Breaking News: 19 Gulen Charter Schools in Ohio Under Investigation by State Board
Sometimes it is hard to believe that anyone cares anymore about old-fashioned things like integrity, honesty, accountability, and transparency, especially in the red red states where the charter chains have bought the legislature and the governor. But look at this story. All of these schools are associated with the Gulen movement, a Turkish chain of charters, the largest in the U.S. They get hi
Chris Christie Reduces Impact of Test Scores on Teacher Evaluations
The word is getting out. Basing teacher evaluations on test scores is a sham. Or unpopular. Or junk science. Or Gates said not to do it. Whatever the reason, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has announced that his state will cut back on the importance of test scores in evaluating teachers. “Governor Christie announced the rollback Monday while ordering the creation of a commission to study t
LAUSD Closes Two Gulen-Related Charter Schools for Fiscal Insolvency, Other Issues
The Charter Schools Division of the Los Angeles Unified School District informed two charter schools that they would be closed for reasons of fiscal insolvency, despite the fact that the schools have high scores. The schools, Magnolia Science Academy 6 and Magnolia Science Academy, are part of the extensive Turkish Gulen charter network. This letter from the district explains why the charters
Jeanne Kaplan: Why Teachers Are Sick of Duncan
Jeanne Kaplan served on the Denver school board for years and watched with a heavy heart as fake “reformers” took over Denver and Colorado. Now Colorado has the most punitive teacher evaluation law in the nation, thanks to Arne Duncan and Colorado’s State Senator Michael Johnston. When the NEA voted a resolution calling on Duncan to resign, the reporter didn’t speak to a teacher. No, the call went
KrazyTA: LIFO and Michael Jordan
A wonderful find by loyal reader KrazyTA, who has read the Vergara transcripts. The esteemed economist Raj Chetty of Harvard, a cheerleader for VAM, says he prefers large data sets (no humans) to anecdotes, then tells a theoretical anecdote about a coach who lays off rookie Michael Jordan. The fact that this never happened is of no consequence to the professor from Harvard. KrazyTA writes: A goo
FAIRTEST: The Movement to Stop Test Mania Continues
An update on the spread of the movement against over-testing and the misuse of those fallible instruments: The rapid pace of strong news stories and commentaries about assessment reform campaigns continued uninterrupted through the long Independence Day weekend. More and more media outlets are reporting the widespread grassroots response to testing overkill: “Enough is Enough!” And, some politici
BATS Blast Common Core Standards and Arne Duncan
The Badass Teachers Association issued the following press release: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 14, 2014 More Information Contact: Marla Kilfoyle, General Manager, BATs Melissa Tomlinson, Asst. General Manager, BATs contact.batmanager@gmail.com “The Badass Teachers Association, an organization that is nearing 50,000 members, is releasing this statement to express our outrage over Resolution #2 (A
Maryland Test Scores Tumble as Common Core Tests Are Adopted
Every state that has adopted Common Core tests has seen a sgpharp decline in test scores. Maryland is the latest to discover that its scores fell thanks to Common Core tests. “Reading and math scores on state tests for Maryland elementary and middle school students have dropped to their lowest levels in seven years, according to a Washington Post analysis of 2014 test data released Friday. Some
YESTERDAY
“A Principle Is a Terrible Thing to Waste”
The following letter was written by labor leader Lee Saunders to Dr. Michael Lomax, president of the United Negro College Fund, to protest the fund’s acceptance of a gift of $25 million from the Koch brothers. From: Portside labor Subject: A Principle Is A Terrible Thing to Waste A Principle Is A Terrible Thing to Waste Lee A. Saunders July 14, 2014 Huffington Post Lee Saunders, President of the
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-14-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Paul Thomas on Arne Duncan and the Myth of Low ExpectationsPaul Thomas here reviews many of the public statements of Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and finds a common theme: the cause of low test scores is low expectations. If only society, the schools, and parents had higher expectations, no child would be left behind, no ch