Wednesday, March 20, 2013

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School Part VII: THE TRAIN WRECK southbronxschool.com

http://www.southbronxschool.com:

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School Part VII: THE TRAIN WRECK

by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)

When last we visited The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School we saw how the proverbial doody is hitting the proverbial fan. That ain't nothing.

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is now nothing more than a train wreck awaiting the clean up crew wreckage of corpses of hope and education of what will ceased to be, especially after tonight's PEP meeting.

To say that there is no direction at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is an understatement. Yes, we here at SBSB do believe that the intentions of the decision makers at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School were the best, however one can only look and see with the carnage of all about The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. Incredulously, those in

Voice your opinion on issues important to you. How? With one click. | Reclaim Reform

Voice your opinion on issues important to you. How? With one click. | Reclaim Reform:

Voice your opinion on issues important to you. How? With one click.

Posted on March 20, 2013by kenpreviti

Voice your opinion on issues important to you. How? With one click.
Refuse to be a willing victim. Speak out.

Simple: Find your Senators & Representatives in one click. Contact them.
HERE: http://www.opencongress.org/people/zipcodelookup

Simple: Find your letters-to-the-editor source in one click. Write a letter to your paper.
HERE: http://afl.salsalabs.com/o/4055/letter/?letter_KEY=210&tag210.email

School closings? Pension theft? Scapegoating teachers? Privatization of profit from draining finances from public services? High stakes testing? Opt-Out of testing for your child? Voter registration restrictions? Public employee and union destruction? Vouchers? Bullying? The list goes on… DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

The two links above are free and safe. They can be used by anyone even though particular groups made these available to everyone.

Refuse to be a willing victim in a society whose needs are being ignored in favor of extremist ideology and multinational mega-corporations with their billionaire backers legally corrupting legislators and purchasing media sources.

REFUSE TO BE A WILLING VICTIM.

Reclaim reform.

All Things Education: Constituents: Eric Cantor wants to hear that you agree with his bankrupt agenda.

All Things Education: Constituents: Eric Cantor wants to hear that you agree with his bankrupt agenda.:

Constituents: Eric Cantor wants to hear that you agree with his bankrupt agenda.

by Rachel Levy

Blogger's note: This is the second in a series of posts that I wrote in February of 2012 as part of a writing fellowship application. See the introduction to this series here. Eric Cantor's foray into education reform a la vouchers and privatization--he desires to "move heaven and earth to fix education for the most vulnerable" and says that "our schools are too dangerous"--along with recent attempts to re-invent himself reminded me of this post about how he was was (also) trying to re-make himself one year ago.

Eric Cantor has sent out an e-mail to his constituents; the subject line reads “I’d like to Hear From You.” The congressman wants “to understand where you stand on the many issues facing our nation and how they’re impacting you and your family.” Included is a survey full of leading questions.

Eric Cantor is notorious for ignoring his constituents, but people or corporations outside of his district, however, are another story. During the 2010 campaign, his advance staff went so far as to have local police remove and

Legislative Analyst urges conditions on selling district property | EdSource Today

Legislative Analyst urges conditions on selling district property | EdSource Today:

Legislative Analyst urges conditions on selling district property - by John Fensterwald

by John Fensterwald

The Legislative Analyst’s Office is taking issue with Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to remove restrictions limiting how school districts can use money from the sale of district property. The LAO wants to add a condition intended to make a district carefully weigh the option of selling district property to plug a hole in its general operating budget.

Until the recession, with few exceptions, districts had to put money from selling of district land and buildings into a capital account for building repairs or future construction. But in 2009, to give districts more options to deal with the recession, the Legislature temporarily allowed districts to spend the proceeds from the sale of property purchased entirely with district funds on one-time general operating expenses. These are defined as “costs that are nonrecurring in nature and do not commit the school district to incur costs in the future.” Only eight districts have taken advantage of the offer so far, according to LAO analyst Paul Golaszewski. San Bruno Park School District in San Mateo County was among them and spent $12 million from property sales on textbooks,

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to Hold NCAA March Madness Press Call | U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to Hold NCAA March Madness Press Call | U.S. Department of Education:

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to Hold NCAA March Madness Press Call

Contact:

Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov

Event Date 1: March 21, 2013 12:30 pm - 01:30 pm

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will hold a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) March Madness press call on Thursday, March 21, to discuss the need to strike a healthier balance between academics and athletics in college sports. Duncan will highlight progress that has been made in establishing minimal academic benchmarks for post-season tournament eligibility, but also will urge college presidents and trustees to better balance incentives in coaches’ contracts in the future to support the educational mission of their institutions. Richard Lapchick, University of Central Florida’s director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports; Tom McMillen, former Maryland congressman and University of Maryland basketball star; and Ben Jealous, president and CEO of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), will join Duncan on the call.

