If The Supreme Court Hears This Case, It Could Change The Face Of Public Education

If The Supreme Court Hears This Case, It Could Change The Face Of Public Education

If The Supreme Court Hears This Case, It Could Change The Face Of Public Education

This summer the US Supreme Court is expected to decide whether or not to hear Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue. If they hear the case, their decision will have huge repercussions for public education. To grasp why this case matters and why it's coming up now, there are two pieces of background you need to understand.

Tax Credit Scholarships

Tax credit scholarships are yet another variation on a school voucher program. Vouchers are the idea that a family picks the school they want their child to attend, and the state hands that child's "share" of education funding to that school. The problem is that when a family chooses a religious school (as is often the case), that can run afoul of the separation of church and state in general, and Blaine Amendmentlaws in particular. The Blaine Amendment was a failed Constitutional amendment that prohibited spending tax dollars on sectarian schools; thirty-eight states adopted it for their own constitutions. It's not an easy law to defend, because it rose out of nativist reaction to CONTINUE READING: If The Supreme Court Hears This Case, It Could Change The Face Of Public Education

Special Issue Alert: Should Academics be “Digitally” Engaged? | Cloaking Inequity

Special Issue Alert: Should Academics be “Digitally” Engaged? | Cloaking Inequity

SPECIAL ISSUE ALERT: SHOULD ACADEMICS BE “DIGITALLY” ENGAGED?

A new special issue of the online journal Critical Questions in Education (CQIE) entitled The Digitally Connected Academic: Public Scholarship and Activism in the Era of the Internet is dedicated to engaging with questions about what types—and to what extent—professors and instructors should engage in public scholarship across digital platforms.

Academics are certainly rewarded for focusing their time and energy on publishing their work in peer-reviewed journals and writing books. However, research on peer review has found that one-third of of social science and more than 80% of humanities articles are never cited (Remler, 2014) Furthermore, while the number of academic books rose by 45%, from 43,000 to 63,000 between 2005 and 2014, the average sales per title fell from 100 to 60 (Jubb, 2017). Considering that readership and citations are a proxies for impact, should academics evolve the normative conceptions of scholarship to focus additional attention on creating ancillary work derived from their published research to engage in the public? While engagement in evolving communication technologies (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, YouTube, etc.) can serve as mechanisms by which traffic is di- rected towards academic journals and books, should faculty also view these platforms as neglected spaces where discourse often lacks empirical expertise? How much, how often, and to what ends should public scholarship take advantage of digital platforms?

The rise of new forms of technological communication platforms to engage in dialogue have provided ample space for individuals and organizations to promote public discourse about education issues (Ravitch, Vasquez Heilig, & Brewer, in press). For example, market-oriented privatization reforms have expertly leveraged the power of social media to amplify their calls for shifting control of P-20 into the hands of privatizers and profiteers. New communication technologies have provided a space where myths of “failed schools” and “bad teachers” continue to thrive in cyberspace as they often go unchallenged by academics and others with expertise on the subject (Malin & Lubienski, 2015). In fact, the unchallenged voices of pro-reform groups on social media platforms have afforded those groups the opportunity to create echo chambers of commonsensical rhetoric about the need to reform schools (Brewer & Wallis, 2015).

Considering the potential evolution of the field and ongoing public discourse about con- temporary education such as education reform on various technological platforms, the aim of this special issue was to begin—and continue for CONTINUE READING: Special Issue Alert: Should Academics be “Digitally” Engaged? | Cloaking Inequity

Investigating the Corporate Fingerprints in the Media Attacks on Teachers and Colleges of Education

Investigating the Corporate Fingerprints in the Media Attacks on Teachers and Colleges of Education

Investigating the Corporate Fingerprints in the Media Attacks on Teachers and Colleges of Education

A media rollout of criticism towards teachers and their COEs mostly over reading, has fueled debate about what teachers know about teaching. Are these reports what they seem, or is something else going on? None of these commentaries look at the effects of Common Core State Standards. Look closely and one finds corporate school reform fingerprints.

If reformers can break the parent/teacher bond, they can convince parents to sign on to unproven charters, choice, Teach for America, or putting their child online for their schooling. So, it is important to scan these negative reports carefully. Start by recognizing negative titles.

