government’s role in health care is proving worthwhile because it forces people to focus on the real tradeoffs in a system mandated — if not directly operated — by government, rather than one selected by individuals or their employers. Today, our system is a dysfunctional hybrid.
Drafting New Colorado Social Studies Standards
The state of Colorado is working on a major revision of preschool-through-12th grade academic standards for Social Studies (i.e., History, Civics, Geography, and Economics). The Education Policy Center’s Pam Benigno and Ben DeGrow discuss the process of drafting the standards, offer some of their initial impressions, and encourage citizens to share their feedback directly with the Colorado Department of Education.
