The Daily Report Card: Bennett Fires Back As Indy Star Reports Grading System Could Hurt Poor Schools

Kyle Stokes / StateImpact Indiana

Indiana state superintendent Tony Bennett

‘Star‘ Treatment For New A-F Ratings…

Indy Star: “Grading system likely to hurt high-poverty schools most” – Hoosier Ed “The Star found that nearly half of the schools that would see their grades go down are high-poverty schools, based on a simulation produced by the Indiana Department of Education,” reblogs HoosierEd. The story ran on Friday morning… (hoosiered.com)

By Friday afternoon, the Star had posted a response from state superintendent Tony Bennett. Writing that the Star’s reporting had indulged “self-serving attitude[s],” Bennett responded the new metrics “call on schools to close those achievement gaps within eight years.” (blogs.indystar.com)

StateImpact has more resources on the state’s new grading system — and the waiver from the No Child Left Behind law that accompanies it — here.

…And Other Stories

Stretching Ivy Tech’s resources – Journal & Courier “Enrollment is growing faster than funding” in the state’s community college system, writes Eric Weddle. The enrollment boom has left the school short on space and “exposed limitations in facilities, faculty and data infrastructure.” (The Journal & Courier)

Third-graders worried upcoming IREAD-3 exam could hold them back – Kokomo Tribune We’ve reported on how schools are using data to prepare kids for high-stakes tests — but teachers are working to keep testing anxiety at a minimum. (indianaeconomicdigest.com)

A Record Number of Americans Have Bachelor’s Degrees – GOOD Education “For the first time in history, more than 30 percent of Americans aged 25 or older—56 million people—have a bachelor’s degree.” (good.is)