Big Education Ape: Big Education Ape Nite Cap 3-8-13 #SOSCHAT #NPE #EDCHAT #P2

Friday, March 8, 2013

Big Education Ape Nite Cap 3-8-13 #SOSCHAT #NPE #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

SPECIAL Mid Day Banana Break 3-8-13 #soschat #edreform

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 31 minutes ago

*Big Education Ape - Mid Day Banana Break* State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Reports More Children Participate in School Breakfast Programs *Torlakson Urges Proper Nutrition to Aid in Student Achievement* **SACRAMENTO—While an average of 1.3 million California children each day participate in the state's School Breakfast Program, about 63,000 more last year than in 2011, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson marked National School Breakfast Week by urging families to make sure all children get the nourishing food they need to succeed in school. "Breakfast is th... more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Based On a Mistruth

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Based On a Mistruth: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Based On a Mistruth by Duke The new proposals for changes in teacher evaluation in New Jersey - code name: *Operation Hindenberg* - have been made public by Education Commissioner Chris Cerf. And you know what's really amazing? The first sentence in Cerf's proposal - the *very first sentence *- is a mistruth, slickly packaged to give the NJDOE plausible deniability for misleading the public about the need for a revision in teacher evaluations. Here it is: In schools, teachers and leaders have the ... more »

High School Feminism Students Address School Sexual Harassment at UN Commission on Status of Women « Feminist Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

High School Feminism Students Address School Sexual Harassment at UN Commission on Status of Women « Feminist Teacher: High School Feminism Students Address School Sexual Harassment at UN Commission on Status of Women by feministteacher My high school feminism students, Josey Stuart and Noel Diggs, (front) and Emily Morenike Carpenter from Girls for Gender Equity spoke on a panel addressing the findings in the AAUW report, Crossing the Line: Sexual Harassment at School. (photo credit: Ileana Jiménez). * *This year’s 57th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women taking pl... more »

Diane in the Evening Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Corporate Reform in Idaho by dianerav A reader in Boise sends the following comment about the trial of Khan Academy videos, funded by the Albertson Foundation: From the article linked in Diane’s post: “The statewide pilot received $1.5 million for training, technology, technical assistance and assessment from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation.” The Albertson Foundation has given over $500 million to Idaho schools over the years, but for the past few years its efforts have been devoted to promoting some... more »

UPDATE: Scenes from a day of protest (with images) · PSNotebook · Storify

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Scenes from a day of protest (with images) · PSNotebook · Storify: A disappointing morning after at Germantown High and Fulton Elementary by thenotebook *by Neema Roshania* It was a solemn Friday morning in Northwest Philadelphia as students, parents and teachers grappled to come to terms with the School Reform Commission's decision on Thursday night to shutter three neighborhood schools. Image: Image Caption: On Thursday, supporters of Germantown High School learned their high school would be closing. read more Listen: Hite and mayor's top education officer discuss closings vote... more »

Ravitch forms advocacy group to counter Rhee and other school reformers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Ravitch forms advocacy group to counter Rhee and other school reformers: Ravitch forms advocacy group to counter Rhee and other school reformers Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 8, 2013 at 12:33 pm [image: ravitch] (DianeRavitch.com) Diane Ravitch, the education historian who has become the leader of a national movement opposing corporate-inspiredschool reform, has formed an advocacy group as a counter to Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst and like-minded organizations that are pushing standardized test-based and other changes in education policy. The Network for Public Education will c... more »

The Cla$$room of the Future | EduShyster

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

The Cla$$room of the Future | EduShyster: The Cla$$room of the Future by edushyster2012 A Teach for the Universe corps member bringing excellence from another planet. Today we’re headed to a magical place where excellence is the order of the day, expectations are always set to 11 (one point higher than their highest setting) and the Harlem Shake is but a distant, embarrassing memory. Where is this dream destination, you ask? *In the future*. Make that the cla$$room of the future to be precise. But what will this super cool place look like and is there any limit to the number of stu... more »

UPDATE: School Tech Connect: Maybe I'm Wrong...

