Meet the Heroes of Public Education Who Joined our NPE Action Board of Directors - NPE Action Meet the Heroes of Public Education Who Joined our NPE Action Board of Directors NPE Action is delighted to announce that three, strong pro-public advocates have joined the NPE Action Board of Directors. We are pleased to welcome Sue Legg of Florida, Dountonia Batts of Indianapolis and Dan Greenberg of O
Los Angeles Teachers Set to Strike on Monday: What You Need to Know | Schott Foundation for Public Education Los Angeles Teachers Set to Strike on Monday: What You Need to Know More than 30,000 teachers at the Los Angeles Unified School District — the second-largest school district in the country after New York City — are about to go on strike. Support for L.A. teachers has been pouring in from a
When You Give a Teacher a Gun… | Eclectablog When You Give a Teacher a Gun… Here are just a few of the most troubling excerpts from a very disturbing recent article on arming teachers, presented without comment: “When she started her career, Pam’s salary was $23,000. (“If I ever see $55,000, I’ll be 105 years old,” she says, laughing.) The district is covering her hotel and ammunition for trainin
L.A. teachers join U.S. movement against underfunded schools L.A. teachers join U.S. movement against underfunded schools "What you’re seeing is a national phenomenon, and it’s been building for decades," said National Education Assn. president Lily Eskelsen García. Jennifer Villaryo looked at the young woman through smudged spectacles and gave her this advice: "Don't get bogged down in the party
New Jersey Court Rules Against PARCC for Testing High School Proficiency | deutsch29 New Jersey Court Rules Against PARCC for Testing High School Proficiency The New Jersey Department of Education (DOE) has run awry of its own proficiency testing statutes in trying to use PARCC tests for that purpose. Such is the determination of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, according to
Public Shaming: A Scarlet Letter – Live Long and Prosper Public Shaming: A Scarlet Letter Fear blocks learning. Teachers who know this no longer use dunce caps. They don’t put test grades on the class bulletin board or punish the lowest achieving students for not succeeding. Studies involving the neurological impact of shaming and frustration show that children need to feel safe in order to maxim
Group: 1 in 5 charter schools not doing well enough to stay open | The Seattle Times Group: 1 in 5 charter schools not doing well enough to stay open Originally published November 28, 2012 at 8:03 pm Updated November 28, 2012 at 10:41 pm A group that oversees more than half of the nation's 5,600 charter schools said as many as one in five U.S. charter schools should be shut down because of poor a
'A standoff over the future of public education': L.A. teachers ready to strike - Education Votes ‘A standoff over the future of public education’: L.A. teachers ready to strike By Tim Walker/Photo: Joe Brusky Anyone who may have been under the impression that the #RedforEd movement was just a “2018 story” better brace themselves. Thirty-three thousand educators in Los Angeles Unified School Dist
10 Education Policy Wins That Give Us Hope in 2019 | Schott Foundation for Public Education 10 Education Policy Wins That Give Us Hope in 2019 2018 was a pivotal year in the education justice movement, for both bad and good reasons. We saw Education Secretary DeVos’ penchant for privatization and ultra conservative viewpoints result in actions like the imposition of harmful new Title IX guidance
Education Research Report Education Research Report National School Climate Survey for LGBTQ by Jonathan Kantrowitz / 13h GLSEN, the leading education organization working to create safe and inclusive schools for LGBTQ students, announced today new findings from the 2017 National School Climate Survey , showing for the first time in a decade that victimization of LGBTQ youth is not decreasing at
Charter School Debate Fueling the Los Angeles Teacher Strike | Time How the Debate Over Charter Schools Is Fueling the Looming Los Angeles Teacher Strike More than 30,000 Los Angeles teachers are preparing to strike on Monday for the first time in 30 years due to failed negotiations over school funding, pay raises and classroom sizes. But as they look to mobilize support, teachers are also focusi
Sacramento City leaders walk out of budget talks with teachers union | The Sacramento Bee Standoff between Sacramento City school district and teachers flares up Talks between teachers and the Sacramento City Unified School district aimed at resolving a severe budget crisis have broken down as a dispute between the two parties heats up. A scheduled meeting between the Sacramento City Unified Scho
