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Thursday, April 17, 2014

Morning Wink 4-17-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2


BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS




LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-17-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: How Corporate Interests Beat NYC’s Progressive Mayor and How He Can RecoverThis article was written by an independent education researcher who requests anonymity. It is unfortunate that the politics of education have become so intermingled with powerful forces that researchers remain silent or hide their identities to escape retrib
solidaridad: Surveying the candidates for the LAUSD Special Election for District 1
solidaridad: Surveying the candidates for the LAUSD Special Election for District 1: Surveying the candidates for the LAUSD Special Election for District 1First submitted April 13, 2014 to LA Progressive"Someone said to me chartering schools re-institutes segregation, we need to think about that." — The late, Honorable Marguerite Poindexter LaMotteAs the runner up in the2013 LAUSD Distri
4-17-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": Kellogg Foundation Announces Nearly $4 Million In Grants For Parent Involvement ProgramsI’ve previously posted about the Kellogg Foundation’s initiative to fund parent involvement/engagement programs targeting families with children age eight and below. They just announced a new set of grants and I thought it would be usefu
4-17-14 Ed Notes Online: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" Updated
Ed Notes Online: Wall Street Journal on ATRs: Deconstructing the Inherent BiasThe ATR Issue Heats Up as astro-turf Ed Deformer groups (E4E, Students First, TNTP) Attack on all fronts. Educators 4 Excellence-New York, an advocacy group of more than 8,000 teachers... Leslie Brody, WSJWTF-- E4E is a group that has practically zero representation in NYC schools despite massive amounts of funding and f
4-17-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: Do private money and Title I money break even?In a word, no.  The two kinds of money don’t represent an apples-to-apples comparison because different rules govern how they can be spent, but the raw totals show that schools that get public money do come out a little bit ahead – especially since they don’t have to raise it themselves. Even though this article […]by Shaun Johnson / 
4-17-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida
Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: United Front in Jacksonville Opposes Field Test FollyFrom Denise Smith Amos in the Florida Times-Union: Decrying what they call an untested test, leaders in Duval schools and teachers union — and some parents — urged voters Wednesday to flood state legislators’ phones an
4-17-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Book Reviews – & Shakespeare – In Three PanelsI’ve previously posted about Lisa Brown’s “Three Panel Book Reviews” that formerly appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle. They’re great models for student projects. I recently learned about how another artist uses this “three panel” idea, though Mya Gosling uses it to summ
4-17-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: GTCR is Rauner’s Baine Capital. So Squeezy gives him a state contract. Shaking up Springfield?The Better Government Association is reporting this morning: Bruce Rauner, the Republican challenger for governor, stands to profit from a lucrative state contract awarded last year by the administration of h
4-17-14 Wait What?
Wait What?: Corporate Education Reform Industry group starts radio campaign in support of new charter schoolsSurprise, surprise… An out-of-State charter school advocacy group has started an advertising campaign to support the Malloy administration’s decision to give Steve Perry his own privately run, but taxpayer funded, charter school in Bridgeport. According to a reports from the CT Mirror and H
The Answer Sheet 4-17-14
The Answer Sheet: Seven things kids need to read betterFor two decades,  Ellie Herman was a writer/producer for television shows including “The Riches,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Chicago Hope” and “Newhart.” Her fiction has appeared in literary journals, among them The Massachusetts Review, The Missouri Review and the O.Henry Awards Collection. In 2007, she decided, “on an impulse,” she wrote, to b
4-17-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: NYT Talking about the Tests as Weapons of Mass DistractionThe New York Times editors appear to be catching on to the fact that the proliferation and misuse of high stakes testing  are not only a huge waste of resources that are actually doing more harm than good, but are also a "distraction" from the very real problems of poverty and inequality.  It's about time.To the Ed
4-17-13 Curmudgucation Week
CURMUDGUCATION: CT Makes New Strides in GrittologySandwiched in the midst of a puff piece about Connecticut's new elite cadre of Common Core teacher shills is this important paragraph:Getting on the list was competitive. According to a news release from the Department of Education, teachers "were chosen through a competitive statewide application on the basis of their content knowledge, grit,
