Publications
July 21, 2010
The State of State Standards--and the Common Core--in 2010
Our new study weighs current state education standards against the Common Core education standards. The findings? The Common Core standards are clearer and more rigorous than today's English language arts standards in 37 states and today's math standards in 39 states.
July 6, 2010
Ohio's Education Reform Challenges: Lessons from the Frontlines
Charter schools are one of the hottest policy debates in American education, and we've been a dual participant as both an advocate of choice and as an authorizer of actual charter schools serving some of Ohio's neediest students. This book is our commitment to describe and analyze our efforts, successes and failures, and to distill what we think it all means for others committed to school reform and innovation.
June 23, 2010
Common Education Standards: Tackling the Long-Term Questions
How should the "common core" state standards initiative be governed? Who will "own" these standards (and related assessments) 20 years from now? To stir smart thinking about important aspects of these vital issues, the Fordham Institute invited knowledgeable experts to write background papers.
May 25, 2010
Needles in a Haystack: Lessons from Ohio's high-performing, high-need urban schools
Despite the overall dismal performance of schools serving Ohio's poor, urban youngsters, there are a handful of schools that buck these bleak trends and achieve significant results for their students. This report examines eight of these schools.
April 28, 2010
Charter School Autonomy: A Half-Broken Promise
The typical U.S. charter school lacks the autonomy it needs to succeed, once state, authorizer, and other impositions are considered. For some schools--in some states, with some authorizers--the picture is brighter but for many it's bleak. State-specific grades for charter autonomy range from A to F.
March 23, 2010
Review of the Draft K-12 Common Core Standards
The Fordham Institute's expert reviewers have analyzed the draft Common Core K-12 education standards (made public on March 10) according to rigorous criteria. Their analyses lead to a grade of A- for the draft mathematics standards and B for those in English language arts. Read on to find out more.
February 18, 2010
America's Private Public Schools
More than 1.7 million American children attend what we've dubbed "private public schools" -- public schools that serve virtually no poor students. In some metropolitan areas, as many as one in six public-school students -- and one in four white youngsters -- attends such schools, of which the U.S. has about 2,800.
December 10, 2009
Tracking and Detracking: High Achievers in Massachusetts Middle Schools
Brookings scholar Tom Loveless examines tracking and detracking in Massachusetts middle schools, focusing on changes that have occurred and the implications for high-achieving students. Among the findings: detracked schools have fewer advanced students in math than tracked schools and detracking is more popular in schools serving disadvantaged populations.
November 20, 2009
Seeking Quality in the Face of Adversity: 2008-09 Fordham Sponsorship Accountability Report
As a charter school sponsor (authorizer), Fordham submits an accountability report to the Ohio Department of Education at the end of November each year. The report includes profiles of each Fordham-sponsored school, as well as graphics comparing the achievement data of our schools, their home districts, and statewide averages. You'll also find pertinent information on Ohio charter school spending over the last decade, and in the introduction, a timely analysis of the political and legislative environment impacting Ohio charters in 2008-09 that explains why the title, "Seeking Quality in the Face of Adversity," is befitting.
October 8, 2009
Stars by Which to Navigate? Scanning National and International Education Standards in 2009
Expert reviewers appraise the Common Core drafts -- which outline college and career readiness standards in reading, writing, speaking and listening, and in math -- and also evaluate the reading/writing and math frameworks that undergird the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Programme for International Student Achievement (PISA). How strong are these well-known models?
