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Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Louisiana’s Privacy Legislation and Testimony – Setting the Record Straight | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

Louisiana’s Privacy Legislation and Testimony – Setting the Record Straight | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:



Louisiana’s Privacy Legislation and Testimony – Setting the Record Straight

Posted on March 25, 2014




On March 19th the Louisiana House and Senate Education Committee’s both heard testimony at the same time on the same types of legislation. This legislation was about student privacy. Holding meetings on the same subject at the same time required folks to split up their resources. Since most of us do not have ready doppelgangers, or clones, this meant parents went unrepresented on either the Senate side or the House side. This was pointed out as a little fishy by passionate privacy advocate, Sara Wood, in testimony delivered to the Senate during the hearing on Senator Conrad Appel’s “privacy” bill 449. She points that out as her first point in this YouTube video. Sara Wood’s testimony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFEjudTEDSk#t=30
Prior to Sara Wood, I said my piece on SB 449. All of the points I covered, with the exception of the Amendments that were introduced that day, were included in my earlier analysis of the various privacy bills.
If you would like to get a look at my actual testimony you can see that here. My testimony:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoHK3TqeksE (I rock – although my “rocking” is certainly of a lower intensity variety than Sara’s.)
Meanwhile at virtually the same time Superintendent of Louisiana Schools, John White, was giving some of his own testimony at the House Education Committee. His testimony and the amendments he offered came after all the parents spoke, and I was told there would not be a chance for anyone else there to weigh in on what he was saying. Nevertheless, I feel it’s important that someone does. You see, when I gave my testimony I had to sign a card stating the testimony I was prepared to 

3-25-14 Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog:















untitled
Over the weekend, Russia seized the last Ukrainian base of Crimea. Russian soldiers made their way into the base and commanded the annexation of the region. While standing outside of the Crimean gates, Russian military men began exchanging threats with the Crimean soldiers saying that if they do not relinquish control. Shortly after, the soldiers outside the base drove through the base on armed ve
Russian Forces Seize Crimean Base
Russian Forces Seize Crimean Base: Over the weekend, Russian military forces made the...: Over the weekend, Russian military forces made their way into the Crimean Peninsula, breaking through barriers, shooting their weapons in th...


Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: [Nigeria] Water - So Important, So Ignored
Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: [Nigeria] Water - So Important, So Ignored: [Nigeria] Water - So Important, So IgnoredIn Nigeria, water is a serious issue. There's not enough drinking water in Nigeria for the people to live off of. Sunday, March 22nd was the United Nation's World Water Day and yet again is passed by without any action from Nigeria. Water is obviously a vital resource to human survival

empathyeducates – Republican Governors Wrestle with Unpopular Common Core Education Standards

empathyeducates – Republican Governors Wrestle with Unpopular Common Core Education Standards:



    Republican Governors Wrestle with Unpopular Common Core Education Standards

    Photograph; Second grade students at Horseshoe Trails Elementary study typing in anticipation of new Common Core standards. Photo by David Jolkovski/Washington Post
    By Bill Barrow, Associated Press | Originally Published at The Rundown | PBS NewsHour. March 24, 2014
    NASHVILLE, Tenn. — More than five years after U.S. governors began a bipartisan effort to set new standards in American schools, the Common Core initiative has morphed into a political tempest fueling division among Republicans.
    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce leads establishment voices — such as possible presidential contender Jeb Bush — who hail the standards as a way to improve student performance and, over the long term, competitiveness of American workers.
    Many archconservatives — tea party heroes Rand Paul and Ted Cruz among them — decry the system as a top-down takeover of local schools. The standards were developed and are being implemented by states, though Common Core opponents argue that President Barack Obama’s administration has encouraged adoption of the standards by various parameters it set for states applying to get lucrative federal education grants.
    Tea party-aligned officials and candidates want to delay the standards or abandon them altogether in at least a dozen of the 45 states that adopted some part of the guidelines. Indiana lawmakers approved a repeal that now awaits a decision from Gov. Mike Pence.
    “Common Core is like Obamacare: They passed it before they knew what was in it,” said William Evers, a Hoover Institute research fellow and lead author of a California Republican Party resolution denouncing 

    A Florida Media Arts Teacher on Her “VAM” Score |

    A Florida Media Arts Teacher on Her “VAM” Score |:



    A Florida Media Arts Teacher on Her “VAM” Score





    A Media Arts Teacher from the state of Florida wrote a piece for The Washington Post – The Answer Sheet by Valerie Strauss about her VAM score recently publicly released, even though she is a media arts teacher and does not teach the subject areas and many of the students tested and whose test scores are being used to hold her accountable.
    Bizarre, right? Not really, as this too is a reality facing many teachers who teach out-of-subject areas, or more specifically subject areas that “don’t count,” and who teach students sometimes a lot yet sometimes never. They are being assigned “school-level” VAM scores, and these estimates regardless of their actual contributions are being used to make consequential decisions (e.g., in this case, about her merit pay).
    She writes about “What it feels like to be evaluated on test scores of students I don’t have,” noting, more specifically, about what others “need to know about [her] VAM score.” For one, she writes, “As a media specialist, [her] VAM is determined by the reading scores 

    What Common Core Looks Like In Desperation | deutsch29

    What Common Core Looks Like In Desperation | deutsch29:



    What Common Core Looks Like In Desperation

    March 25, 2014


    It seems that the protests of the American citizen against the so-called Common Core State Standards (CCSS) has become proverbial grains of sand in the works of the mammoth corporate reform machine.
    Die-hard supporters of CCSS are becoming desperate, and such is showing in their words and actions.
    Consider Jeb Bush’s declaration, “In Asia today, they don’t care about children’s self esteem….”
    This hard-nosed attitude is supposed to appeal to the American public and advance CCSS?
    Jeb is definitely pushing CCSS whether America likes it or not– but he is becoming sloppy in his rhetoric.
    He is not alone in his desperate, Save CCSS efforts.
    Founder and director of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools Caroline 