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

School Tech Connect: Maybe I'm Wrong...: Maybe I'm Wrong... by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) ...but, what the hell does this even mean? Chicago ACTS has pushed for all charter school operators to agree to a code of conduct protecting the rights of charter school staff that choose to organize for a voice at their school. *We now have received a commitment from the management of UNO Charter Schools to respect your rights to choose to have a union.* This means you can feel confident in openly learning about and discussing how a union of teachers and staff at UNO schools can empo... more »

UPDATE: Oberlin Hate Crimes + Cooper Union Is Still Tuition-Free |

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Cooper Union Is Still Tuition-Free |: Were the Oberlin Hate Crimes Hoaxes? Sure Doesn’t Look Like It. by Angus Johnston Oberlin College has seen no fewer than seven alleged bias incidents in the last month — five separate acts of racist and homophobic graffiti, one robbery, and a sighting of a figure in a klan robe. The college cancelled classes this Monday for a series of all-campus events relating to the incidents, and as many as a third of Oberlin’s undergraduates are said to have attended a rally against hate that afternoon. Recently, however, some have alleged that the whole s... more »

Deasy: Political contributors “invest in L.A. schools” | InterACT

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Deasy: Political contributors “invest in L.A. schools” | InterACT: Deasy: Political contributors “invest in L.A. schools” by David B. Cohen Like many interested observers around the country, I’ve been following the school board elections in Los Angeles. That’s partly out of general interest in a high profile drama involving the politics of education, the same way I’d pay some attention to a large district election almost anywhere in the country. It’s also a personal interest in my hometown, in a district where I was a student, and where I have friends and relatives attending the... more »

Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Midcourse Report Released Today — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Midcourse Report Released Today — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: ASCD Whole Child Bloggers]Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Midcourse Report Released Today March 8, 2013 by ASCD Whole Child Bloggers In an effort to increase physical activity levels of all American youth, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today released the report, *Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Midcourse Report: Strategies to Increase Physical Activity Among Youth* (PDF), as a five-year follow-up to the 2008 Physic... more »

In Connecticut, Where There’s a Reformy Con, There’s a CAN! (a new post by Prof. Bruce Baker) - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

In Connecticut, Where There’s a Reformy Con, There’s a CAN! (a new post by Prof. Bruce Baker) - Wait, What?: In Connecticut, Where There’s a Reformy Con, There’s a CAN! (a new post by Prof. Bruce Baker) by jonpelto Below is a link to a new column written by Bruce Baker on his blog School Finance 101. Baker is a Professor in the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers. He is also one of the nation’s leading experts on school finance policy. No, actually I take that back, he is the nation’s leading expert on school finance policy. He is also very knowledgeable about the strength... more »

A teachers’ contract not for teachers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

A teachers’ contract not for teachers: A teachers’ contract not for teachers Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 8, 2013 at 10:30 am [image: contract]What does it mean for parents to support teachers? Philadelphia school activist and parent Helen Gym tells us in this post, which appeared on the Parents United for Public Education website. By Helen Gym Like many parents across the city, thepreliminary release of some of the terms of the Philadelphia teachers contract made me heartsick. For months I had watched city and district leaders make promises about mass school closings – they w... more »

Interns lose status as authorized English learner instructors SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources: *Interns lose status as authorized English learner instructors* *By Tom Chorneau* Friday, March 08, 2013 Despite pleas from an overflow crowd largely supporting existing state policies governing the role of interns in the classroom, the state credentialing commission moved Thursday to end a practice that gave some student teachers an authorization to oversee English learner instruction before completing the specialized training. Although the Commission on Teacher Credentialing will need to take formal action amending state regulations sometim... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Friday, March 8, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *Sacramento City district trustees vote to keep open Tahoe, Twain schools* Education Headlines *Friday, March 8, 2013* San Luis Coastal weighs cutting summer schoolThe San Luis Coastal Unified School District is contemplating a one-year hiatus for the majority of its summer school courses to save money as the district grapples with a $6 million deficit. Fresno Unified wants energy funds linked to poverty, climateFresno Unified leaders Thursday afternoon urged state lawmakers to consider poverty and extreme weather conditions wh... more »

