Latest News and Comment from Education

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Big Education Ape Nite Cap 5-25-13 #thankateacher #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



solidaridad: UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 minute ago
solidaridad: UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality: UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene UCLA IDEA is often quite good on issues, even though they represent an only slightly left-of-center viewpoint. UCLA as a whole sometimes does excellent work, like their study on how so-called school choice and charter school industry has brought back Jim Crow with a vengeance. They (namely IDEA) also sometimes works with right-wing groups funded by the Broad Foundation, like ICS. Now that I've returned to UCLA, I k... more »

Daily Kos: a few random thoughts on teaching and learning

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Daily Kos: a few random thoughts on teaching and learning: a few random thoughts on teaching and learning by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) let me grant for a moment that there should be some standard/goals we want for our students if we truly want to leave no child behind there would be only two grades Meets standards/goals/expectations Does not YET meet standards/goals/expectations the only "penalty" for not YET is to work with the child to help her/him reach it assignments/assessment should have as their goal helping students achieve those "Meets" criteria which means there is no ... more »

Republished: A Look Back from the Middle | Lefty Parent

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Republished: A Look Back from the Middle | Lefty Parent: Republished: A Look Back from the MiddleMay 25th, 2013 at 12:24 [image: Eric Profile]Republishing a recollection from our son Eric’s own writings about his development, “A Look Back from the Middle”, written in 2009, calling out some of the key developmental threads of his older youth after leaving school at fourteen and pursuing the unschooling path… There was a period; in fact, it was the entire span of time between so long as I can remember and age twenty one. One might observe that this period serves as one definition of t... more »

Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever | Education on GOOD

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever | Education on GOOD: Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever [image: we.future] As Helen Keller said, "The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision." That's why on Wednesday, when Chicago Public Schools decided to shut down 50 public schools, along with either combining or putting others in a turnaround model, even the casual observer could see the absolute failure of our current public education system and its wayward reforms. Closing 10 percent of the Chicago Publ... more »

Cleaning Up John White’s Mess | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
Cleaning Up John White’s Mess | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Cleaning Up John White’s Mess by crazycrawfish [image: Time to start eliminating the mess. . .] Time to start eliminating the mess. . . John White is likely to be gone by the end of June but Louisiana will still have its work cut out cleaning up the messes he will leave behind. Some of those messes off the top of my head are: - Unmonitored, standardless voucher program is an utter failure and a poorly performing mess from what little White has permitted us to see - The Course Choice program is fraught with fraud which ... more »

Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies | The Raw Story

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies | The Raw Story: Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies By Eric W. Dolan Saturday, May 25, 2013 14:34 EDT [image: [Intelligent design in school via Shutterstock]] Topics: ACLU ♦ american civil liberties union Like Raw Story on Facebook - 137 - - - - - [image: Print Friendly and PDF] - [image: Email this page] The American Civil Liberties Union this week warned school officials in Ohio not to adopt policies that advanced creationism... more »

Diane in the Evening 5-25-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Were You Invited to This Cool Party? by dianerav No? Neither was I. This was a soirĂ©e for the super-rich who support Eva Moskowitz’s charter schools. Those are the miracle schools that claim their students outperform the students in affluent Scarsdale. Hedge fund manager Daniel S. Loeb was the honoree. He was surrounded by other hedge fund managers. They think they are Robin Hoods. They forget that the real Robin Hood stole from people like them. Jeb Bush, Florida’s own Robin Hood was there. So was Merryl Tisch,... more »

The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis. | Fred Klonsky: The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis. by Fred Klonsky NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. For weeks now, teachers, parents and community leaders have been protesting Chicago Public Schools’ plan to close 50 schools in what will be the largest single wave of school closures in U.S. history. The media coverage has been dramatic, but what you see in the eyes of educators who are so adamantly opposed to this plan is the same thing you see in the eyes of educators all across this nati... more »

GRADUATION DECORUM | Teachers Fight Back

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago
GRADUATION DECORUM | Teachers Fight Back: GRADUATION DECORUM by alkleen There seems to be a new movement to end all the raucous behavior at school graduations. It seems people might finally be fed up with the hooting and hollering from the audience when names are read. This ridiculous behavior has been going on for years now and rarely has anyone had the nerve to stop the boorish behavior. Just like all other forms of school related discipline, this problem could be handled very simply if school administrators weren’t so afraid to offend anyone, especially parents. Many years ag... more »

Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize | Diane Ravitch's blog

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago
Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize | Diane Ravitch's blog: Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize by dianerav Enough! She is responding to Lisa Myer’s “A Teacher’s Letter to America.” By the way, that post went viral. It has been read by more than 30,000 people on this site alone and posted on Facebook more than 10,000 times. Whenever an article appears about schools or teaching, the comments that follow are often rants against both. Whence comes this rage? Why do so many people blame their teachers for whatever ails them? It doesn’t help that Race to the Top... more »

Dogs for Excellence | EduShyster

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Dogs for Excellence | EduShyster: Dogs for Excellence by edushyster2012 The fortune that billionaire heiress Leona Helmsley left to the dogs is now funding education reform groups. When last we encountered billionaire hotel heiress Leona Helmsley, she had ascended to the great hotel in the sky, leaving $12 million to her beloved Maltese, Trouble. In fact Helmsely loved dogs so much that she left the bulk of her for fortune, now valued at between $5-$8 billion to the care and welfare of dogs. So you might be surprised to learn that these days Mrs. Helmsley’s vast fortune isn’t going ... more »

Louisiana voucher students score almost 30 points below average on LEAP tests | NOLA.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Louisiana voucher students score almost 30 points below average on LEAP tests | NOLA.com: Louisiana voucher students score almost 30 points below average on LEAP tests [image: upperroom_bible_church_academy_vouchers.jpg]Voucher students at the Upperroom Bible Church Academy in November 2008. The school is prohibited from accepting new students in fall 2013 due to its current students' low performance on standardized tests. *(Chris Granger, The Times-Picayune)* As Gov. Bobby Jindal tries again to fund his controversial school voucher program, new test scores indicate that many of t... more »

Why Minnesota governor vetoed Teach For America funding

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Why Minnesota governor vetoed Teach For America funding: Why Minnesota governor vetoed Teach For America funding By Valerie Strauss, Published: May 25, 2013 at 11:56 amE-mail the writer 1 Comments More [image: Gov. Mark Dayton ( By MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel)] Gov. Mark Dayton ( By MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel) Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton just vetoed a line item inserted into the state’s higher education legislation that would have given $1.5 million to Teach For America over two years. This is what he said in an explanatory letter to the legislature: Teach for America (TFA) is a well-establi... more »

Piden que FBI investigue incendio en la guarderĂ­a ABC - Univision Noticias

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Piden que FBI investigue incendio en la guarderĂ­a ABC - Univision Noticias: Piden que FBI investigue incendio en la guarderĂ­a ABC A cuatro años del incendio que afectĂł la guarderĂ­a ABC en el estado de Sonora, donde fallecieron 49 niños y otros 70 sufrieron heridas, los padres de las vĂ­ctimas buscarán que sea el BurĂł Federal de Investigaciones (FBI) el que investigue el caso y una corte federal de EEUU emita un fallo contra los responsables, segĂşn indicĂł el periĂłdico* El Norte* en su ediciĂłn digital. Esto debido a que dos de los menores que resultaron lesionados tienen doble nacion... more »

Saturday coffee. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Saturday coffee. | Fred Klonsky: Saturday coffee. by Fred Klonsky [image: 401031_492695340803927_1169606387_n] This morning Chicago is gray with a damp chill. Rain? Maybe. A year ago on Memorial Day weekend it was Chicago hot and muggy. We were throwing a retirement bash at the Mike James and Katy Hogan’s *Red Line Tap. * Great party. The kids came in from Brooklyn. A couple hundred of my dearest and closest friends showed up. Even a couple of former administrators dropped by. Hummus and turkey sliders flowed like wine. Wine flowed like wine. Matt Farmer and Steve Doyle played a couple of...more »

Truthout interview: Education Reform in the New Jim Crow Era | the becoming radical

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Truthout interview: Education Reform in the New Jim Crow Era | the becoming radical: Truthout interview: Education Reform in the New Jim Crow Era Posted on May 25, 2013 by plthomasedd Please watch this interview at *Truthout:* —– And the related article, also at *Truthout* Education Reform in the New Jim Crow Era A related radio interview housed here as well: » Episode #741: Podcast for May 18, 2013 / This Is Hell!

