Big Education Ape: Big Education Ape - Morning Wink 5-9-13 AM Posts #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2

BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK AM POSTS

Dennis Van Roekel: Exposing ALEC's Agenda to Defund and Dismantle Public Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 44 minutes ago

Dennis Van Roekel: Exposing ALEC's Agenda to Defund and Dismantle Public Education: Exposing ALEC's Agenda to Defund and Dismantle Public Education Posted: 05/07/2013 11:52 am *Iron Man 3* just opened this past weekend, followed soon by more would-be blockbusters. I'm sure a lot of these movies will be entertaining, but none will be more important or relevant than a half-hour documentary I recently watched: *The United States of ALEC.* This film, featuring Bill Moyers, does a masterful job of explaining how the closed-door manipulations of the American Legislative Exchange Council ... more »

Thursday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference — Whole Child Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 44 minutes ago

Thursday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Whole Child Virtual Conference]Thursday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference May 8, 2013 by Whole Child Virtual Conference We invite you to participate in ASCD's third annual Whole Child Virtual Conference. Entitled "Moving from Implementation to Sustainability to Culture," sessions will offer educators around the globe leadership discussions and strategies to support their work to implement and sustain a whole child approach to education. *ASCD's Whole Child Network: The Importance... more »

Thursday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference — Whole Child Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago

Class Size & Funding Inequity in NY State & NY City | School Finance 101

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago

Class Size & Funding Inequity in NY State & NY City | School Finance 101: Class Size & Funding Inequity in NY State & NY City by schoolfinance101 [image: Slide2] New York State repeatedly makes the top of our list of most INEQUITABLE state school finance systems in our National Report Card. http://www.schoolfundingfairness.org/National_Report_Card_2012.pdf Further, NY State was acknowledged in a report I prepared last year, with colleague Sean Corcoran of NYU, identifying states that are both generally inequitable and that actually exacerbate those inequities through their state sc... more »

Shanker Blog » The Relationship Between Teacher Salaries And Teacher Salary Schedules

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

Shanker Blog » The Relationship Between Teacher Salaries And Teacher Salary Schedules: The Relationship Between Teacher Salaries And Teacher Salary Schedules by Matthew Di Carlo The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has released a brief report on teacher salary schedules since the recession. NCTQ looks at 41 of the 50 largest districts in the U.S. (i.e., all but nine responded to the survey). Between 2007-08 and 2010-11, four out of five of these districts froze pay at least once. As would be expected, districts did so in different ways – sometimes by freezing step increa... more »

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 5-9-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Why Rhee’s Test-Driven Incentives Always Fail by dianerav In this thoughtful article, Charles Taylor Kerchner of Claremont Graduate University explains that Michelle Rhee’s belief in using test scores to reward and punish teachers is guaranteed to produce adverse consequences like cheating. Her reliance on test scores plus her “fear-based management style” is the Achilles’ heel of reform policy, he says. “This is the lesson of organizational history, not an isol... more »

Leading the way in education – instead of following the failing neo liberal agenda – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Leading the way in education – instead of following the failing neo liberal agenda – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: Leading the way in education – instead of following the failing neo liberal agenda by Activism in paradise - Voices from down under by Bruce HammondsReposted from Leading-Learning. ‘Education in America is at a crossroads’, writes American educator Yong-Zhao Ironically while China is busy trying to transform its test orientated education into a talent orientated system, writes Chinese born but now a respected American educator Yong- Zhao, America ( and now N... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Bill Gates's Ridiculous TED Talk, Part I

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: Bill Gates's Ridiculous TED Talk, Part I: Bill Gates's Ridiculous TED Talk, Part I by Duke I didn't even have to go two minutes into this spiel by Bill Gates before he laid out a whopper so large it's simply stunning: (1:06) *Until recently, over 98% of teachers just got one word of feedback: "Satisfactory."* That is astonishingly wrong. *No teacher I've ever heard of ever got a one-word evaluation*. Every principal I've ever worked for has written multiple pages about my teaching when doing my summative evaluation. Principals are, in fact, *required* to give m... more »

UPDATE: collective bargaining what Olive Garden is to Italian food + Arne at the AERA + CTU election debate. Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

CTU election debate. The Brawl at the Electricians’ Hall. | Fred Klonsky: This deal is to collective bargaining what Olive Garden is to Italian food. by Fred Klonsky [image: olive-garden-never-ending-pasta-bowl] From those who have defended the deal between Cullerton and the *We Are One* coalition that led to SB2404, there has been a constant theme. They compare the process to collective bargaining. Well, folks. This process makes a mockery of collective bargaining. I was talking to a class of college students last night about teacher unions. Of the many things that makes collective b... more »

Ed Notes Online: When Davids Boo Goliaths Do They Lack Civility?

