Wednesday, November 30, 2011

U.S. Education Department Finds Salary Gap in Poor Schools - NYTimes.com #edreform

U.S. Education Department Finds Salary Gap in Poor Schools - NYTimes.com:

Districts Pay Less in Poor Schools, Report Says

By
Published: November 30, 2011

Education experts have long argued that a basic inequity in American schooling is that students in poor neighborhoods are frequently taught by low-paid rookie teachers who move on as they gain experience and rise up the salary scale.

Schoolbook

A new Web venture featuring news, data and conversation about schools in New York City.

Until now, however, researchers lacked nationwide data to prove it. That changed Wednesday when theDepartment of Education released a 78-page report.

Its conclusion: Tens of thousands of schools serving low-income students are being shortchanged because districts spend fewer state and local dollars on teacher salaries in those schools than on salaries in schools serving higher-income students.

“Low-income students need extra support and resources to succeed, but in far too many places, policies for assigning teachers and allocating resources are perpetuating the

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NYC Public School Parents: Fred Smith on David Abrams' resignation: No Mas!

NYC Public School Parents: Fred Smith on David Abrams' resignation: No Mas!:

Fred Smith on David Abrams' resignation: No Mas!

by Leonie Haimson

Fred Smith is a former senior analyst for the NYC Board of Education and an expert on testing. Here he comments on the sudden resignation of David Abrams, who led the NY State Education Dept. testing office into one preposterous blunder after another over many years, the most serious of which was test score inflation -- but my favorite was the ridiculous 4th grade reading test of 2006 which featured Brownie the Cow. (You have to see this to believe it; here is the story and questions archived.) This article in the Daily News was probably the final straw: about a prematurely released state plan to lengthen 3rd grade standardized exams to four hours.
Susan Crawford asks whether the SED might actually hire a trained psychometrician in Abrams’
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Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts #ows #edreform


School Overhaul Plan A Boon to Private Groups - Chicago News Cooperative

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 minutes ago
School Overhaul Plan A Boon to Private Groups - Chicago News Cooperative:School Overhaul Plan A Boon to Private Groupsby REBECCA VEVEADespite rumors that Chicago Public Schools officials planned to close a record number of schools this year, just four will be shuttered and four others will be phased out or share space with charter schools.Of the eight schools, seven will foster the expansion of schools operated by outside education management organizations, expanding the number of schools run by private groups ... more »

Amid sweeping changes, state’s testing chief resigns suddenly | GothamSchools

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 minutes ago
Amid sweeping changes, state’s testing chief resigns suddenly | GothamSchools:Amid sweeping changes, state’s testing chief resigns suddenlyby Rachel Cromidas and Philissa Cramer, at 5:22 pmThe State Education Department official who has supervised the state’s testing program since 2004 — through skyrocketing scores, a brutal crash, and the dawn of an overhaul — has resigned.David Abrams, the State Education Department’s assistant commissioner for standards, assessment, and reporting since 2004, announced his resignation today. His resignation is effective immediately, shocking some ... more »

Remarks by the President on the American Jobs Act | The White House

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 minutes ago
Remarks by the President on the American Jobs Act | The White House:Remarks by the President on the American Jobs Actby The White HouseRelease Time: For Immediate ReleaseScranton High SchoolScranton, Pennsylvania2:37 P.M. ESTTHE PRESIDENT: Hello, Scranton! Thank you. (Applause.) It is good to be back in Scranton. Go, Knights! (Applause.) It is good to be here. Thank you, Principal Schaeffer, for letting us hold this little assembly here at the high school. (Laughter.) The principal was bragging about both the ... more »

public high school choice rant - my sidewalk chalk blog - nyc school help

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 minutes ago
public high school choice rant - my sidewalk chalk blog - nyc school help:public high school choice rantby joyceForgive me for too many CAPS ahead of time.I have been hearing a lot about the "second round" this year, like you get another shot at the choice you want late in the spring. GUYS! the DOE doesn't work that way!! The "supplemental round" is for students who have NOT RECEIVED ANY CHOICE in the main round. Your placement in the main ... more »

