Latest News and Comment from Education

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Who Cares? | The Crucial Voice of the People

Who Cares? | The Crucial Voice of the People:



Who Cares?



 A selling point my House representative makes to his throngs of followers is that he is “a protector of the people against the tyranny of their government.” So why hasn’t he lifted a finger, or even lent an ear, to fight against the tyranny of incessantly testing young children?

Why do we still have yearly testing mandated by federal law?
Did these tests improve education? The federal mandate began in 2001 with No Child Left Behind. Results?
If yearly testing is so important an ingredient in school improvement, why do we need it dictated by law? If these tests are so valuable and wonderful, won’t market forces be enough to drive their use?
I’m in Idaho. Our political leaders here strongly believe in the power of the free-market. They don’t believe the federal government should be involved in education. You would think they would be willing to fight to end the testing mandates of No Child Left Behind. You would think.
Listening to Idaho Representative Raul Labrador last night at his town hall meeting, I was struck by his words. He said he believes in keeping promises, in telling the truth, and how ignoring a constituent is never O.K.! REALLY?
I’ve been trying for three years to get this man to talk about education. My question this Who Cares? | The Crucial Voice of the People:

Over Easy: Public Schools in New Orleans 1958-1959 | MyFDL

Over Easy: Public Schools in New Orleans 1958-1959 | MyFDL:



Over Easy: Public Schools in New Orleans 1958-1959

By: Crane-Station Wednesday August 27, 2014 3:25 am




 Letty Owings, age 89 and the author of this post, recalls moving to New Orleans and teaching in a public elementary school in 1958.

New Orleans, 1958
Cultural experiences abound in this land of ours, but none can surpass living in New Orleans for just one year. The mockingbirds singing in the magnolias were left behind in Atlanta, along with red dirt and Stone Mountain. Ray went ahead of the six of us to begin his year of duty in the New Orleans Public Health Service Hospital. He got established and rented a house before the kids and I loaded the car and followed to what we found to be a strange locale.
As we drew up the drive to the hospital, moisture dripped from the huge vine-covered trees. A big crab inched his way across the street. Ray was sweating bullets because his “room” had no air conditioning to tame the heat and humidity. I remember his coming to the car and saying, “I don’t think you should have come here.”
Our rented house proved to be nicer than we expected. It did have its moments, however. An alligator came to the carport to lounge around, and the neighbors whose house practically touched ours fought half the night. That could be entertaining in the days before TV if they had only known when to shut it off. Our house, built on a concrete slab, sweated the floors sopping wet at night. Walking around could be precarious. Clothes that touched the floor or shoes left in the closet turned green with mold.
The quarreling neighbors told me to stay out of the yard during the day for fear of heat stroke. I blew off that advice since a veteran of the Midwest dust bowl could not possibly have a heat stroke. I did not have the stroke, but I did get mighty sick when I gardened in midday—only once. That once was all it took to pay attention to the natives. I never made my peace with the heat and humidity, but we did build immunity to mosquitoes.
School in Jefferson Parish where we lived came as an impressive challenge. One day right before enrollment time, the neighbor lady—not the battling one—asked me where the kids were going to school. Considering that a question with an obvious answer, I told her they would go wherever the local school was located. She was quick to inform me that nobody that was anybody sent kids to public school, and, in fact, it was unthinkable. Without either money for private school, which meant Catholic in New Orleans, or a desire to try to change plans in a strange location, we forged ahead with public education. Our oldest was ready for high school. When enrollment day came, we found the high school, if it could be dignified by that name.
The school building, completely buried in a summer’s growth of tall weeds, appeared as though it had been a long time condemned and given over to hopelessness and rot. The principal, a hefty Italian sweating profusely and flailing his arms around, trying to impose order on the chaos, hardly seemed to notice our inquiry about enrolling a student. In fact, students appeared to be the least of his worries. The attendees chiefly consisted of those who had been disciplinary cases thrown out of Catholic school or sons and daughters of the dock and levy crews. The kids that slept on the levy were called “levy kids.”

