Real Parent Power: Proposed bill would require N.J. voter approval of new charter schools | NJ.com

Proposed bill would require N.J. voter approval of new charter schools | NJ.com:

Proposed bill would require N.J. voter approval of new charter schools

Published: Monday, October 17, 2011, 7:14 AM Updated: Monday, October 17, 2011, 7:14 AM

By The Associated Press
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Tim Farrell/The Star-LedgerAssemblywoman Mila Jasey says voters deserve the right to decide whether they want a charter school in their district.

TRENTON — A New Jersey Assemblywoman wants her Senate colleagues to pass two charter school oversight bills she's sponsoring.

One of Mila Jasey's bills requires voter approval of new charter schools. The other seeks to increase the schools' accountability and provide more transparency on their operations.

Jasey, an Essex County Democrat, says voters deserve the right to decide whether they want a charter school in their district.

The Assembly passed the measures in June. The Senate Education Committee held discussions on both bills on Thursday, but didn't take

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES:

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Dr. Cornell West

"If Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive today, he would be on Freedom Plaza."--Upon his arrest in D.C. protest

Sen. Bernie Sanders

"Now that Occupy Wall Street is shining a spotlight on Wall Street greed and the enormous inequalities that exist in America, the

NJ Spotlight | Charter Anxiety: A Suburban Malady?

NJ Spotlight | Charter Anxiety: A Suburban Malady?:

Charter Anxiety: A Suburban Malady?

As backlash grows in the suburbs, the reaction in the cities is more complicated

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By John Mooney, October 14 in Education |10 Comments

A Senate hearing yesterday on charter schools brought out many of the same familiar faces, led by a growing cadre of parents from suburban communities like Princeton, Highland Park, East Brunswick, and a new one to the list, Cherry Hill.

While more than half of all of New Jersey's charter schools operate in its poorest cities, there was nobody from places like Paterson, Trenton, and Camden. They weren't entirely without representation, to be sure, as various advocates stepped up to speak, but New Jersey's fierce debate over charter schools has had a distinctly suburban feel of late.

That raises the question: where are the cities in what some have called the growing backlash

Cerf Names Penny MacCormack as Chief Academic Officer

New assistant commissioner served as assistant superintendent of Hartford secondary schools

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By John Mooney, October 17 in Education |Post a Comment

Nine months into the job, acting education commissioner Chris Cerf continues to fill out what he calls his top "cabinet-level" positions, the latest hire a former official in Hartford, CT, schools to be his chief academic officer.

For the past five years, Penny MacCormack served as chief academic officer and assistant superintendent for secondary schools in Connecticut's capital city.

Starting two weeks ago but serving in an interim role until confirmed by the state Board of Education (BOE), MacCormack will be in charge of New Jersey's curriculum development and testing programs. Although a new title, the position has historically been the highest profile in a

Cool Cat Teacher Blog: Education's 3200 Error

Cool Cat Teacher Blog: Education's 3200 Error:

Education's 3200 Error

by noreply@blogger.com (Vicki A. Davis)

Sickness is everywhere. In my house. In our schools.

Sitting here at 6:42 am in the morning, I am in my comfy chair for a brief moment at the start of my day about to head a school after another night with a sick child. The worst has past and she should sleep comfortably through the day with her bottle of Gatorade nearby. I know because she is the fourth of the five of us to have this same virus. (I'm the only one left standing but as the nurse, I have to admit I'm completely worn out.)

Last Wednesday afternoon my iphone got sick. It would not update to iOS5. I was getting Error 3200(like many other hundreds of thousands of people, it seems.) I got on Twitter and eventually got onto some reputable blogs to determine that this error that no one had ever seen before was due to lack of capacity on Apple's servers.

Last Monday and Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of Blackberry Messenger (BBM) customers around the world,

Daily Education and Technology News for Schools 10/17/2011

by coolcatteacher@gmail.com (Victoria A Davis, Cool Cat Teacher)

• Maide Control

  This app lets you control cad and 3d environments like Google Sketchup. Really, the Ipad is now an interface with your regular computer and it is only beginning. The Maide video is definitely worth a watch and if you do anything with 3D design or CAD, this is worth a look.

  tags: education cad graphic design govt_business wireless_connectivity workflow_software

• Björk: Biophilia for iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and iPad on the iTunes App Store

  Bjork releases an album along with 3D images in an app for the ipad. This is how artists and music are evolving. It is the first of its kind. Interesting. I'm sending this to our Flat Classroom students as they

Brooklyn PS students stage protest: Kids act out need for Ed. reform with musical in Zuccotti Park #ows

Brooklyn PS students stage protest: Kids act out need for Ed. reform with musical in Zuccotti Park:

Brooklyn PS students stage protest: Kids act out need for Ed. reform with musical in Zuccotti Park

BY TREVOR KAPP
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Monday, October 17th 2011, 4:00 AM

Ken Murray/News

Reg Flowers, a senior collaborator for Falcon Works Artists Group, aims to raise awareness about education issues by incorporating students into his performances.

