Gates Money and Common Core– Part III | deutsch29

Gates Money and Common Core– Part III | deutsch29:

Gates Money and Common Core– Part III

September 11, 2013

My first post on Gates and his Common Core State Standards (CCSS) spending includes information on his paying millions to the four key organizations involved in composing CCSS as well as to key education organizations and think tanks for their endorsement. My second post of this series examines Gates money paid to organizations influencing state departments and local school districts for the purpose of advancing CCSS.

In this third post, I discuss the state departments and local school districts that have accepted Gates money in order to promote CCSS.

CCSS is apparently important enough to Gates for him to force feed to the public via funneling though its departments of education. And since he is wildly rich, he must know what is good and true for American public education. We can blindly trust him, for he has a large wallet.

Not.

As to that wallet: Here are the state and local boards (and a single independent school)* that have accepted Gates payouts specifically for CCSS as noted on theGates grants search engine:

Colorado Legacy Foundation (CO Dept. of Ed.):  $11,455,547

Delaware Department of Education:  $400,000

Georgia Department of Education:  $1,980,892

      Atlanta Public Schools  $500,000

      Forsyth County Schools  $151,200

Kentucky 

Supporting College and Career Readiness — Whole Child Education

Supporting College and Career Readiness — Whole Child Education:

THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG

Supporting College and Career Readiness

September 11, 2013 by Steven Weber

As we begin a new school year, it is an exciting time for educators. We understand that our influence will have a positive or negative impact on students. The main goal of education is student achievement. However, some educators place such a heavy emphasis on student achievement that they end up forgetting their purpose. In today's K–12 setting, the purpose of K–12 schools has been defined as preparing each student to graduate college and career ready.

Recently, policymakers, educators, and national education organizations have called for a shift from increasing high school graduation rates to a new goal of college and career readiness for all students graduating from high school (Achieve and The Education Trust, 2008; ACT, 2008; Alliance for Excellent Education, 2009; Career Readiness Partner Council, 2010; Common Core State Standards, 2010; National Governors Association, 2010; Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2010; The White House, 2010; United States Department of Education, 2010; ConnectEd, 2012; Council of Chief State School Officers, 2012; North Carolina Chamber of Commerce, 2013). According to the National Governors Association (2012), "There is a national consensus that schools should focus on students' college and career readiness."

How can educators inspire all students, accelerate the gifted students, remediate and accelerate the struggling learners, focus on student understanding, and teach life skills? A narrow focus on skills or test prep will no longer support the goals of teaching and learning. The following recommendations will promote lifelong learning, while teaching the standards. Educators want to make a difference. Here are five ways they can in 2013–14!

Focus on the Whole Child

According to ASCD's Whole Child Initiative, schools should develop goals around the following tenets: Healthy, Safe, Engaged, Supported, and Challenged. What does your school do well? Are all students challenged? Do you have school policies in place which promote healthful living? Do students in your school feel supported? Some schools claim to have high expectations. The only problem with this declaration is that 

Questions DOE educators are afraid to ask? Saving Students From A Shattered System

Saving Students From A Shattered System:

Questions DOE educators are afraid to ask?

Those who have opinions on education are divided into several groups:

          1.  Those who intentionally want to maintain the same students in the subclass

          2.  Those who need to maintain the same students in the subclass in order to have someone to save
          3.  Those who don't have the courage to stand for needed changes

          $.  The small minority that care about kids and are ready for action

WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?

See how many at the DOE can answer these questions without lying.

PLEASE ADD QUESTIONS TO THIS LIST IN YOUR COMMENTS BELOW

What is the fundamental purpose of education?

          Is it primarily for the purpose of screening kids for college?
          Is it primarily for the purpose of preparing kids for their future?
Do letter grades tell what a child has learned?
          If someone passes with a D-, have they achieved sufficient knowledge?
          If students get straight “A’s” have they been challenged?
If a child is on the 6^th grade level in reading, 4^th grade level in math, what grade should she/he be in?
          Are grade levels mute?
Do all kids blossom at the same time?
          Are kids made to feel stupid and pushed out of school if they blossom slower?

