Last Week's Best Posts on Big Education Ape » PostRank #WIUnion #p2 #pfla #1u

Last Week's Best Posts on Big Education Ape » PostRank

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Here's to the Teachers! SOS March and National Call to Action

2011-May-6

learn more at http://www.saveourschoolsmarch.org/Join us July 28-31 2011 in Washington DC to support equitable funding for all public school communities, end high stakes testing used for the purpose of student, teacher, and school evaluation, give teacher, family and community leadership a clear place in forming public education policies, and encourage local school communities to develop curriculum specific to their needs.Images in chronological order:photos: John Dewey, Deborah Meier (from "The Power of their Ideas"), anonymous teacherfilms: "To Make a Difference" by ...

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NYC Public School Parents: The mayor's choice: a budget which puts children last

2011-May-6

NYC Public School Parents: The mayor's choice: a budget which puts children lastThe mayor's choice: a budget which puts children lastby Leonie HaimsonWith his budget proposal this morning, the mayor tried to pass the buck today to the state and the federal government, blaming them for his proposal to eliminate over 6,000 teaching positions -- one tenth of all teachers, which would mean devastating layoffs of a kind that has not occurred in more than thirty years. What happened to ...

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Rachel Levy on Framing the Education Reform Debate - E.D. Kain - American Times - Forbes

2011-May-6

Rachel Levy on Framing the Education Reform Debate - E.D. Kain - American Times - ForbesRachel Levy on Framing the Education Reform Debate Rachel is making all kinds of sense here: One of the more troubling things about the education reform debates is not that they happen, but how they’re framed–the debates and their participants are often misrepresented. First, some folks inaccurately ...Megan McArdle on Standardized Tests Here’s Megan: I spend a lot of time fighting over school reform, and ...

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Taking Action in a State of Emergency | California Progress Report

2011-May-6

Taking Action in a State of Emergency | California Progress ReportTaking Action in a State of Emergencyby meganBy Lisa SchiffMay is turning into a month of action on the part of public education supporters. From parent groups to the University of California system, teachers, administrators, parents, students and advocates will be engaged in a variety of actions to convey to elected officials and the public the seriousness of the financial crisis our schools are facing. Since the effort to get ...

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New Report Examines Linkage Between K-12 Reforms And Colleges

2011-May-6

The College Puzzle » Blog Archive » New Report Examines Linkage Between K-12 Reforms And CollegesNew Report Examines Linkage Between K-12 Reforms And CollegesHome » Uncategorized » New Report Examines Linkage Between K-12 Reforms And Colleges« Views on Race Impact Who Can Attend CollegeColumbia Study Raises Serious Issues About Community College Placement Tests »The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) is pleased to present the latest installment from its Policy Mattersseries.K-12 Education Reform: Implications and Opportunities forPublic Colleges ...

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Institutional Racism in America is Alive and Thriving…‏‏ | Dailycensored.com

2011-May-6

Institutional Racism in America is Alive and Thriving…‏‏ | Dailycensored.comInstitutional Racism in America is Alive and Thriving…‏‏Written by Solomon ComissiongDaily Journal (Opinion), MediaMay 6, 2011diggSharehttp://www.blogtalkradio.com/your-world-news/2011/05/02/the-existence-of-institutional-racism-in-american-societyPlease join us as we deconstruct American Institutional Racism in a way that is methodically ignored by the US corporate media.Institutional Racism is a disease that has long infested the stolen body of America. Institutional Racism is the real culprit that allows police brutality in the black community to go on unchecked. Those police who murder ...

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Schooling in the Ownership Society: Roberts, former GM exec, now running Detroit Public Schools

2011-May-5

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Roberts, former GM exec, now running Detroit Public SchoolsRoberts, former GM exec, now running Detroit Public SchoolsSnyder (left) and RobertsMichigan's T-Party governor Rick Synder, has appointed a former General Motors Corp. executive as the new emergency manager for Detroit Public Schools. Roy Roberts will take over for Robert Bobb, who was named the school district's emergency financial manager in 2009. Roberts currently is managing director and co-founding member of the Chicago-based private equity investment firm ...

