Latest News and Comment from Education

Saturday, January 23, 2016

Why Didn’t PARCC Issue a Press Release About Skandera as Chair? | deutsch29

Why Didn’t PARCC Issue a Press Release About Skandera as Chair? | deutsch29:

Why Didn’t PARCC Issue a Press Release About Skandera as Chair?


David Connerty-Marin is the communications director for the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).  That’s his title on the PARCC web page. It is also his title according to his Linkedin bio and his Twitter page.
connerty-marin-e1453595486381 
 David Connerty-Marin
However, it seems that Connerty-Marin chose not to communicate a major change in the running of PARCC: the change in PARCC chair.
Up until November 2015, the PARCC chair was Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester.
Chester is no longer PARCC chair.
New Mexico Secretary of Education Hanna Skandera is now PARCC chair.
And for some reason, PARCC communications director Connerty-Marin chose not to communicate this change. It is not mentioned on the PARCC Press Release page.
Also, the @PARCCPlace page mysteriously omits the change in the PARCC chair as well as the issue of Massachusetts board of ed choosing to create a MCAS-PARCC hybrid. Unlike the PARCC press release page, @PARCCPlace has had activity up to January 21, 2016. And like the PARCC press release page, @PARCCPlace includes an announcement of Louisiana’s, uh, “choosing” PARCC for “nearly half its test questions” (note: the 2015 La. legislature actually put a cap on the percentage of PARCC questions: 49 percent):


As one continues scrolling though November and December 2015 tweets @PARCCPlace, no mention of Massachusetts and its MCAS-PARCC hybrid, in the news on November 17, 2015, or the change from Chester to Skandera as PARCC chair– a decision in a November 12, 2015, PARCC press release.
A mystery.
On January 19, 2016, I was surprised to see that Skandera had replaced Chester as PARCC chair. I noticed that PARCC communications director Connerty-Marin had issued no press release– neither about Chester’s resigning as PARCC chair nor Why Didn’t PARCC Issue a Press Release About Skandera as Chair? | deutsch29:

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 1/22/15



CORPORATE ED REFORM






Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig
Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig: Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod.Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders debate in Charleston, S.C. (Mic Smith / AP)Every major union or progressive group that let its members decide the organiza
CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!
CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!: CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!The issue of Competency-Based Education is very much in the news, so I thought I would revive this post.Competency-Based Education (CBE) is being promoted as the way to “personalize” education, but it is a cold impersonal method of teaching on the computer. It fails to teach
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report: Annual Equitable Access ReportIt's January again and therefore time for another annual report on Equitable Access.This report is required by Board Policy 2200 which delegates authority for program placement to the Superintendent, but sets the criteria for program placement and requires an annual report to allow the Board the opportun
Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive
Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive: Facing the Music in FlintThe Flint water crisis and the poisoning of black children is yet another example of violence waged against African-Americans each and every day.Sometimes, the crimes take the form of bullets (from police or otherwise) riddling innocent black bodies. Other times, the acts of torture are protracted, prolonged and gradual — like Fl
Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times
Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times: Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency ManagersProtesters in Detroit on Wednesday held signs depicting Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan and Darnell Earley, the new emergency manager for the city’s public schools. Critics say the appointment of emergency managers by the state disenfranchises local voters. Credit Laura McDer
Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California
Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California: Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in CaliforniaWhen it is becoming clear that creativity and innovation are the benchmarks of the new, global, knowledge economy, California is emerging as a leader in the effort to reinvent education.Last year, the California Arts Council received a one-time $5 million increase in its 2014-15 budget, bringi
NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015 Public Survey for ​Standards, Curriculum, and Testing- NYS Allies for Public Education
NYS ALLIES for Public Education - NYS Allies for Public Education:NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015Public Survey for ​Standards, Curriculum, and TestingNYS Test Refusal LetterNYSAPE Response to USDOE Funding ThreatsSit & Stare & Verbal Refusal AdvisoryRebuttals to Misinformation from School DistrictsPublic service announcement ON CBS RADIOWe are supporters of Public Education who believe
Hoosier Voices For Public Education: "Twitter Storm" Supporting Public Education
HOOSIER VOICES FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATIONIts time for a PUBLIC ED support "Twitter Storm" in light of the Institute for Quality Education's upcoming Quality Education Celebration, celebrating National School Choice Week by celebrating school choice options in Indiana, being held in the
Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate
Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate: Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SATConnecticut’s political and educational leaders have sold us a bill of goods with the new SAT. Last spring the legislature and the State Board of Education hastily decided to replace the 11th-grade SBAC with the newly designed SAT. The move was in response to outcry about the invalidity of the SBAC and a
CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem
CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem: The Non-White Teacher ProblemAnd here comes yet an other piece of research to add to the stack.New research from Jason A. Grissom and Christopher Redding looked for new information to explain the underrepresentation of students of color in gifted programs. It's complicated problem, but the researchers came up with one answer-- white teachers are far l
EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5 | Diane Ravitch's blog
EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5 | Diane Ravitch's blog: EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5EXCLUSIVE: Lamar Alexander’s Staff Explains ESSA: PART 1 | Diane Ravitch's blog http://bit.ly/1QlmO8KEXCLUSIVE: Senator Alexander’s Staff: ESSA and Teacher Evaluation, Part 2 | Diane Ravitch's blog http://bit.ly/1RzT9KjEXCLUSIVE: What Does ESSA Say About Bottom 5% of Schools: Part 3 |
With A Brooklyn Accent: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York State
With A Brooklyn Accent: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York State: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York StateOne of the reasons we need to have Betty Rosa as the next Regents Chair in New York State is because she can help shine a light on the damage the whole "Receivership Schools" program is doing to education in the state. The damage is not only being
Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’ - The Washington Post
Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’ - The Washington Post: Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’Burton International Academy computer advanced teacher Denice McGee, bottom left, holds a sign as she and other protesters wait to cross the street Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in Detroit. Most of Detroit’s public schools closed for the day on Wednesday due t
Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold Back
Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold Back: Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold BackEducation in America is an evolving thing: After 14 years of No Child Left Behind, President Obama replaced the much-loathed, standardized, test-heavy law with one that allows states to set their own benchmarks and standards. Now it looks like Common Core will soon follow NCLB into t
How Gifted Education Fuels Injustices - Higher Education
How Gifted Education Fuels Injustices - Higher Education: How Gifted Education Fuels InjusticesAfter the Supreme Court’s second hearing with the Fisher vs. UT-Austin case almost two weeks ago, debates about affirmative action and nature vs. nurture were revived.“There are those who contend that it does not benefit African-Americans to get them into the University of Texas where they do not do well
Three questions to ask about the business to-do list for Sacramento mayoral candidates - Sacramento Business Journal
Three questions to ask about the business to-do list for Sacramento mayoral candidates - Sacramento Business Journal: Three big questions about the mayoral to-do listSeveral leaders of Sacramento’s business community released a pro-growth manifesto this week to the candidates running for Sacramento mayor. The document, spelling out goals for making the city more prosperous and business-friendly, r
NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schools : Lincoln, NE Journal Star
NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schools : Lincoln, NE Journal Star: NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schoolsA majority of Nebraskans don’t think public tax dollars should pay for charter schools, a Nebraska State Education Association poll shows.The poll, conducted by Research Associates for the NSEA, asked 900 Nebraskans equally divided among the thr
Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter Network
Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter Network: Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter NetworkSuccess Academy is New York City's largest charter school network. About 11,000 children attend its thirty-six schools. The network receives federal and state funding and free space from New York City for all of its schools. But apparently it also discriminates
Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed results
Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed results: Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed resultsAttentive kindergarten students sit at a classroom table with Jeff Castleberry on a mid-week morning as he rolls dice and dabs spots for a Do-A-Dot Art math assignment.One of the highlights each school day for the Pensacola Beach Elementary School principal is teaching math to Jennifer Neal’
Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's Water
Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's Water: Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's WaterThe city's leaders didn't start this mess At his annual State of the State address on Tuesday, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) accepted blame for the water crisis in Flint and offered an explanation for how it started. "This crisis began in the spring of 2013, when the F

