Big Education Ape - Mid Day Banana Break
Maryland's Race To The Top Problems, Rhee In Tennessee: Ed Tonight
Race to the Top: Is Maryland in trouble? Maryland won $250 million from the federal government's Race to the Top competition -- but according to the feds, Maryland isn't holding its end of the bargain. According to a December 6 letter from the U.S. Education Department (noted by Politics K12 today), the government is adding new conditions on $37.9 million of the winnings -- a solid chunk! E.D. is concerned about the school districts' ability to implement the state's RTTT promises. The letter also chided the state for an insufficient use of information from students' standardized tests in high school teacher evaluations. More here.
Labor Sec. Solis out -- who's in?The White House announced Wednesday that after four years with the Obama administration, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis is stepping down. "I am grateful to Secretary Solis for her
Labor Sec. Solis out -- who's in?The White House announced Wednesday that after four years with the Obama administration, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis is stepping down. "I am grateful to Secretary Solis for her
Hinz: 'At its core, the Nekritz-Biss bill was a Republican bill'
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| The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight |
Speaking, one would think, for a significant section of Chicago corporatists, Crain's Greg Hinz comes out swinging with his post mortem on the failed pension heist -- swinging at everyone he can think of. And even though he's on the wrong side on the pension battle, he still makes some cogent points:
On the Legislature: "...a true witch's brew of ego, greed, arrogance, irresponsibility and plain old political cowardice. But, I guess, what else could you expect from a General Assembly that now includes no fewer than three members awaiting criminal trial on felony
Big Florida School District Board “Very Uncomfortable” With Teacher Evaluation System
From Karen Yi in the Sun Sentinel:
School officials in Palm Beach County say they’re still uneasy about the district’s new way of evaluating teachers.
They worry the system that kicked in last year and will be tied to teacher pay by 2014, is borderline punitive and could lead to unfair scores for teachers.
Board member Frank Barbieri said if 187 different principals at 187 different schools don’t score in
Important posts from Glen and John.
From my two amigos.
John Dillon:
John Dillon:
Before making the first attempts to paddle the English Channel back in the late 1800’s, would-be swimmers used to sail large buoyant bags of reeds or plants to make sure it was possible or that tides would actually help bring them across the oftentimes 30 or more mile course. After that, the swimmers themselves would
Guitar Hero? No. Musician.
Meet Jon Schwartz and his creative work using the blues to teach just about everything. Jon, his ideas and his students are what "school" can and should be. I love the stories he shares he about using music in deep and rich learning.
Last year I surprised my first grade students by bringing an electric guitar to class. They had no idea that their teacher used to be a professional gigging musician, and I figured jamming for them would elicit a yearning for live music and hands-on learning about instruments. Before I struck the first chord, an eager student shouted out the first request: "What's your highest score in Guitar Hero?"
When the overwhelming majority of kids linked my guitar to that popular video game, I began to realize what a
Last year I surprised my first grade students by bringing an electric guitar to class. They had no idea that their teacher used to be a professional gigging musician, and I figured jamming for them would elicit a yearning for live music and hands-on learning about instruments. Before I struck the first chord, an eager student shouted out the first request: "What's your highest score in Guitar Hero?"
When the overwhelming majority of kids linked my guitar to that popular video game, I began to realize what a
Meet Adell Cothorne
Adell Cothorne, the former DC principal who appears in our Frontline film, "The Education of Michelle Rhee," was one of the few educators willing to speak on the record about the widespread erasures during Michelle Rhee’s tenure - and what she has to say is important.
D.C. charter board proposes closing Imagine Southeast for poor performance
The D.C. Public Charter School Board is proposing to shutter a Ward 8 school for poor performance and will vote on the measure Thursday night.
Imagine Southeast, which serves more than 500 elementary and middle-school students, opened in 2008 and has since failed to meet four of the five goals laid out in its charter agreement, according to the PCSB.
Read full article >>
Imagine Southeast, which serves more than 500 elementary and middle-school students, opened in 2008 and has since failed to meet four of the five goals laid out in its charter agreement, according to the PCSB.
Read full article >>
Connecticut – The State of the State: But what about poverty?
WHO’S THE REAL COWARD ?
The Chicago Tribune blasted Illinois legislators in its lead editorial today. The title of the editorial was, “The Cowards Surrender”. The Tribune editorial board was unhappy with legislators for failing to address “pension reform”, and instead appointing a committee to study the issue.
The Tribune needs to include itself in the list of “cowards” when it comes to pension reform. The Tribune has been unmerciful in its almost daily campaign to bash teachers and public employees and yet they have been too cowardly to reveal their real motive for doing so. They have been cowardly because they have never once suggested an increase in revenue as part of a possible pension solution. They have been cowardly in not
The Tribune needs to include itself in the list of “cowards” when it comes to pension reform. The Tribune has been unmerciful in its almost daily campaign to bash teachers and public employees and yet they have been too cowardly to reveal their real motive for doing so. They have been cowardly because they have never once suggested an increase in revenue as part of a possible pension solution. They have been cowardly in not
Occupy DOE 2.0: The March for Public Education
Occupy DOE 2.0: The March for Public Education
Nationally “Branded”:Occupy DOE 2.0: The March for Public Education
Start: April 4, 2013
End: April 7, 2013
Organizer: United Opt Out National
Venue: U.S. Department of Education
Address: 400 Maryland Ave, SW, Washington, DC, 20202, United States
United Opt Out, hosts of the event asks us to please check their Occupy DOE page frequently to stay updated on our planning for our second occupation of the Dept. of Ed. in DC. Please read HERE for our current update as of December 28, 2012. Also, rsvp on Facebook if you plan to attendhttps://www.facebook.com/events/298659770235984/?context=create
To Read About Last Year’s Events, locally and nationally, Please Travel to United Opt-Out and or Occupy the DOE where videos abound
Opt-Out Day – January 7, 2013
Opt-Out Day – January 7, 2013
Download a Flyer; Options For Opting Out of Testing
- Opting Out; Just Say No To Testing FairTest.
- Opt Out of States Standardized Tests. The International Movement.
- The Bartleby Project.
- History off Opting Out. Parents Across America Ongoing Series on Opting-Out
- United Opt Out
How will you opt out of corporate education reform on National Opt Out Day? How will you rebuild public schools and resist from within? There are many ways to opt out of corporate education reform through resistance and
Traditional Human Wisdom of Child Development
For the first 200,000 years of the human species we were all hunter-gatherers, nomadic tribes of people scattered about the Earth living in sync with the natural ecology of our bountiful planet. It is only in the past 10,000 years, with our development of agriculture and herding, that we developed what we like to call “civilization”, which according to Wikipedia is…A sometimes controversial term that has been used in several related ways. Primarily, the term has been used to refer to the material and instrumental side of human cultures that are complex in terms of technology, science, and division of labor. Such civilizations are generally hierarchical and
Cuomo Offers Grants for Longer School Days; More Pre-K
newyorkstateofficeofthegovernor on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free
Credit: Office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo“We need more learning time, my friends, if we really are serious about improving education,” Cuomo said to applause during his annual State of the State speech in Albany. He said the old agrarian calendar makes no
Data King Nate Silver Isn't Sold on Evaluating Teachers With Test Scores
Indeed, user GrEvTh asked Silver, "What are your thoughts on data-driven metrics for teacher evaluation? Do you
Repeal of education overhaul leaves $30 million on table for Idaho lawmakers
There are at least three options for the money that the repeal of public schools chief Tom Luna's education overhaul left stranded ahead of the 2013 Legislature.