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Ed Notes Online: When Davids Boo Goliaths Do They Lack Civility?: When Davids Boo Goliaths Do They Lack Civility? by ed notes online *Civility is the last recourse of the powerful, those who can afford to appear civil because they hold all the power... * *The call for civility exposes a foundational problem with the current education reform debate because, for all practical purposes, there is no debate..... Paul Thomas, *A Call for Non-Cooperation. *I call for a moratorium on requests that we be civil to people bordering on criminality. Straddling the fence is not an option. You ... more »

Common Core test is on track, State Board told | EdSource Today

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Common Core test is on track, State Board told | EdSource Today: Common Core test is on track, State Board told - by John Fensterwald by John Fensterwald Four states have encountered serious glitches and system meltdowns over the past several weeksas they have moved their own state assessments online. But the head of the state-led consortium creating the Common Core tests for California and two dozen other states expressed confidence Wednesday that his organization is working closely with states and taking precautions to avoid significant problems. [image: Willhoft,... more »

Teacher "Appreciation" - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Teacher "Appreciation" - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: Teacher "Appreciation" by Nancy Flanagan It's 1993, at the Michigan Teacher of the Year celebration in Lansing, and I have just been awarded a lovely parting gift: a Digital 286 computer. It sits on a table in the front of the ballroom, beige and boxy, the 12-inch monitor scrolling "Nancy Flanagan, Michigan Teacher of the Year" in bright pink letters. I am thrilled. My first computer! The program lists the Lansing business that donated the computer to the TOY program, and their representative stood up fo... more »

Weingarten Wants Me to Want the Common Core State Standards | deutsch29

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Weingarten Wants Me to Want the Common Core State Standards | deutsch29: Weingarten Wants Me to Want the Common Core State Standards by deutsch29 When I was very young, three or four years old, I used to ride with my father as he drove his New Orleans city bus on its morning route. This was before the age of seat belts, and my father used to allow me to stand next to him and operate the money crank. Riders would put their fare in a glass-topped container; my father would verify the amount was correct, and then I was allowed to pull the handle so that the money would drop into a m... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Duncan Demagogy

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Duncan Demagogy: Duncan Demagogy by Mike Klonsky In the world of ed politics, there are straight shooters and there are those who will say anything, depending on their audience. There's no better example of a straight shooter than *Jonathan Kozol,* who is being honored tonight by FairTest with the *Deborah W. Meier Heroes in Education Award *in recognition of his courageous activism. The event will be held at the Multicultural Arts Center, from 6 to 8:30 p.m., at 41 Second Street, Cambridge, MA Duncan at AERAThen there's Sec. *Arne Duncan*, who came ... more »

Poverty and student achievement: Are we comparing the wrong groups?

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Poverty and student achievement: Are we comparing the wrong groups?: Poverty and student achievement: Are we comparing the wrong groups? Posted by Valerie Strauss on May 9, 2013 at 5:00 am 2 Comments More [image: apples] Earlier this week I published a piece by UCLA Professor and author Mike Rose titled, “Leave No Unwealthy Child Behind,” in which he discusses how economic inequality is reflected in educational achievement. Here’s a response from Robert Bligh, former general counsel of the Nebraska Association of School Boards. Bligh’s research interest involves the efficacy of the... more »

Louisiana Educator: White Still Muddying up the Narrative

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Louisiana Educator: White Still Muddying up the Narrative: White Still Muddying up the Narrative by Michael Deshotels On Oct 22 and Oct 25 of 2012, I wrote two posts for this blog about the "adjustment" of VAM by Supeintendent White to accommodate a select group of teachers as South Highlands Elementary, a highly selective magnet school in Shreveport. I pointed out at the time that this rush to fix the VAM for just a few teachers was a purely political maneuver to "take care" of one of Jindal's friends in the legislature. What I did not have at the time has now been supplied by in... more »

