Saturday, May 21, 2011

“Five myths about America’s schools” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

“Five myths about America’s schools” Five myths about America’s schools is an excellent Washington Post column by Post reporter Paul Farhi. I’m adding it to The Best Articles Providing An “Overall” Perspective On Education Policy.

What A Great Way To Get Comments On Student Blogs! As most teachers who have students writing blogs know, kids get very excited when people leave comments on their posts. Of course, we all appreciate it when people respond to our writing, and nothing beats having an authentic audience. Today, I ...

Bloomberg Causes New Stir With Remark on School Parents - NYTimes.com

Spontaneity Again Causes Mayor Trouble

By FERNANDA SANTOS

Published: May 20, 2011

REPRINTS

Responding to a lawsuit seeking to prevent New York City from closing 22 poorly performing schools, Mayor Michael R. Bloombergmade a comment on Friday about parents of children in those schools that immediately prompted outrage.

“Unfortunately there are some parents who just come from — they never had a formal education, and they don’t understand the value of education,” Mr. Bloomberg said during his weekly appearance on WOR-AM (710). “Many of our kids come from families — the old Norman Rockwell family is gone.”

The schools in question are filled with poor, minority and immigrant students, including many who are homeless.

Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, called the mayor’s comments “profoundly

"Union redoubles push for fair teacher evaluations.

"Union redoubles push for fair teacher evaluations." May 21, 2011. NYSUT: A Union of Professionals. www.nysut.org

Union redoubles push for fair teacher evaluations NYSUT and its local unions will take action to ensure the educational integrity and fairness of teacher evaluations - despite the Board of Regents' adoption of regulations that are inconsistent with the new law, the recommendations of the Regents' ...

First Person: 'An education they deserve' As we face another year of drastic education budget cuts in New York City, my visionary principal made me the Ms. Frizzle (a fictional character who arranges school field trips) of the school, using New York as an open classroom for all students.

TRS: What if I leave before I'm vested? What happens if I'm laid off before I'm vested?

Revolt: US government list of crimes proving unlawful dictatorship | Dailycensored.com

Revolt: US government list of crimes proving unlawful dictatorship

Written by Carl_HermanPolitics, War and PeaceMay 21, 2011

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source: Carl Herman, Examiner.com

Activist Post is an outstanding source for revealing factual reporting. The following documentation reminds us of the details of Orwellian unlawful US government dictates/dictatorship that corporate media obfuscates. I’ve written that by any objective definition, the US government is no longer a constitutional repbulic, but most accurately understood as fascism.

For context, here is a summary of my 30-years’ experience working with US “leadership” in government, economics and corporate media:
I teach US History, Advanced Placement (AP) US Government and AP Macroeconomics. As a “hobby,” I helped grow the citizen’s lobby, RESULTS, that led to two UN Summits (1990 World Summit for Children- the largest meeting of heads of state in world history – and the 1997 Microcredit Summit- topic of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize). US political leadership of both parties reneged on each and every public and private promise to act for ending poverty from these two UN summits. Leadership rejects saving a million children’s lives each month despite the fact that in every historical case it also

Dan Walters, SacBee, 2001: "New data prove that two-tier society is a fact of California life" | 24Ahead

Dan Walters, SacBee, 2001: "New data prove that two-tier society is a fact of California life"

The August 12, 2001 article "New data prove that two-tier society is a fact of California life" by Dan Walters of the Sacramento Bee is apparently not on their site any more. I'm copying it from here because it needs to be preserved as an example of the California Establishment realizing the problems they helped create:

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Sixteen years ago, two academic researchers took note of the powerful economic and social forces that were just then beginning to sweep through California and made what many thought was a very bold, even risky, projection about the state.

University of California, Davis, economist Philip Martin and Washington-based sociologist Leon Bouvier concluded in 1985 that with the state's population expanding dramatically due to immigration, and its economy shifting from old-style manufacturing to high technology and services, seeds were being sown for socioeconomic fragmentation.

