solidaridad: UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality

solidaridad: UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality:

UCLA IDEA: Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

UCLA IDEA is often quite good on issues, even though they represent an only slightly left-of-center viewpoint. UCLA as a whole sometimes does excellent work, like their study on how so-called school choice and charter school industry has brought back Jim Crow with a vengeance. They (namely IDEA) also sometimes works with right-wing groups funded by the Broad Foundation, like ICS. Now that I've returned to UCLA, I know it's my responsibility to praise them when they get it right, and call them out when they get it wrong.
This essay, for the most part, is excellent. That is until it calls corporate core a "promising education reform." The corporate garbage that is CCSS must be resisted at every turn. That said, this piece bears reprinting precisely because it shows that even progressive liberals agree with the principled left that standardized tests are considered harmfull.

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Standardized Tests Don't Measure Education Quality

By UCLA IDEA

Over 14 years ago, testing expert W. James Popham summarized what was, even then, “old news” about American policymakers’ love of standardized testing:

Educators are experiencing almost relentless pressure

Daily Kos: a few random thoughts on teaching and learning

Daily Kos: a few random thoughts on teaching and learning:

a few random thoughts on teaching and learning

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

let me grant for a moment that there should be some standard/goals we want for our students
if we truly want to leave no child behind there would be only two grades
Meets standards/goals/expectations
Does not YET meet standards/goals/expectations
the only "penalty" for not YET is to work with the child to help her/him reach it
assignments/assessment should have as their goal helping students achieve those "Meets" criteria
which means there is no reason every child has to do the same assignment, since for some it will be beyond 

Republished: A Look Back from the Middle | Lefty Parent

Republished: A Look Back from the Middle | Lefty Parent:

Republished: A Look Back from the Middle

May 25th, 2013 at 12:24

Republishing a recollection from our son Eric’s own writings about his development, “A Look Back from the Middle”, written in 2009, calling out some of the key developmental threads of his older youth after leaving school at fourteen and pursuing the unschooling path…

There was a period; in fact, it was the entire span of time between so long as I can remember and age twenty one. One might observe that this period serves as one definition of the elusive “youth”. Within this epoch of profound growth and exploration, time unfolded with an even rhythm that grows less and less familiar with age. Each step as quantifiable in retrospect as it was mysterious in present.

Every year was an era unto itself, complete with its own discoveries, characters, lessons, and dreams. I can’t retain every detail but the 

Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever | Education on GOOD

Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever | Education on GOOD:

Why We Need Schools To Uplift Their Communities Now More Than Ever

As Helen Keller said, "The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision."
That's why on Wednesday, when Chicago Public Schools decided to shut down 50 public schools, along with either combining or putting others in a turnaround model, even the casual observer could see the absolute failure of our current public education system and its wayward reforms.
Closing 10 percent of the Chicago Public Schools' entire school system is no small feat. True, some schools don't do the best job possible for all children, but closing a tenth of schools signals a deep-rooted symptom of a system whose leaders refuse to do anything besides stick toilet paper-thin Band-Aid reforms on the problems. Instead of duplicating schools like the lauded University of Chicago Laboratory School—created by famed 

Cleaning Up John White’s Mess | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

Cleaning Up John White’s Mess | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

Cleaning Up John White’s Mess

by crazycrawfish

Time to start eliminating the mess. . .

John White is likely to be gone by the end of June but Louisiana will still have its work cut out cleaning up the messes he will leave behind.  Some of those messes off the top of my head are:

• Unmonitored, standardless voucher program is an utter failure and a poorly performing mess from what little White has permitted us to see
• The Course Choice program is fraught with fraud which will cost Louisiana millions of dollars annually as it stands now
• Charter schools are not reporting most of the data they are required to and John White has refused to comply with the law in regards to the small amount of monitoring required
• MFP (the public school funding formula) has never been approved under his watch
• Pimping of our students and their data to unsupervised and unaccountable data pirates like inBloom andAgilix
• Falsified dropout and graduate numbers
• Common Core standards designed to dumb down our curriculum so text book and test makers can rack up big profits which is opposed by parents, teachers and teaparty groups and even liberal ‘ole me  (I was 

Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies | The Raw Story

Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies | The Raw Story:

Ohio school district considers teaching creationism and ‘Agenda 21′ conspiracies

By Eric W. Dolan
Saturday, May 25, 2013 14:34 EDT

Topics: ACLU ♦ american civil liberties union

 

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The American Civil Liberties Union this week warned school officials in Ohio not to adopt policies that advanced creationism in the classroom.

