BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK AM POSTS
Good work. Now put your boots back on. « Fred Klonsky
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 minutes ago
Good work. Now put your boots back on. « Fred Klonsky: Good work. Now put your boots back on. by Fred Klonsky [image: separated at birth] *Representative Elaine Nekritz and Senator Dan Biss. Separated at birth. With apologies to Harpo.* Last night and this morning the news reports were all about the failed opportunity to fix the Illinois pension system. They still don’t get it. Fixing the pension system was* never* on the legislative agenda. There is only one problem with the state public employee pension systems in Illinois: The political leaders refuse to raise enough tax money from... more »
Diane Ravitch's Warnings Ignored: Our Next National Shame? | California Progress Report
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
Diane Ravitch's Warnings Ignored: Our Next National Shame? | California Progress Report: Diane Ravitch's Warnings Ignored: Our Next National Shame? by callen *By Mark Naison* Is Diane Ravitch the George Ball of our generation and education reform our Vietnam? In the spring and summer of 1965, as US policy makers debated whether to send large numbers of US ground troops to Vietnam to insure that the South Vietnamese government not collapse, a longtime Washington insider named George Ball issued a fierce warning that the policy being recommended would be disastrous. Declaring that th... more »
Texas Student Loses Lawsuit Against RFID School IDs « Student Activism
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
Texas Student Loses Lawsuit Against RFID School IDs « Student Activism: Texas Student Loses Lawsuit Against RFID School IDs by Angus Johnston A student who sued her school district over a requirement that she wear an ID tag equipped with an RFID chip that allowed the school to track her movements lost her court case yesterday. The case filed in a Texas federal court, was a strange one. San Antonio sophomore Andrea Hernandez objected to the RFID chip on the basis of theology, not privacy — she believes that the tracking tag is the Mark of the Beast warned of in the biblical book of... more »
The Queen of Smarts: Off with their Heads
*The Queen of Smarts: Off with their Heads*
If He’s So Important, Why Haven’t We Heard of Him? « The Core Knowledge Blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 58 minutes ago
If He’s So Important, Why Haven’t We Heard of Him? « The Core Knowledge Blog: If He’s So Important, Why Haven’t We Heard of Him?by E. D. Hirsch, Jr. *January 9th, 2013* Tags: Common Core State Standards, Samuel Messick, standardized tests Posted in Assessment and Testing, Education Practice, Education Theory, Educational Policy, Research and Reports | No Comments » *In Praise of Samuel Messick 1931–1998* Everyone who is anyone in the field of testing actually *has* heard of Samuel Messick. The American Psychological Association has instituted a prestigious annual scientific awardin ... more »
Bill Gates, it's time to start being ethical
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 59 minutes ago
Teamster Nation: Bill Gates, it's time to start being ethical: Bill Gates, it's time to start being ethical by Teamster Power Protesting unethical behavior.The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has 15 'Guiding Principles.' Here's No. 12: We demand ethical behavior of ourselves. We have a news flash for Bill, who's the primary owner of Republic Services, the second largest waste company in North America: It isn't ethical to take back the retirement benefits from employees who earned them over a lifetime of hard work. Here's another news flash: It isn't ethical to throw your employe... more »
Confidence Through Connectedness « My Island View
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Confidence Through Connectedness « My Island View: Confidence Through Connectedness by tomwhitby Confidence, as an educator, is something that is not a skill to be taught. It is not a method to be memorized. It is an attitude. It is a state of mind. It is also elusive to many educators. How do we foster confidence? How do we enable educators to be confident in their profession? To answer the question of confidence, I rely on my understanding of what I know of my own struggles with confidence. I am only confident in areas that I have a proven knowledge of the subject. I think most ... more »
Modern School: Gates Buying Candidates for Teachers Unions
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Modern School: Gates Buying Candidates for Teachers Unions: Gates Buying Candidates for Teachers Unions by Michael Dunn United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) just had one of its most contested elections ever for its decision-making body, the House of Representatives. 396 candidates fought for 209 positions, with 100 seats taken by rookie representatives, according to the LA Times. Many of these new delegates were sponsored by outside groups, like Educators 4 Excellence and Teach Plus. Another sponsoring organization, Teachers for a New Unionism, is headed byMike Stryer, former a... more »