"The large increases projected for Hispanics and Asians in the labor force suggest a continuation of the emerging two-tier economy," Martin and Bouvier wrote in a research paper published by the Population Reference Bureau,

Jersey Jazzman: A Reformy Confession

A Reformy Confession

by Duke

Via Bruce Baker on the Twitter machine - the very reformy National Council on Teacher Quality admits that even the best teachers aren't the X-Men:

As someone who runs a teacher quality organization, clearly I'd love it if that statement were even remotely accurate but,to be blunt, it's dead wrong. The 'teachers matter' refrain has been spouted so much in the past ten years that, predictably, we've lost important perspective. The truth is that SES and family background still swamp school effects by a 3:1 margin.
In spite of these odds, we can still have daily reminders that teachers matter plenty. But we do schools and teachers an injustice by inflicting upon them superhero powers, especially when we also wrongly insist that superhero status can be achieved just by being basically smart and stupendous results are possible no matter what curriculum is used.
Make no mistake about it. Overcoming the learning deficits of many poor and

Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield: Governor’s May Revise Keeps With Balanced Approach Necessary to Protect Jobs, Education and Publ | California Progress Report

Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield: Governor’s May Revise Keeps With Balanced Approach Necessary to Protect Jobs, Education and Publ

by kaldveer

SACRAMENTO – In this Democratic Weekly Radio Address, Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield (D-San Fernando Valley) Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, discusses Governor Brown’s recently released May Budget Revision. Blumenfield notes that while California still faces tough budget choices, the economy is showing signs of recovery that has helped reduce the budget gap. The creation of over 150,000 new jobs in the past six months along with other increases in economic activity has contributed to a growth in state revenues $6.6 billion above projections.

The Brooklyn Consensus | Dailycensored.com

The Brooklyn Consensus

Written by Terry.MBusiness, PoliticsMay 21, 2011

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By Terry Morrone

We’re in a class war and we’re losing. The rich are getting richer and everyone else is getting poorer. We’re abusing the planet through global warming and pollution. Unless we make radical changes, we’re heading for poverty, starvation and constant war. The whole world is in crisis, not just the United States. The amoral behavior of corporations and their allies in government are causing most of our problems. They don’t care how many people they kill in their quest for money and power. Imagine a world without laws. That’s what exists now for the rich and powerful. But our identification with the rich and the respect we give to anyone with money, no matter how they got it, is also a problem.

In this report I’m going to briefly describe the destructive behavior of our major corporations and banks. Then I’m going to suggest a list of remedies that I and others advocate. There seems to be a consensus on what has to be done among a group of progressive economists I’m familiar with.

brooklynbridge 300x197 The Brooklyn Consensus Brooklyn, a borough in New York City, is one of the most liberal communities in the nation. Last year I attended a Union for Radical Political Economics (URPE)

The Last time the World Ended

Saturday coffee.+ Old school « Fred Klonsky's blog

Saturday coffee. « Fred Klonsky's blog

Saturday coffee.

by Fred Klonsky

I’m putting this picture here in a shameless attempt to get sympathy for our fight to save our pensions. If you’re not willing to call your Illinois state senator and house member so that this poor, sweet, old teacher can live out the remaining days of her life on the $43,000 a year an average retired teacher in Illinois receives, what kind of heartless person are you?

I mean, if the Wall Street wheeler dealers can blame the financial crisis on a public school teachers, why can’t I be allowed to pull on your heart-strings?

Just a little.

Did you read Charles Blow in the NY Times today?

The Wall Street Journal reported last week on some 40 states that use prepaid debit cards to issue payments like unemployment benefits and child support.
Old school.
by Fred Klonsky
Billie Holiday.

Schools Matter: George Parker Openly Joins Psychopath, Michelle Rhee, on Oligarchs' Payroll

George Parker Openly Joins Psychopath, Michelle Rhee, on Oligarchs' Payroll

by Jim Horn

(priceless photo by Brendan Smialowski for the NYTimes--whatever you charge to use this one, fine)

After DC voters last year booted Fenty and Rhee, one of the first actions by DC teachers was to replace the scheming, ineffectual, and purchased union president, George Parker, who had sold out and signed on to the contract crafted by Weingarten and the Broad Team.

How fitting that Parker is now officially a whore to the Oligarchs, along with Rhee. Sam Dillon:

Michelle A. Rhee butted heads frequently during her three-year tenure as schools chancellor of

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