Toilet Paper and (Instructional) Tolerance | Cooperative Catalyst

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Toilet Paper and (Instructional) Tolerance | Cooperative Catalyst: Toilet Paper and (Instructional) Tolerance by beckyfisher73 *This post was co-authored by @BeckyFisher73 and @ELeclere01. * So, which do you prefer – over or under? Just how did that preference come about? Is it really a personal preference or is it something you learned to prefer because of a significant other? What do you do when you enter into a bathroom where the toilet paper goes “the wrong way”? Let’s say you are staying in a hotel room for three nights and as you are unpacking, you go to the bathroom and re... more »

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 5-25-13

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
*4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:* *4LAKIDS - SOME OF THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT* Children’s Health: IGNORE EVIDENCE. DENY SCIENCE. MINIMIZE PROBLEMS. CRY “FREEDOM!” + smf’s 2¢ smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago Companies Say the Darnedest Things As They Try to Avoid Regulation by email from The Prevention Institute 22 May 2013 :: Tobacco. Leaded paint. Junk food. Sugar-laced soda. Seems like every time communities or states try to pass laws that would help protect families and children from unhealthy products, a public relations effort is unl... more »

This Week's Education Research Report 5-25-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Education Research Report *THIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORT* * * Students Perform Well Regardless of Reading Print or Digital Books Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 hour ago Research by an Indiana State University doctoral student found that students did equally well on a test whether reading from a digital book or a printed one. Jim Johnson, who also is director of instructional and information technology services in the Bayh College of Education, surveyed more than 200 students. Half of the students used an iPad2 to read a textbook chapter while the other ... more »

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… 5-18-13 …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EF

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL *LARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE DAY* *LOOK FOR MY NEW BOOK *[image: Ferlazzo200(1)] "Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation" will be a sequel to"Helping Students Motivate Themselves" May’s Best Tweets — Part Four Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 hour ago Every month I make a few short lists highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. I’ve already shared... more »

NYC Educator: Scapegoating 101

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
NYC Educator: Scapegoating 101: Scapegoating 101 by NYC Educator It's odd to live in a country where one billionaire can single-handedly control the education of our public schoolchildren. Gates, of course, sends his own kids to private school, so they won't be subject to the untested, unproven nonsense for which our children serve as guinea pigs. After all, his children are precious, and he wants the best for them. Meanwhile, most of the country is wrapped up in value-added ratings for teachers. This means that class tests don't measure how prepared or informed kids are, but rathe... more »

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 5-25-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Ranking the Nation’s Most Expensive High Schools by dianerav Americans love to rank, rate, and grade everything. A reader suggested this ranking of America’s private schools. It doesn’t consider how many students took AP courses, how many got a certain score on the SAT, or how Parent Revolution Forces Out Excellent Principal by dianerav The billionaire-funded Parent Revolution flexed its muscle and got enough parent signatures to force theresignation of a highly ef... more »

How Can Wal-Mart REALLY Help Improve Our Schools? | toteachornototeach

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
How Can Wal-Mart REALLY Help Improve Our Schools? | toteachornototeach: How Can Wal-Mart REALLY Help Improve Our Schools? by aristotlethewise *How Can Wal-Mart REALLY Help Improve Our Schools? * by Peter Dreier Last month, the Walton Family Foundation, led by heirs to the Wal-Mart fortune, announced an $8 million grant to StudentsFirst, headed by Michelle Rhee, the ousted chancellor of the Washington, D.C. school system. This grant came on top of the $3 million the foundation had already donated to the group since 2010. Rhee’s tempestuous tenure as head of the DC schools between 2007... more »

Throwing the book at educators while ignoring financiers and CEOs | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Throwing the book at educators while ignoring financiers and CEOs | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com: Get Schooled: Throwing the book at educators while ignoring financiers and CEOs [image: Beverly Hall photo] At the same time the law aggressively prosecutes educators accused of cheating such as Beverly Hall, it ignores the wrongdoing of CEOS whose misdeeds brought the world economy to its knees, says a guest columnist today. This is a long piece on the treatment of educators charged with wrongdoing compared to the treatment of titans of industry charged with wrongdoing. Please read th... more »

@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: A preliminary taste: #optout #refusal map based on survey data by Chalk Face, PhD Click below to view the map. This includes only the first 250 respondents because the tool requires payment for more data points. Good job Long Island, good job. *View UOO DATA MAP in a full screen map* Very glad to see @chrislhayes inviting Karen Lewis onto his show #inners by Chalk Face, PhD Here’s a link to the video. Now, catch her again on At the Chalk Face, this Sunday, at 6PM EST, for the rest of the story. @rweingarten fantastic at one key thing: t... more »

Top 9 Secret Confessions of a Teacher | Mr. Teachbad

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Top 9 Secret Confessions of a Teacher | Mr. Teachbad: Top 9 Secret Confessions of a Teacher by teachbad *Not so much secret as they are depressing!”* 9. Sometimes during my planning period I lock the door and sleep on a table in the corner of my room. 8. I know it makes me sound like a dick, but I truly believe I am much smarter than all of my bosses. 7. I believe there is no way that changing how we teach is going to change the culture of poor city neighborhoods. 6. If I was doing my job with any integrity, I would be giving a lot more Fs. 5. It is shocking how uniformly bad my bos... more »

