Big Education Ape: TOP POSTS THIS WEEK 11/2/19 #REDFORED

Saturday, November 2, 2019

TOP POSTS THIS WEEK 11/2/19 #REDFORED

Big Education Ape

TOP POSTS THIS WEEK 11/2/19

TOP POSTS THIS MONTH 11/2/19

POSTS THIS WEEK 11/2/19

TODAY

Peter Greene: The One And Only Lesson To Be Learned From NAEP Scores

by Mike Simpson / 7min

The One And Only Lesson To Be Learned From NAEP Scores The One And Only Lesson To Be Learned From NAEP Scores The world of education is a fuzzy one, with some declaring that teaching is more art than science. But then the National Assessment of Educational Progress is issued. “The Nation’s Report Card” is greeted as a source of hard data about the educational achievement of fourth and eighth grad

CURMUDGUCATION: Why Market Forces Will Not Provide Charter School Accountability

by Mike Simpson / 38min

Why Market Forces Will Not Provide Charter School Accountability It has been a rough day at my house. The IRS is auditing me and needs me to send them money now. My computer has a virus. My Microsoft Windows is expired and will shut down soon. And if I don’t re-enter my personal information, my email, Netflix, and bank accounts will all be shut down. The only good news is that I still have a cha

The Chicago teachers’ strike contract deal, explained - Vox

by Mike Simpson / 59min

The 11-day teachers strike in Chicago paid off It got more than $30 million extra spending for public schools. Thousands of Chicago public school teachers are back in class. Teachers returned to school Friday after going on strike for 11 days. They had picketed in the snow and rain until union leaders and city officials struck a deal to raise teacher pay and to put a social worker and nurse in e

The “Parenting Tax” of School Choice | JSTOR Daily

by Mike Simpson / 1h

The “Parenting Tax” of School Choice The framework of school choice imposes a kind of tax, one paid in the time and effort that it imposes on many black parents. For decades, when the topic of unequal public schools comes up, one of the main prescriptions politicians and policymakers have offered is “choice.” In a recent paper, the sociologists Angela Simms and Elizabeth Talbert explain one aspe

Ron Chernow: Alexander Hamilton Would Support Impeachment | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 1h

Ron Chernow: Alexander Hamilton Would Support Impeachment Ron Chernow, author of Hamilton , wrote in the Washington Post that Trump is the populist demagogue that Alexander Hamilton feared and warned about in The Federalist Papers. He wrote: There seems little doubt, given his writings on the presidency, that Hamilton would have been aghast at Trump’s behavior and appalled by his invitation to f

How state-funded charter schools are avoiding vaccine requirements

by Mike Simpson / 1h

How state-funded charter schools are avoiding vaccine requirements SACRAMENTO — Nearly all California students must get vaccinated after state leaders tightened laws following the 2014 Disneyland measles scare, but at least one loophole remains: new hybrid programs known as charter home schools. Across the country, state leaders and health advocates have aggressively pushed for new vaccination r

The New Unionism: Bargaining for the Common Good | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 1h

The New Unionism: Bargaining for the Common Good The Chicago teachers’ strike is over but it performed a valuable service that reaches far beyond Chicago and its educators. In recent years, the union movement was recoiling from blow after blow as its adversaries attempted to destroy it by passing right-to-work laws in the states, attacking it in state courts with challenges to due process, and w

Shawgi Tell: Charter School Advocates Demand That Everyone Fend for Themselves | Dissident Voice

by Mike Simpson / 2h

Charter School Advocates Demand That Everyone Fend for Themselves | Dissident Voice Charter School Advocates Demand That Everyone Fend for Themselves Promoters of privately-operated charter schools that intensify segregation and siphon money from public schools idolize the law of the jungle where the “strongest survive.” This backward view assumes that everyone is nothing more than a consumer and

Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers. A poet talks pedagogy. – Fred Klonsky

by Mike Simpson / 2h

HITTING LEFT WITH THE KLONSKY BROTHERS. A POET TALKS PEDAGOGY If you’re a Chicago teacher, you had to miss our Friday live broadcast of Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers. It’s is available on podcast here. What if a poet was mayor or union president we pondered, talking to Chicago poet and founder of Louder than a Bomb, Kevin Coval. Kevin said he was inspired by the power of community that

Four Ways That Any Educator Can Affirm, Protect, & Honor the Humanity of Black Students - Philly's 7th Ward

by Mike Simpson / 3h

FOUR WAYS THAT ANY EDUCATOR CAN AFFIRM, PROTECT, & HONOR THE HUMANITY OF BLACK STUDENTS Years ago, my then-four-year-old son and I were watching Black-ish . As Junior, a character played by Marcus Scribner , was talking on the show, my son said to me, “Daddy, Junior is my favorite character on Black-ish . He’s my favorite character on all the shows.” When I asked him why, he said because Junior

John Thompson: This year's OKCPS to-do list has at least 30 big items

by Mike Simpson / 3h

This year's OKCPS to-do list has at least 30 big items This year’s OKCPS to-do list has at least 30 big items A s students and teachers come out of fall break and wait anxiously for Thanksgiving break, perhaps it is a good time to remember that Oklahoma City Public Schools started this academic year facing a formidable “To Do” list. While the district anticipated many challenges, some tasks it no