Decades of Academic Research Support Community Schools Strategy in New York City’s Renewal Schools | janresseger Decades of Academic Research Support Community Schools Strategy in New York City’s Renewal Schools So-called “corporate” school reform has been defined by setting standards and testing students to see if they have met the standards. Rewards and punishments follow for the teachers and s
On Creativity and The Stories Our Schools Tell Themselves | The Jose Vilson ON CREATIVITY AND THE STORIES OUR SCHOOLS TELL THEMSELVES Around each March, a few students say they can do my job better than me. At the end of the year, I let them mock the adults in the building for a bit before they graduate to high school. A few years ago, however, I decided to flip that challenge and gave them a les
2017 National School Climate Survey | GLSEN 2017 National School Climate Survey New Data Shows Progress on Safe Schools for LGBTQ Youth Slows for First Time in Years The GLSEN National School Climate Survey is our flagship report on the school experiences of LGBTQ youth in schools, including the extent of the challenges that they face at school and the school-based resources that support LGBTQ st
Whatever Happened To ‘The Waiting For Superman’ Kids? | Gary Rubinstein's Blog Whatever Happened To ‘The Waiting For Superman’ Kids? The PR of education reform focuses on the feel-good, beating the odds, stories about heroic teachers and and rock-star superintendents who never give up on their students. There are the 106 original graduates of Chicago’s Urban Prep Charter school that Arne Duncan s
CURMUDGUCATION: GA: Cyber Schools Failing Here, Too GA: Cyber Schools Failing Here, Too In what could be news only to someone who has not been paying any attention to cyberschooling in the US, a report from Georgia's Department of Audits and Accounts found that the state's cyber schools "underperformed ." Mind you, I'll argue that the state's College and Career Ready Performance Index is a lousy
“Pragmatic” NETFLIX Chooses Profit over Principle | The Merrow Report “Pragmatic” NETFLIX Chooses Profit over Principle The news that Netflix has pulled one of its programs at the ‘request’ of the Saudi dictatorship in order to prevent Saudi citizens from seeing it is causing concern among defenders of free speech, who say Netflix is putting profits above principle. For its part, the giant compan
The Real Story Behind the L.A. Teachers Strike - LA Progressive The Real Story Behind the L.A. Teachers Strike Superintendent Austin Beutner and his allies have made it clear they do not believe that the L.A. Unified School District in its current incarnation is worth investing in – or even preserving. S ometimes strikes are exactly what they seem to be – battles over wages and working conditions
Trump’s school lunch program: How the administration is changing health standards - Vox Federally funded school lunches are about to get a lot less healthy By relaxing the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act’s rules for school lunches, the Trump administration is doing a big favor to the dairy industry — at the expense of children’s health. School lunches are about to be more dairy-laden — and, as a re
30,000 LA teachers 'strike ready' as district refuses to spend $1.86 billion reserve on better pay, smaller class sizes - NationofChange 30,000 LA teachers ‘strike ready’ as district refuses to spend $1.86 billion reserve on better pay, smaller class sizes Educators and their allies in the second-largest school district in the nation are making a stand for students and education quality this week
2019: The Year of Living Emergently? – Sam Chaltain 2019: THE YEAR OF LIVING EMERGENTLY? We’re doing it again. 2019 is barely a week old, yet everyone seems to be searching for the singular person, policy or program that can restore order and usher in the better world we seek. From the excitement over the looming presidential race (and the promise of a return to normalcy) to the anticipation of t
Schools Matter: Help Kristen Paulson Support Her Students Without Being Punished for It Help Kristen Paulson Support Her Students Without Being Punished for It Below is a plaintive letter from first grade teacher, Kristen Paulson, to my colleague, Mark Naison . If you believe that teachers have the right and responsibility to advocate for their students, please share her letter far and wide. Also
