Big Education Ape: Apr 16, 2014

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

4-16-14 The Whole Child Blog — Imagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child Education

Imagine Today's Children at 25 — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGImagine Today’s Children at 25April 16, 2014 by Whole Child Symposium"What do we want our children to be like? Think of that child, that teenager, that young adult and describe them. What words do we use? ... What do our children want to be like when they are 25? How would they describe themselves? Are they content wi

by mike simpson / 1min

The Daily Censored » After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtue

The Daily Censored » After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtue: After we’ve won: 3 education policy proposals: Truth/facts, Love/community, Lifelong virtueEducation builds the future, and as you who read alternative media know so well, is a lifelong upgrade in virtue.Alternative media is engaged in an education contest. We educate the public that U

by mike simpson / 8min

John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: John Thompson: Gallup Poll Finds Majority of Teachers "Not Engaged"By Anthony Cody on April 16, 2014 12:43 PMGuest post by John Thompson.Gallup has produced decades of research on the characteristics of high-performing educators, students and schools. Gallup explai

by mike simpson / 1h

Elizabeth Warren and I | Diane Ravitch's blog

Elizabeth Warren and I | Diane Ravitch's blog: I have recently read that Senator Elizabeth Warren is a supporter of school vouchers. This made people who despise public schools, like certain hedge fund managers, tingle with joy. At last, a progressive who is as contemptuous of public education as they are! At last, someone who will support their efforts to dismantle our nation’s precious democrati

by mike simpson / 1h

Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign Trail | Truth in American Education

Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign Trail | Truth in American Education: Common Core Taking a Beating in Oklahoma Statehouse and Campaign TrailFiled in Common Core State Standards, Education at State Level by Shane Vander Hart on April 16, 2014 • 0 CommentsIt is not a done deal yet. Earlier this month the Oklahoma Senate passed HB3399 on a 37 to 10 vote. The Oklahoma

by mike simpson / 1h

Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School Reforms | WFPL

Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School Reforms | WFPL: Listen: In Louisville, Education Instigator Diane Ravitch Shares Concerns About School ReformsShareTweetE-mail0 CommentsPrintBy DEVIN KATAYAMAShe's against high-stakes testing, big business in schools, and doubts charters are the answer to improving public education. But Diane Ravitch, a New York

by mike simpson / 3h

“Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry Jordan | Parents United for Public Education

“Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry Jordan | Parents United for Public Education: “Revival from the Roots”: A listening tour of Philly Schools with Parents United and PFT’s Jerry JordanPosted on April 16, 2014 by HELENGYMI was deeply moved in watching the final cut of “Revival from the Roots,” a listening tour Parents United did with the

by mike simpson / 4h

Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California Case - NYTimes.com

Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California Case - NYTimes.com: Competing Views of Teacher Tenure Are on Display in California CaseOne of the student plaintiffs spoke outside the Superior Court of Los Angeles County on the opening day of Vergara v. The State of California in May 2012.CreditMonica Almeida/The New York TimesLOS ANGELES — These are two vastly different portraits of

by mike simpson / 4h

4-16-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"

Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": Useful New “Family Engagement Brief”The National Center For Families Learning has just published a useful “Family Engagement Brief.” I don’t think people familiar with parent engagement research will find anything new in it, but it provides a well-written and concise review of research on the topic, along with providing som

by mike simpson / 4h

John White’s is doing a fantastic job! | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

John White’s is doing a fantastic job! | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Crazy Crawfish's BlogZesty Louisiana Education PoliticsJohn White’s is doing a fantastic job!Posted on April 16, 20141John White is doing a fantastic job at destroying public education. BESE recently reviewed White and gave him 3 out of 4 on his annual review and commended him for his great success. Let’s recap some of his success sto

by mike simpson / 4h

Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?

Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?: Are Teacher Evaluations Education ‘Reform’s’ Biggest Bust?Would you like your job performance judged by a five-year-old? That’s a relevant question for public school teachers in Hawaii, where the state’s new teacher evaluation system attributes ten percent of their job performance rating on what children as young as 5 years old think. Al

by mike simpson / 5h

4-16-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington Education News RoundupTo repeat, Senator Rodney Tom, noted turncoat for the Dems, is not going to run again after all (citing health concerns for himself and his elderly father). The Times ran a blathering editorial about how great he was but you really can't take them seriously when they start with, "But this time you might wonder, what will becom

by mike simpson / 5h

Failing Goals of Education | My Island View

Failing Goals of Education | My Island View: Failing Goals of EducationApril 16, 2014 by tomwhitbyI recently had a discussion with a friend John, who is a Superintendent in a rural school district. We were discussing his district specifically and what it was providing its students in the way of relevant programs of study. The conversation came around to a question often asked and an answer that is

by mike simpson / 5h

4-16-13 Curmudgucation Week

CURMUDGUCATION: Bill McCallum, CCSS Author & Sad ScientistWhen movies present us with science-related disasters, we generally involve one of two sciency types-- the mad scientists and the sad scientist. The mad scientist is the one genetically engineering giant gerbils to take over the world (cue maniacal laugh). The sad scientist is the one who believes that he is Doing Great Things, like cre

by mike simpson / 5h

Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghosts | Melissa Benn | Comment is free | The Guardian

Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghosts | Melissa Benn | Comment is free | The Guardian: Education's culture of overwork is turning children and teachers into ghostsIf schools slowed down and focused on a deeper kind of flourishing, they might be more productive (if not very Goveian)'Educational reform now largely equals intensive schooling: catch-up classes, a

by mike simpson / 5h

Is the NJEA waking up? | Bob Braun's Ledger

Is the NJEA waking up? | Bob Braun's Ledger: Is the NJEA waking up?NJEA President Wendell SteinhauerThe struggle to save public schools from private, profit-making scams could well be lost. It will be lost–if it already hasn’t been lost–unless those groups with experience in organizing, resources for getting their message out, a history of lobbying, and a willingness to use the courts, grow some

by mike simpson / 5h

Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t! | School Finance 101

Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t! | School Finance 101: Why you can’t compare simple achievement gaps across states! So don’t!Posted on April 16, 20140Consider this post the second in my series of basic data issues in education policy analysis.This is a topic on which I’ve written numerous previous posts. In most previous posts I’ve focused specifically on the

by mike simpson / 5h

4-16-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Parent panels now reviewing LA Unified’s next spending planParents involved in setting spending priorities for LA Unified have a lot of homework to do over the next two weeks. Members of the Parent Advisory Committee and the District English Learner Advisory Committee have been instructed to “take home an

by mike simpson / 6h

Back to the Lab Again | EduShyster

Back to the Lab Again | EduShyster: Back to the Lab Again In which I visit Arne Duncan’s alma mater on the hunt for *secret sauce*The University of Chicago Lab Schools which Arne Duncan attended from K-12.Reader: you are almost certainly aware that our Secretary of Education, Mr. Arne Duncan, has many excellent ideas regarding how to enhance the excellence of our failed and failing public schools.

by mike simpson / 6h

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, April 16, 2014

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Districts face challenge of prioritizing public input on school spendingEducation HeadlinesWednesday, April 16, 2014FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.Top Centinela official says FBI probing superintendent's

by mike simpson / 7h

4-16-14 Ed Notes Online: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" Updated

Ed Notes Online: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" Updated: Jean Anyon "Radical Possibilities" UpdatedRead about the late Jean Anyon's enormous impact at Kiersten Greene's Mediated blog: How Do I Even Express…Just got this from the publisher. I ordered a review copy which I will share with anyone who will write a review.If nothing changes, urban school reform is doomed to fai

by mike simpson / 7h

Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill - Assemblymember Ed Chau Representing the 49th California Assembly District

Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill - Assemblymember Ed Chau Representing the 49th California Assembly District: Education Committee Approves Charter School Reform Bill April 10, 2014Sacramento – The Assembly Committee on Education passed Assembly Bill (AB) 1531, authored by Assemblymember Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park), which requires that public charter schools be governed by bo

by mike simpson / 7h

4-16-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE: Interesting Teacher Appreciation festivities from a MI charter school, via @eclectablogA MI charter school decides to humiliate its teachers to appreciate them. Interesting. MANDIVA – Our 3 favorite male faculty members in heels for an hour SAVE MY JOB – 3 faculty members will stand in the parking lot during dismissal and hold a sign. CREAM FACIAL – Students will throw pie in 3 f

by mike simpson / 7h

SES IS A MESS: Tutor center scammed $2M in federal funds | New York Post

Tutor center scammed $2M in federal funds | New York Post: Tutor center scammed $2M in federal fundsBy Rich CalderApril 15, 2014 | 6:42pmModal TriggerPhoto: ShutterstockMORE ON:SCAMSCasino: World poker champ took $9.6M in card-cheat scamCheating bus driver turns himself in to Manhattan DASmooth-talking con man sent to slammerHasbro cheated ‘Mr. Scrabble’ out of $1M: suitA bicoastal tutoring center

by mike simpson / 8h

Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble. | The Paper Graders

Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble. | The Paper Graders: Wendy Kopp, TFA, and life in a bubble.by MR. S posted on MARCH 14, 2012Yesterday the Huffington Post ran an op/ed piece by Wendy Kopp, the founder of TFA. The title was In Defense of Optimism. I read it, tweeted it, and moved on, but it has been rattling in my head for 24 hours now, so here are some thoughts in response.To start, I think

by mike simpson / 8h

Morning Wink 4-16-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2

BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-16-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: How Many Hours Should It Take to Test Children in Grades 3-8 in Basic Skills?Principals, teachers, and parents in New York state complained that the Common Core tests for grades 3-8 were too lon

by mike simpson / 8h

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-16-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: How Many Hours Should It Take to Test Children in Grades 3-8 in Basic Skills?Principals, teachers, and parents in New York state complained that the Common Core tests for grades 3-8 were too long. The tests for math and reading together take about 7 hours. Commissioner John King responded in a recent speech at New York University t

by mike simpson / 8h

4-16-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Surprise, Surprise — Study Finds Shouting At Children “creates further discipline problems”To few teachers surprise, a new study has found that shouting at children is counter-productive. You can read all about it at Shouting at children ‘increases their behaviour problems’ in the British newspaper, The Telegraph. There hav

by mike simpson / 8h

4-16-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Awareness.Banners went up and banners came down. Some were professionally printed. Some were hand-made by students on long white sheets of butcher paper. April was a busy month for banners. Shoe-horned in around Spring Break was Poetry Appreciation month and Autism Awareness month. This is about Autis

by mike simpson / 8h

4-16-14 Wait What?

Wait What?: Even more students lose as the “cost” of the Common Core Testing growsThe Common Core Smarter Balanced Assessment Field Test of a test means more testing and less learning. The Common Core test will cost Connecticut’s students and teachers hundreds of hours of lost instructional time. The Common Core test will cost schools and taxpayers tens of millions in computer and internet upgrade

by mike simpson / 8h

The Answer Sheet 4-16-14

The Answer Sheet: Live online chat at 1 p.m. todayI’ll be doing a live chat on washingtonpost.com at 1 p.m. today, so if you have any questions or comments about anything in education (or even marginally related), send them in here: http://live.washingtonpost.com/the-answer-sheet-20140409.html#submit-question Here’s a transcript of the first chat, and here is the transcript of last week’s.by Valer

by mike simpson / 8h

4-16-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: Dockery: Senate Should Let Voucher Expansion DieWriting in her hometown newspaper, the Lakeland Ledger, former republican state senator Paula Dockery makes the clear case why voucher expansion cannot be intellectually be defended: Opponents of voucher expansion make a v

by mike simpson / 8h

Pencils Out - Linda Darling-Hammond about standardized testing in the implementation of Common Core

