Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All Week
@GovChristie's Executive Order Lays Bare the Fundamental Problems with AchieveNJ
Yesterday, Chris Christie tried to play the "reasonable" reformer with his executive order on testing:First, he announced an executive order creating a new state task force -- entirely appointed by Christie – to study the effectiveness of state testing as a whole, including the upcoming PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) tests and the Common Core Stat
JUL 14
Christie's Last Teacher Evaluation Panel Was a Disaster
Big news today in the New Jersey education policy world:Following several days of intensive discussion last week, agreement was reached on several key issues related to standardized testing and its ultimate role in teacher evaluation. NJEA was at the center of conversations with legislators, the Christie administration and the Department of Education (DoE), which led to two key announcements toda
JUL 13
Karen Lewis, Ras Baraka, and "Worried" White People
Fellow white people, heed my advice, please:Relax.Take a stroll. Enjoy a decaf macchiato. Do some yoga, And stop reading the newspaper, which these days seems to be full of pieces by some more of our fellow worried white people -- in this case, the very reformy and very white Tom Moran -- designed to make us very, very... concerned:Now Newark has a new mayor, Ras Baraka, a charismatic politician,
JUL 12
How White People Rationalize the Unequal Governance Of Schools
A caveat before I begin: you really shouldn't listen to anything that I or any other white, suburban, middle-class person has to say about Camden's schools until you've heard from the good people who work in those schools (like Keith Benson), send their children to those schools (like MoNeke Ragsdale), or actually attend those schools (like Nala Johnson).Once you've heard from them, you can, if yo
More on Christie's Executive Order, AchieveNJ & PARCC
Keeping this short and sweet because Ani McHugh (aka. TeacherBiz) and Jersey Jazzman both wrote excellent analyses of all that transpired in the life of A3081/S2541. Let's cut to the chase. Here's what the weights in educator evaluations will look like next year: In addition, any educators who were rated ineffective or partially effective in the '13-'14 school year can have their evaluation review
JUL 13
Camden: Improving the quality of life for 'other people'
Taking a break from NJ State BOE testimony to bring you an update on one of the poorest, most dangerous cities in the country: Camden. And borrowing some of the title from a Camden educator's blog post last week (more below).While my little graphic may be snarky, the daily reality that many Camden residents face is anything but. A quick Google search brings up volumes about the decades-long plight
SELLOUT: Why the NJEA’s testing compromise with Christie was a mistake
The problem with the compromise reached between the Christie Administration and the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) over the uses of high-stakes testing is this: The teachers’ union, rightly concerned about inappropriate uses of test results to evaluate teachers, won valuable, if temporary, protections for its members. However, the union, which has, […]
JUL 13
Christie bends on state tests, parents thrown under the school bus
Gov. Chris Christie has agreed to a two-year delay in using the results of new standardized tests to evaluate New Jersey public school teachers, according to Statehouse and other sources. He also will reduce, from 30 percent to 20 percent, how much the scores will count in future teacher evaluations. He will not, however, […]
JUL 12
OMG!!!!! Look who’s covering Christie’s prez campaign
The Star-Ledger has hired a former Hollywood celebrity gossip blogger to be the senior political correspondent who will cover Gov. Chris Christie’s presidential campaign, according to social media sources. Seriously. Meanwhile, Amy Ellis Nutt, the only Star-Ledger writer ever to win a Pulitzer Prize, left the paper last week. She will work for The Washington Post. […]
GUEST: Bridgegate is so NOT over: Chris Christie and the Priorities of the Privileged
By Linda Stamato In the wake of “Bridgegate,” press coverage shifted from near adulation of Chris Christie to embarrassed incredulity; the artful politician, poised to become a presidential contender, was reduced in a heartbeat to a tarnished pretender. The phrase, “He can’t lose,” morphed into “He can’t win.” Well, we’re witnessing a shift back and […]