This Friday: Privacy Hearings in Manhattan: inBloom Will Testify
The New York City parent blog reports that there will be Legislative hearings this Friday in lower Manhattan on student privacy, a matter of great concerns to parents (and grandparents!). “The hearings will take place Friday, Feb. 28 at 10:30 AM at 250 Broadway in Lower Manhattan; livestream here. More info and a form you can fill out if you want to testify is here. See also the RT video interv
Another Anti-Charter Petition in New Jersey: Will Chris Cerf Do the Right Thing as He Leaves?
A group of superintendents in New Jersey drafted a petition to Commissioner of Education Chris Cerf, asking him to block the expansion of the Hatikvah Charter School. The charter school has consistently been underenrolled. It plans to expand by drawing students and funds from their districts, impoverishing their already struggling public schools. A decision is likely by Friday. Will State Commissi
Indiana Alert! Another Legislative Sneak Attack on Teachers
Call (don’t email) the Senate switchboard and tell your senator and any others you know to oppose Sen. Carlin Yoder amendmenment (dues deduction) Call to OPPOSE It only applies to school employees. Senator Yoder has an amendment on HB 1126 –the Wage Payment Act bill to remove dues deduction for school employees. Offering it as a second reading amendment to HB 1126. This is a direct attack on
Hoboken to Christie Administration: Please Stop Charter Expansion!
The Hoboken, New Jersey, Board of Education has appealed to the State Education Department in the Chris Christie administration to stop the privatization of their public schools. The DOE is likely to render its decision by Friday about the expansion of the Hola Dual Language Charter School. Please be sure to read the link with the letter to Commissioner Chris Cerf (now leaving to work for Rupert M
California Leads Nation in Charter Growth; Charter Board Member Charged with $750,000 Theft
California continues to outpace the nation in the growth of charter schools and charter enrollment, with 104 new schools and 48,000 additional students, according to a report by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. California now has 1,130 charter schools serving 519,000 students. “The state figures represent a 6.1 percent increase in schools since 2012-13 and a 10.3 percent rise in
New Mexico Teacher: Skandera Is No Friend of Education
David Aram Wilson offered this testimony at the confirmation hearings of Hanna Skandera, who is acting secretary of education in New Mexico and chairperson of Jeb Bush’s Chiefs for Change. Skandera has been importing “the Florida model” of high-stakes testing and accountability to New Mexico. She worked for Bush when he was governor of Florida and for Arnold Schwarzenegger in California. At the he
Florida Outrage! Junk Science Ratings Will be Released to Media
The following notice was sent to all teachers in Florida from the State Commissioner of Education, letting teachers know that their names and evaluations will be released to the media. Most teachers do not teach tested subjects and grades, so their ratings are based on the test scores of children they never taught. This is Junk Science at its worst, another front in the battle to destroy public e
Schneider: Why Is NEA Joining Forces with Teach Plus?
NEA, the larger of the nation’s two teacher unions, never ceases to surprise. In December 2011, Dennis Van Roekel co-authored an article in USA Today with Wendy Kopp of Teach for America, expressing their agreement on how to improve the preparation of teachers. Needless to say, the article provoked outrage among some NEA members, especially those who rightly see TFA as a placement agency for inex
Indiana: The Voucher Shell Game
Mark Giaquinta here explains the hoax of vouchers in Indiana. He served as president of the Fort Wayne school board. It was my privilege to visit some of that city’s excellent public schools when I lectured there a couple of years ago. Vouchers were sold under the pretext of “helping poor kids escape from failing public schools.” So said the sponsors of the legislation. In fact, the vouchers are
Another Step Forward by Chancellor Farina in New York City
New York City’s Chancellor Carmen Farina is step-by-step reassembling the essentials of a functional public school system after a dozen years of Mayor Bloomberg’s “creative disruption.” The Bloomberg regime quickly established its preference for inexperience over experience and its distaste for veteran educators. It created a “Leadership Academy” to turn teachers with one or two years of classroom
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 2-23-14 Diane Ravitch's blog #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Instructions to Teacher in Chicago about Which Kids Count MostThis letter from a teacher in Chicago public schools shows how gaming the system has become more important than helping each and every child achieve their best. Data matter more than students. Data matter more than learning. Numbers trump education and equity. The advice