Latest News and Comment from Education

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 10-30-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2

Nite Cap UPDATE

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE


CORPORATE ED REFORM




Horror Story 2013
Warning: This is a Horror Story. Horror Story 2013: Sequestration. Cut food stamps for military families, veterans and all the poor. Cut pensions. Cut and fire teachers. Cut education budgets and close schools and libraries. Cut-cut-cut-cut-etc. Why? Corporations want more profits from the taxes that were meant for all of the above and more. They actually demand that instead of paying their fair s

Superintendent debate lights up political circles - but what about stroller circles?
; Credit: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT/AFP/Getty Images Days of speculation over whether the superintendent of L.A. Unified would stay or go has been dominating local headlines. The matter finally came to a close Tuesday night, when the school board voted to continue his contract - and Superintendent John Deasy said he'd stay. An average group of parents gathered outside Logan St. Elmentary during pi


#optout in Wisconsin
It’s official.  We are now Wisconsin opt outers! Dear Principal: Michelle and I are requesting that Lacey not participate in state standardized testing during the current school year. Furthermore, we ask that no record of this testing be part of Lacey’s permanent file, as we do not wish for Lacey to participate in standardized achievement […]


Ps 196 Wins
Co-loco tonight off PEP agenda. Keep up the fight everyone. Cheers, Norm Scott Twitter: normscott1 Education Notes ednotesonline.blogspot.com Grassroots Education Movement gemnyc.org Education columnist, The Wave www.rockawave.com nycfirst robotics normsrobotics.blogspot.com Sent from my BlackBerry
Video: PS 196K Rallies Against Co-Loco
Another unreported rally at a public school with an overflow crowd at the hearing following the rally - schools that can't close for half a day to march over a bridge to demonstrate their opposition to fundamental Bloomberg ed policies. Go add up all the people at all the local school-based rallies and see if that doesn't top the charter rally where parents were told they had to attend while their
MORE Weekly Update #73: Protest Colocations at the PEP on October 30th!
Protest Colocations at the PEP on October 30th!  View this email in your browser Weekly Update #73 October 30, 2013Join MORE Today Facebook Twitter Email Please help out with this action. Click here for quarter sheet flyers to distribute to your colleagues. The campaign for a moratorium
Not 'till the fat lady sings
Six of us piled into a van today to go down to Philadelphia to say goodbye to a dear friend and political pal of over 40 years. Our friend had decided to enter hospice care just 2 days ago at his daughter's home after months in the hospital. I expected the worst but got the best. Our friend though weak, was as eloquent and lucid as he always has been at political events, often dominating the room.

Dallas ISD assistant superintendent leaving for University of Virginia
Josephine “Josie” Gutierrez, a Dallas ISD assistant superintendent, is leaving the district for the University of Virginia-Darden/Curry Partnership for Leaders in Education. Her last day is Friday. Gutierrez was over … [visit site to read more]


High School Final Exams Should Probably Be Replaced With a Real-World Project
When you were in high school did you ever wonder why you had to take a final exam after you'd already taken (and passed) chapter tests and quizzes? Chicago teacher Ray Salazar doesn't see the logic, either. Instead of a big end-of-unit test, says Salazar, "The final assessment should not be a test—it should be a relevant real-world experience." Doing this would, as Salazar says, help kee


Floundering at the Forums: John King faces more Common Core critics
Reblogged from Critical Classrooms, Critical Kids: photo courtesy of WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show Live streaming the Common Core forums taking place throughout New York state has become a type of spectator sport for me. While chopping vegetables for dinner, I cheer on my fellow advocates as they speak the truth about corporate education reform to a panel of policymakers that include Commissioner
Public invited to weigh in on Obama's college affordability plan
Californians will get the first chance to comment on President Obama’s proposals to make college more affordable during a public forum next week at Cal State Dominguez Hills, officials announced Wednesday.

