Five-year-olds put to the test as kindergarten exams gain steam
By Stephanie Simon
Tue Sep 25, 2012 7:11am EDT
(Reuters) – With school in full swing across the United States, the littlest students are getting used to the blocks table and the dress-up corner – and that staple of American public education, the standardized test.
A national push to make public schools more rigorous and hold teachers more accountable has led to a vast expansion of testing in kindergarten. And more exams are on the way, including a test meant to determine whether 5-year-olds are on track to succeed in college and career.
Paul Weeks, a vice president at test developer ACT Inc., says he knows that particular assessment sounds a bit nutty, especially since many kindergarteners aspire to careers as superheroes. “What skills do you need for that, right? Flying is good. X-ray vision?” he said, laughing.
But ACT will soon roll out college- and career-readiness exams for kids age 8 through 18 and Weeks said developing similar tests for younger ages is “high on our agenda.” Asking kids to predict the ending of a story or to suggest a different ending, for instance, can identify the critical thinking skills that employers prize, he said.
Formative Assessment Presentation is October 17 Since the fall of 2008, the Ridgewood Public Schools has administered online formative assessment to all students in Grades 3 through 8. Formative assessments help teachers gain an understanding of students’ strengths and weaknesses. For the 2012-2013 school year, the Board of Education has approved the use of MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) as its online formative assessment program.
As part of the district’s continuing curriculum outreach efforts, a presentation will be held on MAP on Wednesday, October 17 at 7:30 p.m. Parents, guardians and the general public are invited to come to the Education Center, 49 Cottage Place, floor 3, to hear Jim Tilghman, Professional Representative of Northwest Evaluation Association and producer of MAP
Since the Fall of 2008, the Ridgewood Public Schools has been administering an online formative assessment to all students in Grades 3 through 8. Formative assessments help teachers to know and understand their students’ strengths and opportunities for improvement, providing valuable information about what students already know and what may require additional reinforcement.
The Ridgewood Public Schools had formerly used an online formative assessment that was funded through the New Jersey Department of Education. In 2010-2011, the assessment company’s contract with the New Jersey Department of Education ended. In 2011-2012 the
district examined various options, and, in May of 2012, the Ridgewood Board of Education approved the use of NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association) MAP® (Measures of Academic Progress®) as its online formative assessment.
Students in Grades 3 through 8 will take two online assessments each year in Reading and Mathematics. We expect that the computer-delivered nature of these assessments will promote a more student-friendly experience than that of high-stakes tests; this is appropriate
since there are no “stakes” attached to these tests – only information to guide instruction. Although the assessment is not timed, most students take one class period to complete each subject area. The assessment adapts to each student, giving harder or easier questions based
on correct and incorrect responses. It identifies an instructional level by moving toward questions that each student is likely to get right 50% of the time and to get wrong 50% of the time. That instructional level becomes information that teachers use to modify and adjust
their instruction in the classroom.
Since MAP® is not a standardized test, scheduling is flexible, and results do not become part of a student’s record. MAP® is used by teachers as a planning tool for the sole purpose of informing instruction; therefore, test preparation is neither required nor desirable, and neither
test notification nor test reports are sent home.
There will be two administrations of MAP® during the 2012 – 2013 school year. We anticipate testing windows of September 18 through October 5, 2012, and January 22 through February 8, 2013.
As always, and in accordance with District policy, parents/guardians are welcome at any time to contact their principal to review their child’s progress
No more pencils, no more books: Are school librarians becoming obsolete?
Once the staple of nearly every school, the school librarian and media specialist is feeling a bit under-appreciated — if not under siege — these days.
Over the past five years, the number of certified library/media specialists in New Jersey’s public schools has dropped by almost 15 percent, according to the statewide association, and its own membership has been cut almost in half.
There were 1,580 certified specialists statewide last year, down from 1,850 in 2007-2008, serving roughly 2,500 schools.