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Illinois House GOP leader Tom Cross complains that teachers live too damn long. « Fred Klonsky's blog

2011-May-5

Illinois House GOP leader Tom Cross complains that teachers live too damn long. « Fred Klonsky's blogIllinois House GOP leader Tom Cross complains that teachers live too damn long.by Fred KlonskyTom Cross is the IL House leader who is sponsoring the bill that would effectively destroy teacher pensions in the state.Briefly, the present Teacher Retirement System is a defined benefit system. Each teacher pays almost 10% of their gross into the system. The state is also required to make a ...

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This Week In Education: Reform: Update On Michelle Rhee's "Students First" Effort

2011-May-5

This Week In Education: Reform: Update On Michelle Rhee's "Students First" EffortReform: Update On Michelle Rhee's "Students First" Effortby Alexander RussoWondering what that $100 you sent in to StudentsFirst a few months ago is doing to help fix the schools? Some tidbits in a recent USA Today story include the news that the Michelle Rhee organization is active in 11 states [my best info is the list includes FL, MI, OH, NJ, NV, ME, TN, and IN plus GA, NY, ...

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The Best Resources For Learning About The “Freedom Riders” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

2011-May-5

The Best Resources For Learning About The “Freedom Riders” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...“Videolicious For The iPhone Helps You Edit Quality Videos, Fast” Videolicious For The iPhone Helps You Edit Quality Videos, Fast is a post from TechCrunch about a new free iPhone app that appears to make it super-simple to edit video. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Beginning iPhone Users Like Me.Instablogg Instablogg is a super-easy, super-fast way for students, teachers or anybody to ...

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Register Now: Healthy School Communities Virtual Conference « Whole Child Education

2011-May-5

The Whole Child Blog « Whole Child EducationRegister Now: Healthy School Communities Virtual ConferenceMay 4th, 2011 by Healthy School CommunitiesRegister today for the first-ever Healthy School Communities Virtual Conference, May 10–13, 2011.Take part in this free online conference to learn more about health and learning. Join Healthy School Communities staff, mentor and mentee sites, ASCD authors, invited speakers, and guests to find out more about what’s working across the United States and Canada and share health and learning stories, including ...

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What Arne Duncan was (maybe) thinking in his letter to teachers - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

2011-May-5

What Arne Duncan was (maybe) thinking in his letter to teachers - The Answer Sheet - The Washington PostWhat Arne Duncan was (maybe) thinking in his letter to teachersby Valerie Strauss--My guest is Aaron Pallas, professor of sociology and education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He writes the Sociological Eye on Education blog—where this post first appeared—for The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, non-partisan education-news outlet affiliated with the Hechinger Institute on Education and the Media. Read full article UCLA students ...

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This Week In Education: Washington: A Coming-Out Party For Mitch Daniels (R-IN)

2011-May-5

This Week In Education: Washington: A Coming-Out Party For Mitch Daniels (R-IN)Washington: A Coming-Out Party For Mitch Daniels (R-IN)by Alexander RussoIndiana's Mitch Daniels' vouchers, charters, and tenure reform wins will likely have an influence over the education debate whether or not (as I suspect) he runs for President in 2012:A Potential Candidate in No Rush for a Race NYT: He went out of his way to praise Mr. Obama’s education policies, saying he wanted to “salute and commend” the administration... ...

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It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! – First Book Blog

2011-May-4

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! – First Book BlogIt’s Teacher Appreciation Week!MAY0420111 COMMENTWRITTEN BY ROCHEE JEFFREYTeacher Appreciation Week provides us with the opportunity to celebrate great teachers who change lives and inspire young people to reach for their dreams. First Book is especially grateful to teachers who work tirelessly to fight illiteracy and introduce children to the joy of of reading.In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we asked our guest blogger, Sabrina Stevens Shupe, to share her advice on how to ...