Students in History Class Debate Impeachment (Burch) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

by Mike Simpson / 3h

Students in History Class Debate Impeachment (Burch) Journalist Audra Burch sat in a world history class recently and described history teacher Chris Dier’s lessons on impeachment. The article appeared October 23, 2019. I follow this description of the lesson with some questions that occurred to me. It was impeachment day in Mr. Dier’s world history class at Chalmette High School. Andrew Johnson

Montessori, Dewey, & Aristotle Respond to NAEP decline | The Merrow Report

by Mike Simpson / 3h

Montessori, Dewey, & Aristotle Respond to NAEP decline By now you know about the disappointing scores on what is widely known as The Nation’s Report Card , the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP. Basically, what was called ‘ a lost decade ‘ a year or two ago has continued. Here’s a short summary from the NAEP announcement: “Average reading scores for the nation in 2019 were low

THIS WEEK Education Research Report

by Mike Simpson / 4h

Education Research Report THIS WEEK Education Research Report Nearly 1 Million Students with Some College Returned and Earned a Degree Since 2014 by Jonathan Kantrowitz / 19h “Some College, No Degree” Report Reveals 3.5 Million Americans with Some College Have High Potential to Return and Finish College The United States saw nearly one million former students, in just five years, return to postse

This Week With Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007

by Mike Simpson / 4h

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007 This Week With Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007 New USA Today Video: “Wildfires: The science inside the flames” by Larry Ferlazzo / 16h skeeze / Pixabay I’m adding this new video from USA Today to The Best Sites For Learning About Forest Fire

KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all

by Mike Simpson / 4h

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all Slaying Goliath: The Passionate Resistance to Privatization and the Fight to Save America's Public Schools CLICK HERE TO Pre-order NOW Jan Resseger: The History and Context of the Chicago Teachers Strike 2019 by dianeravitch / 1h Jan Resseger exp

YESTERDAY

The common mistake Betsy DeVos made about new NAEP scores — and other problems with her ‘sky is falling’ narrative - The Washington Post

by Mike Simpson / 20h

The common mistake Betsy DeVos made about new NAEP scores — and other problems with her ‘sky is falling’ narrative It never fails. Results from a standardized test deemed important to the future of education are released — and new cries ring out that “the sky is falling” in U.S. education. We heard some of that with the Wednesday release of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scor

NAEP Test Scores Show How Stupid We Are… To Pay Attention to NAEP Test Scores | gadflyonthewallblog

by Mike Simpson / 21h

NAEP Test Scores Show How Stupid We Are… To Pay Attention to NAEP Test Scores Brace yourselves! America’s NAEP test scores in 2019 stayed pretty much the same as they were in 2018! And the media typically set its collective hair on fire trying to interpret the data. Sometimes called the Nations Report Card, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test is given to a random sampling

2019 NAEP Scores: Achievement Gap or ...? | BustED Pencils

by Mike Simpson / 22h

2019 NAEP Scores: Achievement Gap or …? Here you go: A ‘Disturbing’ Assessment: Sagging Reading Scores, Particularly for Eighth-Graders, Headline 2019’s Disappointing NAEP Results NAEP 2019: Reading scores drop for US students, with mixed math results What To Make of the 2019 Results from the ”Nation’s Report Card” DeVos Bemoans ‘Devastating’ NAEP Scores, Pushes for ‘Education Freedom’ I used GO

SFUSD Makes Plans to De-Colonize Indigenous History - SF PUBLIC SCHOOL MOM

by Mike Simpson / 1d

SFUSD Makes Plans to De-Colonize Indigenous History I am so excited about the work going on in SFUSD’s Curriculum and Instruction Department! Last week, staff made a presentation to the Curriculum Committee to address curriculum and celebrations of Indigenous history in our district. Systemic problems need systemic answers. Over the past several years, many educators have worked to de-colonize s

Betsy DeVos’s formula for success: Trash public schools and push privatization – Raw Story

by Mike Simpson / 1d

Betsy DeVos’s formula for success: Trash public schools and push privatization When U.S Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos discussed the results from the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress, she described them as “devastating” and part of a worsening crisis in education. The results showed a slight decline in reading scores and a flattening in math scores . She noted that two out of

CURMUDGUCATION: DeVos Honored By Prominent Dominionist Group

by Mike Simpson / 1d

DeVos Honored By Prominent Dominionist Group Dominionism argues that the US should be a literal Christian nation, its government run by Christians. It comes in varying degrees of severity , with varying amounts of nationalism mixed in. One of the major proponents of American (i.e. US) dominionism was D. James Kennedy , a minister and broadcaster in Florida. Sample quote : To be a true Christian

Delegates Assembly of Chicago Teachers Union Ends Strike, Agrees to New Contract | janresseger

by Mike Simpson / 1d

Delegates Assembly of Chicago Teachers Union Ends Strike, Agrees to New Contract The beloved former president of the Chicago Teachers Union who has been sidelined by a brain tumor, Karen Lewis released a statement on Tuesday night to urge Chicago’s new mayor, Lori Lightfoot, to find a way to resolve the then nine-day teachers’ strike. Lewis concluded her statement with the words of Frederick Dou