Charter School Authorizers Group Issues 2012 Professional Practice Index - National Association of Charter School Authorizers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Charter School Authorizers Group Issues 2012 Professional Practice Index - National Association of Charter School Authorizers: Charter School Authorizers Group Issues 2012 Professional Practice Index [image: Charter Schools - Dividing Communities since 1991] *NACSA report provides roadmap for better charter schools* March 6, 2013 (CHICAGO) –The National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) today released its *2012 Index of Essential Practices*, a set of professional practices to guide quality charter school approval and monitoring. Good charter school authorizing is ... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Byrd-Bennett's 'independent" panel

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Byrd-Bennett's 'independent" panel: Byrd-Bennett's 'independent" panel by Mike Klonsky What's wrong with this loaded lead sentence in today's Sun-Times editorial? *The head of the Chicago Public Schools got the blessing this week to close as many as 70 schools by June, the nod coming from an independent panel she convened to help her decide how many under-used schools CPS could responsibly shutter. -- *"Close schools over two years, not one" Well first, how can a panel be "independent" if it is hand-picked by the schools CEO? And why call it "ind... more »

UPDATE: Center School Ruling Seattle Schools Community Forum: Friday Open Thread

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Friday Open Thread: Center School Ruling by Melissa Westbrook From Superintendent Banda (partial): *The committee made the following recommendations, which I am implementing. The race and gender units of the course are to be reinstated, with the following actions occurring as soon as possible: · The race unit curriculum should be age appropriate and taught in a non-threatening manner. The class should not use the “Courageous Conversations” activities, which were intended as training for adults. The District has used this as professional development... more »

Is Rick Scott a wildcard on 'parent trigger' bill? | Tampa Bay Times

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

Is Rick Scott a wildcard on 'parent trigger' bill? | Tampa Bay Times: Is Rick Scott a wildcard on 'parent trigger' bill? - [image: Kathleen McGrory]Kathleen McGrory, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau Thursday, March 7, 2013 6:44pm Facebook 8 Email Share 18 - Print - 14 TALLAHASSEE — A bill that empowers parents. A bill that hands public schools over to private interests. A red herring. No matter what you think of the so-called "parent trigger" proposal, one thing was made clear Thursday: The bill will be among the most contentious of the legislative session. The pro... more »

UPDATE: Gun incident at Grady High highlights socio-economic divide. Can students overcome differences? | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Gun incident at Grady High highlights socio-economic divide. Can students overcome differences? | Get Schooled: Questions for DeKalb school board candidates: Vision, inspiration, student achievement by Maureen Downey [image: Here are the questions sent to the 400 applicants for the DeKalb Board of Education. (AJC)]Here are the questions sent to the 400 applicants for the DeKalb Board of Education. (AJC) Gun incident at Grady High highlights socio-economic divide. Can students overcome differences? by Maureen Downey [image: Grady High student Joe Lavine shot this photo of the gun ... more »

Sac Unified May Lay Off 20 Teachers | KTXL FOX40

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Sac Unified May Lay Off 20 Teachers | KTXL FOX40: Sac Unified May Lay Off 20 Teachers - [image: See bio, contact info, and more articles from Luana Munoz] 8 hours ago by Luana Munoz Reporter - *Sacramento Unified Considers Closing 11 Elementary Schools* SACRAMENTO- It has been an ongoing battle as parents push to save schools from closing, but tonight more frustrating news. As the district looks to save money parents and teachers are bearing the brunt. Proposed budget reductions would cut 20 teacher positions, a grant writing position and many more all to save the di... more »

SRC votes to close Germantown High, Fulton and Kinsey elementaries; spares Roosevelt | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

SRC votes to close Germantown High, Fulton and Kinsey elementaries; spares Roosevelt | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: SRC votes to close Germantown High, Fulton and Kinsey elementaries; spares Roosevelt by thenotebook *by Aaron Moselle* Vera Primus' eyes said it all. Her words added an exclamation point. "I'm just floored," said a teary Primus, Germantown High School's alumni association president on Thursday night after learning that her alma mater would close at school-year's end. "They don't care nothing about these kids." Image: Image Caption: A rally for neighborhood sc... more »