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Lobby Day pics. « Fred Klonsky's blog

2011-May-4

Lobby Day pics. « Fred Klonsky's blogLobby Day pics.by Fred Klonsky

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“Who Is Osama Bin Laden?” … Do Teens Really Not Know? « Student Activism

2011-May-4

“Who Is Osama Bin Laden?” … Do Teens Really Not Know? « Student Activism“Who Is Osama Bin Laden?” … Do Teens Really Not Know?by Angus JohnstonYesterday Yahoo put up a post on its search blog titled “Teens Don’t Know Who Osama Bin Laden Is, According to Yahoo! Search Trends.”The story has been picked up by a long list of other outlets — PC Magazine and Gawker both claimed that “many” teens don’t know who Bin Laden was, while one site ...

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ASCD Inservice: How Can We Support the Whole Teacher?

2011-May-4

ASCD Inservice: How Can We Support the Whole Teacher?How Can We Support the Whole Teacher?In our school, we have devoted much attention to teaching the Whole Child. Now we would also like to look at how we can support the Whole Teacher. What strategies has your school implemented to make sure that teachers are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged?--Amy Lockhart, Teacher, Malcolm Price Laboratory School, Cedar Falls, Iowa Acknowledge What Causes Teachers' StressDuring a half-day inservice, we conducted an ...

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California Grad Students Sit Down for Union Democracy | Labor Notes

2011-May-4

California Grad Students Sit Down for Union Democracy | Labor NotesCalifornia Grad Students Sit Down for Union Democracyby Barry Eidlin | Tue, 05/03/2011 - 3:05pmWhen incumbent leaders of the graduate student union at the University of California stopped the vote count, fearing they'd lose, members of a reform caucus responded yesterday with sit-downs at union headquarters. Photo: Chris Schildt.Barry Eidlin's blogLogin or register to post commentsPrint thisSend to friend Share this story RSS Make text larger orsmallerUpdate! This afternoon the ...

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Student aid cuts to generate half of expected savings | California Watch

2011-May-4

Student aid cuts to generate half of expected savings | California WatchStudent aid cuts to generate half of expected savingsby Erica PerezErica PerezHarrison Keely/FlickrA new California law that cuts off Cal Grants to colleges whose students default on federal loans at high rates will produce less than half of the previously expected budget savings – thanks to a data mix-up by the U.S. Department of Education.An analysis of the new, corrected data released April 21 by the department shows the ...

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Charter schools willing to be held accountable to higher standards | Thoughts on Public Education

2011-May-4

Charter schools willing to be held accountable to higher standards | Thoughts on Public EducationCharter schools willing to be held accountable to higher standardsSharePosted on 5/04/11 • Categorized as ChartersBy Jed WallaceWhen charter school operators accept the challenge of opening a new school, they do so knowing that every five years they must demonstrate high levels of student progress in order to keep their doors open. The renewal process – the process that all charter schools go through every five ...

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Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Rahm still thinks there's a "miracle" down in Texas

2011-May-4

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Rahm still thinks there's a "miracle" down in TexasRahm still thinks there's a "miracle" down in Texasby Mike Klonsky"The data shows that the longer you stay in the classroom learning, you'll learn more..." -- Rahm EmanuelWhile you mull that one over, I want to know who the genius was that told Chicago mayor-elect Rahm Emanuelthat Houston schools were really great? It must have been one of the billionaire experts on the corporate-reform education team. David Vitale? ...

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the Cucking Stool: Deformed: Authoritarian undercurrents in education

2011-May-3

the Cucking Stool: Deformed: Authoritarian undercurrents in educationDeformed: Authoritarian undercurrents in educationWhen education scholar Howard Berlak paid avisit to a Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) charter school in San Francisco he was shocked. Berlak, an education reform skeptic, found a school that reminded him of a “humane, low security prison or something resembling a locked down drug rehab program for adolescents run on reward and punishments...” Berlak reported that the KIPP school resembled the scene out of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The ...

