Latest News and Comment from Education

Friday, June 27, 2014

Nite Cap 6-27-14 #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 CAP



Why We MUST Support Teachers Running For Elected Office | Opt Out Orlando
Why We MUST Support Teachers Running For Elected Office | Opt Out Orlando: Why We MUST Support Teachers Running For Elected OfficeBy Opt Out OrlandoIn Florida, only seven of the 160 state legislators are public school teachers, making decisions for the largest slice of the budget pie ($24 Billion or approximately 30% of the state’s general fund).  No wonder things are such a grand mess.How many of
Charter school board members found themselves powerless | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
Charter school board members found themselves powerless | Detroit Free Press | freep.com: Charter school board members found themselves powerless> As president of the board of the Detroit Enterprise Academy, Sandra Clark-Hinton was pressing hard for detailed financial records from a representative of the charter school’s management company.His response: The documents were “none of the board’s busi
All Things Education: Tell Governor McAuliffe: no OEI, no way, no how.
All Things Education: Tell Governor McAuliffe: no OEI, no way, no how.: Tell Governor McAuliffe: no OEI, no way, no how.About two weeks ago, Virginians got this great news about the state's new anti-democratic education bureaucracy, the Opportunity Educational Institution:A judge has ruled that the state's plan to take over failing schools violates the Virginia constitution. The idea had been to e
NYC Public School Parents: Comment on the Blue Book changes
NYC Public School Parents: Comment on the Blue Book changes: Comment on the Blue Book changesThe just announced change to the "Blue Book",  the annual school capacity and utilization report, to attribute the enrollment in trailers or TCUs to the main building is a good one – and was recommended in our report, Space Crunch.  But we still need to know how many students are sitting in trail
Assessing the Risk | The Crucial Voice of the People
Assessing the Risk | The Crucial Voice of the People: Assessing the RiskJohn W. Gardner, an influential Republican who served both parties and helped bring to fruition a federal education law under a  Democrat’s administration. Is it fair to have said in 1983, and to say now, that we are a nation at risk? My gut tells me yes, forever and always, we should be viewing this republic in that light les
How do you want to be remembered? | Connected Principals
How do you want to be remembered? | Connected Principals: How do you want to be remembered?by Derek Hatch • June 27, 2014 • 0 CommentsIn my role as a high school Assistant Principal, I am also a grade coordinator. I met my “class” almost three years ago when they started grade 10. These kids (almost 300 of them) are now in grade 12 and they will be graduating this month. Over the course of the las
State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson to Unveil Blueprint for STEM Education
Events, June 30, 2014 - Events (CA Dept of Education): Events, June 30, 2014Ed Ahead and calendar listings of anticipated news releases, media advisories, upcoming visits by Superintendent Torlakson, and other newsworthy announcements.State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson to Unveil Blueprint for STEM EducationState Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson will hold a news conference Monday i
New Orleans schools should stop hiring so many teachers who don’t understand the students’ culture or backgrounds | Hechinger Report
New Orleans schools should stop hiring so many teachers who don’t understand the students’ culture or backgrounds | Hechinger Report: New Orleans schools should stop hiring so many teachers who don’t understand the students’ culture or backgroundsBy Glenn SullivanThe lunch period ended like so many others. After the bell rang, students raced up the stairwell, not in a rush to get to class on time
ETS and College Board "deeply apologetic" for racist t-shirt
ETS and College Board "deeply apologetic" for racist t-shirt: ETS AND COLLEGE BOARD "DEEPLY APOLOGETIC" FOR RACIST T-SHIRTJoint statement addresses "culturally offensive actions" at AP World History ReadingSo you may have heard about some of that racist bullsh*t that went down at the Educational Testing Service's annual AP World History Reading earlier this month in S
6-27-14 Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All Week
Jersey Jazzman: Charter School Cream Skimming Doesn't Always Pay OffThere's a bit of a "he said/she said" thing going on in Jersey City between the school district and a charter school:After telling Jersey City parents two weeks ago that the school district was investigating a possible data breach of personal student information, and then saying two days later that there was no data brea
An open letter from the NEA and the educators of America These “test, label, and punish” policies have failed
NEA - Open Letter: An open letter from the NEA and the educators of AmericaA generation ago, our nation enacted the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB) which measured the quality of our schools by the state standardized reading and math test scores of students. Schools that did not make the required progress were labeled as failing and punished by being closed, turned into charters and/or having schoo
Reflections on Teaching » Blog Archive » Why Tenure?
