Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Mid Day Posts 4-30 #edreform #soschat

Mad men « Fred Klonsky

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

Mad men « Fred Klonsky: Mad menbyFred KlonskyThere was a scene inMad Menlast night where Don Draper’s daughter, Sally is on the phone to her friend, the more-than-slightly-weird Glenn. Sally had just returned from a dinner where her father had received an award.Sally had inadvertently walked in on a sordid scene involving the character Roger and her step-mother’s mother.Asks Glenn, “How’s the city?”“Dirty,” answers Sally.Which brings me to the topic of Springfield.I will be with sixty teachers from the area, ... more »

Churches criticize transformation plan | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

Churches criticize transformation plan | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Churches criticize transformation planbyDale Mezzacappaon Apr 30 2012 Posted inLatest newsGerald Wright of Parents United for Public Education addresses the meeting at Mother Bethel during an audience speakout. City Councilman Mark Squilla (lower right) listens.COMMENTS (2)PRINTEMAILSeveral hundred people gathered at historic Mother Bethel AME Church on Lombard Street Sunday night to decryplans put forward by the School Reform Commissionto close dozens of schools, expand charters, and reorganize the School... more »

4LAKids - This has little to do with public education, it has everything to do with what’s going on in LAUSD: AN OBITUARY FOR THE FACTS

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: This has little to do with public education, it has everything to do with what’s going on in LAUSD: AN OBITUARY FOR THE FACTS: This has little to do with public education, it has everything to do with what’s going on in LAUSD: AN OBITUARY FOR THE FACTSFacts, 360 B.C.-A.D. 2012In memoriam: After years of health problems, Facts has finally died.BY REX W. HUPPKE, CHICAGO TRIBUNE REPORTER|HTTP://TRIB.IN/JVK26AApril 19, 2012 :: A ... more »

Sanjay Gupta’s great speech at U Michigan commencement - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

Sanjay Gupta’s great speech at U Michigan commencement - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: Sanjay Gupta’s great speech at U Michigan commencementByValerie StraussUniversity of Michigan alumnus Sanjay Gupta returned to Ann Arbor this past weekend at the start of the 2012 commencement season and delivered an uncommonly entertaining speech to more than 45,000 people in the Big House.Too manycommencement speechesare, well, boring — too long, too conventional, utterly humorless. Not Gupta’s.A neurosurgeon and CNN medical correspondent, Gupta told ... more »

The Innovative Educator: Newest Ed Reform Leader is a 12-Year-Old Opt Out Hero

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

The Innovative Educator: Newest Ed Reform Leader is a 12-Year-Old Opt Out Hero: Newest Ed Reform Leader is a 12-Year-Old Opt Out Herobynoreply@blogger.com (Lisa Nielsen)“I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do.”Helen Keller We’ve heard from a lot of heroes lately in the ed reform movement; from teachers and parents like Chris ...more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: International Education in SPS

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: International Education in SPS: International Education in SPSbyMelissa WestbrookI had been meaning to write this thread for some time now. It's a worthy example of how Seattle Schools starts off with a good idea but cannot follow-thru with execution.I will be upfront and say I probably should have done more research so fill in the gaps if you know more. But the issues are in very sharp focus right now and it is a program that ... more »

NYC Educator: Go Knit a Scarf

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

NYC Educator: Go Knit a Scarf: Go Knit a ScarfbyNYC EducatorThat's what I want to tell Governor 1% Cuomo's brother in law, Kenneth Cole, after reading about histeacher-bashing bulletin boardthe other day. A friend of mine set up a petition toprotest this nonsense, while another says we ought not to give him the attention the billboard seems to demand.It could indeed be that Cuomo's brother in law simply wants attention for his product, and that he hopes this blows up ... more »

No Matter Who Wins the Student Loan Fight, Students Will Lose - News - GOOD

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

No Matter Who Wins the Student Loan Fight, Students Will Lose - News - GOOD: No Matter Who Wins the Student Loan Fight, Students Will LosebyNona Willis AronowitzIn the past few days, both parties have turned the fate of college kids into a political football. With the3.4 percentinterest rate on student loans set to double July 1 if Congress doesn't temporarily extend relief, President Obama and his adversaries have taken to arguing about how we might pay for the difference. ... more »