Education is a Common Good: There Should Be No Losers | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Education is a Common Good: There Should Be No Losers | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights: Education is a Common Good: There Should Be No Losers by Tarsi Dunlop While we live in a market-driven economy, where winning and wealth accumulation are desired outcomes, education advocates on all sides of the political aisle currently assert that public schools are failing our children, especially minorities and low-income students. Education is a common good; it is the stepping-stone through which students can make something better of their futures. Therefore, we should... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: More Reports on DESE Common Core Meetings

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Missouri Education Watchdog: More Reports on DESE Common Core Meetings: More Reports on DESE Common Core Meetings by stlgretchen Whether or not you agree that people are paranoid about what Common Core will bring to Missouri, it is evident and irrefutable that the meetings were to be facilitated in the same manner. They were scripted and questions were not answered. Why would citizens take their time to attend meetings for information they could gather from DESE's website? Do you think citizens would take their time to attend a meeting if they knew none of their questions would ... more »

Privatizing Education in China The Politics eZine – Privatization | DailyCensored.com - Breaking Censored News, World, Independent, Liberal News

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Privatizing Education in China The Politics eZine – Privatization | DailyCensored.com - Breaking Censored News, World, Independent, Liberal News: Privatizing Education in China The Politics eZine – Privatization by Danny Weil In this article Samuel Mao tracks the growth of neo-liberal education in China. Since this time, the criminal syndicate and blood bank for the Washington Post, Kaplan University has made inroads into the country ( http://www.kaplan.com/our-programs/higher-education/university-preparation-programs/asia/kaplan-china.aspx) (http://www.kaplanchina.com.cn/). Kapl... more »

Daily Kos: "The rebranding of the Republican Party is to a large degree the renaming of intolerance."

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Daily Kos: "The rebranding of the Republican Party is to a large degree the renaming of intolerance.": "The rebranding of the Republican Party is to a large degree the renaming of intolerance." by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) That is the final line of a brilliant column by Charles M. Blow that I discuss in Charles M. Blow gets it right, which because of that very unsexy title is apparently not drawing eyeballs. This diary points at that. That diary explores the Blow column and then points you at it. The KEY thing is, read his column. PEACE Charles M. Blow gets it right by rss@... more »

SI&A Cabinet Report – SBE challenges school accountability measurement, looks for options

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources: SBE challenges school accountability measurement, looks for options *By Kimberly Beltran* Thursday, May 09, 2013 California’s State Board of Education raised some major red flags Wednesday over changes being considered to the state’s K-12 school accountability system, leaving in question the next steps for updating the system. Mike Kirst, board president, even questioned whether a revised API could continue to serve as a viable measuring tool. “In baseball, you have a batting average, you have a runs-batted-in average, you have an on-base per... more »

Jersey Jazzman: What's In a Name? Only Jeb! Bush Knows.

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: What's In a Name? Only Jeb! Bush Knows.: What's In a Name? Only Jeb! Bush Knows. by Duke Hanna Skandera is now the head chief of Jeb Bush!'s reformy group, Chiefs For Change. And she's decided to celeberate by snatching up a title that was not conferred on her by law: Hanna Skandera, one of most controversial figures in state government, has given herself a new title. *Even without the New Mexico Senate's vote of approval, Skandera is calling herself secretary of public education. * It would seem a not-so-subtle dig at a Democrat in the Senate who waited two ye... more »

A Hockey Game Breaks Out at PS 154 in the Bronx.southbronxschool.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

http://www.southbronxschool.com: A Hockey Game Breaks Out at PS 154 in the Bronx by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher) We here at SBSB are admitted Trekkies. We have also had a chill go down our collective spines when either Captain Kirk or Captain Picard always take the ultimate responsibility for the actions and decisions of not only their crews, but the second in commands as well. And that is how it should always be. Just like the Skipper and Gilligan, Ricochet Rabbit and Droop-Along, Sheriff Taylor and Deputy Fife, Gomer and Goober, the Captain and Tennille, Steve Douglas and ... more »