Are you OWNING IT? | InterACT

Are you OWNING IT? | InterACT:

Are you OWNING IT?

SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

tags: Alex Kajitani

by ACT Guest Blog Posts

Alex Kajitani (photo courtesy of Tom Torlakson’s office)

Today’s InterACT guest blog post comes from Alex Kajitani, California Teacher of the Year (2009) and ACT member. Alex is known to many as The Rappin’ Mathematician, and he has also written books for teachers. His first book was theThe Teacher of the Year Handbook – which has some good tips not only for Teachers of the Year, but also for any teachers who would find themselves in similar situations of public engagement and advocacy. Alex’s new book is Owning It, which expands the audience of his prior book and asserts that teachers must take charge of the profession through excellence in classrooms, schools, and the public sphere.

*     *     *

There’s this myth in teaching.  This myth that says you will struggle in your first few years but that, by your fourth or fifth year, you’ll be experienced, things will be easy and you’ll have your act together.

The truth is that while some years are better than others, teaching is hard every year.  And every year, as teachers, we are asked to do more and more.

We live in a time of what some theorists call “accelerating change” — with technological, cultural, social and environmental change occurring exponentially faster than in any other period in 

Diane in the Evening 9-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

Our Hero Charter Teacher Responds to Your Letters

I honored Chris Weaver, a charter school teacher in North Carolina who spoke out against the governor and legislature’s wanton attacks on public schools. He even rejected his local paper’s effort to honor him. Here he responds to those who wrote letters about his actions. Dear Diane & Readers, Terry Kalb, my NY friend who sent my newspaper letter to Diane, sent me the link, and it’s the first

1 by dianerav / 22min 

Breaking News: EduShyster Unmasks Herself!

EduShyster is one of the most brilliant, clever, and downright funny bloggers in the pedagogic blogosphere. She is one of the very few bloggers who is consistently able to make me laugh out loud. For reasons she will explain here, she has decided to reveal her name. When I met her a year ago, she reminded me that we had first met in 2010, when I came to Boston to talk about my last book. She tol

by dianerav / 14min 

Was Tony Bennett Exonerated?

Rick Hess believes that a report on the Tony Bennett grade-fixing scandal exonerated him. But Indiana parents and friends of public schools don’t agree. Here they explain that no one understood the school grading system and that Bennett was voted out of office because of his policies, not his style. Somehow I suspect we haven’t heard the end of this matter. Waiting for the other shoe to drop.

11 by dianerav / 1h mark as read  //  save

Was Tony Bennett Exonerated?

Rick Hess believes that a report on the Tony Bennett grade-fixing scandal exonerated him. But Indiana parents and friends of public schools don’t agree. Here they explain that no one understood the school grading system and that Bennett was voted out of office because of his policies, not his style. Somehow I suspect we haven’t heard the end of this matter. Waiting for the other shoe to drop.

by dianerav / 1h 

Eduardo Andere: What Is Happening in Mexico

Eduardo Andere is an education researcher and lawyer in Mexico who has published widely about international trends in education. After reading articles about teachers demonstrating in the streets, I asked Andere if he would explain what is happening in Mexico. He sent the following post:   What is real and what is rhetoric in the Mexico’s 2013 Education Reform? Eduardo Andere For you to get a cl

4 by dianerav / 2h

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Parents: How to Advocate for Your ChildNancy Carlsson-Paige, professor emerita of early childhood education at Lesley University in Csmbridge, Massachusetts, prepared this short guide for parents about child-rearing. It was written in collaboration with United Opt Out.4 by dianerav / 18min mark as read  //  saveWhy Corporate Reform

by mike simpson / 2h 

State Senate Approves AB 484 - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)

State Senate Approves AB 484 - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education):

State Senate Approves Statewide Testing Overhaul Legislation

Schools and Teachers to Focus on Higher Standards, Deeper Learning

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson applauded Senate approval Tuesday of Assembly Bill 484 that would let most students "test drive" new computer-based assessments this year and suspend usage of most of the state's outdated multiple-choice exams.

"This vote brings us a step closer to trading our outdated fill-in-the-bubble paper tests for new, computerized assessments that model the skills today's students need," Torlakson said. "If we want our education system to inspire students to learn to think critically and solve problems, we need tests to match those lofty goals."