Give me your tired test prep assignments, your poor #CCSS homework examples… – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Give me your tired test prep assignments, your poor #CCSS homework examples… – @ the chalk face: Give me your tired test prep assignments, your poor #CCSS homework examples… by Chris Cerrone [image: @TCF on Blog Talk Radio] … your huddled students yearning to learn free from corporate education reform. Here *At the Chalkface* we have had several articles that have been widely read and shared recently: http://atthechalkface.com/2012/12/12/is-your-child-getting-a-worksheet-education/ http://atthechalkface.com/2013/03/05/kindergarteners-get-ready-to-confront-the-new-economy/ http://att... more »

Joy Resmovits: Diane Ravitch Launches Network For Public Education; Closure News In Philadelphia, Chicago, New York -- Ed Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Joy Resmovits: Diane Ravitch Launches Network For Public Education; Closure News In Philadelphia, Chicago, New York -- Ed Today: Diane Ravitch Launches Network For Public Education; Closure News In Philadelphia, Chicago, New York -- Ed Today by Joy Resmovits THE NETWORK FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION (CLICK PICTURE) [image: The Network for Public Education (click picture)] WE ARE MANY. THERE IS POWER IN OUR NUMBERS. TOGETHER, WE WILL SAVE OUR SCHOOLS. THE NETWORK FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION *Diane Ravitch's New Group* On Wednesday morning, a group of education activists across the country -- incl... more »

Schools Matter: Weingarten Gets Arrested for the Cameras in Philadelphia While Remaining Janus-Faced on Charter Schools

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Schools Matter: Weingarten Gets Arrested for the Cameras in Philadelphia While Remaining Janus-Faced on Charter Schools: Weingarten Gets Arrested for the Cameras in Philadelphia While Remaining Janus-Faced on Charter Schools by Jim Horn Randi Weingarten is in Philadelphia, pretending to put herself in between the closing of 23 schools and the opening of a new batch of corporate welfare charter schools to replace them. Below is her staged arrest. Seems pretty calm there, Randi. Popout Now when you go on the AFT website and start to look at the charter-friendly historical revis... more »

Daily Kos: Conservative Leadership Poor Stewardship of Public Funds

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Daily Kos: Conservative Leadership Poor Stewardship of Public Funds: Conservative Leadership Poor Stewardship of Public Funds by rss@dailykos.com (plthomasEdD) In South Carolina and across the U.S., conservative leadership of education reform has failed to fulfill a foundational commitment to traditional values, good stewardship of public funds. [1] The evidence of that failed stewardship is best exposed in commitments to three education reform policies: Adopting and implementing Common Core State Standards (CCSS), designing and implementing new tests based on CCSS, and proposing... more »

Jersey Jazzman: God Bless Randi Weingarten

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: God Bless Randi Weingarten: God Bless Randi Weingarten by Duke Lord knows I've had my disagreements with Randi Weingarten in the past - good faith disagreements, yes, but strong disagreements nonetheless. Let me be among the first to say, however, that this took a lot of guts: Randi Weingarten and other protestors were arrested and hauled off in handcuffs while demonstrating against school closings in Philadelphia. Neither the Mayor nor the School Reform Commission was willing to meet with Weingarten. After her release from custody, said the article in the Huffin... more »

Ed Notes Online: Chicago Teacher Union PRES. At NYCoRE conf Sat. March 16th

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Ed Notes Online: Chicago Teacher Union PRES. At NYCoRE conf Sat. March 16th: Chicago Teacher Union PRES. At NYCoRE conf Sat. March 16th by ed notes online And MORE and Change the Stakes too. I'm so excited. Given that Sat all day is tied up with FIRST LEGO League robotics at Javits (come on down - free and open to public) and next Sat with NYCORE, and since we still have one car and my wife won't be able to go to the gym, I expect to be living in the reconstruction zone of my house by St. Patrick's Day. Hi all, Next sat, March 16th, is the NYCoRE annual. Its an amazing conference ... more »