Two of our kids served their time at John Clancy elementary school. We never learned about the John Clancy behind the name. Perhaps he was a crooked politician. That would make sense in an area where the biggest bridges were named after Huey Long, the infamous former Governor who was shot dead on Over Easy: Public Schools in New Orleans 1958-1959 | MyFDL:

California schools superintendent Tom Torlakson tours Long Beach City College’s career technical education center

California schools superintendent Tom Torlakson tours Long Beach City College’s career technical education center:



California schools superintendent Tom Torlakson tours Long Beach City College’s career technical education center

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson took a tour of Long Beach City College as part of a statewide tour of Career Pathways Trust grant recipients. Torlakson, left, and LBUSD Superintendent Chris Steinhauser walk through the campus. Wednesday, August 27, 2014. (Robert Casillas / Staff Photographer) 

LONG BEACH >> Tom Torlakson, state superintendent of public instruction, visited Long Beach City College Wednesday to spotlight career technical education programs.
LBCC is leading the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering Technology Linked Learning Consortium, which was awarded $14.9 million under the Career Pathways Trust, a statewide $250 million program to move students toward college and high-demand fields.
“We fought hard to get $250 million in the state budget to expand these kinds of regional partnerships which help students succeed and get to work faster in areas that they feel confident in and skilled in, but it also helps our economy, so as we go around the state — the first round of $250 million — in that process we have touched the regional economies in almost every part of California,” Torlakson said.
The consortium is a regional collaboration among five community colleges, Cal State Long Beach and Cal State Los Angeles, 14 school districts and six local community development partners, officials said.
The goal is to provide an employment pipeline by linking academics to high-growth employment sectors. Agencies that receive grants connect learning programs with businesses to prepare students for jobs in advanced manufacturing and engineering technology.
Torlakson joined LBCC President Eloy Ortiz Oakley and Chris Steinhauser, superintendent of the Long Beach Unified School District. The education leaders visited LBCC faculty and students, as well as classrooms, including a first semester industrial electricity class.
“We need to adjust our programs, not just to create programs that lead to jobs, but to create pathways to skills that lead to jobs, and those skills are very different than they were 10 years ago,” Oakley said.
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, spearheaded the Career Pathways Trust last year to establish the competitive grant program in California’s 2013-14 budget.
Colleges throughout the state have committed to working with their neighboring school districts to develop clear career pathways with industry-driven technical learning, from high school to graduation with a bachelor’s degree.
Steinhauser called the partnerships a “win-win” for business and education, saying “the grants that we received are helping our young people to connect a pathway to their area of interest.”

Major Sacramento labor leader Bill Camp fired over Kevin Johnson's strong mayor initiative - Page Burner - August 27, 2014 - Blogs - Sacramento News & Review

Major Sacramento labor leader Bill Camp fired over Kevin Johnson's strong mayor initiative - Page Burner - August 27, 2014 - Blogs - Sacramento News & Review:



Major Sacramento labor leader Bill Camp fired over Kevin Johnson's strong mayor initiative





Bill Camp, the outspoken executive secretary of the Sacramento Central Labor Council, has been fired, apparently because of an internal dispute over Kevin Johnson’s strong mayor initiative.
Camp, who has held the job for the last 15 years, and who has become the face of the local labor movement, is still fighting to keep his job.  He says the labor council’s board violated its own rules on terminating staff. “Some people say I am fired. Others disagree.”
And the national AFL-CIO is conducting its own investigation of what some are describing as a “coup” in the local labor council.
The Sacramento Central Labor Council is made up of dozens of local labor unions. The people who fired Camp were labor council board president Lino Pedres, with the SEIU Service Workers West Union, and Margarita Maldonado, the labor council board’s recording secretary, who represents SEIU Local 1000.
Camp said he was not told why he was fired. “They just told me ‘you’re fired, clean out your stuff.’” 
But events leading up to Camp’s dismissal suggest a power struggle in the local labor movement over the divisive strong mayor proposal Measure L, which will appear on the ballot this fall.
The Sacramento Central Labor Council has historically taken a position against strong mayor. And as executive secretary Bill Camp successfully sued to get strong mayor kicked off the ballot in 2010.
But last week, Mayor Kevin Johnson convinced enough members of the central labor council’s executive board–Camp’s bosses–to recommend that the larger labor council membership vote to endorse Measure L.
But at a subsequent meeting of the larger body of labor council delegates–from more than two dozen local unions–Measure L failed to get enough votes for an endorsement.  
Then unions supporting strong mayor included SEIU 1000 (state workers), the fire fighters, sheet metal workers and grocery workers, among others. Opposed were stationary engineers (city workers), teachers, and electrical workers, among others.
The votes were weighted according to the number of members in union, but even with the advantage of SEIU’s 24,000 members–the largest bloc in the Major Sacramento labor leader Bill Camp fired over Kevin Johnson's strong mayor initiative - Page Burner - August 27, 2014 - Blogs - Sacramento News & Review:


CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE BROUGHT AGAINST LAUSD'S SUPERINTENDENT JOHN DEASY - Perdaily.com

CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE BROUGHT AGAINST LAUSD'S SUPERINTENDENT JOHN DEASY - Perdaily.com:





CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE BROUGHT AGAINST LAUSD'S SUPERINTENDENT JOHN DEASY



Smiling John Deasy.jpg
(Mensaje se repite en Español)


Whether the Los Angeles Unified School District's  (LAUSD) Superintendent John Deasy is criminally culpable for his actions in dealing with Pearson and Apple on behalf of the district concerning his clearly collusive actions in complete derogation of the public bidding process designed to get the best contract price and terms for the district should be determined by a criminal cause of action brought by the Los Angeles District Attorney. In addition, any other state or federal governmental authority that sees the potential violation of law in Deasy's specifically intended actions might also consider filing charges. Only such a forum is designed to get at the truth in this matter, because it has the legal process, e.g. discovery, deposition, and the compulsory gathering of relevant evidence that up until now has been retained and stonewalled by LAUSD in this IPad affair and many other questionable actions that LAUSD, Deasy, and present and prior administrators have engaged in without any public scrutiny. Surely, such a defective process remains a formula designed to foster continued improper actions that have finally become public in the IPad affair.

Whether such a court proceeding would find Superintendent Deasy guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, which is the standard that such a prosecution would have to achieve, is not the question. What is the question is finally having a dispassionate and unbias examination of what has gone on in the present IPad fiasco and other similar actions that have occurred under Deasy's regime at LAUSD that continues to allow LAUSD to avoid any public scrutiny of its actions.

And when Stewart Magruder, who sat on the oversight committee at LAUSD tried to question Deasy's ramroding of the IPad deal with Pearson and Apple down the district's throat, he wasn't listened to, he was removed. What better argument could one make for having an unbias and dispassionate examination of Deasy and LAUSD's actions regarding the IPad deal by a neutral appropriate judicial forum. Clearly, and at the very least, if Deasy was a teacher, he would have already been pull from his job until an in depth investigation had taken place.  (http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-board-reappoints-ipad-critic-20140617-story.html). 

Up until now, LAUSD has stonewalled any attempt to examine what they have done in any arena to see if it is kosher. In my own whistle blower complaint against LAUSD involving the graduating of students and giving diplomas to students with low elementary school reading and math abilities, the LAUSD Office of Inspector General gave the investigation to the very people I CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE BROUGHT AGAINST LAUSD'S SUPERINTENDENT JOHN DEASY - Perdaily.com:


Education, Inc. By Tim Scott and Deborah Keisch, Truthout

Education, Inc.:



Education, Inc.

Tuesday, 26 August 2014 10:28By Tim Scott and Deborah Keisch, Truthout | News Analysis
2014.8.26.Reform.Main
(Illustration: Jared Rodriguez / t r u t h o u t)

Presidential administration proclamations about the state of public education over the past 30 years:
1983: "Our Nation is at risk. . . . the educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded. . . .[and] threatens our very future as a Nation and a people."
- President Reagan's policy report titled "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative For Educational Reform"
1991: "For the sake of the future, of our children and of the nation's, we must transform America's schools. . . . if the United States is to maintain a strong and growing economy into the next century."
- President H.W. Bush's "AMERICA 2000: An Education Strategy"
1994: "To get beyond the crisis of education that we've talked and talked about. . . . We need to raise the standards to essentially reinvent our educational system to fit this new economy."
- President Clinton's Secretary of Education Richard Riley
2004: "The educational system itself needed to be reformed - transformed. . . . to improve education. . . . American business must be involved. If we can improve the educational system, we can improve the corporate bottom line."
- President George W. Bush's Secretary of Education Rod Paige, addressing the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce
2012: "Far too many students aren't getting the high-quality education and training they need to compete for jobs in the knowledge-based economy. . . . We have an education crisis in our country. . . . We have to act boldly and decisively to turn the tide."
- President Obama's Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, writing for the US Chamber of Commerce
Public education in the United States is in a state of crisis. We know this because we have heard the warning from government officials of both political parties over the past 30 years. We have also heard that if we don't fix this crisis, the United States and the "American way of life" is in jeopardy of losing its global economic competitiveness and superiority. We are told that our schools aren't doing the job we need them to do, with a quarter of our children dropping out of high school every year, and still two-fifths of those who do graduate leave high school unprepared for college or a career, while 57 percent lack comprehension of even remedial math. We have heard that American students place anywhere from the middle to the bottom of the pack in all three continuing comparative studies of achievement in mathematics, science and general literacy in the advanced industrial nations, while college remediation rates are high and US employers report that today's young people don't have the skills and knowledge needed for the modern workforce. Additionally, vast gaps in academic achievement and graduation rates that separate low-income students and students of color from their more privileged peers continue to plague the American education landscape (These statistics from The Education Trust).
We are told that corporate leaders are best positioned to fix the problems that plague public education and thus have been charged by our elected leaders to transform public education to meet the workforce demands of the 21st century economy, which will translate into solving the achievement gap. Corporations and financial Education, Inc.:

