User:Khigdo2

Userboxes

This user is a participant in
WikiProject United States Public Policy.

1. Medicaid- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicaid

2. Unemployment- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unemployment

3. Energy Conservation in the United States- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_conservation_in_the_United_States

4. Education in Kentucky- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Kentucky

Education in Kentucky

Education in Kentucky consists of elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, and colleges. In Kentucky, there are 174 school districts. This includes 1,221 public schools and 644,963 students. The majority of Kentucky schools and higher education institutions are accredited through The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The state ranks 12th among newly certified public school teachers. The state's education budget distributed in the P-12 level is $4.875 billion, and the federal budget allocates $1.099 billion.^[2] As of 2009 the state holds a graduation rate of 83.91 percent. The percent of students entering college, vocational/technical school, the armed forces, employed, or a combination of any of the above is 94.37.^[2] Lexington Kentucky ranks 10th among U.S. cities with the highest percentage of citizens with a bachelors degree of higher. However, the state does carry the heavy stigma of a "southern" state in regards to education. Kentucky ranks 47th in the country for the percentage of residents with a bachelors degree.^[1]The adult illiteracy of the state is 40 percent., and the K-12 attrition rate ranks 25th in the nation.^[1] Over the years various reforms have aided the state's educational system. The combination of reforms and federal aid have made Kentucky's education progressive.

Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA)

Public schools in Kentucky were greatly effected when there financing systems were invalidated by court rulings. In Kentucky, the case of Rose v Council produced some of the most radical changes in education through out the country. Not only did the Kentucky Supreme Court find the financing of schools in the state to be unconstitutional, but it also ruled that the "entire system of common schools is unconstitutional" and required the legislature to "recreate, re-establish" the entire system of public education. In a remarkably brief interlude, the Kentucky General Assembly, in response to the court decision, passed the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) of 1990.^[5] It drastically effected the monetary needs of primary to secondary schools.The purpose of KERA was to promote equality in the outcomes of education in the state. It was not merely to provide higher funding in certain areas. The goal was to have consistency in funding and performance.^[5]

KERA's Goals

After the passage of the act, it was determined that the success of it would be based off of the following goals:

1. Use rudimentary communication and math skills that will benifit them in their future.
2. Develop their abilities to apply core concepts and principles from mathematics, sciences, arts, humanities, social studies, practical living studies, and vocational studies to what they will encounter throughout their lives.
3. Develop strengths in order to become self-sufficient individuals.
4. Develop their abilities to become responsible members of a family, work group, and community, including demonstrating effectiveness in community service.
5. Develop their abilities to think and solve problems in school situations and in a variety of situations they will encounter in life.
6. Develop their abilities to connect and integrate experiences and new knowledge from all subject matter fields with what they have previously learned and build on past learning eall xperiences to acquire new information through various media services.

Curriculum Changes

The biggest curriculum change in the elementary grades was the implementation of standardized tests.^[5]Essentially, in the General Assembly’s interpretation of KERA, the traditional separation of students by grade (age) is eliminated (or at least reduced) with students of both different ages and abilities found in the same classroom. The traditional classroom with a single teacher is to be replaced (at times) by team teaching.^[5] Technology, teamwork, and quantitative methods of evaluation were heavily encouraged. THese new ideas were not only encouraged but were accounted for in funding. School councils were also set up to make key decisions on curriculum, policy issues, materials, discipline, and extracurricular programs.^[5]

Outcomes

The National Assessment for Educational Progress is the most respected source for comparing Kentucky public school students to those in other states. The most recent scale score results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress show Kentucky:

1. Scoring above national average in fourth and eighth grade science.
2. Statistically tied with national average in fourth and eighth grade reading, fourth grade writing, and eighth grade mathematics.
3. Scoring below national average in fourth grade writing and eighth grade math.

In 1998, The Ford Foundation and Harvard University awarded Kentucky's education system the Innovations in American Government Award.