Big Data, Algorithms, and Professional Judgment in Reforming Schools (Part 1) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Big Data, Algorithms, and Professional Judgment in Reforming Schools (Part 1) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Big Data, Algorithms, and Professional Judgment in Reforming Schools (Part 1) by larrycuban The crusade among reformers for data-driven decision-making in classrooms, schools, and districts didn’t just begin in the past decade. Its roots go back to Frederick Winslow Taylor‘s “scientific management” movement a century ago. In the decade before World War I and through the 1930s, borrowing from the business sector where Taylorism reigned, school boards... more »
Gates Still Doesn’t Get It! Trapped in a World of Circular Reasoning & Flawed Frameworks « School Finance 101
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Gates Still Doesn’t Get It! Trapped in a World of Circular Reasoning & Flawed Frameworks « School Finance 101: Gates Still Doesn’t Get It! Trapped in a World of Circular Reasoning & Flawed Frameworks by schoolfinance101 Not much time for a thorough review of the most recent release of the Gates MET project, but here are my first cut comments on the major problems with the report. The take home argument of the report seems to be that their proposed teacher evaluation models are sufficiently reliable for prime time use and that the preferred model should include about 33 to 50% tes... more »
The Norcross Experiment - Features - Atlanta Magazine
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
The Norcross Experiment - Features - Atlanta Magazine: The Norcross ExperimentNorcross High School is a microcosm of Atlanta public education. You couldn’t create a better lab for incubating great ideas—and this school has teachers and staff bubbling over with them. by Candice Dyer and Rebecca Burns Photograph by David Walter Banks Most schools in metro Atlanta are dominated by one demographic. They’re poor, affluent, white, black, or Hispanic. Their classrooms are filled with fourth-generation Georgians—or refugees who arrived in Atlanta last month. Maybe the hallways swarm with ho... more »
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-9-13 Diane Ravitch's blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Leave a Comment on PBS Frontline Page by dianerav If you watched the PBS documentary on “The Education of Michelle Rhee,” you should let PBS know what you thought of the program. You can leave a comment here or elsewhere on the website. The (D)Evolution of Denver’s Pay-for-Performance Model by dianerav Jeannie Kaplan is an elected member of the Denver school board. Denver is one of the major sites for corporate reform. Several commenters have asked about Denver’s pay-for-performance plan. I invited Kaplan ... more »
Kimble's Corner: Help Congressman Kimble with Hazing and Win a Free Copy of his eBook
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Kimble's Corner: Help Congressman Kimble with Hazing and Win a Free Copy of his eBook: Help Congressman Kimble with Hazing and Win a Free Copy of his eBook by Representative Kimble Friends, I have the best job in the world. Speaker Boehner has once again appointed me as Pledge Chairman and I am tasked with putting the GOP House Freshmen through their paces. Through heavy drinking, indoctrination, and embarrassment I will be leading the freshmen to better unity and friendships that they will treasure for their whole lives. There is something truly special about Congressmen in th... more »
The 50 million dollar lie | Gary Rubinstein's Blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
The 50 million dollar lie | Gary Rubinstein's Blog: The 50 million dollar lie by Gary Rubinstein Last year I spent a lot of time making scatter plots of the released New York City teacher data reports to demonstrate how unreliable value-added measurements are. Over a series of six posts which you can read hereI showed that the same teacher can get completely different value-added rankings in two consecutive years, in the same year with two different subjects, and in the same year with the same subject, but in two different grades. Here is an example of such a scatter plot, this on... more »
NGSS Public Review - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
NGSS Public Review - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Second Public Draft of Next Generation Science Standards Now Available for Review SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced the second draft of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is now available for public review and comment until January 29, 2013. NGSS is a new set of voluntary, rigorous, internationally benchmarked science standards. The new draft can be found at Next Generation Science Standards [image: External link opens in ne... more »
Teacher Observation Less Reliable Than Test Scores | toteachornototeach
