Latest News and Comment from Education

Monday, August 26, 2013

Nite Cap 8-26-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change


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


TODAY

Redemption for Educators! — Whole Child Education
Redemption for Educators! — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGRedemption for Educators!August 26, 2013 by Melanie OlmsteadEducators may bear the brunt of school performance criticisms, but the public's opinion of educators is on the rise, with the majority of Americans believing that educators teach students well and keep them safe. More than 70 percent of Americans have trust and confide
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Immoral Monday in Chicago
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Immoral Monday in Chicago: Immoral Monday in ChicagoStreets and Sanitation workers made a gruesome discovery a half-block from a Safe Passage route this morning: Mayor cancels walk with students after confronted by protesters Mayor Rahm Emanuel was scheduled to lead a group of children from Cather Elementary School on the West Side to a nearby community center for af
Anne Gassel’s Common Core Action List | Truth in American Education
Anne Gassel’s Common Core Action List | Truth in American Education: Anne Gassel’s Common Core Action ListFiled in Common Core State Standards by Shane Vander Hart on August 26, 2013 • 1 Comment658This weekend I spoke this weekend at an event called “Exposing the Common Core” in Collinsville, IL (outside of St. Louis, MO).  Anne Gassel, the co-editor of Missouri Education Watchdog, also spoke.  I
No Experience Necessary | EduShyster
No Experience Necessary | EduShyster: No Experience Necessary Meet the new Superintendent of the Camden Public Schools: EduShysterThere is only one thing thing tempting enough to rouse me from the vaca coma in which I’ve spent the last 10 days: a handsomely compensated new job with a career trajectory heading up, up and up. Reader: I’ve got excellent news to share. No longer will I be toiling away
Microsoft’s lesson on what not to do with teachers
Microsoft’s lesson on what not to do with teachers: Microsoft’s lesson on what not to do with teachersBy Valerie Strauss, Published: August 26 at 4:02 pmE-mail the writer2CommentsMoreBill Gates                                         (By Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg)Microsoft founder Bill Gates has been spending billions of dollars on education reform for years, first with a small-school initiative tha
Architecture 101 Fall and Winter Workshops | Seattle Education
Architecture 101 Fall and Winter Workshops | Seattle Education: Architecture 101 Fall and Winter WorkshopsBesides my activities as an education advocate and architect, I teach introductory classes in Architecture for students from grade three through college and beyond.This fall I will be offering weekday classes for homeschool students, Saturday classes for grades 3 through high school and some H
Diane in the Evening 8-26-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Special Education in New Orleans: “Thoroughly Broken”Lance Hill, a New Orleans civil rights activist, describes the ongoing debacle of special education in that city. The Southern Poverty Law Center sued the state in 2010 for pervasive discrimination against students with special needs. Just recently, SPLC filed another suit agains
CCSS Publications Available - Year 2013
CCSS Publications Available - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Two Publications toHelp Schools and Students Transition to Common Core State StandardsSACRAMENTO—With schools beginning the year deeply engaged in the transition to the Common Core State Standards, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced that they are availab
We Need More EdTech, But Less Technology In The Classroom | toteachornototeach
We Need More EdTech, But Less Technology In The Classroom | toteachornototeach: We Need More EdTech, But Less Technology In The Classroomby Jordan ShapiroTechnology plays a primary role in my teaching, but I rarely turn on the computer that makes the classroom “smart.”Occasionally, I project the class tweet stream. I am an advocate of Twitter for higher ed. But generally, during class time, I try
The Takeover of PS 154 by Bronx Classical Charter Has Begun southbronxschool.com
