Oklahoma City school district officials have their sights set on improving reading performance, as half of all third-graders failed to score proficient on the end-of-year test.
reform
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The War on Poverty wasn’t “lost,” but neither did we win it.
The War on Poverty wasn’t “lost,” but neither did we win it.
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Deportation is too steep a penalty
This issue that weighs heavily on my mind and heart is that of immigration reform. As Christians, we are called into relationship. We are called into a relationship of love. This calling is summarized in the two great Commandments that we hear about in the Law and the Prophets: We are called to love God […]
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Abortion doctors not trimmed from tort reform
During the Legislature’s recent special session, almost two dozen measures dealing with tort reform were approved by the House and Senate and signed into law by Gov. Mary Fallin. However, one didn’t make it. Reynolds wanted legislative leaders to support a pro-life amendment exempting abortion providers from the lawsuit reform protections when something goes wrong […]
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For the unauthorized
The argument is that people who have not respected our immigration laws should not be rewarded with normalization, that it is not fair to potential immigrants who are waiting in line and that this kind of measure would undermine the rule of law. It is a simple, attractive argument. It is also dead wrong. There […]
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Common sense about Common Core
Now they must also implement policies that may or may not make sense, such as creating high school academies, retaining third-graders who don’t pass reading tests, remediating seniors who have not passed four graduation examinations and avoiding state takeover of schools that fail according to the state’s report card. Even more time and money must […]
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Connecting the dots
Each year, hundreds of bills and tax-related initiatives are approved that, when viewed independently, may not seem to have a significant impact. Yet by not connecting the dots of various actions when it comes to public schools, the picture of Oklahoma education becomes disturbingly distorted. If citizens don’t start connecting the dots, a true picture […]
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‘Local control’ in education
The same could be said about use of the term “local control” in relation to education policy. An appeal to “local control” is thrown around at the state Capitol nearly every time education legislation is proposed. Over the last few years, I have worked with other legislators to improve our state’s anti-bullying statute. But efforts […]
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Hey, Legislature, nothing’s happening here!
In 1971, the Legislature enacted laws authorizing public school district employees to collectively bargain. The power of employee unions in the district has grown incrementally ever since, including a teachers’ strike that shut down the district in 1979. Although the American Federation of Teachers recently has acknowledged the need for more teacher training and accountability, […]
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Incomplete ‘grade’
If presented within context, my message is that “for some students within the lowest quartile of test takers who have serious handicapping conditions, ‘it is just about too much to ask” that they be held to the standard — the numerical gradient of growth — expected of the general population of students. Given the severe […]