Members of the press who wish to join the call may dial (888) 603-9624.

Event 1

Who :	U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan Richard Lapchick, University of Central Florida's director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports Tom McMillen, former Maryland Congressman and University of Maryland basketball star Ben Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP
What :	NCAA March Madness tournament press call
When :	12:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, March 21, 2013
Where :	Call in: Dial (888) 603-9624

Connecticut concerns about Renzulli Academy segregation makes Washington Post - Wait, What?

Connecticut concerns about Renzulli Academy segregation makes Washington Post - Wait, What?:

Connecticut concerns about Renzulli Academy segregation makes Washington Post

by jonpelto

The Washington Post’s education reporter, Valarie Strauss, reprinted the recent column written by Wendy Lecker on her blog, The Answer Sheet.

Strauss writes, “Are schools for “gifted” students promoting segregation? Here’s an argument that they are, from Wendy Lecker, a columnist for Hearst Connecticut Media Group and senior attorney for the Campaign for Fiscal Equity project at the Education Law Center.”

Lecker’s piece was first published in the Stamford Advocate and through the other Hearst Connecticut media outlets and then re-posted here at Wait, What? under the title “Gifted” to the right, “Special” to the left, the rest of you sit down and wait”

In addition, you can read my commentary pieces on the subject here at: Gifted and

Started a profile at myEDmatch for kicks, what a strange, reformy thing this is – @ the chalk face

Started a profile at myEDmatch for kicks, what a strange, reformy thing this is – @ the chalk face:

Started a profile at myEDmatch for kicks, what a strange, reformy thing this is

by Chalk Face, PhD

I saw that a friend on Facebook “liked” something called myEdmatch. Apparently, finding a teaching job is like online dating. To wit:

Complete the Core Beliefs Profile so myEDmatch can suggest schools that would be good matches based on your core beliefs about education.

So, is this tHarmony, or something?
I filled out some beliefs with minimal forethought and opened an account, under an assumed name, of course.
I realize that this is a Beta version, so its capabilities might be limited at this time. But let’s play around. So, according to my “match score,” roughly 101 schools fit my preferences. There are a bunch of filters I can choose

Ms. Reform: Education Reform as Starlet of NetFlix’s “House of Cards” by Adam Bessie

by Timothy D. Slekar

This post originally appeared in the Daily Censored at http://www.dailycensored.com/ms-reform-education-reform-as-starlet-of-netflixs-house-of-cards/
“Education Reform” is a rising star: once Ms. Reform was all but ignored, featured in arcane reports presented in monotone at heavily acronymed academic conferences; now, she struts down the red carpet in Dolce & Gabbanna at awards shows, billionaire tech entrepreneur sidled on her arm, waving at the cameras with a poised grace.
Ms. Reform made her big-screen debut in Davis Guggenheim’s documentary Waiting For Superman, where Oprah – and thus the entire corporate media – deemed her a rising starlet; then she made her first feature length appearance alongside Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake in the comedy Bad Teacher, which showed her

Missouri Education Watchdog: Where's the "Do-Not-Track Common Core Data Act of 2013?"

Missouri Education Watchdog: Where's the "Do-Not-Track Common Core Data Act of 2013?":

Where's the "Do-Not-Track Common Core Data Act of 2013?"

by stlgretchen

Jay Rockefeller introduced a "no tracking" bill (Do-Not-Track Online Act of 2013) to "prescribe regulations regarding the collection and use of personal information obtained by tracking the online activity of an individual, and for other purposes."

From calpirg.org and Free Cookies-Strings Attached:

Recently West Virginia’s Senator John D. Rockefeller, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, proposed the Do-Not-Track Online Act of 2013. The bill would require the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to establish standards allowing internet users to set their web browsers to tell websites, advertising networks, data brokers and other online entities that they do not want to be tracked online for

Last Stand for Children First: Chicago Public Schools Promise to Give Every Student at Closed Schools a Pony

Last Stand for Children First: Chicago Public Schools Promise to Give Every Student at Closed Schools a Pony:

Chicago Public Schools Promise to Give Every Student at Closed Schools a Pony

by Last Stand for Children

Despite a reported 1 billion dollar debt, the Chicago Public Schools announced that all students at closing students would be given their very own pony. District officials vowed to pick up the tab of approximately $2,500 per student for the ponies.

“Our research shows that children--particularly small children--love ponies. We also have to consider that many children will have to travel further to their receiving schools. Also, many of these students have seen absolutely no stability in relationships they've formed with people” said school CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett in a press release issued shortly after midnight.

