Thursday, December 8, 2011

To SOS Supporters From Don Bartalo

by rbhatt

December 6^th, 2011. The recent action taken by New York State principals is a great example of what can happen when the collective action of educators is focused on a single issue. The principals in New York State are setting a great example. Please take a few minutes to see what they have been doing.

~Don Bartalo, SOS Steering Committee

Dear Friends:

You are receiving this message because you have indicated your support for the New York State Principals’ Open Letter Regarding the NYS APPR Legislation (www.newyorkprincipals.org). We thank you for your support and would like to provide you with an update on all that has happened since the New York Times published its article last Monday.

Some numbers to report:

· Over 745 New York State principals have

Wake me up, America: zip codes, destiny, & the rebirth of self-determination « Cooperative Catalyst

Wake me up, America: zip codes, destiny, & the rebirth of self-determination « Cooperative Catalyst:

Wake me up, America: zip codes, destiny, & the rebirth of self-determination

by Chad Sansing

In education we talk a lot about zip codes:

“Zip codes and demographics must no longer be educational destiny for our students.”
- Robert Carreon, Executive Director of Teach for America – Rio Grande Valley
“[It was the ] biggest social injustice that skin color and zip code determined a child’s education

Estelle Matthews out of 440 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Estelle Matthews out of 440 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:

Estelle Matthews out of 440

by Erika Owens on Dec 08 2011 Posted in Latest news

Leave a Mark, Not a Grade | Connected Principals

Leave a Mark, Not a Grade | Connected Principals:

Leave a Mark, Not a Grade

by bharrison

Photo by Peter Harrison

” My dilemma is that I don’t know how should I grade/evaluate them? Actually, no, that’s not the issue. The real problem I’m having is that I just don’t know why I should.” ~@royanlee~

My son Ben and his two classmates discovered the reality of film work this week, realizing that a HUGE number of stills need to be taken to make the 30 second PSA they are creating in their grade 8 class (all @techieang

Is it time for OUSD’s unusual budgeting system to become policy? - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools

Is it time for OUSD’s unusual budgeting system to become policy? - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools:

Is it time for OUSD’s unusual budgeting system to become policy?

By Katy Murphy
Thursday, December 8th, 2011 at 9:49 am in budget.

To those who don’t work at schools or compulsively follow education policy, the finer points of school budgeting and resource allocation might sound like painfully dry reading material. But the issue evokes passionate debate in Oakland Unified, which does things differently than most districts.

In other districts, it’s common practice for top administrators to determine the number of teachers and kinds of electives and programs for each school. In Oakland, those decisions are (at least, in theory) made at the school-level through OUSD’s unconventional budgeting system (Results-Based Budgeting, or RBB).

RBB has been in place since 2004, but its principles — including the autonomy

Schools Matter: Final Act of Small-Minded Bitterness by Wake's Gang of Five

Schools Matter: Final Act of Small-Minded Bitterness by Wake's Gang of Five:

Final Act of Small-Minded Bitterness by Wake's Gang of Five

by Jim Horn

After Wake County voters re-established sanity last month by voting out the resegregationist school board majority, the Gang of 5 met one last time behind closed doors to rescind a previous offer to mediate trespassing cases against citizens who publicly resisted the end to the socioeconomic diversity program earlier this year.

If there could conceived be a more appropriate goodbye by these hateful bigots, I can't think of one:

The Wake County school board lineup that left office Tuesday decided behind closed doors last week to seek trials for 30 people charged with trespassing at board meetings, rejecting a prosecution offer to have the cases mediated. Former board chairman Ron Margiotta said the board wanted to take a stand against

Big Education Ape: 12-8-11 PM Billionaire Education Policy EDition #edreform #ows

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now:

Published by Coopmike48 – 7 news spotters today

Next update in about 11 hours
See all articles

Billionaire Education Policy (Guest Post)

eduoptimists.blogspot.com - The following is a guest posting by my colleague and friend Robin Rogers, associate professor of sociology at Queens College and the Graduate Center at the City University of New York (CUNY). She i...

leoniehaimson

Universities in Stand-Off Over Teacher Program Review — Higher Education

texastribune.org - Enlargephoto illustration by: Todd WisemanAround this time next year, U.S. News & World Report will issue the first of what is intended to be an annual review of teacher preparation programs at uni...

DianeRavitch

City announces plans to close or shrink 15 struggling schools

gothamschools.org - In the first wave of annual closure announcements, the Department of Education has announced plans to shutter or reshape 15 low-performing schools. The schools include three elementary schools, thr...

DianeRavitch

UPDATED: Joe Biden's Brother Is President and "P.T. Barnum" for SoFla Charter School Chain - Broward/Palm Beach News

blogs.browardpalmbeach.com - pr.comFrank Biden (right) is president of the charter chain.UPDATE: The Palm Beach County School Board's vote on three new Mavericks schools has been postponed. Read more after the jump.When owners...

DianeRavitch

2011 UNITY NewU Startup Funds

landing.k12newsnetwork.com - BIOCynthia Liu, PhD, is CEO/Founder of the online organizing and education news site K12NewsNetwork.com, a "MoveOn" for supporters of public education.In 2011, she received the BlogHer.com / HTC 20...

