4LAKIDS - SOME OF THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT
Feds Validate The California School Climate, Health & Learning Survey For Assessing School Environment
by Kimberly Beltran, SI&A Cabinet Report | http://bit.ly/1on2hPU September 26, 2014 :: (Calif.) A biennial state survey of junior high students and teachers can serve as a valid indicator of middle school climate, according to new federal analysis released this week. After reviewing seven years of survey responses coming from more than 730,000 seventh graders and some 16,000 teachers in
STATE, LAUSD OFFICIALS OPIMISTIC ABOUT SPRING ASSESSMENTS + smf’s 2¢
By Louis Freedberg | ED SOURCE TODAY | | http://bit.ly/1sDrPz8 September 21, 2014 | Last spring more than 3 million students in California, the largest number ever to take an online test in the state, took field tests of new assessments aligned to the Common Core state standards without major technical breakdowns or system crashes, according to state officials. Just as California avoided the
Denver Area Students Walk Out Over ‘More Patriotic’ History Curriculum
also see: COLORADO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WALK OUT TO PROTEST PROPOSED CURRICULUM CHANGES Denver Students Protest Over US History Course Focus by Grace Smith, Education News.org | http://bit.ly/YqDsfc Friday, September 26th, 2014 :: Suburban Denver high schools experienced a walkout this week when students protested against a proposal to focus
DOCUMENTS FILED IN MIRAMONTE LAWSUIT CLAIM SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER McKENNA KNEW OF ALLEGATIONS AGAINST CHILD PREDATOR, LET HIM STAY IN CLASSROOM
By Thomas Himes, Los Angeles Daily News http://bit.ly/1rsxuWi George McKenna, left. Mark Berndt, right. | Miramonte Elementary School (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) 9/26/14, 4:37 PM PDT :: Los Angeles Unified’s newest board member, George McKenna, allegedly knew about an investigation into former Miramonte Elementary School teacher Mark Berndt but let him stay inside a classroom where a
BEFORE+BEYOND MIRAMONTE: LAUSD sets new records at bad record keeping …and at keeping their story straight
L.A. Unified alerted to possible sexual misconduct by Berndt in 1983 Newly released documents show that students, parents and teachers were alarmed by his conduct for years By Victoria Kim, Howard Blume - LA Times http://lat.ms/1veZGgS Mark Berndt, right, with attorney Manny Medrano, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for
AGENDA/ORDER OF BUSINESS FOR SPECIAL MEETING OF THE LAUSD BOARD OF EDUCATION, 4:01 p.m. Tuesday, September. 30, 2014
posted: Fri, Sep 26, 2014 5:23 pm
“It isn’t how you play the game, it’s who keeps score that counts”: REPORT SHOWS VARIATION IN HOW STATES SACK UP AGAINST INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
By Caralee Adams in College Bound - Education Week | http://bit.ly/1rrgAY4 September 22, 2014 12:13 PM :: What states expect students to know varies widely and often falls short of international standards for learning, a new report from the American Institutes for Research shows. Gary Phillips, a vice president and fellow at the Washington-based institute, examined the share of students
Proposed Federal Legislation Would Reduce Testing Requirements
by PBA, from The Brustein & Manasevit Federal Update - prepared to inform Brustein & Manasevit, PLLC’s legislative clients of recent events in federal education legislation and/or administrative law – via email Sept 26, 2014 :: Last week, Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY) introduced a bill that would allow States to reduce the amount of standardized testing they are required to conduct un
Crenshaw Principal Testifies That Teachers’ Dismissals Not Tied To Union Activity
By Stephen Ceasar | LA Times | http://lat.ms/1pvSOFa Alex Caputo-Pearl answers a question during a UTLA forum in June. The union president alleges he and 11 other Crenshaw High teachers were let go for union activism. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) Sept 25, 2014 | 6:25 pm :: The principal of Crenshaw High School testified in a hearing Thursday that 12 former teachers who allege
SEP 25
Closed Lausd Board Session Grew Out Of Request By Ratliff
by Michael Janofsky, LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1BeB1cb Monica Ratliff, LA Unified board member representing district 6 September 25, 2014 12:27 pm :: The LA Unified school board’s sudden decision to hold a closed door session next week grew out of a Sept. 17 email request from Monica Ratliff to Board President Richard Vladovic, in which she expressed her desire to “discuss the
L.A. Unified Oversight Panel Rejects $42 Million For Computers
LAUSD says it needs $25 million in computers immediately to be ready for state tests Bond oversight panel says LAUSD hasn't proved urgent need for computers Bond oversight panel faults LAUSD for not having a complete inventory of computers it already owns By Howard Blume, LA Times | http://lat.ms/YgWCE8 L.A. Unified bought 109,000 iPads before schools Supt. John Deasy suspended
OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE PUTS BRAKES ON LA SCHOOL OFFICIALS’ REQUEST FOR MORE iPADS FOR TESTING
Annie Gilbertson | 89.3 KPCC http://bit.ly/1ojGGI1 FREDERICK FLORIN/AFP/Getty Images 2014-09-25 16:37:33 :: Members of a bond oversight committee denied a request by Los Angeles Unified school district officials to spend $16 million on 22,000 more iPads or Chromebooks for spring testing, disagreeing with administrators' calculation of need.The district's formula was based on students using
Tweeting from the fault line: LA TIMES’ HOWARD BLUME FROM THURSDAY’S LAUSD BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
by the LA Times Education Reporter, live from the Meeting of the School Construction Bond Citizens’ Oversight Committee – a four hour plus meeting in 140 characters or less via twitter Howard Blume @howardblume · noonish Thursday 25 Sept L.A. Unified plans to spend another $26 million on iPads (or maybe Chromebooks) needed for expanded state testing. Howard Blume @howardblume ·
Never again: NEWTOWN STILL STRUGGLING
from Politico Morning Report by Caitlin Emma | via email 25 Sept 2014 :: More Newtown, Conn., students are failing classes compared to previous years. The rate of chronic absenteeism has nearly doubled. Students can't seem to get solid rest and are having trouble paying attention in class. Students with disabilities have regressed, and referrals to special education has increased. Those
Letters to the editor: WHAT MAKES GOOD TEACHING IN THE 21st CENTURY?