Charter Apologists Make Trumpian Claim Regarding “Hidden” Data Not Part Of CA’s School Dashboard – redqueeninla

by Mike Simpson / 1d

Charter Apologists Make Trumpian Claim Regarding “Hidden” Data Not Part Of CA’s School Dashboard The astroturf groups ParentRevolution and SpeakUp are flooding social media of late with their PR-honed contention that opposing LAUSD charter-advocacy-backed members Nick Melvoin’s and Kelly Gonez’ School Performance Framework (“SPF”), is “ hiding ” data from parents. What sort of double-speak nonse

“Breaking the Rules,” Can School Districts and Teacher Unions Collaborate to Encourage Innovative Educational Practices at the School Level? | Ed In The Apple

by Mike Simpson / 1d

“Breaking the Rules,” Can School Districts and Teacher Unions Collaborate to Encourage Innovative Educational Practices at the School Level? Education is rules-driven: state laws and regulations, school district policies and school level compliance monitoring; “faux-innovation” is implementing an innovation mandated from the aeries of leadership, lockstep “innovation” is the goal of school syste

Seattle Schools Community Forum: A Conversation about HCC (Let's Listen In)

by Mike Simpson / 1d

A Conversation about HCC (Let's Listen In) Now to the conversation last weekend at the Central Area Residents Against Violence Facebook page about HCC. I am teasing out parts of the conversation but you can go to the page and read everything. As I mentioned, it involved ALTF member, Kari O'Driscoll who seems to be quite confident in her ability to speak for the Task Force and use the current sma

Thurmond & Newsom Visit School Impacted by Outage - Year 2019 (CA Dept of Education)

by Mike Simpson / 1d

State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Joins Governor Gavin Newsom in Visit with Educators and Students Impacted by PG&E's Public Safety Power Shutoffs SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond joined California Governor Gavin Newsom this morning at Blue Oak Elementary School in Shingle Springs to meet with administrators, teachers, and students impacted by PG&E’s Public Sa

Chicago Teachers Strike Ends! Weingarten Explains What Happened | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 1d

Chicago Teachers Strike Ends! Weingarten Explains What Happened American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten Congratulates Chicago Teachers Union WASHINGTON—AFT President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement in response to the news that the Chicago Teachers Union, AFT Local 1, reached a return-to-work agreement with Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and will return to classes

2019 Medley #21 | Live Long and Prosper

by Mike Simpson / 1d

2019 Medley #21 RETENTION HURTS CHILDREN The Haunted Third Grade Classrooms Children Fear: Enter and… Stay Forever! It’s time again for another article dealing with retention…complete with references. In-grade retention doesn’t work. More often than not it harms students psychologically and emotionally, increases the chances of students dropping out, and doesn’t improve achievement. Yet we conti

OCT 31

The Big Lie about the “Science of Reading”: NAEP 2019 Edition | radical eyes for equity

by Mike Simpson / 2d

The Big Lie about the “Science of Reading”: NAEP 2019 Edition After the release of the 2017 NAEP reading scores, states such as Mississippi launched a campaign to celebrate the success of their reading legislation. This effort coincided with a recent explosion in states adopting reading legislation driven by dyslexia advocates who promote systematic intensive phonics for all students. The claims

THURSDAY'S CHILD - CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG | A site to discuss better education for all

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all TODAY Nancy Bailey: The Haunted Third Grade Classroom That Traps Children by dianeravitch / 13min Nancy Bailey writes here about a zombie polic y launched by Jeb Bush called third grade retention. Students who can’t pass a third grade reading test are flu

CURMUDGUCATION: Solnit, Books, Rand, and Young Readers

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Solnit, Books, Rand, and Young Readers If you are not a regular follower of Brain Pickings , you should be. Thoughtful and erudite and really, really human, the site has for over a decade presented Maria Popova's essays spun off the works of others. I've met many authors I was glad to know on her site. This post focuses on author Rebecca Solnit and A Velocity of Being , a collection of 121 illus

Louisiana Educator: John White's Pitiful Record as Louisiana's Education Reformer

by Mike Simpson / 2d

John White's Pitiful Record as Louisiana's Education Reformer After over 7 years of John White as Louisiana's education reformer, Louisiana ranks 47th on national reading and math tests, and 49th on the ACT. John White's propaganda mill had the unmitigated gall to put out this press release Tuesday claiming that Louisiana was "number one in the country in 8th grade math improvement" as measured

Party Pivot: Why Democrats Are Rethinking School Choice – Have You Heard

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Party Pivot: Why Democrats Are Rethinking School Choice From the Sanders plan to the Warren plan to Cory Booker’s reluctance to talk about education reform on the campaign trail, the Democratic Party seems to be backing away from its decades-long embrace of charter schools. While pundits cite the influence of teachers unions within the party, our guest Jon Valant says more complicated forces are

