CURMUDGUCATION: Real Teacher Accountability : Real Teacher Accountability Reformsters repeatedly circle back around to the question of teacher accountability. If we give up evaluation system and test-based data and methods for turning professional development into a beautiful array of mini-competency-badges, they worry, how will we ever hold teachers accountable for doing a good job? How will tax
Donald Trump’s Cabinet: White Males Abound. | deutsch29 : Donald Trump’s Cabinet: White Males Abound. In 2017, America will have a white male president and a white male vice president. To date, President-elect Donald Trump has selected five members of his cabinet, all of whom are white males. What I have noticed about the list of individuals Trump is reportedly vetting for cabinet positions (see
Politics Are Always At Play In Our Classrooms | The Jose Vilson : Politics Are Always At Play In Our Classrooms On the Wednesday after Election Day 2016, I told myself to maintain my composure. For three weeks, I heard my mostly South and Central American students excoriate the President-Elect for his racist, sexist, xenophobic, Islamophobic comments over the last year. My students call out malic
Seeking common ground with charter critic Diane Ravitch - The Washington Post : Seeking common ground with charter critic Diane Ravitch I have been exchanging emails with Diane Ravitch , the clearest voice in the movement to reverse American emphasis on raising school achievement no matter what. She is a brilliant historian and essayist, even if she does not share my fondness for this century’s b
Making America Great Again! Step by Step | Bill Ayers : Making America Great Again! Step by Step Step 1: Donald Trump appointed Steve Bannon to be his chief strategist and Senior Counselor. Bannon was formerly the head of Beitbart News, the premier platform for the alt-right movement, a white nationalist, nativist, anti-“political correctness,” xenophobic, antisemitic, homophobic, antifeminist, I
The “Hamilton” statement: Rude? Hardly. Courageous? Definitely. | : The “Hamilton” statement: Rude? Hardly. Courageous? Definitely. This is the statement read by actor Brandon Victor Dixon to Mike Pence on behalf of the cast and creators of “Hamilton–a statement denounced by Donald Trump as rude and a harassment. Judge for yourself: “We have a guest in the audience this evening. Vice President-el
Jersey Jazzman: (Some) Reformsters Normalize Trump: Part II : (Some) Reformsters Normalize Trump: Part II You can count on Eva Moskowitz to never miss an opportunity to do one of two things: 1) Promote her brand . 2) Hobnob with the wealthy . So there was no way she was going to pass up this two-fer : Charter leader Eva Moskowitz hosted Ivanka Trump for a personal tour of a Harlem Success Academy
Pete Tucker: The Coverups of the Rhee-Henderson Era in DC | Diane Ravitch's blog : Pete Tucker: The Coverups of the Rhee-Henderson Era in DC Pete Tucker, an independent journal is in DC,criticizes The Washington Post for its failure to cover the scandals of the Rhee-Henderson era. http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_582f468ce4b08c963e343e70 Tucker writes in HuffingtonPost that the Washington Post h
“It is NOT your right to despair.” | Reclaim Reform : “It is NOT your right to despair.” The despair we are experiencing with a sociopath, billionaire as the unelected President of the United States who is declared President by the Electoral College is palpable. Naming sociopaths of his ilk to his Cabinet is also enough to throw us into despair. Bernie Sanders gives us all his sage advice, advice
Bill Gates and the Medal of Freedom: Obama Officially Recognizes the Right of the Rich to Impose Public Policy | Raginghorseblog : Bill Gates and the Medal of Freedom: Obama Officially Recognizes the Right of the Rich to Impose Public Policy As if to officially acknowledge the insidious and tacit transformation of the remnants of democracy to not so subtle oligarchy, the Obama administration has
How Hungry Kids Will Fare Under Trump | Civil Eats : How Hungry Kids Will Fare Under Trump President Donald Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress will likely walk back most of the progress made on school food and nutrition programs in recent years. In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s surprise victory on Tuesday, all the things I’d planned to write about this week—a review of a new cookbook,
What It's Like Teaching '1984' After Trump's Election - The Atlantic : Teaching 1984 in 2016 Every year, one high-school educator converts his classroom into a totalitarian state to teach George Orwell’s book. This year, the lesson feels different. My classroom becomes a totalitarian state every school year toward the end of October. In preparation for teaching 1984 to seniors, I announce the lau
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Yikes, There's Snow Edition (11/20) : CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI As always, share the originals for anything here that you like. And in the meantime, let it snow. TFA Wants My Money: Why I Said No Perhaps Kevin Huffman shouldn't have sent his fund-raising letter to one of the TFA alumni who published a book about the abusive scamming of TFA Pat and Fred Cody's American Story: Re
More lawsuits against public education coming from charter school industry - Wait What? : More lawsuits against public education coming from charter school industry In addition to spending tens of millions on campaign contributions and lobbying, the charter school industry is fond of bringing lawsuits in their never-ending effort to privatize public education in the United States. Now the corpora
Moskowitz and Rhee: A Teacher’s Viewpoint : Moskowitz and Rhee: A Teacher’s Viewpoint Many educators and parents have expressed concerns about Eva Moskowitz or Michelle Rhee becoming Secretary of Education. Moskowitz has declined the post, but Ivanka Trump visited her charter school, and some fear she is still being courted. They seem to value her input. From a teacher’s viewpoint, I wanted to do
Russ on Reading: What Is Research-Based Instruction? : What Is Research-Based Instruction? Did you ever wonder about the term "research-based"? We all want to make sure our instruction is research-based. But every commercial program for reading instruction on the market advertises itself as research-based and professional developers always preface their talks by saying their recommendations are r
Badass Teachers Association : Dear Tired Teacher November 18, 2016 Andi Schiappacasse Originally posted here https://firethejudge.com/2016/11/18/dear-tired-teacher/ Dear Tired Teacher, I want you to know I see you. I mean I really, REALLY SEE YOU. I see the look in your eyes in the morning when you greet me in the hallway. Your voice and tone are pleasant but your eyes? Oh, your eyes reveal how t
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 11/19/16 Featured Post Update: Trump camp calls off meeting with state school chiefs from across U.S. Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson joins first lady Michelle Rhee during Donald