4-17-14 Perdido Street School Week
Perdido Street School: Cuomo May Break CSEA Contract Pattern For MTA, Has Implications For City Contract NegotiationsJames Eterno at ICEUFT posted this morning that in its municipal contract negotiations the city is offering the pattern first set by Governor Cuomo and CSEA back in 2010 - a five year contract with 0% for the first three years, 2% in the fourth year and 2% in the fifth year.Cuomo sa
Charles M. Blow:"Minimum Wage, Maximum Outrage"
Charles M. Blow:"Minimum Wage, Maximum Outrage": Charles M. Blow:"Minimum Wage, Maximum Outrage"byteacherkenFollow    Email  17 Comments / 17 NewNo one should ever endure the kind of economic humiliation that comes with working a full-time job and making a less-than-living wage.There is dignity in all work, but that dignity grows dim when the checks are cashed and the coins are
Schooling in the Ownership Society: Rauner makes big profits off the jailing of children
Schooling in the Ownership Society: Rauner makes big profits off the jailing of children: Rauner makes big profits off the jailing of childrenThanks to a lucrative state contract given him by none other than Gov. Quinn, Republican billionaire Bruce Rauner is making millions in the prison/industrial complex. Quinn says he didn't know Rauner was still associated with GTCR. Rauner formerly headed GTC
Shanker Blog » What Is Implicit Bias, And How Might It Affect Teachers And Students? (Part II - Solutions)
Shanker Blog » What Is Implicit Bias, And How Might It Affect Teachers And Students? (Part II - Solutions): What Is Implicit Bias, And How Might It Affect Teachers And Students? (Part II – Solutions)Posted by Esther Quintero on April 17, 2014In my first post on this topic, I argued that teachers are better positioned than, say, doctors or judges, to learn specifics about the individuals they serve
empathyeducates – Civil Rights Complaint Targets New Orleans Charter Group Collegiate Academies
empathyeducates – Civil Rights Complaint Targets New Orleans Charter Group Collegiate Academies: 12345PreviousNextCivil Rights Complaint Targets New Orleans Charter Group Collegiate AcademiesAll Photographs represent aspects within the civil rights complaint. Tuesday, December 17, 2013. (Photo by Ted Jackson, Nola.com | The Times-Picayune)What do we do when an ugly reality comes face-to-face with
Some Advice for Common Core Supporters | Paul Bruno
Some Advice for Common Core Supporters | Paul Bruno: Some Advice for Common Core SupportersBy PAUL BRUNO | Published: APRIL 17, 2014Yesterday at TWIE I gave CCSS supportersa hard time for seeming to give up the affirmative case for the new standards:These days supporters seem to dedicate most of their time to assuring us that the CCSS are not to blame for “fuzzy” math curriculua or “whole language
Economic and Racial Inequality Obliterate Opportunity in America: Do We Care? | janresseger
Economic and Racial Inequality Obliterate Opportunity in America: Do We Care? | janresseger: Economic and Racial Inequality Obliterate Opportunity in America: Do We Care?Posted on April 17, 2014 by janressegerThe 50th anniversary this month of the passage of the Civil Rights Act has produced some soul-searching journalism.  How is it our society has made so little progress?In an early April interv
Polling Center: Leaving Tests Behind | The Texas Tribune
Polling Center: Leaving Tests Behind | The Texas Tribune: Polling Center: Leaving Tests Behindby Jim Henson and Joshua BlankApril 17, 2014 Comment Republish Email Tweet RecommendEnlargephoto by: Jerod FosterBayless Elementary teacher Holly Guillmen identifies and explains the use of the contents of the Waterwise home water conservation kit provided to students by the High Plains Underground Water
At Shanker: Are Americans (and Texans) as Stupid as the Media Tells Us We Are? | Cloaking Inequity
At Shanker: Are Americans (and Texans) as Stupid as the Media Tells Us We Are? | Cloaking Inequity: At Shanker: Are Americans (and Texans) as Stupid as the Media Tells Us We Are?The media onslaught letting Americans know that they are dunces has gone on for decades. How stupid are we? You might be surprised that the news about our public education system in the United States is not actually as bad
NYC Educator: Rhee's Two Takes on her Taping Incident
NYC Educator: Rhee's Two Takes on her Taping Incident: Rhee's Two Takes on her Taping Incident by guest blogger Arwen E.Michelle Rhee popped up in The Washington Post this month glorifying the same standardized tests from which so many parents seek to shelter their children.  It is so strange to me, in this day and age, that one who started her career with a glaring example of child abuse could co
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SAVING GRESHAM
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SAVING GRESHAM: SAVING GRESHAMTuesday's protest to save Gresham        (Sun-Times)DIEDRUS BROWN...the principal of embattled Gresham Elementary on Chicago's south side, continued her very vocal fight Tuesday to save her school from undergoing a so-called “turnaround” — but this time with about 40 teachers, parents and students marching with her.SUSPENSIONS...Dozens o