The biggest contributor to the drop was the state’s budget crisis two years ago. Library positions were some of the first to be cut by districts looking to trim staff, association officers and local officials said. (Mooney, NJ Spotlight)
Student debt hits a record 1 in 5 households
September 26,2012
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, According to analysis by the Pew Research Center student debt has stretched to a record number nearly 1 in 5 of U.S. households,
The analysis by the Pew Research Center found that 22.4 million households, or 19 percent of US households had college debt in 2010. That is double the share in 1989, and up from 15 percent in 2007, just prior to the recession . This represents the biggest three-year increase in student debt in more than two decades.
Pew found that the increase in debt was driven by higher tuition costs as well as rising college enrollment during the economic downturn. The biggest jumps occurred in households at the two extremes of the income range.
More well-off families are digging deeper into their pockets to pay for costly private colleges, while lower-income people in search of higher-wage jobs are borrowing money and enrolling in community colleges, public universities and other schools as a way to boost their resumes.
Because of the very weak economy, fewer college students than before are able to settle into full-time careers immediately upon graduation, contributing to a jump in debt among lower-income households as the young adults take on part-time jobs or attend graduate school, according to Pew.
“This bill will permit local officials to make sure taxpayers don’t get ‘Snook’-ered”
Bill would let towns regulate reality TV shows
As if “Jim” McGreevey didn’t make New Jersey dumb enough ?
A bill introduced Monday would give towns where are filmed more control over the Situation. (Not to mention Snooki and JWoww, too.)
Assemblyman Ronald Dancer (R., Ocean) introduced the legislation for the “Snookiville Law,” which would let towns license and regulate the filming of reality shows and impose conditions, including requiring crews to pay for additional police officers.
Dancer said in a statement that New Jersey has a tradition of being a desirable setting for reality shows such as Jersey Shore, The Real Housewives of New Jersey, and Cake Boss.
“These shows can attract crowds, which can benefit local businesses and challenge a community’s resources,” said Dancer, whose district includes parts of Ocean, Burlington, Middlesex and Monmouth Counties. “This bill will permit local officials to make sure taxpayers don’t get ‘Snook’-ered or public safety is compromised when reality stars such as Snooki or JWoww come to town.” (Parry, Associated Press)
The official, head-to-head debates begin next week, but Sunday’s “60 Minutes” appearances by President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) provided a contrast in the ideas offered on the nation’s entitlements and spending crisis.
For his part, the President punted on a serious question about the nation’s concern over spending—blaming everything on President George W. Bush. Instead of addressing the spending question, he waited for the next question about the national debt, which has increased more than 50 percent since he took office. Then came the familiar refrain of why he’s not responsible for Washington’s overspending or the country’s abysmal fiscal situation:
When I came into office, I inherited the biggest deficit in our history. And over the last four years, the deficit has gone up, but 90 percent of that is as a consequence of two wars that weren’t paid for, as a consequence of tax cuts that weren’t paid for, a prescription drug plan that was not paid for, and then the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
These continued excuses ignore the massive increases since the President took office. According to Heritage expert Emily Goff: By fiscal year 2008, the deficit had reached $458.6 billion. The deficit was increasing as Obama came into office, mainly driven by the recession and the first wave of TARP bailouts. But his Administration’s massive stimulus bill sent spending into overdrive and led to a record $1.4 trillion deficit for fiscal year 2009. Deficits have stayed at more than $1 trillion each year since then.
America’s entitlement programs are the major driver of out-of-control spending. Without reform, they would push federal spending to nearly 36 percent of the economy within a generation. Debt held by the public would explode to nearly 200 percent. Serious structural reforms are inevitable—it is merely a question of how we change what we are doing.
In his “60 Minutes” interview, Obama glossed over Obamacare’s cuts to Medicare and the resulting costs for seniors.
Romney, when asked how he would change Social Security, first made clear there should be no changes to benefits for those in or near retirement.
But he went on:
What I’d do with Social Security is say this: that again, people with higher incomes won’t get the same high growth rate in their benefits as people with lower incomes. People who rely on Social Security should see the same kind of growth rate they’ve had in the past. But higher income folks would receive a little less.
