CORPORATE ED REFORM
LA Times Outdoes Its Broad Worship | Diane Ravitch's blog
LA Times Outdoes Its Broad Worship | Diane Ravitch's blog: LA Times Outdoes Its Broad WorshipThe Los Angeles Times has a love affair with the privatization of public schools; it is wild about the idea of outsourcing control of students and funding to private management. Just a few days ago, the LAUSD surprised everyone by voting 7-0 to reject billionaire Eli Broad’s plan to take control of half th
Seattle Schools Community Forum: More Ed Reformers (Sigh)
Seattle Schools Community Forum: More Ed Reformers (Sigh): More Ed Reformers (Sigh)But this time next year, we will have a new president and if it's not a Democrat, a Republican would probably flip the table on the Department of Education. It would be hard to know how far-reaching a Republican president would go in revamping public education but you'd notice the change. But Republicans love char
Friedrichs Case (First Amendment Rights and Union Fees): Some Thoughts | deutsch29
Friedrichs Case (First Amendment Rights and Union Fees): Some Thoughts | deutsch29: Friedrichs Case (First Amendment Rights and Union Fees): Some ThoughtsThere has been a lot in the news lately regarding the Friedrichs case, which is now before the US Supreme Court. In this January 12, 2016, article inTruthdig, journalist Bill Blum offers the following background and observations:Argued before the
United Way to Parents: Give Us Your Gold – Save Maine Schools
United Way to Parents: Give Us Your Gold – Save Maine Schools: United Way to Parents: Give Us Your GoldIf you haven’t heard yet, data is the new gold, and next-gen ed reformers can’t wait to get their hands on as much of it as they can.Digital and online learning providers want this gold to “personalize” their computerized instruction; Wall Street wants it to prove that their social impact bonds a
How Measurement Fails Doctors and Teachers - The New York Times
How Measurement Fails Doctors and Teachers - The New York Times: How Measurement Fails Doctors and TeachersTWO of our most vital industries, health care and education, have become increasingly subjected to metrics and measurements. Of course, we need to hold professionals accountable. But the focus on numbers has gone too far. We’re hitting the targets, but missing the point.Through the 20th centu
BATs Legislative Team Weekly Update - Badass Teachers Association
Badass Teachers Association: BATs Legislative Team Weekly UpdateFEDERAL NEWSBATs testify at the USDOE on Title 1 of ESSA - Look here for their testimonyHere is the entire testimony provided to USDOE this past Monday.Jamy Brice Hyde 1:16:23Julie Borst 55:00Marla Kilfoyle 3:20:18Melissa Love Light Tomlinson 4:55:32CA BAT Sandy Goodwick is scheduled to speak in the California hearings on Tuesday, Jan
Detroit Teachers Want You to See These Disturbing Photos of Their Toxic Schools
Detroit Teachers Want You to See These Disturbing Photos of Their Toxic Schools: Detroit’s Teachers Want You to See These Disturbing Photos of Their Toxic SchoolsMushrooms, black mold, fecal matter, dead rodents, no heat. Detroit’s schools are just as toxic as Flint’s water.Detroit’s students are trying to learn while breathing in black mold and sitting in classrooms filled with buckets catching t
CURMUDGUCATION: Gentleness in the Classroom
CURMUDGUCATION: Gentleness in the Classroom: Gentleness in the ClassroomThere are three articles tabbed side-by-side on my browser this morning, and both deal in their own way with classroom management.The first is by Michael Linsin, a classroom management guru out of San Diego. He has apparently taught for twenty-five years at just about every level. His piece, which has been traveling around the
Martin Luther King: The problem with ‘so-called educated people’ - The Washington Post
Martin Luther King: The problem with ‘so-called educated people’ - The Washington Post: Martin Luther King: The problem with ‘so-called educated people’In this July 3, 1964 photo, U.S. President Lyndon Johnson (l) shakes hands with civil rights leader Martin Luther KIng (c) after handing him a pen during the ceremonies for the signing of the civil rights bill at the White House. Martin Luther King
Teacher: Kids are judged by their test scores — not by their character - The Washington Post
Teacher: Kids are judged by their test scores — not by their character - The Washington Post: Teacher: Kids are judged by their test scores — not by their characterIt has become a common refrain among school reformers that annual standardized testing equals civil rights. In the last few years, some civil rights groups have sided with those reformers who see standardized tests as a singularly legi
Opt-Out Activists Aim To Build On Momentum In States | PopularResistance.Org