Wow! Gates, PBS, Parents, Teachers, CCSS, etc. – Interactive Graphic Journalism | Reclaim Reform

Wow! Gates, PBS, Parents, Teachers, CCSS, etc. – Interactive Graphic Journalism | Reclaim Reform:



Wow! Gates, PBS, Parents, Teachers, CCSS, etc. – Interactive Graphic Journalism

The most fascinating graphic journalism about the immense power and money behind Corporate Education Reform, CCSS, high stakes testing, media information control, etc. is created by Adam Bessie and his associates.
“One picture is worth a thousand words.”
Well, that was then, and this is now.
Carino 8-14
Adam Bessie and illustrator Dan Carino have created a new level of graphic journalism published online atTruth-Out.org.
Bessie’s research journalism combined with the graphics of various artists combined with interactive links within the illustrations make incredible amounts of connections and interconnections possible for readers at all levels. Annotated editorial cartoons? Essays and comics? No, it’s much more than that.
View and read the illustration while moving your cursor across each graphic panel. A ton of information and related links are available for you to follow.
Look into whatever you want to know more about, or choose to leave it and go on to other things.
Incredibly, even more ideas are presented than mere words or graphics alone could present. As people read, Wow! Gates, PBS, Parents, Teachers, CCSS, etc. – Interactive Graphic Journalism | Reclaim Reform:

