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Why Public Schools are Launching Marketing Campaigns
Advertising and marketing are not traditionally associated with public schools, but more and more campuses are launching campaigns to attract students. Learn about the growing marketing movement and why public schools are scrambling to advertise themselves.

These days, choice is a word that’s frequently heard in discussions of public education. If parents don’t like the local traditional public school, they can investigate charter schools, private schools, or neighboring public school districts with open-enrollment options. However, all this choice has resulted in hard times for some of the nation’s public schools, which are facing dwindling student populations and subsequently dwindling funds.

In an attempt to fight the tide of dwindling student populations and to prevent more students from leaving, some public schools are putting their efforts into marketing campaigns designed to sell prospective students and their families on the virtues of their neighborhood public schools. Below, we look at this surprising trend.

Why Do Public Schools Need Marketing Campaigns?

Charter Schools

Although school districts can attribute some of their declining enrollment numbers to inter-district transfers or students choosing to attend private schools, the reality is that the explosive growth of charter schools is the main cause of public schools’ enrollment woes.

According to USCharterSchools.org, there are currently more than 3,500 charter schools in the U.S., and more than one million public school students attend a charter school rather than a traditional public school.

Charter schools are very popular with politicians from both sides of the political spectrum, and many state legislatures are pushing to lift caps on the number of charter schools that are allowed. The result is that more and more students are enrolling in charters rather than

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Charter Schools: Inspired by Quakers?

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Charter Schools: Inspired by Quakers?
Learn about the growing movement and educational philosophies that could create Quaker-inspired charter schools across the country.

Quaker schools have been quietly thriving throughout the country for a number of years, and for parents who find that traditional public and private schools do not provide the environment they want for their children, Quaker schools are an ideal choice. From six Quaker schools in California to eight in New York, and even the one in DC where President Obama's daughters attend, these campuses challenge traditional education's standard teaching methods.

While the overtly Quaker schools today are all private, there may be a future movement wherein charter schools become quietly inspired by Quaker philosophies - minus the religious components.

What is Quakerism?

A Quaker education is one that focuses on the development of the individual student, and the school environment is meant to cultivate "a strong sense of social understanding, skills to deal with adversity, tolerance and respect for others, and a strong sense of self-worth so that [students] have the power needed to succeed," according to a graduate of a Quaker school quoted by Friends Council on Education.

A Quaker education focuses on the core values of Quakerism, which are called testimonies:

  • Peace
  • Equality
  • Simplicity
  • Integrity
  • Community
  • Service

The first Quaker school in America, the William Penn Charter School, was originally opened in 1689 as a public school, opening its doors to all students of all socioeconomic means. In fact, Penn Charter was one of the first schools to offer financial aid for its students and teach females and students of all racial

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Advice from High School Counselors: Invaluable or Worthless?

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Advice from High School Counselors: Invaluable or Worthless?
Public high school counselors not only provide emotional and disciplinary support, but help students find their future paths. However, is their advice and encouragement even helpful? Learn more about the study that discovers what's wrong with high school counseling.

High school students are faced with the daunting task of making choices that will have momentous consequences on the remainder of their lives. They must choose whether to pursue higher education at a four-year college or university, begin their studies at a two-year community college, start a vocational training program, or enter the workforce directly after high school.

For those students who decide they want to pursue a college education, the choices to be made only multiply: students must decide how to present themselves in the optimal light on college applications, which colleges to apply to, and which college to ultimately attend.

Fortunately, most public high schools have a “guidance office” and guidance counselors who are given the job of helping students to navigate the sea of tough decisions that must be made towards the end of high school.

But are high school students getting the help and advice that they need from the guidance counselors at public schools? A new study released by the nonprofit research organization Public Agenda suggests that most people who have graduated from public high schools in the last decade do not feel that their school guidance counselors provided them with any meaningful advice.

This video shows a demonstration interview by a guidance counselor.

The Problems with the Current High School Guidance System

Lack of Personal Attention

In its response to

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Teachers and Tenure: Both Sides of the Heated Debate

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Teachers and Tenure: Both Sides of the Heated Debate
Teachers' tenure has become a highly controversial issue, sparking outcry on both sides. Learn more about the benefits and disadvantages of teacher tenure, especially in light of today's educational reforms.

The question of whether public school teachers in the K-12 system should be protected by the system of tenure is a highly controversial one. It is also an extremely important question at the present moment. A changing world economy and increased focus on our nation’s education system are bringing teacher tenure into the spotlight, and some say it is a tradition that may be outdated.

The Good: Why Some Argue that Tenure is Important

Protects teachers from being fired for personal or political reasons

As a 2008 TIME magazine article on teacher tenure notes, one of the most significant results of teacher tenure is that it makes firing teachers “a difficult and costly process.” A tenured teacher cannot be fired on the whim of a school administrator; charges will need to be filed, evaluations submitted, and hearings held. Many teachers believe that the job security tenure provides is important because it prevents teachers from being fired for reasons of favoritism or local or district politics.

Gives teachers the freedom to experiment or support controversial causes

Many say that tenure is important for teachers to delve into potentially untraditional topics. A high school social studies teacher, Alan Singer wrote recently for the Huffington Post about how he helped students form clubs which “testified in public hearings against budget cuts in education and in favor of condom availability in schools.” Without the protection that tenure offered, Singer argues, he would not have felt

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Public Classrooms Say Goodbye Textbooks, Hello e-Texts

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Public Classrooms Say Goodbye Textbooks, Hello e-Texts
eTexts are rendering the traditional, paperbound textbooks obsolete. Learn about how public classrooms are transitioning to digital textbooks and the benefits of eTexts.

E-books, some say, are the words of the future. The Kindle, the iPad, and other electronic reading devices are signaling the end of the print era.

Colleges and universities across the country have begun experimenting with using e-textbooks, rather than printed textbooks, to deliver course content. Now, the K-12 public school system is getting on the e-text bandwagon too, as several state legislatures make moves to support the use of electronic textbooks in their state’s public schools.

This video from Fox News reports on ebooks versus physical textbooks.

States Move to Adopt Digital Textbooks

Texas

In Texas, for example, the legislature adopted a bill in 2009 that provided funds for school districts and charter schools to purchase the technology necessary for e-textbooks. This bill also gave school districts and charter schools the necessary flexibility to adopt e-textbooks instead of traditional textbooks.

The bill also allowed school districts to be reimbursed by the state for 50% of the savings they incurred from the switch from regular textbooks to e-texts. As Texas Senator Jeff Wentworth reports in a guest column for the website My San Antonio, school districts may use the reimbursement they receive from the state to purchase educational technology, such as computers, if they choose.

Indiana

Twelve schools in the Indianapolis Public School System will soon be foregoing traditional textbooks as well. As the educational technology publication The

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