Big Education Ape - Mid Day Banana Break
Sacramento Current--School Closures:"Too many Questions, too little time."
Cosmos Garvin's must read article raises many important questions about the districts push to close "under-enrolled" schools. The future of district bond measures is one issue that hasn't been talked about much in the debate over the closures. Just a few months ago the district sold voters on approving two bond measures to upgrade school facilities. The district had detailed assessments made of each site to give the public some knowledge of where the bond money would be spent. Now two months later eleven of those elementary schools are proposed for closure.
We'd like to hear Supt. Raymond and SCUSD board members answer this important question. If any of the
Strange Bedfellows Oppose Common Core in Indiana
We'd like to hear Supt. Raymond and SCUSD board members answer this important question. If any of the
Strange Bedfellows Oppose Common Core in Indiana
Glenda Ritz, the new State Superintendent of Public Instruction in Indiana, thrashed reform idol Tony Bennett last November. She received more votes than anyone else on the ballot except the Attorney General (she ran ahead of the governor).
Tony Bennett, who famously supports free-market solutions to education problems, is an advocate for charters and vouchers, for evaluating teachers by test scores, and for for-profit online corporations and charters. Tony Bennett is one of the nation’s loudest supporters of the Common Core.
Ritz is a Democrat; Bennett is a Republican.
Ritz was supported by a curious coalition: by parents and educators who disliked Bennett’s privatizing policies
Tony Bennett, who famously supports free-market solutions to education problems, is an advocate for charters and vouchers, for evaluating teachers by test scores, and for for-profit online corporations and charters. Tony Bennett is one of the nation’s loudest supporters of the Common Core.
Ritz is a Democrat; Bennett is a Republican.
Ritz was supported by a curious coalition: by parents and educators who disliked Bennett’s privatizing policies
“Don’t Let the Sorting Define You….”
Cross posted on Figuring It Out by Johnny Bevacqua
The other day I spoke to a group of students at our academic Honour Roll assemblies. For the last few years I have attended and spoken at these assemblies with mixed emotions and a sort of tension in my “gut”.
I have written before about awards in high school and the need to walk a bit of a “tight rope” . Yet the other day,
Quick Hits (2.7.13)
“Literally taking food out of the mouths of kids.” Several California school districts have spent nearly $170 million intended for free or reduced-price lunches on other school expenses, like sprinkler systems and trash removal. The misuse of funds, according to the legislative oversight report, has meant that eligible students have been denied the reduced-price lunch program. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Turtles drive people mad. A South Carolina college student’s turtle road-crossing project found that manydrivers intentionally swerved to hit the plastic dummy-turtle stationed in the road. (The Fayetteville Observer)
Straight from the source. Eighth-graders at this New York school re-design and re-create their desks, chairs,
Turtles drive people mad. A South Carolina college student’s turtle road-crossing project found that manydrivers intentionally swerved to hit the plastic dummy-turtle stationed in the road. (The Fayetteville Observer)
Straight from the source. Eighth-graders at this New York school re-design and re-create their desks, chairs,
An L.A. School Succeeds With Blended Learning
When you think of innovative ways to improve student achievement, the first thing that comes to mind is probablynot a classroom with one teacher and 48 students. But that’s precisely the set-up at Alliance Tennenbaum Family Technology High School, a new Los Angeles charter that’s using blended learning to improve outcomes for at-risk kids.
Tennenbaum, a member of Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, uses a rotational model of blended learning in which students get instruction three different ways. They go to one of three stations for 40 minutes at a time within two-hour blocks: one group gathers for traditional direct instruction with a teacher, other students work
Tennenbaum, a member of Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, uses a rotational model of blended learning in which students get instruction three different ways. They go to one of three stations for 40 minutes at a time within two-hour blocks: one group gathers for traditional direct instruction with a teacher, other students work
A Year at Mission Hill: Sparking Conversation
by Dana Bennis in Blog
Bill Gates and the Cult of Measurement: Efficiency Without Excellence
Bill Gates' annual letter came out last week, and can be read here.
A preview of his letter stated this:
Ever since the passage of No Child Left Behind in 2001, school reform has been driven by measurement and numerical goals. But unfortunately for the poor, we are not measuring what matters most, nor are our responses
A preview of his letter stated this:
This year, my letter focuses on the catalytic role that measurement can play in reducing hunger, poverty, and disease. Setting goals and measuring progress are obviously not new ideas. But over the last year, I've really been struck by the impact this can have improving the lives of the poorest.Measurement has been central to the Gates vision for improving schools in the US as well. But this approach has not, in my view, improved the lives of the poorest among our students.