PTA Encourages State and Local Chapters to Adopt National Resolution on High Stakes Testing | Scathing Purple Musings

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 1 minute ago

PTA Encourages State and Local Chapters to Adopt National Resolution on High Stakes Testing | Scathing Purple Musings: PTA Encourages State and Local Chapters to Adopt National Resolution on High Stakes TestingbyBob SikesPTA’s National Senior Policy analyst, Jacque Chevalier responded to email inquiries this week regarding theNational Resolution of High Stakes Testing, and said the following:We are sending it out to encourage State and Local PTAs to endorse the Resolution.NPTAisn’t able to officially endorse the resolution – we are in ... more »

The Teaching World Used to Be Sacred, Like Coaching | One Teacher's Perspective

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 2 hours ago

The Teaching World Used to Be Sacred, Like Coaching | One Teacher's Perspective: The Teaching World Used to Be Sacred, Like CoachingbyImagine WisconsinMy writing rate dropped off this past week with the kickoff of my kids’ soccer seasons and my seasonal return to the coaching world .Coaching now trumps writing as the single most therapeutic experience of my week. The anti-public educatorism brought to Wisconsin byoutside moneyand outside forces(like theKoch Brothers,ALEC,andMacIver Institute) and subsequentlyadopted and implemented by Governor Scott Walker ... more »

A Few Secrets About My Appearance at TEDxNYED | The Jose Vilson

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 2 hours ago

A Few Secrets About My Appearance at TEDxNYED | The Jose Vilson: A Few Secrets About My Appearance at TEDxNYEDbyJoseYou didn’t think I’d let the weekend go by without talking aboutTEDxNYEDright?I was honored to be invited to speak (second!) at the TEDx conference at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens yesterday. You often hear notes from the audience’s perspective, but the speakers who don’t post as often as they should. Part of it might be that speakers ... more »

http://www.southbronxschool.com

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 2 hours ago

http://www.southbronxschool.com: Once Upon a Time The UFT Manipulated a School Based Organization Votebynoreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)Yesterday, I touchedon a flyer that will be distributed on May 1in teacher's mailboxes throughout the city touting the "accomplishments" of UFT El Presidente and Unity Politburo Chief Michael Mulgrew. Tonight, I shall relate a story of voting shenanigans that only Unity and The UFT could have pulled off.Back in September of 2003 I had just arrived at PS 156 in The Bronx after working out ...more »

Ten Things You Should’ve Read About Education This Week (in case you haven’t already) | Re:education in Baltimore

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 2 hours ago

Ten Things You Should’ve Read About Education This Week (in case you haven’t already) | Re:education in Baltimore: Ten Things You Should’ve Read About Education This Week (in case you haven’t already)byEdit BarryIllustration from 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. Original caption: Fig. 1.--Fruit of the pine-apple (''Ananas sativa''), consisting of numerous flowers and bracts united together so as to form a collective or anthocarpous fruit.This is one of those weeks where there was too much going on to reflect. So, I collect:1.Housing ... more »

BLOCK THAT EUPHEMISM! « Diane Ravitch's blog

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

BLOCK THAT EUPHEMISM! « Diane Ravitch's blog: BLOCK THAT EUPHEMISM!bydianeravI wonder why our policymakers in Washington, D.C., love euphemisms. Ten years ago, Congress passed No Child Left Behind, and by now, is there anyone in the United States who takes seriously the idea that “No Child” has been “Left Behind”? Since Congress can’t agree on how to change the law, maybe they could just rename it and call it “Many Children Left Behind” (MCLB) or “No Child Left Untested” (NCLU). ... more »

NYC Public School Parents: The bungled "turnaround" strategy of Long Island City HS: Who really is responsible for this mess?