Junk Food Marketing’s Contribution to Latino Childhood Obesity
Junk food marketing to kids is a huge piece of the U.S. obesity puzzle and Latino youth are a prime target for marketers, largely because of their large population numbers. Currently they comprise 22% of all U.S. youth and by 2025 will rise to 30%. But sheer numbers aren’t the only reason Latino kids are a prime target of food ads. Latino kids have higher rates of exposure to media—TV, computers,
Three Ways to Protect Kids from Junk Food Ads at School
Every day, 12- to 14-year-old kids see an average of 15 food ads on television, and preschoolers see 11. Special offers and food-themed games pop up on children’s websites, and companies can now send personalized ads directly to kids’ cell phones. Brightly-colored packages line grocery store aisles, and kid-friendly characters peddle snacks of all kinds from the sides of cartons and boxes. But man
Surviving Halloween with Healthy Halloween Treats #HealthyHalloween
As a mom of two small children I know the struggle that parents have trying to find healthy alternatives to some of the goodies that kids ask (beg, plead, and nag) for.  I’ve joined up with the MomsRising Halloween Blog Carnival because I truly believe that in order for our kids to someday be healthy adults, they first have to start out as healthy children.  Not to mention, no 3 year old has ever

As Interest Fades in the Humanities, Colleges Worry
With the growing money and attention devoted to science and technology, university administrators are concerned that the humanities are being eclipsed.    


New UC President Janet Napolitano promises $5 million to help undocumented students
Is Janet Napolitano the best candidate to the UC system? ; Credit: Getty Images In her first significant speech as new UC President, Janet Napolitano on Wednesday announced $15 million in new funding to help undocumented, postdoctoral, and graduate students. She promised she’d announce “big” policy proposals at the UC Regents meeting next month. “UC welcomes all students who qualify academically



More From Port Chester! Vincent Marrone, Concerned Parent or Concerned Lobbyist?
I get home from Port Chester on Monday night and go on the Journal News website and what do I see? A video with two men who were at the forum in Port Chester to hear The King spew forth. One gentleman, is a a teacher, a union president, and a teacher from Ossining, and the other is of someone named Vincent Marrone, a self proclaimed "parent" from Larchmont named Vincent Marrone. Now i


Student-Directed Learning:Giving Students the Rein!
The other day I taught  a lesson on volume. Actually, it was a lesson on knowing the formula V= L X W X H or V=B X H. Teaching back in the 80's, I  would have written the formula on the board, and had my students copy it.  Then I would give them  a worksheet with enough Volume problems to fill a water tank. I would expect them to learn how to multiply the factors, and that would be enough.
"Music to My Ears!" AND a FREE GIVEAWAY!
I always begin our classroom day with music. This school year, I took advantage of Pandora, and have classical music playing as my kids came in the door. I believe it helps start their day in a calm, soothing, manner. Music has always been a huge part of my classroom. Whether it's entering the room, ending the day, or singing out loud with educational music videos. I believe music should not

Education Department Seeks Input on New Ratings System for Schools
Education Secretary Arne Duncan told reporters on a conference call that it’s too early to know exactly what metrics will be used to develop the system. WASHINGTON ― The Education Department on Wednesday asked for the public’s help to develop a new ratings system for America’s colleges and universities. It announced a series of public forums next month in California, Virginia, Iowa and Louisiana,


Hip Hop Scholars Say Jay Z on Wrong Side of Fine Line in Barneys’ Controversy
  Jay Z says his partnership with retailer Barneys’ New York “was born out of creativity and charity … not profit.” NEW YORK ― When Brooklyn-born rap megastar and entrepreneur Jay Z finally broke his silence over charges that business partner Barneys New York had racially profiled two Black college students, he contended that ending his partnership with the pricey retailer would only deprive other


This Is All We Know So Far
I’ve had many opportunities to share my views and practices around assessment with a particular focus on how we use technology but also shift the conversation towards grading and more on documentation and reflection. A really important component of all of this is how we model our thinking and learning. Inquiry isn’t just for students. I share my learning project where I learned to play the guitar

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Byrd-Bennett reshuffles her bureaucracy. Yes, that'll do it.
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Byrd-Bennett reshuffles her bureaucracy. Yes, that'll do it.: Byrd-Bennett reshuffles her bureaucracy. Yes, that'll do it.It seems like every year CPS leaders come up with a new, top-down bureaucratic management structure to keep local schools in line. And every year we have to learn the new names for the sub-district or regional managers, ie. AIOs, Network Managers,
Nite Cap 10-30-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #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 CAPTODAYPeg with Pen: Defeat Speaker of the House Boehner: TOM POETTER for Congress 2014Peg with Pen: Defeat Speaker of the House Boehner: TOM POETTER for Congress 2014: Defeat Speaker of the House Boehner: TOM POETTER for Congress 2014Tom Poetter i

Bubbling Over—Sugary Beverages, Diabetes and Latinos
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the California Center for Public Health Advocacy recently released Still Bubbling Over, a report showing that the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages, including soda, sports drinks, and energy drinks, is increasing among Latino adolescents living in California.  This is troubling both for Latinos as well as for all of California. When it comes to