Chicago Teachers Union Reaches Tentative Agreement, But Strike Not Over Yet! | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Chicago Teachers Union Reaches Tentative Agreement, But Strike Not Over Yet! The CTU reached a tentative agreement with Chicago Public Schools. The CTU House of Delegates voted 364-242 to suspend the strike pending resolution of final issues. The settlement, which meets most of the CTU demands, will be voted on by the full membership within 10 days. But the strike is not yet over. The sides are

What Is This Charter School Hiding?

by Mike Simpson / 2d

What Is This Charter School Hiding? ECRCHS has determined that your request seeks records that are privileged and protected, and thus not subject to disclosure. ” – Daniel H. Chang, Chief Compliance Officer El Camino’s Governing Board meets during the scandal It has been three years since El Camino Real Charter High School’s (ECRCHS) former Principal, David Fehte, was forced from his position an

The education conversation we should be having - The Washington Post

by Mike Simpson / 2d

The education conversation we should be having Alfie Kohn has been writing and speaking about education, human behavior and parenting for more than two decades, writing 14 books and hundreds of articles for newspapers, magazines and journals. His most recent book was “Schooling Beyond Measure and Other Unorthodox Essays About Education,” which challenges conventional wisdom about education in th

Teaching at D.Tech High School: English (Part 2) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Teaching at D.Tech High School: English (Part 2) Wearing a tie, button-down shirt, and slacks, Nathan Pierce, a veteran of 19 years in classrooms of which the last four have been at d.tech, begins his senior English class with digital slides on one of the walls in a spacious room holding 30 students. He directs his students to look at agenda for the day and the upcoming project of shadowing some

OCT 30

Facebook News chief defends decision not to fact-check political ads - Business Insider

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Facebook's News boss blasted journalists calling for the company to 'police' speech in political ads Campbell Brown, Facebook's Head of News Partnership, said she was "astonished" by the media's response to Facebook's decision to run paid political ads with misinformation and lies. Facebook and CEO Mark Zuckerberg have been criticized by lawmakers, the press, and members of the public for choosi

Elizabeth Warren made charter school supporters mighty angry. Now they are targeting her. - The Washington Post

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Elizabeth Warren made charter school supporters mighty angry. Now they are targeting her. Elizabeth Warren, the Democratic senator from Massachusetts running for her party’s presidential nomination, struck a deep nerve with charter school supporters when she released her plan for pre-K-12 education and called for a freeze on federal funds for new charters. Now they are targeting her. Last week,

Segregation Is Worse in Charter Schools: a Q&A with Julian Vasquez-Heilig - Progressive.org

by Mike Simpson / 2d

Segregation Is Worse in Charter Schools: a Q & A with Julian Vasquez-Heilig In New Jersey, where I live and work as an educator, there are eighty-eight charter schools. Seventy-three of these charter schools are located in municipalities with poverty rates above the national rate. Of the 23,795 black students enrolled in New Jersey charter schools, 93 percent attend charter schools in municipali

CURMUDGUCATION: DeVosian NAEP Nonsense

by Mike Simpson / 2d

DeVosian NAEP Nonsense I wasn't going to write about NAEP for any number of reasons, but then I happened t o look at Betsy DeVos's comments on this year's results and, well, this whole blood pressure thing happened. So to get my numbers back down, I'm going to talk through the nonsense she issued forth, notable for its disconnection from reality, its devotion to public education bashing, and, mo

A conversation with Randi Weingarten | Newsday

by Mike Simpson / 3d

A conversation with Randi Weingarten An enlightening visit On Long Island for a forum on rethinking high school graduation requirements and college-readiness, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten paid a visit to the Newsday editorial board Tuesday afternoon. The conversation spanned from teacher pay and evaluations to the civic engagement of the nation and presidential poli

How to Use Social Media in the Classroom - Teacher Habits

by Mike Simpson / 3d

How to Use Social Media in the Classroom Teachers will know that using many different instructional tools in class, at all grade levels, is beneficial to students, and this is also true for using social media in the classroom. This can be especially relevant to students ranging from elementary to post-secondary classes. Incorporating social media in the curriculum will have many benefits like te

Carol Burris: Center for American Progress Scrambles to Save Charter Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Carol Burris: Center for American Progress Scrambles to Save Charter Schools Carol Burris notes that charter-friendly Democrats have been put in a jam since Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have announced their intention to eliminate federal funding for charter schools, which is currently $440 million a year and used by Betsy DeVos primarily to expand big corporate chains. She writes: Since E

Parents Across America told the FTC: Don’t weaken student privacy. You can too | Parents Across America

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Parents Across America told the FTC: Don’t weaken student privacy. You can too The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) needs to hear from parents: We want our children’s privacy protected. The FTC may bow under the pressure of Big Tech and weaken COPPA regulations. COPPA is the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, originally passed in 1998. Its purpose is to ensure online privacy protections for

AFT president’s opposition to Medicare for All is a threat to her own members. – Fred Klonsky

by Mike Simpson / 3d

AFT PRESIDENT’S OPPOSITION TO MEDICARE FOR ALL IS A THREAT TO HER OWN MEMBERS It is rain, sleet and snow that will greet CTU members on the picket lines this morning. I hope that the strike ends soon. I’m flashing back to a cold November morning a dozen years ago when our local was on strike over the cost of our health insurance. Chicago weather is not a friend of organized labor. If the Chicago