Nite Cap 8-27-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT



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



empathyeducates – Illinois School Bans Discussions of Michael Brown’s Death
empathyeducates – Illinois School Bans Discussions of Michael Brown’s Death: Illinois School Bans Discussions of Michael Brown’s DeathPhotographic Credit: Photo Credit: wavebreakmedia } Shutterstock.comBy Paul L. Thomas, Ed.D. | Originally Published at AlterNet. August 26, 2014Prohibiting students from talking about events in Ferguson offers them exactly the opposite of what they need.When faced w
Boycott the cruel “One Newark” plan | Bob Braun's Ledger
Boycott the cruel “One Newark” plan | Bob Braun's Ledger: Boycott the cruel “One Newark” planDeseret Segura, 16, comforts her sobbing grandmother, Deseret Richardson, 83, outside the “enrollment center” in Newark.Angry men and women stood in the unforgiving noontime heat before television cameras Wednesday to explain why Newark parents should boycott the opening of school next week–but none  was m
America's public schools remain highly segregated
America's public schools remain highly segregated: America's public schools remain highly segregatedAuthor: Reed Jordan| Posted: August 27th, 2014Fifty million children will start school this week as historic changes are under way in the U.S. public school system. As of 2011 48 percent of all public school students were poor* and this year, students of color will account for the majority of public
Emails prompt LA schools' inspector general to reopen iPad probe | 89.3 KPCC
Emails prompt LA schools' inspector general to reopen iPad probe | 89.3 KPCC: Emails prompt LA schools' inspector general to reopen iPad probeThe inspector general of the Los Angeles Unified School Distict is reopening an investigation into the purchase of iPads and Pearson software based findings in a KPCC investigation into communication between district officials and those companies nearly a ye
Secretary Arne Duncan, Oxygen Sucker | Bill Ayers
Secretary Arne Duncan, Oxygen Sucker | Bill Ayers: Secretary Arne Duncan, Oxygen SuckerIf you need an example of hubris, hypocrisy, and arrogance, here it is. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, the tester-in-chief who has vehemently opposed sensible approaches to evaluation and assessment in favor of corporate-driven high-stakes tests for almost two decades, is now suspending for one year the tes
Teacher Asks Students To Split Into 2 Groups To Simulate Ideal Class Size | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
Teacher Asks Students To Split Into 2 Groups To Simulate Ideal Class Size | The Onion - America's Finest News Source: Teacher Asks Students To Split Into 2 Groups To Simulate Ideal Class SizeGREENSBORO, NC—Hoping that a hands-on demonstration would help students grasp the concept, local teacher Rachel McKenzie reportedly instructed her class of 38 fourth-graders Wednesday to divide into two groups
Everything I know about what kids need I learned in the Utah classroom | Lily's Blackboard
Everything I know about what kids need I learned in the Utah classroom | Lily's Blackboard: Everything I know about what kids need I learned in the Utah classroomAug 27th, 2014 by Lily.SALT LAKE CITY — Lily Eskelsen Garcia will take office Sept. 1 as president of the more than 3.5 million-member National Education Association.Garcia began her career in education as the salad girl in the school lun
Multi-Craft Core Project Launched - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)
Multi-Craft Core Project Launched - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Launches Pre-Apprenticeship Pilot ProjectSACRAMENTO—Nine California high schools will participate in a pilot project this fall designed to help students earn pre-apprenticeships into the construction trade industries, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today.As pa
8-27-14 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Charter Angst: Democracy Prep Parent Ready to Pull Child After 5 DaysAll I see every morning and evening is this tall man dressed in bright clothing yelling at the parents every single day since school started... parent at Democracy PrepDP founder Seth Andrews - or Eva Moskowitz in dragOh the joy in this comment on another beloved crooked charter, especially with today's news (see
8-27-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: About the radio showJoin Drs. Shaun Johnson and Tim Slekar LIVE Sundays at 6PM EST and Wednesdays at 7PM EST on Blog Talk Radio for progressive, pro-public education talk radio. Call in to speak live with Tim and Shaun during the show, (805) 727-7111. You can also listen to our Monday "Sunday-Replay" at 7PM EST, and re-broadcasts of the archives every Tuesday and Thursd
Eva Moskowitz: Wall Street Stage Mother | deutsch29
Eva Moskowitz: Wall Street Stage Mother | deutsch29: Eva Moskowitz: Wall Street Stage MotherAugust 27, 2014Hedge-funded, politically-connected New York charter pusher Eva Moskowitz is trying to paint herself as a “protector of children.”She insinuates that her charter school forcefulness is.. ahem.. “for the children,” andlikens herself to to a “mama bear”:“I’d be bullied, maybe, if children weren
8-27-14 Curmudgucation
CURMUDGUCATION: Law Professor Says Duncan's Actions Un-ConstitutionalAn upcoming article in the Vanderbilt Law Review argues that the administration's waiver program is both illegal and a very, very bad precedent. University of South Carolina law professor Derek W. Black has written articles about the intersection of federal power and school law before, but none quite as feisty as "Federalizi
Elite Attackers of Public Schools Don't Admit the Impact of Economic Inequality, Racism on Education