    What Professional Development Should Be - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

    What Professional Development Should Be - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:



    What Professional Development Should Be

    Nothing is more fascinating and absorbing to me--or, IMHO, central to the preservation of a high-quality, fully public education for every child in America--than teacher leadership. It is the key reason to believe that public education might not only survive but regenerate, the hinge upon which genuine reform swings. I was thrilled to be asked to speak about teacher leadership at the 2014 Ann Arbor Open School conference on progressive education, and spent last Friday and Saturday happily wallowing in my favorite subject. 
    It was a fabulous conference--and absolutely unique. The Open School invented their own brand of ed-camp 31 years ago, two decades before the ed-camp pioneers, without having to rely on snazzy tech-tool training to lure participants into sharing and swapping their best ideas. In fact, the conference site--a very rustic Lithuanian Culture camp about 40 minutes outside Ann Arbor--has limited connectivity (a comes-and-goes single bar) so it was that rare gathering where most participants weren't sneaking continuous, surreptitious peeks at Twitter, Facebook or their inboxes. (With two exceptions--the guy checking his NCAA brackets at 10:00 p.m. Friday and the teacher who took Saturday morning off to marry her partner of 17 years, then texted a teary, exultant photo to the group.) 
    Naturally, I've attended tons of education conferences--the suit-and-heels mega-convention types populated by 

    empathyeducates – 14 Disturbing Stats About Racial Inequality in American Public Schools

    empathyeducates – 14 Disturbing Stats About Racial Inequality in American Public Schools:



      14 Disturbing Stats About Racial Inequality in American Public Schools

      (AP Photo/ Jose F. Moreno)
      By Steven Hsieh | Originally Published at The Nation. March 21, 2014
      Comprehensive data released Friday by the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights offers a striking glance at the extent of racial inequality plaguing the nation’s education system.
      Analysts found that black, Latino and Native American students have less access to advanced math and science courses and are more likely to be taught by first-year instructors than white students. Black and Native American students are also suspended and expelled at disproportionate rates.
      For the first time in history, the Education Department also examined school discipline at the pre-K level, finding that black students as young as four years old are already facing unequal treatment from school administrators.
      The Education Department released four papers with the data, analyzing inequality in school discipline?early learningcollege readiness and teacher equity (pdfs). Here’s a breakdown of some of the key findings, taken straight from those papers. During the 2011–12 school year:
      1. Black students accounted for 18 percent of the country’s pre-K enrollment, but made up 48 percent of preschoolers with multiple out-of-school suspensions.
      2. Black students were expelled at three times the rate of white students.
      3. American Indian and Native-Alaskan students represented less than 1 percent of students, but 3 percent of expulsions.
      4. Black girls were suspended at higher rates than all other girls and most boys.
      5. American Indian and Native-Alaskan girls were suspended at higher rates than white boys or girls.
      6. Nearly one in four boys of color, excepting 

      Reformers of Schools PSA for the Save Our Schools Movement in NJ

      "Reformers of Schools"
      To the tune of Masters of War by Dylan:
      Lyrics Copyright Bob Witanek, Robert Colby-Witanek 2014



      Published on Mar 25, 2014
      "Reformers of Schools"
      To the tune of Masters of War by Dylan:
      Lyrics Copyright Bob Witanek, Robert Colby-Witanek 2014

      The reformer of schools
      With your privatizing scheme
      To take over our schools
      Speculate on our offspring
      To Make billions for Wall Street
      From behind your big desks
      But our fight it will grow till
      We tear off your cheap mask

      Your charters got nothing
      On our community schools
      You just kick to the curb
      Those who don't fit your rules
      You Impose all your tests
      The teachers you demonize
      Party bosses you pay
      To spread all your lies

      Public Funds you withhold
      From city schools in need
      Billionaires funnel the loot
      The investments in greed
      Put a temporary shine
      A cheap marketing ploy
      You can't wait for the returns
      From your favored charter choice

      Shutting schools by the dozens
      And co-locations too
      Shift the resources to the charters
      While you plunder the old schools
      You snatch up the real estate
      For a dollar or two
      You're counting the billions
      From when you take all our schools

      You say you know better
      It's for our own good
      You call it civil rights . . .
      Colonizing the neighborhood
      You trample democracy
      Coz it gets in the way
      The capitalists see profits
      And our children must pay
      You plan the big lay offs
      Scab TFA you hire
      Experienced teachers
      You fire and fire
      Dissembling our community
      Try to bring us to our knees
      One thing you can't own
      Our fight to be free!

      The people will rise . . .
      Like a spring flower bloom
      We'll tear up your scheme
      Bring your profits to ruin
      Local control of our schools
      Chase you from our town
      From Newark to Camden
      We don't need you around!

      Come ye students and Community
      Teachers and staff
      Join this big struggle
      Bring this system to past
      Once we decide
      To do what it take
      We'll fight till we win
      For all the children's sake

      Nite Cap 3-25-14 #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




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      Louisiana Mom Testifies Against Data Collection During State Senate Hearing | Truth in American Education
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      Morning Wink 3-25-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
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      YESTERDAY

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      Red Alert from Tim Furman.
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      Nite Cap 3-24-14 #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 CAPHite suspending seniority rules for September, going to Supreme Court | Philadelphia Public School NotebookHite suspending seniority rules for September, going to Supreme Court | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Hite suspending seniority rule