Reflections on Teaching » Blog Archive » Why Tenure?: Why Tenure? In the aftermath of the initial Vergara decision, there are lots of questions about effects. Having taught in a public school under a turn-around model, where hiring and being retained, was based solely on the discretion of the site administrator, I think I already have a pretty good idea of what that will look like, and it’s not go
A series to explore summer learning loss | Philadelphia Public School Notebook
A series to explore summer learning loss | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: A series to explore summer learning lossBy Dorian Geiger on Jun 27, 2014 01:46 PM Too much downtime this summer could prove to be a major detriment to Philadelphia's students when they return to classes in fall.The phenomenon of summer learning loss, often nicknamed "summer slide," is a nationwide dilemma tha
La. State Board Not “Bound by Law” to Either CCSS or PARCC | deutsch29
La. State Board Not “Bound by Law” to Either CCSS or PARCC | deutsch29: La. State Board Not “Bound by Law” to Either CCSS or PARCCJune 27, 2014On June 18, 2014, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal made the executive decision to remove Louisiana from the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and associated assessment, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).The way that
Vermont and its Educators Lead the Way on Single Payer | NEA Today
Vermont and its Educators Lead the Way on Single Payer | NEA Today: Vermont and its Educators Lead the Way on Single PayerJune 27, 2014 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Health Care Reform, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Mary Ellen FlanneryThe same state that led the nation on same-sex marriage is now tackling another social justice issue: health care coverage for all of its residents.Led by Go
6-27-14 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): Morning Read: Former Obama aides let fly at teacher tenureObama alums join anti teachers union case Teachers unions are girding for a tough fight to defend tenure laws against a coming blitz of lawsuits — and an all-out public relations campaign led by former aides to President Barack Obama. The Incite Ag
Educating Gates Rally: Morna McDermott and Susan DuFresne on Vimeo
Educating Gates Rally: Morna McDermott and Susan DuFresne on Vimeo: Educating Gates Rally: Morna McDermott and Susan DuFresnefrom Schoolhouse Live PRO 4 hours ago NOT YET RATEDMorna McDermott and Susan DuFresne Educating Gates Rally: Morna McDermott and Susan DuFresne from Schoolhouse Live on Vimeo.
6-27-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: Learn about TMoE at Chalkface Radio Interview ArchiveChalkface Radio has up a terrific interview archive.  Check it out. Here's the one Denise Wilburn and I did 10 months ago, soon after The Mismeasure of Education was published.  Current Politics Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with Chalk Face on BlogTalkRadioJuly 12 will mark the one year since TMoE was published.  How time flies.  B
Teachers love their job but feel undervalued, unsupported and unrecognised, says OECD
Newsroom - OECD: Teachers love their job but feel undervalued, unsupported and unrecognised, says OECD25/06/14 - Most teachers enjoy their job, despite feeling unsupported and unrecognised in schools and undervalued by society at large, according to a new OECD survey.The OECD’s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) finds that more than nine out of ten teachers are satisfied with their
CHICAGO POLICE TORTURE | Bill Ayers
CHICAGO POLICE TORTURE | Bill Ayers: CHICAGO POLICE TORTURESaw the chilling and powerful “Death and the Maiden” at Victory Garden Theater last night, followed by an inspiring conversation with Chicago torture survivors and anti-torture activists and lawyers. Please see it, and also join the movement for reparations:change.org/petitions/pass-the-ordinance-seeking-reparations-for-the-chicago-police-
Positively Deviant School Reform?
Positively Deviant School Reform?: Positively Deviant School Reform?FRIDAY, JUNE 27TH, 2014 AT 10:42 AMIf you had six months, little to no resources, and a clear mandate to solve a chronic country-wide problem – knowing that, if you failed, you would be asked to leave that country altogether – what would you do?I ask because this was precisely the challenge Save the Children was faced with, in Vie
Morning Wink 6-27-14 AM Posts #edchat #edreform
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 6-27-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Tom Scarice: The Greatest Crime Against Education, Educators, and Students Is….Tom Scarice, superintendent of schools in Madison, Connecticut, here speaks out and names the criminal corruption o
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 6-27-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Tom Scarice: The Greatest Crime Against Education, Educators, and Students Is….Tom Scarice, superintendent of schools in Madison, Connecticut, here speaks out and names the criminal corruption of education into a test-taking industry that has no goal other than test scores. He knows that as the stakes go higher, people succumb to t
6-27-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy
Wait What?: Wait What? Squelching dissent in Bridgeport City Hall (by Carmen Lopez)This commentary piece first appeared in the CT Post on June 25, 2014  The 1949 movie “All the King’s Men,” based on the novel of the same name by Robert Penn Warren, opens with the main character, Willie Stark, confronting political corruption in a small southern town. Stark, played by Broderick Crawford, claims tha
6-27-14 Answer Sheet
Answer Sheet: A disturbing look at Common Core tests in New YorkThe promise of new standardized tests aligned to the Common Core State Standards  was that they would show which students were ready for college and career and which weren’t. But in New York, a look at the tests shows how the state is failing to meet that promise. This was written by Carol Burris and […]by Valerie Strauss / 25min hide
6-27-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum Week
