Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All Week
What's Happening With B4K?
So, at the first glance, it looks like B4K is up to their old tricks again: putting money from billionaires David Tepper and Alan Fournier into local politics under the guise of education reform. They've done it before in Jersey City and Perth Amboy; now it's Trenton.But hang on -- something seems different...TRENTON — A nonprofit that gives free backpacks to school children has slung mud at mayor
MAY 04
The One Thing You Must Remember During NJ's Testing Season
Tomorrow, the 2014 NJASK testing season continues as Grades 5 and 6 give up a week of instruction -- all so politicians can moan and charter schools can brag and teachers can be fired and tablets can be sold.It's all about the kids, dontcha know...Let me make my little contribution to the chaos: here are three graphs to keep in mind as our students and teachers slog through the bubbles. These are
Star-Ledger abandons Newark. Again.
The Star-Ledger will soon leave Newark, making the city one of the few metropolitan centers in the nation not to have even one daily newspaper. But, in truth, the newspaper already has abandoned Newark and there is no better proof than its shameful endorsement of Shavar Jeffries for mayor. Jeffries, as The Star-Ledger’s editorial board well knows, is the creature both […]
MAY 07
The people buying Newark for Jeffries
Charles Ledley as a young man working for the Clintons Want to know who is buying Newark for Shavar Jeffries? These are the people who run Education Reform Now, the organization that gave Newark First nearly a million dollars that, in turn, Newark First used to buy attack ads against Ras Baraka in a last-ditch effort to […]
Is Cami leaving? Or just hiding?
Cami Anderson, the controversial state-appointed superintendent of Newark schools, has disappeared from the city for the last few weeks, fueling rumors she is planning on leaving. Her absence comes just as the mayoral race—in which she is issue number one—tightens up and her champion, Shavar Jeffries , receives huge amounts of […]
MAY 05
GUEST: Christie aims at unions
By Becca Fields A budget crisis—that’s what the main-stream media are calling it. A shortfall of $800 million in THIS year’s state budget that has to be resolved by June 30, a matter of weeks. But the real crisis isn’t simply a collection of numbers on a ledger book. The real crisis is the opportunity […]
NJ Ed Truth Squad Call to Action! Part 1
We interrupt this Teacher Appreciation Week to bring you a call to action:Two pieces of information crossed my cyber desk this morning at the crack of dawn:1. The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to approve bipartisan legislation to expand access to charter school funding.2. This very sad accounting of Newark Superintendent Cami Anderson's conversion of one of the city's—and state's—m
MAY 07
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week: Delirium at the State BOE Meeting Part 1!
Today was open topic day at the NJ State BOE, which means anyone can testify about any education topic. The board has their regular meeting in the morning, then public testimony in the afternoon. Due to NJASK testing, there was a small contingent of NJEA members present along with concerned parents and citizens.It started with a resolution to recognize May 2014 as Physical Education and Sport Mont
MAY 05
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week: How China and the US are swapping education philosophies
Early on in my teaching career I taught elementary art in the Bernards Township School District in Somerset County. The township is about 83% white with the largest minority being Asian at 14%. With a median family income of $153,000 and poverty below 3%, the children don't want for much. Many parents take an active role in their children's education, encouraging and even demanding they be involve
MAY 04
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week: Tales from the front lines
Tuesday is National Teacher Appreciation Day, and all across the country PTOs and PTAs will be honoring us for the work we do. I am continually grateful for and humbled by all the PTO does at my school this week because they already do so much for us throughout the year. This week I will be showing my appreciation for my profession and those who support us, like our PTO, by writing stories from th
Star-Ledger abandons Newark. Again.
The Star-Ledger will soon leave Newark, making the city one of the few metropolitan centers in the nation not to have even one daily newspaper. But, in truth, the newspaper already has abandoned Newark and there is no better proof than its shameful endorsement of Shavar Jeffries for mayor. Jeffries, as The Star-Ledger’s editorial board well knows, is the creature both […]
MAY 07
The people buying Newark for Jeffries
Charles Ledley as a young man working for the Clintons Want to know who is buying Newark for Shavar Jeffries? These are the people who run Education Reform Now, the organization that gave Newark First nearly a million dollars that, in turn, Newark First used to buy attack ads against Ras Baraka in a last-ditch effort to […]
Is Cami leaving? Or just hiding?
Cami Anderson, the controversial state-appointed superintendent of Newark schools, has disappeared from the city for the last few weeks, fueling rumors she is planning on leaving. Her absence comes just as the mayoral race—in which she is issue number one—tightens up and her champion, Shavar Jeffries , receives huge amounts of […]
MAY 05
GUEST: Christie aims at unions
By Becca Fields A budget crisis—that’s what the main-stream media are calling it. A shortfall of $800 million in THIS year’s state budget that has to be resolved by June 30, a matter of weeks. But the real crisis isn’t simply a collection of numbers on a ledger book. The real crisis is the opportunity […]
The Cuomology of State Aid (or Tales from Lake Flaccid)
We’ve heard much bluster over time about school funding in New York State, and specifically how money certainly has no role in the policy debate over how to fix New York State schools, unless it has to do with providing more money to charter schools, or decrying the fact that district schools statewide are substantially over-funded. See for example, this wonderfully absurd rant from DFER. Here’s