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Martin Luther King Quote On Bin Laden’s Death Explained? « Student Activism

2011-May-3

Martin Luther King Quote On Bin Laden’s Death Explained? « Student ActivismMartin Luther King Quote On Bin Laden’s Death Explained?by Angus JohnstonSo that “I will not rejoice” quote that everyone reposted yesterday wasn’t from Martin Luther King, it turns out. Instead, it looks like it originated with a young woman in Pennsylvania who had no intention of hoaxing anyone. She just posted her own thoughts on Bin Laden’s death to Facebook, and the rest is internet history.If your Twitter feed ...

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Schools Matter: Back at You, Arne: An Open Letter

2011-May-3

Schools Matter: Back at You, Arne: An Open LetterBack at You, Arne: An Open Letterby Jim HornYesterday the pasty puppet of the plutocrats had his speechwriters put together some marvelous-sounding platitudes aimed to make teachers believe that he, Duncan, respects them. This is all a part of the new PR push to get passage of NCLB, The Sequel, which will, indeed, be cast as an unlimited bribery fund based on the Oligarchs' agenda that starving school systems will sell their ...

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The Outrage of the Week - Bridging Differences - Education Week

2011-May-3

The Outrage of the Week - Bridging Differences - Education WeekThe Outrage of the Weekby Diane RavitchDear Deborah,It is way past time to get mad. Each week, it is hard to know which of the latest outrages against American public education is the worst.Perhaps it was the agreement between the Gates Foundation and the Pearson Foundation to write the nation's curriculum. When did we vote to hand over American education to them? Why would we outsource the nation's curriculum to ...

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Value-Added Evaluation & Those Pesky Collateralized Debt Obligations :: Frederick M. Hess

2011-May-3

Value-Added Evaluation Those Pesky Collateralized Debt Obligations :: Frederick M. HessValue-Added Evaluation Those Pesky Collateralized Debt Obligationsby Frederick M. Hess • May 3, 2011 at 8:01 amCross-posted from Education Week Print Send RSS ShareLast week, while I was away, Brookings released another of its occasional "consensus" documents; this one's titled, "Passing Muster: Evaluating Teacher Evaluation Systems." The effort was once again led by Brookings' savvy Russ Whitehurst. The aim, more or less, is to tell state and federal officials how ...

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OUSD could cut 150 staff positions | The Education Report

2011-May-3

OUSD could cut 150 staff positions | The Education ReportOUSD could cut 150 staff positionsBy Katy MurphyMonday, May 2nd, 2011 at 5:28 pm in budget.More bad news for Oakland’s public schools and the people who work in them: At least 150 clerks, school security officers, technicians and other support staff could soon lose their jobs.A resolution detailing the layoff of school support staff was added to the agenda of a 6 p.m. special school board meeting (originally about Race to ...

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“What Can You Do To Stay Positive During The Last Seven Weeks Of School?” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

2011-May-3

“What Can You Do To Stay Positive During The Last Seven Weeks Of School?” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...A Few More Interesting bin Laden-Related Links Here are a few more interesting additions to The Best Resources For Learning About Osama bin Laden: “USA! USA!” is the wrong response comes from Salon. Top 10 Notorious Fugitives is a slideshow from TIME Magazine. Iconic villains of the past 100 ...“Hot Spot” Interview — Report From Egypt I recently began a ...

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CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS (so many I lost count even with my shoes off)

2011-May-2

CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALSCHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALSA COMPILATION OF NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT CHARTER SCHOOLS WHICH HAVE BEEN CHARGED WITH, OR ARE HIGHLY SUSPECTED OF, TAMPERING WITH ADMISSIONS, GRADES, ATTENDANCE AND TESTING; MISUSE OF FUNDS AND EMBEZZLEMENT; ENGAGING IN NEPOTISM AND CONFLICTS OF INTEREST; ENGAGING IN COMPLICATED AND SHADY REAL ESTATE DEALS; AND/OR HAVE BEEN ENGAGING IN OTHER QUESTIONABLE, UNETHICAL, BORDERLINE-LEGAL, OR ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES. THIS IS ALSO A RECORD OF CHARTER SCHOOL INSTABILITY AND OTHER UNSAVORY TIDBITS.Academica Schools / Florida politician (ethics complaint) ...

