LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):
LAUSD, Teachers union talking AM/FM on new contract
LAUSD, Teachers union talking AM/FM on new contract As a further indication of how far off a labor agreement is between LA Unified and the teachers union, UTLA, the two sides met yesterday and each focused on an entirely different matter — the district, salaries; the union, the problematic student data base system, MiSiS. In a statement released by UTLA shortly after the failed bargaining session
Education secretary eases up on teacher performance standards
Education secretary eases up on teacher performance standards Via NY Times | by Motoko Rich Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced on Thursday that states could delay the use of test results in teacher-performance ratings by another year, an acknowledgment, in effect, of the enormous pressures mounting on the nation’s teachers because of new academic standards and more rigorous standardized
Morning Read: New report targets LAUSD’s iPad problems
Morning Read: New report targets LAUSD’s iPad problems LAUSD’s $1-billion iPad effort beset by problems, report finds The groundbreaking effort to provide an iPad to every Los Angeles student, teacher and school administrator was beset by inadequate planning, a lack of transparency and a flawed bidding process. LA Times Democrats reject GOP attempts to lift school reserves cap Democrats in the Ca
AUG 21
After Ferguson, LAUSD giving schools tools to discuss conflict
After Ferguson, LAUSD giving schools tools to discuss conflict With tensions from Ferguson, Mo. stirring yet another national debate on race relations, LA Unified is distributing an informational packet, “Engaging Students in Peaceful Dialogues about Conflict and Bias,” with a goal of helping solicit questions or concerns from students in “a neutral, safe and respectful space for constructive dial
Deasy planning to hire his own liaison for MiSiS project
Deasy planning to hire his own liaison for MiSiS project Superintendent John Deasy As LA Unified teachers continue their complaints about the district’s new student data management program, MiSiS, Superintendent John Deasy said today he plans to hire an independent liaison to keep him informed of corrective actions. “This is not my area of expertise so I have to be sure when I think something is
NEA’s president says common core testing could “harm kids”
NEA’s president says common core testing could “harm kids” Via EdSource | by John Fensterwald In the midst of her first swing through California, the incoming president of the National Education Association praised the Common Core State Standards and California’s measured approach in implementing them while warning that the nation’s largest teachers union would fight efforts to use the new tests f
LA Unified names Ruth Perez as successor to Aquino
LA Unified names Ruth Perez as successor to Aquino Dr. Ruth Perez Eight months after Jaime Aquino’s departure as LA Unified’s Deputy Superintendent of Instruction, the district has a candidate to fill the seat. Superintendent John Deasy announced today he would recommend Ruth Pérez, former superintendent of the Norwalk-La Mirada school district, whose hiring is scheduled to come before the board f
Morning Read: LAUSD teachers censure student tracking program
Morning Read: LAUSD teachers censure student tracking program L.A. Unified teachers decry new student tracking system Los Angeles Unified spent about $112 million on an online student tracking program a decade ago but dumped it two years ago in favor of another one that promised a streamlined way to manage enrollment, attendance and grades for the nation’s second-largest school district. LA Times
AUG 20
Thousands of CA students don’t make it to the 9th grade
Thousands of CA students don’t make it to the 9th grade Via KPCC | by Sarah Butrymowicz Devon Sanford’s mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer when he was in the eighth grade. After barely finishing at Henry Clay Middle School in South Los Angeles, he never enrolled in high school. He spent what should have been his freshman year caring for his mother and waiting for police to show up asking
ACT scores show CA seniors ready for college, at least to start
ACT scores show CA seniors ready for college, at least to start California high school seniors have a better shot at getting through the first year of college than students from most other states, according to ACT’s 2014 Condition of College and Career Readiness report, which was released today. But many of them will still be entering a world of academic pain. While students state-wide performed a
Ridley-Thomas nominating Johnson to county board seat
Ridley-Thomas nominating Johnson to county board seat Mark Ridley-Thomas (left), Alex Johnson Barely a week after losing to George McKenna for an LA Unified School District board seat, Alex Johnson is eying another board seat. His boss, LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, has nominated him to fill a soon-to-be vacant seat on the LA County Board of Education, a body that hears appeals of dispu