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

NYC Public School Parents: The bungled "turnaround" strategy of Long Island City HS: Who really is responsible for this mess?: The bungled "turnaround" strategy of Long Island City HS: Who really is responsible for this mess?byLeonie HaimsonPanel for Educational Policy meeting, April 26, 2012Last Thursday, April 26, inanother long, highly emotional meetingthat stretched late into the evening, the Panel for Educational Policy voted to close 24 schools and put them in “turnaround” mode, one of the federal models for school ... more »

Daily Kos: "A man's got to know his limitations"

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

Daily Kos: "A man's got to know his limitations": "A man's got to know his limitations"byrss@dailykos.com (teacherken) Words spoken by Clint Eastwood in his role as Dirty Harry, Inspector Harry Callahan, in Magnum Force.I suppose they can serve as a cautionary, even if the phrasing may not be absolutely on target.The fact that a person can do something, even do it well, does not mean that he should do it.If I have become clear on anything as the result of ... more »

Guest Blog by Emma Rosloff: My Experience with Unschooling (Abbreviated) | Lefty Parent

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

Guest Blog by Emma Rosloff: My Experience with Unschooling (Abbreviated) | Lefty Parent: Guest Blog by Emma Rosloff: My Experience with Unschooling (Abbreviated)byCooper ZaleThis is the first time I’ve published a piece by a “guest” blogger, which in this case happens to be my daughter Emma! She published her piece initially on the Daily KOS progressive political blog site (clickhereto link to it), and got a large number of views, recommends and comments, plus a “Community Spotlight” acknowledgement. I’ve posted ...more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: No Surprise - the Times Endorses Husk for Superintendent

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: No Surprise - the Times Endorses Husk for Superintendent: No Surprise - the Times Endorses Husk for SuperintendentbyMelissa WestbrookAfter being very late with thiseditorial, it finally showed up at the Times' website. Frankly, it's doesn't lay out the greatest case and spends time writing around some flaws.One key item to note from the editorial (and remember for later on down the road if she is chosen):When it comes to talking and listening, she's more likely to ... more »

BOYCOTT PEARSON NOW | United Opt Out National

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

BOYCOTT PEARSON NOW | United Opt Out National: BOYCOTT PEARSON NOWbyadmin Pearson, ALEC, and the Brave New (Corporate) World: Stand Up to Pearson Now!(Note: We have revised our Boycott Pearson information for clarity and in order to add additional research – please use this version, posted April 29, 2012, when sharing.)Supporters of Public Education,The curtain has been pulled aside recently from the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), exposing the seedy underbelly of our democracy. Organizations like ALEC circumvent the democratic ... more »

Schools Matter: Guest Post: Educating Business Ethics, Douglas Storm

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 8 hours ago

Schools Matter: Guest Post: Educating Business Ethics, Douglas Storm: Guest Post: Educating Business Ethics, Douglas StormbyP. L. ThomasEducating Business EthicsDouglas StormThe population of the US seems to be experiencing a kind of national awakening regarding the harsh and endemic inequalities of our “Us vs Them” economic reality. Though it seems possible that our bail-out and bubble-induced slogans of solidarity will fade into our historical moment to be studied by the future (should there be one for humans)–put our “we are ... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Educational Tidbits about Israel, Politicians and School Lovers in the Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.29.12

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

Missouri Education Watchdog: Educational Tidbits about Israel, Politicians and School Lovers in the Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.29.12: Educational Tidbits about Israel, Politicians and School Lovers in the Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.29.12bystlgretchenWelcome to the Sunday Education Weekly Reader for 04.29.12.From Israel andLessons from Abroad:"There is an urgent need to ‘restart’ the concept of education, to re-examine the connection between scholastic scores and the school culture. It is time to go back to the basics — to educational environments motivated ... more »

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts 4-29 #SOSchat #p2 #edreform

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

I draw your a… « Bill AyersBig Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All)-4 minutes agoI draw your a… « Bill Ayers: I draw your a…bybillayersI draw your attention to this important petition that I recently signed:“Edu4: 4 children, 4 the public, 4 social justice, 4 the future”http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/edu4/?utm_medium=emailutm_source=systemutm_campaign=Send%2Bto%2BFriendThis is an important cause, and I encourage you to add your signature, too. It’s free and takes just a few seconds.Thanks!The Petition We are education scholars, students, teachers, and citizens who support wor... more »

OCCUPY EDUCATION - #LetOurVoicesBeHeard | Western International High...