Support PURE! » 18 schools, 10,000 students targeted by CPS interventions

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 minutes ago
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » 18 schools, 10,000 students targeted by CPS interventions:18 schools, 10,000 students targeted by CPS interventionsby adminAdding to the 10 turnarounds disclosed yesterday, CPS today announced that it will close 2 schools and consolidate, phase out, or otherwise intervene in 6 others.There will be a critical meeting of the Chicago Educational Facilties Task Force TOMORROW Dec 1 at 10 am downtown at the Bilandic Building – 160 N. La Salle RM C-600 ... more »

Remember, Remember, the Month of November | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

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Remember, Remember, the Month of November | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights:Remember, Remember, the Month of Novemberby Tarsi DunlopNative American National Heritage Month is a chance to highlight a component of American history that is often overlooked. Native American Heritage Month celebrates those, along with their tribal ancestors, who were here thousands of years before Columbus or Cortes set foot in North America. The unique nature of America’s immigration history results in distinct parameters for discussions on ... more »

Two important documents from Milwaukee's teachers' union | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

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Two important documents from Milwaukee's teachers' union | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:Two important documents from Milwaukee's teachers' unionby Ron WhitehorneIn May, Bob Peterson was elected president of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state of Wisconsin.Peterson is well known as a founding editor of Rethinking Schools and a long-time advocate of social justice unionism.Peterson detailed "why and how" to reinvent the MTEA:read more

Physical Fitness Test Results for 2011 - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education)

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Physical Fitness Test Results for 2011 - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education):Physical Fitness Test Results for 2011 Prompt SchoolsChief Tom Torlakson and NBA All-Star Bill Waltonto Team Up for Healthy Kids CampaignEL CAJON—With only 31 percent of students posting healthy scores in all six areas of the latest Physical Fitness Test, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson joined NBA all-star Bill Walton today in urging schools across California to take part in the Team California for Healthy Kids ... more »

Our Students Deserve No Less | ED.gov Blog

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Our Students Deserve No Less | ED.gov Blog:Our Students Deserve No LessPosted on November 30, 2011 by Cameron Brenchley(Official Department of Education Photo by Joshua Hoover)“My chief message today is a sobering one,” said Secretary Duncan yesterday at the annual Federal Student Aid conference in Las Vegas, Nev. “I want to ask you, and the entire higher education community, to look ahead and start thinking more creatively—and with much greater urgency—about how to contain the spiraling costs of college and ... more »

POVERTY DEFEATS EVEN CHARTER SCHOOLS « Teachers Fight Back

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POVERTY DEFEATS EVEN CHARTER SCHOOLS « Teachers Fight Back:POVERTY DEFEATS EVEN CHARTER SCHOOLSby alkleenToday’s Chicago Tribune has an article about how research has suggested that many charter schools in Chicago are performing no better than traditional neighborhood schools and some are actually doing much worse. The article shows the test scores to back up the research that was done.Does this really surprise anyone? What is so difficult to understand about the fact that children from poverty-stricken areas will almost always ... more »

Alert From the Sacramento Comprehensive High School Coalition

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
From the Sacramento Comprehensive High School Coalition:An update is in order for anyone hopeful that the Sac High campus might be reclaimed for use as a pedestrian-friendly comprehensive high school. A sizable group of families from the West Campus community oppose any move that re-locates, or significantly expands their campus and culture. When combined with St. HOPE's vigorous defense of the Sac High campus, it would appear that the "swap" option faces two very well-organized, and determined opponents.For residents in ... more »

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts #ows #edreform

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
Education Research Report: Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early InterventionBig Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All)-32 minutes agoEducation Research Report: Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Intervention:Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Interventionby Jonathan KantrowitzΩEaster Seals new report -- Our Nation’s Children at Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Intervention -- gives a sense for how well each state takes care of its youngest children with disabilities and delays. The fact is: infants and ... more »