District officials said they'll pay for the investments by "redirecting resources from underutilized" schools, which will be closed. But a 2011 study by the Pew Charitable Trusts revealed that many districts that have closed

School Tech Connect: Charter Meeting Thursday Night in Bowmanville

School Tech Connect: Charter Meeting Thursday Night in Bowmanville:

Charter Meeting Thursday Night in Bowmanville

by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman)

Raise Your Hand is putting out a red alert on the new Concept charter school that the appointed state charter commission just inserted into Chicago. There's a meeting Thursday night of the Bowmanville Community Organization; I hope people can go.

Charter Schools - Dividing Communities since 1991

Concept Charter School Coming to Lincoln Sq/Bowmanville?

Despite the fact that the Board of Education rejected the application for expansion of this charter, Concept Schools appealed the process at the state level and was approved last night to open a new K-12 school likely in the Bowmanville area at Hoyne and Balmoral not far from “underutilized” Trumbull school and many other schools that are working towards building their enrollment.

If you are in the Amundsen, Budlong, Chappell, Jamieson, and Trumbull boundaries you should consider how this school would impact enrollment and funding at your schools.

What can you do? Attend a community meeting THIS THURSDAY at North Community Bank, 5241 N.

Policy Intervention or Political Posture? | National Education Policy Center

Policy Intervention or Political Posture? | National Education Policy Center:

Policy Intervention or Political Posture?

by elaine

Christopher Lubienski

Fawn Johnson

Education the Louisiana Way
By Fawn Johnson
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., last Friday visited a private Catholic school, St. Mary's Academy in New Orleans, for a tour and a discussion with local education officials and families. The purpose of the visit, (gumbo and sazerac aside) was to promote Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's education agenda, much of which has landed in court. "We want to explore what has been gained in terms of experience to see how we can learn from this at the federal level," Cantor said after the event.
Jindal, a rising star in the Republican party, last year announced an ambitious education plan for Louisiana that has been cheered by school choice advocates and booed by teachers' unions. The plan forms a virtual battleground for a difficult education debate in a state whose schools are ranked among the very worst in the country. Louisiana is the perfect place for radical school proposals, and Jindal doesn't shy away from the task.

Big Education Ape Nite Cap 3-20-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

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

How big is the school counselor shortage? Big

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 minutes ago

How big is the school counselor shortage? Big: How big is the school counselor shortage? Big Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 20, 2013 at 5:19 pm 2 Comments More [image: schoolcounselor]A recent survey taken in California showed that a majority of voters there believe that the best approach to preventing violence in schools is through improving mental health services and emergency response training for school staff. But in the midst of a national debate about how to keeps kids in school safe, one thing we aren’t hearing much about is the serious shortage of school counselors. How ... more »

Clarification on what passed the Senate today: A different SB1. | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 minutes ago

Clarification on what passed the Senate today: A different SB1. | Fred Klonsky: Clarification on what passed the Senate today: A different SB1. by Fred Klonsky The IEA says that what I wrote in the previous blog post is not what happened today. Here is the IEA statement. Sen. President John Cullerton put a bill in front of the Senate today — twice — that has a direct effect on active Tier 1 TRS employees who have not yet submitted their letters of retirement.IEA is *OPPOSED* to the bill.The bill, known as SB1, forces current Tier 1 employees to choose to freeze their pensionabl... more »

Student Voice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 minutes ago

Student Voice: Lee Nave Jr. – Educational Progression in Ethiopia by admin Education abroad gives you experiences you would have never dreamed of seeing. In my travels over the years, I have been able to witness the education systems of countries such as Japan and Honduras. These experiences have allowed me to learn how these systems function as well as the magnitude of their student voice empowerment or lack thereof. A few weeks ago, my travels brought me to the country of Ethiopia. Before this trip my only knowledge of Ethiopia stemmed from having an Ethiopian relative that I a... more »

Jesse H: Our education civil rights movement may also start with a boycott Parents United for Responsible Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 45 minutes ago

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Jesse H: Our education civil rights movement may also start with a boycott: Jesse H: Our education civil rights movement may also start with a boycott by admin Jesse H with JW [image: JesseHandJW]Garfield High School teacher and MAP test boycott leader Jesse Hagopian told the crowd at the Mt. Carmel Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago last night that he agreed with Arne Duncan that education is the civil rights movement of our time. But history teacher Jesse reminded us that the last major civil rights movement started with ... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Assessment Task Force Update