CURMUDGUCATION: PA: A Chance To Improve Teacher Evaluation

by Mike Simpson / 3d

PA: A Chance To Improve Teacher Evaluation No sooner had I written about t aking back teacher evaluation , then a note crossed my desk about SB 751 and HB 1607. Pennsylvania's teacher evaluation system is currently pretty lousy. There is nominal commitment to the Danielson model, a time-consuming pre- and post- observation process that involves a big bunch of online paperwork and Q & A answering

Betsy DeVos Held in Contempt. Department of Education fined $100,000. What’s Going On? | janresseger

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Betsy DeVos Held in Contempt. Department of Education fined $100,000. What’s Going On? Last week should have been a bad week for Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, but one wonders if it is possible to create a really meaningful punishment for somebody like Betsy DeVos—a punishment for allowing her staff to neglect their responsibility to protect vulnerable student loan borrowers who were defrauded

NYC Educator: Time for Voting

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Time for Voting In case you live in a cave or just hadn't heard, there's a New York State law that says you can take up to three hours off from work in order to vote in your local election. There's a form that's been made available to chapter leaders. The form is below and you can copy and paste it if you wish. There are reasons why you ought to do this, whether or not you think you actually nee

Chicago: A Message from Karen Lewis | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Chicago: A Message from Karen Lewis Diane- When Lori ran for mayor, she gave us hope that she would represent real change in City Hall. She ran on our education platform and made a commitment to reverse years of failed policy and horrible planning by her predecessors. She inherited a system built on revolving door leadership, misplaced investments, excessive standardized testing and few wraparou

NOLA Admin’s Book-Cooking, “Fix Your Gradebook” Email: More Teacher Responses | deutsch29

by Mike Simpson / 3d

NOLA Admin’s Book-Cooking, “Fix Your Gradebook” Email: More Teacher Responses On October 26, 2019, I posted a piece entitled, “NOLA School Admin’s Book-Cooking, ‘Fix Your Gradebook’ Email.” That post concerned an email sent by New Orleans-based Abramson Sci Academy’s assistant principal, Whitney, Omosefe, telling a number of teachers that they needed to perform some last-minute adjustments in or

More Eyes Needed To Keep Watch On The Charter School Industry

by Mike Simpson / 3d

More Eyes Needed To Keep Watch On The Charter School Industry Our oversight is “ proactive and responsive .” – José Cole-Gutiérrez, LAUSD Charter School Division The number of charter schools is growing rapidly. Just three years ago the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) reported that it was “the largest district charter school authorizer in the nation, with about 250 independent and af

Mike Klonsky's Blog: Day 9 of Chicago teachers strike. Sun-Times gives a full page to the charter hustlers

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Day 9 of Chicago teachers strike. Sun-Times gives a full page to the charter hustlers In the wake of horrific Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Univ. of Chicago economist Milton Friedman called the event "an opportunity to radically reform the educational system.” For all my radical friends out there, by "radically reform," Friedman didn't mean fully democratizing public ed. Rather he meant nothing les

OCT 29

NEA President Lily Eskelsen García: "We are fighting for who we are supposed to be..." #CTA #redfored #utla #scusd #oea #nea

by Mike Simpson / 3d

NEA President Lily Eskelsen García: "We are fighting for who we are supposed to be..." NEA President Lily Eskelsen García speaks at the October 2019 CTA State Council of Education. California Teachers Association - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuzRE7HXMcMmhskSwOLeN7Q

CURMUDGUCATION: CAP Wants The Feds To Boost Charters

by Mike Simpson / 3d

CAP Wants The Feds To Boost Charters The Center for American Progress is supposedly a left-tilted thinky tank, but when it comes to education, they really love corporate reform . Here on this blog, I literally ran out of ways to title sa post "CAP is still working hard to push common core" (seriously-- just use the search bar in that upper left corner). CAP became a little rudderless when Hillar

Sweet Child of Mine | Teacher in a strange land

by Mike Simpson / 3d

Sweet Child of Mine Like—one hopes—most Americans, I watch the ongoing story of children separated from their parents at our southern border with horror and sorrow. There will never be anything even approaching reconciliation or forgiveness for the despicable and shameful behavior of those who hatred and fear of ‘the other’ drives policy enactment like this. My biggest worry is that, with all th

Study: Poor teens and tweens spend more time on screens than rich ones - Vox

by Mike Simpson / 4d

Poor kids spend nearly 2 hours more on screens each day than rich kids Kids from more affluent families have more access to tech but use it less. Tweens and teens from families that make less than $35,000 per year spent nearly two hours more with screen media each day than their peers with incomes over $100,000, according to new data from media nonprofit Common Sense . Lower-income teens (13- to

Warren's education policy proposals links housing and education

by Mike Simpson / 4d

Elizabeth Warren shows she understands education in ways charter advocates did not Linking housing and education gets at the root of the problem in our education system Wast week, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren released a federal education policy proposal that recognizes a fundamental truth about students: Kids don’t live in schools, they live in communities. In addition