What’s Happening to Adult Education? | Edspace

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

What’s Happening to Adult Education? | Edspace: What’s Happening to Adult Education? March 7, 2013, 12:05 pm • Posted by Maxine Einhorn EmailShareTwitterFacebookComments (2) [image: photo by Lillian R. Mongeau/Oakland North] photo by Lillian R. Mongeau/Oakland North In his budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2013-2014, Governor Jerry Brown announced that California is no longer facing a budget deficit. In relation to funding education, his budget increases state funding per student in K-12 schools to $2,700 by 2016-2017. For K-12 and community colleges, funding is projected to increase b... more »

Louisiana Educator: No Trust in New MFP and Jindal "Deforms"

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Louisiana Educator: No Trust in New MFP and Jindal "Deforms": No Trust in New MFP and Jindal "Deforms" by Michael Deshotels In addition to all the changes in teacher evaluation, vouchers, course choice programs, and the transition to the common core curriculum, school systems will now have to contend with a radically changed MFP. It almost seems as though State Superintendent White and Governor Jindal are trying to implement every radical education change ever conceived and make the students and educators of Louisiana the guinea pigs of untested education reform. There is appare... more »

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 3-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] School Closings in Chicago: Call in the Lawyers by dianerav Chicago’s Superintendent Barbara Byrd-Bennett knows better, but she is following orders. Just following orders. The “independent panel” that she convened advised her to go full steam ahead. Who will be hurt? African-American children, African-American families and communities. Barbara, don’t do it. Barbara, tell Rahm no. Barbara, you know this is wrong. Serve the children, not the corporations, hedge ... more »

UPDATE: Illinois has one of the best funded public employee pensions + Chicago students boycott the NAEP to demand safety. | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Chicago students boycott the NAEP to demand safety. | Fred Klonsky: Stand up. The day the teachers said no. by Fred Klonsky Popout Illinois has one of the best funded public employee pensions in the country. by Fred Klonsky What? That’s what I said. *Illinois has one of the best funded public employee pensions in the country.* Of course, I’m not talking about any of the Illinois state public employee pension systems. Rather, I’m talking about IMRF, the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund. Public employees who work for local municipalities outside of Cook County draw their pensions fr... more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation Disaster: Here Come the Lawsuits!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation Disaster: Here Come the Lawsuits!: NJ Teacher Evaluation Disaster: Here Come the Lawsuits! by Duke *I originally posted this piece on October 11, 2011. Given the disaster that is about to befall us with the Cerf proposals for teacher evaluation changes in New Jersey, I think I was quite prophetic. OK, I got the "Vice-President Christie" part wrong, but maybe I was just a little early... * TRENTON, NJ -- December 10, *2016* In a stunning blow to the crumbling education "reform" movement, the New Jersey Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling... more »

Diane Ravitch to lead new organization into political trenches | EdSource Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Diane Ravitch to lead new organization into political trenches | EdSource Today: Diane Ravitch to lead new organization into political trenches - by John Fensterwald by John Fensterwald Author Diane Ravitch, a hero of unionized teachers, is leading a new politically active national organization whose purpose is to “give voice to the millions of parents, educators, and other citizens who are fed up with corporate-style reform.” The Network for Public Education, announced Thursday, hasn’t decided whether it will contribute to candidates, but it will promote them, in the hope that ... more »

Daily Kos: Global Temperatures Highest in 4,000 Years

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Daily Kos: Global Temperatures Highest in 4,000 Years: Global Temperatures Highest in 4,000 Years by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) That is the title of this *New York Times* story which warns that over the coming decades are likely to surpass levels not seen on the planet since before the last ice age. The article is reporting on new research scheduled for publication on Friday in the journal Science, Shaun Marcott, an earth scientist at Oregon State University, and his colleagues compiled the most meticulous reconstruction yet of global temperatures over the past 11,300 years, ... more »

MAP Test Boycott: The Movie | Seattle Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