The legislation now heads to the Assembly for a final vote before heading to Governor Brown for his signature.

Sponsored by Torlakson and authored by Assemblymember Susan Bonilla, D-Concord, Assembly Bill 484 now calls for nearly all of the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program to be suspended during field tests of new assessments known as the Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress (MAPP). The bill calls for the new program to permanently replace STAR tests in the 2014-15 school year.

As originally written, the bill would have continued all federally required STAR tests for one more year during the transition. The revised legislation, coauthored by Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, calls for a full suspension of STAR tests in mathematics and English-language arts, while leaving science tests in place. The legislation also leaves in place voluntary primary language assessments, specialized assessments for students with severe disabilities, and the Early Assessment Program for grade eleven.

The State Board of Education voted unanimously last week to seek a waiver consistent with state law from the U.S Department of Education to suspend all standardized testing, including federally required tests.

# # # #

Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

NYT: Ravitch is anti-free-market? Nonsense. | Reclaim Reform

NYT: Ravitch is anti-free-market? Nonsense. | Reclaim Reform:

NYT: Ravitch is anti-free-market? Nonsense.

Posted on September 11, 2013by Ken Previti

Diane Ravitch’s new book, Reign of Error, has even the New York Times alluding to her crusade against the corporate education reform powers as “anti-free-market-based.” The writer, Motoko Rich, is superb in her guilt-by-association and repetition-of-corporate-press-releases as a form of balanced journalism. The simple and well performed propaganda techniques she uses slant the readers’ perceptions – unless we possess the critical reading/thinking skills that corporate education reform eschews in favor of lower level skills and high stakes testing that is easily collected as data – data to be spun later to forward corporate agendas.

“About two or three years ago people were feeling, ‘Oh, my God, these people are taking over and there’s nothing we can do,’” said Karen Lewis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union, referring to those who advocate for free-market-based overhaul of schools. “Diane has continued to push that envelope and give people such hope.”

Let’s examine the slant/propaganda:
Karen Lewis, union thug. “Bo-o-o-o-o!”
Corporate education reformers use free-market-based cure for schools. “Hooray!”
Karen Lewis, Diane Ravitch, and all those who oppose innovation. “Bo-o-o-o-o!”

Nonsense. Smoke and mirrors. Blather. Why? All corporate media is subject to corporate 

Choosing Democracy: California must change its history books before adopting Common Core.

Choosing Democracy: California must change its history books before adopting Common Core.:

California must change its history books before adopting Common Core.

    California  is  at an important tipping point.  I and my graduate students  participated in the 2009  efforts to revise the History/Social Science  curriculum frameworks and frankly the issue of Mexican American history was marginalized.  It will require  some effort to change this.  It is important to intervene soon.  Once the national common core standards begin adopting History/ Social Science, the new standards  will  most likely integrate the existing state  standards- which ignore Mexican American/Latino history.  The inadequate 1986 History/ Social Science Framework  will become the national standards and will continue for another decade.  New York is currently revising their civic standards to prepare for inclusion in the common core. To this date we have been unable to interest legislators in responding to this problem.  See more here https://sites.google.com/site/chicanodigital/home/why-california-students-do-not-know-chicano-history

    Students need to see themselves in the curriculum in order to believe they have a stake in the society. Textbooks for  California schools are selected by the State Board of Education based upon recommendations of their Curriculum Committees and the state frameworks and standards.   The current Framework reflects the historiography of the 1950’s. It was written in 1986 by senior scholars, they in turn were educated in the early 1970’s or before. It is substantially out of date. 

    Standards and frameworks are products of the people who make the decisions. Frameworks like  standards pick winners and losers;  the choices which committees make favor one group over another group.  These choices are based upon the political power of those represented on the committees.  The Framework is  supposed to be revised each 7 years but it has not been revised.  The current Framework reflects the historiography  of the 1970’s  and the political balance of power of the 1980’s.

