School Tech Connect: The Unified Theory of Poverty, Testing, and Jobs

School Tech Connect: The Unified Theory of Poverty, Testing, and Jobs

The Unified Theory of Poverty, Testing, and Jobs

by effacethefacade@yahoo.com (Tim)

I'm still recovering from the DC heat. Holy cow-- I think my internal organs were parboiled. Was it worth it? Absolutely. I'm still in awe of what the SOS steering committee and volunteers accomplished.

One thing that has to be kept in mind is that when people like me, for example, criticize high-stakes testing, Arne Duncan rolls his eyes because he thinks he's cured that problem. As you know, a friggin' ton of the stimulus money was scheduled to be spent not on fixing infrastructure or building high-speed rail, or building libraries in poverty zones, but on the creating of new, magical tests that go along with the Common Core standards and that will be expanded into every subject.

The tests, which don't exist yet, will be online, and will have the appearance of being magical because in all

Dysfunctional Tiny Cities and Dysfunctional Tiny School Districts: The Sorry Story of Central Falls, RI - Dana Goldstein

Dysfunctional Tiny Cities and Dysfunctional Tiny School Districts: The Sorry Story of Central Falls, RI - Dana Goldstein

Dysfunctional Tiny Cities and Dysfunctional Tiny School Districts: The Sorry Story of Central Falls, RI

by Dana Goldstein

Central Falls, Rhode Island--infamous since its superintendent attempted to fire every single high school teacher last year--filed for bankruptcy today. Local officials are promising the bankruptcy will be the city's first step on the road to economic revitalization. "From the ashes of bankruptcy Central Falls will rise again," claimed Robert Flanders, the state-appointed city receiver.

I hate to say it, but that may be far too optimistic: Central Falls has long been unable to function as an independent municipality. Since 1991, its failing school district--less than half of all students graduate high school on time--has been controlled and funded by the state of Rhode Island. Last year the state also took the reins of the city government, which presided over a $5 million deficit and $80 million in unfunded health and

#sosmarch Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS Think/Do Tank

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS Think/Do Tank

SOS Think/Do Tank

SOS Institure Workshop (R. Sanders pic)

One of the many good things that came out of the SOS conference was a committment from a significant group of attendees to move ahead with, what we're now calling, a Think/Do Tank. Diane Ravitch and I offered up an outline for an institute of some kind to emerge from this week's protest. The response was

Inexcusable Inequalities! This is NOT the post funding equity era! « School Finance 101

Inexcusable Inequalities! This is NOT the post funding equity era! « School Finance 101

Inexcusable Inequalities! This is NOT the post funding equity era!

Posted on August 1, 2011 by schoolfinance101

3

8 Votes

I’ve heard it over and over again from reformy pundits. Funding equity? Been there done that. It doesn’t make a damn bit of difference. It’s all about teacher quality! (which of course has little or nothing to do with funding equity?). The bottom line is that equitable and adequate financing of schools is a NECESSARY UNDERLYING CONDITION FOR EVERYTHING ELSE!

I’m sick of hearing, from pundits who’ve never run a number themselves and have merely passed along copies of the meaningless NCES Table showing national average spending in high poverty districts slightly greater than that for lower poverty ones.

I’m sick of the various iterations of the “we’ve tripled spending and gotten nothing for it” argument and accompanying bogus graphs. And further, the implication put forward by pundits that these

Big Education Ape - PostRank Today's 8

Big Education Ape - PostRank Today's 8

#SOSMarch Matt Damon’s Speech to Teachers’ Rally « Diary of a Public School Teacher! Matt Damon’s Speech to Teachers’ Rally « Diary of a Public School Teacher! Matt Damon’s Speech to Teachers’ Rally *I love this speech! I wonder how many politicians heard or read it?* I flew overnight from Vancouver to be with you today. I landed in New ...

#SOSMarch Rita Solnit of PAA: Stop wasting our tax dollars on failed reforms! « Parents Across America Rita Solnit of PAA: Stop wasting our tax dollars on failed reforms! « Parents Across America Rita Solnit of PAA: Stop wasting our tax dollars on failed reforms! by leoniehaimson *There were so many great speeches at the SOS rally; but this is one of my ...