K12NN

Shanker Blog » The Year In Research On Market-Based Education Reform: 2011 Edition

shankerblog.org - If 2010 was the year of the bombshell in research in the three “major areas” of market-based education reform – charter schools, performance pay, and value-added in evaluations – then 2011 was the ...

DianeRavitch

Live Twitter stream on

@coopmike48/big-edu-ape-news-11

coopmike48 In the News: What NAEP says about the nation | catalyst-chicago.org -goo.gl/y5WDT16 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

coopmike48 Natalia Jiménez fue víctima de acoso escolar - Univision Vida y Familia -goo.gl/Hi0Pr15 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

coopmike48 Investing in Great Teachers - A Union Leads the Way | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insightsbit.ly/ubGV5w #Edu14 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

coopmike48 Study: Bone drug boosts breast cancer survival - NorthJersey.com -goo.gl/trewD12 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

coopmike48 Black group targets corporations over voting laws -NorthJersey.com - goo.gl/Mg5Kk12 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

Join the conversation

EducationSee all

N.Y.C. kids are on the right track: Don't get discouraged by most recent NAEP scores

nydailynews.com - There’s a lot to dig into in New York City’s just-received report card on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, and there’s no doubt that people will debate what it all means. As someone...

leoniehaimson

Some New York City Scores Drop in U.S. Student Tests

nytimes.com - New York City students scored slightly lower on federal math tests this year compared with 2009, according to scores released Wednesday morning, even as scores of their counterparts in other big ci...

mikeklonsky

School Tech Connect: Chicago's Miracle Workers

schooltechconnect.com - Well, the NAEP Urban District Assessment is out, and it pretty much re-confirms everything that everyone has already known. I don't think you can make conclusions beyond the executive summary of an...

tbfurman

SocietySee all

Pablo Casals is under attack. Parents fighting back. « Fred Klonsky

preaprez.wordpress.com - Pablo Casals elementary school is on the list for turnaround status by CPS boss J.C. Brizard. After attending the CTU teach-in on school closings last week, 50 parents and teachers showed up at Mon...

mikeklonsky

Bloomberg's Girlfriend Was Paid $109,954 In 2009 By The Tax-Dodging Owners Of Zuccotti Park

thinkprogress.org - Bloomberg with girlfriend Diana Taylor. It has now been almost three weeks since New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg suddenly sent in riot police to evict the Occupy Wall Street encampment of Zuc...

leoniehaimson

Execution Case Dropped Against Abu-Jamal

nytimes.com - Prosecutors in Philadelphia announced Wednesday that they had dropped their attempts to execute Mumia Abu-Jamal, the death row inmate convicted of killing a police officer 30 years ago and whose su...

leoniehaimson

PoliticsSee all

What The Blagojevich Charges Mean For Daley

huffingtonpost.com - Time:It shouldn't come as any surprise that, in the wake of the shocking allegations against Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, observers almost immediately evoked the Windy City's rich, colorful h...

mikeklonsky

Before we start feeling all warm and fuzzy about Teddy Roosevelt...

michaelklonsky.blogspot.com - Let's remember that Teddy Roosevelt, eulogized in Pres. Obama's Osawatomie speech on "New Nationalism," Tuesday, was at his best a tame economic reformer and at his worst, a racist, imperialist war...

mikeklonsky

Chris Christie Slams a Town Hall Questioner (VIDEO)

addictinginfo.org - After a seemingly short-lived image makeover, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie appears to have reclaimed his undisputed title of professional YouTube screamer. Over the course of his blustery gov...

coopmike48

StoriesSee all

Pre-Occupy Wall Street « Cooperative Catalyst

coopcatalyst.wordpress.com - paper, rock, scissors, anyone?Back when the Tea Party started, I found myself agreeing with a few concepts: smaller, more localized government, direct democracy, anger over the bailouts. As it grew...

coopmike48

voiceofsandiego.org: Education

voiceofsandiego.org - Picture Jim Carrey with a mathematics degree. Winn dons a furry hat and beats a drum to remind students of the steps in a problem. He shouts theatrically and chants questions, then shuts off the au...

coopmike48

Christie gets mic-checked in Iowa

bluejersey.com - So, Christie got mic-checked last night stumping for Romney in Iowa. The first thing you notice is that it takes Christie, whose public appearances in NJ are tightly orchestrated showcases, a full ...

coopmike48

HealthSee all

Phys Ed: A New Worry for Soccer Parents

well.blogs.nytimes.com - PhotoAlto via Getty ImagesWhat happens inside the skull of a soccer player who repeatedly heads a soccer ball? That question motivated a provocative new study of the brains of experienced players t...

leoniehaimson

School-based health centers get $1.6-million boost from feds

latimesblogs.latimes.com - The federal government awarded $1.6 million to school-based health centers in California for expansion and modernization, funds that will help the clinics treat more students and community members,...

coopmike48

Groundhog Gerry On Current Legislation

bluejersey.com - The lowly groundhog has been relegated to having expertise only on the coming of warm weather. His predictive skills, however, have been grossly underestimated. Groundhog Gerry goes where others fe...

coopmike48