I visited an 8th grade math class at Coventry Junior High School on Friday to learn more about Coventry's new block scheduling for math. Basically, the district doubled the amount of time students spend in math class. Some block schedules squeeze a year's worth of math into a semester with block scheduling, but that's not what Coventry is doing. Kids get math, every day, every week, all year.  The district credits that for its big math gains on the state achievement tests last year reflected on the state report cards released on Friday.

Korianne VanAuken, 23, started last year at the district fresh out of Bowling Green University. Last year, the district was able to tap into federal stimulus dollars by hiring her out of Summit Educational Service Center. This year, she's on the Coventry payroll. She said all of her student teaching was done in traditional 45-minute segments, so he had to make adjustments to how she taught and monitored the energy level of the room. The longer period allows her to some direct instruction, some hands-on activities and to help individual students or small groups of students who need extra attention (the traditional 45-minute periods leave no time to circle back, the principal explained. If you didn't get chapter one, well, too bad, we're on to Chapter Two this week).

All the school districts in Medina County are rated excellent except Wadsworth, which received Excellent with Distinction, an A +

Look up your county's schools here.

The Ohio Department of Education release is here:

Dispatch education blog  notes that graduation rates statewide are down.

Look up all of Akron's public schools here:

Middle schools:

Congratulations to these Summit County districts for receiving "Excellent with Distinction" report cards for 2009-2010, the equivalent of an A +:

Akron and Springfield were rated in Continuous Improvement, a C.

ODE has posted the 2009-2010 report cards.

Go to this link and then search by district or building

It's been five years since 10-year-old Tony Swain Jr. was killed by a hit-and-run driver while walking to school with his little sister and the case remains open and unsolved. 

Tony will be remembered on Sept. 5 with prayers and a candlelight vigil beginning at 8 p.m. at the at Lovers Lane and Hammel Street. That was where Tony was killed on the morning of Sept. 6, 2005.

Former Falls school board member Kellie Patterson's legal saga to hold the board accountable to Ohio's open records laws continues. 

To recap:

43,252,003,274,489,856,000

Read my colleague Carol Biliczky's fascinating story today in the Akron Beacon Journal to unlock the mystery.

State Rep. Stephen Dyer just sent this out with a breakdown on what Akron-Canton area districts and charter schools should expect from Ohio's successful Race to the Top application.

Here's some of them:

I was on the phone with someone  from East High School who disappointed that I didn't mention East moving from academic watch to continuous improvement when I got an email from someone at Firestone disappointed that I didn't mention that Firestone, alone among APS high schools,  was rated Excellent again. Ellet High also is excellent this year. BTW, Akron Early College also is rated excellent, though it's not a traditional stand alone high school. My apologies for the omissions. Time and space didn't allow for us to include every school that showed improvement.

Here's some other highlights from the APS summary presented at the school board meeting on Monday that  we didn't have space for in today's story:

Ohio Wins $400 Million in Race to the Top Funding

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

Just filed my story for tomorrow on Akron's 2009-2010 state report card, which was summarized for the Akron school board on Monday. Official public release date for report cards statewide is Friday.

The Ellet cluster is the first in APS history to have all of its schools rated effective or excellent.

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

 Kids go back to Akron Public Schools on Wednesday Sept. 1.  On Thursday, Sept. 2, The National Inventors Hall of Fame school will hold a dedication ceremony in the new Broadway building.  Cuyahoga Falls students go back on Aug. 24.  Hudson students return on Aug. 25.  Stow-Munroe Falls starts on Aug. 26. Green goes back on Aug. 30. See lower right hand column of First Bell for links to other Summit County school districts (there's one that takes you to links for all Ohio school districts). Meanwhile, New York Times has a nice roundup of national education news from the last few months as kids head back to school. BTW, State Report Cards are due Aug. 27.

Here's a short video on the celebration at Crouse elementary school in Akron this morning concluding a two-week camp for incoming kindergarteners. This is the second year of the collaboration between Project GRAD (which also concluded its program for incoming 9th graders at Buchtel High School today) and Kent State University. Special thanks to the young woman from Project GRAD for being a good sport and agreeing to demonstrate the popular call and response song they did during the camp to get kids used to following directions. Story to follow.

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

Some of Summit County's wealthiest school districts will be asking voters for new money in November, including Hudson trying again to pass a 5.9-mill levy that failed in May.

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer

By John Higgins
Beacon Journal staff writer