Pencils Out: Pencils OutGAVIN BADEAPRIL 8, 2014The Prospect speaks with an education-policy expert Linda Darling-Hammond about standardized testing in the implementation of Common Core, a national set of guidelines on math and reading.Courtesy of Stanford UniversityLinda Darling-HammondOne of the most contentious debates racking state houses this year isn't about Obamacare, inequality, or even job

by mike simpson / 8h

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 4-16-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: DISTRICTS FACE CHALENGE OF PRIORITIZING PUBLIC INPUT ON SCHOOL SPENDING + smf’s 2¢By Louis Freedberg | EdSource Today http://bit.ly/1iZj3lv April 15th, 2014 | California’s school funding reform law has triggered a burst of outreach efforts to solicit parent and community input in at least some districts – along with a plethora of suggestions about how t

by mike simpson / 8h

4-16-14 Perdido Street School Week

Perdido Street School: Wall Street Journal Covers ATR'sThe Wall Street Journal reports that the ATR issue is a major part of the contract discussion:As negotiations drag on over a new contract for the city's teachers, one sticky issue involves how to handle teachers who lost permanent jobs during cutbacks but keep getting full paychecks as they bounce around schools for brief stints, filling in fo

by mike simpson / 8h

Pay-for-Performance for CEOs and Teachers | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Pay-for-Performance for CEOs and Teachers | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Pay-for-Performance for CEOs and TeachersOracle CEO Larry Ellison earns $37,692 an hour. No, that is not a typo or misplaced comma. Ellison’ annual salary ran $78.4 million, much of it in stock option awards. His salary was based on the annual performance of the company’s stock. Oracle’s Board of Direc

by mike simpson / 8h

API suspended but not accountability mandates :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

API suspended but not accountability mandates :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet: APRIL 16, 2014API suspended but not accountability mandatesby Kimberly Beltran(Calif.) With scores for the annual Academic Performance Index suspended for the next two years, school districts will still be required to meet accountability mandates set out in the Go

by mike simpson / 9h

Can A Child Be Accused of Insubordination for Refusing the Test? | Missouri Education Watchdog

Can A Child Be Accused of Insubordination for Refusing the Test? | Missouri Education Watchdog: Can A Child Be Accused of Insubordination for Refusing the Test?inShare A Nevada mom contacted me about the issues arising from a parent’s request to opt his child out of standardized testing and her letter appears below:Whose Child is this Anyway? For the past several months parents of public school ch

by mike simpson / 9h

Inviting the Fox Right Into the Henhouse | janresseger

Inviting the Fox Right Into the Henhouse | janresseger: Inviting the Fox Right Into the HenhousePosted on April 16, 2014 by janressegerOhio sends $1 billion every year out of its public education budget to charter schools and vouchers. According to Doug Livingston at the Akron Beacon-Journal, Ohio’s charter schools and their sponsors are so poorly regulated by the state legislature that the priva

by mike simpson / 9h

NYC Educator: The Old, Old Song, and the Never-ending Battle Between Students and Teachers

NYC Educator: The Old, Old Song, and the Never-ending Battle Between Students and Teachers: The Old, Old Song, and the Never-ending Battle Between Students and TeachersLast year I had a student who was a big fan of the band Queen. Actually I don't know the precise extent of his love for the band, but I'm certain he enjoyed the song, "We Will Rock You." I know this because he was fond of

by mike simpson / 9h

Opinion: What's Good for Our Teachers Is Good for Our Students - NJ Spotlight

Opinion: What's Good for Our Teachers Is Good for Our Students - NJ Spotlight: OPINION: WHAT'S GOOD FOR OUR TEACHERS IS GOOD FOR OUR STUDENTSMARK WEBER | APRIL 16, 2014Attempts to deprecate or demonize teachers when they stand up for themselves are bad for our kids' educationWhy is teaching the only profession in New Jersey (and the nation) where employees are criticized for standing up for themse

by mike simpson / 9h

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New study on inequity and teacher "effectiveness" misses the mark

