Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's New York Education Reform Commission Wed., Jan. 2, released its preliminary action plan. According to Rick Karlin, writing at Capitol Confidential, Cuomo "accepted the report with some cautionary notes, especially when it came to yet-unstated costs of implementing such recommendations and overcoming the politics and intense turf battles that can envelope educational issues, which the governor compared to the state’s other major expense area, health care." Among the Commission's recommendations: Raise the bar for entry into the [teaching] profession; improve the education pipeline through the smart and innovative use of technology; and, increase access to early educational opportunities. In other education news, State Education Commissioner John B. King Jr. reported Wednesday the department has approved a total of 533 district teacher and principal evaluation plans. The Cairo-Durham, Greenville and Taconic Hills district plans are now included in that number. Proposals from Coxsackie-Athens, Germantown, Hunter-Tannersville and Windham-Ashland-Jewett are not yet listed as approved. Read both stories at unmuffled.