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Cole, Armstead file letter against Common Core
By Matt Maccaro, WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The two leading lawmakers in West Virginia took steps Tuesday aimed at repealing the state Common Core standards.
Senate President Bill Cole and House Speaker Tim Armstead sent a letter to the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers revoking a 2009 agreement between the state and the NGA regarding development of Common...
Cole calls Common Core a 'non-starter,' says it's time to start over
By Jeff Jenkins, WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — State Senate President Bill Cole says the Common Core teaching standards will be repealed during next year’s [legislative] session.
Cole (R-Mercer) called the controversial standards, which deal with Math, English/Language Arts, a “non-starter” during a Wednesday appearance on MetroNews ‘Talkline.’
"We have too many people in the...
State revenues: Coal beginning to show production decrease
By Jeff Jenkins, WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Tax collections in the new fiscal year in West Virginia started out in July the same way they ended June with severance taxes missing projections, state Revenue Secretary Bob Kiss said Wednesday.
Overall the state missed its July estimate by $4.8 million with much of that, $3.8 million, from a shortfall in severance tax collections. Kiss and others...
Cole says Common Core has failed, should be repealed
By Samuel Speciale, Staff Writer , Charleston Gazette-Mail
A day after revoking an agreement regarding West Virginia’s involvement in developing Common Core, Senate President Bill Cole said the controversial standards have been a failure and that the state must change course if it wants to improve student achievement.
While he wouldn’t say Common Core is the cause of West Virginia’s education woes, the...
Martirano to release standardized test results Wednesday
By Jeff Jenkins , MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — State School Superintendent Dr. Michael Martirano will release the results from last school year’s standardized testing in West Virginia during Wednesday afternoon’s state Board of Education meeting.
“I’ve been very clear about the fact that I want those results out early,” Martirano told MetroNews. “I’ve very transparent in my superintendency about...
W.Va. Third Graders Exceeding National Testing Estimates
By ASHTON MARRA • WV Public Broadcasting
Preliminary test scores released by the West Virginia Department of Education show students who have been taught under the state’s Common Core standards since kindergarten are exceeding national estimates when it comes to testing.
West Virginia third graders were the first to have Common Core standards integrated into their classrooms four years ago as...
State students getting better in English, struggles continue in Math, Science
By Matt Maccaro , WV Metronews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Preliminary results from new standardized testing of West Virginia public school students show that English/Language Arts (ELA) scores are slightly higher than expected, but mathematics scores are significantly lower.
The results of the West Virginia Statewide Assessment were released at the state Board of Education meeting...
Majority of W.Va. students miss mark on new Common-Core aligned test
By Ryan Quinn, Staff writer
Of West Virginia students in elementary, middle and high schools, only fifth graders tested proficient in either math or English/language arts on the state’s new Common Core-aligned standardized test last school year, according to preliminary results released Wednesday.
Those students barely managed an overall proficiency rate in English/language arts, with 51...
50 teacher vacancies in Raleigh County as school year begins
By Jeff Jenkins , MetroNews
BECKLEY, W.Va. — Raleigh County schools will begin the school year Thursday with 50 teacher vacancies, something county school board president Rick Snuffer describes as “a crisis.”
The county has been hit with a combination of teacher retirements and fewer teachers graduating from colleges and universities. It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who has been listening,...
Math scores called ‘unacceptable’ by union leader
By Jeff Jenkins, MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia students spent four hours less on average than students in other states who took the Smarter Balanced assessment test.
One leading education official believes there’s an explanation for the difference.
“Many students didn’t take this test seriously,” West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee said on...
Money awarded for students to take AP tests
By Megan Kennedy, Staff Writer , Charleston Gazette-Mail
West Virginia students taking Advanced Placement courses can now get help paying for the tests from the federal government.
The U.S. Department of Education announced on Wednesday that it has awarded $79,443 to West Virginia to give to students who cannot afford the final AP tests at their schools. Other recipients of the money include 37 other states, the...
W.Va. Education Association president calls teacher shortage ‘a crisis’
By Carrie Hodousek at MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Teacher shortages across the state need to be addressed through higher pay, said the West Virginia Education Association’s president.
“We have a crisis in West Virginia,” Dale Lee told MetroNews “Talkline” as students returned to classes. “It’s simply that we don’t pay our teachers competitive salaries.”
Raleigh County schools...