MAP Test Boycott: The Movie | Seattle Education: MAP Test Boycott: The Movie

Schools Matter: Stacking Boards: Seating the "Reform Majority"

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Schools Matter: Stacking Boards: Seating the "Reform Majority": Stacking Boards: Seating the "Reform Majority" by Storm Guest Post by John Harris Loflin of the Education-Community Action Team, Indianapolis *National agenda to seat "reform majority" school boards in key cities * * * *“Lead the effort to seat ‘reform majority’ school boards in several key cities.” * ~ Democrats for Education Reform, “A Year of Impact” 2012 DfER accomplishment It looks like the January 7, 2013 Stand for Children (SfC) “celebration” for their 3 endorsed IPS school board commissioners (Arnold, Cosby... more »

Tony Bennett’s Curious Meddling in Parent Trigger | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Tony Bennett’s Curious Meddling in Parent Trigger | Scathing Purple Musings: Tony Bennett’s Curious Meddling in Parent Trigger by Bob Sikes So Parent Trigger legislation predictably moved through a House committee yesterday along party lines by a 8-5 vote. But the most interesting news of the day came in the form of a letter that Florida’s new education commissioner, Tony Bennett sent to the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Kelli Stargel (R-Lakeland) and Rep, Carlos Trujillo (R-Miami). See this Kathleen McGrory story in *The Buzz *for the link. Consider this part of Bennett’s March 6 lette... more »

Protesting ... mostly in vain | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Protesting ... mostly in vain | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Protesting ... mostly in vain by thenotebook *by Bill Hangley, Jr. * A day that began with big crowds, high spirits, and defiant speeches ended with disappointment for most opponents of Philadelphia’s school closing plan. “I’m totally numb,” said veteran activist “Mama” Gail Clouden as the crowd filed out of the auditorium at School District headquarters in the wake of a series of votes that closed 23 schools and spared just four. “This is unbelievable to me.” “There’s a way to do this, and do it right, and they ch... more »

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 3-7-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

*Nite Cap UPDATE**UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE* *CORPORATE ED REFORM* * * Chicago Students Boycott the NAEP to Demand Safety by Anthony Cody *Guest post by Leslie Leon with Yoseling Cueto.* Hello my name is Leslie Leon. I am an 18 year old senior at Gage Park High School on Chicago Southwest side. I was born in Chicago, Illinois but raised in Imlay city, Michigan. My parents only wanted the best for my family, therefore we moved to Michigan for a safer life. My parents decided to move back to my hometown in 2010. My life took a whole "U" turn. Everything was different, I couldn't a... more »

Educators, You Might Be A Good, Racist Person Too | The Jose Vilson

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

Educators, You Might Be A Good, Racist Person Too | The Jose Vilson: Educators, You Might Be A Good, Racist Person Too by Jose Vilson Ta-Nehisi Coates has a message for good, honest folk. Read: But much worse, it haunts black people with a kind of invisible violence that is given tell only when the victim happens to be an Oscar winner. The promise of America is that those who play by the rules, who observe the norms of the “middle class,” will be treated as such. But this injunction is only half-enforced when it comes to black people, in large part because we were never meant to... more »

School Tech Connect: School Board Meeting Tomorrow

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

School Tech Connect: School Board Meeting Tomorrow: School Board Meeting Tomorrow by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) No, it's not CPS. It's a citywide People's School Board Meeting. Here in the city we have no democratic access to school policy, so it looks like we're just going to have to start having our own meetings. See you there!

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: It's hitting the fan in Philly

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: It's hitting the fan in Philly: It's hitting the fan in Philly by Mike Klonsky Protesters gather before start of meeting of the School Reform Commission March 7, 2013 before vote to order the largest mass school closing in history. ( TOM GRALISH / Inquirer ) Well the shit has hit the fan in Philly as the gaggle of corporate school reforms who call themselves the School Reform Committee, are moving to close 27 neighborhood schools. 19 protesters including AFT Prez *Randi Weingarten*, have been arrested so far today with hundreds more protesting outside... more »

AFT leader Randi Weingarten arrested for protesting school closings hearing in Phillie

