All Week @ THE CHALK FACE
On the Serving Platter: The NEA-Teach Plus “Partnership”
Register for UOO’s annual spring event in Denver, CO, March 28th to 30th
I think both national teachers unions have some skewed arrangement to “seek solidarity” by fastening themselves to privatizing groups. Perhaps such is an adult display of grasping to belong to the “cool kids” clique. The “cool kids” are the ones exploding with reform philanthropy money to invest in ways to drain money from the teaching […]
Register for UOO’s annual spring event in Denver, CO, March 28th to 30th
Click the box below to head over to Eventbrite. All the action you need for $20.
Why Teach For America Cannot Change
This past Monday, the group Students United for Public Education (aka SUPE)–led by two amazing college students, Stephanie Rivera and Hannah Nguyen–organized a highly successful twitter storm using the hashtag #ResistTFA. For a few hours, #ResistTFA became one of the top trending hashtags in the nation. Now, TFA’s response to the outpouring of rage at Teach […]
Tired of More Compromise and More Talk about Less Action?
Stay tuned.Filed under: SHAUN JOHNSON, PHD: Musings from the Chalk Face
FEB 19
Dennis Van Roekel’s Continued Common Core Crush
Today, National Education Association (NEA) President Dennis Van Roekel once again reinforced his devotion to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Mind you, he tried to make his open letter appear to be a “learning experience” in which he had “listened”; however, what Van Roekel is actually doing is publicly reiterating his allegiance to a set of […]
#edreform and #commoncore: All aboard Wisconsin’s Crazy Train
What a week and it’s only Wednesday morning. On Monday morning I went to a press conference held by Wisconsin Democrats from the state assembly to announce that they are introducing “accountability” legislation to counter Republican “accountability” legislation. At the conclusion of the press conference I simply pointed out that “accountability” is actually the problem […]
Retain to Impede: When Reading Legislation Fails (Again)
Retain to Impede: When Reading Legislation Fails (Again). via Retain to Impede: When Reading Legislation Fails (Again).Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical
Three Poems: For Jordan Davis and Trayvon Martin
Three Poems: For Jordan Davis and Trayvon Martin. via Three Poems: For Jordan Davis and Trayvon Martin.Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical
FEB 18
Follow the money to understand education reform
Originally posted on Talking Union:by Deborah Meier Deborah Meier I’m returning to my roots! Marx occasionally had it right. Along with Horace Mann, John Dewey et al. This whole “new reform” movement in education is being fueled (the $$$$) by ordinary greed. Or second-hand greed—seeing a chance to destroy the political power of an…
The Analogy, Hyperbole Problem: “With explanation kind” (Tone, pt. 5)
The Analogy, Hyperbole Problem: “With explanation kind” (Tone, pt. 5). via The Analogy, Hyperbole Problem: “With explanation kind” (Tone, pt. 5).Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical
FEB 17
An Open Letter to Bill Gates and a Keynote Challenge
Dear Bill, You don’t know me. I have never applied for one of your fat, corporate-reform-promoting education grants. I am not even tempted to even though I have little money. You see, I am a career public school teacher, and I consider your money wielding a detriment to a healthy democratic society. You and other […]
Does The New York Times Know Its Left From Its Right?
Headline on Today’s (2/17/14) NYT front page: ” Common Core Curriculum Now Has Critics on the Left” or another version of ”All the news that fits, we print.” My initial reaction: Wow…finally they are opening their eyes to see how many Democrats and progressives in NYS and beyond have been fighting this fight for a […]
A quick bite, using the new-new #commoncore math to calculate tips. Nicely done.
Pretty funny!Filed under: SHAUN JOHNSON, PHD: Musings from the Chalk Face Tagged: common core, math, tips
FEB 16
Some thoughts on #edTPA: Guest Post by Celia Oyler
Celia made the these observations on Facebook in response to the article listed below that appeared in the Times Union. Student teachers in New York face daunting new exams The other fall out is that quite a few excellent beginning teachers are choosing NOT to get certified in the state of New York. Quite a […]
My March Speaking Schedule (Details Added)
How cool is it to be able to write such a post title? I have two events in March, both out-of-state (i.e., not in Louisiana). First, I will be a panelist at the first Network for Public Education Conference in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2. I am scheduled to be on a […]
#Edreform is Omni Consumer Products #robocop
I’m not too excited about the Robocop reboot. It seems like it lost the original’s wit, humor, and surprisingly serious commentary about a largely predicted dystopian future. All right, enough serious talk about a movie with a car called the 6000 SUX. Although, very close to what soon became a reality: the SUV. But in honor […]
FEB 15
John White’s Latest Course Choice Push Equals Large-scale, Free High School Labor
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and his hand-selected, anti-public-school sidekick, State Education Superintendent John White, really want their so-termed “online education” dollar siphon, Course Choice, to be the major death drain that it was intended to be to Louisiana public education. In May 2013, the Louisiana Supreme Court declared use of Minimum Foundation Program (MFP) funding– […]
@slekar supports this #commoncore close reading lesson: @sharemylesson
Over the past four years I have met some great people involved in fighting education reform. It’s always awesome to get a surprise email from one of these activists that typically starts off with “I hope you remember me, we met….” Well I got one of those the other day from a brilliant teacher I […]
@chalkbeatny dishes on Cuomo’s education contributors, but how about your own?
As Chalkbeat NY, a spry education journalism collective, gets cited in the Wall Street Journal for those in the education world funding Cuomo’s re-election campaign, maybe Chalkbeat should reconsider its own take. Easily accessible from its website, Chalkbeat does indeed take funding from a few, at minimum, key organizations that are currently undermining public education […]
Living and Learning in Perpetual Crisis
Living and Learning in Perpetual Crisis* What do the fiscal cliff and Common Core (CC) have in common? For the answer consider this scenario: An arsonist sets a home on fire, and then risks his life fighting the blaze—but the house eventually succumbs to the flames. The media and the public praise the arsonist a […]