Latest News and Comment from Education

Sunday, July 12, 2015

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 7/12/15


SPECIAL NITE CAP 

CORPORATE ED REFORM





Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who Will Run Public Education?
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who Will Run Public Education?: Who Will Run Public Education?Some older articles I had on the back burner for far too long.  Compiled, they are a good picture of what is happening in our country today.  It's a two-fold problem.1) Billionaires who decide they (and their foundations know best) and throw money for public education towards their focus and their belief
Democracy Alliance - Community. Strategy. Investment. Impact. | Democracy Alliance
Community. Strategy. Investment. Impact. | Democracy Alliance: COMMUNITY. STRATEGY. INVESTMENT. IMPACT.We are a first-of-its-kind partnership of changemakers who are committed to a stronger democracy and a more progressive America.Launched in 2005, the Democracy Alliance (DA) was created to build progressive infrastructure that could help counter the well-funded and sophisticated conservative appa
Randi Weingarten, Twitter, and 'Secret Society' Membership | Mercedes Schneider
Randi Weingarten, Twitter, and 'Secret Society' Membership | Mercedes Schneider: Randi Weingarten, Twitter, and 'Secret Society' MembershipConnecticut Governor Dannel Malloy is a corporate reformer's gift. He appointedStefan Pryor, the co-founder of a major charter chain as state education commissioner. Even as traditional public education in Connecticut is underfunded, the number of charter schoo
The Washington Teacher: Teachers Say No Freaking Way to AFT Endorsement of Hillary Clinton
The Washington Teacher: Teachers Say No Freaking Way to AFT Endorsement of Hillary Clinton: Teachers Say No Freaking Way to AFT Endorsement of Hillary ClintonBy Candi Peterson, WTU General Vice PresidentOn Saturday, July 11th - the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President, Randi Weingarten came under fire after her executive council voted overwhelmingly to endorse Hillary Clinton for the de
Noam Chomsky: Bubble Tests Yield Meaningless Rankings - Living in Dialogue
Noam Chomsky: Bubble Tests Yield Meaningless Rankings - Living in Dialogue: Noam Chomsky: Bubble Tests Yield Meaningless Rankings By Denny Taylor.The truth is that the fill-in-the-bubble, ranking and sorting, high stakes testing, political reform of public education is a total system failure“You have to be very cautious and careful about accepting claims by power systems,” Chomsky said to Amy Good
Wrong is Wrong - The Crucial VoiceThe Crucial Voice
Wrong is Wrong - The Crucial VoiceThe Crucial Voice: Wrong is WrongSenator Alexander believes in making “the Bush-era law work.” He stated that, “How well our children are learning is much more important than any political game” but his actions have not matched his rhetoric.The truth is that education reform has been nothing more than one BIG political game. A major part of Lamar Alexander’s life
Democracy appears to be a burden for the “modern” American Federation of Teachers - Wait What?
Democracy appears to be a burden for the “modern” American Federation of Teachers - Wait What?: Democracy appears to be a burden for the “modern” American Federation of TeachersOn Friday, fellow public education advocate and commentator Sarah Darer Littman wrote an incredibly powerful piece in CT Newsjunkie entitled “Serving Up A Preferred Candidate,” in which she took issue with the obviously und
NYC Public School Parents: Why I support the Senate bill to revamp No Child Left Behind
NYC Public School Parents: Why I support the Senate bill to revamp No Child Left Behind: Why I support the Senate bill to revamp No Child Left BehindThough school may be out, there’s a lot happening in the education world. Right now the Senate is debating a bi- partisan bill to revamp No Child Left Behind, called the Every Child Achieves Act (ECAA), NCLB officially lapsed in 2007 but is still in f
Did AFT Rank and File REALLY Endorse Hillary Clinton for President? If So, Release the Raw Data | gadflyonthewallblog
Did AFT Rank and File REALLY Endorse Hillary Clinton for President? If So, Release the Raw Data | gadflyonthewallblog: Did AFT Rank and File REALLY Endorse Hillary Clinton for President? If So, Release the Raw DataI have nothing against Hillary Clinton.Heck! I might even vote for her in the coming Presidential race. Maybe…But the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) endorsement of the former Firs
NY BATs Open Letter to NY Commissioner Elia - Badass Teachers Association
Badass Teachers Association: NY BATs Open Letter to NY Commissioner EliaDear Commissioner Elia,Welcome to your new office, where we hope to begin meaningful open discussions about the harms of standardized testing in education policy. New York needs a commissioner who will listen to students, parents, educators and taxpayers and "show your work" so the public can understand the decisions
Picket the July 22 Board of Ed Meeting
Chicago Teachers Union | Board Meeting Picket July 2015: Picket the July 22 Board of Ed MeetingJuly 22, 2015• 9:00 AMCPS Headquarters• Dearborn & Madison, Chicago, IL 60603Host Contact Info: Organizing@ctulocal1.com or 312.329.9100Map data ©2015 GoogleTerms of UseReport a map errorMapSatelliteOn Wednesday, July 1, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced that the required repayment of $634 million to the
GOP urges update to No Child Left Behind - CBS News
GOP urges update to No Child Left Behind - CBS News: GOP urges update to No Child Left BehindJust days after a legislative update to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) squeaked past the House on a narrow, partisan vote, the Republican party is continuing its call to revise the contentious law.And with a Senate bill now up for debate in Congress, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tennessee, called Saturday for stat
Clinton won an endorsement, but Weingarten lost a union. | stopcommoncorenys
Clinton won an endorsement, but Weingarten lost a union. | stopcommoncorenys: Clinton won an endorsement, but Weingarten lost a union.If you are one of the million plus teachers that were never asked which candidate to endorse for president, you are not alone.American Federation of Teachers has 1.6 million members and has polled a scant 1150. With this minute poll, they have gone public with a pre
Randi Weingarten: Survey of AFT Members on 2016 Election
Randi Weingarten: Survey of AFT Members on 2016 Election http://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/memo_presidentialsurvey2015.pdf
On Public Versus Charter: “The Dispute Has Actually Nothing to Do with Education” | the becoming radical
On Public Versus Charter: “The Dispute Has Actually Nothing to Do with Education” | the becoming radical: On Public Versus Charter: “The Dispute Has Actually Nothing to Do with Education”Published 54 years ago, Nobody Knows My Name continues to shake any reader willing to listen as James Baldwin bore witness to the region currently—and again, shamefully—in the national spotlight, “the South, which
Marie Corfield: Data does not a great teacher make
Marie Corfield: Data does not a great teacher make: Data does not a great teacher makeAnd so the data reporting begins. The Star Ledger reported yesterday:For the first time, New Jersey's Department of Education will publish a centralized database with the aggregate teacher evaluation results for each school across the state. The 2013-14 data, to be released next week, will not include performance
Salon Writer Jeff Bryant Gets Arne Duncan Exactly Right | deutsch29
Salon Writer Jeff Bryant Gets Arne Duncan Exactly Right | deutsch29: Salon Writer Jeff Bryant Gets Arne Duncan Exactly RightBelow is a excerpt from the most refreshingly comprehensive, accurate summation of US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan that I have ever read. Salon writer Jeff Bryant captures the absolute waste that Duncan was as secretary– and he chastises those removed from the reality o
CURMUDGUCATION: Test Scoring Monkeys
CURMUDGUCATION: Test Scoring Monkeys: Test Scoring MonkeysIt's been less than a month since Motoko Rich traveled to San Antonio to hear a Pearson test scoring supervisor explain that scoring the tests is like making a Big Mac. Now Claudio Sanchez has made the same journey for NPR, and the results are no more flattering for Pearson than those from Rich's jaunt.The center uses scorers from many walk
With A Brooklyn Accent: Where Were You Hillary?
With A Brooklyn Accent: Where Were You Hillary?: Where Were You Hillary?When 168 schools were closed in New York City, and more than fifty in Chicago and PhiladelphiaWhen New Orleans became an all charter districtWhen recess became test prep in high poverty schools throughout the nation and arts, music and sports were pushed asideWhen school libraries were closed or became places where students to
To Endorse or Not Endorse — That is the Question | Public Schools Central
To Endorse or Not Endorse — That is the Question | Public Schools Central: To Endorse or Not Endorse — That is the Question This has been an interesting few days in education reform.  First the Network for Public Education (NPE) published their qualified endorsement for the ESEA/NCLB reauthorization package entitled the Every Child Achieves Act (ECAA).  Then, the AFT announced their endorsement of
Hillary Clinton Picks Up Teachers' Union Endorsement - First Draft. Political News, Now. - The New York Times
Hillary Clinton Picks Up Teachers' Union Endorsement - First Draft. Political News, Now. - The New York Times: Hillary Clinton Picks Up Teachers’ Union EndorsementHillary Rodham Clinton, received an endorsement from the American Federation of Teachers on Saturday. Mrs. Clinton with Randi Weingarten, the president of the teachers'  union, in New York in 2003.Credit Louis Lanzano/Associated PressA m

