Perdido Street School:
Cuomo Claims APPR Should Be "100% Accurate"
Andrew Cuomo And Michael Mulgrew Still Love The Common Core
Perdido Street School Week
Cuomo Claims APPR Should Be "100% Accurate"
The statement came in the "fix" he pushed for teachers who are rated on the CCSS tests:After negotiating with lawmakers and teachers' unions, Cuomo released a bill that aims to provide a “safety net” for teachers and principals who would be at risk of losing their jobs because of students' low scores on Common Core-aligned tests. Under the proposal, educators who earn “developing” or “in
Andrew Cuomo And Michael Mulgrew Still Love The Common Core
Students, aprents and teachers all over the country are turning against the Common Core.Protests have risen up in many states, three states have already pulled out of the Core (Indiana, Oklahoma and South Carolina) and two more are on the cusp of going (North Carolina and Louisiana.)Here in NY State, a mass movement of students, parents and teachers is rising up against the Core and the ancillary
How Would The Education Reformers Solve This Mess?
From the NY Post, in full:A Bronx principal hid in shame on Friday rather than explain why she ignored pleas from a bullied teen’s dad to have the kid removed from the school before the torment drove him to kill.Delise Jones darted out of IS 117 at dismissal and shielded her face with her car’s sun visor rather than answer questions about the transfer request from the father of alleged killer Noel
Time To Go After Tenure For CEO's
The noted Communists at Forbes say the higher paid a CEO is, the worse that CEO's company performs:Across the board, the more CEOs get paid, the worse their companies do over the next three years, according to extensive new research. This is true whether they’re CEOs at the highest end of the pay spectrum or the lowest. “The more CEOs are paid, the worse the firm does over the next three years, as
YESTERDAY
If Teachers Were Like Goldman Sachs Traders...
Thanks Uncle Mikey and Auntie Carmen - a $1,000 bucks (which is actually more like $600 after taxes and union dues): Dear Colleagues,As you come to the end of this school year we both wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for all your hard work and dedication. We both know from experience how difficult the work you do is, and we take great pride in the thousands of people in New York C
Open Thread: Regents Exams
I'm proctoring Regents exams during the day and grading the ELA exam at night and this weekend.It's a hectic week.How's your Regents week going?What have you noticed about the tests, the grading materials or the scoring charts?Any differences from January?
State Assessors Upset Governor Cuomo Refuses To Let Assessor Into His Home
From Lohud:The Cuomo administration's manual for municipal assessors instructs them to ask each property owner to allow an interior inspection during the reassessment process.Assessors say such an inspection provides the best opportunity to discern both the condition, quality and extent of a building's improvements, which add to a home's taxable value.The refusal to allow the New Castle town asses
New York State's Teacher Evaluation System - And Its Governor - Continue To Lose Credibility
As I'm sure you heard, Cuomo tinkered ever so slightly with his vaunted APPR teacher evaluation system:ALBANY—Governor Andrew Cuomo said he remains committed to his signature state-mandated teacher evaluation system but argued that amendments are necessary in order to ensure the fairness of the ratings.“The teacher evaluation system is in effect,” Cuomo stressed during a Capitol news conference on
JUN 19
Harlem Success Academy 1 Has 44% Graduation Rate, 56% Attrition Rate
Eva Moskowitz and her backers like to tout a 100% graduation rate at her schools, but as Norm Scott points out in an Ed Notes piece, it's not a 100% graduation rate when 56% of the students disappear from the school before graduation:The longer Success Charters are in business, the more they get exposed. This one is big. I'm sure the remaining 32 kids out of the 73 who began 8 years ago are fine.