The Campaign for College Opportunity :: Working Hard, Left Behind

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

The Campaign for College Opportunity :: Working Hard, Left Behind: Working Hard, Left BehindEducation as a pathway from poverty to prosperity for working Californians *[image: Working_Hard_Left_Behing_thumbnail.jpg]* Working Hard, Left Behind: Education as a pathway from poverty to prosperity is a new report commissioned by The Campaign for College Opportunity, in partnership with the Women’s Foundation of California and Working Poor Families project. The report details the economic state of California’s low-income adults and finds that low educational attainment is the one common... more »

State working poor lack education opportunities, report says - latimes.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

State working poor lack education opportunities, report says - latimes.com: State working poor lack education opportunities, report says by By Carla Rivera California has the highest number of working poor families in the nation, but the state does an ineffective job of providing educational opportunities to boost them out of poverty, according to a new report released Wednesday. The report, Working Hard, Left Behind, found that the state has the largest number of adults without a high school diploma or equivalent and ranks last among states in the percentage of low-income workin... more »

Everybody has dreams. I’m asking you to make a donation. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago

Everybody has dreams. I’m asking you to make a donation. | Fred Klonsky: Everybody has dreams. I’m asking you to make a donation. by Fred Klonsky You rarely have seen me ask for money. Once in a while like when a massive human disaster strikes I will do what others do and link to sites where money can be sent. But today I’m asking you to consider making a donation to *The International Dreamers Scholarship Fund.* Take a minute and read about it. If you can see your way clear to contribute, that would be a good thing. *Everybody has dreams. Some people work hard and make their dre... more »

Elizabeth Warren: Student Loans Should Have Same Rate Big Banks Get

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago

Elizabeth Warren: Student Loans Should Have Same Rate Big Banks Get: Elizabeth Warren: Student Loans Should Have Same Rate Big Banks Get WASHINGTON -- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) unveiled her first bill Wednesday, designed to set student loan interest rates at the same level the Federal Reserve offers to big banks. With some student loan rates set to double on July 1 -- from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent -- Warren's bill would reduce student loan interest rates to 0.75 percent, opening the Fed's discount window to students. "Every single day, this country invests in big banks by l... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Charters = Wal-Mart

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: Charters = Wal-Mart: Charters = Wal-Mart by Duke Laura Waters - a local school board president herself - does not want to give local boards veto power over charter schools expanding into their districts. To make her case, she badly mangles a metaphor: Education Sector notes that school boards “are often hostile to charter schools, which compete with them for students, funds, and prestige,” adding that “state charter laws that allow only local school boards to authorize charters,” with no appeals process, “can result in very few charter schools in that state.” A ... more »

Buena Vista School District Closed For Third Day; Fired Teachers File For Unemployment

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago

Buena Vista School District Closed For Third Day; Fired Teachers File For Unemployment: Buena Vista School District Closed For Third Day; Fired Teachers File For Unemployment by Joy Resmovits The deathwatch over a tiny school district in Michigan continues as its schools remain closed. Despite teachers' offers to work for free for at least a week, schools in the Buena Vista School District will remain closed for the third consecutive day Thursday because the district has run out of money. On Monday, the first day of Teacher Appreciation Week, the district laid off everyone except... more »

The school model that's good enough for President Obama and Mayor Emanuel | Ben Joravsky on Politics | Chicago Reader

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago

The school model that's good enough for President Obama and Mayor Emanuel | Ben Joravsky on Politics | Chicago Reader: *The school model that's good enough for President Obama and Mayor Emanuel *The prestigious University of Chicago Lab Schools respect and reward teachers—so why can't the public schools? By Ben Joravsky @joravben [image: University of Chicago Lab Schools parent Barack Obama, graduate Arne Duncan, and parent Rahm Emanuel] University of Chicago Lab Schools parent Barack Obama, graduate Arne Duncan, and parent Rahm Emanuel AP PHOTO/CHARLES DHARAPAK; AP PHOTO/JACQUELYN MAR... more »

What happens after the tests are over? – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago

What happens after the tests are over? – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: What happens after the tests are over? by Chalk Face, PhD [image: spirit]Apparently, “Spirit Week!” Wait, isn’t learning supposed to be fun ALL YEAR ROUND? I guess not. Can we also think of new things to do in schools on these Spirit Days? I remember them as a teacher and an entire grade level wearing the same color really isn’t all that fun. Maybe I’m being too cynical. But I remember Field Days at the end of the year. Classes had to pick a country. I recall teachers practically running down to the o... more »