YESTERDAY

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Arne Duncan and NCLB; Public Education Needs a Break from Both
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Arne Duncan and NCLB; Public Education Needs a Break from Both: Arne Duncan and NCLB; Public Education Needs a Break from BothOne of the big complaints about NCLB was that it gave the federal government a much larger role in public education beyond mere oversight and reporting.  It gave them a very big stick to use on districts and states.  (Bringing in RTtT was mo
Why UOO Opposes ESEA (ECAA) and Supports the Necessity of Revolution - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform
Why UOO Opposes ESEA (ECAA) and Supports the Necessity of Revolution - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform: Why UOO Opposes ESEA (ECAA) and Supports the Necessity of Revolution“The revolt against any kind of oppression and injustice (requires the) rejection of any palliatives or halfway measures” (Chris Hedges, Wages of Rebellion, 2015)The revising, reauthorizing, and wr
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 7/11/15
SPECIAL NITE CAP CORPORATE ED REFORMAmerican Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for President | American Federation of TeachersAmerican Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for President | American Federation of Teachers: American Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for PresidentWASHINGTON—On Saturday, the executive council of the American Federation of Teachers
American Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for President | American Federation of Teachers
American Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for President | American Federation of Teachers: American Federation of Teachers Endorses Hillary Clinton for PresidentWASHINGTON—On Saturday, the executive council of the American Federation of Teachers voted overwhelmingly to endorse Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary for president of the United States. The AFT is the first national