Elite Attackers of Public Schools Don't Admit the Impact of Economic Inequality, Racism on Education: Elite Attackers of Public Schools Don't Admit the Impact of Economic Inequality, Racism on EducationWednesday, 27 August 2014 09:56By Mark Naison, Haymarket Books | Book Excerpt3font size   Print Email(Image: Nick Thompson)Wayne Au, editor of Rethinking Schoolsand coeditor of Pencils Down: Rethink
Common Core: Headache or Brain Tumor? | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights
Common Core: Headache or Brain Tumor? | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights: Common Core: Headache or Brain Tumor?By The American Federation of Teachers on August 27, 2014By Amber Chandler, American Federation of Teachers member and 7th grade English Language Arts Teacher at Frontier Middle School in Hamburg, NYReligion. Politics. Sexual Orientation. Breastfeeding. Abortion. Homesc
8-27-14 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): For LAUSD school board a new year, but old problemsFor LAUSD school board a new year, but old problems Alex Caputo-Pearl, President of UTLA It might be the new school year, but it was a series of old problems awaiting the LA Unified school board yesterday as it met long into the night with a full compleme
8-27-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Finding Common GroundI have been an education activist for a long time and I have never had any delusions about my effectiveness. After all, the district officials have all of the power and all of the authority, so they don't have to do anything they don't want to do and they are free to do whatever they like. We have seen that there is almost no accountability or
8-27-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: "TeacherTown" Now Paying Charters Over $80 Million Per Year in Projected Enrollment CashNot only is Shelby County and the State coughing up over $80 million each year for corporate reform schools whose test scores are, for the most part, the same or worse than the schools they replaced, but almost $20 million of that is for enrollment that never materialized.  In 2013-14,
8-27-14 Hemlock on the Rocks
Hemlock on the Rocks: Can Supt. Deasy survive LAUSD's iPad fiasco? - Los Angeles Times |http://itcompanyegypt.com/can-supt-deasy-survive-lausds-ipad-fiasco-los-angeles-times-2/ Can Supt. Deasy survive LAUSD's iPad fiasco? – Los Angeles Times So, remember that $1-billion plan to get iPads for each and every Los Angeles Unified student the district has beenby Rene Diedrich / 5min 8-26-14 Hemlock on
What Chicago's upcoming mayoral race says about the power of movements - Waging Nonviolence
What Chicago's upcoming mayoral race says about the power of movements - Waging Nonviolence: What Chicago’s upcoming mayoral race says about the power of movementsKaren Lewis, the former high school chemistry teacher who led the Chicago Teachers Union to an unprecedented strike in 2012, is seriously considering running for mayor of Chicago — and she’s already beating incumbent Rahm Emanuel in the
Is Smart the New Gangsta? | Missouri Education Watchdog
Is Smart the New Gangsta? | Missouri Education Watchdog: Is Smart the New Gangsta?inShareMy daughter has left the nest and been safely delivered to University. Modern communication technology makes this parting not as difficult  as it might have been even 5 years ago. Thanks to smart phones we can Facetime any time we want (make that any time she wants) which means we can have more frequent conver
Morning Wink 8-27-14 AM Posts #edchat #edreform
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS8-27-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice GuyWait What?: Wait What? All Week Pelto/Murphy 2014 Barriers for 3rd party challengers are widespread – Here is a new disturbing case in MassachusettsProving that the notion that supporting the Constitution and “Protecting Freedom and Democracy” is a relative term for some peop
Bobby Jindal Sues Federal Government Over Common Core
Bobby Jindal Sues Federal Government Over Common Core: Bobby Jindal Sues Federal Government Over Common CorePosted: 08/27/2014 10:06 am EDT Updated: 4 minutes agoFirst he sued his own school board. Now he's suing the federal government.Buffeted by a state judge who initially struck down his suspension of Common Core testing and said his actions hurt the state's parents, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal
8-27-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy
Wait What?: Wait What? All Week Pelto/Murphy 2014 Barriers for 3rd party challengers are widespread – Here is a new disturbing case in MassachusettsProving that the notion that supporting the Constitution and “Protecting Freedom and Democracy” is a relative term for some people. Secretary Galvin [Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts] Sued over Rejection of Voter Signatures.  Rejection of
NYC Educator: Revive NYSUT Supporters School Me
NYC Educator: Revive NYSUT Supporters School Me: Revive NYSUT Supporters School MeYesterday on Twitter, I was barraged with various defenses of Revive NYSUT's double-pension grab. I'm going to recount a few here.1. You aren't telling the whole story.That's true. I paint what I see. If there's another side of the story, you're free to tell it. And if you do a good enough job of it, you might persua
8-27-14 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.: Kristin Crowell. Beating Rahm requires deep organizing.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fs-fT5xCw6w#t=247]by Fred Klonsky / 4min8-26-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacherFred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: “Driv
8-27-14 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Eva Moskowitz Can't Pay Rent For Her Charter Schools But Can Afford $31 Million For New OfficesEva Moskowitz criticized Mayor de Blasio as a hater of children in the latest issue of More Magazine (whatever that is): Controversial Success Academy CEO Eva Moskowitz attacked Mayor de Blasio in an interview with More magazine, calling him a "former operative of the teachers