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Teacher Observation Less Reliable Than Test Scores | toteachornototeach: Teacher Observation Less Reliable Than Test Scores by aristotlethewise Gates Foundation MET Report: Teacher Observation Less Reliable Than Test Scores [image: ednext_20113_Kane_open] by Joy ResmovitsNEW YORK — A few years ago, Bill Gates decided to learn more about whether a teacher’s effect on student learning could be measured. Three years, 3,000 teachers and about $50 million later, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation thinks it has the answers. On Tuesday afternoon in Phoenix, the Gates Foundation released th... more »
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Gates Foundation Flash: It Takes "Multiple Measures" to Judge Educators
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Gates Foundation Flash: It Takes "Multiple Measures" to Judge Educators: Gates Foundation Flash: It Takes "Multiple Measures" to Judge Educators by Melissa Westbrook From Ed Week: *Student feedback, test-score growth calculations, and observations of practice appear to pick up different but complementary information that, combined, can provide a balanced and accurate picture of teacher performance, according to research released today by the Bill &Melinda Gates Foundation. * * The $45 million study, in progress since 2009, is one of the largest a... more »
Schools Matter: Common Core Announces New High School Leaving Exam (Or Entrance Exam)
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Schools Matter: Common Core Announces New High School Leaving Exam (Or Entrance Exam): Common Core Announces New High School Leaving Exam (Or Entrance Exam) by skrashen Instructions: Read each question thoroughly. Answer all questions. Time limit - four hours. Begin immediately.* History Describe the history of the Papacy from its origins to the present day, concentrate specifically but not exclusively, on the social, political, economic, religious, and philosophical impact on Europe, Asia, America and Africa. Be brief, concise and specific. Literature Compose an epic poem based... more »
The 2013 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Presence Rankings :: Frederick M. Hess
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
The 2013 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Presence Rankings :: Frederick M. Hess: The 2013 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Presence Rankings *by Frederick M. Hess • Jan 9, 2013 at 6:05 am Cross-posted from Education Week* Print Send RSS [image: Share] Share Today, we unveil the 2013 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Presence rankings. The metrics, as explained yesterday are designed to recognize those university-based academics who are contributing most substantially to public debates about K-12 and higher education. The top scorers are familiar edu-names with long careers, bodies of influential scholarship... more »
Ravitch on Rhee
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Ravitch on Rhee: Ravitch on Rhee Posted by Valerie Strauss on January 9, 2013 at 12:15 am - [image: Smaller Text] [image: Larger Text] Text Size - Print - Reprints - Share: - - - More » [image: (by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post )] (by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post ) The PBS show “Frontline” on Tuesday night aired John Merrow’s documentary on school reformer Michelle Rhee, which focused on the 3 1/2 years she was chancellor of D.C. Public Schools. There is sure to be a variety of opinions on what it said and what it didn’t say. Here is the reactio... more »
Modern School: 11,000 Educators Fired in December
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Modern School: 11,000 Educators Fired in December: 11,000 Educators Fired in December by Michael Dunn Clean Up Your Act Teachers or You're Out! (Image from Flickr, by emilydickensonridesabmx) The Great Recession has been officially over for more than three years, but the plunder of the public sector and middle class wealth continues. According to the Department of Labor, more than 13,000 public sector workers were laid off in December, more than 11,000 of whom were teachers or other school employees (see WSWS). This is unusual. Typically, teacher layoff notices go out in February ... more »
A Beginning List Of The Best Posts On Gates’ Final MET “Effective Teaching” Report | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
A Beginning List Of The Best Posts On Gates’ Final MET “Effective Teaching” Report | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…: A Beginning List Of The Best Posts On Gates’ Final MET “Effective Teaching” Report by Larry Ferlazzo The Gates Foundation released its *Measures of Effective Teaching Project Releases Final Research Report*yesterday, and many of us are still trying to digest it. Here’s a very beginning list of posts about it, and I’ll be adding more and more (please let me know about ones I’m missing): Gates Releases Final Report On “Effective Teaching” was my post about it ye... more »
This Week In Education: Morning Video: Frontline Documentary On Rhee In DC
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
This Week In Education: Morning Video: Frontline Documentary On Rhee In DC: Morning Video: Frontline Documentary On Rhee In DC Watch The Education of Michelle Rhee on PBS. See more from FRONTLINE.
