Do Americans Hate Teachers, Or are they Duped by Teach for America? : Do Americans Hate Teachers, Or are they Duped by Teach for America? With more than $75 million coming in from government at last count and another $220 million from the philanthropic community, we should be seeing more evidence of long-term student gains and far more alumni continuing their impassioned work in the classroom. Pa
Hope of a Black - Latino Educator (Evolution) | The Jose Vilson : Hope of a Black - Latino Educator (Evolution) Come here. Please take a seat with me and let’s talk about evolution. Your morning routine hasn’t changed in years. You roll swiftly out of bed, but your eyes have barely opened yet. You’re thinking about your students before you’re done brushing your teeth. You’re out the door before t
2 Democrats run for Washington state education chief | OregonLive.com : 2 Democrats run for Washington state education chief SPOKANE — Randy Dorn is stepping down after eight years as state superintendent of public instruction, and two Democrats are vying to replace him as head of Washington's K-12 public education system. The nonpartisan job pays $132,000 a year and oversees about $9 billion in
There is No Such Thing as Social Promotion - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher : There is No Such Thing as Social Promotion Alternate title: Third Grade Flunk Club Rears Its Ugly Head. Again. It seems that the promoters of "kids who fail have to be smacked upside the head with their shortcomings" have hit on a recycled tactical meme every educator is familiar with: usin
ALEC is Excited About the New Testing Provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), so is iNACOL | Seattle Education : ALEC is Excited About the New Testing Provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), so is iNACOL Personally, whenever a bill in Washington D.C. is praised for its bipartisan nature – I get worried. The common ground discovered by Democrats and Republicans, usually c
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Readings from the week (9/25) : ICYMI: Readings from the week (9/25) As always, remember to share and spread the word. Everyone can be an amplifier. Don't Believe the Charter School Hype Charles Pierce is one mainstream journalist who has taken up the cause of public ed and given reformsters some serious grief. Here's his take on the charter push in Massachusetts Preaching
Hillary Clinton's plan for America's students | 89.3 KPCC : Clinton's plan to Save Public Education / Trump's Plan to Destroy It Hillary Clinton's plan for America's students For nearly as long as she's been in the public eye, Hillary Clinton has counted the well-being of children among her defining causes — from the bestselling 1996 book (and enduring cliche) It Takes A Village to her advocacy f
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all : Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all Leonie Haimson: How DFER Hijacked Public Education 6 by dianeravitch / 45min This post was written in 2014, but it remains relevant today. DFER (Democrats for Education Reform) raises large sums of money from hedge fund managers to promote charter schools. The free
Schools Matter: How Unions Came to Support ESSA : Schools Matter: How Unions Came to Support ESSA We know that much of the rationale for the NEA/AFT/NPE support of ESSA comes from the need to support the Clinton agenda, which is, of course, the Gates agenda , the Broad agenda, etc. But long before Hillary became Wall Street's most recent neolib darling, however, there were other reasons for AFT/N
The Tyranny of Philanthrocapitalism | Diane Ravitch's blog : The Tyranny of Philanthrocapitalism Antonio Olmedo writes here about the new undemocratic, unaccountable Philanthrocapitalism, as embodied by the Gates Foundation: In 2008, in their Ode to philanthrocapitalism, Bishop and Green claimed that philanthrocapitalists are “hyperagents who have the capacity to do some essential things far bett
Russ on Reading: Teaching Struggling Readers: Focus on Meaning : Teaching Struggling Readers: Focus on Meaning Russ Walsh Why do we read? Of course, you will say we read for pleasure and we read for information and perhaps even we read to become better writers and thinkers. In order to enjoy and learn from reading we must make sense of the words on the printed page. This is true of all readers. T
Broad, Walton, and Their LA-based Nonprofit, Great Public Schools Now | deutsch29 : Broad, Walton, and Their LA-based Nonprofit, Great Public Schools Now Los Angeles is the focus of a major billionaire-funded, astroturf effort to expand the charter sector. And where there is a major market-driven reform push, a new, billionaire-funded nonprofit is often on the horizon. So it is with the 2015-crea
As American Education Collapses, Democracy’s Foundation Shakes - The Daily Beast : As American Education Collapses, Democracy’s Foundation Shakes And we are here as on a darkling plain Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight, Where ignorant armies clash by night. Deeply depressed by the rise of Donald Trump and fearful for our nation’s future, I recently found myself reciting the last l
Hitting Kevin Johnson with a pie won’t help the homeless | The Sacramento Bee : KJ-Marcos Breton Bromance: Hitting Kevin Johnson with a pie won’t help the homeless Since Colin Kaepernick began his now-famous protest against police brutality by refusing to stand during “The Star Spangled Banner,” I have been thinking more broadly about ways people express discontent with the status quo. Protests a
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 9/24/16 Featured Post Students Are Pulling a Kaepernick All Over America — and Being Threatened for It CURMUDGUCATION: Essential Reading for Education Activists (and Wonks) by mike simpson / 10min CURMUDGUCATION: Essential Reading for Education Activists (and Wonks) : Essential Reading for Education Activists (and Wonks) Corporate, privatized, market-dri