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-27-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Ohio Teacher Says “No Thanks” to StudentsFirst and $5,000Chris Roberts, a new teacher in Ohio, was attracted to the message of StudentsFirst. He was impressed by what he read and by “Waiting for Superman.” He joined and was invited to apply for their Teachers for Transformation Academy. He was offered a stipend of $5,000 to be Stud
8-27-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Posts & Articles On Education Policy© 2010 Dave, Flickr | CC-BY-ND | via Wylio Here are some recent valuable posts and articles on educational policy issues: A Quick Look At The ASA Statement On Value-Added is from The Shanker Blog. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning About
The Answer Sheet 8-27-14
Answer Sheet: What new Common Core test scores really showNew York officials recently released the results of the state’s 2014 Common Core State Standards-aligned exams. In this post information award-winning Principal Carol Burris of South Side High School  in the Rockville Centre School District, explains what they mean. Burris has been writing about problems with the controversial school reform
Counties approve high number of LCAPs | EdSource
Counties approve high number of LCAPs | EdSource: CREDIT: KARLA SCOON REID / EDSOURCEParents sort through Post-It notes with funding suggestions at an LCAP planning meeting at Correia Middle School in San Diego Unified in April 2014.Counties approve high number of LCAPsAugust 26, 2014 | By John Fensterwald | No Comments SHARE THIS ARTICLEAn EdSource survey of a sampling of county offices of educa
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 8-27-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: REV. JESSE JACKSON SWEARS IN LAUSD BOARD MEMBER GEORGE McKENNABy Thomas Himes, Los Angeles Daily News | http://bit.ly/1qgWq1d George McKenna 8/26/14, 5:25 PM PDT  ::  The Rev. Jesse Jackson swore in Los Angeles Unified’s newest school board member in a ceremony at Tuesday’s meeting. George McKenna, a veteran educator who has held high-ranking positions
The LA School iPad Scandal: What You Need To Know : NPR Ed : NPR
The LA School iPad Scandal: What You Need To Know : NPR Ed : NPR: The LA School iPad Scandal: What You Need To Knowby ANNIE GILBERTSONA massive expansion of classroom technology has come to a grinding halt in Los Angeles.The LA Unified School District had planned to buy some 700,000 iPads for its students and teachers. The Apple tablets would include learning software built by publishing giant Pea
Meeting My Once and Future Classroom - The Jose Vilson
Meeting My Once and Future Classroom - The Jose Vilson: Meeting My Once and Future ClassroomThis was my actual classroom eight years ago, which is the same I have now.Meet my once and future classroom.It once had a exposed wooden door, working lights, nine unmarked boxes, beige lockers, and a second year teacher scared for his career. I know this because I was him eight years ago. Throughout the y
The Bayou state takes on U.S. Dept. of Ed - rightfully :: SI&A Cabinet Report
The Bayou state takes on U.S. Dept. of Ed - rightfully :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet: The Bayou state takes on U.S. Dept. of Ed - rightfullyby Lee FunkLouisiana’s new graduation requirements for students with disabilities (SWD) are not sitting well with Washington D.C. and that’s ok. Personalized objectives with carefully tailored instruct
Commentable Version: Chair’s Report on The Common Core Technology Project Ad Hoc Committee
Commentable Version: Chair’s Report on The Common Core Technology Project Ad Hoc Committee: K-12 NEWS NETWORK'S THE WIRECommentable Version: Chair’s Report on The Common Core Technology Project Ad Hoc CommitteeAUGUST 27, 2014 BY K12NN SITE ADMIN LEAVE A COMMENTMany have wondered what the Chair’s Report on the Common Core Technology Project Ad Hoc Committee actually says. This is the committee that
empathyeducates – Ferguson’s Schools Are Just as Troubling as Its Police Force
empathyeducates – Ferguson’s Schools Are Just as Troubling as Its Police Force: Ferguson’s Schools Are Just as Troubling as Its Police ForceFerguson’s Schools Are Just as Troubling as Its Police Force and The City Won’t Heal Until We Fix Them Too.By Tracey Meares | Originally Published at The New Republic. August 22, 2014A day after his visit to Ferguson, Missouri, Attorney General Eric H. Holder
The Con Artistry of Charter Schools - In These Times
The Con Artistry of Charter Schools - In These Times: The Con Artistry of Charter SchoolsIn 2010, billionaire Rupert Murdoch declared for-profit K-12 education 'a $500 billion sector in the U.S. alone that is waiting desperately to be transformed.' (David Shankbone / Wikimedia Commons)Once an effort to improve public education, the charter school movement has transformed into a money-making ventur
A College Professor Teaches History in High School | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
A College Professor Teaches History in High School | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: A College Professor Teaches History in High SchoolNot a “man bites dog” media story for sure, but university professors who willingly choose to teach at a high school for a semester or a year, well, that does cause a few heads to turn. Previous posts I have published (see here for a math profe
Charter School Activists Suffer From Truth Deprivation - Education Week
Charter School Activists Suffer From Truth Deprivation - Education Week: Charter School Activists Suffer From Truth DeprivationBy Gerald N. Tirozzi''Rarely in the history of education have so many been willing to risk so much on the basis of so little evidence." This cogent statement was included in a 1996 Education Policy Institute report, alluding to the "risky business" of privat