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz: Tenure “An Immoral Concept” | Scathing Purple Musings
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz: Tenure “An Immoral Concept” | Scathing Purple Musings: Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz: Tenure “An Immoral Concept” by Bob Sikes From NWF Daily News reporter Tom McLaughlin on Matt Gaetz meting yesterday with the League of Women Voters of Okaloosa County: Gaetz, “an unapologetic supporter of FCAT,” debated school testing and teacher tenure with a couple of former educators in the audience. One of them, Pat Burrough, said she couldn’t understand why the state would authorize an exam like Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test that she contended focused only on math... more »
Jersey Jazzman: Rhee's Phony Math
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman: Rhee's Phony Math: Rhee's Phony Math by Duke So the edu-blogosphere has lit into the StudentsFirst "report card" - and rightly so. Aside from the fact that SF doesn't rate states by their students' achievement level - *and isn't that the entire point of Rhee-form anyway?* - the categories and rubrics Michelle Rhee's outfit came up with are absurd. G.F. Brandenburg, who knows Rhee as well as anyone, takes a good look at how subjective and inane SF's criteria are. But even if SF had rational and relevant benchmarks for ranking states, the "report card" would still be... more »
NYC Educator: E4E Member Demands Evaluation Process
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
NYC Educator: E4E Member Demands Evaluation Process: E4E Member Demands Evaluation Process by NYC Educator *by guest blogger Suzy Surething* As a beginning teacher, I need guidance. Under the current evaluation system, I'm simply not getting what I need. I mean, sure, my AP observed me, and said I was unsatisfactory. But what does that really mean? I really need to know whether or not I am excellent or ineffective, and this observation does not measure that at all. For example, I was criticized because several students were throwing chairs out the window, and my AP claimed that wa... more »
RheeFormy Logic & Goofball Rating Schemes: Comments & Analysis on the Students First State Policy Grades « School Finance 101
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
RheeFormy Logic & Goofball Rating Schemes: Comments & Analysis on the Students First State Policy Grades « School Finance 101: RheeFormy Logic & Goofball Rating Schemes: Comments & Analysis on the Students First State Policy Grades by schoolfinance101 [image: Slide2] On Monday, the organization Students First came out with their state policy rankings, just in time to promote their policy agenda in state legislatures across the country. Let’s be clear, Students First’s state policy rankings are based on a list of what Students First thinks states should do. It’s entirely about the... more »
From No Child Left Behind to a Whole Child Education for All — Whole Child Education
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
From No Child Left Behind to a Whole Child Education for All — Whole Child Education: [image: ASCD Whole Child Bloggers]From No Child Left Behind to a Whole Child Education for All January 8, 2013 by ASCD Whole Child Bloggers Since 2006, ASCD has worked to support educators, families, community members, and policymakers in implementing a whole child approach to education that ensures students are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged. The latest issue of ASCD's *Policy Priorities* examines how much progress has been made at the federal and state levels in creating more... more »
Chicago school Inspector General: testing company conduct “egregious” Parents United for Responsible Education
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Chicago school Inspector General: testing company conduct “egregious”: Chicago school Inspector General: testing company conduct “egregious” by admin Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Pearson, two national testing giants, have been charged with “serious ethical problems” in their dealings with the Chicago Public Schools in the 2012 Chicago Public Schools Office of the Inspector General’s report. The OIG report refers to them as Vendor A and Vendor B but the Tribune has identified A as HMH and B as Pearson. The OIG calls HMH’s con... more »
Teacher Layoffs Make Way for School Privatization
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Teacher Layoffs Make Way for School Privatization: Teacher Layoffs Make Way for School Privatization by stuartbramhall [image: public schools] As he begins his second term, Obama’s school privatization agenda is chugging along at full steam. Citing the Department of Labor’s monthly employment report, the World Socialist Website reveals that 11,000 public school teachers were laid off in December 2012. This brings total teacher lay-offs since 2008 to 300,000. The layoffs are consistent with Obama’s decision to target public education for privatization and downsizing under Race to th... more »
The Character Clause and Bad School Rules | Connected Principals
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
The Character Clause and Bad School Rules | Connected Principals: The Character Clause and Bad School Rules by Aaron Ross Tomorrow, the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame will be announcing its newest inductees, paying tribute to those individuals whose lifetime on-field accomplishments have earned them the right to be called all-time greats. While there are always many long and involved discussions about who is worthy, what makes someone worthy, and so on, this year’s discussion is quite different than any that I can recall. For the first time, there are a significant number o... more »
New Statewide Testing System - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
New Statewide Testing System - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Superintendent Tom Torlakson Proposes New Statewide Testing System *Common Core Assessments to Focus on Problem Solving and Critical Thinking* **SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today recommended shifting the focus of standardized testing in California to require students to think critically, solve problems, and show a greater depth of knowledge—key tenants of the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS). In a report to the Governor and Legislature, *Recommendations for Transiti... more »
Schools Matter: Chicago Charter to Students: "Track Me" or Pay Up!
