All Week @ THE CHALK FACE
Can There Be Equitable School Choice for All?
It never fails. No matter what the discussion was originally intended to be, it almost always seems to devolve (or sometimes even evolve) into a very passionate and sometimes nasty debate about parental choice in education. Every time I read through one of these often entertaining threads on a discussion board or Facebook, I always […]
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Should SC Increase Charter School Investment?. via Should SC Increase Charter School Investment?.
Proponents of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are fond of saying that CCSS “has been adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia.” However, it seems that they refuse to mention the CCSS resistance that has found its way into state offices–often resulting in formal hearings. Below I offer the latest in CCSS unrest from 17 […]
[In the interest of full disclosure, I have never been to Marea, which is apparently one of the finest Italian restaurants in New York City. As commentators regale us with their wisdom on education without ever having set foot inside a classroom, let alone teach, I consider myself eminently qualified to act as Mr. Frank […]
YESTERDAY
SOS! Immediate Paradigm Shift Requested! Multicultural, Multilingual Focus Necessary to Respond to Changing Demographics!
“To commit ourselves to the work of transforming the academy so that it will be a place where cultural diversity informs every aspect of our learning, we must embrace struggle and sacrifice. We cannot be easily discouraged. We cannot despair when there is conflict. Our solidarity must be affirmed by shared belief in a spirit […]
NOV 28
@slekar dabbles in #commoncore and #edreform memes: Any questions?
Follow Tim Slekar on Twitter: @slekar
My hometown of Pgh puts carpetbaggers and amateurs on notice. Stay away, TFA!
Behold, from the Pittsburgh City Paper. Thirty dirty corps members may not seem like much, but it’s a toehold, an opening on the beach that will stage future invasions. It would be just a beginning. Tagged: teach for america, TFA
Kids are preconditioned to draw hand turkeys. Hands down.
I wanted to keep the discussion of Thanksgiving in my classroom to a minimum. What I did do, unsuccessfully, was lead a discussion, after reading through a Peanuts Thanksgiving on the iPad, about the many things they have to be thankful for this holiday. Besides a few initial responses about food, kids’ responses went to […]
I’m thankful for…
On this Thanksgiving Day, here are a few reasons why I’m thankful for being a professional educator. I’m truly thankful for… 1. I’m thankful for my colleagues who show up, everyday, to influence students. My school is definitely not a “walk in the park,” so I’m grateful for all of my colleagues who show up, everyday, […]
The Indignant Teacher’s Unfortunate, Yet Enlightening, Experience
The Indignant Teacher’s Unfortunate, Yet Enlightening, Experience
My Thanksgiving Post
On October 3, 1789, at the urging of both the House and Senate, President George Washington officially declared Thursday, November 26, 1789, to be “a day of publick thanksgiving and prayer”: WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His […]
NOV 27
Putting the “Public” Back into Public Education
I made my very first video! Yes, it’s catered specifically to New Mexico, but that’s the fight in which I’m embroiled at this point in time. But I think that it can be shared with all parents of all states, just to get people exposed. And, hey–it’s set to “Uprising” by Muse. The best modern […]
Education Reform as Collaboration, Not Competition
Education Reform as Collaboration, Not Competition. via Education Reform as Collaboration, Not Competition.
