A Big Education Ape Nite Cap
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Building a bridge between teachers and parents: Building a bridge between teachers and parents by Mike Klonsky On last night's panel at DePaul were (right to left in photo) Monica Espinoza and Joanna Brown from Logan Square Neighborhood Association, Lynn Morton from Community Organizing and Family Issues, Julie Woestehoff from PURE, Wendy Kattan from Raise Your Hand, and Latrice Watkins, LSC chair of Piccolo Elementary, who led the Occupy Piccolo protest earlier this year (Cecile Carrol from Blocks Together arrived after this pic was taken).Catalyst ... more »
Schools Matter: Diane Ravitch Educates the Nation on ALEC: Diane Ravitch Educates the Nation on ALEC [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] [image: AlterNet] What You Need To Know About ALECBy Diane Ravitch, Bridging Differences Posted on May 3, 2012, Printed on May 3, 2012 http://www.alternet.org/story/155257/what_you_need_to_know_about_alec Since the 2010 elections, when Republicans took control of many states, there has been an explosion of legislation advancing privatization of public schools and stripping teachers of job protections and collective bargaining righ... more »
U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review | U.S. Department of Education: U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review MAY 3, 2012 *Contact: * Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights has entered into a resolution agreement with Butler University in Indianapolis to resolve a compliance review that was initiated at the university. The review examined whet... more »
Update: ABC news stands by its lies. Let them know what you think. « Fred Klonsky: Update: ABC news stands by its lies. Let them know what you think. by Fred Klonsky The anti-union Illinois Policy Institute issued a report that claimed most teachers in Illinois don’t pay their share of the TRS contribution. By any standard, this is a Big Lie. It is a lie because it misreads what many contracts say. A typical teacher contract will say that the board will “pay” the TRS contribution, which only means that they will send the teachers’ payments to TRS. Teachers do not literally send a ch... more »
School Tech Connect: Pearls Of Rahm's Wisdom: Pearls Of Rahm's Wisdom by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) I was just probing around the intertubes when I ran across this fabulous note to the mayor. In this town, if you're not an investment banker, this is the sort of thing you have to do in order to meet with a Democratic mayor. To Mayor Rahm Emanuel - I'm sure the folks at NewSchools Venture Fund-Aspen Institute Summit on Education Innovation in San Francisco are enjoying your pearls of wisdom but if you would like to discuss public education, education reform and all the othe... more »
Miramonte teachers speak out, saying they're angry and humiliated - latimes.com: Miramonte teachers speak out, saying they're angry and humiliated [image: Miramonte Elementary School] For the first time since they were removed from Miramonte Elementary School, teachers described their experiences over the last three months in statements obtained by The Times. The teachers, who are expected to take part in a rally Thursday afternoon, recounted their humiliation, anger and sadness at being transferred from the school. L.A. Unified Supt. John Deasy replaced the staff at Miramonte afte... more »
Santa Monica College fights privatization: Anti-privatization conference held for 112 Community Colleges serving 260,000 students in the State of California | Dailycensored.com: Santa Monica College fights privatization: Anti-privatization conference held for 112 Community Colleges serving 260,000 students in the State of California by Danny Weil *picture of some of the signs students at Santa Monica College in Los Angeles made for their campout at the college on April 30th after facing administrative and police harrassment* Community colleges across California are facing the wra... more »
Schools Matter: Pearson Boycott News: NY State Tosses 4th Pearson Test Question in 4 Weeks: *GO TO * *National Resolution on High-Stakes Testing* Pearson Boycott News: NY State Tosses 4th Pearson Test Question in 4 Weeks by Jim Horn Obviously, $32,000,000 is not enough to get Pearson to hire test writers who know more than the students they are testing. From NYTimes SchooBook: May 2, 2012, 12:34 p.m. By *ANNA M. PHILLIPS* For the fourth time within a month, state education officials have tossed out a question on the standardized tests after finding that errors by Pearson, t... more »