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Schools Matter: Chicago Charter to Students: "Track Me" or Pay Up!: Chicago Charter to Students: "Track Me" or Pay Up! by Jim Horn "Track Me!" takes on a whole new dimension when students and their parents are fined for failing to kowtow to every total compliance whim of the slimebags who run the corporate charter reform schools. In Chicago, these crooks are taking in hundreds of thousands in fines every year from some of the poorest families in Chicago. Where the hell is the ACLU or the lawyers of the Advancement Project??? Helloooo. The piece below on the Ignoble Network of Ch... more »
UPDATE: No action on pension. Breaking: Once again Nekritz pisses on the Illinois Constitution. « Fred Klonsky
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Breaking: Once again Nekritz pisses on the Illinois Constitution. « Fred Klonsky: Breaking: Illinois House adjourns. No action on pension. We live to fight another day. by Fred Klonsky At about 4:50, Speaker Madigan moved to adjourn the current session of the Illinois House. After a 45 minute delay while the Republicans caucused on the last ditch Hail Mary attempt by Representative Nekritz to undermine the Illinois Constitution once again, the House briefly convened and then acted on Madigan’s motion to adjourn. Make no mistake. For Nekritz and Quinn this was a bad political day. I... more »
State schools chief proposes replacing paper Scantron tests with computer-based ones - LA Daily News
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
State schools chief proposes replacing paper Scantron tests with computer-based ones - LA Daily News: State schools chief proposes replacing paper Scantron tests with computer-based ones By Barbara Jones, Staff Writer Posted: 01/08/2013 12:58:46 PM PST Updated: 01/08/2013 01:06:40 PM PST The standardized math and English exams that California students take each spring would be replaced with computer-based tests designed to assess critical-thinking and problem-solving skills under a proposal today by state schools chief Tom Torlakson. Outlined in a slate of a dozen recommendat... more »
Good move for special needs children Parents United for Responsible Education
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Good move for special needs children: Good move for special needs children by admin “Basically it was any excuse in the book to turn kids away.” Long time PURE member Amy Zimmerman and the group Health and Disability Advocates filed a complaint with the Illinois State Board of Education yesterday, charging that the Chicago Public Schools has repeatedly failed to evaluate the youngest children with disabilities and move them into special education preschool programs as required by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Edu... more »
Student test scores can identify effective teachers, new study says - latimes.com
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Student test scores can identify effective teachers, new study says - latimes.com: Student test scores can identify effective teachers, new study says Student standardized test scores can accurately identify effective teachers, along with other performance measures such as classroom observations and pupil surveys, according to a major national study released Tuesday. The study of 3,000 teachers in seven school districts by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation found that the controversial method of measuring student academic growth, known as value-added, was a valid indicator of ho... more »
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Speaking of Education Backwaters...