YESTERDAY

Arne Debunkin’ | Gary Rubinstein's Blog
Arne Debunkin’ | Gary Rubinstein's Blog: Arne Debunkin’A little over three years ago, I first encountered Arne Duncan when he spoke at the TFA 20 year alumni summit and described the miracle school Urban Prep.  He implied that this school had a 100% graduation rate and a 100% college acceptance rate, which inspired me to investigate this clam leading to my very first school debunking.  My research
Nite Cap 4-16-14 #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 CAP4-16-14 The Whole Child Blog — Imagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child EducationImagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGImagine Today’s Children at 25April 16, 2014 by Whole Child Symposium"What do we
4-16-14 The Whole Child Blog — Imagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child Education
Imagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGImagine Today’s Children at 25April 16, 2014 by Whole Child Symposium"What do we want our children to be like? Think of that child, that teenager, that young adult and describe them. What words do we use? ... What do our children want to be like when they are 25? How would they describe themselves? Are they content wi
The Daily Censored » After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtue
The Daily Censored » After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtue: After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtueEducation builds the future, and as you who read alternative media know so well, is a lifelong upgrade in virtue.Alternative media is engaged in an education contest. We educate the public that U
John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher
John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged"By Anthony Cody on April 16, 2014 12:43 PMGuest post by John Thompson.Gallup has produced decades of research on the characteristics of high-performing educators, students and schools. Gallup explai
Elizabeth Warren and I | Diane Ravitch's blog
Elizabeth Warren and I | Diane Ravitch's blog: I have recently read that Senator Elizabeth Warren is a supporter of school vouchers. This made people who despise public schools, like certain hedge fund managers, tingle with joy. At last, a progressive who is as contemptuous of public education as they are! At last, someone who will support their efforts to dismantle our nation’s precious democrati
Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign Trail | Truth in American Education
Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign Trail | Truth in American Education: Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign TrailFiled in Common Core State Standards, Education at State Level by Shane Vander Hart on April 16, 2014 • 0 CommentsIt is not a done deal yet.  Earlier this month the Oklahoma Senate passed HB3399 on a 37 to 10 vote.  The Oklahoma
Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School Reforms | WFPL
Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School Reforms | WFPL: Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School ReformsShareTweetE-mail0 CommentsPrintBy DEVIN KATAYAMAShe's against high-stakes testing, big business in schools, and doubts charters are the answer to improving public education. But Diane Ravitch, a New York
“Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry Jordan | Parents United for Public Education
“Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry Jordan | Parents United for Public Education: “Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry JordanPosted on April 16, 2014 by HELENGYMI was deeply moved in watching the final cut of “Revival from the Roots,” a listening tour Parents United did with the
Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California Case - NYTimes.com
Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California Case - NYTimes.com: Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California CaseOne of the student plaintiffs spoke outside the Superior Court of Los Angeles County on the opening day of Vergara v. The State of California in May 2012.CreditMonica Almeida/The New York TimesLOS ANGELES — These are two vastly different portraits of
4-16-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": Useful New “Family Engagement Brief”The National Center For Families Learning has just published a useful “Family Engagement Brief.” I don’t think people familiar with parent engagement research will find anything new in it, but it provides a well-written and concise review of research on the topic, along with providing som
John White’s is doing a fantastic job! | Crazy Crawfish's Blog
John White’s is doing a fantastic job! | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Crazy Crawfish's BlogZesty Louisiana Education PoliticsJohn White’s is doing a fantastic job!Posted on April 16, 20141John White is doing a fantastic job at destroying public education. BESE recently reviewed White and gave him 3 out of 4 on his annual review and commended him for his great success. Let’s recap some of his success sto
Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?
Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?:  Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?Would you like your job performance judged by a five-year-old? That’s a relevant question for public school teachers in Hawaii, where the state’s new teacher evaluation system attributes ten percent of their job performance rating on what children as young as 5 years old think. Al
4-16-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington Education News RoundupTo repeat, Senator Rodney Tom, noted turncoat for the Dems, is not going to run again after all (citing health concerns for himself and his elderly father).  The Times ran a blathering editorial about how great he was but you really can't take them seriously when they start with, "But this time you might wonder, what will becom
Failing Goals of Education | My Island View
Failing Goals of Education | My Island View: Failing Goals of EducationApril 16, 2014 by tomwhitbyI recently had a discussion with a friend John, who is a Superintendent in a rural school district. We were discussing his district specifically and what it was providing its students in the way of relevant programs of study. The conversation came around to a question often asked and an answer that is
4-16-13 Curmudgucation Week
CURMUDGUCATION: Bill McCallum, CCSS Author & Sad ScientistWhen movies present us with science-related disasters, we generally involve one of two sciency types-- the mad scientists and the sad scientist. The mad scientist is the one genetically engineering giant gerbils to take over the world (cue maniacal laugh). The sad scientist is the one who believes that he is Doing Great Things, like cre
Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghosts | Melissa Benn | Comment is free | The Guardian
Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghosts | Melissa Benn | Comment is free | The Guardian: Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghostsIf schools slowed down and focused on a deeper kind of flourishing, they might be more productive (if not very Goveian)'Educational reform now largely equals intensive schooling: catch-up classes, a
Is the NJEA waking up? | Bob Braun's Ledger
Is the NJEA waking up? | Bob Braun's Ledger: Is the NJEA waking up?NJEA President Wendell SteinhauerThe struggle to save public schools from private, profit-making scams could well be lost. It will be lost–if it already hasn’t been lost–unless those groups  with experience in organizing, resources for getting their message out,  a history of lobbying, and a willingness to use the courts, grow some
Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t! | School Finance 101
Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t! | School Finance 101: Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t!Posted on April 16, 20140Consider this post the second in my series of basic data issues in education policy analysis.This is a topic on which I’ve written numerous previous posts. In most previous posts I’ve focused specifically on the
4-16-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Parent panels now reviewing LA Unified’s next spending planParents involved in setting spending priorities for LA Unified have a lot of homework to do over the next two weeks. Members of the Parent Advisory Committee and the District English Learner Advisory Committee have been instructed to “take home an
Back to the Lab Again | EduShyster
Back to the Lab Again | EduShyster: Back to the Lab Again In which I visit Arne Duncan’s alma mater on the hunt for *secret sauce*The University of Chicago Lab Schools which Arne Duncan attended from K-12.Reader: you are almost certainly aware that our Secretary of Education, Mr. Arne Duncan, has many excellent ideas regarding how to enhance the excellence of our failed and failing public schools.
FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, April 16, 2014
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Districts face challenge of prioritizing public input on school spendingEducation HeadlinesWednesday, April 16, 2014FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.Top Centinela official says FBI probing superintendent's
4-16-14 Ed Notes Online: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" Updated
Ed Notes Online: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" Updated: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" UpdatedRead about the late Jean Anyon's enormous impact at Kiersten Greene's  Mediated blog: How Do I Even Express…Just got this from the publisher. I ordered a review copy which I will share with anyone who will write a review.If nothing changes, urban school reform is doomed to fai
Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill - Assemblymember Ed Chau Representing the 49th California Assembly District
Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill - Assemblymember Ed Chau Representing the 49th California Assembly District: Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill   April 10, 2014Sacramento – The Assembly Committee on Education passed Assembly Bill (AB) 1531, authored by Assemblymember Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park), which requires that public charter schools be governed by bo
4-16-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: Interesting Teacher Appreciation festivities from a MI charter school, via @eclectablogA MI charter school decides to humiliate its teachers to appreciate them. Interesting. MANDIVA – Our 3 favorite male faculty members in heels for an hour SAVE MY JOB – 3 faculty members will stand in the parking lot during dismissal and hold a sign. CREAM FACIAL – Students will throw pie in 3 f
SES IS A MESS: Tutor center scammed $2M in federal funds | New York Post
Tutor center scammed $2M in federal funds | New York Post: Tutor center scammed $2M in federal fundsBy Rich CalderApril 15, 2014 | 6:42pmModal TriggerPhoto: ShutterstockMORE ON:SCAMSCasino: World poker champ took $9.6M in card-cheat scamCheating bus driver turns himself in to Manhattan DASmooth-talking con man sent to slammerHasbro cheated ‘Mr. Scrabble’ out of $1M: suitA bicoastal tutoring center
Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble. | The Paper Graders
Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble. | The Paper Graders: Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble.by MR. S posted on MARCH 14, 2012Yesterday the Huffington Post ran an op/ed piece by Wendy Kopp, the founder of TFA. The title was In Defense of Optimism.  I read it, tweeted it, and moved on, but it has been rattling in my head for 24 hours now, so here are some thoughts in response.To start, I think
Morning Wink 4-16-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-16-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: How Many Hours Should It Take to Test Children in Grades 3-8 in Basic Skills?Principals, teachers, and parents in New York state complained that the Common Core tests for grades 3-8 were too lon