Education Report September 25, 2009

1. Budget and Appropriations
-The mood in Washington this week was "cranky." Healthcare reform dominated the conversation and there appears to be little consensus about how to move legislation forward.When the Congress was not debating healthcare reform, they tried to make progress on the FY 2010 budget.
-The Senate was hard at work developing a reconciliation proposal that will differ from the House-passed Student Aid Fiscal Responsibility Act. The ability to meet the October 15th deadline for Committee action on a reconciliation bill now appears to be in question.

2. Event Highlights Digital Media and How Young People Learn
-Digital Media is changing the way young people learn, play, socialize and participate in civic life. These changes have very important policy implications, according to a panel of experts participating in a Capitol Hill briefing on Monday.
-The event was held to support John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation digital media and learning initiative.
-Digital learning is becoming increasingly participatory, and all the panelists agreed that educators and parents inside and outside of the classrooms need professional development and education to ensure that their students and children are being properly engaged through digital media.

3. College Board Hosts Discussion on Pathways to College Act
-Last Tuesday , The College Board and the National Association for College Admission Counseling hosted a panel discussion on The Pathways to College Act, a bill recently introduced in the Senate and House in response to inequitable college-going trends among certain student populations.
-Specifically, The Pathways to College Act would provide competitive grant funding to high need school districts for the purpose of improving college-going rates of all students.

4 In brief
-Obama touts Innovation and Growth
-ED hosts Stakeholder forum and urges rewrite of NCLB
-Common Core Standards are Released
-ED awards early reading first grants
-White House town hall focuses on Fatherhood and Education
-MEE holds briefing on Undergraduate Mathematics
-Heritage foundation hosts Discussion on School vouchers and special education
-AEI hosts discussion on total student load

Be sure to also check out sections #5 (New publications) and #6(In the News).