Immersion or segregation? Trost Elementary becomes a language-immersion-only school | OregonLive.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago

Immersion or segregation? Trost Elementary becomes a language-immersion-only school | OregonLive.com: Immersion or segregation? Trost Elementary becomes a language-immersion-only school by Heather Steeves, The Oregonian [image: trost3.jpg]CANBY -- Trost Elementary kindergartener Brisa Vega, 6, looks on as her friend Paola Cabello, 6, paints an octopus. The girls are among hundreds of children enrolled in Trost's dual language immersion program, where students learn to speak both Spanish and English. Next year Trost will become a magnet school and will only use the language immersi... more »

Bill Gates' TED Talk: Are Video Cameras the Missing Link? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago

Bill Gates' TED Talk: Are Video Cameras the Missing Link? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Bill Gates' TED Talk: Are Video Cameras the Missing Link? by Anthony Cody I watched Bill Gates' TED Talk last night, to hear him explain why we should spend $5 billion to put video cameras in every classroom in the nation. But before I get to what he said, I want to share some of the wisdom that preceded him. Rita Pierson starts us off with a bang, speaking of how human relationships are the prerequisite for learning. Kids don't learn from people they don't like. Apologize... ... more »

Reflections on Teaching » Blog Archive » My Kid and Our Kids

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago

Reflections on Teaching » Blog Archive » My Kid and Our Kids: My Kid and Our Kids by alicemercer Recent news has focused on the educational choices that those on both sides of the education reform debate have made with their own kids. My first discomfort with this is the disclosure of the actual schools these children are attending. Given the high profile of both these ladies, and the animus they generate, as a teacher I worry about having information that specific (the actual schools) out there. I’m a firm believer that one should not bear the burden of ones parents, most espec... more »

NYC Educator: Reformy John and the Magic Mirror

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago

NYC Educator: Reformy John and the Magic Mirror: Reformy John and the Magic Mirror by NYC Educator Every day Reformy John King peered into his magic mirror and asked, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the reformiest one of all?" Inevitably the mirror would answer, "You're reformy, this I like, but reformier still is Emperor Mike." Reformy John was sad. What can I do to be as reformy as Emperor Mike, he wondered. And furthermore, does an emperor outrank a king? Despite these illuminating ruminations, every morning it was the same. "Reformy yes, this you can do, but Mike's reformie... more »

UPDATE: We’re Going on a “DIG”! + Real News Report on Rhee and the Epidemic of Test Cheating – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 17 hours ago

Real News Report on Rhee and the Epidemic of Test Cheating – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: We’re Going on a “DIG”! by antiqueteacher60 It’s time to do some “digging for artifacts”! In order for my District to evaluate my performance on Domain 4 of the Danielson Rubric. I must produce 2 pieces of EVIDENCE of each of the following: 1. Reflection on Teaching 2. Maintaining Accurate Records 3. Communicating with Families 4. Participating in a Professional Community 5. Growing and Developing Real News Report on Rhee and the Epidemic of Test Cheating by Jim Horn From a coupl... more »

Subtracting to Add | Taking Note

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 17 hours ago

Subtracting to Add | Taking Note: Subtracting to Add by John Merrow The first time I heard this big idea was in a conversation with Zell Miller, the gruff former Senator from Georgia, in the fall of 2002. His quote didn’t make our documentary, “The Promise of Preschool,” but he basically said that, if he had his way, he would get rid of 12th grade and spend the money on free, universal, high quality preschool. At the time, Georgia was leading the nation in providing preschool, and it’s still near the top of the list. But Georgia and every other state and territory still have 12th ... more »

Virginia second-graders suspended for pointing pencils at each other

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 17 hours ago

Virginia second-graders suspended for pointing pencils at each other: Virginia second-graders suspended for pointing pencils at each other Posted by Valerie Strauss on May 8, 2013 at 3:42 pm 7 Comments More [image: pencils]Have you heard about the two 7-year-old boys who were suspended from their Suffolk County, Va. school for pointing pencils at each other while making shooting sounds? One boy was pretending to be a Marine and the other a bad guy. There is a zero tolerance policy in the school system and so, the second-graders had to stay home for two days instead of go to class at ... more »

