Latest News and Comment from Education

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

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


Nite Cap EXTRA

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Study: Black-White Achievement Gap Has ‘Political Foundations’
  State policymaker attention to teacher quality is highly responsive to White students, not Black students. In a newly-published political science journal article, a Baylor University professor and a Notre Dame graduate student report that state policymaker attention to teacher quality tends to be highly responsive to low high school graduation rates among White students, but not so in reaction t
Late Night: Schoolhouse Rocks the Constitution
Here’s to the principles this country was founded on. We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.  

Black history.
  Me, Reg Weaver, Bob Kaplan and Pearl Mack. “How was your evening?” I asked Pearl Mack as she sat down in the IEA Retired section of the Illinois Caucus this morning. “Oh, I was at the Human Rights Dinner. I always go. It celebrates the merger of the ATA and the NEA.” One of the benefits of sitting in the retired section is that if you listen and if you ask you will learn some history that you w



The Latino Education Gap: Dual Language Programs Offer Hope
In the latest installment of our ongoing series, we explore why some educators believe an increasingly popular model of bilingual teaching can help close the Latino education achievement gap. By Jill Replogle, Fronteras SAN DIEGO — The hilltop playground at Los Altos Elementary School has an enviable panoramic view. To the south, you can see over the border fence that separates Mexico from the U.S
L4LL summer literacy program encourages Latino children to read
By Jonathan Muñoz, Voxxi Latino children are lagging behind their counterparts in school, and summer does not help matters. Throughout the two to three months they have off, many children lose some of what they learned during the academic year, as many studies point out. Latino children usually lag behind their non-Latino counterparts as early as preschool. A new program is eager to change that an

Charter Schools, the Invisible Hand, and Gutless Political Leadership | Truthout
by PL Thomas – Backward or forward, this story is ugly. “No excuses” and the new paternalism themselves are classist and racist – ways in which the middle class and affluent allow “other people’s children” to be treated, but not their own – yet the larger faith in the Invisible Hand is the ugliest part ...read moreThe post Charter Schools, the Invisible Hand, and Gutless Political Leadership | Tru
The Mayor as Pontiff: Sending Campbell Brown, His Knight Templar to Disempower the Teacher Union | Ed In The Apple
When history repeats itself it does so the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce. Karl Marx. In the cold, cruel world of influencing public opinion there are no rules, truth is simply a noun, one does what is effective, as long as the backlash does not injury you or your candidate. Campbell ...read moreThe post The Mayor as Pontiff: Sending Campbell Brown, His Knight Templar to Disempowe

Bill to expand transgender students rights reaches Governor's desk
Members of GetEQUAL, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender organization, stage a protest on Capitol Hill. The California legislature on Wednesday passed a bill that expands transgendered students' rights at public schools.; Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images The state Senate sent Governor Jerry Brown a bill Wednesday that seeks to expand protections for transgender students in public schools. AB 1



PSP director Gleason: Funding deal 'not a perfect package'
Mark Gleason, executive director of the Philadelphia School Partnership The Philadelphia School Partnership, an emerging major player in the local education landscape and frequently a lightning rod for controversy, played a significant role in Harrisburg in the frenzy to find a funding solution for the School District. It hired a politically-connected lobbyist and pushed hard for strings to be


Capitol Alert: California Legislature stalemates over teacher discipline bill
The Legislature appears to be in a stalemate over changing the disciplinary process for teachers -- an issue that arose out of a high-profile molestation case involving a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Report Card: Federal judge sets hearing on Sacramento City school closures
A federal judge in Sacramento today granted a July 11 hearing on a lawsuit that parents and students filed to block closure of seven elementary schools in the Sacramento City Unified School District.
Capitol Alert: California bill to restrict long-term school bonds moving again
Legislation to crack down on California school districts' issuance of long-term "capital appreciation bonds," which had stalled in the Senate after passing the Assembly, is moving again.

Open Thread
I hope each of you has a safe and fun 4th of July holiday weekend. What's on your mind?
Seattle Ed News Roundup
Well, look what happens when you step away for a couple of days - apparently a lot.First up, the Muni League released its ratings of School Board candidates.  Only Suzanne Dale Estey (in Michael DeBell's district) got "outstanding."  In the same race the two candidates, Sue Peters and Dean McCoglan, received a "very good" which is the next level below "outstanding."  In Kay Smith-Blum race, Stefan

Coalition’s suit challenges state’s charter-schools law
A coalition led by the state teachers union filed a long-awaited challenge to the constitutionality of charter schools on Wednesday, turning to the courts after state voters narrowly approved the schools on supporters’ fourth attempt last November.
Oregon looks at offering tuition-free college
Going to college can seem like a choice between impossibly high payments while in school or a crushing debt load for years afterward, but Oregon is experimenting with a third way.