EdAction in Congress October 27, 2019 - Education Votes

by Mike Simpson / 4d

EdAction in Congress October 27, 2019 Push for census funding for our students’ sake Funding for next year’s census is among the key issues still to be decided as Congress struggles to finalize spending bills for FY2020, which began Oct. 1. The census is vitally important to America’s students because it determines the allocation of billions of dollars in federal funding for public education, in

CHECK IT OUT: NewBlackMan (in Exile) The Digital Home for Mark Anthony Neal

by Mike Simpson / 4d

NewBlackMan (in Exile) YESTERDAY Forest Whitaker Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters by Mark Anthony Neal / 14h ' Forest Whitaker breaks down his most iconic characters, including his roles in Fast Times at Ridgemont High , The Last King of Scotland , Rogue One: A Star Wars Story , Arrival , The Color of Money , Bird , Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai , Lee Daniels’ The Butler , Platoon , Th

Jeff Bryant: Wait, It Gets Worse: Eli Broad’s School Corruption Legacy | OurFuture.org by People's Action

by Mike Simpson / 4d

Wait, It Gets Worse: Eli Broad’s School Corruption Legacy | OurFuture.org by People's Action Wait, It Gets Worse: Eli Broad’s School Corruption Legacy Billionaire charter-school boosters like Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Eli Broad and have turned school leadership into a cartel system focused on advancing careers and enriching businesses. One can see, in the track record of Broad-infused s

The Walton Family: Ungrateful Graduates of Public Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 4d

The Walton Family: Ungrateful Graduates of Public Schools No philanthropy has spent more money to undermine and privatize public schools than the Waltons. The Waltons are the richest family in the U.S., possibly in the world, with a net worth in excess of $200 billion. The Walton Family Foundation claims credit for launching at least one of every four charter schools in the nation. The foundatio

FYW Students Respond to Warner’s The Writer’s Practice: Progress, Not Perfection | radical eyes for equity

by Mike Simpson / 4d

FYW Students Respond to Warner’s The Writer’s Practice: Progress, Not Perfection When John Warner released The Writer’s Practice: Building Confidence in Your Nonfiction Writing soon after his Why They Can’t Write , I highly recommended both volumes for those teaching writing ( here and here ). Of course, a much better barometer of the value of books on how to write and how to teach writing is to

The Haunted Third Grade Classrooms Children Fear: Enter and… Stay Forever!

by Mike Simpson / 4d

The Haunted Third Grade Classrooms Children Fear: Enter and… Stay Forever! Children fear third grade retention. It doesn’t motivate them to learn. They don’t read earlier because of it. Retention is not effective. It’s scary and could haunt a child forever. Third grade retention laws are real for children in nineteen states. NEA Reports noted in 2017 that 16 states and Washington D.C. make it ma

College Board Under Fire for How It Shares SAT and PSAT Data - Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly

by Mike Simpson / 4d

College Board Under Fire for How It Shares SAT and PSAT Data Parent Coalition for Student Privacy - https://www.studentprivacymatters.org/ The College Entrance Examination Board (The College Board) is a membership nonprofit with a budget of $900 million. It receives $1 billion in revenue to prepare students for institutions of higher learning. Now, several Illinois lawmakers want the organizatio

Diane Tavenner’s new gig and our updated Summit fact sheet as it moves further into Chan-Zuckerberg’s control | Parent Coalition for Student Privacy

by Mike Simpson / 4d

DIANE TAVENNER’S NEW GIG AND OUR UPDATED SUMMIT FACT SHEET AS IT MOVES FURTHER INTO CHAN-ZUCKERBERG’S CONTROL Diane Tavenner is appearing in NYC on Nov. 6, to talk about her new book with Angela Duckworth, sponsored by the Walton Family Foundation. You can RSVP here , “ for an intimate conversation between two of America’s leading CEOs, educators, researchers and mothers .” Doors open at 5:30 wi

Rollout and Webinar Series - California School Dashboard and System of Support (CA Dept of Education)

by Mike Simpson / 4d

2019 CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DASHBOARD: ROLLOUT AND WEBINAR SERIES This letter is to notify you of the timeline for the release of preview data on the state indicators for the 2019 California School Dashboard (Dashboard) and invite you to participate in the Dashboard webinar series. During the month of November, the California Department of Education (CDE) will release the state indicator data on a ro

The unintended consequences of forcing schools to share the same building - The Washington Post

by Mike Simpson / 4d

The unintended consequences of forcing schools to share the same building A growing number of schools across the country share buildings and other facilities with other schools, a practice called “co-location.” Although on the surface it seems to make sense to give empty space in a public school building to, say, a charter school without a brick-and-mortar home, there are a variety of issues tha

Educators Rack Up Wins with Student-Centered Advocacy - NEA Today

by Mike Simpson / 4d

Educators Rack Up Wins with Student-Centered Advocacy Something remarkable is happening. It’s happening right now: more than 35,000 members of the Chicago Teachers Union and SEIU Local 73 are on strike for the schools Chicago students deserve. Sound familiar? It should. More and more educators across the country are organizing around issues that extend beyond wages, hours, and professional worki

How a lawsuit over Detroit schools could have an 'earth-shattering' impact

by Mike Simpson / 4d

How a lawsuit over Detroit schools could have an 'earth-shattering' impact "Every school in the country would be affected," one expert said. "There could be a lot of litigation." After two years of struggling to pass any of his community college classes, Jamarria Hall, 19, knows this for certain: His high school did not prepare him. The four years he spent at Detroit’s Osborn High School were “a

OCT 28

Is Big Brother Watching Your Child? Probably.