Remainders: Bronx school tells parents to stop airing its issues | GothamSchools

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Remainders: Bronx school tells parents to stop airing its issues | GothamSchools:Remainders: Bronx school tells parents to stop airing its issuesby Philissa Cramer, at 9:00 pmP.S. 24 in the Bronx told families to stop telling the school’s troubles to the press. (Bronx Press Politics)A teacher discovers an error in an automatically graded Regents grade from last year. (NYCDOENuts)A teacher reports with glee that social studies exams might be resurrected. (Mr. D’s Neighborhood)Mike Petrilli: Though sometimes wrong, Diane Ravitch’s arguments are ... more »

Response: Several Ways Teachers Can Create A Supportive Environment For Each Other - Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo - Education Week Teacher

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
Response: Several Ways Teachers Can Create A Supportive Environment For Each Other - Classroom QA With Larry Ferlazzo - Education Week Teacher:« How Can Teachers Create A Supportive Environment For Each Other? | MainResponse: Several Ways Teachers Can Create A Supportive Environment For Each OtherBy Larry Ferlazzo on November 29, 2011 2:36 PMS.H. asked:Our school culture has a growing sense of [unhealthy] competitiveness. I believe a lot of this stems from the fact that our administration does not recognize (or ... more »

Schools Matter: Got 4K? Start Teaching Today--in Texas

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
Schools Matter: Got 4K? Start Teaching Today--in Texas:Got 4K? Start Teaching Today--in Texasby Jim HornOnline and for-profit teacher "preparation," another innovative job creating strategy from the job creators who created Rick Perry. A clip from the Hechinger Report:iteachTEXAS, begun in 2003, is the first for-profit, non-university based alternative certification program to expand across state lines, with the newly created iteachU.S. operating programs in Louisiana and Tennessee. Additional offshoots will soon come to Michigan and at least two other states.Diann Huber, ... more »

Is Relentless Test Prepping a Constructive Response? « City School Stories

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Is Relentless Test Prepping a Constructive Response? « City School Stories:Is Relentless Test Prepping a Constructive Response?by fmurphyTeacher StoriesSubmitted by Teacher Man on November 29, 2011My principal recently made it very clear to me that the only written works produced by my 7th and 8th grade students worthy of display, are their constructed responses. In the Philadelphia School District and in my school especially, children are regularly expected to write these limiting and repetitive responses per the direction of our ...more »

Unofficial #OWS Occupy Wall Street Anthem Lupe Fiasco - The End Of The World

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
Unofficial #OWS Occupy Wall Street Anthem Lupe Fiasco - The End Of The World (Unofficial #OWS People are standing up to corruption, greed and evil.http://imgur.com/a/U4FR4 ++++ http://www.reddit.com/r/occupywallstreet/Original video: http://vimeo.com/32742517 - SSWIDTMSCopyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use t... more »

Pepper Spray Developer: It Has Become Fashionable to Use Chemicals on People with Opinions | The Dissenter #OWS

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 12 hours ago
Pepper Spray Developer: It Has Become Fashionable to Use Chemicals on People with Opinions | The Dissenter:Pepper Spray Developer: It Has Become Fashionable to Use Chemicals on People with OpinionsBy: Kevin Gosztola Tuesday November 29, 2011 3:02 pm Tweet24 In what appears to be his first television interview on the subject, Kamran Loghman, the developer of weapons-grade pepper spray and the policy for its use by US police departments, appeared onDemocracy Now! to condemn how police forces have been using ...more »

Education Research Report: Income & Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) for School Districts

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Education Research Report: Income Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) for School Districts:Income Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) for School Districtsby Jonathan KantrowitzΩThe U.S. Census Bureau, with support from other Federal agencies, created the Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) program to provide more current estimates of selected income and poverty statistics than those from the most recent decennial census.Estimates are created for school districts, counties, and states. The main objective of this program is to provide updated estimates of income and poverty statistics ... more »

Education Research Report: Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Intervention

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 day ago
Education Research Report: Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Intervention:Children At Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Interventionby Jonathan KantrowitzΩEaster Seals new report -- Our Nation’s Children at Risk: A State-by-State Report on Early Intervention -- gives a sense for how well each state takes care of its youngest children with disabilities and delays. The fact is: infants and toddlers in nearly every state continue to fall behind, many will never catch up. Yet, with the right investment ... more »
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