#SOSMarch 'Save Our Schools' Leaders Craft Next Steps - Politics K-12 - Education Week 'Save Our Schools' Leaders Craft Next Steps - Politics K-12 - Education Week 'Save Our Schools' Leaders Craft Next Steps by Michele McNeil *By guest blogger Nirvi Shah:* Now that the Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action 

Daily Kos: reflections from a tired teacher Daily Kos: reflections from a tired teacher reflections from a tired teacher by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) who spent the past four days involved with the efforts around the Save Our Schools March in DC. I make no contention that this will be ...

An Urban Teacher's Education: Bill Gates Knows Best An Urban Teacher's Education: Bill Gates Knows Best Bill Gates Knows Best by James Boutin According to the Huffington Post, Bill Gates told the National Urban League in Boston on Thursday that there is a myth out there that says poverty must be ...

Jersey Jazzman: Video: Marie Corfield Interview at SOS March Jersey Jazzman: Video: Marie Corfield Interview at SOS March Talking To Teachers At the SOS March - Part II I caught up with a couple of teachers from Freehold at the SOS March: Someone needs to explain to me why autistic kids need to take ...

NYC Public School Parents: Maggie Moroff on how parents need a voice in teacher evaluationNYC Public School Parents: Maggie Moroff on how parents need a voice in teacher evaluation Maggie Moroff on how parents need a voice in teacher evaluation by Leonie Haimson *Several months ago, Class Size Matters sponsored anonline petition to the ...

Revel, Rebel or Revolt? - Arlington, VA, United States, ASCD EDge Blog post Revel, Rebel or Revolt? - Arlington, VA, United States, ASCD EDge Blog post Looking Ahead Revel, Rebel or Revolt? *Walter’s blog archive: http://surfaquarium.com/blog.htm* Mirror site: ...

#sosmarch Teacher: What Save Our Schools march accomplished — and didn’t - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Teacher: What Save Our Schools march accomplished — and didn’t - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Teacher: What Save Our Schools march accomplished — and didn’t

by Valerie Strauss

Veteran teacher Anthony Cody was one of the main organizers of last week’s Save Our Schools March , the first time thousands of public school teachers gathered in Washington D.C. to publicly protest the Obama administration’s education policy. There were smaller protests in about a dozen other cities around the country at the same time.

I asked him how he thought it went, what it accomplished, whether the turnout disappointed him, and more. Cody taught science for 18 years in inner-city Oakland and now works with a team of science teacher-coaches that supports novice teachers. He is a National Board-certified teacher and an active member of the Teacher Leaders Network. He writes the Living in Dialogue blog for Education Week Teacher.

Read full article >>

#sosmarch Shanker Blog » Matt Damon, Jon Stewart And The "Teacher Family Effect"

Shanker Blog » Matt Damon, Jon Stewart And The "Teacher Family Effect"

Matt Damon, Jon Stewart And The “Teacher In The Family Effect”

by Matthew Di Carlo

Over the past year or so, two high-profile celebrities – Jon Stewart and Matt Damon – have expressed skepticism about the market-based education reform policies currently spreading throughout the U.S. One cannot help but notice that they share one characteristic that they both acknowledge has helped to guide their opinions: Their mothers were both PK-12 educators. I’m also the son of a teacher and I know that this has had a substantial effect on my opinions about public education. No doubt the same is true of people who are married to teachers.

It’s hardly surprising that your occupation can help to influence the views of your family members, especially those pertaining directly to that career (i.e., education policy and teachers’ families). But I found myself wondering if there was some way to get a sense of just how strong this “effect” might be. In other words, how

Matt Damon defends teachers against a [expletive] cameraman!

Footage from the 2011 SOS March. Matt Damon spoke. Matt Damon did interviews. Matt Damon defended teachers against a [expletive] cameraman!

#sosmarch Matt Damon criticizes Eva Moskowitz’s charters at D.C. rally | GothamSchools

Matt Damon criticizes Eva Moskowitz’s charters at D.C. rally | GothamSchools

Matt Damon criticizes Eva Moskowitz’s charters at D.C. rally

by Geoffrey Decker

A contingent of New York teachers joined thousands of protesters from across the country in Washington, D.C. on Saturday to march against the Obama administration’s education policies.

