GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

• Twelve lessons from a year in the life of the New York City schools system. (GothamSchools)
• A West Virginia physics teacher with a severely disabled son teaches about the meaning of life. (Well)
• New charter schools, school closures, and teacher evaluations will top 2013′s education agenda. (Times)
• A principal’s 2013 wish list to Mayor Bloomberg begins with a call to not close any schools. (Schoolbook)
• “Obama to Sign Bipartisan ESEA Renewal,” and other stories you won’t read this year. (Politics K12)
• Teacher evaluations get tested in courts, pension fights, and other stories you will. (Rick Hess)
• A teacher predicts an eval agreement and explains why MORE won’t defeat Mulgrew. (Chaz)
• Last year’s best Hechinger reports included deep dives on evaluations and teacher prep. (Hechinger)
• An educator looks back on a year when his teacher-voice got louder and more prominent. (JLV)

The high-profile commission charged with overhauling New York’s public schools released its first set of recommendations today, endorsing several popular education reform policies but shying away from declaring a position on others. The full report, titled “Putting Students First,” is below the jump.

Governor Cuomo, who created the commission, stopped short of endorsing its recommendations, but did express early support for several ideas, including teacher performance pay and the community school model of using schools to offer supports beyond academic preparation.

Other recommendations include expanding pre-kindergarten for students in poor districts, strengthening teacher and principal preparation programs, and extending the school day and year.

The commission did not address some prickly issues, such as teacher evaluation. Chairman Richard Parsons said that was by design, citing a recommendation from State Education Commissioner John King that the commission wait to take up the topic until its next report, scheduled for next fall. (more…)

All four of the likely Democratic candidates for mayor, seen here with Republican Tom Allon during an education policy discussion in November, have traveled to Cincinnati with the United Federation of Teachers to view "community schools."

Among the thousand visitors from across the country who streamed through Cincinnati’s Oyler School in the last year were all four of New York City’s likely Democratic candidates for mayor.

They made the trip at the invitation of UFT President Michael Mulgrew, who has been touting Oyler as the epitome of a school model that he hopes New York City’s next mayor will promote.

The trips have been held up as evidence that the candidates are all trying to win the union’s endorsement. But just as significant as why the candidates made the commute is what they saw when they got there.

Cincinnati has turned all of its more than 50 district schools into “community schools” that rely on partnerships with businesses and non-profits to provide an array of services. The school buildings stay open until late into the night and on the weekends, providing early childhood centers, adult education, access to gyms, translation services, tutoring, and food banks to the general public. Local hospitals embed nurses in the schools full-time to provide free health, dental, and vision services.

As one of the first schools in Cincinnati to make the evolution, a decade ago, Oyler is seen as an anchor for the model. (more…)

News from New York City:

• Despite warnings from the city, the school bus drivers union said a strike was not imminent. (Daily News)
• Efforts to create a diverse, two-district school in Brooklyn could be complicated by busing. (News)
• The city is looking to expand a computer science curriculum to 20 more high schools next year. (Post)
• City officials warned that school bus drivers could strike over new contract terms. (GothamSchools, NY1)
• Mayoral candidates criticized the city for aiming to strip seniority privileges from the contracts. (NY1)
• Graduation rates at CUNY’s two-year colleges fell last year after a remedial program was closed. (Post)
• City Catholic schools offered spaces and free tuition to hundreds of Sandy-affected students. (Times)
• The city filed a complaint saying the UFT has bargained in bad faith. (GothamSchools, Daily News, NY1)
• The city’s complaint says the union tried to benefit financially by adopting evaluations. (Daily News, Post)
• A teacher at Brooklyn’s J.H.S. 78 was censured for showing a violent movie instead of teaching. (Post)
• A former school secretary was fined for using a school credit card for personal purchases. (Daily News)
• Chancellor Walcott is now an honorary triathlete at the school where his daughter teaches. (Daily News)

And beyond: (more…)