RheeFirst! » Rhee ramps up MO lobby force–still losing on her ALEC-sponsored bill: Rhee ramps up MO lobby force–still losing on her ALEC-sponsored bill admin at RheeFirst! - 18 minutes ago *The Rhee anti-teacher bill being debated in Missouri this week is sponsored by ALEC member, Rep. Scott Dieckhaus, who sits on ALEC’s Education Taskforce. The vote set for Tuesday but was postponed for more strong-arming because it lacked supporters. Here’s the latest:*"StudentsFirst, the ironically (and misleadingly) named Michele Rhee-led organization that is pushing anti-teacher legislation has... more »
Vendors: Villains or Visionaries? « My Island View: Vendors: Villains or Visionaries? by tomwhitby And now for something completely different… As an educator who has organized and attended many education conferences over several decades, I have made a few observations about the unique relationship between educators, and vendors of education materials or educational technology. The reason for my consideration of this topic is because I will be participating in the Software Information Industry Association’s (SIIA) Ed Tech Industry Summit in San Francisco next week. Most of my conf... more »
Missouri Education Watchdog: Carpetbagger StudentsFirst Missouri State Director Knows What's Best for Missouri Students--Part I: Carpetbagger StudentsFirst Missouri State Director Knows What's Best for Missouri Students--Part I by stlgretchen Are carpetbagging educational reformers coming to your state? A reader received an email from one of our new national educational lobbying groups in Missouri, Michelle Rhee's StudentsFirst organization. This article from Fast Company details Rhee's vision and method of operation. Rhee makes it sounds as if the choice of education would be ... more »
Detroit Family Engagement Forum: Families Stepping Up for Student Success | ED.gov Blog: Detroit Family Engagement Forum: Families Stepping Up for Student Success In spite of the cold and drizzling rain, about 200 parents came out on a recent Saturday morning to Central High School in Detroit. They were “parents with a purpose,” the theme of the family engagement forum co-sponsored by Detroit Public Schools and ED. Building on President Obama’s inspirational statement that “There is no program and no policy that can substitute for a parent who is involved in their child’s educa... more »
What parents can do during Teacher Appreciation Week May 7-11 « Parents Across America: What parents can do during Teacher Appreciation Week May 7-11 by pureparents The SOS March folks are planning nationwide actions during Teacher Appreciation Week (May 7-11) and Teacher Appreciation Day (May 8th). You can upload a flyer with these same suggestions here. Share it around! Please especially note the 12th bullet point… Here’s what they are suggesting: Small cards, well wishes from our students, chocolates or a pencil holder are certainly welcomed by your teachers during Teacher Appr... more »
Meet Your PD Needs: The 2012 Whole Child Virtual Conference Starts Today — Whole Child Education: Meet Your PD Needs: The 2012 Whole Child Virtual Conference Starts Today by Molly McCloskey [image: 2012 ASCD Whole Child Virtual Conference] Twenty four sessions. Seven days. Six school site presentations. Two panels of experts from Australia, Singapore, Finland, and France. Free. *Welcome to the 2012 ASCD Whole Child Virtual Conference!* As we've said many times across this blog and in our newsletters and podcasts, we believe that a whole child approach to education is the only approa... more »
FCAT video: School board member, students do anti-FCAT video - Orlando Sentinel: Anti-FCAT video stars Orange school board member, students By Leslie Postal, Orlando Sentinel 4:41 p.m. EST, May 2, 2012 - - - - Comments 5 - - - - Share368 - The pain and frustration of failing FCAT gets on-air attention in a new video that was produced by — and stars — local high school students. "I took it, failed it," says one student from Freedom High in Orange County. "My Mom loved me, still she had that look like, 'ugh, I can't ... more »
Seattle Schools Community Forum: PTA Alert: PTA Alert by Melissa Westbrook Tomorrow starts the Washington State PTA convention. It runs for three days but *the voting sessions are all tomorrow night, Friday the 4th. The voting sessions start at 6:30 p.m. at the Doubletree Inn at Seattle Airport in SeaTac.* If you are going, be sure you have your voting credentials signed by your PTA President. You will not be able to vote otherwise. Here is the voters guide that lists the resolutions to be voted on: *This May, voting delegates to the WSPTA convention will vote on one proposed... more »