Happy 70th birthday to my brother Mike Klonsky. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Happy 70th birthday to my brother Mike Klonsky. | Fred Klonsky: Happy 70th birthday to my brother Mike Klonsky. by Fred Klonsky [image: mike]

Webinar: The Parent Trigger from California to Florida | Parents Across America ← NPE News Briefs

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Webinar: The Parent Trigger from California to Florida | Parents Across America ← NPE News Briefs: The Network for Public Education Newsletter – Vol. 1. Issue #9 by NPE News Briefs Greetings! Welcome to the ninth edition of our newsletter. We bring you news of a victory in Los Angeles, and new candidate we are supporting in New Jersey. We have an exciting webinar coming up, and something new for our activist Toolkit — a great place to find ideas for how you can get organized and make a difference. Remember to follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook, and catch up on all the la... more »

NPE Endorsement: Marie Corfield for New Jersey State Assembly – Election June 4th. | The Network For Public Education

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
NPE Endorsement: Marie Corfield for New Jersey State Assembly – Election June 4th. | The Network For Public Education: NPE Endorsement: Marie Corfield for New Jersey State Assembly – Election June 4th. by admin *Endorsee #2, Teacher Marie Corfield, Ready to Shake Things Up in New Jersey!* [image: corfield]The Network for Public Education has endorsed another candidate. Marie Corfield is running for the state assembly, in an election that will take place on June 4th. Marie became an art teacher in 2001, and has taught at Robert Hunter Elementary School in Flemington since 2004. She ... more »

Lucy and Ethel at PS 154 in the Bronx.southbronxschool.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago
http://www.southbronxschool.com: Lucy and Ethel at PS 154 in the Bronx by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher) *"This shit can't be made up"-Maimonides **AD 1167 * We can't believe what is happening at PS 154. Lucy and Ethel have completely ruined the possibility of any education, any order, and any discipline. Worse, and I can't believe this is true, Lucy is the least of the problem. It is all Ethel. As discussed many times on these pages the discipline, specifically the out of control 5th grade, is not just lacking, but non-existent. It is time that Ethel is held responsible for t... more »

UPDATE: Parent trigger leader alleges organizers promised parents pay - San Bernardino County Sun

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Parent trigger leader alleges organizers promised parents pay - San Bernardino County Sun: Parent trigger leader alleges organizers promised parents pay Beau Yarbrough, Staff Writer Posted: 05/24/2013 05:13:33 PM PDT ADELANTO -- One of the High Desert parents who used a state law to wrest control of their failing elementary school away from school district hands is alleging that the group that helped organize the effort offered to pay parents to promote the "parent trigger" movement nationwide."According to the financial bylaws, there was supposed to be no financial gain" for ... more »

Hart, Weingarten, and Polling About Common Core | deutsch29

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Hart, Weingarten, and Polling About Common Core | deutsch29: Hart, Weingarten, and Polling About Common Core by deutsch29 In March/April 2013, Hart Associates conducted a poll of American Federation of Teachers (AFT) members regarding opinions about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). A finding publicized by AFT President Randi Weingarten is that “75% of AFT teachers polled support CCSS.” I took issue with both the finding itself and the manner in which the finding was reported. One of my criticisms regarded the small sample size: only 800 AFT members were polled. Both Weing... more »

San Jose Teachers’ Contract Offers Leadership Pathways | InterACT

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
San Jose Teachers’ Contract Offers Leadership Pathways | InterACT: San Jose Teachers’ Contract Offers Leadership Pathways by David B. Cohen [image: Promoting Quality Teaching: New Approaches To Compensation and Career Pathways] Promoting Quality Teaching: New Approaches To Compensation and Career Pathways *Note: in November 2012, Accomplished California Teachers (ACT) released the policy report “Promoting Quality Teaching: New Approaches to Compensation and Career Pathways.” The following post is the second in a series of profiles showing how California teacher leaders are beginni... more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Ed Commissioner Cerf is Literally In Charge of Dog S#!^

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman: NJ Ed Commissioner Cerf is Literally In Charge of Dog S#!^: NJ Ed Commissioner Cerf is Literally In Charge of Dog S#!^ by Duke Folks, there are days when I just can't believe what I have to report: *The state education commissioner has overturned the termination of Haddon Township High School’s athletic director, who in May 2012 was caught on camera placing dog feces on his ex-wife’s car in the school parking lot*. Just months before, Alan Carr also lied to school administrators about secretly putting an upsetting newspaper article in his ex-wife’s mailbox, record... more »