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

AFT leader Randi Weingarten arrested for protesting school closings hearing in Phillie: * * AFT leader Randi Weingarten arrested for protesting school closings hearing in Phillie Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 7, 2013 at 8:09 pm 2 Comments More [image: Randi Weingarten being put under arrest. (Photo By Helen Gym)] Randi Weingarten being put under arrest. (Photo By Helen Gym) American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten was arrested along with 18 other activists in Philadelphia today as they were protesting a hearing by the School Reform Commission on a plan to close n... more »

VIDEO: Randi Weingarten Arrested For Protesting Philadelphia School Closure Hearing

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

Randi Weingarten Arrested For Protesting Philadelphia School Closure Hearing: Randi Weingarten Arrested For Protesting Philadelphia School Closure Hearing by Joy Resmovits NEW YORK -- Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, was arrested Thursday afternoon for blocking a school reform hearing in Philadelphia, an AFT spokesperson told The Huffington Post. Weingarten reportedly stood outside the meeting of the Philadelphia School Reform Commission, in which the group was supposed to decide which Philadelphia Public Schools would clos... more »

BREAKING NEWS: AFT president Randi Weingarten was among a group of protesters arrested in Philadelphia

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

Tell Mayor Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.: *BREAKING NEWS:* AFT president Randi Weingarten was among a group of protesters arrested in Philadelphia this evening for engaging in civil disobedience to protest the city’s proposed public school closures. *Show your support for this courageous action. Tell Mayor Michael Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.* Mayor Nutter and the School Reform Commission want to close 29 of the city’s public schools, a reckless strategy that won’t help kids and won’t save money. These harmful closures will... more »

Breaking News: New Group to Oppose Corporate Reforms by Diane Ravitch - Perdaily.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

Breaking News: New Group to Oppose Corporate Reforms by Diane Ravitch - Perdaily.com: Breaking News: New Group to Oppose Corporate Reforms by Diane Ravitch by Leonard Isenberg [image: Diane Ravitch 2.jpeg] (Mensaje se repite en Español)Breaking News: New Group to Oppose Corporate Reformsby dianerav Dear Friends, It is time to organize to support our children, our schools, and our educators against the well-funded attacks on them. Please join me and a group of education leaders from across the country in building a movement for improving and strengthening our schools with research-b... more »

Bill Gates greeted by standing ovation from…teachers? | Digital

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Bill Gates greeted by standing ovation from…teachers? | Digital: Bill Gates greeted by standing ovation from….teachers? by Anya Kamenetz Patti Freudenberg works for the Clear Creek Independent School District in the Houston-Galveston area, where she is the "Teaching American History Grant Specialist," currently leading groups of history teachers to historical sites around the US on a Department of Education grant. Clad in leopard print, she arrived bright and early Thursday morning to sit in the very front row of Bill Gates' closing keynote at the South by Southwest Edu conferenc... more »

Neovouchers: The debate continues

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Neovouchers: The debate continues: Neovouchers: The debate continues Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 7, 2013 at 5:15 pm 1 Comments More [image: taxcrdit3]Here’s the latest in a debate on tax credits for private school — dubbed “neovouchers” — that started with this post that I wrote enttitled, “Welfare for the rich? Private school tax credit programs expanding.” Jason Bedrick of the Cato Institute wrote a dissenting March 1st statement on the Hoover Institution’s Education Next Blog in support of these tax credit programs, and in turn, Kevin Welner, director of the National Edu... more »

SCUSD Stonewalls the Community By Denying Access to Budget Data | The Sacramento Coalition to Save Public Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

SCUSD Stonewalls the Community By Denying Access to Budget Data | The Sacramento Coalition to Save Public Education: SCUSD Stonewalls the Community By Denying Access to Budget Data by Kate_Lenox Last Tuesday evening the Putting Students First Coalition hosted a community budget forum. The presenter was Karen Swett, a retired SCUSD teacher who has spent years working with district budget s and is one of the founders of the non-profit Making Cents Work. The non-profit is dedicated to empowering parents and community members with the knowledge of how to read district budgets and mak... more »