Here are two examples:

What Education Schools Aren’t Teaching About Reading and What Elementary Teachers Aren’t Learning by Kate Walsh, Deborah Glaser, and Danielle Dunne Wilcox.

This title criticizes teachers and their education schools in one fell swoop! Originally printed in 2006, it’s the foundation of complaints in recent reports.

One author is Kate Walsh, president of the board of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). The NCTQ is a think tank funded by groups like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Teach for America founder, Wendy Kopp, CONTINUE READING: Investigating the Corporate Fingerprints in the Media Attacks on Teachers and Colleges of Education

CURMUDGUCATION: The Trouble With The College Board's New Adversity Score

CURMUDGUCATION: The Trouble With The College Board's New Adversity Score

The Trouble With The College Board's New Adversity Score

The College Board has for years been trying to rescue its floundering flagship, the SAT. The newly announced adversity score is just the latest unforced error from the testing giant. 

Just keep telling yourself that

For almost a decade, the company has been fighting for market share. In 2012, it hired David Coleman, fresh from his work as architect of the language portion of the Common Core Standards. The theory was that Coleman could lead a redesign of the test that would bring it in line with the Common Core, so that students steeped in the new standards would be well-prepared for the SAT. The alignment would also be a selling point for states looking for a high school exit exam, and within a few years, the College Board was lining up states to make the SAT their official test, giving the company a captive market. On top of that, Coleman proudly announced that his new, improved test would be a tool for eradicating social injustice; the test would be a great leveler.  

But a critical part of Coleman’s strategy was to get the new test to market quickly. The new test was well under way by the beginning of 2014. It launched in the 2015-2016 school year.  

There were problems. PSAT scores from the fall of 2015 were late. Test prep experts were advising students not to take the new SAT at all. In an attempt to clamp down on cheating, the College CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: The Trouble With The College Board's New Adversity Score

Dozens support Oakland teacher, say district retaliated by not renewing her contract - SFChronicle.com

Dozens support Oakland teacher, say district retaliated by not renewing her contract - SFChronicle.com

Dozens support Oakland teacher, say district retaliated by not renewing her contract

Big Education Ape: Video: Oakland trustee grabbing picketing teacher's throat - https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2019/06/video-oakland-trustee-grabbing.html

Dozens of teachers and residents attended the Oakland school board meeting Wednesday to show support for a kindergarten teacher after her contract wasn’t renewed by the district — a decision the teacher’s union alleges is retaliatory.

Darnisha Wright worked as a kindergarten teacher at Markham Elementary School in East Oakland under a one-year contract that expires June 30. Wright was informed in April that she would be out of a job.

She and her supporters believe the district’s refusal to renew her contract is connected to an incident that occurred during the teachers’ strike in March, when a video circulated on social media that showed a school board member wrapping her hand around Wright’s throat on the picket line.

“I was hurt and angry,” Wright told The Chronicle about the district’s decision. “I couldn’t believe they could do such a thing. I thought it was hateful, reactionary and unfair.”

The district’s April 29 letter informing Wright that her position at Markham was no longer available encouraged her to apply for other teaching positions within the district. Wright said the letter came as a surprise because the principal of the school had previously told her that she would be returning for the next school year. Wright said she saw that her position was posted as vacant and she reapplied, but didn’t get a response.

She also applied for other vacant teaching positions, but said she has not received a response.

The letter came shortly after Wright said she would pursue charges against school board member Jumoke Hinton Hodge for assault. Wright never did file a police report. Since receiving the letter from the district, Wright has filed a grievance through Oakland Education Association, the teachers union.

“We have a (teacher) shortage in Oakland,” said Ismael Armendariz, the vice president of the union. “There are hundreds of vacancies that need to be filled. (The district) is doing this because of her political activity. She was a picket leader at her school.”