“It’s the job of families, not public schools to educate children on spiritual values,” said ACLU of Ohio staff attorney Drew Dennis. “It is irresponsible for schools to repeatedly waste resources designing these types of unconstitutional policies.”

The Springboro Community City School District officials is considering a policy (PDF) that would encourage students to “think critically” about “controversial” issues like evolution, abortion, climate change, UN Agenda 21 and sustainable development. The policy directs teachers to fully explore “all sides” of these issues.

“The role of the teacher in the presentation of assigned issues is vitally important,” the policy states. “All sides of the issue should be given to the students in a dispassionate manner. The goal is for the students to be taught to think clearly on all matters of importance, and to make decisions in the light of all the material that has been presented or can be researched on the issues.”

The proposal presumably requires teachers to bring up creationism during discussions of evolution and conservative conspiracy theories regarding the United Nations when 

Diane in the Evening 5-25-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

Duncan: In Chicago, I Cut Testing by 50%

by dianerav

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joined Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy at a meeting with students in Hartford, Connecticut. The main topic was school security, but at one point a student asked what could be done to cut back on excessive testing.
This was the exchange:
“Student Justin Vega said he feels as if all the time and money spent on standardized testing has compromised 

A True Act of Courage and Integrity

by dianerav

I earlier posted about the 21 teachers who resigned their positions at Weigand Elementary School to protest the ouster of their principal Irma Cobian. That was 21 out of a teaching staff of 22.
Not one of them knows if he or she will have a job next year. Theirs was an act of courage and integrity. They

Parent Activist Says He Was Offered Money to Promote Trigger Law

by dianerav

A parent who supported Parent Revolution’s efforts to turn his school into a charter says the organization promised to pay him. He says he and other parent activists were sent around the country to promote the movie “Won’t Back Down,” which flopped at the box office. One parent leader in Adelanto was hired to work for the

Wondering About Ben Austin

by dianerav

Earlier today, I posted an article in the Los Angeles Times about Parent Revilution forcing the ouster of an excellent principal, Irma Cobian.
I keep thinking about it. I think about the way her staff admired and respected her, how 21 of 22 teachers requested a transfer when she was targeted by the phony Parent Revolution.
Ben Austin is loathsome. He ruined the life and career of a dedicated educator. She was devoted to the children

Were You Invited to This Cool Party?

by dianerav

No? Neither was I.
This was a soirée for the super-rich who support Eva Moskowitz’s charter schools. Those are the miracle schools that claim their students outperform the students in affluent Scarsdale.
Hedge fund manager Daniel S. Loeb was the honoree. He was surrounded by other hedge fund managers. They think they are Robin Hoods. They forget that the real Robin Hood stole from people like them.
Jeb Bush, Florida’s own Robin Hood was there. So was Merryl Tisch, chancellor of the New York Board of Regents. All celebrating Eva’s Success Academies. They are the very epitome of no-excuses, nonunion 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 5-25-13 

Diane Ravitch's blog

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG 

DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 5-25-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] A UTLA Member Speaks Out About His Union’s Hypocrisy by dianerav This comment came from a member of UTLA: “I think we all can celebrate. that Monica Ratliff won that election. The efforts of many UTLA members helped in that effort, and may have played a major role in her election. “It is interesting though, to look at the article at utla.net about Monica’s victory–http://www.utla.net/ratliff “Here is a quote in it from UTLA president Warren Fletcher: “We are overjo... more »

The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis. | Fred Klonsky

The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis. | Fred Klonsky:

The in box. NEA’s Dennis Van Roekel on Chicago’s school crisis.

