Consider it as shocking a development as night following day.
With the ink barely dry on a set of proposals to revamp the Byzantine student assignment system in the Boston public schools, a critique of the plans says they will turn back the clock and promote greater inequity in the availability of quality schools in Boston.
An analysis by researchers at the Harvard Graduate School of Education says all of the proposed new assignment zones for the Boston public schools would increase inequities in the availability of high-quality schools, particularly disadvantaging black and Hispanic students. A quick analysis of the plans, led by Meira Levinson, a Harvard professor and parent of two Boston public school students, found that the new zones would create very uneven distribution of schools ranked “high quality” based on a composite of test scores, rankings by the state Department of Education, and popularity among families in the city’s selection process.
According to the analysis, which divided schools into high-, medium-, or low-quality, some of the proposed new systems would leave families with no high quality schools to choose from, while families living in other areas would have several high quality schools available.
The problem is that the new report offers no alternative plan to address demand for more neighborhood-based school assignments as well as ways to cut the system’s $80 million annual transportation costs for busing students around the city.
The analysis also elides a key question raised by its quality rankings. A number of variables closely track the school rankings. For example, white and Asian students make up a greater percentage of students at high-quality schools than at low-quality schools, while black students are overrepresented in low -quality schools relative to their overall make up in the system. The percentage of students from low-income households increases from high-quality to medium-quality to low-quality schools. But a wealth of evidence shows that student performance is closely tied to socioeconomic status. Thus, it’s very hard to know from this report whether the schools ranked “high quality” are actually doing a better job educating students or are simply drawing more students from backgrounds that predict higher student achievement.
In the context of the always volatile topic of schools and race in Boston, the report seems likely to generate more heat than light.
–MICHAEL JONAS
BEACON HILL
State Sen. Brian Joyce continues his long-standing campaign to try to abolish the Governor’s Council, telling the Fall River Herald News he has enough support for a constitutional amendment in the Senate and is working on House members. Nearly a decade ago Joyce advanced his argument in this piece for CommonWealth. Governor’s Councilor Chris Iannella, Jr., defended the oft-derided body.
Forty-two Democratic lawmakers voted every time with House Speaker Robert DeLeo on key votes, the Lowell Sun reports.
The Patriot Ledger takes a look at the lack of diversity among the South Shore delegation on Beacon Hill.
The state drug lab closed after chemist Annie Dookhan was found to have improperly handled evidence had previous fraud and evidence-tampering problems, the Jamaica Plain Gazette reports.
CASINOS
Revere Mayor Dan Rizzo wants to acquire Wonderland dog racing track as part a mitigation agreement with developers of a casino at nearby Suffolk Downs. Rizzo wants the New England Revolution soccer team make the site its home.
MUNICIPAL MATTERS
A standoff in Lawrence lets three police officers collect $270,000 in pay without doing any work, the Eagle-Tribune reports.
NATIONAL POLITICS/WASHINGTON
Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger tells all on 60 Minutes. Will he “be back?”
California approves a law giving young illegal immigrants the ability to get a driver’s license, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The New York Times reports that a payroll tax cut extension appears unlikely no matter who wins the elections in November.
ELECTION 2012
Republican challenger Richard Tisei has a 6 point lead over Democratic US Rep. John Tierney in a new Boston Globe poll of likely voters in the Sixth Congressional District. The poll is bad news for Tierney, thought to be one of the most vulnerable Democratic House members nationally. Thirty percent of those surveyed, however, remain undecided. The Washington Post has a big take-out on the Tiseai-Tierney race, with this declaration from Tisei: “I consider myself a Goldwater conservative.”
The latest WBUR poll (done by the MassINC Polling Group) finds Elizabeth Warren with a narrow lead over US Sen. Scott Brown. The Boston Herald gives page one treatment to previewing tonight’s debate, co-sponsored by the tabloid and UMass Lowell.
Though Brown is playing up his bipartisan credentials on the campaign trail — and making scant reference to his Republican affiliation — the Globe reports that his out-of-state fundraising pitches are stressing the importance of his reelelection to Republican hopes of regaining control of the Senate.
No pressure: A Herald op-ed rounds up past debate-gaffes, noting particularly devastating ones can be career killers.
A Springfield Republican editorial warns the presidential race isn’t over yet.
The Beat the Press panel debates whether the media can avoid becoming complicit in political attacks by campaigns, using the recent CommonWealth Back Story about a potential hand-off in the Senate race as the example.
The MetroWest Daily News chides Mitt Romney who finally remembers that he did something groundbreaking in Massachusetts.
What to expect from Wednesday’s debate between President Obama and Mitt Romney.
Campaigns on both sides of the physician-assisted suicide ballot question are being funded by out-of-state groups, the Attleboro Sun Chronicle reports.
Former presidential candidate H. Ross Perot opines on the nation’s fiscal ills.
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
A tentative agreement is reached between the union representing 14,000 New England janitors and building owners where they work.
The Berkshire Eagle notes the country’s aging workforce means that the county will have to explore new ways to keep young people in the region by providing relevant education programs and jobs for those who remain.
Small movie theaters are in danger of closing if they can’t raise enough money to fund a switch from traditional film projection to digital by next year’s film industry-imposed deadline.
EDUCATION
Benjamin Zander, the conductor who was fired from his last gig for using a sex offender as a videographer, launches the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, WBUR reports.
The Cape Cod Times hails the recently passed third grade reading initiative but argues that the state needs to pay more attention to early childhood reading.
TRANSPORTATION
A recent surge in pedestrian accidents has officials urging more caution and diligence by both drivers and walkers.
MBTA ridership continues to grow, despite recent fare increases.
Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail, which runs the region’s commuter trains, says that the MBTA is largely responsible for train delays on the Boston-Worcester line since its locomotives and coaches are old and unreliable. The company is responding to MetroWest lawmakers’ complaints about service on the route.
ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT
A state environmental task force will study how to help communities where coal-fired power plants may close, including Holyoke, Somerset, and Salem.
Problems with runoffs and pumping station leaks have Wareham residents concerned over the town’s ongoing sewer project.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
The Boy Scouts of America says it plans to start bringing suspected abusers from its perversion files to the attention of local police, CBS reports.
MEDIA
Keller@Large says the late John Silber was the master of what so few politicians practice these days, candor.