Opt-Out Activists Aim To Build On Momentum In States | PopularResistance.Org: Opt-Out Activists Aim To Build On Momentum In StatesAbove: Jessie Rothenberg, age 8, holds a sign while sitting on her father’s shoulders while protesting Gov. Cuomo’s education policies in Park Slope, Brooklyn, in March. Photo by STEPHANIE KEITH FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS.Activists driving the resistance to state exams are
IS LAUSD'S NEW SUPERINTENDENT MICHELLE KING JUST THE LATEST VENDOR VASSAL? - Perdaily.com
IS LAUSD'S NEW SUPERINTENDENT MICHELLE KING JUST THE LATEST VENDOR VASSAL? - Perdaily.com: IS LAUSD'S NEW SUPERINTENDENT MICHELLE KING JUST THE LATEST VENDOR VASSAL?(Mensaje se repite en Español)LAUSD is a business that for generations has been more concerned with the well being of its exclusive "agreed vendors" of goods and services than it has been for the successful formation of its s
Problems with PSAT score delivery sparks anger at College Board - The Washington Post
Problems with PSAT score delivery sparks anger at College Board - The Washington Post: Problems with PSAT score delivery sparks anger at College BoardThe College Board’s new online system to deliver test scores has, to be charitable, not gone as well as planned, with delays and other complications with PSAT/NMSQT results angering counselors and students and raising questions about how well it will
Los Angeles Charter Teachers Say Their Administration Is Aggressively Trying To Bust Their Union - Working In These Times
Los Angeles Charter Teachers Say Their Administration Is Aggressively Trying To Bust Their Union - Working In These Times: Los Angeles Charter Teachers Say Their Administration Is Aggressively Trying To Bust Their UnionA formerly low-profile union organizing campaign by teachers at the largest charter school operation in Los Angeles is emerging into the public spotlight as the charter operator is
Marie Corfield: Study Commission Report Pt. 2: Big Brother and The Brainwashing of NJ
Marie Corfield: Study Commission Report Pt. 2: Big Brother and The Brainwashing of NJ: Study Commission Report Pt. 2: Big Brother and The Brainwashing of NJStanley Tucci in The Devil Wears PradaPart 1 of this as-yet-to-be-determined-part series on the final report of the Study Commission on the Use of Student Assessments in New Jersey focused on the Commission's members, who the DOE should partner
Further Apart in Public Schools than Ever Before
Further Apart in Public Schools than Ever Before: Further Apart in Public Schools than Ever Before In honor of Martin Luther King, I would like to revisit a post I did about public schools and race relations after I first started blogging. A democratic public school system has great potential to bring children of all colors and from every background together. This would ultimately create a better
Local charter school king hit with felony | SanDiegoUnionTribune.com
Former San Diego County superintendent charged with felony | SanDiegoUnionTribune.com: Local charter school king hit with felonyA former San Diego County superintendent who approved charter schools that later hired his consulting firm was arraigned Friday in San Diego Superior Court on one felony count of conflict of interest, according to the San Diego district attorney’s office.The allegation fa
High Stakes Testing Doesn’t Protect Civil Rights – It Violates Them | gadflyonthewallblog
High Stakes Testing Doesn’t Protect Civil Rights – It Violates Them | gadflyonthewallblog: High Stakes Testing Doesn’t Protect Civil Rights – It Violates Them“Daddy, I know who that is!”“Who is it?”“That’s Martin Luther King.”“That’s right, Baby! Who was he?”“We saw a movie about him today in school. He had a dream.”Thus began a fascinating conversation I had with my seven-year-old daughter a few
Rejecting False Claims about Education: A Primer for Journalists – the becoming radical
Rejecting False Claims about Education: A Primer for Journalists – the becoming radical: Rejecting False Claims about Education: A Primer for JournalistsOne thing (but not the only thing) I have learned about doing public work as an academic is that I am often positioned as the responder, and thus criticizing someone else’s claim. The result is that many are quick to refute my criticism as just th
EXPERIENCE MATTERS Guest Post: Bernie Keller | DCGEducator: Doing The Right Thing
EXPERIENCE MATTERS Guest Post: Bernie Keller | DCGEducator: Doing The Right Thing: EXPERIENCE MATTERS Guest Post: Bernie KellerIn June 2015, I had the opportunity to attend the Big Apple awards which recognizes teachers who have demonstrated excellence. In point of full disclosure, I was invited by one of the recipients of the award, Rick Ouimet. Having had the chance to teach with Mr. Ouimet at S
Poetic Justice writes “Be Careful Brethren” – A Message About Education from Martin Luther King Jr. - Wait What?