The Oakland Unified School District declined to comment due to the CONTINUE READING: Dozens support Oakland teacher, say district retaliated by not renewing her contract - SFChronicle.com

Vote on LAUSD Rules Changes Delayed Again

Vote on LAUSD Rules Changes Delayed Again

Vote on LAUSD Rules Changes Delayed Again

The time has come for a new era of transparency and accountability. For too long, parents, students, and taxpayers have been kept in the dark about what’s going on in District headquarters”

– LAUSD Board Member Nick Melvoin

When Nick Melvoin’s proposed rule changes were last placed on an agenda for a Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) board meeting they included a controversial reduction in the amount of time allocated to each public speaker to two minutes. However, just before the May 7th meeting was called to order, this item was pulled from the agenda, apparently in an attempt to prevent the board from seeming anything less than harmonious ahead of the vote on Measure EE. This maneuver also prevented the public from weighing in on the subject.

In the time since that meeting, Melvoin’s committee has still not held a publicly noticed meeting under California’s Brown Act. Still, changes were made to the new rules document that included restoring the three minutes of time allotted to each speaker. As the discussion about this item began at the June 11 board meeting, Jackie Goldbergexpressed concern that she had not been given enough time to review the most recent changes. The recently seated board memberalso made it clear that she wanted the opportunity to give her input into the rules that she would operate under. As a result, the board agreed to once again to postpone the vote on the resolution.

Unfortunately, along with the opportunity for the board to further refine this document, Board President Garcia attempted to block any public input on the subject. When I pointed out to the Board CONTINUE READING: Vote on LAUSD Rules Changes Delayed Again

Court declines to exempt charters from school segregation case | MPR News

Court declines to exempt charters from school segregation case | MPR News

Court declines to exempt charters from school segregation case

The Hennepin County District Court this week decided not to exempt Minnesota charter schools from a lawsuit aimed at addressing school segregation.

The Cruz-Guzman case claims that persistent school segregation effectively denies Minnesota children an adequate education.

Several charter schools sought to be exempted from whatever ruling might be made in the case, but a judge on Monday decided not to exempt them.

Daniel Shulman, who represents the plaintiffs, said he was delighted by the decision.

"The impact is that the charter schools don't get a free pass here," Shulman said. "They've asked the judge basically to say that they can't be held accountable for the contribution they've made to segregation. And the judge wouldn't do that, as I think was correct."

• Listen: Charter school advocates push back on segregation claims
• Jan. 2018: School desegregation case goes to state Supreme Court

Nekima Levy-Armstrong, who represents the charter schools involved in the case, said her clients are disappointed but not surprised by Judge Susan Robiner's decision.

"Our clients have done an incredible job providing culturally affirming environments for students and also outstanding educational opportunities," she said. "And we want to ensure that, regardless of the outcome of this litigation, their rights will be protected, that their ability to educate students will be protected, and that the choices of parents — particularly parents of color — will also be protected."

Two of the charter schools Levy-Armstrong represents say their student body is over 90 percent black, according to the court order filed Monday. Levy-Armstrong said the concern is that refusing to exempt her clients from whatever decision the CONTINUE READING: Court declines to exempt charters from school segregation case | MPR News

WV MetroNews Weingarten says Senate leaders ignoring public on charter school issue - WV MetroNews

WV MetroNews Weingarten says Senate leaders ignoring public on charter school issue - WV MetroNews

Weingarten says Senate leaders ignoring public on charter school issue

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten says the Republican majority in the West Virginia State Senate should take a cue from what the AFT has been able to do in McDowell County when it comes to education reform.

File

Weingarten was on the picket lines with WV teachers in 2018 and earlier this year.

“We’ve actually done these things within the public school system and we’ve actually done these things with people in the community, with teachers, with community members, with students, not trying to impose something that takes money out,” Weingarten said.

She visited Charleston Wednesday to meet with the state Board of Education. Weingarten said she wanted to update the board on the success of the Reconnecting McDowell program with all the talk of education reform and the Senate-passed Student Success Act.

Weingarten, who walked picket lines with West Virginia teachers the past two years, said AFT and its partners have been able to meet the emotional and social needs of McDowell County students while engaging them in the instruction they need.