Teachers in Los Angeles Delay Strike Till Next Week; District Faces Long and Catastrophic Fiscal Crisis | janresseger Teachers in Los Angeles Delay Strike Till Next Week; District Faces Long and Catastrophic Fiscal Crisis After months of failed negotiations, the United Teachers of Los Angeles had scheduled a strike beginning today. They have now postponed the strike until Monday, January 14th. Th
Donors Reforming Schools in the U.S. (Part 4) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice Donors Reforming Schools in the U.S. (Part 4) As a teacher, superintendent, and professor I have been fortunate in receiving grants from donors over the decades. Small, middle-sized, and large grants came to support and expand my efforts in classrooms (e.g., Teacher Innovation Fund in Washington, D
Jersey Jazzman: Kids In Disadvantaged Schools Don't Need Tests To Tell Them They're Being Cheated Kids In Disadvantaged Schools Don't Need Tests To Tell Them They're Being Cheated There was a very raw, very discouraging story in The Trentonian this past week that is worth your time, whether you live in Jersey or not. Here's an excerpt: Over the past year, this newspaper spoke with high school stu
Locating Info on Newly-Formed (Ed Reform) Nonprofits | deutsch29 Locating Info on Newly-Formed (Ed Reform) Nonprofits One of the marks of market-based ed reform is the issue of mushrooming nonprofits. Want an instant platform for advancing school choice? Non-career, instant teachers? Test-driven classrooms? Drumming up grass-roots-styled support for an outside, billionaire-funded, corporate ed pr
CURMUDGUCATION: Bill Gates Is Still Pushing Common Core Bill Gates Is Still Pushing Common Core Sigh. You've undoubtedly heard the news over the past couple of days-- the Gates Foundation is going to throw $10 million at teachers to help promote "high-quality" curriculum. There are several problems with this, and none of them are new. First, despite the headlines, this money is not actually being
Public School Students are Being Erased From TV, Movies and Other Media | gadflyonthewallblog Public School Students are Being Erased From TV, Movies and Other Media Ninety percent of America’s students go to public schools. But you wouldn’t know that if you opened a book, turned on the TV or went to a movie. The media is engaged in a disinformation campaign erasing public schools and public scho
Is Universal Pre-K Legislation A Set Up For “Lifelong Learning?” – Wrench in the Gears Is Universal Pre-K Legislation A Set Up For “Lifelong Learning?” I’m worried about universal pre-k. Let me repeat. I’m VERY worried about universal pre-k. I worried when Michael Bloomberg and John Arnold supported it in Philadelphia. I worried when I learned about social impact bonds and “pay for success” finan
AG opines: charters must comply with sunshine laws :: K-12 Daily :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet AG opines: charters must comply with sunshine laws (Calif.) A new legal opinion from the state’s Department of Justice paves the way for lawmakers to finally impose clear mandates on California charter schools to comply with good governance laws. After more than a decade
Tacos for Teachers: GoFundMe's Try to Feed Students, Teachers During Strike - NBC Southern California Tacos for Teachers: GoFundMe's Try to Feed Students, Teachers During Strike With thousands of Los Angeles teachers threatening to go on strike Thursday, several GoFundMe campaigns have popped up aimed at helping feed both educators and students during the work stoppage. The strike would impact ar
Where Do the LAUSD Board Members Stand? Where Do the LAUSD Board Members Stand? Privatizing forces have appropriated the language of civil rights and social justice movements, while simultaneously gutting our schools of resources and selling our schools away to corporate-run charter companies.” – Reclaim Our Schools LA As noted by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) School Board membe
The Serious Implications of the New Report of the Federal Commission on School Safety | janresseger The Serious Implications of the New Report of the Federal Commission on School Safety On December 18, buried in the pre-holiday news was the release of a report from Betsy DeVos’s Federal Commission on School Safety. This blog reported last week on its most troubling recommendation—the one that was
Sweetwater Schools Financial Problems Became Political Cudgel | tultican Sweetwater Schools Financial Problems Became Political Cudgel The newly hired Chief Financial Officer of Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD), Jenny Salkeld, discovered a significant problem with the budget she inherited. She presented her findings to the Sweetwater leadership team in early September which forwarded