http://www.southbronxschool.com: The Takeover of PS 154 by Bronx Classical Charter Has BegunWe here at SBSB wish to extend  a laurel and hearty handshake to our new overlords and betters at PS 154, Bronx Classical Charter II. We look forward to years of acquiescence and seeing how the monies flow into BCC II and out of PS 154.We also have come to realize that as your school expands, 154 will shrin
Parents 4 Teachers offers school closing accountability hotline Parents United for Responsible Education
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Parents 4 Teachers offers school closing accountability hotline: Parents 4 Teachers offers school closing accountability hotlineFrom Parents 4 TeachersFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     Aug. 26, 2013CONTACT:Erica Clark, 773-851-6287Sarah Simmons, 773-573-9100CPS parents from closed schools urged to call School Closings Accountability Line to report
Organizing – It’s Contagious! | NEA Today
Organizing – It’s Contagious! | NEA Today: Organizing – It’s Contagious!August 26, 2013 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Amy Jordan and Nathan AllenGreat things happen when educators, administrators and parents work together to make their community stronger.Just ask Kristi Smith, a physical science teacher at Hellstern Middle School in Springdale, Arkansas.Smith
Sabrina Stevens Shupe: 'Bad' Women, Teachers, and Politics
Sabrina Stevens Shupe: 'Bad' Women, Teachers, and Politics: 'Bad' Women, Teachers, and PoliticsSabrina Stevens Shupe: 'Bad' Women, Teachers, and PoliticsJust three months into 2012, as the Republican primary season continues, the tenor of the political conversation around contraception and other "women's" issues has grown increasingly alarming (to those of us firmly grounded in the 21st Century, a
The Great Proficiency Debate
Shanker Blog » The Great Proficiency Debate: The Great Proficiency DebatePosted by Matthew Di Carlo on August 26, 2013A couple of weeks ago, Mike Petrilli of the Fordham Institute made the case that absolute proficiency rates should not be used as measures of school effectiveness, as they are heavily dependent on where students “start out” upon entry to the school. A few days later, Fordham presid
A new challenge for Common Core — from the left | Tampa Bay Times
A new challenge for Common Core — from the left | Tampa Bay Times: A new challenge for Common Core — from the leftTALLAHASSEE — Conventional wisdom held that liberals and teachers supported the new Common Core curriculum standards.Until the Badass Teachers Association crashed the party.The 25,000 BATs, as they call themselves, are pushing back against the national standards with Twitter strikes, t
A new challenge for Common Core — from the left | Tampa Bay Times
A new challenge for Common Core — from the left | Tampa Bay Times: A new challenge for Common Core — from the leftKathleen McGrory, Times/Herald Tallahassee BureauSunday, August 25, 2013 11:32pmFacebook61EmailShare92Print  34TALLAHASSEE — Conventional wisdom held that liberals and teachers supported the new Common Core curriculum standards.Until the Badass Teachers Association crashed the party.Th
8-26-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools - A System that StrugglesWe've heard from many parents who are unhappy about enrollment issues like waitlists.  My understanding is that the district was switching technology systems.  Reading the Queen Anne Elementary principal's blog, it would seem that the whole system has been down,  in one form or another.Principal Elliot's explains that on Bac
Feds propose eliminating scores from modified testing as part of AYP SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources
SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources: Feds propose eliminating scores from modified testing as part of AYPBy Tom ChorneauMonday, August 26, 2013NCLB Reorganization As part of a long-standing and controversial commitment to holding all students to challenging content and achievement standards, the Obama administration proposed late last week ending a practice allowing states to use scorin
K-12 News Network | Et tu, 5-2?
K-12 News Network | Et tu, 5-2? (LAUSD School Board Meeting, August 20, 2013): Et tu, 5-2? (LAUSD School Board Meeting, August 20, 2013)admin August 26, 2013 Charter Schools, Los Angeles, School Boards, School Districts, State Education Law 0Special to K12NN from Karen Wolfe. Karen is an LAUSD parent leader and activist in support of public schools.While corporate education reformers take every op
8-26-13 Wait What?