Wall Street needs reform, but so do classrooms.

That was a Brooklyn theater group's message Sunday as it performed scenes from a musical version of a famed educator's book across from Zuccotti Park.

"The argument is very academic, but the ideas are easy to understand," said Reg Flowers, a senior collaborator for Falcon Works Artists Group. "Our goal is to raise awareness about education."

The Red Hook-based group, which consists of several middle schoolers, explored how standardized tests and reading requirements in public schools can prevent students from learning.

The group has launched an online Kickstarter campaign to raise money fo

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/10/17/2011-10-17_brooklyn_ps_kids_stage_own_protest.html#ixzz1b2VF9aAF

California school spending among lowest in the nation | California Watch

California school spending among lowest in the nation | California Watch:

California school spending among lowest in the nation

by Joanna Lin

Joanna Lin

woodley wonderworks/Flickr

Budget shortfalls have pushed California's spending on public schools to a historic low, relative to the rest of the United States, according to a new analysis by the California Budget Project.

California ranks 46th in the U.S. in K-12 spending per student. It spent $2,856 less per student in 2010-11 than did the rest of the nation – a spending gap that is four times wider than it was a decade earlier, when the state lagged behind by $691 per student.

While it's debatable whether more spending means better schools, it's clear that sharp declines in California's

More than 100 cities, counties agree to push early literacy - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

More than 100 cities, counties agree to push early literacy - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

More than 100 cities, counties agree to push early literacy

by Valerie Strauss

Washington D.C., Baltimore and five communities in Virginia are among the more than 150 cities and counties across the country that are pledging to concentrate on early literacy efforts to ensure that children can read by the end of third grade.

The Campaign for Grade Level Reading is a collaborative effort by dozens of funders to make sure that all children, especially those from low-income families who often enter kindergarten already behind, learn to read.Signing onto the campaign are big cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston and Atlanta, and the entire state of Arizona.

Read full article >>

The Economist ranks business schools worldwide

by Valerie Strauss

For all of the angst out there about the growing international competition to U.S. higher education, you may be surprised to learn that in The Economist magazine’s new rankings of full-time business schools worldwide, institutions in the United States do mighty well.

How well? Well, seven out of the top 10 schools are American and 20 of the top 30 are American.

Read full article >>

Brown: API plus school inspections | Thoughts on Public Education

Brown: API plus school inspections | Thoughts on Public Education:

Brown: API plus school inspections

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England offers possible model for California

Posted on 10/17/11 • Categorized as Jerry Brown, Standardized tests

By John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

Toward the end of his provocative message last week vetoing a bill creating new quantitative measures for school accountability, Gov. Jerry Brown made what seemed like an off-the-cuff suggestion: “What about a system that relies on locally convened panels to visit schools, observe teachers, interview students and examine student work?”

“Such a system wouldn’t produce an API number,” Brown wrote, “but it could improve the quality of our schools.”

Brown hadn’t talked about this idea before, and he has made bare mention of it since. StateBoard of Education Executive Director Sue Burr told me not to expect the governor to come forth with a statewide proposal for such a system.

And yet Brown’s suggestion for school inspections is credible, and it didn’t spring out of the

Schools Matter: Taking our schools back from the 1% is OccupyLAUSD's goal

Schools Matter: Taking our schools back from the 1% is OccupyLAUSD's goal:

Taking our schools back from the 1% is OccupyLAUSD's goal

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

First published on Echo Park Patch 2011-10-16

"We have our cake, and are eating it too." — Eli Broad (Predatory Philanthrocapitalist & Charter School Patron)

Inspired by the Occupy Movement for social and economic justice nationwide, educators and community members are planning to Occupy Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) starting Tuesday October 18, 2011. Organizers met Friday night to plan for the action, which will originate with a march from the Occupy Los Angeles encampment at City Hall to LAUSD headquarters on Beaudry Avenue. Activists will then begin an occupation via an encampment at LAUSD.

The organizers comprised a mix of teachers, Occupy Los Angeles

IEA’s media joke: How our dues are being used. « Fred Klonsky's blog

IEA’s media joke: How our dues are being used. « Fred Klonsky's blog:

IEA’s media joke: How our dues are being used.

by Fred Klonsky

School Tech Connect’s Tim Furman links to my post that has the two Eeyore’s, IEA Prez Cinda Klickna and Government Relations chief Jim Reed, putting the members to sleep. The video was intended to rally members in defense of our pensions.