Day of the Teacher 2013 - California Teachers Association

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 17 hours ago

Day of the Teacher 2013 - California Teachers Association: *Hover mouse over poster to share.* To download a wallpaper of the California Day of the Teacher poster, select your screen resolution width:1024, 1280, 1600, 1920, 2048. California Teachers: Honoring our past. Guiding the future. TODAY we mark the 31st anniversary of California’s Day of the Teacher. To honor teachers and the150th anniversary of CTA, we have chosen “*California Teachers: Honoring our Past, Guiding the Future*” as this year’s theme. CTA has been making a positive impact on education for 150 years now. Our vic... more »

UPDATE: Jason Richwine is even too racist for his bosses at the wing-nut Heritage Foundation. But not too racist to support Rahm’s school closings. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 17 hours ago

Jason Richwine is even too racist for his bosses at the wing-nut Heritage Foundation. But not too racist to support Rahm’s school closings. | Fred Klonsky: Jason Richwine is even too racist for his bosses at the wing-nut Heritage Foundation. But not too racist to support Rahm’s school closings. by Fred Klonsky Popout*Jason Richwine of the Heritage Foundation with Michael Klonsky and Jitu Brown last March.* Jason Richwine? *I know that name.* Oh, right. He was involved in a March televised discussion with my brother and Jitu Brown, Chicago schools and community activist. Representing... more »

Diane in the Evening 5-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Will the Children of Buena Vista Go Without an Education? by dianerav The public schools of Buena Vista are closed. The teachers offered to work for free, but they were rebuffed. Some have filed for unemployment. The children are out of school, and no one knows when school will open again. Or if it will. Joy Resnovits is following this story on Huffington Post. Buena Vista is a town that got left behind when the American auto industry collapsed. Michigan in a Nutshell by dianerav A comment on the blog about the... more »

#Edchat: Why & How | My Island View

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago

#Edchat: Why & How | My Island View: #Edchat: Why & How by tomwhitby Each Sunday afternoon there are five Topic questions posted on a poll to determine which will be selected as that week’s #Edchat Topic. There are two #Edchat discussions each Tuesday on Twitter, so the top two topics selected by the poll become the topics of the chats. The number two choice goes at noon, Eastern Time, and the number one selection goes at 7 PM, Eastern Time. The larger audience is the 7 PM Chat. If you did not know it before, I am the person responsible for making up the #Edchat Topic questions ... more »

Insights on the Faces of Poverty — Whole Child Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago

Insights on the Faces of Poverty — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Klea Scharberg]Insights on the Faces of Poverty May 8, 2013 by Klea Scharberg [image: The Faces of Poverty - ASCD Educational Leadership] With so many families facing hardship now, today's "poor kids" don't fit old stereotypes. And taking such actions as they can to make learning and life better for students facing poverty is now a challenge for all teachers. The May 2013 issue of ASCD's *Educational Leadership* araises awareness of the impact of poverty on children today and what might be done to... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, May 8, 2013

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Education Headlines *Wednesday, May 8, 2013* School district politicking criticizedThe San Diego Unified School District is bound by law to stop using its website to promote political positions, the county grand jury said in a report on Tuesday. TEMECULA: School district proceeds with teacher layoffsThe Temecula Valley Unified School board authorized the layoff of more than 40 teachers at its meeting Tuesday, May 7. But board members and district administrators said they are hopeful many of the teachers will be brought back as p... more »

UPDATE: Downton Billy + Is the School “Reform” Drought Breaking? – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

Is the School “Reform” Drought Breaking? – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: Sweet 16: What Matters v. What Should Matter in Teacher Qualities by plthomasedd My colleague and social studies educator, George Lipscomb, is offering a May Experience course addressing “What Makes a Great Teacher.” He started the course today with a Sweet 16 of teacher values so I thought this idea may be a great way to ask people to confront priorities regarding what our current high-stakes test-based accountability [...] Downton Billy by freetoteach Since Bill Gates and other billionaire boys ... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Closing Duncan's Chicago 'Renaissance' Schools