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 45 minutes ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Assessment Task Force Update: Assessment Task Force Update by Melissa Westbrook I mentioned previously that I had attended the Assessment Taskforce meeting on Feb. 21st. I wanted to make note of several things I noticed: - Organized - very much appreciated - Good facilitator who kept things on track - The group is going to be able to look at the MAP test. I think this is great because as members of this Taskforce, they need what they are talking about when it comes to this discussion. - Two principals - from Mercer and Denny - came in to talk abou... more »

Diane in the Evening 3-20-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Ten Ways to Tell If You Are a Transphormer by dianerav EduShyster has developed a list of 10 signs of a real, true Transphormer. You know, the ones who are so motivated to arrange the lives of other people’s children that they can’t wait to get their parents’ okay. The ones who are so gripped by a sense of urgency that they feel called to close schools in poor communities and fire the staff without a moment’s delay, even though the students and parents beg them not to do it. Gary Rubinstein: TFA Propaganda V... more »

Giving Our Kids an Early Start to Success — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Giving Our Kids an Early Start to Success — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: John Farden]Giving Our Kids an Early Start to Success March 20, 2013 by John Farden [image: John Farden - Save the Children] It is our favorite time of the day, right after the nightly bubble bath, just before bedtime snuggled up in—our rocking chair with a pile of story books. As far as my 20-month-old son knows, this time is all about cuddling, telling stories, singing songs, and having fun. But I know better. The truth is, I am giving him an invaluable gift—a head start towards succes... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Hansel and Gretel banned in Chicago

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Hansel and Gretel banned in Chicago: Hansel and Gretel banned in Chicago by Mike Klonsky CEO Byrd-Bennett has denounced the children's book Hansel and Gretel, as "too grim to be read by first graders." She has sent her library purification teams in to elementary schools across the city with orders to remove every copy from the shelves and destroy them. Hansel and Gretel, as you may know, is the nightmarish story of two small children whose parents abandon in order to save on food costs. After several failed attempts to find their way out of the forest... more »

UPDATE: Park Ridge board member Anthony Borrelli expects more gratitude from me. + Zorn updates. | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Zorn updates. | Fred Klonsky: Breaking: Senate Bill 1 passes the Senate. by Fred Klonsky On the first vote it failed by one. They revoted. It passed. Senate President John Cullerton’s pension bill will now go to the Illinois House where it is also expected to pass. Then it will be up to the courts. The Cullerton bill has two parts. One is all the bad stuff in the Cross/Nekritz/Biss horror story: Raise the retirement age. Increase employee contributions. Cut COLAs. Cullerton fully expects the courts will find that part in violation of the pension protection clause of the Illinois T... more »

Ms. Reform: Education Reform as Starlet of NetFlix’s “House of Cards” - DailyCensored.com - Breaking Censored News, World, Independent, Liberal News

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Ms. Reform: Education Reform as Starlet of NetFlix’s “House of Cards” - DailyCensored.com - Breaking Censored News, World, Independent, Liberal News: Ms. Reform: Education Reform as Starlet of NetFlix’s “House of Cards” by Adam Bessie [image: house of cards] “Education Reform” is a rising star: once Ms. Reform was all but ignored, featured in arcane reports presented in monotone at heavily acronymed academic conferences; now, she struts down the red carpet in Dolce & Gabbanna at awards shows, billionaire tech entrepreneur sidled on her arm, waving at the cameras with a poised gra... more »

Education Protection Account - Principal Apportionment (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Education Protection Account - Principal Apportionment (CA Dept of Education): Education Protection Account ------------------------------ The Education Protection Account (EPA) provides local educational agencies (LEAs) with general purpose state aid funding pursuant to Proposition 30, the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012, approved by the voters on November 6, 2012. The EPA funding is a component of an LEA's total revenue limit or charter school general purpose entitlement. - Proposition 30 Impact to State Aid - 2012–13 EPA Entitlements and Apportion... more »

Opting Out | Deborah Meier on Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago

Opting Out | Deborah Meier on Education: Opting Out by debmeier A friend, principal of a NYC school, just sent me this: > Giving a test for which there is no established curriculum is absurd. Giving a test that all at Tweed are warning us many more children will fail is unconscionable, and abusive towards children. > > If we can get large percentages of parents to opt out, from a variety of schools, the people who take the stand will have protection. I know that many of my colleagues feel that if we just wait out Bloomberg’s term, we’ll get some breathing room. Buit we are like th... more »

Let’s do a little #parcc math, shall we? – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Let’s do a little #parcc math, shall we? – @ the chalk face: Let’s do a little #parcc math, shall we? by Chalk Face, PhD [image: @TCF on Blog Talk Radio] I’ve been curious about the recent release of time estimates for the PARCC tests, via Education Week. I was thinking about the typical elementary school, ones that I’ve been in, to see how this is going to work in practice, at least for the first couple of years as we go into total flux mode. Nevermind that two to three years of a child’s formative education will be disrupted until the system is in place. Who cares about them, ri... more »