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New study on inequity and teacher "effectiveness" misses the mark: New study on inequity and teacher "effectiveness" misses the markYes, there's lots of evidence to show poor kids and children of color are generally being taught by teachers with less experience (or no experience) which puts them at a severe disadvantage. But the Huffington headlin

by mike simpson / 9h

YESTERDAY

Watching Pearson: A Micro-Documentary by Todd Finley

by mike simpson / 18h

Districts face challenge of prioritizing public input on school spending | EdSource Today

Districts face challenge of prioritizing public input on school spending | EdSource Today: Districts face challenge of prioritizing public input on school spendingApril 15th, 2014 | Add a Comment | By Louis FreedbergCalifornia’s school funding reform laws have triggered a burst of outreach efforts to solicit parent and community input – along with a plethora of suggestions about how to spend the a

by mike simpson / 18h

Can BESE Save White from Jindal? I’m Thinking… No. | deutsch29

Can BESE Save White from Jindal? I’m Thinking… No. | deutsch29: Can BESE Save White from Jindal? I’m Thinking… No.April 15, 2014John White’s job is on the line, and the primarily-purchased Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) is standing behind its Common Core State Standards (CCSS)- and Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)-promoting talki

by mike simpson / 18h

New teacher evaluations: Search and destroy missions rather... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com

New teacher evaluations: Search and destroy missions rather... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com: New teacher evaluations: Search and destroy missions rather than efforts to improve instruction? COMMENT(1) 0 0 0 NewView Larger Teachers under siege?Previous PostsTuition will rise 2.5 percent at most Georgia colleges, but 9 percent at Tech and 7 at UGAApril 15, 2014Will the revised SAT be: A. Better; B.

by mike simpson / 20h

Field Test Update Through 4-11-14 - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)

Field Test Update Through 4-11-14 - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education): Smarter Balanced Assessments Field Test Update through April 11Week Three of Smarter Balanced Field Test*Students beginning testing (cumulative): 576,900.Students completing testing (cumulative): 320,300.Average daily number of calls to California Technical Assistance Center (CalTAC) for Week Three: 710.Trending topics of calls

by mike simpson / 21h

4-15-14 The Whole Child Blog — Glowing, Growing, and Getting Back to the Real Basics

The Whole Child Blog — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGGlowing, Growing, and Getting Back to the Real BasicsApril 15, 2014 by Whole Child PodcastDownload Podcast Now [Right-Click to Save]In this era of school reform, turn around, and educational change, it is easy to overlook the basics of why we educate and what we want for our children. These aren't the typical basics—reading, 'riting

by mike simpson / 22h

VAM and Status Quo Bias | Paul Bruno

VAM and Status Quo Bias | Paul Bruno: VAM and Status Quo BiasBy PAUL BRUNO | Published: APRIL 15, 2014Yesterday at This Week in Ed I wrote aboutthe American Statistical Association’s reporton value-added modeling in education:[I]f you were to hear about this report only from the staunchest, most ideological opponents of VAM, you would think it says something else entirely. Valerie Strauss, for ins

by mike simpson / 22h

solidaridad: NPIC Poverty Pimps and Privatization Pushers unhappy I finished school and have time to expose them again

solidaridad: NPIC Poverty Pimps and Privatization Pushers unhappy I finished school and have time to expose them again: NPIC Poverty Pimps and Privatization Pushers unhappy I finished school and have time to expose them againHere's some interesting privatization connections in regards to the LAUSD District 1 raceFirst published April 15, 2014 on Los Angeles Independent Media Center "There is

by mike simpson / 22h

Nite Cap 4-15-14 #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 CAPAgenda April 30 and May 1, 2014 - Administration & Support (CA Dept of Education)Agenda April 30 and May 1, 2014 - Administration & Support (CA Dept of Education): Agenda April 30 and May 1, 2014Advisory Commission on Special Education (A

by mike simpson / 23h