Friday Churn: Break time

What’s churning:

Most metro-area school districts, including Jefferson County, Denver, Douglas County and Cherry Creek, are off for Spring Break next week after wrapping up state testing now known as TCAPs.

The Transitional Colorado Assessment Program replaces the familiar CSAP, the state exam for the past 15 years, and was initially planned for 2012 and 2013 as a transition to new state exams testing new academic standards.

But there’s been debate over whether the state should pay for its own Colorado-only exams or wait for multistate language arts and math tests that are supposed to debut in 2015. A late bill in this year’s legislative session may resolve the issue, according to this EdNews’ story.

This year’s testing window ran from Feb. 27 to March 9 for third graders and it runs from March 12 to April 13 for students in grades 4 through 10. So while some Colorado districts may still be finishing exams, many like to get them completed before releasing students for the break.

Not to worry, we expect there will still be news next week – particularly as state lawmakers begin their all-important conversations about the School Finance Act.

Learn more about the testing change and see a history of state school funding.

What’s on tap:

Jeffco school board members meet at 8:30 a.m. today for a daylong work session to discuss governance principles, student achievement and monitoring of district work. This is the board’s fifth session monitored by facilitator Jim Weigel. Agenda

Good reads from elsewhere:

Double-dipping: The Boulder Weekly’s Jefferson Dodge offers another perspective on the issue of retired faculty being rehired and earning both their pensions and their new salaries, a practice known as “double-dipping.”

Holy days: Schools will no longer take official enrollment counts on religious holidays, under a bill signed into law Thursday by Gov. John Hickenlooper. Read the Denver Post story.

Relationship school: New York Times columnist David Brooks writes about a different kind of reform model, where teacher-student relationships are key.

The EdNews’ Churn is a daily roundup of briefs, notes and meetings in the world of Colorado education. To submit an item for consideration in this listing, please email us at EdNews@EdNewsColorado.org.