   During the winter and spring of 2009, a committee of teachers and other educators appointed by the State Board of 

“Groundbreaking” Work in Kentucky Student Voice

Student Voice:

“Groundbreaking” Work in Kentucky

Rachel Belin represents the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, a non-profit organization that has played a key-role in the improvement of education in Kentucky. 

—–

The Student Voice Team is fast becoming the institutionalized pride of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, an independent nonprofit that mobilizes citizens to push for improved Kentucky public schools, and students have everything to do with it. Since the beginning of the last school year, a team of 13 Central Kentucky students built the case for why, after 30 years of successful advocacy, the Prichard Committee needed to consider integrating students into its education advocacy efforts.

As part of this organic initiative, the Student Voice Team has reached out to policymakers, attended hearings on measuring teacher effectiveness, facilitated roundtable discussions with other students about Kentucky’s rankings on national student achievement assessments and published an op-ed in local and national media outlets exploring the potential of incorporating student perspectives into teacher evaluations. Their first year of work culminated in a 45-minute presentation to the hundred plus members of the Prichard Committee at its spring meeting, a statewide gathering of Kentucky’s most active education civic and business leaders, at which the Student Voice Team elicited a standing ovation and a solemn promise from the board to formally

- See more at: http://stuvoice.org/blog/2013/09/11/4334/?utm_source=feedly#sthash.vVMb3W0g.dpuf

Gubernatorial Candidates on Education | PWC Education Reform Blog

Gubernatorial Candidates on Education | PWC Education Reform Blog:

Gubernatorial Candidates on Education

September 11, 2013 — pwceducationreform

The biggest issue facing education in the United States right now is the Common Core State Standards initiative.  Public schools in participating states must agree to implement the common core standards, evaluate students with one of the two common core aligned assessments, evaluate teachers based, in part, on student performance data, and must gather and transmit numerous “data points” to the US Dept of Education and any other third parties as directed by the US Dept of Ed.

Virginia is not a full participant in the CCSS initiative, yet.  The only thing preventing us from becoming a full participant is Governor McDonnell, whose term is in its final days.

If Virginia becomes a full participant in the CCSS initiative, what our children are taught, how they’re taught it, how their achievement is evaluated, and what information about them is shared with the federal and state government and unnamed third parties, will fundamentally change.  Any promised reforms of testing or standards will be nullified as the rules and guidelines established by the CCSS initiative and the US Dept of Ed will be the rules we have to follow.

In lieu of the potential impact on public education in Virginia if Virginia were to become a full participant in the CCSS initiative, you’d think the gubernatorial candidates would have something to say about them in their campaign platforms, but they don’t

NYC Educator: First Week Is Stressful

NYC Educator: First Week Is Stressful:

First Week Is Stressful

It is for me, at least. My classroom is kind of a mysterious place for me right now. I haven't quite gotten to know all the kids' names yet, and even when I do, I don't know who they are. I'm seeing flutterings of kids opening up. I'm noticing smiles here and there, and I really like seeing that some of my students are starting to feel comfortable.

Some of them are feeling free to speak spontaneously, but they're a distinct minority. I want them all to know they are free to say what they like, to answer questions, to be right, to be wrong, to speak their minds.

One of the really good things about teaching ESL, about teaching language, is you're successful if you can get students to produce it. On the other hand, it's one of the toughest things you can do. Kids come from other countries and they're set in their ways. What's more basic than speaking your native language?

But then they see me and I tell them NO you may NOT use your native language AT ALL. Not ONE WORD.

And thus there is the girl who sits in the back of my afternoon class not uttering anything whatsoever, the girl who yesterday spoke three times in her native language. On the third time, after having warned her twice, I moved a boy who does not speak her native language between her and the girl with whom she was speaking. He was pretty happy to be sitting between two girls, but 

Van Roekel Talks Class Size, Teacher Voice, and Putting Students First | NEA Today

Van Roekel Talks Class Size, Teacher Voice, and Putting Students First | NEA Today:

Van Roekel Talks Class Size, Teacher Voice, and Putting Students First

September 11, 2013 by twalker  
Filed under Featured News, Top Stories

Leave a Comment

By Cindy Long

A new school year offers the promise of a fresh start, but in Portland, Oregon — the first stop on NEA President Dennis Van Roekel’s 2013 Back to School Tour — funding cuts and ballooning class sizes threaten to cast a shadow over the state’s bright new beginning. Oregon’s class sizes are the third largest in the country, and as part of its “What’s Your Number” campaign, Oregon Education Association members wear buttons with the number of students in their classes. One high school English teacher has the number 48 on her button. Her classroom is so crowded some kids have to sit on the floor.