Weingarten, during an appearance Wednesday on MetroNews CONTINUE READING: WV MetroNews Weingarten says Senate leaders ignoring public on charter school issue - WV MetroNews

National teachers union president: WV education bill 'a mockery' | Education | wvgazettemail.com - https://www.wvgazettemail.com/news/education/national-teachers-union-president-wv-education-bill-a-mockery/article_271b52f6-9e04-5ae2-a655-8c81929585b2.html on @wvgazettemail

Bill calls for assurance that low-income kids get school meals :: K-12 Daily

Bill calls for assurance that low-income kids get school meals :: K-12 Daily :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

Bill calls for assurance that low-income kids get school meals

(Calif.) Public schools in California do not have to participate in federal school meal programs, but under a bill moving through the state Legislature, they will have to ensure low-income children receive at least one meal on campus that meets federal nutrition requirements.

Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton and author of AB 354, noted that academic performance is partially linked to if students are coming to school hungry, and that all traditional and public charter schools should be providing lunch to children eligible for free or reduced-price meals.

“Many schools do this, and some schools also provide breakfast, but there are some public schools that maybe have a very small percentage of Title I students, and many times they don’t give that meal to those students,” Quirk-Silva said during a Senate committee hearing Wednesday. “We want students, no matter what school they’re going to, to have at least the one nutritious meal.”

Studies have shown that healthier school environments have numerous benefits for students. For example, quality physical education predicts higher levels of physical activity in school. And school wellness policies that promote increased access to healthier foods and limit access to unhealthy foods have been linked to lower caloric intake and improved student diets.

Since 2004, all school districts participating in the federal meal programs have been required to create a committee of stakeholders and write a school wellness policy that set goals for physical and nutrition education, and set nutrition standards for meals and snacks served.

In 2010, the scope of school wellness policies was expanded by The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act which, among other things, aimed to promote more physical activity and increase the amount of whole grains, fruits and vegetables served in school meal programs while lowering sugars, sodium and calorie intake.

There are 530 districts with nearly 1,800 school sites statewide that do not participate in the federal National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, according to California Department CONTINUE READING: Bill calls for assurance that low-income kids get school meals :: K-12 Daily :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

The Sun-Times editorial board lies. There is no teacher pension ‘spiking.” None of these facts will matter. – Fred Klonsky

The Sun-Times editorial board lies. There is no teacher pension ‘spiking.” None of these facts will matter. – Fred Klonsky

THE SUN-TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD LIES. THERE IS NO TEACHER PENSION ‘SPIKING.” NONE OF THESE FACTS WILL MATTER.

The unfunded liability nothing to do with pension benefits. It is entirely due to the state’s failure to pay into the pension funds over decades what they owe.

It was just a few days ago that I posted how Crain’s Greg Hinz and the Chicago Federation’s Larry Msall lied about the cap on teacher’s pensionable raises and a pension spike.

But no sooner had I hit the publish button than the Chicago Sun-Times repeats the lie.

I thought the Sun-Times was the pro-labor paper in town.

I guess we’re on our own folks.

But in the last-minute move on June 1, probably in response to a “Repeal the 3%” campaign by the state teachers’ union, the governor and Legislature bumped the cap back up to 6%. The increase, which was nixed by the House earlier this spring when it was stand-alone legislation, doesn’t affect Chicago, which has its own teacher pension fund.

This latest pension sweetener will allow local school districts to raise teacher’s pay by 24%-plus in their final four years — CONTINUE READING: The Sun-Times editorial board lies. There is no teacher pension ‘spiking.” None of these facts will matter. – Fred Klonsky

National Education Policy Center: Phony Voucher Report | Diane Ravitch's blog

National Education Policy Center: Phony Voucher Report | Diane Ravitch's blog

National Education Policy Center: Phony Voucher Report

The National Education Policy Center published a review of an annual report by EdChoice, an advocacy organization for vouchers.

KEY TAKEAWAY:

Questionable methodology and misrepresentation of the research result in a misleading report not useful for decision-making or research purposes.

BOULDER, CO (June 11, 2019) – A recent report from EdChoice presents itself as a yearly updated list and synthesis of empirical studies exploring the impacts of school vouchers across a set of outcomes. But a new review of the report finds that it fails to provide a robust summary of the research literature on vouchers and their full range of positive and negative impacts.