As Heritage expert Alison Fraser explains, Social Security is already income-adjusted today. This is called means testing. Benefits are capped for high-income earners, and the calculation of initial benefits a new retiree receives is based on his or her past income. Upper-income retirees pay a much higher tax than those with lower incomes. Romney proposes to extend this income adjusting so that upper-income retirees receive a bit less than they do now.
While many politicians claim that the only way to address entitlements is to raise taxes or cut benefits, expanding means testing is a serious and sound way to pursue reform.
These kinds of solutions can be found in Saving the American Dream, Heritage’s blueprint for solving our spending and debt crises. Saving the American Dream lays out solutions like slowly moving to a flat Social Security benefit that keeps seniors out of poverty, means testing Social Security so that very affluent seniors have a reduced benefit, and moving to a more robust means-tested premium support mechanism for Medicare that offers seniors choice and control over their health dollars and better health outcomes.
Without reforms, entitlement programs will push spending to untenable levels and put undue pressure on vital areas of government such as national defense. The Obama Administration’s comments about reform, like “now is not the time” for fixing Social Security and the need for a “balanced approach,” have been proven hollow by its push for tax hikes on job creators. We have a spending problem, not a revenue problem, and the longer Washington wastes time, the harsher the changes will have to be.
This debate is vital. To save the American economy and sustain the safety net for those who need it, spending must be reined in and entitlement programs must be reformed.
2011 World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals Manager, Tony LaRussa tonight 7pm at Bookends
2011 World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals Manager, Tony LaRussa, Tuesday, September 25th @ 7:00pm
Tony LaRussa, will sign his new book: One Last Strike.Book available Sept. 25th.
Appearing authors will only autograph books purchased at Bookends and must have valid Bookends Receipt.Availability & pricing for all autographed books subject to change.Bookends cannot guarantee that the books that are Autographed will always be First Printings.Autographed books purchased at Bookends are non-returnable.
While we try to insure that all customers coming to Bookends’ signings will meet authors and get their books signed, we cannot guarantee that all attendees will meet the author or that all books will be signed. We cannot control inclement weather, author travel schedules or authors who leave prematurely.
Bookends, 211 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450 201-445-0726
The film, the second-highest-grossing political documentary in U.S. box-office history, has made $32 million domestically since opening in mid July but took in only $938,000 during the recent weekend for a per-screen average of $771, down 27 percent from $1,060 per screen in the previous weekend, according to BoxOfficeMojo. Overall, the movie’s boxoffice dropped 53 percent in the most recent weekend compared with the previous one, its largest decline since opening 10 weeks ago.
A pilot program for extending the school day and school year
What it is: A bill that would create a pilot program for extending the school day and school year, with the state providing a financial incentive. The legislation, sponsored by some high-powered Democrats, will be heard in committee today.
What it means: Having kids spend more time in the classroom is not a new idea, but it has been restricted by a lack of financing. This new approach calls for rolling it out a few districts at a time. The proposal calls for up to 25 districts to be chosen to test longer schedules and calendars, with $144 million being made available over three years through private contributions and state tax credits.
The stated aim: “The goal of the pilot program shall be to study the effects of a longer school day and school year on advancing student achievement, enhancing the overall school learning environment, and increasing student enrichment opportunities and educational offerings.” (Mooney, NJ Spotlight)
Sunday will mark the start of the 100-day countdown to “Taxmageddon” – the date the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take effect. They will hit families and small businesses in three great waves on January 1, 2013:
First Wave: Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief
In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for small business owners, families, and investors (later re-upped by President Obama and Democrat Congress in 2010). The following tax hikes will occur on January 1, 2013:
Personal income tax rates will rise on January 1, 2013. The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which the majority of small business profits are taxed). The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent. All the rates in between will also rise. Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal tax rates. The full list of marginal rate hikes is below:
-The 10% bracket rises to a new and expanded 15%
-The 25% bracket rises to 28%
-The 28% bracket rises to 31%
-The 33% bracket rises to 36%
-The 35% bracket rises to 39.6%
Higher taxes on marriage and family coming on January 1, 2013. The “marriage penalty” (narrower tax brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of taxable income. The child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child. The standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to the single level.