Data Center: 2012 Base API school scores and rankings - Inside Bay Area

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Data Center: 2012 Base API school scores and rankings - Inside Bay Area: Data Center: 2012 Base API school scores and rankings Danny Willis, Oakland Tribune Posted: 05/24/2013 01:42:19 PM PDT Updated: 05/24/2013 02:31:42 PM PDT County:AllAlamedaAlpineAmadorButteCalaverasColusaContra CostaDel NorteEl DoradoFresnoGlennHumboldtImperialInyoKernKingsLakeLassenLos AngelesMadera MarinMariposaMendocinoMercedModocMonoMontereyNapaNevadaOrangePlacerPlumas RiversideSacramentoSan BenitoSan BernardinoSan DiegoSan FranciscoSan JoaquinSan Luis ObispoSan MateoSanta BarbaraSanta ClaraSanta CruzSh... more »

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Billionaire Boys Club couldn't buy L.A. School Board elections

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Schooling in the Ownership Society: Billionaire Boys Club couldn't buy L.A. School Board elections: Billionaire Boys Club couldn't buy L.A. School Board elections by Mike Klonsky *"This is a testament to the voters. Voters put their belief in skills and expertise.... It sends the clear message that school board seats are not for sale."* -- *Monica Ratliff. * Fifth-grade teacher *Ratliff *gave the corporate school "reformers" a real kick in the butt this week when her popular, but poorly-funded campaign for school board ended in victory. Her opponent in the race to represent east S... more »

Cooper Union Protesters Living High Life Out of President’s Office - NYTimes.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Cooper Union Protesters Living High Life Out of President’s Office - NYTimes.com: Cooper Union Protesters Living High Life Out of President’s Office As embattled encampments go, the president’s office at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art is not exactly Zuccotti Park in the fall of 2011. Rather than a warren of improvised shelters with a loud drum circle, the gracious office has open views through seven arched windows, and the only percussion comes from the tapping of laptop keys. On May 8, students moved in to protest the school’s decision to charge undergradu... more »

IEA wants you to support benefit cuts. End of discussion. Comments are closed. | Fred Klonsky

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
IEA wants you to support benefit cuts. End of discussion. Comments are closed. | Fred Klonsky: IEA wants you to support benefit cuts. End of discussion. Comments are closed. by Fred Klonsky [image: Gone Fishing SPOFS013]I got the usual weekly email link to the IEA website featuring the usual Vimeo of IEA head lobbyist, Jim Reed. No matter our differences, Jim and I have always had cordial conversations. I got the notice on my iPad. The iPad layout of the IEA website is different than the one I see on my MacBook. When I got to the bottom of the post, it said *“Comments Are Closed.”* ... more »

Prom for students with special needs promotes access, acceptance for all | OregonLive.com

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Prom for students with special needs promotes access, acceptance for all | OregonLive.com: Prom for students with special needs promotes access, acceptance for all by Nicole Dungca, The Oregonian [image: 2013 Oregon Proms - MESD] Joann Guenther could hardly sleep this week -- she was too busy thinking about her first prom. Guenther's mother, Laura Cross, had helped her prepare for weeks. By Wednesday night, the Multnomah Education Service District student had the sequined pink dress, the new shoes, the freshly highlighted hair. For most high schoolers, prom is an inevitable milestone... more »

The Current Education Policy May Be Hurting Latino Students | NewsTacoNewsTaco

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
The Current Education Policy May Be Hurting Latino Students | NewsTacoNewsTaco: [image: latino hish school student classroom] By Emily Deruy, ABC News/Univision A group of Latino education experts from across the country urged policymakers in Washington, D.C., this week to take steps to improve education for Hispanic students. The Latino Elected and Appointed Officials National Taskforce on Education was formed several years ago. They wanted to make sure the needs of Latino students and English Language learners were recognized as talks about the reauthorization of the Elementary an... more »

The Politics Behind the Move to Dismantle Wisconsin’s United Council |

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
The Politics Behind the Move to Dismantle Wisconsin’s United Council |: The Politics Behind the Move to Dismantle Wisconsin’s United Council by Angus Johnston Last night brought shocking news for supporters of student involvement in university governance in the United States, as a Republican-controlled budget committee of the Wisconsin state legislature moved — with little debate, and after refusing a stand-alone vote — to eliminate the primary funding stream of the nation’s oldest and most respected statewide student association. The United Council of University of Wisconsin Stud... more »