Meet ASCD President Becky J. Berg — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago

Meet ASCD President Becky J. Berg — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Willona Sloan]Meet ASCD President Becky J. Berg March 20, 2013 by Willona Sloan [image: Becky J. Bert] Becky J. Berg is from a family of educators. "My dad was a school board president; my mom was a career educator; and my sister, my grandmother, and my great-grandfather were educators," she says. Despite the genetic pull, Berg wasn't completely convinced she would follow in the family's footsteps until her experience as a summer camp counselor while she was in college. It was then that she reali... more »

LAUSD considers allowing students to enter magnets all year long - latimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago

LAUSD considers allowing students to enter magnets all year long - latimes.com: LAUSD considers allowing students to enter magnets all year long Officials are working to set up a system that would allow students to enter popular magnet programs all year long in the Los Angeles Unified School District. The revamped admission process, previewed at Tuesday’s school board meeting, would address a long-standing problem: Programs are oversubscribed during the once-a-year admissions process, but underenrolled during the subsequent academic year. Currently, there are 172 magnet program... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, March 20, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *Breaking: Board Votes to Oust Monica Garcia From Presidency - LA School Report* Education Headlines *Wednesday, March 20, 2013* Lincoln Unified focuses on special-needs adultsResponding to a need that has been growing steadily for years, Lincoln Unified School District has moved to establish a program that will serve the district's young adults with special needs by preparing them to work and live with greater independence. Wiring students at school and home Stockton USD goalFollowing up on last year's large-scale purchase of c... more »

UPDATE: Daily Kos: Will we hold our leaders to standards we applied to others? + thoughts on gun registration

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Daily Kos: thoughts on gun registration: Will we hold our leaders to standards we applied to others? by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) To help you answer that might I suggest reading the opening statement made by Robert Jackson, then on leave from his position as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court to serve as Lead US Counsel (chief prosecutor) at Nuremberg. Let me offer the following from that statement: The American dream of a peace-and-plenty economy, as well as the hopes of other nations, can never be fulfilled if those nations are involved in a war every generation so v... more »

Clean sweep of teachers in Senate parent trigger bill | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Clean sweep of teachers in Senate parent trigger bill | Get Schooled: Clean sweep of teachers in Senate parent trigger bill by Maureen Downey *Take a look at this Google doc* of the newly revised Parent Empowerment bill, notable for the clean sweep of any mention of teachers or educators. *See my blog yesterday on the odd changes to this bill*. The bill initially had been called the Parent and Educator Empowerment bill, but you can’t find the words “teacher” or “educator” any longer in the title or the text of the legislation. The bill, which passed the House, is in a Senate subcom... more »

Louisiana Educator: Ravitch Encourages Louisiana Educators & Defenders

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Louisiana Educator: Ravitch Encourages Louisiana Educators & Defenders: Ravitch Encourages Louisiana Educators & Defenders by Michael Deshotels [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Diane Ravitch honored our blog today along with several other Louisiana blogs and individuals who are true supporters of public education in Louisiana. She recommended our Defenders of Public Education data base. I want to take this opportunity to ask each of my readers who are voters in Louisiana to sign up for this group. Here are the details you need to know: - The Defenders of Pub... more »

Modern School: We Don’t Need Celebrity Teachers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Modern School: We Don’t Need Celebrity Teachers: We Don’t Need Celebrity Teachers by Michael Dunn In a recent posting on Good Education, Jose Vilson lamented how there aren’t any celebrity K-12 teachers who can “speak to the collective conscience of the educational experience,” as if this was somehow a prerequisite for teachers to gain the autonomy, status and respect they deserve. This is a completely absurd notion with some pretty unfortunate implications. Anthony Bourdain, Wolfgang Puck and Jamie Oliver may have increased the number of people wanting to cook good food at home,... more »

Joy Resmovits: Teacher Tenure Targeted In North Carolina; Few Options For New Orleans Kids In Failing Schools -- Ed Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago

Joy Resmovits: Teacher Tenure Targeted In North Carolina; Few Options For New Orleans Kids In Failing Schools -- Ed Today: Teacher Tenure Targeted In North Carolina; Few Options For New Orleans Kids In Failing Schools -- Ed Today by Joy Resmovits *North Carolina Bill Targets Teachers* A top North Carolina lawmaker has introduced several education reform measures du jour -- including one that would end tenure -- reports the News & Observer. "Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger on Tuesday unveiled what he called the second round of education reforms aimed at holding schools and te... more »