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Closing Duncan's Chicago 'Renaissance' Schools: Closing Duncan's Chicago 'Renaissance' Schools by Mike Klonsky Obama came to Dodge school in 2009 and used the visit to announce Duncan's appointment as Sec. of EducationWhile *Arne Duncan *was whisking in the children of the rich and powerful into Chicago's elite, selective-enrollment schools, he was also pushing a system of new start-ups and charters under his Renaissance 2010 program. But, according to WBEZ's Becky Vevea, in the most recent round of proposed school closings, CPS is shutting down th... more »

UPDATE: Seattle Schools Community Forum: To the Members of the Executive Committee

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: To the Members of the Executive Committee: Charter Commission - Second Meeting, Part Two by Melissa Westbrook *Charter Commission discussion * The biggest bone of contention at this point is the lottery system for approved charter school applications. Now my initial read (and others as well) was that if the Board of Education received more than 8 approved charter applications from all authorizers, then they would go into a straight lottery. The Attorney General's reading is that the seven that get to the BOE's office first will be stamped and appro... more »

Why it is hard to monitor bullying at schools — report

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

Why it is hard to monitor bullying at schools — report: Why it is hard to monitor bullying at schools — report Posted by Valerie Strauss on May 8, 2013 at 11:30 am [image: Prevention of Bullying Cover]A new report that reviewed years of research says that it is hard to accurately monitor levels of bullying in schools because there is still no consensus on exactly what it is and that educators and scholars “should not limit themselves to the traditional definition” as they seek ways to combat it. The report, called “Prevention of Bullying in Schools, Colleges and Universities” and ju... more »

What teachers really want | Lily's Blackboard

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

What teachers really want | Lily's Blackboard: What teachers REALLY want by Lily [image: Lily's Blackboard Rotating Header Image] What teachers REALLY want May 8th, 2013 by Lily. Welcome to National Teacher Appreciation Week. I looked under my pillow to see if the Tooth Fairy left me something. Nope. Checked the fireplace to see if Santa had been there? Zip. Maybe a piñata filled with sweet surprises? Nada. Ok. Maybe we didn’t ask. You don’t get what you wish for. You’ve got to let people know what you want. We did that. *We asked teachers all over the country what they wanted,* s... more »

"Other People's Children": The Corollary of Bad Policy | California Progress Report

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

"Other People's Children": The Corollary of Bad Policy | California Progress Report: "Other People's Children": The Corollary of Bad Policy by callen *By Mark Naison* For some time, I have argued that School Reform is the most destructive bi-partisan initiative we have suffered in the United States since the Vietnam War, a policy which has, and will continue to inspire mass movements to limit the damage it inflicts through universal testing of the nation's children, and the humiliation and micro-management of the nation's teachers. Some have argued, correctly, that people have not ... more »

Say Thanks to a School Nurse on May 8 | NEA Today

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Say Thanks to a School Nurse on May 8 | NEA Today: Say Thanks to a School Nurse on May 8 by twalker *By Helen Yoshida* In honor of National School Nurse’s Day, we spoke to 2012 Missouri ESP of the Year Carmen K. Hill. Hill is a tireless and dedicated school nurse working in the St. Louis, Missouri public school system. *What’s a typical day like for you?* I get in here at 6:45am and by a quarter to 8:00 I start giving out medications to the students who need them. Then I start seeing the sick students that have come to school from the bus or that were dropped off by their parents ... more »

Wednesday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference — Whole Child Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Wednesday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Whole Child Virtual Conference]Wednesday on the Whole Child Virtual Conference May 7, 2013 by Whole Child Virtual Conference We invite you to participate in ASCD's third annual Whole Child Virtual Conference. Entitled "Moving from Implementation to Sustainability to Culture," sessions will offer educators around the globe leadership discussions and strategies to support their work to implement and sustain a whole child approach to education. *The Finnish Experience and the Whole Chi... more »

Modern School: Ending Bullying by Changing Its Name

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Modern School: Ending Bullying by Changing Its Name: Ending Bullying by Changing Its Name by Michael Dunn Huck/Konopacki Labor Cartoons A group of researchers commissioned by the American Education Research Association says that efforts to reduce bullying in school are hampered by the overuse and abuse of the term “bullying” and are calling for it to be replaced by the term “victimization,” according to a recent report in USA today. Yeh, right. . . When the Blackwater mercenary army was having image problems they changed their name to Xe and then again to Academi, innocent soun... more »