LAUSD Teachers: the New Satanic Serial Child Molesters? by Michael Dunn - Perdaily.com: LAUSD Teachers: the New Satanic Serial Child Molesters? by Michael Dunn by Leonard Isenberg [image: Miramonte 1.jpeg] *(Mensaje se repite en Español) (For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post) * *Although initial written over a month ago, the following repost of this blog that appeared *in the Modern School blogseems regrettably more apt than ever. Attacking teachers' unions, collective bargaining and due process rights, pensions, salaries and privacy has no... more »
All Education Matters: Student Loan Debtor: "[T]he reality is that I think of killing myself all the time": Student Loan Debtor: "[T]he reality is that I think of killing myself all the time" by Cryn Johannsen *If you are suicidal, please call: The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255* * * * * Recently, yet another student loan debtor shared their thoughts about being suicidal, demoralized, and trapped because of their student loans on this * post*. When I receive these notes, my blood boils as I think about the cold distance that some policymakers in higher ed circl... more »
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » The power of parent participation: The power of parent participation by admin Dr. Joyce Epstein, who heads the National Network of Partnership Schools at Johns Hopkins University, created the gold standard for parent involvement programs – a comprehensive set of practices that encourage good parenting, strong home-school communication, volunteer opportunities, support for learning at home, a parent voice in school decision making, and community collaboration. Last night’s parent forum at DePaul really made that package come... more »
Forum: Moving Forward in Public Education: Ideas That Work | Seattle Education: Forum: Moving Forward in Public Education: Ideas That Work by seattleducation2011 Parents Across America Presents *Moving Forward in Public Education:* *Ideas That Work* A Panel Discussion Thursday, May 31st at 6:30 PM Rainier Beach High School Auditorium 8815 Seward Park Ave. S. Seattle, WA 98118 Featuring: Dr. Margit McGuire, Professor and Director, Seattle Universityʼs Teacher Education Program Marquita Prinzing, teacher, Sanislo Elementary School Sharon Okamoto, Principal, Seattle Urban Academy Rita G... more »
Liberal blog: Mayor Cory Booker is a 'sellout' for attending educational conference funded by the Koch Brothers | NJ.com: [image: nj.com] Liberal blog: Mayor Cory Booker is a 'sellout' for attending educational conference funded by the Koch BrothersPublished: Thursday, May 03, 2012, 12:33 PM Updated: Thursday, May 03, 2012, 12:35 PM [image: David Giambusso/The Star-Ledger] By *David Giambusso/The Star-Ledger * [image: cory-booker.jpeg]Saed Hindash/The Star-LedgerThe Daily Kos, a prominent liberal blog is calling Newark Mayor Cory Booker a "sellout" for attending a two day educat... more »
What Does It Take for Children to Be Mentally Healthy? — Whole Child Education: What Does It Take for Children to Be Mentally Healthy? by ASCD Whole Child Bloggers Download Podcast Now [Right-Click to Save] A child's mental health is influenced by her biology, social and physical environment, and behavior, as well as the availability of services. Good emotional and behavioral health enhances a child's sense of well-being, supports satisfying social relationships at home and with peers, and facilitates achievement of full academic potential. Research shows that one of five childre... more »
Federal Judge Greenlights Student Activist Lawsuit Against Berkeley Admins « Student Activism: Federal Judge Greenlights Student Activist Lawsuit Against Berkeley Admins by Angus Johnston A federal judge has ruled that a lawsuit brought by UC Berkeley activists who claim the they were unconstitutionally targeted for arrest in a 2009 campus protest can go forward. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler says the students have made a “plausible” case that the university’s police chief and vice chancellor for student affairs violated their First Amendment rights during the Wheeler Hall occupat... more »
Charter Schools: How Many Bucks for the Desired Bang? | National Education Policy Center: Charter Schools: How Many Bucks for the Desired Bang? *Contact: *Bruce Baker, (732) 932-7496, x8232, bruce.baker@gse.rutgers.edu William J. Mathis, (802) 383-0058, wmathis@sover.net URL for this press release: http://tinyurl.com/d8dlmeb BOULDER, CO (May 3, 2012) — Do charter schools live up to their supporters’ claim that they deliver a better education for less money? While previous research has focused on the first half of that claim – education quality -- a new report published by the Nati... more »