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Speaking of Education Backwaters...: Speaking of Education Backwaters... by Melissa Westbrook If you consider Washington State one of those (as the ed reformers in our state like to do), then how is this true? (from SPS Communications and OSPI): *For the fourth consecutive year, Washington state has placed second in the country in new National Board Certified teachers. * *Numbers released today by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards show that Washington has the second-most new NBCTs (575), behind only North Carolina, and is fou... more »
California Should Suspend Some Tests for 2013-14, Tom Torlakson Says - State EdWatch - Education Week
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
California Should Suspend Some Tests for 2013-14, Tom Torlakson Says - State EdWatch - Education Week: California Should Suspend Some Tests for 2013-14, Tom Torlakson Says By Andrew Ujifusa on January 8, 2013 3:57 PM California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson has proposed suspending several non-No Child Left Behind tests for the 2013-14 school, as part of a proposed overhaul of the state testing system to prepare for the Common Core State Standards. On Jan. 8, Torlakson released his recommendations for changing California's testing regimen. Suspending those tests... more »
Mother Crusader: A Foot Soldier In Rhee's Army Giving Orders To New Jersey
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago
Mother Crusader: A Foot Soldier In Rhee's Army Giving Orders To New Jersey: A Foot Soldier In Rhee's Army Giving Orders To New Jersey by darciecima I have seriously had it with these reformers. The sheer hubris and arrogance they display on a regular basis is simply astounding. I was dragged into this ed reform cesspool almost 2 years ago now, when a group of people with little to no connection to the schools of my community attempted to open a charter school. Despite the lack of community support, they were able to get the backing of a demi-billionaire, the NJDOE and the USDOE... more »
Diane in the Evening 1-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: Petrilli: What’s Wrong With Skimming the Best Students? by dianerav Mike Petrilli at the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute has an interesting post about the high expulsion rate in DC charters (72 students are expelled from DC charters for every one expelled from the public schools). Be sure to read the story in the Washington Post that he refers to as well as the short video, in which Mike Petrilli appears). Usually, corporate reformers insist that charter schools enroll exactly the same kids as the public schools. They even insist that attrition rat... more »
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee responds to federal investigation of alleged DCPS cheating - D.C. Schools Insider - The Washington Post
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee responds to federal investigation of alleged DCPS cheating - D.C. Schools Insider - The Washington Post: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee responds to federal investigation of alleged DCPS cheating By Emma Brown Federal investigators announced Monday that they found no evidence of widespread cheating in D.C. Public Schools, despite detailed allegations of systematic cheating laid out in a whistleblower complaintby former Noyes Education Campus principal Adell Cothorne. Now former D.C. Schools chancellor Michelle Rhee has released a statement in ... more »
Noa Rosinplotz- The Little Datapoint & The Big Bad Test | Student Voice
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Noa Rosinplotz- The Little Datapoint & The Big Bad Test | Student Voice: Noa Rosinplotz- The Little Datapoint & The Big Bad Test by admin [image: Noa Rosenplotz] The following Article was originally posted here: http://dianeravitch.net/2012/12/31/secretary-duncan-please-read-noa-rosinplotzs-letter/ *The Little Datapoint and the Big Bad Test* *Once upon a time, there was a little datapoint named Rosin Plotz, Noa. Her friends called her by her ID number, 9——, or 9 for short. She liked her job-most of the time. But 6 times a year, or 19 days in total, came the Big Bad Test. The Little... more »
Self-Serving v. Service: Teaching in a Celebrity Culture | the becoming radical
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Self-Serving v. Service: Teaching in a Celebrity Culture | the becoming radical: Self-Serving v. Service: Teaching in a Celebrity Culture Posted on January 8, 2013 by plthomasedd I taught high school English for eighteen years in rural upstate South Carolina, and two students remain with me. One student on his year-end final exam his junior year proceeded to ignore the exam and write a profanity-laced criticism of me and my course. He turned it in and calmly returned to his seat to wait out the exam period. Once I realized what he had written, I asked him to step across the hall wi... more »
The Role of 'Educators' | RealClearPolitics
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
The Role of 'Educators' | RealClearPolitics: The Role of 'Educators' *By* *Thomas Sowell* - January 8, 2013 EmailPrint 108 Comments[image: Share]Share Many years ago, as a young man, I read a very interesting book about the rise of the Communists to power in China. In the last chapter, the author tried to explain why and how this had happened. Among the factors he cited were the country's educators. That struck me as odd, and not very plausible, at the time. But the passing years have made that seem less and less odd, and more and more plausible. Today, I see our own educators pla... more »
SI&A Cabinet Report – One year cap on teacher prep programs up for debate
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources: One year cap on teacher prep programs up for debate *By Tom Chorneau* Tuesday, January 08, 2013 Growing demands on teacher preparation programs to cover all the necessary topics and issues needed to produce world-class educators have drawn new attention to the state law that restricts the training time to just one year. There are expectations that new teachers will not only graduate with some mastery of the latest and most effective instructional methods, but also that they will have developed some skills for dealing with California’s mus... more »