NOV 26
Teaching Strategies GOLD = Garbage waste of time
My colleagues in Pre-K hate, hate, hate GOLD. Then, these kids enter Kindergarten without being able to read or even write their own names. So, what the hell is going on? I received an email asking if I wanted to participate as a pilot classroom for GOLD. They even dangled a free iPad mini in […]
Good coverage of the #optout movement from NYmag
Read up. United Opt Out National receives a mention. Nice. Tagged: opt out, testing, united opt out
Two things I thought would never be uttered: Thanksgiving and #commoncore, now with calcium
One more day before a short, but much-needed break. We’re culminating our study of the solar system tomorrow by launching a model rocket. But I just thought, for giggles, to peruse Google and Pinterest for some “Thanksgiving Fun” in case I had a few worthless minutes to spare. In 2013, is Thanksgiving in schools still […]
November Guest Commentary by Joining Forces for Education’s Ellen Lubic
Joining Forces for Education was formed in response to Ben Austin’s public school bulldozer outfit, the Walton Family Foundation funded Parent Revolution. Ellen Lubic occasionally contributes to Professor Ravitch’s site. Obama : With Banksters/Common Core/Race to the Top/College for All, and other fantasy legislation vs. Reality and Vocational Ed We, the People, wanted to believe in […]
Little Merit in Rush to Report Merit Pay Report
Mathematica reports and journalists have proven to be problematic—as I noted about the Mathematica claims about KIPP middle schools. With a fresh Mathematica study, Talent Transfer Initiative: Attracting and Retaining High-Performing Teachers in Low-Performing Schools, also comes the rush to report: Top Teachers Retained Effectiveness After Transfer, Study Shows, Stephen Sawchuck at Education Week
Misreading “Grit”: On Treating Children Better than Salmon or Sea Turtles
Misreading \”Grit\”: On Treating Children Better than Salmon or Sea Turtles. via Misreading “Grit”: On Treating Children Better than Salmon or Sea Turtles.
NOV 25
@drsteveperry wants to use a strap on, or strap up, or whatever it’s called. @edushyster
The Edushyster has a really evocative piece up, a first person account, of that oddly aggressive charlatan and carpetbagger “Dr.” Steve Perry, whose EdD dissertation is insanely inadequate to keep forcing those initials upon us at every speaking engagement. A pathetic non-man, this Steve Perry is. Lame and limp. Tagged: capital prep, no excuses, steve […]
Book Review: John Owens’ Confessions of a Bad Teacher
I teach. I blog. I speak publicly. I advocate. I advise. I counsel. Not much time left for reading for pleasure. However, from the very opening paragraphs of John Owens’ firsthand account of the contemporary, reform-beaten American classroom, Confessions of a Bad Teacher, I was hooked: After we read the section of Homer’s The Odyssey […]
NOV 24
Common Core, Aligned Curriculum, and Other NGA/Duncan-decided Issues
In this post, I would like to offer information on the beginnings of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and its interconnectedness with other so-called reforms. I refer to three documents (all linked below) from June 2008, June 2009, and June 2010. My initial purpose in examining these documents was to ascertain the admitted connection […]
Tim and I are off again today, so here’s our studio interview with Dr. Jed Hopkins
We’re taking some time off after recording a bunch of studio shows. For your listening pleasure, here’s a studio show from July 2013 with one of Slekar’s colleagues, Dr. Jed Hopkins. We get into some insightful international comparisons. Tagged: at the chalk face, education talk, jed hopkins, shaun johnson, tim slekar
Teacher Quartering: Four Reasons Why Teachers Avoid, or Leave, High Poverty Urban Public Schools
Introduction Teaching within a high poverty urban public school is challenging, to say the least. Time and again, I hear education policy experts claim that high poverty urban schools don’t have enough effective or high quality teachers “at the helm.” Part of this is due to the misuse of VAM-based models, but another aspect of […]
Safe Spaces for Teachers’ Professional Voices in a Public Sphere
Safe Spaces for Teachers\’ Professional Voices in a Public Sphere. via Safe Spaces for Teachers’ Professional Voices in a Public Sphere.
NOV 23
Let me tell you a little something about me #edreform
Since 2009, in professional terms, I’ve suffered some fairly significant losses. I pursued a PhD in 2005 and completed it in 2009, thinking that higher education would lift me to some higher plane in terms of my understanding and practice of my chosen discipline. Understanding it brought me, indeed. And improvements to my practice, certainly, […]
A Moment In Ncte History – Ncte Annual Convention Boston, 2013
A MOMENT IN NCTE HISTORY – NCTE ANNUAL CONVENTION BOSTON, 2013. via A MOMENT IN NCTE HISTORY – NCTE ANNUAL CONVENTION BOSTON, 2013.