Joining them was actor and budding philanthropist Matt Damon, who railed against “corporate reformers.” In an interview with GothamSchools, Damon exhibited a familiarity with New York City education politics, criticizing co-locations of charter schools and district schools and calling out the Success Charter Network in particular.

The march was the main draw of a four-day event called “Save Our Schools,” which included a conference and a film festival. A coalition of more than 100 teachers came down from New York City, including groups from the

#sosmarch THe Good Fight - Lily's Blackboard – Lily's Blackboard

THe Good Fight - Lily's Blackboard – Lily's Blackboard

THe Good Fight

Jul 31st, 2011

by Lily.

It was a powerful thing to see thousands of us on the Ellipse of Mall with the White House in the background and the Capitol down the road.

It was powerful for the very fact that it started as the idea of a group of education bloggers who have for so many years called for a return to sanity – the radically sane idea of using test scores to measure no more than what they were designed to measure. So many of us over the years have called for a rejection of the insanity of making stuff up and pretending that some standardized test is all you need tell the worth of a child, her teacher or an entire school system.

When test scores go up, we do not applaud. When test scores go down, we do

“Teachers go door-to-door to meet students, parents” | Engaging Parents In School...

“Teachers go door-to-door to meet students, parents” | Engaging Parents In School...

“School Plan to Engage Parents Arouses Skepticism” In Chicago The New York Times has just published an article about a new plan by the Chicago School District for parent involvement/engagement. Check out School Plan to Engage Parents Arouses Skepticism.

New York City Schools Gets A New Parent Engagement Chief I’ve posted previously about the absolutely awful job the New York City schools seem to do related to parent involvement/engagement (Does The New York City Dept. Of Ed Have Any Clue What They’re Doing In Parent Engagement? ). Well, this week the new ...

“Teachers go door-to-door to meet students, parents” Teachers go door-to-door to meet students, parents is a nice newspaper article, with photos, from a Kentucky newspaper. As regular readers know, I’ve written a lot — in my book, and in this blog, about teacher home visits — and have also done a lot ...

“The Roles Of Parent & Community Engagement In Student Success” “The Roles Of Parent & Community Engagement In Student Success: Work Works In Illinois” is a new report published by advocates of Community Schools. Even though it’s focused on Illinois, a lot of the info can be applied anywhere.

“‘Just right’ parents and No Child Left Behind” ‘Just right’ parents and No Child Left Behind is a piece in the Washington Post offering some good recommendations on changes that could be made to a new Elementary and Secondary Education Act and increase parent involvement. It’s worth a read.

New York City Parents Sue To Stop Public Subsidy To Private Charter Schools A group of twenty-five New York City parents filed suit today to stop the District from forcing schools to share facilities with charters. It’s all pretty interesting, and you can read about it in The New York Times and at the NYC Public School ...

“Parent trigger rules are, with a nod to Colbert, ‘reforminess’” Parent trigger rules are, with a nod to Colbert, ‘reforminess’ is a good take on the recently-approved California regulations for the Parent Trigger. It’s written by Gary Ravani, vice president of the California Federation of Teachers.

Engaging Latino Parents in Student Learning « Whole Child Education

The Whole Child Blog « Whole Child Education

THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG

Engaging Latino Parents in Student Learning

July 29th, 2011 by Klea Scharberg

Throughout the United States, classrooms are becoming more diverse and educators are struggling to provide the resources English language learners need to be successful. What can educators do to help ensure that these students, especially the rapidly increasing Latino population, get the attention and education they need?

Authors David Campos, Rocio Delgado, and Mary Esther Soto Huerta assert that it’s time for the education community to tap into parent involvement to shatter the 28 percent nationwide dropout rate for Latino students. In their new book, Reaching Out to Latino Families of English Language Learners, they argue that with more

Near Record-Low Confidence in U.S. Public Schools

Near Record-Low Confidence in U.S. Public Schools

Confidence level has held largely steady amid recession and budget cuts

by Lymari Morales

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Americans continue to express near record-low confidence in U.S. public schools -- holding in the range seen throughout the past few years of tumult for the U.S. economy and state budgets. The 34% who say they have a "great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in public schools is unchanged from last year and statistically similar to what Gallup has found since 2005.

