I. Common Core Standards/Next Gen Science Standards/STEM

California Higher Education Problems Stem from Resource Allocation, report says- (6/13/12)– A report released Sunday by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni proposed that California’s higher education problems stem not from a lack of funding but from a misallocation of current resources. The Washington, D.C.-based independent nonprofit organization published the report amid debate about whether the crisis of public higher education should be addressed by increased fees, program cuts, alternative sources of revenue or a mixture of all the issues.

II. Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA/ NCLB)

Eight More States Get ESEA Waivers-  (5/29/12) – The U.S. Department of Education today granted waivers to eight of the 26 states (plus the District of Columbia) that applied in February for wiggle room under the No Child Left Behind Act. The second-round waiver states are: Connecticut, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, and Rhode Island. Ohio has not received approval yet on its grading system, but it's waiver isn't considered conditional. Notice a pattern there? Except for Connecticut and Louisiana, all of the waiver recipients were among the dozen states that won a slice of the $4 billion Race to the Top fund.

III. Other Interesting & Relevant Articles

NAEP Reveals Shallow Grasp of Science- (6/26/12) - Elementary, middle, and high school students failed to demonstrate a deep understanding of science concepts when they performed activity-based science tasks and investigations, concludes a study released today from the first national assessment of both hands-on and interactive computer-based science activities.