LA Times | http://lat.ms/1wMt8tN Four LAUSD teachers attend a training session in July to improve their skills at using technology in the classroom. (Christina House / For The Times) 25 September 2014 To the editor: Ken Futernick's three recommendations to combat teacher inefficiency are essential strategies toward improving the education of California's students. But there must first
Colorado High School Students Walk Out To Protest Proposed Curriculum Changes
By Jenny Deam - LA Times | http://lat.ms/YcD7N0 Students from schools in the Denver suburbs are protesting a proposal by the Jefferson County school board to emphasize patriotism and downplay civil unrest in the teaching of U.S. history. (Brennan Linsley / Associated Press) 9/24/2014 | Reporting from Littleton, Colo. :: For the third straight day Wednesday hundreds of high school
Private Giving And The Insolvency Of Chaos
Written by redqueeninla | http://bit.ly/1u1FfDI Thursday 25 Sep 2014 :: Last week Google announced it was funding all DonorsChoose requests posted for LAUSD classrooms. That’s good news, right? Well…. it’s complicated. Obviously, more money for our kids is good. But why must it come via a third party? Every time a middle man is interjected, money for the thing itself is siphoned into
Report Critical Of Charter School Oversight
By Susan Frey | EdSource | http://bit.ly/1mubj1S “There needs to be a full reporting of data and finances and a separation of governing boards from their management companies,” said Leigh Dingerson, author of the report. “That would go a long, long way to cleaning up the most egregious waste of public dollars that I have seen.” September 18, 2014 | A lack of oversight of the
SEP 24
Lausd School Board To Meet Tuesday; Likely To Discuss Deasy’S Future
L.A. school board prepares for a widely watched evaluation of its high-profile superintendent By Howard Blume , LA Times | http://lat.ms/1mtOf3g L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy faces an upcoming evaluation from the Board of Education. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Sept 24, 2014 10:10 pm :: The Los Angeles Unified School District has tentatively scheduled a special closed-door
La Schools Data System Concerns After Port Fire, Transcript Problems
Annie Gilbertson, | 89.3 KPCC http://bit.ly/1rnx5Vd School Police aid in the relocation of students at George De La Torre Junior Elementary School on Tuesday morning, Sept. 23, after a fire broke out nearby at the Port of Los Angeles on Monday night. Maya Sugarman September 24, 05:30 AM :: Citing Tuesday's evacuation of George De La Torre Jr. Elementary School following the Port of
Just in: LAUSD BOARD CALLS SPECIAL CLOSED-DOOR MEETING TO DISCUSS DEASY
by Jamie Alter Lynton, Publisher , LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1pe0Eny LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy Posted on September 24, 2014 5:25 pm :: The LA Unified school board has scheduled a last-minute closed-door meeting next week to discuss its top employee, superintendent John Deasy. Sources tell LA School Report that the meeting was called to give the seven school board members a
DELAYED EVACUATION OF SCHOOL NEAR PORT OF L.A. ANGERS PARENTS + smf’s 2¢
By Ruben Vives, Veronica Rocha | http://lat.ms/1xfDKo5 Los Angeles fire crews battle a wharf fire at the Port of L.A. where pylons soaked with creosote burned prompting concerns about air quality in the area. Sept 23, 12:11 PM :: Potentially hazardous smoke from the stubborn fire at the Port of Los Angeles prompted air quality advisories and the evacuation of one elementary school
SEP 23
Why Teaching+Learning Music Matters
Credit: LA Johnson and Alyson Hurt/NPR Q&A: Why Teaching Music Matters by Cory Turner, National Public Radio : NPR Ed : NPR http://n.pr/1tXEHPi Margaret Martin (right) poses with student Jose Correa during a Harmony Project open house at the Ramon C. Cortines School for Visual and Performing Arts in Los Angeles. Esteban Rael/
Editorial: DEASY, LAUSD BOARD MUST DECIDE IF THEY CAN WORK TOGETHER
LA Daily News Editorial | http://bit.ly/1mLplMR LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy on stage during his annual administrators' meeting at Hollywood High School in 2013. (Photo by Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer) 9/17/14, 5:04 PM PDT :: A year after John Deasy threatened to resign, the Los Angeles Unified School District’s superintendent and its board are back at a dangerous crossroads. Where
Bad guys in White Hats?: CHARTER SCHOOLS IN COURT IN OHIO