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

OCCUPY EDUCATION - #LetOurVoicesBeHeard | Western International High...: (bySouthwestKnoxx) #LetOurVoicesBeHeard | Western International High School | Southwest DetroitOur Demands to the Detroit Public School System are the following:1. Don’t close Southwestern High School.2. Don’t close Maybury Elementary.3. Remove suspensions for students involved in the walkout.4. Don’t keep students away from school for walking out to stand up for what they believe.5. Don’t want suspensions to go on our student records.6. Don’t press criminal charges against students’ involved in the walkout.7. ... more »

ASCD Express 7.15 - Assumptions About Accountability

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

ASCD Express 7.15 - Assumptions About Accountability: Assumptions About AccountabilityMaking the Right Policy to Honor an Essential Human ValueNancy FlanaganOne of the most moving and eye-opening experiences of my life was attending a national conference, hosted by the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People and the National Education Association, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of theBrown v. Board of Education of Topekadecision. Like most Americans, I had been taught thatBrownwastheturning point toward justice and equity in educational opportunity ... more »

Rheeinforcements TFA Group Violates Connecticut’s Ethics Laws? - Wait, What?

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

Another “Education Reform” Group Violates Connecticut’s Ethics Laws? - Wait, What?: Another “Education Reform” Group Violates Connecticut’s Ethics Laws?byjonpelto It now appears that Teach for America is joining the “you won’t find our lobbying report” club.Is there no “Education Reform” group willing to live by Connecticut’s ethical standards?As noted previously, Connecticut’s Ethics law is really quite simple.A lobbyist is “any person [or organization] thatspends or receives $2,000 or more in a calendar year to communicate with, or to solicit others ... more »

Number of Minor Children Immigrating Alone to Find Parents on rise - Hispanically Speaking News

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

Number of Minor Children Immigrating Alone to Find Parents on rise - Hispanically Speaking News: First Ladies of Latin America Combating Number of Minor Children Immigrating Alone to Find ParentsPublished at 2:29 pm EST, April 29, 2012During a conference sponsored by the United States Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, first ladies from Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala joined forces to raise awareness of the growing numbers of illegal immigration of unaccompanied children. The conference occurred one week after 100 undocumented immigrant ... more »

The in box. Richard Ingram in Naperville. « Fred Klonsky

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

The in box. Richard Ingram in Naperville. « Fred Klonsky: The in box. Richard Ingram in Naperville.byFred KlonskyFrom a reader who attended the TRS meeting with TRS Executive Director Richard Ingram in Naperville last week.I attended the Naperville TRS Town Hall meeting Thursday afternoon.It was “troubling.”Terrible location for a meeting. Terrible sound system. No provision for a Mic for questions — so you relied on Ingram’s re-statement as your guide. There was no chance at a follow up.In my opinion– ... more »

Questions To Ask in Making the Changes in Schools and Classrooms: A Primer | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

Questions To Ask in Making the Changes in Schools and Classrooms: A Primer | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Questions To Ask in Making the Changes in Schools and Classrooms: A Primerbylarrycuban Far too many reformers, regardless of ideology, forget two key principles in pushing for changes that will stick in community institutions.The first principle is an organizational fact. Both change and stability are constants in every societal institution. No institution is static. They are stable in ... more »

An unintended consequence of value-added teacher evaluation - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

An unintended consequence of value-added teacher evaluation - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: An unintended consequence of value-added teacher evaluationByValerie Strauss A high school teacher in New York sent me the following e-mail, which discusses a most unfortunate unintended consequence of the state's new teacher and principal evaluation that depends largely on how well students do on standardized test scores.The“value-added”method of evaluation — which uses complicated formulas to determine how much “value” an educator has added to a ... more »

Daily Kos: Bi-partisan Failure: Misreading Education "Gaps"

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 13 hours ago

Daily Kos: Bi-partisan Failure: Misreading Education "Gaps": Bi-partisan Failure: Misreading Education "Gaps"byplthomasEdDFollowShare1PERMALINK1COMMENT It took about twenty years, and then another secondary ten years, but the hysterical and misleadingA Nation at Riskunder the Reagan administration successfully kicked off three decades of public school accountability.In the beginning, the hysteria revolved around several points that were factually inaccurate, but publicly effective: (1) U.S. public schools were failing, (2) U.S. students were weak, and possibly lazy, but their school... more »