Seattle Schools Community Forum: These Are Your Kids On Books: These Are Your Kids On Books A Denver-based group, Burning Through Pages, has some fantastic posters that will be available soon. *Burning Through Pages is a Denver-based non-profit organization that helps kids join book clubs in their communities (run by our volunteers and other kids), launch new book clubs in their communities, or interact one-on-one with a BTP volunteer. We want to help kids experience literature on whatever level makes them comfortable, excited and reading, reading, reading! We actually buy the ... more »
Sponsors Step Up for Native Education: Announcing NIEA 2012 Convention News: OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA | OCTOBER 18-21, 2012 For Immediate Release May 3, 2012 Contact NIEA Communications 202.544.7290 (Phone) rbiddle@niea.org (E-mail) TRIBES, OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, LINE UP TO SUPPORT LEADING FORUM FOR ADVANCING NATIVE EDUCATION Washington, D.C. - The National Indian Education Association is proud to announce the latest round of Tribes, Native community organizations, and other groups stepping up to support its 2012 Convention and Trade Show. The Convention, which will be held Octobe... more »
It’s Just Me. « Diane Ravitch's blog: It’s Just Me. by dianerav I just answered a question from a reader. He/she wondered if it was really me writing this blog. He/she wondered if there would be a little line somewhere saying that I was funded by some foundation. I answered the question but thought it was a good idea to answer it in a blog. It is just me. Or, to be grammatically correct, it is I. And I alone. No one writes for me, and I am not funded by any foundation. I write every word of my articles, I write every word of my blogs. I write every word of my tweets. I know that mo... more »
Shanker Blog » The Relatively Unexplored Frontier Of Charter School Finance: The Relatively Unexplored Frontier Of Charter School Finance by Matthew Di Carlo Do charter schools do more – get better results – with less? If you ask this question, you’ll probably get very strong answers, ranging from the affirmative to the negative, often depending on the person’s overall view of charter schools. The reality, however, is that we really don’t know. Actually, despite uninformed coverage of insufficient evidence, researchers don’t even have a good handle on *how much charter schools spe... more »
Big Education Ape - Morning Wink AM Posts (مهدی لطفا با استفاده از ترجمه انگلیسی از حرکت دست) sacramento, state, CSU, chancellor, hunger, strike - KTXL coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 minutes ago sacramento, state, CSU, chancellor, hunger, strike - KTXL: Sac State Students on Hunger Strike for a Better CSU Education - [image: Email] - [image: print] - Comments 0 - Share10 - - - - Topics - Teaching and Learning - Students Sonseeahray Tonsall 11:00 p.m. PDT, May 2, 2012 SACRAMENTO— It's the kind of pizza party these Sacramento State students never thought they'd be at, a last m... more »
sacramento, state, CSU, chancellor, hunger, strike - KTXL: Sac State Students on Hunger Strike for a Better CSU Education - [image: Email] - [image: print] - Comments 0 - Share10 - - - - Topics - Teaching and Learning - Students Sonseeahray Tonsall 11:00 p.m. PDT, May 2, 2012 SACRAMENTO— It's the kind of pizza party these Sacramento State students never thought they'd be at, a last meal as they swear off food to take a stand against a university system they say is starved of a focus on real student needs. "Are you scared at all about doing ... more »
Richard Whitmire: Abandon "Students of Color" Category: Abandon "Students of Color" Category In late March a panel of ten education experts gathered in Washington to nominate four most-improved urban school districts for a national education prize. What should have been a routine review of student data, however, suddenly took a new direction. First one member on the review panel for the annual Broad Prize for Urban Education, then another, noticed the same thing: Plenty of large urban school districts nationwide were making solid progress with Hispanic students closing achievement... more »
