Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Billionaire-financed Astroturf Group Coming to N Carolina « Parents Across America

Billionaire-financed Astroturf Group Coming to N Carolina « Parents Across America:


Billionaire-financed Astroturf Group Coming to N Carolina

by pagrundy

PAA affiliate Mecklenburg ACTS just learned that the astroturf “Campaign for Achievement Now” has targeted our state for its next legislative drive. According to the website, the Campaign plans to spend more than $700,000 in our state to advance its charter and testing-focused agenda in 2012 alone, most of it apparently financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. This is in addition to the $850,000 being spent in our state for the charter-focused “North Carolinians for Educational Freedom.” We will be working with our allies in our recent fight against testing madness to combat their efforts.
“Campaign for Achievement Now” is already operating in Connecticut, Rhode Island, 
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School Tech Connect: Dick Ingram Revisited

School Tech Connect: Dick Ingram Revisited:


Dick Ingram Revisited

by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman)
I'm going to re-run Dick Ingram's presentation from last October during the SB 520 debacle. I'm trying to figure out what has changed, other than that the TRS Board has declared a looming insolvency. I'm also getting ready to film the new round of presentations.

I've read it four or five times, and I'm not sure what the objective of the new TRS position is, or how it squares with what Dick Ingram was saying last October, or whether or not it gave him license to go off-reservation with his recent COLA comments.

Again, this is from last October.

Popout

And finally, these thing
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ROCKFORD TEACHERS’ “VICTORY” A SIGN OF THE TIMES « Teachers Fight Back

ROCKFORD TEACHERS’ “VICTORY” A SIGN OF THE TIMES « Teachers Fight Back:


ROCKFORD TEACHERS’ “VICTORY” A SIGN OF THE TIMES

by alkleen
Rockford teachers voted overwhelmingly to approve the contract offer that ended the strike. The details of the contract show how anything short of a “give-back” for teachers is considered a win these days.
The salary settlement for year one included no base pay increase and only half of the normal step and lane payments. Employees with a bachelor’s degree who are maxed out on the salary schedule will receive a $500 lump sum payment. Employees with a master’s degree who are maxed out will receive a $1000 lump sum.
In years two and three, employees will receive a  0.5 percent base pay increase , in addition to step and lane increases and the same $500 and $1000 for maxed out people.
In year four, the teachers will receive no base pay increase but will receive the same step and lane bumps and the same lump sum payments as year two and three.
The school district had tried to lower its pension contribution, but that will stay at 9.4 percent of salary.
Kindergarten classes with 23 or more students must have a paraprofessional to assist the teacher . The district 
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Teacher-Prep Rulemaking: Is Consensus in Jeopardy? - Teacher Beat - Education Week

Teacher-Prep Rulemaking: Is Consensus in Jeopardy? - Teacher Beat - Education Week:


Teacher-Prep Rulemaking: Is Consensus in Jeopardy?

by Stephen Sawchuk
The panelists charged with rewriting federal teacher-preparation rules faced a grueling day today during which major tension points emerged with little resolution, all of which served to call into question whether they will be able to reach consensus by Thursday.
You don't have to take my word for it: During some of the breaks, I spoke to a handful of negotiators—they all, reasonably, wanted to speak on background since the process isn't finished yet—and by and large, they weren't optimistic:
"It seems doubtful." "Probably not good." "I don't know." "I think the answer is probably no."
If the panelists don't reach a final consensus, the U.S. Department of Education gets to go it alone when writing the regulations.
Some of the tensions that emerged today have been brewing under the surface for a while, but as of the last session, there at least seemed to be agreement on the Education Department's proposal to classify their teacher-preparation programs into four categories: "low performing," "at risk," effective," and "exceptional," based 
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Life in Rahm’s Chicago. A problem with democracy. « Fred Klonsky

Life in Rahm’s Chicago. A problem with democracy. « Fred Klonsky:


Life in Rahm’s Chicago. A problem with democracy.

by Fred Klonsky

From Rolling Stone:

What Rahm seems to be doing is building a new machine for our age of union busting and austerity. His budget, which the City Council passed 50 to 0 like it was some Soviet Party Congress (maybe it had something to do with the hundreds of thousands Goldner’s PAC had to spend), killed six community mental health clinics, saving $2.3 million dollars, and proposed to carve $10 million and 110 union jobs from Chicago’s libraries; in the face of protest, he restored $5.3 million and 55 workers to the system, which Alter claims shows how flexible and magnanimous he is. As the progressive Chicago journalist Curtis Black points out, it’s instructive to compare that $7 million in precious, precious budget savings to some of the free public money he’s handed out to corporations. An animal testing company that serves Big Pharma, Experi