Federal Prosecutor Closes In On Chris Christie
Big news out of Esquire:Paul Fishman, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, wades through the sewage of Christie’s stewardship. Two sources with intimate knowledge of the case say Fishman’s pace is quickening -- he has empaneled a second grand jury, and the U.S. Justice Department has sent assistant prosecutors and FBI agents to work the case. “What’s taking the most time,” according to one source, “
Cuomo Tweaks APPR, Insists New York Remains A "Leader" In Holding Teachers Accountable
Capital Confidential details the program bill Cuomo released today, along with explanatory memo, that tweaks the APPR teacher evaluation system:Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s program bill tweaking teachers evaluations related to the Common Core rollout has been released. The legislation would for two years protect teachers or principals rated “ineffective” or “developing” if that score was due to poor perfor
How To Take On The Bullies On The Board Of Regents And At NYSED
Sandra Stotsky exhorted parents to not let themselves be bullied by the state educrats who are pushing the CCSS/Endless Testing agenda down the throats of children all over the state.But as Patrick Sullivan pointed out in a comment, it's difficult to bring about changes to the state's education policies when the Regents have the full support of the Democratic majority and NYSED Commissioner John K
Sandra Stotsky: Don't Let Yourself Be Bullied By State Education Officials
Jessica Bakeman at Capital NY:ALBANY—A former Massachusetts state education official who has emerged as a national critic of the Common Core standards told parent-lobbyists at the Capitol on Tuesday that they should fight for their rights and empower their older children as activists. Sandra Stotsky, who helped developed Massachusetts' academic standards when she served as association commissioner
Why Hasn't NYSED Commissioner John King Been Fired?
Statement yesterday from Governor Andrew M. Cuomo:“We’re working on a bill that would make adjustments to teacher evaluations,” Cuomo said at a news conference. “We’re literally working on them as we speak.”Cuomo added it’s the state Education Department’s roll out of Common Core, however, that has created the effect of needing to change the evaluation law, which is tied to Common Core-based testi
JUN 18
Deformers Want To Argue Students' Civil Rights Are Violated If Teachers Aren't Eligible For Merit Pay
Let's say some deformers file a lawsuit here in New York State against teacher tenure and seniority rules sometime soon.The laws in New York are a lot different than they are in California, so they'll have to adjust the thrust of the suit.From this Jessica Bakeman article in Capital NY, you can see how the deformers are not only dreaming big, they're dreaming too big:New York and California’s teac
Governor Cuomo Blames NYSED Commissioner John King And Regents Chancellor Tisch For Common Core Mess
Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal pulled his state out of both the PARCC tests and the Common Core today.Here in NY State, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo still loves the Common Core, but put the blame for the problems associated with the implementation squarely at the feet of NYSED Commissioner John King and the Board of Regents:Gov. Andrew Cuomo insisted teacher evaluation adjustments remain a top priori
Eva Moskowitz - Success Through Attrition
Juan Gonzalez the Daily News: There was Eva Moskowitz, head of this city’s fastest-growing and most controversial charter school network, giving a fiery commencement speech Friday morning at the first graduation of her chain’s flagship school, Harlem Success Academy 1. “As the founding parents of the founding school, you have made history,” she told the audience of beaming eighth-graders in their
Cuomo's "Fix" For APPR Teacher Evaluation Is No Fix At All
Under Cuomo's reported "fix" for his APPR teacher evaluation system that holds teachers accountable for tests that don't count for students, teachers will still receive low ratings - there will just be a "safety net" on the forced firings:Under a proposal that Gov. Cuomo is supporting in the legislature, the state would generate two scores for low-rated teachers and principals
Obama Administration: NY Must Use Tests That Don't Count For Students To Evaluate And Fire Teachers
No other way to read this:A federal education official warned Tuesday that if New York delays using student test scores as part of teacher evaluations this year, the state risks losing up to $292 million of a grant tied to making these reviews more rigorous.Gov. Andrew Cuomo and lawmakers have been meeting in recent days to find a way to postpone linking test scores to teacher ratings due to wides
JUN 17
Let Us Count The Ways Andrew Cuomo Is A Despicable Human Being
Yeah, I know - technically this is Sandra Lee that was hit with a lawsuit for being a deadbeat, but don't forget who shares that home with her:Food Network star Sandra Lee has made good on an $800 overdue bill from a Putnam company that removed snow from the roof of her $1.2 million home earlier this year, a court clerk said Tuesday.Lee had been scheduled to appear in Town Court last Thursday afte
New Hashtag: Fight The Status Cuomo
#FightTheStatusCuomo This one replaces the old one - Quid Pro Cuomo.Go on over and add your thoughts...