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools and Building Leadership TeamsBuilding Leadership Teams (BLTs) exist at every SPS school (or should).There should be parent/community representation at every SPS school's BLT (or should).  That representation should NOT be controlled by the principal.There should be bylaws written and readily available for anyone to be able to access about the decisi
6-27-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Video: Experience A Little Bit Of What Someone With Autism Feels….I’m adding this video to The Best Sites For Walking In Someone Else’s Shoes:by Larry Ferlazzo / 8h 6-24-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFLLarry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: This
6-27-14 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.: Reforming admissions.. Through interviews with teachers and students at the High School of American Studies, this documentary explores efforts to reform the admissions system for New York City’s elite specialized high schools.by Fred Klonsky / 2h hide  //  saveLetter to the editor. What if the Hinsdal
6-27-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “Power Of Community” Is A Must-Read ReportI’ve written a lot about the tremendous parent engagement work of the St. Paul teachers union. They’ve just come out with a must-read report on their work titled Power Of Community. I’m adding it to The Best Reasons Why Parents Should Be Looked At As Allies & Not Targets Of Blam
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-27-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Including Teachers In The Student Mental-Health ContinuumCommentary By Thomas J. Cottle and Jennifer Greif Green | Education Week http://bit.ly/1qiI2HS Published Online: June 20, 2014  ::  The location changes, but the story is a familiar one: An angry young man*—sometimes a teenager—guns down others in a public place. Whether it's Troutdale, Ore.; Isla
6-27-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: Who Are We? We Are the ResistanceWho Are We? We Are the Resistance. via Who Are We? We Are the Resistance.1 by plthomasedd / 42min 6-26-14 @ The Chalk Face@ THE CHALK FACE: The Troubling Realities of School SegregationI read this story twice and also read this blog to learn more about the situation and it has left me with many unanswered questions. But first let me see if I have
6-27-14 With A Brooklyn Accent: The Challenges Facing the NEA and the AFT at Their National Conventions
With A Brooklyn Accent: The Challenges Facing the NEA and the AFT at Their National Conventions As teachers unions prepare to meet this summer, they face three great challenges, which are also opportunities:The rapidly growing grass roots movement against the Common Core Standards, which has already led several states to withdraw from CCSS, and has probably doomed its creators vision of CCSS as a
Detroit For-Profit Charter School Spends Big On Ads | PopularResistance.Org
Detroit For-Profit Charter School Spends Big On Ads | PopularResistance.Org: For-profit charter school corporation’s Detroit media ad buy now has a price tag: several hundred thousand dollarsIt’s Day Four of the explosive Detroit Free Press exposé of Michigan charter schools and also Day Four of the National Heritage Academies complete takover of the websites of Detroit’s two biggest newspapers wi
6-26-14 The Whole Child Blog — Becoming Better Listeners
The Whole Child Blog — Whole Child Education: Becoming Better ListenersPost written by Melinda Moran At its heart, differentiation is about knowing your students—not only where they are relative to learning goals, but also who they are as learners, or better yet, as people. Because our students are really people "under construction," differentiation is most successful when we continually
6-27-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)
the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Who Are We? We Are the ResistanceDiane Ravitch’s post about the debate over the Gates moratorium includes a comment from John Thompson that deserves close attention: In a note to me, John Thompson pointed out that our side, which doesn’t have a name, cherishes the clash
6-27-14 empathyeducates
empathyeducates: Why Kids Care More About Achievement Than Helping OthersSeattle Municipal Archives/Flickr With thanks to my parents who often practiced as they preached. Mom and Dad often reflected, in raising a child you need to think – Does my tone of voice, body language, and facial expression, all together, communicate what I believe? If as a […]by empathy / 6h YESTERDAY18 Things White People
6-27-14 Curmudgucation
CURMUDGUCATION: Buy Mercedes Schneider's BookMercedes Schneider is pissed.There are many things that come through in her book A Chronicle of Echoes, but what's most immediately palpable is her anger at what has been done to public education in this country. And as each chapter unrolls, it's impossible not to see why she is so angry.Schneider is one of the most important bloggers in the edublogosph
6-27-14 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: The UFT MUST Endorse Andrew Cuomo For GovernorI am calling for the UFT to enthusiastically and vocally endorse Governor Andrew M. Cuomo for re-election this November.Sure Cuomo has shown himself to be anti-union, anti-teacher and anti-traditional public schools during his tenure as governor.And sure it makes no sense that a teachers union would continue to support a politici
Financial Corruption and Academic Failure in Charter Sector Beg for Oversight | janresseger
Financial Corruption and Academic Failure in Charter Sector Beg for Oversight | janresseger: Financial Corruption and Academic Failure in Charter Sector Beg for OversightPosted on June 27, 2014 by janressegerEarlier this week, tracking an extraordinary investigative series on charter schools by theDetroit Free Press (still ongoing today) , this blog commented: “Although the federal government has
Trusting Teachers With Collective Autonomy | Education Evolving
Trusting Teachers With Collective Autonomy | Education Evolving: Trusting Teachers With Collective AutonomyMotivating students and personalizing learning is necessary to improve student achievement. This is bound to enlarge and to change the teacher's role. Inside school the teachers know the students best, and should be free to adapt and innovate according to their students' needs.This runs again
NYC Educator: When's the Best Time to Activate UFT Activists?