Modern School: CSU Faculty Approve Largest University Strike In U.S. History: CSU Faculty Approve Largest University Strike In U.S. History by Michael Dunn Image from Recollection Books In April, the Faculty Union of the California State University system began the strike authorization process. The votes are finally in: 70% of the organization’s 12,501 members voted and 95% of them said yes to a two-day rolling strike at the university’s 23 campuses, should negotiations break down again, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. The strike would most likely occur at the beginning o... more »
How To Counter the Counter-Revolution? - Bridging Differences - Education Week: How To Counter the Counter-Revolution? by Deborah Meier [image: Insurgency: The counter-counter-revolution might look different] Dear Diane, Blue skies overhead, green leaves popping out daily, and yellow, blue, and white blossoms. It eases the pain of seeing the work of so many wonderful people over so many years get torn down—whether it's for money or for a dearly held belief in the marketplace. The money part is what's driving it along—the "belief system" has been around for a long time, and it's t... more »
The Way Forward: From Sanctions to Supports | Annenberg Institute for School Reform: The Way Forward: From Sanctions to Supports [image: Printer-friendly version]Printer-friendly version Publication Date: April 2012 In this report prepared by AISR, the New York City Working Group on School Transformation calls on the city’s Department of Education to support low-performing schools, rather than simply closing them. The Working Group, initiated by the NYC Coalition for Educational Justice and coordinated by AISR, grew out of a 2011 conference that presented successful alternatives ... more »
With Campaign Donations, Bond Underwriters Also Secure School Contracts - The Bay Citizen: by Will Evans With Campaign Donations, Bond Underwriters Also Secure School Contracts Leading financial firms over the past five years donated $1.8 million to successful school bond measures in California, and in almost every instance, school district officials hired those same underwriters to sell the bonds for a profit, a California Watch review has found. The practice is especially pronounced in California, where underwriters gave 155 political contributions since 2007 to successful bond ca... more »
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The Empire Strikes Back: The Empire Strikes Back by Mike Klonsky Emanuel/Daley rift sharpens Smiling faces...The rift surfaced back in November. Actually, autocrat Rahm started it with his pokes at his predecessor. His line of attack has been the longer school day initiative. His education plan is essentially a continuation of the failed Daley/Duncan reforms, previously known as Renaissance 2010 -- school closings in under-served communities, turning neighborhood schools over to private charter school management companies, attacking teacher collecti... more »
A visit to the Governor’s Office. « Fred Klonsky: A visit to the Governor’s Office. by Fred Klonsky In preparation for our IEA Region’s occupation of Springfield, I had called ahead last week to Governor Quinn’s office. Quinn didn’t answer the phone. Instead I had a nice talk with a Dona Dalton, one of the Governor’s *people. * I explained that a group of 60 teachers, both active and retired, would be in Springfield on May 2nd. I told Dona that we were planning to come by the Governor’s office at 1PM to share with him our thoughts about his proposals to destroy the teacher pension s... more »
Should A School Change Start Time For Sleep? Later School Start Times Improve Student Performance: Study: Should A School Change Start Time For Sleep? Later School Start Times Improve Student Performance: Study by Joy Resmovits In high school, Melissa Edwards woke up at 6:30 a.m. to catch a bus. It was dark, she was tired and the school's 7:15 a.m. morning bell forced the St. Louis teen to eat lunch at 10:45. Her brother was incredulous. "I thought that this couldnâ�™t possibly be good," said Finley Edwards, a Colby College economist, of his sister's predawn start. But when Edwar... more »
A state that just says ‘no’ to charters, other reforms - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: [image: Answer Sheet] A state that just says ‘no’ to charters, other reforms by Valerie Strauss This was *written by Melissa Westbrook, a public education activist and co-writer of the Seattle Schools Community Forum blog, based in Seattle.* By Melissa Westbrook Quietly marching to its own drummer, Washington State has mostly turned its back on the education reform movement that is sweeping much of the rest of the country. Read full article >> 13 charged in hazing death of Florida A&M... more »