The Great Deception | EduShyster

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago

The Great Deception | EduShyster: The Gr8 Deception by edushyster2012 *How to convince the public to abandon the wishy-washy notion of education for all in three easy steps* It is an indisputably true fact that our public schools are *hopelessly* failing beyond any hope of excellence. Yet the public remains strangely attached to the idea that publicly-funded schools have an obligation to educate all kids. Alas, that old-fashioned notion of equity is like the Lindsay Lohan of principles: washed-up and of waning interest. Today’s edu-visionary is all about excellence: the laser-honed... more »

MORNING UPDATE LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 3-20-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] How to Make Big Bucks as a Teacher by dianerav Teachers at a charter school in Louisiana received eye-popping bonuses. One got a bonus of $43,000–more than 75% of her annual salary–for raising test scores by 88% in one year. Five teachers shared bonuses of $167,000, The money comes from a federal grant. One teacher saw a gain of nearly 200%, but she teaches kindergarten, so she received only $4,086. Is NECAP a Valid Test for Graduation? by dianerav A reader sends ... more »

UPDATE: Stamford Advocate joins effort to warn about conflict of interest on State Board of Education - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Stamford Advocate joins effort to warn about conflict of interest on State Board of Education - Wait, What?: And in Hartford, Jumoke Academy pulls down another $1.1 million, while Achievement First collects $1.2 million by jonpelto Meanwhile, as Jumoke’s Chief Operating Officer waits for the Connecticut Legislature to vote to put her on the State Board of Education, the Hartford Board of Education voted last night to direct another $1,054,143 to the Jumoke Academy and $1,173,327 to Achievement First. On a 5 to 1 vote, the Hartford Board of Education authorized [...]*(Read more..... more »

Do schools for ‘the gifted’ promote segregation?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Do schools for ‘the gifted’ promote segregation?: Do schools for ‘the gifted’ promote segregation? Posted by Valerie Strauss on March 20, 2013 at 5:00 am 10 Comments More [image: gifted 2]Are schools for “gifted” students promoting segregation? Here’s an argument that they are, from Wendy Lecker, a columnist for Hearst Connecticut Media Group and senior attorney for the Campaign for Fiscal Equity project at the Education Law Center. By Wendy Lecker From Brown vs. Board of Education to Connecticut’s landmark case, Sheff v. O’Neill, to the language of the Connecticut constitution, the ... more »

UPDATE: a life-saver for SB1? + Students against high stakes testing + Ben Joravsky and the “parent penis theory.” | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Ben Joravsky and the “parent penis theory.” | Fred Klonsky: Will an Illinois judge’s ruling on retiree health care be a life-saver for SB1? by Fred Klonsky A Sangamon County judge has ruled in a case not directly involving the state’s teachers that the state can demand higher payments from retirees for health care. While retired teachers already pay almost all of the premium for their health care through TRIP, the Teacher Retirement Insurance Program, the ruling suggests that health care is not a benefit that is protected by the Illinois constitution’s pension protection clause. Th... more »

Is Education The Same As Schooling? | The Jose Vilson

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

Is Education The Same As Schooling? | The Jose Vilson: Is Education The Same As Schooling? by Jose Vilson Bill Gates [image: Bill Gates]In the first piece of my two-part series on Bill Gates’ interview on teacher evaluation, I found myself perplexed by this college dropout, one of many, keeping with the same old adage that kids take tests all the time and that’s just a part of getting an education, so just deal with it. Of course, it led to many questions: 1. How many tests actually determine whether they get to the next level of their education? 2. Will these tests accur... more »

The Last Minute Bait and Switch on Parent Trigger | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

The Last Minute Bait and Switch on Parent Trigger | Scathing Purple Musings: The Last Minute Bait and Switch on Parent Trigger by Bob Sikes Carlos Trujillo is losing the argument in the House on Parent Trigger. And that supposed groundswell of support from parents hasn’t materialized either. In yesterday’s hearing, 23 people spoke in opposition with four in support. One was a an actual parent. The other three were paid lobbyist from predictable places: Jeb Bush’s Foundation for Florida’s Future, Michelle Rhee’s Student’s First and the Florida Chamber of Commerce. But yesterda... more »

Alternative bill to speed up teacher dismissals introduced | EdSource Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Alternative bill to speed up teacher dismissals introduced | EdSource Today: Alternative bill to speed up teacher dismissals introduced - by John Fensterwald by John Fensterwald A year ago, Assemblymember Joan Buchanan cast a deciding vote killing a bill that would have pared back the process for firing teachers and administrators alleged to have done egregious acts against children. She said the legislation dealt with a narrow subset of dismissal cases and failed to deal with cumbersome procedures affecting all dismissals. [image: Buchanan's bill would set a seven-month limit on ... more »