As our students meet the challenges of a new school year, they shouldn’t have to worry about finding a seat in their classrooms or whether there are enough resources for learning. Unfortunately, in the first days of the 2013-2014 year, schools are already underfunded after too many elected officials cashed in on our children by cutting investments in education. It’s time to put students first, and as part of the 2013 Back to School Tour, Van Roekel is taking the message of student-centered education to cities and towns around the country.

“Students are not about profits,” Van Roekel said to a crowd of community members, business leaders, parents and Oregon Education Association members at a breakfast meeting at the Portland Convention Center on September 10. “In too many of our communities, there is too little education, too little opportunity, too little equity, and too little hope. We need to turn it around, and we need to do it together.”

The start of a new year is an exciting time, and it offers a renewed chance to turn public education around. Van Roekel said this year is unique with the advent of the Common Core State Standards. The standards will provide all students, no matter where they live or what their parents earn, the same world-class 

Strong core curriculum – not test scores – top priority for parents SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources

SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources:

 Strong core curriculum – not test scores – top priority for parents

OMG Wait 'til they Read Diane's New Book!

Will 2014 Be The Year Of "Full On Revolt" Against Standardized Testing?

 Strong core curriculum – not test scores – top priority for parents

A new study on the schooling preferences of K-12 parents has concluded that many families appear far less interested in the status of test scores than the public officials overseeing the education system.

24min mark as read  //  save

Payroll taxes slip, otherwise August revenues reasonably strong

Revenues collected during the first two months of the fiscal year fell just slightly under projections made in the 2013-14 budget as $6.9 billion was added in August.

24min 

Senate passes school testing bill despite federal objections

The California Senate on Tuesday approved a state plan to suspend most K-12 standardized testing despite a threat from U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan that doing so could result in sanctions, including withholding federal education funds.

24min 

10 Back-To-School Tips From State Schools Chief - Back to School - Roseville, CA Patch

10 Back-To-School Tips From State Schools Chief - Back to School - Roseville, CA Patch:

10 Back-To-School Tips From State Schools Chief

Ten timely back-to-school tips for the start of the traditional school year from State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson.

Posted by Lauren Gibbs (Editor) , September 11, 2013 at 09:55 AM

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State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson. Photo courtesy CDE

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—Submitted by the California Department of Education 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson officially welcomed students, teachers, school employees, and administrators back to school, and provided parents with 10 timely back-to-school tips today for the start of the traditional school year.

"Our state's future depends on our public schools," Torlakson said. "Across California, students are starting the school year with high hopes. And though teachers, school employees, and administrators are coping with enormous challenges, I know they are committed to making this year the very best for each and every student. Welcome back to school, California!"

Tom's Back-to-School Tips

1. Get your shots. Seventh through twelve graders must get their pertussis shots, and must show proof of immunization to attend public and private schools this fall. Administrators may allow unimmunized students to remain in school for 30 days after the start of school before meeting the vaccine requirement. For more information, please visit Pertussis (Whooping Cough) Vaccine Requirement - Health Services & School Nursing.
2. Get your sleep. Doctors recommend children in the first through fifth grades get as much as 10 to 11 hours of sleep each night. Lack of sleep can affect a child's ability to learn and may affect their immune systems.
3. Have a healthy breakfast. Hungry children do not learn as well as well-nourished ones. If you don't have time to pack a healthy lunch, schools usually serve students well-balanced meals. Low-income children may qualify for free and reduced-price meals. Just fill out an application directly at your school.
4. Stay active. Keep children physically active with bike rides, 

Sacramento County Budget Passes, in the Black

Savings from controlling expenditures have contributed to a surplus of $32.5 million that is available to augment critical services and pay past debt, the county reports.

by Lauren Gibbs / 0min