Monday, January 30, 2012

NEA Foundation Launches Gaming Challenge on ED’s Open Innovation Portal | ED.gov Blog

NEA Foundation Launches Gaming Challenge on ED’s Open Innovation Portal | ED.gov Blog:

NEA Foundation Launches Gaming Challenge on ED’s Open Innovation Portal

How can interactive technology and game-based learning help engage students to learn?

Challenge to Innovate LogoThe next great teaching frontier is light years away from chalk and erasers. Outside the classroom, students are fascinated and engaged in interactive technology and game-based activities. If these tools are being used for entertainment, why not take advantage of their educational value? By applying the appeal of video games – the characters, interactivity, strategy – into classroom instruction, educators can redefine learning. Moreover, interest in technology at a young age may increase the likelihood that students will be interested in technology when they choose their careers.

Recognizing the educational potential of interactive gaming, the NEA Foundation, in partnership with Microsoft – US Partners in Learning, is launching the C2i: Gaming Challenge on ED’s Open Innovation Portal. They want to know your best idea for how interactive technology and game-based learning can improve teaching and learning.

Now that you’re interested, here’s how it works.

  • Submissions will be accepted until March 5.
  • A proposed solution must effectively incorporate game-based learning and interactive technology.
  • Portal registrants can also review, comment, and vote.
  • At the end of the review period, up to 10 solutions will receive $1,000 cash awards from the NEA Foundation.
  • The solutions selected will be shared by the NEA Foundation and Microsoft – US Partners in Learning via multiple outlets.

Get started and submit your idea today!

The (C2i) initiative is open to anyone with an interest in improving public education. Last June, the NEA Foundation awarded five individuals $1,000 for the best ideas around mobile devices.

Adam Bookman and Rich Wilson are the administrators of ED’s Open Innovation Portal

This entry was posted in Headlines, Innovation, News. Bookmark the permalink.

Teachers For Social Justice: Oppose Attack on Ethnic Studies in Arizona

Teachers For Social Justice: Oppose Attack on Ethnic Studies in Arizona:

Oppose Attack on Ethnic Studies in Arizona

(from Rethinking Schools blog:) On Jan. 10, the governing board of Tucson schools voted to terminate the popular and enormously successful Mexican American Studies program, under pressure from the Arizona state superintendent of education. Follow this link to a letter from Tucsan Mexican American studies teacher Curtis Acosta posted on the Rethinking Schools blog:http://rethinkingschoolsblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/behind-the-curtain-in-tucson-a-letter-from-curtis-acosta/

(By Jeff Biggers on Huffington Post):

What happens in Arizona doesn't stay in Arizona.

Teacher Unionism Reborn | The Indypendent

Teacher Unionism Reborn | The Indypendent:
Teacher Unionism Reborn

In the past five years, we have witnessed a demonization of teachers unions that is close to achieving its goal: destruction of the most stable and potentially powerful defender of mass public education. Teacher unionism’s continued existence is imperiled — if what we define as "existence" is organizations having the legal capacity to bargain over any meaningful economic benefits and defend teachers’ rights to exercise professional judgment about what to teach and how to do it.

As I explain elsewhere, financial and political elites began this project forty years ago when they imposed school reform on Latin America, Africa, and Asia as a quid pro quo for economic aid. Though specifics of this global social engineering differ from one country to another, reforms have the same footprint: School funding is cut and school systems are broken up to promote privatization under the banner of "choice"; teachers and curriculum are controlled by tying pay to standardized test scores and eliminating tenure; standardized testing measures what is taught to most students, reducing


A Guide to Understanding the Sweetwater Scandal - voiceofsandiego.org: Education

A Guide to Understanding the Sweetwater Scandal - voiceofsandiego.org: Education:

A Guide to Understanding the Sweetwater Scandal

Print
Font Size:
Default font size
Larger font size
  • Construction workers at Chula Vista High School working on projects funded by a $644 million borrowing plan. The Sweetwater school district's construction spending is at the center of an ongoing political corruption scandal there.

Posted: Monday, January 30, 2012 6:45 am |Updated: 7:16 am, Mon Jan 30, 2012.

The corruption investigation and scandal that's engulfed the Sweetwater Union High School District, which educates 42,000 South Bay children, has been slowly unfolding for months.

Most recently, prosecutors charged four current and former district officials with felonies, alleging that they failed to disclose lavish gifts and traded their influence for expensive meals, show tickets and campaign donations. A contractor has also been

In Case You Missed It: High-performing schools on the block; conflicting reports on new schools’ success « EdVox

In Case You Missed It: High-performing schools on the block; conflicting reports on new schools’ success « EdVox:

In Case You Missed It: High-performing schools on the block; conflicting reports on new schools’ success

Here on EdVox we’re excited to bring you the latest news about education issues and policies affecting our communities. It can be hard to keep up with all of the events and happenings, so – in case you missed it… Here is a recap of the latest stories in NYC education news, starting with the oldest (Monday, January 23rd):

MONDAY

Shanker Blog » Getting Ready For The Common Core

Shanker Blog » Getting Ready For The Common Core:

Getting Ready For The Common Core

Our guest author today, Susan B. Neuman, is a professor in Educational Studies at the University of Michigan specializing in early literacy development and a former U.S. Secretary of Education for Elementary and Secondary Education. She and her colleagues at the University of Michigan have also partnered with the Albert Shanker Institute in sponsoring a summer institute for early childhood educators, focusing specifically on oral language development and the ways it can support and help build strong content knowledge. For more information, see here.