UPDATE: Immigrant Populations: Seattle versus the Eastside + Second Civil Rights Investigation by Feds Seattle Schools Community Forum: Making Sense of Funding Foreign Language Immersion

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Making Sense of Funding Foreign Language Immersion: Immigrant Populations: Seattle versus the Eastside by Melissa Westbrook Great article in Crosscut about what is happening over on the Eastside with immigrant populations. *What draws immigrants to the Eastside and keeps them there, even when, like Tushara, they go to work in Seattle? Lee could be speaking for all of them when he answers, emphatically, with a single word: “School! I needed to raise kids, and Bellevue’s the place to do it.”* *It wasn’t just the Bellevue schools’ celebrated instruc... more »

Parent and Educator Empowerment Act moves from House to Senate. Teacher empowerment erodes along the way. | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Parent and Educator Empowerment Act moves from House to Senate. Teacher empowerment erodes along the way. | Get Schooled: Parent and Educator Empowerment Act moves from House to Senate. Teacher empowerment erodes along the way. by Maureen Downey [image: downeyart0726 (Medium)]A Senate subcommittee takes up the *parent trigger bil*l this morning at 8. As the Parent and Educator Empowerment bill moved from the House to the Senate, one piece apparently was lost in the journey: Teacher power. *According to the legislative update posted by the Professional Association of Georgia Educator... more »

The Educated Reporter: Feds Weigh College Financial Aid for Competency Based Learning

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

The Educated Reporter: Feds Weigh College Financial Aid for Competency Based Learning: Feds Weigh College Financial Aid for Competency Based Learning by Emily Richmond An interesting letter went out Tuesday from the U.S. Department of Education, asking interested colleges to submit applications for approval for federal financial aid for students in programs that take into account alternative measures -- and not just credit hours -- in awarding degrees. "This is a key step forward in expanding access to affordable higher education," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, in... more »

TFA sponsors reform propaganda videos | Gary Rubinstein's Blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

TFA sponsors reform propaganda videos | Gary Rubinstein's Blog: TFA sponsors reform propaganda videos by Gary Rubinstein I recently learned through one of my Twitter followers about a series of videos from an organization called RESETin Minnesota. Minnesota is a place that has a large TFA and TFA charter school presence. Even one of the new co-CEOs has several relatives involved in Minnesota charters. TFA, as well as several charter organizations, are ‘partners’ with RESET. RESET seems to be an organization that promotes the supposed benefits of the corporate reform model. They ... more »

Schools Matter: Parent Trigger - False Promises, Divided Communities and Disrupted Young Lives

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Schools Matter: Parent Trigger - False Promises, Divided Communities and Disrupted Young Lives: Parent Trigger - False Promises, Divided Communities and Disrupted Young Lives by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene *Thank you for this thoughtful and informative video exposing The Heartland Institute, Parent Revolution, and ALEC's corporate charter trigger law. We're hopeful that videos like this will counter the lies the trigger proponents promulgate, and that communities will resist when these outsiders come to steal our schools. —rdsathene* PopoutThe video tells the story of Adelanto, C... more »

NYC Educator: Neutered Action

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

NYC Educator: Neutered Action: Neutered Action by NYC Educator One of my favorite fables is *The Pearl *by John Steinbeck. In it, Steinbeck writes of how the common people are cheated. They go to sell their pearls, from one buyer to the next, but each buyer is just an arm of the one true buyer--they actually commiserate to keep prices down, rather than competing for the pearls they buy. That's how I feel every time New Action drops another ridiculous paper in my mailbox. We oppose this and that, but it's all good because we support that and this. The implication is that any actual... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Chicago research group on school closings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Chicago research group on school closings: Chicago research group on school closings by Mike Klonsky The Chicago research group, CReATE, has been turning out the best, most readable stuff on corporate-style school reform. CReATE's latest research brief, prepared by Stephanie Farmer, Isaura Pulido, Pamela J. Konkol, Kate Phillippo, David Stovall and Mike Klonsky, on School Closures, is worth a read. It concludes: *At present, the data reviewed in this research brief does not support Chicago Public Schools’ claim that closures are a viable solution to ... more »

Jersey Jazzman: The Real Reason For Vouchers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: The Real Reason For Vouchers: The Real Reason For Vouchers by Duke *So what if I support vouchers to get votes in Lakewood? Wanna make something of it?* NJ Governor Chris Christie, 3/19/13: *Gov. Chris Christie today picked up the endorsement of Orthodox Jewish education*, community and business leaders, after bringing his small government message to a retirement community down the road. At Yeshiva Toras Aron, a religious school for boys, *Christie said his proposal for private school vouchers would ensure it is “the education of the parents’ choice*, regardless...more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Math Fail #3