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Is Big Brother Watching Your Child? Probably. One of the current trends in education is the increasing surveillance of students. The idea is not new. For several years now companies have sold versions of student monitoring as an educational tool. There were pitches for software that would read facial expressions and eye movement to determine if students were learning. Companies are lining up sal

Chance the Rapper advocates for Chicago teachers as host of 'Saturday Night Live' - CNN

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Chance the Rapper advocates for Chicago teachers as host of 'Saturday Night Live' Chance the Rapper donned a red Chicago Teachers Union sweatshirt while hosting "Saturday Night Live" in a show of support to the teachers who have been on strike. Chance the Rapper showed support for the Chicago teachers on strike by wearing a Chicago Teacher's Union Sweatshirt when he hosted "Saturday Night Live."

Teachers Who Promote Creativity See Educational Results

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Teachers Who Promote Creativity See Educational Results WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Creativity in the classroom goes hand in hand with exceptional student learning, according to a new Gallup study examining U.S. education. Specifically, K-12 teachers who frequently make assignments that require students to think creatively are much more likely than other teachers to observe higher-order cognitive skills

Many parents are confused about how public education now works in New Orleans, report says | Education | nola.com

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Many parents are confused about how public education now works in New Orleans, report says The last decade has produced tectonic shifts to education in New Orleans, the first major city in the U.S. without any traditional public schools run by a central office. But even though decentralization of the local school system has been years in the making, many parents still don't understand how it all

Education Research Report TODAY

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Education Research Report TODAY Education Policy and Black Teachers: Perspectives on Race, Policy, and Teacher Diversity by Jonathan Kantrowitz / 25min This article examines interview responses from prominent education researchers who were asked to consider the role of major educational policies in the underrepresentation of Black teachers in public schools. Participants considered policies rela

Arkansas: Cathy Frye Offers a Who’s Who of the Walton Privatization Movement | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Arkansas: Cathy Frye Offers a Who’s Who of the Walton Privatization Movement Cathy Frye is a veteran journalist who joined the staff of the Arkansas Public Schools Resource Center as communications director for three years. She learned that APSRC was a shell organization funded by the billionaire Waltons to trick rural schools into joining the Walton crusade to eliminate public schools. In this

Chicago Reaches Tentative Deal With School Support Staff, But Not With Teachers Union | HuffPost

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Chicago Reaches Tentative Deal With School Support Staff, But Not With Teachers Union The standoff between Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Chicago Teachers Union has resulted in an eighth day of striking, the city’s longest in over 30 years. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Sunday night that the city has reached a tentative deal with striking public school support staff, but that there is no agree

Importance of teaching black culture to black male students

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Some evidence for the importance of teaching black culture to black students A separate class for black boys led to improvements in dropout rates, study finds Since former President Barack Obama launched his My Brother’s Keeper initiative in 2014 to support black and Latino boys and young men, nearly 250 communities across 50 states have launched programs under its umbrella. But although these p

The Strained Relationship Between Black Mothers And Their Daughters | MadameNoire – Parenting for Liberation

by Mike Simpson / 5d

The Strained Relationship Between Black Mothers And Their Daughters | MadameNoire “I went through it and I made it out alright” is no longer a rhetoric I will accept from Black mothers regarding the abuse of Black girls.” Young Black girls don’t need to be beaten into submission. They are intelligent beings capable of reason and logic. Young Black girls don’t need to be told how horrible other B

Enough Basic Staffing and More Community Schools: Two Important but Different Issues | janresseger

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Enough Basic Staffing and More Community Schools: Two Important but Different Issues The NY Times ‘ Dana Goldstein published a story last week about the Chicago teachers’ strike. While Goldstein should be commended for supporting the efforts of the teachers in the nation’s third largest school district to bargain around their students’ needs for smaller classes, more counselors, school psycholog

With A Brooklyn Accent: Why Hip Hop Began in the Bronx- My Lecture for C-Span

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Why Hip Hop Began in the Bronx- My Lecture for C-Span What I am about to describe to you is one of the most improbable and inspiring stories you will ever hear. It is about how young people in a section of New York widely regarded as a site of unspeakable violence and tragedy created an art form that would sweep the world. It is a story filled with ironies, unexplored connections and lessons for

Design Tech High School (Part 1) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

by Mike Simpson / 5d

Design Tech High School (Part 1) It is 8:30 AM. I am standing with 30 faculty and staff meeting in a circle in a large room called the Design Realization Garage (more about this space below). This is a daily faculty meeting. Everyone is standing and as Melissa Mizel, Director of the school, holding an open laptop in one hand, makes announcements, describes activities that will be occur during th