Wait What?: Mass Insight swaps out more consultants: Further reducing experience for CT Alliance DistrictsAs Connecticut’s Alliance Districts have become painfully aware, rather than utilize the tremendous expertise and experience within the Connecticut State Department of Education, Governor Malloy and his “Education Reform” Dream Team led by Commissioner Stefan Pryor decided to replace Connectic
Civil Rights Leaders Condemn Privatization of Prisons and Schools - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher
Civil Rights Leaders Condemn Privatization of Prisons and Schools - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Civil Rights Leaders Condemn Privatization of Prisons and SchoolsBy Anthony Cody on August 26, 2013 11:23 AMSpeakers at this weekend's March for Justice in Washington, DC, drew attention to the failed war on drugs, and called for its end as one step towards reducing the number of people
Cali Education Headlines Monday, August 26, 2013
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Adams: School bullying prevention efforts falling short, state audit saysEducation HeadlinesMonday, August 26, 2013New Inglewood Unified leader rescinds wave of campus security layoffsThe move to undo the wave of about 40 layoffs and demotions amounted to one of the first major decisions by Don Brann since he became the troubled district’s la
Katrina Pain Index 2013: New Orleans Eight Years Later | Dissident Voice
Katrina Pain Index 2013: New Orleans Eight Years Later | Dissident Voice: Katrina Pain Index 2013: New Orleans Eight Years Laterby Bill Quigley / August 26th, 2013Eight years after Katrina, nearly a hundred thousand people never got back to New Orleans, the city remains incredibly poor, jobs and income vary dramatically by race, rents are up, public transportation is down, traditional public housi
Arne Duncan’s endless supply of ‘game changers’
Arne Duncan’s endless supply of ‘game changers’: Arne Duncan’s endless supply of ‘game changers’By Valerie Strauss, Published: August 26 at 11:00 amE-mail the writer0CommentsMoreEducation  Secretary Arne Duncan                (By Jacquelyn Martin-Associated Press)Education Secretary Arne Duncan has something of an affinity for the phrase “game changer.” Just how much is chronicled in this post by
8-26-13 Jersey Jazzman
Jersey Jazzman: The Merit Pay Virus SpreadsThe Camden teachers contract is up for negotiation, just as the state has taken over the district and is ready to install a new, reformy superintendent, Paymon Rouhanifard. This young fellow spent his career in New York City forcing charter school co-locations on communities that did not want them; consequently, there here is little doubt he is being inst
Morning Wink 8-26-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSTODAYBridging the Higher Education Divide | Deborah Meier on EducationBridging the Higher Education Divide | Deborah Meier on Education: Bridging the Higher Education DividePosted on August 26, 2013 by debmeier“In our nation’s struggle to promote social mobility ….education has always been a key driver,” notes the Century Foundation’s president in the fore
Bridging the Higher Education Divide | Deborah Meier on Education
Bridging the Higher Education Divide | Deborah Meier on Education: Bridging the Higher Education DividePosted on August 26, 2013 by debmeier“In our nation’s struggle to promote social mobility ….education has always been a key driver,” notes the Century Foundation’s president in the foreword to Bridging the Higher Education Divide.  (Can be downloaded free.) Like so many of their reports, the book
Sharing Is Not Bragging | My Island View
Sharing Is Not Bragging | My Island View: Sharing Is Not BraggingAugust 26, 2013 by tomwhitbyOver the years, as I have discussed collaboration in education with thousands of educators, there is one sentiment, or opinion of collaboration that has popped up among some of these educators that I just don’t get. Many of these educators have expressed to me the opinion that collaborative teachers who sh
8-26-13 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Life in Rahm’s Chicago. First day of school.by Fred Klonsky / 1min mark as read  //  saveThey cannot save anything when it comes to the pension debt. The bill must be paid.Jim Broadway, Springfield observer and publisher of the authoritative Illinois School Policy Updates, takes the Illinois media to
May Budget Revise: Oliver Twist vs. Great Expectations | California Progress Report
May Budget Revise: Oliver Twist vs. Great Expectations | California Progress Report: May Budget Revise: Oliver Twist vs. Great ExpectationsPosted on 26 August 2013By Sheila KuehlIn Charles Dickens' early and dark novel, Oliver Twist, an orphan is condemned to the poorhouse and forced to labor for an undertaker. He escapes to London only to be recruited into a gang of child pickpockets. The book pr
