Big Education Ape: Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-9-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

James Baldwin said it best:

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."

A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP

Tom Torlakson Appoints New EDMD DIrector - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 minutes ago

Tom Torlakson Appoints New EDMD DIrector - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Appoints New Director of the Educational Data Management Division SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced the appointment of Cindy Kazanis as the new director of the California Department of Education's (CDE) Educational Data Management Division. "Over her years with the Department of Education, Cindy has exhibited a much appreciated level of expertise and dedication to our work serving the students of California," Torlakson sa... more »

Big Education Ape - Mid Day Banana Break 1-9-13 #soschat #edreform

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 49 minutes ago

*Big Education Ape - Mid Day Banana Break* Maryland's Race To The Top Problems, Rhee In Tennessee: Ed Tonight by Joy Resmovits *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 impleme... more »

A School Voucher by Any Other Name

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

A School Voucher by Any Other Name: A School Voucher by Any Other Name By Heather L. Weaver, ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief at 11:25am Thirty million. That’s the amount of tax dollars that could be diverted annually from New Hampshire’s coffers to private schools by the year 2022 if the state is allowed to implement its new Education Tax Credit Program. Under the tax credit program, in exchange for donations to “scholarship organizations,” New Hampshire businesses will receive tax credits equal to 85 percent of the amount they donate. The scholarship organizations... more »

Education reform as a business

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Education reform as a business: Education reform as a business Posted by Valerie Strauss on January 9, 2013 at 11:59 am - [image: Smaller Text] [image: Larger Text] Text Size - Print - Reprints - Share: - - - More » [image: money in ed]Did you know that the education sector now represents nearly 9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product? That for-profit education is valued at $1.3 trillion, and is one of the largest U.S. investment markets? These facts were part of an advertisement for a conference for investors in for-profit education ventures, jus... more »

The Time Is Now: Make the Case for Educating the Whole Child — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

The Time Is Now: Make the Case for Educating the Whole Child — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Klea Scharberg]The Time Is Now: Make the Case for Educating the Whole Child January 9, 2013 by Klea Scharberg Whether you are a parent, educator, or community member, you can help turn political rhetoric about "investing in the future of our children" into reality. Join ASCD in helping your school, district, and community move from a vision for educating the whole child to sustainable, collaborative action. States and school districts across the country are adopting p... more »

School Tech Connect: Data Driven-- Data Quality Be Damned!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

School Tech Connect: Data Driven-- Data Quality Be Damned!: Data Driven-- Data Quality Be Damned! by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) The most helpful map I've ever seen. All-around intelligent person Josh Kalov has taken the Apples to Apples school utilization data and turned it into a visually awesome side-by-side comparison. Basically, you're looking at what CPS says about building utilization and comparing it what the open-source data gatherers working with Apples to Apples say, and you can see where these buildings are around the city. I would explain how to create these k... more »

Immigrant Students in Our Classrooms: "Always Scared" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Immigrant Students in Our Classrooms: "Always Scared" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Immigrant Students in Our Classrooms: "Always Scared" by Anthony Cody A recent report, Legal Violence in the Lives of Immigrants, from the Center from American Progress, written by Cecilia Menjivar and Leisy Abrego, documents the impact of law enforcement directed at our nation's eleven million undocumented immigrants. First, the brutal facts. Nearly 400,000 people a year have been deported since 2009. States like Arizona and Alabama have passed harsh laws that require local law e... more »

Diane in the Evening 1-9-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: Will Massachusetts Open a Charter to Skim $$ from a Great Public School? by dianerav Brockton High School has been hailed as one of the best high schools in the nation, celebrated for its excellent programs and high test scores. What makes its success especially impressive is that the school has 4,100 students and a large immigrant population. Now enters the SABIS for-profit charter chain, seeking to compete with Brockton High School. In this report, Bruce Baker on Rheeformy Logic & Goofball Rating Schemes by dianerav Bruce Baker has prepared what may b... more »

Frontline Rhee-view « InterACT

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Frontline Rhee-view « InterACT: Frontline Rhee-view by David B. Cohen I watched the Frontline report on Michelle Rhee last night, and there will be no shortage of more detailed critiques, so I’m going to offer just a couple of observations before moving on to the broader issue. (You can also see Frontline’s webpage for many critiques, and strongly negative reactions to both the reporting in the program and the subject herself). First, I found it striking how much Rhee’s tone and affect shift depending on the topic. When the question is about how she wields power and holds t... more »

