All Week 8-10-13 @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER
You know what’s stupid, what’s really stupid? The academic publishing industry. #highered
I’m in the classroom now. When I was in graduate school and a college professor, I collected PDFs of articles from EBSCO and JSTOR and elsewhere as if I was attempting to stockpile for some kind of intellectual apocalypse. A fraction of a percent were ever really read. But I’ve been scanning for some advice […]
A Sane Reply To Bill McCallum: Why I Cannot Support the Common Core “State” Standards
William McCallum is, by his own description, a man who was “born in Australia and came to the United States to pursue a Ph. D. in mathematics at Harvard University, a professor at the University of Arizona, working in number theory and mathematics education.” He is also the chair of the Common Core mathematics […]
The Indignant Teacher’s Second Letter to Bill Gates
Back in June, The Indignant Teacher published a heartfelt plea directed towards Melinda Gates, via Teacher’s Letters to Bill Gates. As with the letters posted to the site before and after hers, it went ignored. Today she has submitted her second letter to the site: ***************************************************************************** Mr & Mrs Gates, Shame on you. I am sickened […]
A basic assumption about #commoncore that’s insufficient #edtech
Very simple. I’ve heard many arguments about how stupendously awesome common core is and will be. Regarding the tests, I hear frequently that they’re better because, quite simply, they’re on the computer. So, on computer automatically means better. I see. Innovation.
SEP 05
Testing Is the New Learning: Do the Math
While Orange Is the New Black continues to garner a wide range of reactions from the public and critics, let’s do a little math and confront something that is not receiving the media attention that it should: Testing is the new learning. Back in 2005, when the SAT introduced with much fanfare a third section […]
SEP 04
How to Manipulate Everyone to Buy in to #CCSS
From Sara Wottawa’s Blog: Holy Corruption Batman! In a nutshell this publication is a directive on how to manipulate teachers, parents, administrators and even legislators to buy into the CCSS! On pg. 48 in the publication Implementing Common Core State Standards and Assessments: A Workbook for State and District Leaders it states: In essence communications efforts help widen […]
Don’t Delay Retention Policy, Reject Retention
South Carolina is a dysfunctional poster child for the hot mess that is political leadership, the media, and their combined influence on educational policy. Superintendent of Education Mick Zais, The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC), and even the SC League of Women Voters all cannot stop themselves from promoting the worst possible education reform policy […]
SEP 03
@AACTE: Really? VAM’s for teacher education?
In case you missed it. The American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education “applauded” the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) for “adopting” new standards that will hold teacher education programs accountable for the invalid high stakes test score gains or losses of children even though these scores are really a measure of a child’s […]
From Peggy Robertson, I just need to share this. Sorry, kiddo.
Saw this posted, needed to quote it: Hold on to your seats…I think I may win the award for the Greatest Testing Absurdity of the Night!!!! Nashville, TN 7th grade parents were informed that the 7th graders must be able to type 60 WPM in order to finish the new common core tests. And…no worries […]
Diane Ravitch’s Message to Boston Voters via The Indignant Teacher
Dear Indignant Teacher: Friends in Boston have told me that my message to you has been widely read, which is good, but also widely misinterpreted. I am writing now to be clear what it means to support public education. It means that public schools should be subject to democratic control. Mayoral control is a very […]
SEP 02
Microtel Inns, Dairy Queens, St. Sensible and Detroit Country Day: Realities and Myths of “Choice”
EDUCATION WEEK recently published “Calculator Use on Exams to Shift With Common Core,” by Erik W. Robelen. In reply to some discussion about the article on a private Facebook page, Wendy Hart wrote, “ I think the real issue here isn’t what is the proper use of a calculator, but that it is being dictated by […]
On The Advocacy of Teacher Unions and High Quality Public Schools: A Labor Day Post
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” -Martin Luther King, Jr. It’s funny how politics makes strange bedfellows. Over the past decade I have watched as politicians and talking heads from opposite sides of the political spectrum challenge and undermine each others’ ideas about how to best create […]
BREAKING: Teachers cheer for students to fail.
As children head back to school this week in New York State* they may be subjected to Student Learning Objective assessments in the first week or two of the school year. An SLO pre-test is supposed to determine a student’s prior knowledge of a subject to help calculate teacher growth for an educator’s evaluation. Now […]
Do Not Go for the GOLD (Teaching Strategies GOLD) for Early Childhood Classrooms
I want to begin by giving everyone a quick background on GOLD. I am simply scraping the tip of the iceberg – it has many additional components to it – but the component that is most used and most touted is the assessment component. Please bare with me, this blog is much longer than it […]
Is this TFA and Reality Israel stuff Anti-Semitic? I’m torn.
There’s an article going around about a widow donating to TFA to provide some kind of field trip experience to Israel called Reality Israel. Here’s explanation of the trip via TFA’s website. It’s written by journalist Max Blumenthal and is making the rounds in leftist media like Alternet. When I first read Blumenthal’s original article, […]
EngageNY modules: “So random” is no way to teach.
The New York State Education Department has been pushing Common Core implementation at a rapid pace, even forcing last spring’s new aligned state assessments on schools even though teachers had little opportunity for training and preparation. Giving teachers time to prepare and create lessons on their own is the key to any quality classroom experience. […]
The P&C, Here We Go Again; Or, Let’s Link Journos’ Pay to Doing the Research
The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC) has yet to see a bad education reform idea it could reject. This time they are endorsing merit pay and linking teacher pay to student test scores. I sent this letter to the editor: It is careless and irresponsible journalism to continue to endorse education reform that has no […]
SEP 01
The Myth of Opting Out of Tests and Losing Money
Time to do a little research. Luckily, the hard-working folks at New York State Allies for Public Education have done much of the groundwork for us! And that groundwork is a solid foundation of information for all states with NCLB Waivers. Did you know that No Child Left Behind originally called for 95% participation since […]
Tim Tebow and the “Hard Work” Myth: No Excuses? | the becoming radical
Tim Tebow and the “Hard Work” Myth: No Excuses? | the becoming radical.
AUG 31
Testing “Revolution” in Wisconsin: Wrong or Right?
You kill one and two more rise up to take its place! This is what it feels like dealing with education reformers. Their sheer ability to resurrect discussions that have been thoroughly run through with a sword is miraculous. For example, Alan J. Borsuk, writing for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel decided to push more common […]
Thanks for this @stoptesting15: DCPS wellness policy on recess
The reader may or may not know: I walked away from higher education to return to the classroom. I’m now teaching Kindergarten in Washington, DC. After our first week, schedules are continually adjusted to meet this or that requirement. For instance, the District mandates 120 minutes for ELA and 90 minutes for math. That leaves […]
Why I am running for President of the Massachusetts Teachers Association
I became a teacher because I was committed to public education as the soil in which we grow the democratic project. I became a teacher of English Language Arts because it seemed an ideal space in which to develop empathy and imagination; to ask the questions of meaning and purpose that guide our choices; to […]
Death Penalty for Failing Schools?
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/buffalo-public-schools/coumo-urges-death-penalty-for-failing-schools-20130829 So, then there’s this……….Governor Cuomo calling for a “death penalty” for failing schools. Great…….so school communities get to choose their method of execution. And, honestly, I’ve been wondering where my excitement for the start of the school year has gone? Previously, ‘failing’ a