from Politico Morning Ed | http://politi.co/1B3VccL 23 Sept 2014 :: WHEN PUBLIC FUNDS FUEL PRIVATE GAIN: The Ohio Supreme Court today will hear an intriguing case involving White Hat charter management, which operates 33 schools in three states. At issue: Whether the for-profit company owns the furniture, books, computers and other property it bought with public funds for use in its public
Alex Caputo-Pearl: THE CENTRALITY OF ORGANIZING & CHALLENGING DEASY’S AUTOCRACY
Our strategy to autocracy: shared decision-making By Alex Caputo-Pearl; The Presidents’ Perspective from United Teacher / United Teacher Los Angeles (UTLA) | http://bit.ly/1smsbu5 19 September 2014 :: My wife comes home sometimes from her shifts as a labor-and-delivery nurse in downtown L.A. with stories of how our work lives intersect — former students of mine from Crenshaw High
LAUSD TITLE 1 MONEY IN JEOPARDY OVER ENDURING MiSiS GLITCHES
Only 40% of students at one school have renewed meal applications, down from 76% last year by Vanessa Romo, LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1pbMqUp Posted on September 22, 2014 4:10 pm :: The deadline for LA Unified students’ receiving free and reduced priced lunch is (today, Tuesday Sept 23rd), leaving anyone who has not renewed an application facing an empty stomach come
AMID iPAD, ATTENDANCE SYSTEM CONTROVERSIES, SCHOOL BOARD TO WEIGH SUPERINTENDENT’S PERFORMANCE + smf’s 2¢
by Annie Gilbertson| 89.3 KPCC http://bit.ly/XVi159 Audio from this story :: 3:31 Listen Nick Ut/AP 9-23-2014 07:31:18 AM :: After weathering a solid year of criticism for his controversial iPad program, taking a high-profile position in a case against teacher tenure and now dealing with the fallout of an irksome new attendance system, Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent
SEP 22
Student Put In Detention For Sharing School Lunch
By Katherine Harwood KRCR News (Chico/Redding) http://bit.ly/1v03rph video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player POSTED: 6:45 PM Sep 17 2014 UPDATED: 11:53 PM Sep 17 2014 WEAVERVILLE, Calif. :: An eighth grade student from Weaverville Elementary School got a detention slip for sharing his school prepared lunch Tuesday. Kyle Bradford, 13, shared his chicken burrito with a
Washington Post: STATE SAYS PRINCE GEORGE’S SCHOOLS CFO COMMITTED INSURANCE FRAUD, PLACED ON LEAVE
Read the article: http://wapo.st/1DsO6T3 smf /4LAKids opines: It would take a lot of of twisty twist-ties to connect this story of almost comic alleged wrongdoing (Trying to run the same scam against two different insurance companies for the loss of the same wedding ring) to the former Prince George’s Schools superintendent who left that gig under a cloud to join the Gates Foundation and then
SEP 21
MORE THAN 100,000 LA SCHOOL REPAIRS BACKLOGGED: Fire safety at risk in some schools
Annie Gilbertson and Claire Withycombe with Chris Keller | KPCC 89.3 | http://bit.ly/1AZHJCu Audio from this story :|: 4:06 Listen Dan Sapia shuts off water to the fire sprinklers at Hoover Street Elementary School in the Los Angeles Unified school district. His plumbing crew is often pulled from one emergency job, such as repairing this water main leak, to another, leaving little
Lausd High School Students Improve On Math And English Exit Exams …But Still Lag Behind Rest Of State And County
By Thomas Himes, Los Angeles Daily News | http://bit.ly/ZzslRM LAUSD Superintendent Dr. John Deasy says, “We’re making great progress in preparing our sophomores and other students for graduation.” Staff file photo Posted: 09/19/14, 5:00 PM PDT | Updated: 9/2o/2014 2 MP PDT :: A slightly larger portion of Los Angeles Unified’s high school sophomores proved competent in math and English
The Debate Over Common Core
CBS News Sunday Morning | http://cbsn.ws/Z503yF The curriculum for boosting K-12 students' academic performance has drawn critics on both sides of the political divide. CBS News September 21, 2014, 9:35 AM :: The core issue in education this brand new school year revolves around something called the Common Core. It's a prescription for teaching and grading students that's
SEP 20
State Needs A 'Grand Bargain' On Teachers' Effectiveness, Obstacles
Op-Ed by Ken Futernick in the LA Times | http://lat.ms/1rbeOdw Ineffectiveness in the classroom often does not derive from incompetence (David Suter / For The Times) 20 Sept 2014 :: The Vergara ruling does not mean, as many believe, the end of bad teachers. Unless it's overturned on appeal, the Los Angeles Superior Court's June decision in Vergara vs. California making it much easier