Morning Read: Deasy urges respect for 1st Amendment
Morning Read: Deasy urges respect for 1st Amendment L.A. Unified principals given guidance on student free speech rights As unrest continues in Ferguson, Mo. and, to a degree in Los Angeles, after the fatal police shootings of unarmed black men in those cities, Los Angeles schools chief John Deasy asked principals Tuesday to be vigilant in their efforts to provide an environment for students to ex
AUG 19
McKenna’s final margin is 5.63 points over Johnson
McKenna’s final margin is 5.63 points over Johnson The City Clerk Elections Division has certified the results of the LA Unified District 1 election, giving George McKenna final tally of 52.81 percent of the vote, to 47.18 percent for Alex Johnson. Overall, turnout for the Aug. 12 runoff was 9.5 percent of the district’s 342,493 voters, a disappointing but not horrible count, given that no other e
LA Unified computer problems hampering special ed teachers
LA Unified computer problems hampering special ed teachers Two weeks into the new school year, LA Unified administrators are still working out bugs in a new computer system, a disruption that has made instruction particularly difficult for special education teachers, who need specific information for each of their students.. The new MiSiS — My Integrated Student Information System — is designed to
Teachers union talking strategy for combatting teacher jail
Teachers union talking strategy for combatting teacher jail While officials from the teachers union, UTLA, are contemplating salary demands in a new labor contract with the district, they have not lost sight of another key issue, how to deal with teachers housed in what union officials derisively call “teacher jails.” The union’s Committee for Unjustly Housed Teachers was meeting today, for the fi
Commentary: The problem with teacher tenure
Commentary: The problem with teacher tenure Via NY Times | by Frank Bruni There are perils to the current tenure talk: that it fails to address the intense strains on many teachers; that it lays too much fault on their doorsteps, distracting people from other necessary reforms. But the discussion is imperative, because there’s no sense in putting something as crucial as children’s education in the
Morning Read: LAUSD’s computer system problems persist
Morning Read: LAUSD’s computer system problems persist Los Angeles Unified works to fix new computer system Although Los Angeles Unified teachers were told Monday they could use a scaled-back version, the district’s new computer system continues to be plagued by problems. LA Daily News LAUSD policy restricts use of citations, arrests Students involved in relatively minor offenses on school campus
AUG 18
Teachers union blasts Deasy again for new computer system
Teachers union blasts Deasy again for new computer system The LA teachers union today intensified its attack against LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy and the administration over the management of the district’s new student data computer system. For the second time in less than a week, the union put out a press release critical of Deasy and what UTLA says are his attempts to gloss-over the bung
LAUSD announcing new strategies for student discipline
LAUSD announcing new strategies for student discipline A major shift is underway across LA Unified in how schools and administrators approach student disciplinary issues. LAUSD officials and LA School Police Chief Steve Zipperman are planning to announce new district-wide protocols tomorrow that will define and limit the role of police on campus, incorporating new student protections and providing
In a shift, Teach for America is hiring more non-whites
In a shift, Teach for America is hiring more non-whites The growing diversity gap between teachers and students of color has been problematic for years, and school districts have struggled to find ways to attract a workforce that more closely resembles changing student demographics. Now, one organization is tackling the issue head on: Half of this year’s Teach for America (TFA) recruits are people
Commentary: Teaching and business do not mix
Commentary: Teaching and business do not mix Via NY Times | by David Kirp Today’s education reformers believe that schools are broken and that business can supply the remedy. Some place their faith in the idea of competition. Others embrace disruptive innovation, mainly through online learning. Both camps share the belief that the solution resides in the impersonal, whether it’s the invisible hand
Morning Read: CA Schools depart from memorization in science
Morning Read: CA Schools depart from memorization in science Common Core: CA schools shift science teaching away from memorization California is at a critical stage in carrying out a wholesale change of how it teaches science and other core topics. It’s a process that takes time when you’re working with nearly six million students. KPCC Of aching backs and digital textbooks It won’t be long befor