Statewide Pupil Assessment System - Assessment Information (CA Dept of Education)
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Statewide Pupil Assessment System - Assessment Information (CA Dept of Education): Statewide Pupil Assessment SystemLatest information about the reauthorization of California's assessment system. ------------------------------ SSPI’s Recommendations Report for Transitioning to a Future Assessment System California *Education Code* Section 60604.5 required the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) to consult with specific stakeholder groups in developing recommendations for the reauthorization of the statewide pupil assessment system, including a plan for transitioning ... more »
Schools Matter: For Rhee and Corporate Reform Schools, the Gig Is Up
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Schools Matter: For Rhee and Corporate Reform Schools, the Gig Is Up: For Rhee and Corporate Reform Schools, the Gig Is Up by Jim Horn The Face of Corporate Reform Schooling *From Stan Karp: Former Washington, DC Superintendent Michelle Rhee and her organization, Students First, will be the subject of a PBS documentary tonight. Despite misrepresenting her own teaching career, presiding over an extensive cheating scandal, and getting poor results during her tenure as Supt., Rhee has become the media face of corporate education reform. She recently released a “state report card” gradi... more »
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Back in the News in a Big Way - Dana Goldstein
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Back in the News in a Big Way - Dana Goldstein: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Back in the News in a Big Way by Dana Goldstein I'm looking forward to this evening's episode of FRONTLINE, which will explore evidence of adult tampering with children's tests in certain Washington, DC public schools during the chancellorship of Michelle Rhee, who is perhaps the nation's most controversial school reformer. The allegations are not new. They were first revealednearly two years ago by my colleague Greg Toppo and his crack reporting team at *USA Tod... more »
Frontline: D.C. schools downplayed cheating allegations
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Frontline: D.C. schools downplayed cheating allegations: Frontline: D.C. schools downplayed cheating allegations [image: Greg Toppo]GREG TOPPO Greg Toppo is USA Today's national K-12 education writer. He's interested in tech & how video games are changing school. A new documentary raises questions about whether Washington, D.C., school officials downplayed allegations that educators were cheating to improve students' scores on high-stakes skills tests — even after a principal came forward with her own eyewitness account. Washington's Noyes Education Campus was the subject of ... more »
Best of the Ed Blogs | National Education Policy Center
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Best of the Ed Blogs | National Education Policy Center: Best of the Ed Blogs *Best of the Ed Blogs* features a frequently updated selection of interesting and insightful blog posts on education policy. The views expressed by the bloggers on our blog roll are thoughtful, original, and entirely their own. We hope you make *Best of the Ed Blogs* your first stop for concise takes on today's most important education topics. Bronx Teacher Planning To Go On Hunger Strike Tomorrow Best of the Ed Blogs Steph Rivera January 8, 2013 Research Evidence vs Soaring Ideology: School Vouchers and ... more »
UPDATE: Pat Quinn ain’t nothing but a hound dog. « Fred Klonsky
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Pat Quinn ain’t nothing but a hound dog. « Fred Klonsky: I want to be in Atlanta in July. Who doesn’t? by Fred Klonsky [image: 530703_10151504122022067_1979784825_n] The NEA Representative Assembly is in Atlanta the week of July 4th. The IEA Representative Assembly is in April. I have gone to every one of those as a delegate for twenty years. But this year, I somehow didn’t receive the nominating form in the mail to run as a retired delegate. I’m not suggesting anything. It is just interesting that I didn’t get it. In the mail. From the state leadership. They were also the ones who as... more »
FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Tuesday, January 8, 2013
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Education Headlines *Tuesday, January 8, 2013* In wake of Connecticut school shooting, LAPD begins campus patrolsOfficers with the Los Angeles Police Department and other law enforcement agencies stepped up their presence at school campuses Monday in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre in Connecticut. Long Beach school board to consider cuts to AVID college prep programIn its regular meeting Tuesday, the LBUSD board will consider a plan to reduce the high school AVID program by 13 course sections, about half of those ... more »
The Empire Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee Built - Esquire
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee Finances - Esquire: The Empire Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee Built By Charles P. Pierce at 11:01am *One problem with* the education "reform" industry is not merely that it generally looks at "education" as though it were a commodity, like soybeans, and that the problems with how we educate a great many children of our fellow citizens can be solved if we just refine the delivery systems for the product. In other words, most education "reform" proponents treat "education" as though it exists in a vacuum unaffected by the factors — like, sa... more »
Watch this video and ask, “what do you desire?” #commoncore? I think not. « @ the chalk face
