National Journal Online -- Education Experts -- Local Control: The Makings of a Deal?

National Journal Online -- Education Experts -- Local Control: The Makings of a Deal?

Frederick M. Hess responded to Local Control: The Makings of a Deal? on November 15, 2010 10:11 AM

My Money's on an NCLB "Patch" I'm betting that there won't be an ESEA/NCLB reauthorization in the next two years. As I've said before, while there is surface agreement between the administration and Republicans on charter schooling and teacher quality, that doesn't reflect broad consensus. More to the point, House Republicans aren't going to spend 2011 or 2012 looking to pen a big federal education bill-- even if the cognoscenti assure them that it's really reducing Uncle Sam's footprint. Getting House Republicans (and Pelosi's NEA-friendly, post-election caucus) to sign on will likely require a bill that clearly and pretty unmistably just eviscerates and downsizes NCLB--...

Where CEOs at America's Largest Companies Went to College - US News and World Report

Where CEOs at America's Largest Companies Went to College - US News and World Report

Where CEOs at America's Largest Companies Went to College

Ivy League schools boast the most major chief executives among alumni, but there are some surprises.

By Brian Burnsed

Posted November 15, 2010

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Many universities that are highly ranked by U.S.News & World Report have yielded a significant number of chief executives at the nation's largest corporations.

An analysis of the educational backgrounds of the CEOs of the top 100 companies on this year's Fortune 500 list (the magazine's annual ranking of American corporations based on gross revenue) revealed that the executives had a total of 42 graduate and undergraduate degrees from Ivy League schools, all of which rank in the top 20 of both U.S. News's rankings of Best Colleges and Best Business Schools.

[See where the CEOs of the top 10 Fortune 500 companies went to school.]

Surprisingly, only a third of the CEOs hold an M.B.A. Nonetheless, it was the most common graduate degree among the executives and six of the CEOs attained their M.B.A. from Harvard Business School—more than any other institution (Harvard is tied with Stanford University as the top business school in U.S. News's rankings). Fourteen of the CEOs have law degrees and 31 did not attain a graduate degree at all.

Only five of the 100 rose to the pinnacle of the corporate ladder without the aid of a bachelor's degree, including prominent names in the technology sector: Steve Jobs of Apple, Inc. and

Big Week « Student Activism

Big Week « Student Activism

Big Week

November 15, 2010 in Students

There’s a huge gusher of stories coming out this week. Fasten your seatbelts!

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Shanker Blog » Learning Versus Punishment And Accountability

Shanker Blog » Learning Versus Punishment And Accountability

Learning Versus Punishment And Accountability

by Jeffrey Pfeffer

Our guest today is Jeffrey Pfeffer, Thomas D. Dee II Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. We find it intriguing, given the current obsession with “accountability” in education reform. It is reprinted with permission from Dr. Pfeffer’s blog, Rational Rants, found athttp://www.jeffreypfeffer.com.

People seem to love to exact retribution on those who screw up—it satisfies some primitive sense of justice. For instance, research in experimental economics shows that people will voluntarily give up resources to punish others who have acted unfairly or inappropriately, even though such behavior costs those doing it and even in circumstances where there is going to be no future interaction to be affected by the signal sent through the punishment. In other words, people will mete out retribution even when such behavior is economically irrational.

All of this would be of only academic interest except it plays out in the organizational world in ways that often inhibit learning from mistakes and preventing future mishaps. Consider, for instance, the horrendous BP oil spillin the Gulf of Mexico. There were many entities involved on the oil rig and drilling in deep water is a complex engineering task. As BP CEO Tony Hayward repeatedly stated during his ill-starred congressional testimony, the cause, or more likely, the causes (plural) of the accident remain to be fully understood. And, of course, i

The Answer Sheet - NYC Chancellor Cathie Black, in her own words

The Answer Sheet - NYC Chancellor Cathie Black, in her own words

NYC Chancellor Cathie Black, in her own words

By Valerie Strauss

In an effort to learn about Cathleen Black, the woman that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg chose to succeed Joel Klein as head of the city’s public schools, I turned to the book she wrote: “Basic Black: The Essential Guide for Getting Ahead at Work (and in Life.)”