Middle Class Death Tax returns on January 1, 2013. The death tax is currently 35% with an exemption of $5 million ($10 million for married couples). For those dying on or after January 1 2013, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on estates over $1 million. A person leaving behind two homes and a retirement account could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones.
Higher tax rates on savers and investors on January 1, 2013. The capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 23.8 percent in 2013. The top dividends tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 43.4 percent in 2013. This is because of scheduled rate hikes plus Obamacare’s
investment surtax.
Second Wave: Obamacare Tax Hikes
There are twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare. Some have already gone into effect (the tanning tax, the medicine cabinet tax, the HSA withdrawal tax, W-2 health insurance reporting, and the “economic substance doctrine”). Several more will go into effect on January 1, 2013.
They include:
The Obamacare Medical Device Tax begins to be assessed on January 1, 2013. Medical device manufacturers employ 409,000 people in 12,000 plants across the country. This law imposes a new 2.3% excise tax on gross sales – even if the company does not earn a profit in a given year. Exempts items retailing for <$100.
The Obamacare Medicare Payroll Tax Hike takes effect on January 1, 2013. The Medicare payroll tax is currently 2.9 percent on all wages and self-employment profits. Starting in 2013, wages and profits exceeding $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of married couples) will face a 3.8 percent rate.
The Obamacare “Special Needs Kids Tax” comes online on January 1, 2013. Imposes a cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited). Indexed to inflation after 2013. There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children. There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education. Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington, D.C. (National Child Research Center) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars can be used to pay for this type of special needs education. This Obamacare cap harms these families.
The Obamacare “Haircut” for Medical Itemized Deductions goes into force on January 1, 2013. Currently, those facing high medical expenses are allowed a deduction for medical expenses to the extent that those expenses exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI). The new provision imposes a threshold of 10 percent of AGI. Waived for 65+ taxpayers in 2013-2016 only.
Third Wave: The Alternative Minimum Tax and Employer Tax Hikes
When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2013, they’ll be in for a nasty surprise—the AMT won’t be held harmless, and many tax relief provisions will have expired. These tax increases will be in force for BOTH 2012 and 2013. The major items include:
The AMT will ensnare over 31 million families, up from 4 million last year. According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center, Congress’ failure to index the AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying families—rising from 4 million last year to 31 million. These families will have to calculate their tax burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level. The AMT was created in 1969 to ensnare a handful of taxpayers.
Full business expensing will disappear. In 2011, businesses can expense half of their purchases of equipment. Starting on 2013 tax returns, all of it will have to be “depreciated” (slowly deducted over many years).
Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses. There are literally scores of tax hikes on business that will take place. The biggest is the loss of the “research and experimentation tax credit,” but there are many, many others. Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost jobs.
Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced. The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available. Tax credits for education will be limited. Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses. Coverdell Education Savings Accounts will be cut. Employer-provided educational assistance is curtailed. The student loan interest deduction will be disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families.
Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed. Under current law, a retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA. This contribution also counts toward an annual “required minimum distribution.” This ability will no longer be there.
$1.8 trillion shock: Obama regs cost 20-times estimate
September 20, 2012 | 8:51 am
Current federal regulations plus those coming under Obamacare will cost American taxpayers and businesses $1.8 trillion annually, more than twenty times the $88 billion the administration estimates, according to a new roundup provided to Secrets from the libertarian Competitive Enterprise Institute.
And it could grow, warned the author of the report, Clyde Wayne Crews, a CEI vice president.
Complying with Health and Human Services Department requirements alone, he revealed, costs $184 billion a year, yet regulators are still drafting the rules for the 2,400-page Obamacare law that kicks into gear in 2014.