LA Unified students have never known high school without metal detectors | Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC
LA Unified students have never known high school without metal detectors | Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC: LA Unified students have never known high school without metal detectorsJed Kim | August 26th, 2013, 6:33amJed KimStaff members at Gardena High School use handheld metal detectors in random weapon checks of students.On January 21, 1993, Demetrius Rice was shot at Fairfax High School when a gun hidde
8-26-13 Missouri Education Watchdog
Missouri Education Watchdog: Common Core Silence. NSPRA's "Local Communication" is One-Directional and Undocumented.Is NSPRA's "informational writing" actually fiction? We recently wrote about a Pearson funded school public relations association (National School Public Relations Association, NSPRA) promoting a counter-point sheet to discredit anti-common core research.  The counter-point document,
No Child Left Behind waivers are causing the private tutoring industry to implode | Deseret News
No Child Left Behind waivers are causing the private tutoring industry to implode | Deseret News: No Child Left Behind waivers are causing the private tutoring industry to implodeThe private tutoring industry exploded in the United States under the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2002. But as states lined up for federal waivers that ease some of the law’s requirements, that boom has turned int
America’s kids need a better education law - The Washington Post
America’s kids need a better education law - The Washington Post: America’s kids need a better education lawBy Arne Duncan, Published: August 25Arne Duncan is U.S. secretary of education.The nation’s most sweeping education law — the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, better known as No Child Left Behind — is outmoded and broken. Congress has gone home for its summer recess without pa
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-26-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Charlotte Danielson Says….DON’T DO IT!This came from a New Jersey administrator who heard Charlotte Danielson speak about how to use her rubric: “At the NJAFPA Conference on May 29, Charlotte Danielson (creator of the Danielson Frameworks for Teaching evaluation system that so many states and districts have adopted) said in her key
NYC Educator: Measures of Student Learning
NYC Educator: Measures of Student Learning: Measures of Student LearningAs per Reformy John King's mandated junk science plan, a committee in my school needs to determine which local measures we will use to determine 20% of teacher ratings. I was not able to attend the first few meetings, but I'm informed that measures will include comparisons of how students performed on last year's Regents exams
The Educated Reporter: Resources for Reporters: EWA's Story Starters, Guides, and the New Glossary of Education Reform
The Educated Reporter: Resources for Reporters: EWA's Story Starters, Guides, and the New Glossary of Education Reform: Resources for Reporters: EWA's Story Starters, Guides, and the New Glossary of Education ReformBack-to-school kicks in to high gear this week for many education reporters, so it's a good time for a reminder about the EWA resources available to help you get up to speed on the hot
8-26-13 The Answer Sheet Parents: Why we won’t look at our daughter’s test scores
The Answer Sheet: Common Core tests widen achievement gap in New YorkHere’s the latest post from award-winning Principal Carol Burris of South Side High School in New York, who for more than a year on this blog has chronicled test-driven reform in her state (here, and here and here and here, … Continue reading →    9 by Valerie Strauss / 1h mark as read  //  saveParents: Why we won’t look at our d
First Day of School: Talking Back to Harry Wong - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher
First Day of School: Talking Back to Harry Wong - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: First Day of School: Talking Back to Harry WongBy Nancy Flanagan on August 26, 2013 7:42 AMI can remember clearly the hour I stopped laying down the law--the rules, guidelines and procedures--on the first day of school. At our faculty meeting the previous day, my middle school principal said, "If
In the news: Philly’s budget crisis goes national, Parents United co-founder a commenter on Gallup poll, more! | Parents United for Public Education
In the news: Philly’s budget crisis goes national, Parents United co-founder a commenter on Gallup poll, more! | Parents United for Public Education: In the news: Philly’s budget crisis goes national, Parents United co-founder a commenter on Gallup poll, more! | Parents United for Public EducationPosted on August 26, 2013 by PARENTSUNITEDPHILALeave a commentPhiladelphia’s budget crisis makes nati