The home school subculture creates soldiers for America’s culture war | The Raw Story

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

The home school subculture creates soldiers for America’s culture war | The Raw Story: The home school subculture creates soldiers for America’s culture war By The Guardian Wednesday, May 8, 2013 9:04 EDT [image: Little girl home school (Shutterstock)] *Katherine Stewart: The Christian home school subculture isn’t a children-first movement. Some former students are bravely speaking out* Several decades ago, political activists on the religious right began to put together an “ideology machine”. Home schooling was a big part of the plan. The idea was to breed and “train up” an army ... more »

Blog: Why Has Conservative Media Ignored Michelle Rhee's Connection to Common Core?

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Blog: Why Has Conservative Media Ignored Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee's Connection to Common Core?: Why Has Conservative Media Ignored Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee's Connection to Common Core?Ann Kane * * * * Now that citizens across the country are becoming more aware of the detrimental aspects of the already adopted Common Core State Standards, Michelle Rhee, the face of education reform, has commented "I do think that there has to be a very strong defense of the common core[.]" In a recent interview Rhee suggested to proponents of CCSS to switch up the argument "... more »

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 5-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Voucher Decision a Blow to Jindal 2016 Campaign by dianerav Good article in the Washington Post about the major decision by Louisiana’s top court to strike down funding of vouchers with public school dollars. More than 700,000 students in the state, only 8,000 have vouchers. Many vouchers used in schools that resolutely refuse to teach modern science, math, or history. Funny place for Jindal to stake his claim. He is determined to find the money some other way, t... more »

Teacher Appreciation Week: It's About the Little Things - High School Notes (usnews.com)

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Teacher Appreciation Week: It's About the Little Things - High School Notes (usnews.com): Teacher Appreciation Week: It's About the Little Things By KELSEY SHEEHY May 8, 2013 RSS Feed Print [image: A high school science teacher works with students. Show teachers your appreciation throughout the year by acknowledging their hard work.] Show teachers your appreciation throughout the year by acknowledging their hard work. Teachers devote their lives to educating the nation's youth. They serve as mentors, coaches, counselors and yes, even baby sitters, often with limited resources and li... more »

UPDATE: The attack on the IRTA + The dust hasn’t settled on the pension deal. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

The dust hasn’t settled on the pension deal. | Fred Klonsky: Ten minute drawing. Good cop, bad cop. by Fred Klonsky [image: good cop bad cop] Quote of the week. Elaine Nekritz. by Fred Klonsky [image: nekritz] *“For them to say that the legislature is giving people two choices, neither of which they have today, both of which are less than what they have today, I don’t know how that’s different from what we’re saying,” – Elaine Nekritz* Meanwhile at City Hall, protesters want to know why Rahm hasn’t walked the walk. by Fred Klonsky [image: BJwMImiCEAAstqi.jpg-large] The at... more »

Ed Notes Online: Updated: Jennifer Jennings (formerly Eduwonkette) apologizes to Secretary Duncan over the booing at AERA

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Ed Notes Online: Updated: Jennifer Jennings (formerly Eduwonkette) apologizes to Secretary Duncan over the booing at AERA: Updated: Jennifer Jennings (formerly Eduwonkette) apologizes to Secretary Duncan over the booing at AERA by ed notes online I have heard this before; critiques from the people in power or their apologists saying “why can’t you be more civilized.” In my mind, it is similar to a well-equipped army that invades your country, takes over your institutions, and then argues with the natives that their resistance is not “civilized” enough. ... Leonie Haimson Jennife... more »

Links and Lessons for K-12 Schools and Hospitals (Jeff Bowen) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Links and Lessons for K-12 Schools and Hospitals (Jeff Bowen) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Links and Lessons for K-12 Schools and Hospitals (Jeff Bowen) by larrycuban *Dr. Jeffrey Bowen has served as superintendent of the Yorkshire Pioneer Central School District in western New York, research director for the New York State School Boards Association, and supervisor of on-the-job training in an Air Force hospital. He is a founding member and vice president of the Healthy Community Alliance in Gowanda, New York. * Since 2000, hospital bills have increased... more »