Crews has made a working project of his “Tip of the Costberg” report which he regularly updates. In it, he compares the cost of regulations estimated by federal agencies to a much broader list of estimates from multiple federal and independent sources. And even then, he said, it doesn’t include hard-to-calculate costs associated with antitrust intervention, regulation of electricity networks, or the cost of constrained access to natural resources.
“While OMB officially reports amounts of only up to $88.6 billion in 2010 dollars,” said Crews, “the non-tax cost of government intervention in the economy, without performing a sweeping survey, appears to total up to $1.806 trillion annually.”
Proving the wisdom of building things in flood zones N.J. Senators announce funding for flood-prone area buyout
U.S. Senators Frank R. Lautenberg and Robert Menendez, both D-NJ, announced Wednesday more than $3.3 million in federal funding for voluntary home buyouts for a flood-prone senior citizen housing complex in Monmouth County’s Ocean Township.
The funding, provided through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will be used to purchase and remove eight sections of a seniors apartment complex that has been repeatedly damaged by floods, according to a press release. Built in 1970, the housing complex will be entirely demolished and the area will be restored to its natural environment. (Bonamo, NJ.com)
FOOD POLICE: Students strike against new federal school lunch rules
Mukwonago – By 7 a.m. Monday, senior Nick Blohm already had burned about 250 calories in the Mukwonago High School weight room.
He grabbed a bagel and a Gatorade afterward; if he eats before lifting, he gets sick.
That was followed by eight periods in the classroom, and then three hours of football practice. By the time he headed home, he had burned upward of 3,000 calories – his coach thinks the number is even higher.
But the calorie cap for his school lunch? 850 calories.
“A lot of us are starting to get hungry even before the practice begins,” Blohm said. “Our metabolisms are all sped up.”
Following new federal guidelines, school districts nationwide have retooled their menus to meet new requirements to serve more whole grains, only low-fat or nonfat milk, daily helpings of both fruits and vegetables, and fewer sugary and salty items. And for the first time, federal funds for school lunches mandate age-aligned calorie maximums. The adjustments are part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 touted by Michelle Obama and use the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The changes are hard to swallow for students like Blohm. On Monday, 70% of the 830 Mukwonago High students who normally buy lunch boycotted cafeteria food to protest what they see as an unfair “one size fits all thing.” Middle schoolers in the district also boycotted their school lunches, with counts down nearly half Monday. They’re not alone in their frustration; schools across the country are reporting students who are unhappy with the lunch offerings.
“Non partisan” mayors office and Village Council promoting political parties on the Village Website?
Readers question whether the “Non partisan” mayors office and Village Council is promoting political parties and political agenda’s on the Village Website?
Newcomer’s Annual “Progressive” Dinner All are Welcome to be Members!
Everyone’s favorite event is scheduled for Saturday, October 13th from 7PM to Midnight at members homes. Start the evening at a member’s home with cocktails and appetizers, then progress to another member’s home for an intimate, catered dinner. Finally, meet up with a larger group at yet another member’s home to cap off the night with dessert! This event is open to members of Newcomers. To learn more about joining Newcomers contact Allison Brown at [email protected]
8,786,049: Yet Another Record for Americans Collecting Disability
By Terence P. Jeffrey
September 17, 2012
CNSNews.com) – The Social Security Administration has released new data revealing that 8,786,049 American workers are collecting federal disability insurance payments in September. That sets yet another record for the number of Americans on disability.
The 8,786,049 workers taking federal disability in September is a net increase of 18,108 from the 8,767,941 workers who took federal disability in August.
Over the past 45 years, the number of American workers taking federal disability payments has increased four-fold relative to the number actually working.
In August 1967, 74,767,000 Americans were working (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics) and 1,152,861 were taking federal disability insurance (according to the Social Security Administration). That means that at that time there were about 65 Americans working for each worker collecting disability.
In August 2012, 142,101,000 Americans were working and 8,767,941 were on disability–meaning there were only 16.2 people working for each person collecting disability.