You haven’t seen a defense like that since last week’s Bears played the Lions.

Furman sarcastically picks it as one of his favorite things and asks, “surely there’s a media teacher in the membership that could drive over there and make a few friendly suggestions.”

Note to Tim: The IEA doesn’t need a volunteer media teacher. The Communications office of the IEA is one of the three most heavily dues-backed departments in the 130,000 member union, along with lobbying and local

NYC Educator: Let's Do It #ows

NYC Educator: Let's Do It:

Let's Do It

by NYC Educator

EdNotes offers an important idea--that of linking Occupy Wall Street to education. Readers of this blog know well that the billionaires are trying to work their magic on our careers, just as they did to the economy, and that even the supposed Democrat, Barack Obama, firmly supports their baseless hare-brained schemes. Arne Duncan can't wait to do whatever the hell Bill Gates tells him to.m

If we can get our message out, that the same people who tossed the economy into the crapper want to do the same to our children, we'll have accomplished something truly worthwhile. This is a long-term project that can't be accomplished overnight. The occupiers of Wall Street had to wait weeks before even being

Who should #occupytheclassroom? « Outside the Cave #ows

Who should #occupytheclassroom? « Outside the Cave:

Who should #occupytheclassroom?

by Stephen Lazar

I think we, the teachers, have to bare some blame for setting the conditions that led to the Occupy movement. Too many of us (and as radical as I try to be in the classroom, I fall far short of where I need to be) are the gatekeepers of knowledge, the sole determiners of success and failure, and hold monopolies on the administration of justice. In our classrooms, far too many of us are the 1%.

Let me start with a confession: I find most protests dumb. I’ve been to a few in my time. I believe I was at the first protest against George W. Bush’s election in 2000 in the country (and ended up getting my first byline for that one). I marched with millions at the 2004 Republican Convention. I’ve been to more UFT marches than I could list. At every one, I’ve felt stupid. There’s lots of people shouting, but no one listening. The good protests got a story in the paper the next day, and were then forgotten.

I find most protests stupid in part because there is no risk involved. Marches in the Civil Rights Movement and against the Vietnam War, which until September 17 have provided the dominant template for most American

School Tech Connect: The War on Urban Literacy

School Tech Connect: The War on Urban Literacy:

The War on Urban Literacy

by noreply@blogger.com (Tim)

According to Valerie, Chicago is one of the cities "signing on" to this Campaign For Grade-Level Reading thing.

Let's just remember that this is a city where 160 of our public elementary schools don't have libraries or librarians and where most of the branch libraries are closed on Sundays. By contrast, out in the high-achieving, heavily unionized suburbs, schools have libraries and librarians, and the public libraries have Sunday hours.

solidaridad: Special LA Screening: The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, October 24, 2011

solidaridad: Special LA Screening: The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, October 24, 2011:

Special LA Screening: The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, October 24, 2011

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman
A screening of the film. Followed by a panel with special guests including Dr. Stephen Krashen. Event opens with Dr. Diane Ravitch via conference call introducing the film.


Monday, October 24, 2011 at 6:30PM
Union Avenue Elementary School Auditorium
150 S. Burlington Ave.,
Los Angeles, CA 90057

Nota: Cuida de niños disponible y traducción en Español disponible.
Note: Childcare and Spanish Translation Available.

Sponsored by PESJA-LA, Coalition for Educational Justice, Echo Park Moms 4 Education, and UTLA North Area.

About the film: The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman
Dir. The Grassroots Education Movement, 2011, 55 min.
http://www.waitingforsupermantruth.org See the trailer.

A group of New York City public school teachers and parents from the Grassroots Education Movement wrote

Schools Matter: Taking our schools back from the 1% is OccupyLAUSD's goal

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

"We have our cake, and are eating it too." — Eli Broad (Predatory Philanthrocapitalist & Charter School Patron)


Inspired by the Occupy Movement for social and economic justice nationwide, educators and community members are planning to Occupy Los Angeles Unified School District

GEM NYC: Teachers and Parents at Occupy Wall Street

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

"Our public schools need to be in the control of parents and the community, as opposed to businessmen who see the $23 billion budget as a means to giving no-bid contracts to their cronies." — Charles Barron (Brooklyn City Councilman)

The Grassroots Education Movement and Real Reform Studios — the folks that brought us The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman — have produced a short video examining the education aspect of the battle