Saturday, July 13, 2013

Seattle Schools Community Forum: I'll Say It - the Trayvon Martin Verdict is Wrong

Seattle Schools Community Forum: I'll Say It - the Trayvon Martin Verdict is Wrong:

I'll Say It - the Trayvon Martin Verdict is Wrong



First, if states have these dumb "stand your ground" laws, then you're going to see some very odd verdicts.

That issue notwithstanding, I find the verdict innocent (of even manslaughter) is completely baffling. 

For me, mainly it's about the "trail" that Zimmerman left behind.  He was the source of his own problem.  From start to nearly finish, he lead the way.  In the end, Trayvon, like many young men before him, decided to fight back from being stalked.  (And, it is likely he wasn't just annoyed but probably a little scared.  After all, his father lived at that complex so why would this guy continue to follow him?)

Mr. Zimmerman complained, at two different times, to police/911 that "these punks always get away."  He might go look in the mirror because I think he's right.  

One thing we did learn from OJ Simpson, if you cannot find justice in the 
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Newark Charter Update: A few new graphs & musings | School Finance 101

Newark Charter Update: A few new graphs & musings | School Finance 101:

Newark Charter Update: A few new graphs & musings

Posted on July 14, 2013
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Slide1

It’s been a while since I’ve written anything about New Jersey Charter schools, so I figured I throw a few new graphs and tables out there. In the not too distant past, I’ve explained:
  1. That Newark charter schools in particular, persist in having an overall cream-skimming effect in Newark, creating demographic advantage for themselves and ultimately to the detriment of the district.
  2. That while the NJ CREDO charter school effect study showed positive effects of charter enrollment on student outcomes specifically (and only) in Newark, the unique features of student sorting (read skimming) in Newark make it difficult to draw any reasonable conclusions about the effectiveness of actual practices of Newark Charters. Note that in  my most recent post, I re-explain the problem with asserting school effects, when a sizable component of the school effect may be a function of the children (peer group) served.
  3. In many earlier posts, I evaluated the extent to which average performance levels of Newark (and other NJ) charter schools were higher or lower than those of demographically similar schools, finding that charters were/are pretty much scattered.
  4. And I’ve raised questions about other data - including attrition rates - for some high flying NJ charters.
As an update, since past posts have only looked at NJ charter performance in terms of “levels” 
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Public Education and Mayoral Candidates

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Public Education and Mayoral Candidates:

Seattle Public Education and Mayoral Candidates



I have attempted to interview all the mayoral candidates with different measures of success.  I am not going to endorse one candidate at this time but, for our purposes, hope to give you guidance on their thoughts on public education in Seattle.  (Personally, I don't vote for candidates based on one issue but offer this to help broaden your outlook on the candidates.)

There are nine candidates.  I have tried to reach each candidate a couple of times but was unable to connect with or secure interviews with some.

Given that the primary is in the depths of summer - August 6th - and that older voters tend to dominate the voting ranks, every vote will count.  If you care, you will vote.  Otherwise, some may get a surprise when the candidate they favor doesn't make it out of the primary.  As supporters of public education, please let 
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Mayor Kevin Johnson Warns the Sky is Falling; Redux

Mayor Kevin Johnson Warns the Sky is Falling; Redux :

Mayor Kevin Johnson Warns the Sky is Falling; Redux 




“We have a crisis when it comes to public education in this country,” Johnson said at a luncheon on Friday. “Only 52 percent of our third- and fourth-graders are reading at grade level. If you’re Black, only 16 percent of our kids in the third and fourth grade are reading at grade level – only 16 percent. To make matters worse, if you’re not reading at grade level by the time you leave the third grade, 75 percent of the kids never catch up.”
Johnson continued, “So, essentially if you can’t read by the time you leave the third grade, the chances of you ever reading is very slim. This should be enough to outrage every single person in this room when 84 percent of the kids who look like us cannot read.”
Johnson, a former star point guard for the Phoenix Suns, is president of the National Conference of Black Mayors and is slated to become president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors next year. He is
passionate about education, setting up his own private school in Sacramento prior to becoming Sacramento’s first Black mayor.
“That’s the third grade. Let’s fast forward to the eighth grade. Eight years ago, only 12 percent of our kids in the eighth grade could read at grade level. In the last eight years, we went from 12 percent to 14 percent. In an 8-year period of time, we’ve closed the gap two percentage points,” he said. “… If our goal was 80 percent and continues at the rate of 2 percent [every eight 
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Nite Cap 7-13-13 #BATsACT #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2 #HEREPASTJUNE


James Baldwin said it best: 

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."


A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP



TODAY
Our Platform « Coalition for Educational Justice
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YESTERDAY

NYC Educator: Glorified Babysitters
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Nite Cap 7-12-13 #BATsACT #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2 #HEREPASTJUNE
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