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The Dreamer, The Believer [The Race Man Cometh] | The Jose Vilson

The Dreamer, The Believer [The Race Man Cometh] | The Jose Vilson:


The Dreamer, The Believer [The Race Man Cometh]

by Jose
This is what I get for reading comments on CNN blogs. Or anywhere else but my blog anyways.
The trolls spew racism all over a post that’s simply meant to help progress the conversation about race, not get us stuck in the same epitaphs of indifference and conservatism. For once, I’d like to see people who normally settle upon their asses when it comes to their racism look a kid in the eye and say, “We know you see differences between you and him, but really, we got a lot more in common than you can see.” Instead, I’m asked to answer questions about things like presentation, speech, and general colorism.
Thus, here are some of my personal beliefs, because I don’t think responding to all those comments on Twitter / Facebook / CNN will do me any good.
1. I don’t believe in reverse racism, just like I don’t believe in reverse sexism and classism. As I’ve said far too many times, racism is a function of dominance and power. Thus, racism assumes that the person in the dominant position would be racist / sexist / classist. This doesn’t bode well for those of you in the dominant 
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Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee: New Missouri charter-school law would improve profitability tability

New Missouri charter-school law would improve accountability - KansasCity.com:


New Missouri charter-school law would improve accountability

BY MICHELLE RHEE

Special to The Star

Michelle Rhee is the founder and CEO of StudentsFirst, a bipartisan grassroots movement that is working to improve the nation’s schools. She previously served as chancellor of Washington D.C., schools and before that founded the New Teacher Project, which helps districts recruit effective teachers to challenging schools. She splits her time between Sacramento, Calif., and Nashville, Tenn.
Michelle Rhee is the founder and CEO of StudentsFirst, a bipartisan grassroots movement that is working to improve the nation’s schools. She previously served as chancellor of Washington D.C., schools and before that founded the New Teacher Project, which helps districts recruit effective teachers to challenging schools. She splits her time between Sacramento, Calif., and Nashville, Tenn.
    If we really want to tackle the problems in our schools, we have to start relying on common-sense solutions that put the needs of students ahead of any other interests in the system. Fortunately, in Missouri, lawmakers advocating for a new public charter school law understand this.
    Twin bills moving through the Missouri House and Senate represent a balanced approach to public charter schools, allowing successful models to expand while increasing oversight and accountability for all such schools.
    Charter schools are public schools. They are free and open to all children in a jurisdiction, but they operate independently of local school districts and have more flexibility to innovate and try new approaches. On many occasions, I’ve seen traditional district schools adopt fantastic new programs that were first tried out in charter

    Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/04/03/3533513/new-missouri-charter-school-law.html#storylink=cpy
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    Big Education Ape: 4-3-12 PM The Ben Chavis / American Indian Public Charter School saga EDition #SOSCHAT

    Big Education Ape: PARENTS CAN!:
    Big Education Ape: PARENTS CAN!

    Published by Coopmike48 – 7 news spotters today

    #AskVP Your Questions About College Affordability

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    Oakland charter school accused of fraud may close

    sfgate.com - A controversial Oakland charter school with a history of rigid rules, harsh discipline and the second highest test scores in the state faces closure after an investigation found evidence of fraud a...
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    The Ingram Shift « Fred Klonsky

    preaprez.wordpress.com - H/T to Bob Haisman whose Pension 101 emails provided most of the following information. A year ago, TRS Executive Director Richard Ingram was singing a different tune when it came to TRS sustainabi...
    fklonsky

    City Revokes Testing Word Ban – SchoolBook

    nytimes.com - April 2, 2012, 6:14 p.m. New York City Department of Education officials said late Monday that they were pulling back on a clause in contracts for testing companies that list 50 words and topics th...
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    Tell Scott Walker he's not welcome in Illinois!

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    GSA chief resigns amid reports of excessive spending

    washingtonpost.com - Public Buildings Service chief Robert A. Peck, a fixture in the Washington area real estate community on his second stint running the department, was forced out, along with Johnson’s top adviser, S...
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    Rahm paving path for 2016 prez bid - Chicago Sun

    suntimes.com - LAURA WASHINGTON LauraSWashington@aol.com April 2, 2012 9:30AM Laura Washington storyidforme: 28198619 tmspicid: 1032729 fileheaderid: 731012 Updated: April 2, 2012 9:38AM Look out, Clinton, Cuomo ...
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    boston.com - WASHINGTON—The voices demanding that Congress stop the brutality of African warlord Joseph Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army belong to America's children."All three of my kids, in different conte...
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