“You perform well, you keep your job. You don’t perform well for an extended period of time, you don’t get a guarantee,” was Mr. McDonnell’s common-sense argument. The success of the initiative will depend upon the strength of a more rigorous evaluation system, the details of which have yet to be fleshed out, and expected opposition from the Virginia Education Association, representing the teachers.

Particularly noteworthy is the governor’s aim to empower parents by giving them more educational choices. He would give tax credits to businesses that provide scholarships for children from low-income families to attend private schools, would encourage virtual schools as a new approach to learning and would provide more support to charter schools. The Republican governor is to be commended for aligning himself with President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan in his support of charters, but we wish he had gone further in removing the barriers that have made Virginia so inhospitable to charters. The governor’s plan would establish a technical advisory committee to help charter-school applicants develop their plans and ensure they get a fair share of public resources, but it does not break the stranglehold that local school divisions have in authorizing start-up of charters.

For the rest of the article, go to The governor’s education plan for Virginia

Charter schools. McDonnell proposed establishing a technical advisory committee to help charter-school applicants develop their plans. He also wants to “clarify” the per-pupil amount that charters should receive and said details about that would be forthcoming.

Virtual schools. The governor proposed establishing an alternative licensure route for virtual-school teachers and said he wants new regulations for accrediting full-time virtual schools.

Dual enrollment. The governor wants to tweak the law to allow high school students to work toward an associate’s degree.

For the rest of the article, go to McDonnell proposes repealing ‘Kings Dominion law,’ teacher tenure in schools plan

The option of full-time online learning provides important educational answers for military families who move frequently, students on homebound instruction with medical needs, special education and gifted students, and others. To fully take advantage of the growing trend toward virtual schools, Virginia needs to revise its funding model for online learning to expand opportunities for children and ensure a robust variety of virtual-school providers.

The state must confront the growing problem with its retirement system. Over the past few months the “unfunded” portion of the retirement system has grown from $17 billion to close to $20 billion, according to a recent JLARC study. The Thomas Jefferson Institute suggested in its own study this past summer that our state implement a hybrid program that combines parts of the current defined-benefits program with a more realistic 21st century defined-contributions program. As mentioned earlier, limiting future growth of state spending to an inflation/population formula and earmarking part of any excess funds to fill the hole in the retirement program makes good sense.

For transportation, the governor, secretary of transportation and General Assembly should go on record requesting that Virginia become a test case for changing the way federal transportation monies are used. A U.S. House Transportation Committee study about 15 years ago showed that one dollar of federal transportation construction money increased the cost of a project by 30-40 percent. Virginia should ask that all federal transportation money come in a block grant only used for major construction projects, thus freeing up state and local funds for all other projects. This would have the same impact as a transportation tax increase of 30-40 percent without raising taxes. Using government money in this way could have a huge impact on our transpiration needs.

For the rest of the article, go to General Assembly: A blueprint for fixing Virginia

He wants to recapture students who have drifted away from T.C. Williams and offer them a chance to earn a diploma in a new setting.

His plan calls for four satellite campuses spread around the city. They would be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and students juggling other obligations — such as work or child care — could drop in at their convenience.

The option would be restricted to students ages 15 to 22. Courses would be delivered via computer by a subsidiary of K12 Inc., a Herndon-based company that operates virtual schools nationwide. Certified Alexandria teachers would be on hand to offer instruction and motivation.

For the rest of the article, go to Alexandria debates adult education

This year, Luna successfully pushed a controversial education reform package dubbed “Students Come First,” which mandated online courses as a graduation requirement and promised a laptop for every student.

And in 2008, Arizona blogger David Safier reported that K12 was outsourcing a critical teacher function — grading papers — to workers in India. The company later discontinued that practice.

I could go on, but you get the point. Local reporters in farflung places were paying attention to virtual schools long before folks in big cities took notice. And for that, they deserve a heap of credit.

For the rest of the article, go to The stories behind the story of K12 Inc.

Flexible schools: Discussion about educating our children sometimes focuses on specific methods of evaluation (e.g., standardized tests), or on types of classrooms or class setups (as in charter or virtual schools).

But Del. Steve Landes was right when he mentioned a broader concept one week ago: allowing individual school districts greater flexibility in general.

The Republican from Weyers Cave not only has represented the Valley for a long time, he’s also a member of the House Education and Appropriations committees. That means he has a bead on education regulations and on Virginia’s budget. He spoke as part of a panel discussion at AP Day at the Capitol, an annual event held in December for journalists as a preview of the following January’s General Assembly session.

For the rest of the article, go to Editorial: Midweek Briefing