T. Jameson Brewer, of the University of North Georgia, reviewed The 123s of School Choice: What the Research Says About Private School Choice: 2019 Edition.

EdChoice’s report attempts to convince readers that a solid body of research evidence shows voucher benefits such as an increase in test scores, parental satisfaction, increased civic values, improvements in racial segregation, and fiscal benefits through governmental cost savings.

What Dr. Brewer found instead was a limited collection of cherry-picked studies, largely from non-peer-reviewed sources, and primarily authored by voucher advocates. The report’s misrepresentation of the existing research, combined with its use of the questionable methodology of simply counting up results categorized as positive or negative, results in an overall appearance of stacking the deck to create an illusory compilation of studies that profess to bolster EdChoice’s predetermined commitment to cheerleading school vouchers.

Find the review, by T. Jameson Brewer, at:

http://nepc.colorado.edu/thinktank/school-choice

Find The 123s of School Choice: What the Research Says About Private School Choice: 2019 Edition, written by Andrew Catt, Paul DiPerna, Martin Lueken, Michael McShane, and Michael Shaw, and published by EdChoice, at:

https://www.edchoice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/123s-of-School-Choice.pdf

National Education Policy Center: Phony Voucher Report | Diane Ravitch's blog

How Restorative Practices Work for Students and Educators - NEA Today

How Restorative Practices Work for Students and Educators - NEA Today

How Restorative Practices Work for Students and Educators

A few Mondays ago, a Denver third-grader named Luca sat down in a circle with his classmates and started a conversation like this: “If you were an animal for a day, based on your mood and feelings today, what animal would it be?”

It was the best conversation, say classmates Ellie and Lina. “I said I’d be a monkey because I was feeling silly,” says Ellie. “And I said I’d be a panda!” says Lina. “Because I was feeling lazy and hungry, and pandas are lazy and they eat all the time!”

Funny! But the point of the circle conversations, also known as “peace circles,” which take place every Monday morning in every classroom at the K-8 Dora Moore School in Denver, isn’t giggles. It’s to build community and to foster the kind of student-to-student and educator-to-student relationships that lead to supportive classrooms.

“When you go to school here, you get to know each other,” says fifth-grader Trinity. “At my old school, we never got to know each other — or to understand each other.”

Classroom circles are just one of the restorative practices that Dora Moore’s educators have adopted over recent years. Many of their students also practice their conflict-resolution skills in “peace walks,” and get regular, positive feedback through daily, one-on-one check-ins with dedicated, full-time restorative practices specialists on their campuses.

Often, this all takes place under the eyes of visiting educators who want to see and CONTINUE READING: How Restorative Practices Work for Students and Educators - NEA Today

CURMUDGUCATION: PA: UPDATE*** Voucher Expansion Goes To Governor

CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Voucher Expansion Goes To Governor

PA: Voucher Expansion Goes To Governor

UPDATE 

Wolf to veto $100M private schools bill in Pennsylvania | News | meadvilletribune.com - https://www.meadvilletribune.com/news/wolf-to-veto-m-private-schools-bill-in-pennsylvania/article_8180e6be-4208-5b57-8a0d-363a3d7dad72.html on @Meadville_Trib

The Pennsylvania GOP-controlled legislature is continuing its assault on public education, this time taking a page from the Betsy DeVos Big Book of Voucher Love.

HB 800 worked its way through the House a while back, and it has just cleared the Senate. The bill is a big wet kiss to the business community and to private schools, particularly religious ones. The Catholic Church loves this bill, as does ACSIPA, a network of Christian schools advocating for school choice. Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Council of Churches is opposed.

The bill expands the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC), a version of the same tax credit scholarship that is behind DeVos's $5 billion scheme. Tax credit scholarships exist in order to circumvent the law which says that thou shalt not give public tax dollars to private religious institutions. Here's how it works.

1) Mr. and Mrs. McGotbux gives a pile of money to Pat's Very Legit Scholarship Organization.

2) The state lets the McGotbux family count their contribution, in whole or in part (depending on the law) as payment on their taxes.

3) Pat's Very Legit Scholarship Organization gives some student at So Much Jesus School a scholarship CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Voucher Expansion Goes To Governor