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Math Fail #3: NJ Teacher Evaluation: Math Fail #3 by Duke Let's go back to this slide from the NJDOE's presentation on their proposed new teacher evaluation system, AchieveNJ: The yellow annotation is mine from a previous post on Student Growth Percentiles. Apparently, even though SGPs are on a scale from 1 to 99, the NJDOE thought it would be fine to give an example of a teacher's median SGP as "2.0," which makes no sense at all; read the post for all the details. Alas, this is not the only problem here... Let's talk a bit about the "Teache... more »

Breaking: Board Votes to Oust Monica Garcia From Presidency - LA School Report

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

Breaking: Board Votes to Oust Monica Garcia From Presidency - LA School Report: Breaking: Board Votes to Oust Monica Garcia From Presidency by Samantha Oltman The LAUSD Board voted today, 4 to 3, to limit the School Board president’s term to two years per individual. This will end Monica Garcia’s role as the Board’s president, a seat she has held for six consecutive years. Board member Steve Zimmer was the deciding vote, joining his colleagues Marguerite LaMotte, Bennett Kayser, and Richard Vladovic to approve the limitation. Garcia, Tamar Galatzan, and Nury Martinez voted again... more »

School Tech Connect: CPS Chief Has No Answers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

School Tech Connect: CPS Chief Has No Answers: CPS Chief Has No Answers by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) Raise Your Hand has a press conference today at CPS headquarters, and Wendy Katten managed to catch CPS Chief Administrator Tim Cawley in an impromptu question/non-answer session. It's really quite remarkable--- first he admits that he's really not the man to talk to, and then it becomes clear that nobody really knows who the man to talk to is. Wendy is relentless. Bear with the sound; I'm working with cell phone footage. Go full screen and crank it. Popout Wendy Katten Ques... more »

L.A. school board targets Garcia with term-limits vote - latimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago

L.A. school board targets Garcia with term-limits vote - latimes.com: L.A. school board targets Garcia with term-limits vote [image: Monica Garcia] A narrow majority of Los Angeles Board of Education members voted Tuesday to set a limit of two consecutive years for the school board presidency. Unless the new rule is rescinded later, the decision would end the six-year run of current President Monica Garcia in July. The board president has no greater authority than others on the seven-member panel, but runs the meetings and frequently represents the nation’s second-largest school s... more »

Daily Kos: The forgotten cost of war

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Daily Kos: The forgotten cost of war: The forgotten cost of war by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) is driven home in a powerful way in a piece by Ron Kovic at Truthdig, titled The Forgotten Wounded of Iraq Most probably only know about Kovic from the movie biopic on him starring Tom Cruise in an Oscar nominated performance, "Born on the Fourth of July." If you saw the movie, forget about it and just read what Kovic has written. Here is his opening paragraph, which only hints at the power of what you will encounter reading this piece: Thirty-eight years ago, on Jan. 20, 1968, I w... more »

Model SARBs Selected - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Model SARBs Selected - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces 2012-13 Model Attendance, Dropout Prevention Programs SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today that 11 programs have been designated as models of attendance improvement and dropout prevention by the State School Attendance Review Board (State SARB). Torlakson congratulated the 2012-13 Model SARBs for their work in reducing the number of students who are chronically absent, which results in costing school districts millions of dollars each...more »

Student Voice Toolkit – A Blast from the Past Student Voice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Student Voice: Student Voice Toolkit – A Blast from the Past by admin As many prepare for the inaugural 2013 *Student Voice Live!* Summit that will be held at the Microsoft Offices in New York City, New York on April 13 th, I encourage us to take time to review what each of us has learned thus far. Over the past 7-months, there have been numerous Student Blog Contributions, weekly #StuVoice Twitter Meetings, insightful Student Panel Webinars and various initiatives to propel the work and impact to those in our communities and around the world. One particular #StuVoice Twitter Meet... more »

Union "Surveys" Teachers for Deasy Criticism - LA School Report

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Union "Surveys" Teachers for Deasy Criticism - LA School Report: Union “Surveys” Teachers for Deasy Criticism by Samantha Oltman Superintendent John Deasy The teachers union’s on-again, off-again plan to survey its members on what they think about LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy’s job performance is back on again. However, this time around the union has a much stronger idea of what kinds of negative views its members should express. The union first mentioned in January that it planned to survey members about Deasy. At the time, the survey was described in neutral terms: “UTLA member... more »