The Network for Public Education welcomes four outstanding leaders to our NPE Board - Network For Public Education The Network for Public Education welcomes four outstanding leaders to our NPE Board Network for Public Education President, Diane Ravitch, is proud to announce that four accomplished leaders and supporters of public education have been elected to three year terms on the NPE Board of
Why It’s Getting Harder to Count Poor Children in the Nation’s Schools | Education News | US News Miscounting Poor Students Billions of dollars in federal aid and virtually every metric for assessing achievement gaps rely on an accurate system for counting students from low-income families. THE NUMBER OF POOR students enrolled in a particular school or living in a certain school district is one o
CA K-12 schools press Gavin Newsom for more funds | The Sacramento Bee The economy is booming. Why are so many California schools broke? Big Education Ape: UPDATE: Audit blasts Sac City Unified for budget mismanagement, warns of possible state takeover | The Sacramento Bee - https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2018/12/audit-blasts-sac-city-unified-for.html Facing a $36 million deficit and a poss
DeVos moves to boost college online learning while reducing regulatory oversight - The Washington Post DeVos moves to boost college online learning while reducing regulatory oversight The U.S. Education Department issued proposals Monday that could extend federal student aid dollars to a wider variety of higher-education providers, a move that some say could spur innovation and others worry could
John Thompson: Oklahoma and the Same Tired Privatization Agenda, Part 3 | Diane Ravitch's blog John Thompson: Oklahoma and the Same Tired Privatization Agenda, Part 3 This is the third in a series about education politics in Oklahoma by John Thompson, historian and retired teacher. The Oklahoman no longer dominates Oklahoma politics as it did for generations, but it is still the biggest bear in o
Did the IPET Initiative Reform Schooling? (Part 3) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice Did the IPET Initiative Reform Schooling? (Part 3) Did the Gates-funded initiative to alter how teachers get evaluated in three school districts and four charter networks between 2009-2016, fail? A local newspaper and the RAND corporation’s independent evaluation reached similar conclusions wh
NYC Educator: UFT Executive Board January 7, 2018--We Support LA Teachers and Discuss Election UFT Executive Board January 7, 2018--We Support LA Teachers and Discuss Election Secretary Howard Schoor welcomes us.. Speakers— Betty Godfried —retired Adult ed. CL—After 7 years, Rose Marie Mills has been removed (applause) and is being reassigned. Third time an unsuitable admin has been dismissed in
Tony Evers, Inaugurated as Wisconsin Governor, Faces a Divided State But Has Backing from Strong Public Education Network | janresseger Tony Evers, Inaugurated as Wisconsin Governor, Faces a Divided State But Has Backing from Strong Public Education Network In his fine book on the political ramifications of the 2010 Red-wave state elections, The One Percent Solution , Gordon Lafer describes state
UTLA goes to court in response to a third desperate legal threat by LAUSD | UTLA UTLA goes to court in response to a third desperate legal threat by LAUSD LOS ANGELES — UTLA is going to court this week to respond to yet another threat of desperate legal action by LAUSD. Depending on the outcome, and if no agreement is reached, the Jan. 10 strike date could be moved a few days later. On Friday, th
Why the LA Teachers Strike Matters Why the LA Teachers Strike Matters This week's Los Angeles teachers strike starkly poses the question: will the public or privatizers control public education? The January 10 strike date announced by the United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) has heightened tensions in an already contentious dispute with Los Angeles Superintendent Austin Beutner, who represents t
Once Again With Feeling: Is LAUSD _Really_ Going Bust? – redqueeninla Once Again With Feeling: Is LAUSD _Really_ Going Bust? This essay was first published April 3, 2017. It concerns persistent LAUSD budgeting chicanery, and the narrative extended to surround it. Nothing has changed; not the past numbers or their variance from future projections, not the unfolding reality which reveals how conser
Alex Caputo-Pearl: Why LA Teachers May Be Forced to Strike | Diane Ravitch's blog Alex Caputo-Pearl: Why LA Teachers May Be Forced to Strike Alex Caputo-Pearl is president of the United Teachers of Los Angeles. He explains why teachers may strike. https://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-caputo-pearl-teachers-strike-20190106-story.html He writes: Teachers in Los Angeles may be forced to strike