NYC Educator: When's the Best Time to Activate UFT Activists?: When's the Best Time to Activate UFT Activists?I'm amazed at how we're under attack on so many different fronts. Aside from Vergara and its copycats, the US Supreme Court appears to be contemplating making the United States a Right to Work country. This is really not what its supporters would have you believe. If dues are optional, a l
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Finally, a viable opponent for Mayor One-Percent?
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Finally, a viable opponent for Mayor One-Percent?: Finally, a viable opponent for Mayor One-Percent?“I’m a little sick of the mayor and I don’t see anyone stepping up,” Lewis told the Chicago Sun-Times by telephone Thursday evening. “I am seriously thinking about it.”"Do we want 'Star Wars' museums or public, neighborhood schools? Do we want presidential librari

YESTERDAY

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 6-26-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
Nite Cap UPDATEUPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATECORPORATE ED REFORM18 Things White People Should Know/Do Before Discussing RacismAmericans, for decades now, have aspired to be colorblind, just not completely. Oh we long to see pretty pink crocuses and yellow daffodils flowers bloom in the spring. We want to walk through tall green grasses and bathe in the bright sun. We want to wear colorful […]by empat
6-26-14 Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All Week
Jersey Jazzman: Why Do We Need Tenure? Ask Elizabeth's TeachersMy post about Mike Mignone, the brave teacher and union leader in Belleville, NJ who is up on tenure charges, went viral this week. Mignone has been on unpaid leave pending his hearing; he alleges it's because he asked dared to question his school board about an outrageous surveillance system that includes a camera and microphone in ev
Karen Lewis "Seriously" Considering Mayoral Run | NBC Chicago
Karen Lewis "Seriously" Considering Mayoral Run | NBC Chicago: Karen Lewis "Seriously" Considering Mayoral RunChicago Teachers Union president met with election attorneys, source says
Poverty & Race- What Education Can’t Do | educarenow
Poverty & Race- What Education Can’t Do | educarenow: Poverty & Race- What Education Can’t DoPosted on June 26, 2014 | Leave a commentIn staying with the theme of poverty and education that I addressed in myprevious post, I want to make readers aware of two different writings that have come out that explode the myth that education by itself is the tool of leverage that can alleviate povert
More Evidence of the Trouble with ‘Student-Centered’ Teaching | Paul Bruno
More Evidence of the Trouble with ‘Student-Centered’ Teaching | Paul Bruno: More Evidence of the Trouble with ‘Student-Centered’ TeachingBy PAUL BRUNO | Published: JUNE 26, 2014I’ve long had many related-but-separate complaints about ‘student-centered’ teaching practices. A new study in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis lends new evidence to several of them. (You can also check out good w
Photo Essay: Chinese School is Lesson for US Policymakers | Cloaking Inequity
Photo Essay: Chinese School is Lesson for US Policymakers | Cloaking Inequity: Photo Essay: Chinese School is Lesson for US PolicymakersThe Chinese are serious about vocational (aka career and technical education). The United States is not. Vocational education in the United States has a long history of being used as holding bin for African American students by purposefully providing inferior educ
Malloy offers ‘Connecticut Core’ as Common Core fix | The CT Mirror
Malloy offers ‘Connecticut Core’ as Common Core fix | The CT Mirror: Malloy offers ‘Connecticut Core’ as Common Core fixBy: MARK PAZNIOKAS | June 26, 2014With cover from the state’s two largest teachers unions, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Thursday kicked off “Connecticut Core,” the administration’s latest effort to quell the political and policy clamor over how Common Core curriculum standards should
Nite Cap 6-26-14 #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 CAPWill Philly delegation 'play ball' on budget to win dollars for city schools? | Philadelphia Public School NotebookWill Philly delegation 'play ball' on budget to win dollars for city schools? | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Will Philly de