Zak Malamed: Q & A With Suli Breaks Student Voice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Student Voice: Zak Malamed: Q & A With Suli Breaks by admin *Student Voice founding organizer Zak Malamed sits down with Suli Breaks for a Q and A:* Popout *Q: In your video, you provided us with a deeper understanding of the different perspectives students hear when pursuing a degree. How did these perspectives influence your education?*** *A:* They opened my eyes up to what TRUE education is, something I think I failed to acknowledge as a student. That was one of the primary reasons of me doing the poem. To highlight things that I neglected as a student, to other students, and... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight: The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight by Mike Klonsky "We don't need no stinkin' vote!" Pension robbers Quinn and Nekritz agree. (Sun-Times)O.K., the great pension robbery has failed -- at least for now. The Quinn-Nekritz gang that couldn't shoot straight, ended up shooting each other and their plot to violate the State Constitution and raid the pension fund of struggling retirees fizzled out with barely a whimper. But the culprits are still at large, parading around disguised as "progressives." Quinn is already... more »

The Education of Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee | FRONTLINE | PBS

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

The Education of Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee| FRONTLINE | PBS: FRONTLINE examines the legacy of one of America’s most admired & reviled school reformers. The Education of Michelle RheeFRONTLINE examines the legacy of one of America's most controversial school reformers. (53:37) loading [image: Email this]E-MAIL THIS FEATURED FROM THIS REPORT - January 8, 2013, 9:34 pmAfter Michelle Rhee: What Happened Next in D.C.’s Schools - January 8, 2013, 9:34 pmHow Do You Measure Success in School Reform? - January 8, 2013, 9:33 pmEducation Department Finds No Evidence Of... more »

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: National Board for Professional Teaching Standards

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: Celebrating 25 YearsOur Mission The mission of the National Board is to advance student learning and achievement by establishing the definitive standards and systems for certifying accomplished educators, providing programs and advocating policies that support excellence in teaching and leading, and engaging National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) and leaders in that process. The National Board seeks to elevate the status, voice, and role of accomplished teachers in shaping a... more »

Best of the Ed Blogs | National Education Policy Center

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 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. Self-Serving v. Service: Teaching in a Celebrity Culture Best of the Ed Blogs P.L. Thomas January 9, 2013 Urban Schools and Rural Poverty: A Review of Two New Books... more »

Joy Resmovits: Gates Teacher Study, California Test Pushback: Ed Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Joy Resmovits: Gates Teacher Study, California Test Pushback: Ed Today: Gates Teacher Study, California Test Pushback: Ed Today by Joy Resmovits *How Are Teachers Measured?* As we reported yesterday, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation finished its three-year, $50 million study on measuring teacher effectiveness. The researchers found that neither test scores nor observations alone will do the trick. Click here for WSJ's take, and here for another look in the Washington Post. *What Does Nate Silver think?*Just as the Gates Foundation released its report, the famous New York Times... more »

Shanker Blog » A Simple Choice Of Words Can Help Avoid Confusion About New Test Results

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Shanker Blog » A Simple Choice Of Words Can Help Avoid Confusion About New Test Results: A Simple Choice Of Words Can Help Avoid Confusion About New Test Results by Matthew Di Carlo In 1998, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) lowered the threshold at which people are classified as “overweight.” Literally overnight, about 25 million Americans previously considered as having a healthy weight were now overweight. If, the next day, you saw a newspaper headline that said “number of overweight Americans increases,” you would probably find that more than a little misleading. Americ... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, January 9, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *State schools chief urges cut in number of tests next year* Education Headlines *Wednesday, January 9, 2013* Long Beach school board votes to slash AVID college prep programA popular Long Beach Unified college prep program will enroll 260 fewer high school students next year and will cease to exist at middle and K-8 schools under the latest budget cuts. Petition error delays push for special election of Fresno Unified trusteeAn error by the Fresno County Office of Education has complicated plans to force a special election in th... more »

Good work. Now put your boots back on. « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours 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 - 7 hours 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 »

UPDATE: Texas Student Loses Lawsuit Against RFID School IDs « Student Activism

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours 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

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

*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 - 8 hours 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 - 8 hours 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 - 8 hours 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 - 8 hours 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 - 8 hours 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 - 8 hours 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 - 10 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 »

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-9-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Georgia Has a Group Supporting Public Education by dianerav After I wrote about a new parent group in Tennessee, I received a comment about a similar group in Georgia, protesting budget cuts and legislation hostile to public schools. Be sure to checkout their website, which has excellent resources for parents, educators and other concerned citizens: http://empoweredga.org/ “Here’s a similar group in Georgia, where we need it more than ever as we brace for the usual fun and games of Philadelphia Parents Sa... more »

Kimble's Corner: Help Congressman Kimble with Hazing and Win a Free Copy of his eBook

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 »

UPDATE: Schools Matter: Common Core Announces New High School Leaving Exam (Or Entrance Exam)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 10 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 - 11 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 - 11 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 - 11 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 - 11 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 - 23 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 - 23 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 - 23 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 - 1 day 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 »

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