CURMUDGUCATION: Why You Can't Fire Your Way To Excellence Why You Can't Fire Your Way To Excellence For some reformsters and accountability hawks, the dream remains the same-- find those Bad Teachers, fire them, and replace them with Awesome Teachers. Crack the accountability whip and fire our way to excellence. We have discussed some of the obvious flaws with this approach. How do you even defin
Vaping in the Classroom | deutsch29 Vaping in the Classroom One of the challenges of being a public high school teacher is developing a constant awareness of what is transpiring in my classroom. Even when I conference individually with my student, my eyes and ears are open in a hyper-observant manner that I have cultivated over decades. Of course, times change, and over those decades, what I’ve n
Can the LAUSD Ensure Student Safety During a Strike? Can the LAUSD Ensure Student Safety During a Strike? In addition to threatening the health and safety of students , a strike would also… ” – Exhibit A in LAUSD Court Filing For over 25 years the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has been unable to satisfy the terms of a Consent Decree meant to ensure that students with special educati
SPOTLIGHT BLOG OF THE WEEK: NANCY BAILEY'S EDUCATION WEBSITE (nancyebailey.com) How School Reform, Including Common Core, Has Devastated Children and Their Joy of Learning to Read by Nancy Bailey / 1d School reform has taken a toll on children starting in kindergarten (even preschool). There’s little doubt that children are being forced to learn to read earlier than ever before. The reading gap l
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Still Waiting for Winter Edition (1/6) ICYMI: Still Waiting for Winter Edition (1/6) Still no snow in my neck of the woods, but still plenty of writing about education to be read. Remember, sharing is caring. Keep That Same Energy Jose Luis Vilson has my favorite kick off the new year piece. Check it out. Excuse Me While I Teach Your Child A greatest hits fun and games from
John Thompson: The News from Oklahoma, Part 1 | Diane Ravitch's blog John Thompson: The News from Oklahoma, Part 1 This is the first of a three-part series. Last spring, Oklahoma experiences a mass teacher walkout to protest underfunding of public schools. John Thompson, historian and retired teacher, writes: Oklahoma made national headlines in 2018 because of its teacher walkout; teachers runnin
Sacramento News & Review - Protect special education students from budget cuts - Essay - Opinions - January 3, 2019 Protect special education students from budget cuts Sacramento City Unified School District isn’t doing right by special education students. Will budget crisis make it worse? About a year ago, the Sacramento City Unified School District came under scrutiny for vast shortcomings in i
Donors Reform Schooling: Evaluating Teachers (Part 2) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice Donors Reform Schooling: Evaluating Teachers (Part 2) In Part 1 , I described a Gates Foundation initiative aimed at identifying effective teachers as measured in part by their students’ test scores, rewarding such stellar teachers with cash, and giving poor and minority children access to
It’s the Class Size, Stupid – redqueeninla It’s the Class Size, Stupid That’s what it is. That’s all it is. LAUSD “management” (Beaudry Big Wigs, Superintendent, Board Members) may talk all they want about negotiations and good-faith bargaining, what it means to cross pickets lines and usurp graduation stages, what constitutes fiscal prudence and what constitutes negligent constraint, etc . But a
Federal judge rejects L.A. school district’s bid to stop teachers from striking - The Washington Post Federal judge rejects L.A. school district’s bid to stop teachers from striking With the clock ticking on a strike by teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District, a federal judge rejected a bid by Superintendent Austin Beutner’s administration to limit or stop the labor action from happen
CURMUDGUCATION: Terror, Hubris and AI (or Can Artificial Intelligence Fake Being A Self-important Pompous Tool?) Terror, Hubris and AI (or Can Artificial Intelligence Fake Being A Self-important Pompous Tool?) Artificial Intelligence (AI) is, if not a hot new product itself, the additive that helps sell a million other products ("New! Improved!! Now with AI!!!"). And the proponents of AI are load
Top Posts This Week 1/5/19 CURMUDGUCATION: How Much Money In That Edusector?!! Are We Addicted to ‘School Reform’? | The Merrow Report CURMUDGUCATION: Not Quite Seven Reasons To Ditch Teachers Unions
