Recently, we observed that despite having similar demographics to Connecticut–Massachusetts has both a narrower achievement gap and a low-income population that outperforms Connecticut’s on some key national assessments.  Furthermore, Massachusetts’…

Today, we are taking a look at an argument frequently made in opposition to education reform: namely, that Connecticut’s achievement gap–which is the largest in the nation–is due to poverty,…

Since Governor Malloy released Senate Bill 24, we have noticed a lot of anxiety over the idea that teacher evaluations will be partly informed by standardized tests.  S.B. 24 relies…

A Comparative Look at Teacher Evaluation and Tenure Policies in Our Neighboring States There has been some public opposition in the past few weeks against Governor Malloy’s proposals.  One of…

With all of the coverage of Governor Malloy’s education bill, also known as SB 24, we’ve noticed that there are some misconceptions surrounding the content of the bill and what…

“And so when I say it’s time we reform teacher tenure, I mean it.” – Governor Malloy in his State of the State Address, February 8, 2012 We began this week…

Where Does the Idea of Tenure Come From? The concept of tenure is rooted in higher education, where it was implemented in order to provide protection to professors so that…

“Let’s be honest with ourselves, and let’s speak bluntly: many parts of our system of public education are broken.” – Gov. Malloy introduces the topic of education in his State…

Sandi Jacobs is Vice President of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). In January, NCTQ released its fifth annual State Teacher Policy Yearbook, a 52-volume report on the state laws,…

Rae Ann Knopf, Executive Director of the Connecticut Council for Education Reform We at the Connecticut Council for Education Reform applaud Governor Malloy for acting swiftly to eliminate unnecessary barriers…

We are very encouraged by the guidelines that were approved by the Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) this week.   PEAC was created to collaborate with the State Board of Education…

Recently, the Connecticut Council for Education Reform (CCER) highlighted Massachusetts’ five-tiered Framework for District and School Accountability, and explained why it might be a useful model for Connecticut.  Given the…