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES: WEEKEND QUOTABLES"My best meeting with him was off stage, away from the lights at a private table in a steakhouse." -- J.C. Brizard CPS grandmother Irene Robinson"This is safe passage? No, this is murder city," Robinson said, shaking her head. -- Aljazeera Ex-Marine  Col. Tom TyrellThere are obvious differences between closing 50 schools and starti
Advocating for All Children: An Interview with PTA President Otha Thornton | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights
Advocating for All Children: An Interview with PTA President Otha Thornton | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights: Advocating for All Children: An Interview with PTA President Otha ThorntonBy Anne O'Brien on August 26, 2013When you think of the PTA, you might think of parents getting together to put on a fall carnival or bake cookies for teacher appreciation week. And while the Nati
School bullying prevention efforts falling short, state audit says | EdSource Today
School bullying prevention efforts falling short, state audit says | EdSource Today: School bullying prevention efforts falling short, state audit saysAugust 26th, 2013 | 1 Comment | By Jane Meredith AdamsShare on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on printMore Sharing ServicesPhoto from Flickr under Creative Commons licenseResponding to concerns that schools should do more to stop bullyi
Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Classy: AFT leader Randi Weingarten cuts off 9-year-old kid at March on Washington event; UpdatedI watched C-span last night half asleep after a full day in the Poconos. Asean read a statement. He paused then said something like Oh one more thing. Randi pulled the like out of his hand, patted him on the shoulder and gently turned him away as she started her screaming diatribe. It
8-26-13 teacherken at Daily Kos
teacherken at Daily Kos: My only reaction to this is yet again UGH!and I cannot help but think that we justify our doing things for which we condemn others. From Foreign Policy:  Exclusive: CIA Files Prove America Helped Saddam as He Gassed Iran I am not going to attempt to parse this. You can read it on your own.   I will do only this much, offering these two snips: In 1988, during the waning day
Crazy Crawfish's Blog | Zesty Louisiana Education Politics
Crazy Crawfish's Blog | Zesty Louisiana Education Politics: Introducing PegLeg Mickey, the Ed Policy Pundit/Pirate? Accountability Argh!Believe it or not, this is not my handiwork. J (I’m working on something I hope will be even more disturbing.) While the opinions of key LDOE personnel are not necessarily mine own, I feel it would be inappropriate to censor this piece or art/outrage. As I’ve said
8-26-13 Schools Matter @ The Chalk Face
SCHOOLS MATTER @ THE CHALK FACE: Michelle Rhee: A Teacher’s Best FriendWhat makes a really good friend?  The listening? The understanding?  Always being there for you?  Well, if you are a teacher, Michelle Rhee wants to be your friend.  To prove it, she’s personally inviting you to her upcoming Teacher Town Halls, where you and Michelle (and two of her other friends) can have “an open […]28 by Kri
8-26-13 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Research Group Financed By Bloomberg Philanthropies Hails Bloomberg Education PolicyThe Daily News has a story out today about research group MDRC releasing a report that shows how Bloomberg's small schools initiative has improved graduation rates of students compared to other schools in the system.The group claims the following on their website:(New York, August 26, 2013) —

YESTERDAY

CHICAGO TRIBUNE – I THINK I KNOW WHY YOU HATE TEACHERS | Teachers Fight Back
CHICAGO TRIBUNE – I THINK I KNOW WHY YOU HATE TEACHERS | Teachers Fight Back: CHICAGO TRIBUNE – I THINK I KNOW WHY YOU HATE TEACHERSleave a comment »The headline and follow-up story  in today’s Chicago Tribune was about teachers who had abused kids and somehow were not in jail.The lead editorial was about the state committee that is working on teacher pensions.  Some of what the committee has been
Back to school, but without books and basics in Mississippi | Hechinger Report
Back to school, but without books and basics in Mississippi | Hechinger Report: Back to school, but without books and basics in MississippiBy Jackie MaderRICHTON, Miss. — When Superintendent Noal Cochran had an open teaching position in this quiet town, he looked for applicants at the bottom of the salary ladder—those with as little experience as possible. When he needed a new football coach, he w
Nite Cap 8-25-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change
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 CAPTODAYNYC Public School Parents: Do Korean students agree with Amanda Ripley about their educational system?NYC Public School Parents: Do Korean students agree with Amanda Ripley about their educational system?: Do Korean students agree with Amanda Ripley a