Jersey Jazzman: Perth Amboy Follies Continue: Perth Amboy Follies Continue by Duke Oy, vey... Derrick Kyriacou, district supervisor of language arts with principal certification, has been temporarily assigned as principal at the Dr. Herbert N. Richardson 21st Century School after five people were placed on leave, according to Acting Superintendent of Schools Dr. Vivian Rodriguez. The Home News Tribune has confirmed that Richardson School Principal Alvaro Cores, *who is new to the district*, and the school’s vice principal have been placed on leave, along with three support staff ... more »
How student debt became a focus of the presidential campaign | Inside Higher Ed: The New Politics of Student Debt May 3, 2012 - 3:00am By Libby A. Nelson These days, Robert Applebaum is feeling vindicated. In January 2009, Applebaum, then a 35-year-old lawyer with more than $80,000 in student debt, created a petition calling for student loan forgiveness to stimulate the economy. It was greeted with a few weeks of buzz and plenty of scorn. Then, for more than two years, silence. Then student loan balances passed $1 trillion, interest rates spent a week as the focus of the nascent 20... more »
Faltering in special education, LA Unified seeks answers | California Watch: Faltering in special education, LA Unified seeks answers May 3, 2012 | Joanna Lin pixdeluxe/istockphoto.com After failing for the eighth straight year to meet service delivery targets for special education, Los Angeles Unified School District has begun interviewing staff to understand why records indicate thousands of students with disabilities are not receiving their prescribed services. The effort, led by the district's Office of the Independent Monitor, seeks to determine whether the shortcomings are due... more »
May Day | California Father: May Day by California Father Popout This is a note I wrote to a friend about the May Day parade, the vid above some raw footage of the Bus Rider Union Drum and Chant Corps. *I just had a FANTASTIC time is all and it went like this: After school I went to the May Day march downtown where I met, among thousands of other wonderful people, the Drum and Chant Corps of the Bus Riders Union, whose neighborhood groove made me think my head would explode. I mean, it was great, from the little son of a communist trying to hand me a leaflet when I had both arms fu... more »
http://www.southbronxschool.com: A New Teacher Bullied By Inept Administrators in a Bloomberg Created School by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher) The story below came across the desk of the SBSB newsroom late this afternoon. Our collective SBSB jaws dropped while reading of not only a school in disarray, but of a young teacher being tormented, and the lack of support, by the administration of this school. We here at SBSB did find some irony that the author share, "seven years my small school has served our city." Apparently it seems to walk, talk, and quack like a school that Unc... more »
STUDENTS EVALUATING TEACHERS, AND THE “ULTRA HAPPY SCHOOL” « Teachers Fight Back: STUDENTS EVALUATING TEACHERS, AND THE “ULTRA HAPPY SCHOOL” by alkleen The latest suggestion from the geniuses behind “education reform” is to have students evaluate their teachers, and that score would then become part of a teachers overall evaluation by the administration. Gee, can anyone see a potential problem with this ? I can think of a few dozen problems with this idea, but I’ll leave it to your imagination to come up with a few of your own. Some of them should be quite obvious if you’ve been ... more »
Florida School Board Member Mocks FCAT With Video | Scathing Purple Musings: Florida School Board Member Mocks FCAT With Video by Bob Sikes Florida’s republican legislators don’t like to be accused of ending local control of schools. But trying to end school board member salaries and giving final oversight of charter schools to Tallahassee political appointees is well, attempting to end local control of schools. It must really chap their behind when a clever school member from a big district mocks the anchor to their education philosophy. Leslie Postal of the *Orlando Sentinel*rep... more »
Schooling in the Ownership Society: Princeton Review busted for fraud: Princeton Review busted for fraud by Mike Klonsky No Child Left Behind has been a cash cow for test publishers and private tutoring companies.Now one of the biggest of this small group of powerful and politically-connected companies has been busted for fraud. On Tuesday, the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan announced the indictment of one of the largest and most well-known private test-prep and tutoring companies, the Princeton Review, for falsifying records and accepting millions of dollars in reim... more »