Ever since the passage of No Child Left Behind in 2001, school reform has been driven by measurement and numerical goals. But unfortunately for the poor, we are not measuring what matters most, nor are our responses
Pathfinder K-8 Teachers Support MAP Boycott
Dear Superintendent Banda,
By unanimous agreement, Pathfinder K-8 teachers would like to express our full and unequivocal support for our colleagues across the district who have boycotted the MAP test. While it is true that there are certain uses for the MAP, and that some teachers find ways to make it useful, its costs far outweigh its benefits. We share the criticisms our colleagues have so thoughtfully conveyed to you. To provide one specific example, at Pathfinder students lose access to our computer lab for nearly 4 months of the school year. For many students, this is the only opportunity they have to use technology to support their learning. As educators, we must prioritize learning over testing and we sincerely hope that you share this philosophy.
Studio Ghibli at SIFF
As they did in June, SIFF is showing ten Studio Ghibli films, most of them in both English and Japanese, between February 15-21. Scroll the bottom of the post for discounts and a chance for free tickets!
If you are not familiar with this work, this is a wonderful opportunity to repair that tragic failure. I think all but one of the films are fine for children, most of them are brilliant for children, and nearly all of them are simply brilliant.
Small children will adore My Neighbor Totoro, Pom Poko, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Porco Rosso. Those
If you are not familiar with this work, this is a wonderful opportunity to repair that tragic failure. I think all but one of the films are fine for children, most of them are brilliant for children, and nearly all of them are simply brilliant.
Small children will adore My Neighbor Totoro, Pom Poko, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Porco Rosso. Those
School Closure Decisions Remain Opaque
As the city prepares for another round of school closure hearings this month, presumably the last under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, community leaders in some of the affected neighborhoods have questioned how the Department of Education identified this list of schools, and what exactly they could have done to keep a school off the list. The school closure process has, at times, shuttered schools that were showing progress and kept open persistently low-performing ones, leaving those outside the Department of Education to consider “early engagement,” the phase before possibly closing a school, an opaque process at best.
This school year, 60 struggling schools were identified for early engagement because they had low markers of achievement, such as low graduation rates, poor test scores or little student progress on those tests from year
This school year, 60 struggling schools were identified for early engagement because they had low markers of achievement, such as low graduation rates, poor test scores or little student progress on those tests from year
Examining the Relationships Among Classroom Goal Structure, Achievement Goal Orientation, Motivation and Self-regulated Learning for Ethnically Diverse Learners
The purpose of this study was to explore the learning strategies used by ethnically diverse learners and to investigate the relationships among the constructsof classroom goal structure, achievement goal orientation, motivation and self-regulated learning in an ethnically diverse population of fourth and fifth grade learners (n=396).
Goal setting, environmental restructuring, and seeking assistance from adults were described most frequently by
Goal setting, environmental restructuring, and seeking assistance from adults were described most frequently by
Throughout February: Safe Schools
Safety is and will always be a fundamental concern for schools. Students who aren't or don't feel safe at school cannot learn, and schools must ensure that their environments are both secure and supportive. The current debate on school safety brings with it a renewed interest in addressing safety, school climate, and mental health concerns at schools and promises to improve school policy and practice.
Yet while the current debate has engaged the nation in community-wide discussions, it also has the potential to overlook the voice of educators. Join us throughout February as we look at what educators (teachers, administrators, and counselors) believe is crucial to making our schools safe—not just physically safe, but safe
Yet while the current debate has engaged the nation in community-wide discussions, it also has the potential to overlook the voice of educators. Join us throughout February as we look at what educators (teachers, administrators, and counselors) believe is crucial to making our schools safe—not just physically safe, but safe
A possible key to curing students’ test anxiety? More stress
According to this weekend’s lead New York Times Magazine story, teachers would probably be doing students a favor by pitting them against each other more often.The story, ”Why Can Some Kids Handle Pressure While Others Fall Apart?“, surveys neuroscience research to try to figure out why top students sometimes freeze up on high-stakes exams. One answer, researchers say, is
Data show receiving schools not much better than those District proposes to close
A Notebook analysis of reading proficiency rates at schools affected by the District’s closing plan found that, overall, the schools assigned to receive students displaced by closings are similarly low-performing when compared to the schools targeted for closing.
Some proponents of school closings have argued that closings are a way to shift students into higher-performing schools, but this analysis does not support that view.
read more
Some proponents of school closings have argued that closings are a way to shift students into higher-performing schools, but this analysis does not support that view.
read more