WSJ: Jeb Bush Wraps Himself In Common Core Standards Even As Many GOPers Renounce Them
This doesn't seem like a winning strategy for GOP primaries:Most potential Republican presidential contenders are renouncing the national educational standards known as Common Core. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who has championed measuring academic achievement for two decades, is doubling down.Resistance to Common Core is growing among the party's activists, who see it as a federal incursion into
How Many Abusive And/Or Insane Principals Are Out There?
A good point raised by James Eterno over at IceUFT blog in response to this Daily News story about hundreds of students, parents and teachers demanding the removal of a Bryant High School principal who is said to have doctored performance records of teachers, altered grading policies at the school to increase the graduation rate, ignored special needs students, and retaliated against teachers who
No Deal Yet On Teacher Evaluation Changes
From State of Politics this morning:There’s no deal so far on modifications to the state-mandated teacher evaluation system. A sticking point is how many years and for which school years the state would remove Common Core-aligned test scores from consideration in the teacher evaluations.Is anybody surprised that the UFT- and NYSUT-backed Cuomo is holding out for minimal and ineffectual changes to
Rally To Withdraw New York From Common Core In Albany
This is the kind of rally Andrew Cuomo won't be going to:Advocates in support of dropping Common Core teaching standards, mainly those from Long Island, will rally in the well of the Legislative Office Building tomorrow to push New York to withdraw from the standards altogether. “The attendees will meet with NYS legislators to lobby for a withdrawal from Common Core State Standards, high stakes te
JUN 16
Zephyr Teachout Attacks Cuomo For "Looting" Public Schools
From Daily Politics: Zephyr Teachout opened her “Summer of Democracy” by trying to put some progressive political heat on Gov. Cuomo. Teachout, the upstart Fordham University law professor, formally launched her Democratic primary campaign by attacking Cuomo as the benefactor and protector of a corrupt political system that favors only the wealthy and most powerful segments of society. “Four years
Public Trusts Teachers A Lot More Than NYSED Commissioner John King
There's a lot of bad news lately for teachers. but here's one piece of good news:If you missed it, upstate NYers trust teachers over Cuomo/Tisch/King to do what's right 4 kids http://t.co/GieoAh1q0A— realitybasededucator (@perdidostschool) June 15, 2014 .@JohnKingNYSED Overall, 88% of upstate NYers trust teachers over 43% who trust you to do what's right for students.— realitybasededucator (@perdi
Governor Cuomo Apologized To Hedge Fund Managers Via Video About Skipping Lake Placid Education Reform Conference
Who's your daddy, Andy?ALBANY—Governor Andrew Cuomo apologized to hedge funders who gathered in Lake Placid that he wasn't able to attend their pro-charter school conference, despite having been made “honorary chair."“I wish I could be with you in person, but I am stuck downstate today,” Cuomo said in a four-minute video he sent on May 5 in place of his attendance. “But thank you for coming.
