Quick Hits (11.29.11)

We think someone just earned extra credit. Juniors at an Indiana high school gave a presentation to their board about why merit-based pay for teachers is bad. (Reasoning: pay shouldn’t be dependent on test scores). The presentation was given as a project for their Honors English class. Bonus points, anyone? (Indiana’s News Center)

Outside of the schoolhouse box. About 250,000 students nationwide are enrolled in full-time online school, according to NPR’s On Point Radio. Today’s show looked at online learning, including Stanford’s online high school, and included Education Sector’s Bill Tucker. Listen in here. (On Point Radio)

‘Tis the season for lists. The Hoover Institution breaks down the top five best and worst events in education in 2011. See them here. (Hoover Institution)

Sharing accountability. The Strive Partnership of Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky is a collective of schools, community groups, non-profits, and other organizations that work together to provide supports and education to their neighborhood children to ensure success from “cradle to career.” Read Education Sector’s new report, Striving for Student Success: A Model for Shared Accountability, to see why collaborations such as these are more effective than schools going at it alone.