Black was the surprise choice when Klein unexpectedly stepped down from running the country's largest public school system last week after eight years. Black, who had been running Hearst Magazines and has

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: THE DATABASE DEBACLE: The state has failed for years to develop a system that can calculate real dropout rates and determine which school programs work best. Other states have had one for years; Jerry Brown's administration should make it a priority.

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: THE DATABASE DEBACLE: The state has failed for years to develop a system that can calculate real dropout rates and determine which school programs work best. Other states have had one for years; Jerry Brown's administration should make it a priority.

THE DATABASE DEBACLE: The state has failed for years to develop a system that can calculate real dropout rates and determine which school programs work best. Other states have had one for years; Jerry Brown's administration should make it a priority.

by smf

LA Times Editorial | http://lat.ms/axqmYp November 15, 2010 -- One of the smaller line item vetoes made this year by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger strikes less than $7 million from the state budget that was earmarked for overseeing a student-tracking database. And it wasn't even state money; it was entirely federal funding, and can't be used for anything else. What was the governor thinking? As he

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: School reform, New Orleans style

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: School reform, New Orleans style

School reform, New Orleans style

by Mike Klonsky

Sebastian and Robin Weston talk about their son being handcuffed and shackled

Paul Vallas and lawyers for the State Recovery School District settled the suit with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. Vallas agreed to end the handcuffing of 6-year-olds. But, under the settlement, he can continue to use cuffs, shackles and restraints on kids over 10 years old. Children at the mainly African-American, Sarah Towles Reed Elementary School in New Orleans were subjected to

This Week In Education: Video: Slimy Video Gets NJ Teacher In Trouble

This Week In Education: Video: Slimy Video Gets NJ Teacher In Trouble

Video: Slimy Video Gets NJ Teacher In Trouble

by Alexander Russo

Passaic NJ has now suspended an award-winning special education teacher for telling the story of a colleague who used a racial slur to address a student but didn't get in all that much trouble -- effectively paying a greater price for recounting a story (that seemed to disgust her) than the person who actually spoke the racial slur to students in school. Her remarks were caught on tape and uploaded

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

by Mike Klonsky

Mayor Bloomberg on his appointment of Cathie Black

“It’s a chance to change the world.” (N.Y. Post)

Former N.Y. Supt. Rudy Crew

We’re in danger of making the New York City public schools a plaything for the rich and famous. Perhaps the thinking is that directing schools is something you do when you’re finished doing your real job; an avocation that starts with a love of learning and warm remembrances of being in school yourself.(NYT)

Hedge-funder Tilson lays it out bare naked

Charter schools, explained Whitney Tilson, the founder of T2 Partners and one of their most ardent supporters, are the perfect philanthropy for results-oriented business executives. For one thing, they can change lives permanently, not just help people get by from day to day. For another, he said, “hedge funds are always looking for ways to turn a small amount of capital into a large

Celebrate American Education Week – Lily's Blackboard

Celebrate American Education Week – Lily's Blackboard

Celebrate American Education Week

Nov 15th, 2010

by LilysBlackboard.

American Education Week (AEW) spotlights the importance of providing every child in America with a quality public education from kindergarten through college, and the need for everyone to do his or her part in making public schools great.

The involvement of parents in their child’s education is key to their success. Ongoing research shows that parental involvement in schools improves student achievement, reduces absenteeism, and restores confidence among parents in their children’s education.

Check out our resources here.

Recursos en Español

Chris Christie: “Let Me Help You Pack” - Chris Christie - Fox Nation

Chris Christie: “Let Me Help You Pack” - Chris Christie - Fox Nation

Chris Christie: “Let Me Help You Pack”

Fire it up

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"Let me help you pack." That's what Gov. Chris Christie told one of the state's top administrators when that administrator commented publicly that he could leave New Jersey and go to another state if his $242,000 total compensation were to be capped under the governor's proposed rule.