YESTERDAY

Charter Schools to Be Defining Issue of Okla State Superintendent Race | Life at the Intersections
Charter Schools to Be Defining Issue of Okla State Superintendent Race | Life at the Intersections: CHARTER SCHOOLS TO BE DEFINING ISSUE OF OKLA STATE SUPERINTENDENT RACEAUGUST 26, 2014 BRETT DICKERSONDemocrats had two unusually good choices in this runoff race for the State Superintendent nomination between two long-time, dedicated education leaders: Freda Deskin and John Cox, the winner.Now it i
Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 8-26-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
Nite Cap UPDATEUPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATECORPORATE ED REFORMJeff Storobinsky Exposes The Truth in BrooklynThe Crack Team is pleased to welcome once again guest blogger and retired teacher Jeff Storobinsky to share a few words.For those who don't recall these pages shared some of Jeff's story back in June. Jeff is in the process of suing his tormentors with The Crack Team's favorite attorney, Brya
Vergara in New York, Thanks (in Part) to Campbell Brown |
Vergara in New York, Thanks (in Part) to Campbell Brown |: Vergara in New York, Thanks (in Part) to Campbell Brown In a post I wrote about “Vergara Going on Tour,” I wrote about how the financier of the Vergara v. California case was preparing to bring similar suits to New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Oregon, New Mexico, Idaho, and Kansas. As well, the law firm that won the Vergara case for the pl
LAUSD'S SLEAZY DEASY STEALS A LINE FROM THE LATE GILDA RADNER: IPADS? "NEVER MIND" - Perdaily.com
LAUSD'S SLEAZY DEASY STEALS A LINE FROM THE LATE GILDA RADNER: IPADS? "NEVER MIND" - Perdaily.com: (Mensaje se repite en Español)With Superintendent John Deasy's morally challenged behavior in dealing with Pearson, Apple, and IPads, we get another glimpse of the real darkness of the privatization agenda, which is too evil for most to believe or process. It comes down to money and the fur
#Truthy and Common Core Data Sets. Just WHY is the US Government Tracking Us? | Missouri Education Watchdog
#Truthy and Common Core Data Sets. Just WHY is the US Government Tracking Us? | Missouri Education Watchdog: #Truthy and Common Core Data Sets. Just WHY is the US Government Tracking Us?inShareBecome a revolutionary and expose the truth about The CCSSI and the new ‘Truthy’ database designed to track your ‘misinformation’.Data mining of student information via The Common Core States Initiative and
Helping Schools With Limited Internet Connections - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)
Helping Schools With Limited Internet Connections - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Funding Available to Help Schools With Limited Internet ConnectionsSACRAMENTO—Eligible districts and charter schools are encouraged to apply for new funding to help school sites connect to a high-speed network in time for next spring's new online assessments, State Supe
LA schools' superintendent faces school board after days of questions on iPad plan | 89.3 KPCC
LA schools' superintendent faces school board after days of questions on iPad plan | 89.3 KPCC: LA schools' superintendent faces school board after days of questions on iPad planLos Angeles Unified school board members meet Tuesday afternoon in the first public meeting since Friday, when Superintendent John Deasy began facing a rush of questions about his relationships with executives at Pearson.E
Schooling in the Ownership Society: How Greasy Deasy Funneled $1 Billion to Pals at Pearson, Apple
Schooling in the Ownership Society: How Greasy Deasy Funneled $1 Billion to Pals at Pearson, Apple: How Greasy Deasy Funneled $1 Billion to Pals at Pearson, AppleGreasy DeasyHoward Blume at the L.A. Times reports that L.A. Supt. John Deasy (the man from Gates) and his chief deputy "developed a special relationship" with executives from Pearson and Apple, the companies that won a billion-
Nite Cap 8-26-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT
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 CAP8-26-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice GuyWait What?: Wait What? All Week Pelto/Murphy 2014 Illinois School Bans Discussions of Michael Brown’s Death (by Paul Thomas)This article was written by fellow pro-p