Eva Moskowitz Plans To Double Success Academies Network In Size In The Next Few Years
From the NY Times:The network, the Success Academy, said that it was submitting applications to the state to open schools in Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens. The move comes just two months after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and state lawmakers granted charter schools in New York City some of the most generous protections in the country, requiring that the city find space for them or help pay the
Times-Union/Siena Poll: 43% Do Not Support Current Use Of Standardized Tests
So many great things in the Times-Union/Siena poll on education issues that was released yesterday.I have already posted how the public overwhelmingly supports teachers over the NYSED, the Regents and Governor Cuomo when it comes to doing what is right for children.I have posted too about how the public isn't buying into the argument that schools are suffering from substandard technology and need
JUN 15
Zephyr Teachout To Address Parents And Teachers In Buffalo
From Bob McCarthy in the Buffalo News:Zephyr Teachout, the Fordham Law School professor who unsuccessfully challenged Gov. Andrew Cuomo for the Working Families Party nomination last month, may launch a primary bid against him, according to her local supporters. That’s why it’s no coincidence that she will address local teachers union and parent groups in Buffalo this week.Teachout needs help gett
Public Isn't Buying Substandard Technology As Big Problem For Schools
From the Times-Union/Siena poll:Almost three-quarters, 71 percent, said the biggest problem facing schools is lack of parental involvement in a child's progress, followed by bullying and poor behavior, 69 percent each, and hiring and retaining effective teachers, 61 percent. One of the least significant problems, respondents said, is substandard technology and facilities: Only 40 percent cited the
The Public Trusts Teachers WAY MORE Than Cuomo, King, And Tisch To Do What's Right For Students
The Times-Union has extraordinary results from a Times-Union/Siena poll on education issues in today's paper - the public overwhelmingly support teachers over the governor, the Legislature, the Board of Regents, and NYSED Commissioner King to do what is right for students.The poll was conducted by Siena and here's the question I want to look at closely today:Now after thinking about education in N
The Insanity Of The Chinese Education System
This is the education system that Barack Obama and Arne Duncan admire so much:Nearly 9.8 million Chinese high school students took the National College Entrance Exam, called gaokao, on June 7 and 8.The emphasis on a two-day test has sparked criticism from some educators because of the incredible amount of pressure it places on students leading up to just one test. Gaokao has also been linked to Ch
OPEN THREAD: What Is The UFT/AFT Strategy To Counter Attacks On Teacher Tenure/Due Process Protections?
The NY Times published an attack on teacher tenure earlier in the week in an editorial and today the NY Post followed up with a sensationalized PERV TEACHER story that is meant to drive the "Reform Tenure" narrative and bring about political action.The attacks on teacher tenure/due process here in NY State have begun in earnest. What is the UFT/AFT response to these attacks?Do they have
NY Post Starts The Attacks On Teacher Tenure In New York In Earnest
I'm not going to link to the story because it deserves as few hits as possible.But here's the gist - the Post has a prominent story attacking teacher tenure today that complains about the following:State law requires that an independent hearing officer decide whether a tenured teacher is guilty of charges and, if so, set the punishment.Each termination case, including witness testimony, cross-exam
JUN 14
Have a Zephyr Teachout Petition Party
Here's how:How To Volunteer To Get Zephyr Teachout On The Ballot By July 7 So She Can Primary Andrew Cuomo You can get in touch with Zephyr Teachout's campaign here.Petitions can be downloaded here - these directions go with the download:Help get Zephyr on the ballot! To make sure Zephyr's name appears on the November ballot we need 15,000 signatures of registered Democrats turned in to the NY Boa
Meritocracy, American Style
Everybody who makes a lot of money or enjoys great wealth worked very hard to get that - everybody knows that.Take the example of Chelsea Clinton, for example:Chelsea Clinton earned an annual salary of $600,000 at NBC News before switching to a month-to-month contract earlier this year, sources with knowledge of the agreement told POLITICO.Clinton, who joined NBC News as a special correspondent in
How To Volunteer To Get Zephyr Teachout On The Ballot By July 7 So She Can Primary Andrew Cuomo
You can get in touch with Zephyr Teachout's campaign here.Petitions can be downloaded here - these directions go with the download:Help get Zephyr on the ballot! To make sure Zephyr's name appears on the November ballot we need 15,000 signatures of registered Democrats turned in to the NY Board of Elections (in person or by mail) before July 7th. Just download the PDF below, fill out the informat
Tax Deadbeat Andrew Cuomo Offers Lame Excuse For Barring Tax Assessor From His Home
Keep an eye on this story - it's something opponents of Andrew Cuomo will hit again and again during his re-election campaign:Gov. Andrew Cuomo addressed the controversy over whether he and his live-in girlfriend, Food Network star Sandra Lee, dodged property tax increases on their $1.2 million New Castle home for the first time Thursday but claimed not to know too much about the process.The gover