YESTERDAY

What makes a good teacher? | Johnathan Chase | LinkedIn
What makes a good teacher? | Johnathan Chase | LinkedIn: What makes a good teacher?"We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we
Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of Bias - The New York Times
Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of Bias - The New York Times: Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of BiasEva S. Moskowitz defended her Success Academy charter schools on Friday, two days after a group of parents filed a federal complaint accusing the network of discriminating against students with disabilities.The complaint, which was filed on Wednesday
State to reimburse costs related to Common Core tests | EdSource
State to reimburse costs related to Common Core tests | EdSource:State to reimburse costs related to Common Core testsSchool districts in California may get a new influx of money to reimburse as much as $600 million in estimated costs related to the administration of mandated tests, based on a state commission’s decision Friday.The Commission on State Mandates found that required Internet access,
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Talking about Race
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Talking about Race: Talking about RaceA number of events /reports have crossed my path in the last couple of weeks and I thought it worth a thread.Next Saturday, January 30th,  there will be an Education Roundtable to discuss the impacts of student discipline on communities of color.   Among the groups involed there are The Washington State Commission on African Am
Activism Is Good Teaching • Reclaiming the profession
Activism Is Good Teaching • Reclaiming the profession: Activism Is Good TeachingReclaiming the profession It was a sunny afternoon in May 2015. Several dozen Albuquerque Public School (APS) teachers gathered around a metal garbage can outside district headquarters just a few minutes before the final school board meeting of the year. As local news cameras rolled, the teachers came forward one by on
Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed | pro public ed
Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed | pro public ed: Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed“State’s rights” Court begins dismantling of state laws Teachers rally as the Supreme Court hears Friedrichs oral arguments IN his vitriolic dissent last June from the Supreme Court’s same-sex marriage decision, Justice Antonin Scalia accused the majority of having carried out a “judicial pu
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 1/22/15
CORPORATE ED REFORMPerhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum. | Reclaim ReformPerhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum. | Reclaim Reform: Perhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum.Libraries for the living seem much more valuable than a mausoleum for one past political leader.The Pyramid at Giza is indeed impressiv