Earlier in the day Christie discussed the Parsippany Board and Seitz at a town hall meeting in Toms River. "Let me tell you about the new poster boy for all that's wrong with the public school system that is being dictated by greed," the governor told the audience. "This contract is the definition of greed and arrogance. I'm

DC Teacher Initiates Wrongful Termination Lawsuit Against Michelle Rhee Amidst Mass Firings

DC Teacher Initiates Wrongful Termination Lawsuit Against Michelle Rhee Amidst Mass Firings

Willie J Brewer Jr., a D.C. Public Schools instrumental music teacher who was fired amidst the mass firings by former Chancellor Michelle Rhee, has filed a private lawsuit alleging wrongful termination.

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"As a result, a narrow argument regarding budget improprieties was presented to the court. But I believe this lawsuit addresses Rhee's improper administrative actions within the schools themselves."

Washington, DC (PRWEB) November 15, 2010

Willie J Brewer Jr., an instrumental music teacher who was fired amidst the mass firings by former Chancellor Michelle Rhee, has filed a private lawsuit alleging wrongful termination. The case was filed yesterday in the D.C. Superior Court case number- 2010 CA 008565 B.

Brewer, who taught for over 25 years in the D.C. Public Schools, alleges in the complaint that he was wrongfully terminated, in part, because the stated reason for his termination, a Reduction-In-Force or (RIF) due to “exceptional budget pressures”, was not truthful or accurate. Brewer alleges that his firing was made in error based upon performance and that his competitive evaluation was based upon a comparison with another teacher in his school who did not teach the same subject, hold the same certification, and who was on the job for only a few days prior to Brewer’s firing.

“Unfortunately, the Washington Teachers' Union lawsuit (DC Superior Court case number- 2009 CA 007482 B), which we hoped would resolve the firing of hundreds of teachers was doomed from the start. For the union to fully represent the interests of the fired teachers presented a conflict of interest because the union represents all the teachers, the old and new, whose respective plights in this situation adversely affect the other group”, says Brewer.

"As a result, a narrow argument regarding budget improprieties was presented to the court. But I believe this

The biggest spender in California's election? It's not who you think - San Jose Mercury News

The biggest spender in California's election? It's not who you think - San Jose Mercury News

The biggest spender in California's election? It's not who you think

By Tracey Kaplan

tkaplan@mercurynews.com

Posted: 11/15/2010 12:00:00 AM PST

Click photo to enlarge

Charles T. Munger Jr., who spent millions to support Proposition 20, at the... (LiPo Ching)

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When it comes to big spenders on California propositions, the usual suspects are oil companies, the California Teachers Association and the Chamber of Commerce.

But to find the biggest spender in the latest election, you have to go to a trailer at the Stanford linear accelerator, where a geeky guy with a gaptoothed smile and bow tie is studying experimental physics.

Meet Charles T. Munger Jr., a Stanford University physicist and the son of Warren Buffett's billionaire investment partner. Munger just poured $12.6 million of his inherited wealth -- or 10 percent of his net worth -- into redistricting reform, a less-than-glamorous cause that nonetheless packs the seismic power of the Big One when it comes to California politics.

Munger's multimillion-dollar contribution amounts to more than Cisco Systems, tobacco giant Philip Morris, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and Chevron spent on the election combined. And it paid off in a landslide -- much to his gratification -- with 61 percent voter support for Proposition 20, the measure he backed.

"You need to go into the world and do something that's nee

Bloom’s Taxonomy Animation | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

Bloom’s Taxonomy Animation | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

Bloom’s Taxonomy Animation This page has good info on Bloom’s Taxonomy, especially a nice animation you can see if you scroll down a little bit. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Helping Teachers Use Bloom’s Taxonomy In The Classroom.

“An Interview with Diane Ravitch: Post Election Reflections” “An Interview with Diane Ravitch: Post Election Reflections” offers a useful perspective. I’m adding it to The Best Articles/Blog Posts On What The Election Results Mean For Schools.

November’s Best Tweets — Part One Every month I make a short list highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. Now and then, in order to make it a bit easier for me, I may try ...