by Fred Klonsky

NEA President Dennis Van Roekel.
For weeks now, teachers, parents and community leaders have been protesting Chicago Public Schools’ plan to close 50 schools in what will be the largest single wave of school closures in U.S. history.
The media coverage has been dramatic, but what you see in the eyes of educators who are so adamantly opposed to this plan is the same thing you see in the eyes of educators all across this nation — the innate instinct to protect the children we care about.
There is plenty of evidence to suggest that Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to shutter 50 (yes, 50) schools won’t be good for Chicago’s children, especially children of color. The New York Times reports that “in the 100 schools that have closed in Chicago since 2001, 88 percent of the students affected were black.”
Not only is there evidence that all class sizes in the city will increase — some by as much as 40 percent — but 

GRADUATION DECORUM | Teachers Fight Back

GRADUATION DECORUM | Teachers Fight Back:

GRADUATION DECORUM

by alkleen

There seems to be a new movement to end all the raucous behavior at school graduations.  It seems people might finally be fed up with the hooting and hollering from the audience when names are read.  This ridiculous behavior has been going on for years now and rarely has anyone had the nerve to stop the boorish behavior. Just like all other forms of school related discipline, this problem could be handled very simply if school administrators weren’t so afraid to offend anyone, especially parents.
Many years ago at my son’s graduation, the no-nonsense principal of his school became an instant fan of mine.  At the graduation ceremony, several shouts could be heard from the audience after the reading of the very first name on the graduation list. Immediately the principal ran on stage, grabbed the microphone and stated the following; “ladies and gentlemen, please remain silent during the awarding of diplomas. You may applaud once 

Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize | Diane Ravitch's blog

Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize | Diane Ravitch's blog:

Teacher: Walk in My Shoes Before You Criticize

by dianerav

 Enough! She is responding to Lisa Myer’s “A Teacher’s Letter to America.” By the way, that post went viral. It has been read by more than 30,000 people on this site alone and posted on Facebook more than 10,000 times.

Whenever an article appears about schools or teaching, the comments that follow are often rants against both. Whence comes this rage? Why do so many people blame their teachers for whatever ails them? It doesn’t help that Race to the Top pushes the idea that teachers–not students–are the sole source of students’ test scores. If you don’t like the quality of schools, blame the teachers, not those in charge who control the resources.
This teacher says, as should we all, Enough! She is responding to Lisa Myer’s “A Teacher’s Letter to America.” By the way, that post went viral. It has been read by more than 30,000 people on this site alone and posted on Facebook more than 10,000 times.
“Lisa, I thought your post was very well written and certainly expressed how I’ve been feeling after 29 years of teaching. After reading many of the comments responding to your post, I find it very interesting that people who

Parent Revolution Forces Out Excellent Principal

by dianerav

The billionaire-funded Parent Revolution flexed its muscle and got enough parent signatures to force theresignation of a highly effective principal.
Please read the story.
This is the principal who was ousted by Parent Revolution:
“Third-grade teacher Kate Lewis said Irma Cobian is the best principal she’s had in nine years at Weigand Avenue Elementary School in Watts.
“Joseph Shamel called Cobian a “godsend” who has used her mastery of special education to show him how to

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 5-25-13 

Diane Ravitch's blog

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG 

DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 5-25-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] A UTLA Member Speaks Out About His Union’s Hypocrisy by dianerav This comment came from a member of UTLA: “I think we all can celebrate. that Monica Ratliff won that election. The efforts of many UTLA members helped in that effort, and may have played a major role in her election. “It is interesting though, to look at the article at utla.net about Monica’s victory–http://www.utla.net/ratliff “Here is a quote in it from UTLA president Warren Fletcher: “We are overjo... more »

Dogs for Excellence | EduShyster

Dogs for Excellence | EduShyster:

Dogs for Excellence

by edushyster2012

The fortune that billionaire heiress Leona Helmsley left to the dogs is now funding education reform groups.

When last we encountered billionaire hotel heiress Leona Helmsley, she had ascended to the great hotel in the sky, leaving $12 million to her beloved Maltese, Trouble. In fact Helmsely loved dogs so much that she left the bulk of her for fortune, now valued at between $5-$8 billion to the care and welfare of dogs. So you might be surprised to learn that these days Mrs. Helmsley’s vast fortune isn’t going to pamper pooches at all but to—drum roll please—reform our education system. That’s right Toto. You’re on your own while the Leona M. and Harry B. Charitable Trust writes checks to the tune of millions to groups like the Stand for Children Leadership