OCT 27

LOIS WEINER: It’s Chicago Educators Versus the Ruling Class

by Mike Simpson / 5d

It’s Chicago Educators Versus the Ruling Class It’s Chicago Educators Versus the Ruling Class Striking educators in Chicago are showing the country how union power can confront and turn back the abhorrent conditions of the neoliberal era. T hough the media is casting the strike of education workers in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) as (just) another episode in the wave of teachers’ strikes, and

Obama White House Photographer Suggests Trump Situation Room Photo of Unfolding al-Baghdadi Raid Was Staged

by Mike Simpson / 5d

OBAMA WHITE HOUSE PHOTOGRAPHER SUGGESTS TRUMP SITUATION ROOM PHOTO OF UNFOLDING AL-BAGHDADI RAID WAS STAGED T he chief official White House photographer for former Presidents Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama suggested the Trump administration was posing for Saturday's stern-faced Situation Room picture in the wake of a U.S. military raid that resulted in the death of a major ISIS figurehead. Pete

The Charter-to-Prison Pipeline - Progressive.org

by Mike Simpson / 5d

The Charter-to-Prison Pipeline The charter system that often paints itself as a better option for black parents does not acknowledge the harm rigid disciplinary policies can impose on black students. In late September, headlines flickered across my Twitter timeline about a six-year-old black girl who was arrested at school for a temper tantrum. In outrage and confusion, I opened up the articles

More Eyes Needed To Keep Watch On The Charter School Industry

by Mike Simpson / 6d

More Eyes Needed To Keep Watch On The Charter School Industry Our oversight is “ proactive and responsive .” - José Cole-Gutiérrez, LAUSD Charter School Division The number of charter schools is growing rapidly. Just three years ago the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) reported that it was “the largest district charter school authorizer in the nation, with about 250 independent and af

CATCH UP WITH CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Nearly Spooky Edition (10/26)

by Mike Simpson / 6d

CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Nearly Spooky Edition (10/26) ICYMI: Nearly Spooky Edition (10/26) Here's the reading for the week. Remember to pass it on. School Choice Has Not Cured Philadelphia's Ailing System The Inquirer takes a look at choice in Philly and the various problems it hasn't fixed. The History of Privatization Talking Points Memo takes a look a privatization across a series of articles,

Betsy DeVos owes taxpayers at least $100,000. And we owe her our contempt. | Eclectablog

by Mike Simpson / 6d

Betsy DeVos owes taxpayers at least $100,000. And we owe her our contempt. Even a Judge and a Republican cannot help be disgusted by DeVos’ passion for loading up Americans with unpayable debt Last Thursday should be remembered as the day the news caught up with the remorseless wretchedness of Betsy DeVos. We can now say with certainty that Donald Trump’s Secretary of Education is illegally ripp

CURMUDGUCATION: Taking Back Teacher Evaluations

by Mike Simpson / 6d

Taking Back Teacher Evaluations There's a slowly-rising tide of writing out there focusing on principals and evaluations, quietly returning focus to the idea of making evaluations meaningful. It's a welcome change, because the status quo for the past over-a-decade has been the junk that disruptors stuck us with, in which teacher "evaluation" meant "slap some Big Standardized Test scores together

Goodbye DARE — more schools are embracing realistic drug education | Salon.com

by Mike Simpson / 6d

Goodbye DARE — more schools are embracing realistic drug education Arming students with facts empowers them to educate people around them, whether they choose to use drugs or not. Like millions of people in the United States, I participated in Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE), the iconic drug education program rooted in the abstinence-only, “just say no” message of the Reagan administratio

What If States Competed Like Schools? | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 6d

What If States Competed Like Schools? I read the following commentary by Bill Phillis of Ohio Coalition for Adequacy and Equity, and it gave me an idea: The HB 70-triggered chaos continues in Lorain City School District While state officials fiddle with the potential of repeal of HB 70, Lorain City School District continues to burn. The HB 70 CEO claimed and then retracted that school employees

SomeDAM Poet: First They Came for the Billionaires…. | Diane Ravitch's blog

by Mike Simpson / 6d

SomeDAM Poet: First They Came for the Billionaires…. One of our readers asserted that it was unfair to raise taxes on billionaires and alluded to the famous saying by Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller. Only he put it this way: First they came for the billionaires. Then they came for the millionaires. Then they came for those with $100,000 a year. Then they came for you. And private property was n

Chicago Teacher Strike: Three Things To Remember

by Mike Simpson / 6d

Chicago Teacher Strike: Three Things To Remember I’ve been through two strikes in my teaching career–one as a newly hired teacher and one as a local union president. Believe me when I tell you this: no teacher wants to strike . It is always a tool of last resort, because it is always difficult, stressful, and disruptive. When teachers strike, it is always because they have run out of options. Te

NYC Educator: Too Much Testing? City Has Simple Solution--More Testing

by Mike Simpson / 6d

Too Much Testing? City Has Simple Solution--More Testing CPE1 is a progressive stronghold. They have a vibrant school community that stands up to nonsense. When an abusive principal started pressing charges against UFT activists and banning activist parents from their children's school, they screamed, and continued doing so. The principal was reassigned. For all I know, she's twiddling her thumb

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