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I’m not feeling safer. I’m not feeling appreciated. But we flew some kites and that made me feel good. « Fred Klonsky's blog

2011-May-2

I’m not feeling safer. I’m not feeling appreciated. But we flew some kites and that made me feel good. « Fred Klonsky's blogI’m not feeling safer. I’m not feeling appreciated. But we flew some kites and that made me feel good.by Fred KlonskyWe have had a very wet April. It has rained twenty days out of the month.April is when I make kites with my kindergarten and first grade classes. And part of the deal is that we go outside ...

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Shanker Blog » Revisiting The CREDO Charter School Analysis

2011-May-2

Shanker Blog » Revisiting The CREDO Charter School AnalysisRevisiting The CREDO Charter School Analysisby Matthew Di CarloMost people involved in education policy know exactly what you mean when you refer to “the CREDO study.” I can’t prove this, but suspect it may be the most frequently mentioned research report over the past two years (it was released in 2009).For those who haven’t heard of it (or have forgotten), this report, done by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), ...

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Save Seattle Schools Community Blog: Washington State PTSA Tackles Paying for Teachers

2011-May-2

Save Seattle Schools Community Blog: Washington State PTSA Tackles Paying for TeachersWashington State PTSA Tackles Paying for Teachersby Melissa WestbrookThe Washington State PTSA, at this weekend's convention, took up a resolution on local units paying for teachers/staff. (Note; the resolution is about two-thirds of the way down the document.) They are advocating for PTSAs to NOT pay for teachers/staff.Basically, they state:it's the state's duty to pay for basic education. PTAs supporting staff make it that much easier for the state ...

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Education Push Polls: 9 Fake Questions Versus 9 Real Questions | Seattle Education

2011-May-2

Education Push Polls: 9 Fake Questions Versus 9 Real Questions | Seattle EducationEducation Push Polls: 9 Fake Questions Versus 9 Real Questionsby seattleducation2011Seattle, remember that push poll that the Broad and Gates backed Alliance for Education did last year just before contract negotiations began between our Broad-trained superintendent and the teachers’ union? There were several interesting comments made about it on the Save Seattle Schools blog last year.Since then we have discovered that this sort of manufacturing of consent has ...

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Schools Matter: Education and the Abilene Paradox: Why speaking out is important

2011-May-2

Schools Matter: Education and the Abilene Paradox: Why speaking out is importantEducation and the Abilene Paradox: Why speaking out is importantby skrashenEducation may be more impacted than any other field by the "Abilene Paradox," the problem that arises when all or most members of a group disagree with a policy but go along with it because they think everybody else does.'"Abilene' is the Texas city in the Abilene paradox. It refers to the retelling by (Jerry) Harvey of a lousy ...

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Schools Matter: 62 Percent of American Teachers Work Two Jobs

2011-May-1

Schools Matter: 62 Percent of American Teachers Work Two Jobs62 Percent of American Teachers Work Two Jobsby Jim HornThis may be news to those who believe that those fat cat teachers have it made in the shade. From today's NYTimes, some clips from an op-ed by Eggers and Calegari:. . . .WHEN we don’t get the results we want in our military endeavors, we don’t blame the soldiers. We don’t say, “It’s these lazy soldiers and their bloated benefits plans! ...

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Guest commentary: Increased competition is hardly the key to better schools | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

2011-May-1

Guest commentary: Increased competition is hardly the key to better schools | Detroit Free Press | freep.comIncreased competition is hardly the key to better schoolsGov. Rick Snyder is right: All of Michigan's children deserve an excellent education. Our state's future depends on it. The question is: How do we move toward this shared goal?Snyder has stated -- and we agree -- that school improvement can be "achieved in our present system of collective bargaining." However, Snyder also proposes a market-driven ...