The findings are from Gallup's annual update on confidence in institutions, conducted June 9-12. Nearly all institutions -- including public schools -- have seen historically low confidence in recent years. This

#sosmarch MATT DAMON AND HIS HISTORY TEACHER

Matt Damon rallies teachers at a Save Our Schools Rally near the White House. Before his speech, he talked to 9NEWS NOW's Brittany Morehouse about his message to all teachers out there. Brittany also interviewed his history teacher from high school. Larry Aaronson is a man who inspired Damon and his peers..

Can Teachers Be Evaluated By Their Students' Test Scores? Should They Be? - ParentAdvocates.org

Parent Advocates - ParentAdvocates.org

Can Teachers Be Evaluated By Their Students' Test Scores? Should They Be?
Value-added models have become increasingly popular in today’s policy environment as a way to evaluate, reward, and dismiss teachers. These statistical models aim to isolate each teacher’s unique contribution to their students’ educational outcomes based in part on student test scores.

CAN TEACHERS BE EVALUATED BY THEIR STUDENTS’ TEST SCORES? SHOULD THEY BE? THE USE OF VALUE-ADDED MEASURES OF TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS IN POLICY AND PRACTICE

Full Report (PDF: 46 pages)
Executive Summary (PDF: 16 pages)
Press Release Commentary

Prepared by Sean Corcoran, assistant professor of educational economics at New
York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development, and research fellow at the Institute for Education and Social Policy in collaboration with the

Thank the Teacher Who Changed Your Life! #sosmarch

GreaterGood Network Petitions on Facebook (27)

Thank the Teacher Who Changed Your Life!

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Sign the pledge thanking a teacher who has helped you become who you are today. Go teachers!

Goal: 20,000 • Progress: 348

Sponsored by: The Literacy Site

We all remember that one teacher growing up who encouraged us to be better than average. The teacher who told us we could be anything our minds could imagine. The teacher who helped shape who we are today.

In America, teachers just don't get enough credit. They're the people who pave our futures, and yet, they're consistently underpaid and underappreciated. It's time we recognize those teachers who have given of themselves to influence our lives and given us the tools to succeed beyond the classroom.

Sign the pledge in honor of that one teacher who helped you see a subject in a new light, who pushed you further than you thought you could ever go, who helped to change your life. Then give a shout-out to that teacher in the comments section!

GO TEACHERS!

#sosmarch This Week In Education: Thompson: SOS March Not About Saving Jobs

This Week In Education: Thompson: SOS March Not About Saving Jobs

Thompson: SOS March Not About Saving Jobs

by john thompson

#sosmarch The Education Sector's Richard Colvin is half-right about the Save Our Schools March. Teachers have suffered less than most workers as jobs, wages, and benefits have been cut over the last four decades. In fact, that may be the biggest reason why we have been targeted as scapegoats. The politics of resentment demands that teachers also get their comeupance. Colvin is also correct in reminding us of the 300,000 teaching jobs that the

Events: "No Child" Back On Stage In NYC

by Alexander Russo

If you missed it the first time around don't miss it again. Nilaja Sun's one-woman play about teaching in a New York City school is back in town until mid-August and you can get tickets to see it for just $25 using the supersecret code Susan Sawyers told me about. Others will disagree but my favorite part of the show is the tense encounter between the Caribbean-born security guard and one of the students going through the metal detectors. Security guards play such a little-noted but important role in

#sosmarch Teachers as Radicals: After SOS, What Now? | Dailycensored.com

Teachers as Radicals: After SOS, What Now? | Dailycensored.com

Teachers as Radicals: After SOS, What Now?

Written by Paul ThomasEducationAug 1, 2011

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Thanks to education commentary and policy under President Obama and Secretary of Education Duncan, we don’t have to turn to George Orwell’s brilliant essays on politics and language or his classic 1984 to understand the reality of double-speak.

By the end of 2010, the education focus of the Obama administration and the U.S. Department of Education became clear:

“Nothing is more important and nothing has a greater impact on the quality of education than the quality and skill of the person standing in the front of the class—and there is so much that needs to change in the way that America