Poetic Justice writes “Be Careful Brethren” – A Message About Education from Martin Luther King Jr. - Wait What?: Poetic Justice writes “Be Careful Brethren” – A Message About Education from Martin Luther King Jr.Poetic Justice is the blog of a Connecticut educator, poet and fellow education advocate and blogger. In honor of Martin Luther King’s birthday, she provides us with King’s words – “The
CURMUDGUCATION: AL: RAISE teachers? Raze teachers.
CURMUDGUCATION: AL: RAISE teachers? Raze teachers.: AL: RAISE teachers? Raze teachersWould you be willing to bet your entire teaching career that you will never have students who score low on the Big Standardized Test? Would you take the bet for a little bit more money?Alabama is hoping there are people who will take that bet, as their legislature rolls out theRewarding Advancement in Instruction
The article on the unions and opt out that they wouldn’t print. | Fred Klonsky
The article on the unions and opt out that they wouldn’t print. | Fred Klonsky: The article on the unions and opt out that they wouldn’t print.The balancing act between defending the Common Core State Standards and supporting their member’s concerns about the amount of standardized assessments and national testing has been a difficult trick for both the American Federation of Teachers and the larg
Russ on Reading: New Jersey Study Commission on Testing: Keep Weighing the Pig
Russ on Reading: New Jersey Study Commission on Testing: Keep Weighing the Pig: New Jersey Study Commission on Testing: Keep Weighing the Pigew Jersey's Study Commission on the Use of Student Assessments issued its report this week after a year and a half of deliberations. The commission was ostensibly formed to look into over-testing in New Jersey schools, but anyone who follows New Jersey politi
Yearning to Breathe Free | Randi Weingarten
Yearning to Breathe Free | Randi Weingarten:Yearning to Breathe FreeI recently had the thrill of seeing the Broadway musical Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda's brilliant mashup of history and hip-hop. Alexander Hamilton's story, of an impoverished youth immigrating to America and making his mark on his new country, is both remarkable and relatable. And it's a reminder that our country has always been,
Your guidance counselor may one day be a robot
Your guidance counselor may one day be a robot: Your guidance counselor may one day be a robotIf there’s one common enemy among students, it just might be the dreaded guidance counselor, who despite that title, often seem to provide less good advice than expected. My own, as it happens, used the wrong name in a college recommendation letter — and so maybe it’s a good thing that IBM and the Univers
3 Troubling Ways the Charter School Boom Is Like the Subprime Mortgage Crisis | Mother Jones
3 Troubling Ways the Charter School Boom Is Like the Subprime Mortgage Crisis | Mother Jones: 3 Troubling Ways the Charter School Boom Is Like the Subprime Mortgage Crisis"It's just a long-forming bubble," says the co-author of a new study.Acting US Secretary of Education John King has called charter schools "good laboratories for innovation." It's that kind of language that's
Charter-schools sponsors uneasy over Ohio’s new evaluations | The Columbus Dispatch
Charter-schools sponsors uneasy over Ohio’s new evaluations | The Columbus Dispatch:Charter-schools sponsors uneasy over Ohio’s new evaluationsSome charter-school advocates already are criticizing academic requirements and questioning how much Ohioans will learn from the results of new evaluations of charter sponsors coming this year.The sponsor evaluations were delayed last year after a top Depar
Obama Declares Emergency for Michigan City's Water
Obama Declares Emergency for Michigan City's Water: Obama Declares Emergency for Michigan City's WaterPresident Barack Obama declared a state of emergency Saturday for the northern state of Michigan, freeing up money for federal aid for the city of Flint. Residents have been drinking and bathing in lead-contaminated water for almost two years, and children are testing with high levels of lead in t
Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association and Why States Are Fighting for Strong Public-Sector Unions - The Atlantic
Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association and Why States Are Fighting for Strong Public-Sector Unions - The Atlantic:Why Some States Want Strong Public-Sector UnionsHaving a powerful partner on the other side of the bargaining table can make for happier workplaces and better public services.An estimated 15,000 teachers, parents, and other supporters encircle City Hall in New York during a mass
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Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 1/16/15
CORPORATE ED REFORMJersey Jazzman: Only You Can Prevent Charter CheerleadingJersey Jazzman: Only You Can Prevent Charter Cheerleading: Only You Can Prevent Charter CheerleadingWhen I want some shallow charter school cheerleading, I go straight to Campbell Brown's The 74 Million. With the possible exception of Education Post, you'll not find a more reliable source of credulous, unconditional charte