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Watch this video and ask, “what do you desire?” #commoncore? I think not. « @ the chalk face: Watch this video and ask, “what do you desire?” #commoncore? I think not. by Chalk Face Will schools in the coming years of CCSS and PARCC help students with what they desire? The makers of this video likely have no idea what is to come in education in the next few years. There was a stock image in the video of education: students sitting in desks, arranged in rows, and taking some kind of exam in a gymnasium. This is a very traditional image of education or schooling. If we are to believ... more »
NEA Health Information Network Surveys Schools on Indoor Environmental Quality | NEA Today
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
NEA Health Information Network Surveys Schools on Indoor Environmental Quality | NEA Today: NEA Health Information Network Surveys Schools on Indoor Environmental Quality by twalker *By Cindy Long* As communities began to tally up the astronomical costs left in Superstorm Sandy’s wake, there was an unexpected toll to add to the list – the cost of removing asbestos from storm damaged schools. Mark T. Sheehan High School in Wallingford, Connecticut, for example, was forced to close its doors after the winds tore off parts of the roof and littered the second floor with asbestos-conta... more »
Indiana’s Anti-Common Core Bill | Truth in American Education
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Indiana’s Anti-Common Core Bill | Truth in American Education: Indiana’s Anti-Common Core Bill Posted on January 8, 2013 by Shane Vander Hart Erin Tuttle at Hoosiers Against Common Core announced that the Indiana Senate Education Committee will be voting on a bill on January 16th co-authored by State Senators Scot Schneider and Dennis Krause. Embedded below is a draft of the bill. Indiana’s Anti-Common Core Bill We’ll be watching this vote closely.
What We Can Learn From Malala - Bridging Differences - Education Week
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
What We Can Learn From Malala - Bridging Differences - Education Week: What We Can Learn From Malala by Pedro Noguera Happy 2013 Deb, I hope you had a restful holiday. I've been thinking about Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old girl from Pakistan who was shot in the head by the Taliban for promoting the education of young women and girls. Though the injury she suffered was considered life-threatening, she was released from a hospital in Birmingham, England, late last week, and it looks as though she could recover fully. Her story is truly remarkable and it should be shared with you... more »
The Educated Reporter: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee: Getting as Good as She Gives
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
The Educated Reporter: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee: Getting as Good as She Gives: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee: Getting as Good as She Gives by Emily Richmond I've put together a round-up of the latest coverage of Michelle Rhee, from the new Frontline documentary airing tonight to her advocacy group's new report grading states for how well they hew to StudentsFirst's agenda. You'll find it all at EdMedia Commons. I've also got an in-depth Q&A with veteran education journalist John Merrow of PBS Newshour -- The Education of Michelle Rhee is the result of five years o...more »
MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] When Is a Zero Percent Dropout Rate Not a Zero Percent Dropout Rate? by dianerav Jonathan Pelto takes a closer look at the media hype surrounding Dr. Steve Perry’s fabled Capitol Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, Connecticut. Dr. Perry has claimed that the school has a zero percent dropout rate. This claim has repeated again and again by others. But is it true? Read on. What Did Rhee’s Report Card Actually Measure? by dianerav G.F. Brandenburg, retired math teacher, has done a close analysis of Miche... more »
Big Education Ape 2nd Banana 1-5-13 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 12-29-12 Recap of Last Week's Best Post Big Education Ape 2nd Banana 12-22-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 12-15-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 12-8-12 Recap of Last Week's Best Post Big Education Ape 2nd Banana 12-1-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 11-24-12 Recap of Last Week's Best Post Big Education Ape 2nd Banana 11-17-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 11-10-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 11-3-12 Recap of Last Week's Best PostBig Education Ape 2nd Banana 10-27-12 Recap of Last Week's Best Post
Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-8-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-7-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-6-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-5-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-4-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-3-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-2-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-1-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-31-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-30-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-29-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-28-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-27-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-26-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-25-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-24-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-23-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-22-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-21-2012 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-20-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-19-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-18-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-17-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2Big Education Ape Nite Cap 12-16-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2