States are now working intently on developing plans that will make new, common standards a reality. A recentreport from Education First and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center concludes that that all but

MENSAJE SEMANAL: El plan especรญfico del Presidente incluye la renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU. | The White House

MENSAJE SEMANAL: El plan especรญfico del Presidente incluye la renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU. | The White House:

LA CASA BLANCA
Oficina del Secretario de Prensa
______________________________________________________________________________
DEL SรBADO, 28 DE ENERO, 2012

MENSAJE SEMANAL: El plan especรญfico del Presidente incluye la renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU.

WASHINGTON, DC— En su mensaje semanal, el Presidente discute el plan especรญfico que รฉl presentรณ esta semana en su discurso del Estado de la Uniรณn para crear una economรญa construida para que perdure. Despuรฉs de concentrarse en la industria manufacturera de EE.UU., la energรญa de EE.UU., y las habilidades para los trabajadores de EE.UU., durante cada dรญa de los รบltimos tres, รฉste aprovechรณ su Mensaje Semanal para destacar su compromiso con la renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU. El Presidente estรก exhortando a los lรญderes en Washington, DC, a seguir el ejemplo dado por nuestros hombres y mujeres en el ejรฉrcito, a ponerle fin al embotellamiento y comenzar a hacerle frente a los problemas que tienen importancia, sin tomar en cuenta su ambiciรณn personal.

El audio y el vรญdeo de este mensaje estarรกn disponibles en lรญnea en www.whitehouse.gov a las 6:00 a.m. ET, del sรกbado, 28 de enero, 2012.

Comentarios del Presidente Barack Obama

Segรบn fueron preparados para su presentaciรณn

Sรกbado, 28 de enero, 2012

La Casa Blanca

El martes, en mi discurso del Estado de la Uniรณn, yo expuse un plan especรญfico para una economรญa construida para que perdure; una economรญa construida en base a la industria manufacturera de EE.UU., la energรญa de EE.UU., las habilidades para los trabajadores de EE.UU., y una renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU.

Esta semana, yo llevรฉ dicho plan especรญfico alrededor del paรญs, y lo que pude observar fue gente que trabaja duro y que cree en sus semejantes. Ellos tienen fe en los EE.UU. que estรกn a nuestro alcance. Sin embargo, no estรกn seguros de que se harรก lo correcto en Washington este aรฑo, o el aรฑo que viene, o el aรฑo despuรฉs de รฉse. Y, francamente, cuando uno analiza algunas de las cosas que suceden en esta ciudad, ¿cรณmo podemos culparlos de que sean un tanto cรญnicos?

Sรณlo hace un par de dรญas, un senador prometiรณ ponerle obstรกculos a cada uno de los ciudadanos que yo nombre a un cargo de juez o a una posiciรณn de servicio pรบblico, salvo que yo despida al vigilante de los consumidores que nombrรฉ para proteger a la gente de este paรญs contra los fraudes o la negligencia financieros.

En la mayorรญa de los casos, no significa que dicho senador crea que los candidatos no estรฉn calificados. De hecho, todos los candidatos judiciales cuyo nombramiento estรก siendo obstaculizado tienen el apoyo bipartidista. Y casi el 90 por ciento tiene el apoyo unรกnime del Comitรฉ Judicial.

En su lugar, uno de sus asistentes les comentรณ a los reporteros que el senador tiene planes de, y les cito textualmente el comentario, “Aplazar y demorar el proceso con el fin de captar la atenciรณn del Presidente”.

El asunto no tiene que ver conmigo. No fuimos enviados aquรญ para emprender campaรฑas polรญticas perpetuas unos contra otros. Fuimos enviados aquรญ para servir al pueblo estadounidense. Y ellos merecen algo mejor que estar frente a un embotellamiento y juegos absurdos. El hecho de que un senador paralice el trabajo de todo el paรญs realmente no es lo que imaginaron los fundadores de nuestra patria.

La realidad es que ninguno de los dos partidos ha estado libre de culpas de usar tรกcticas como รฉstas. Sin embargo, es hora de que ambos partidos pongan fin a esto. Exhorto al Congreso, tanto a los Demรณcratas como a los Republicanos, que ponga fin a este tipo de comportamiento con la aprobaciรณn de una regla que permita un simple voto a favor o en contra de las nominaciones judiciales y de servicio pรบblico dentro de un perรญodo de 90 dรญas.

Tambiรฉn debemos frenar la influencia corrosiva que ejerce el dinero en la polรญtica. La Cรกmara de Representantes y el Senado deben enviarme un proyecto de ley que prohรญba las operaciones con informaciรณn privilegiada por parte de los miembros del Congreso, y yo lo firmarรฉ de inmediato. Deben impedir que todo funcionario electo tenga acciones en aquellas industrias que ellos impactan. Y deben cerciorarse de que la gente que combina las contribuciones a las campaรฑas para el Congreso no pueda ejercer presiรณn sobre el Congreso, y viceversa.

Durante mi discurso el martes en la noche, yo hablรฉ sobre el increรญble ejemplo dado por los hombres y las mujeres de nuestras fuerzas armadas. En un momento en que demasiadas de nuestras instituciones nos han defraudado, ellos exceden de todas las expectativas. Ellos no estรกn guiados por su ambiciรณn personal. Tampoco se obsesionan con las diferencias entre ellos. Se concentran en la misiรณn que tienen por delante. Y trabajan juntos.

Si ustedes estรกn de acuerdo conmigo en que los lรญderes en Washington deben seguir el ejemplo de estos hombres y mujeres, entonces den a conocer su opiniรณn. Dรญganle a su miembro del Congreso que es hora de ponerle fin al embotellamiento y de comenzar a hacerle frente a los problemas que realmente tienen importancia: una economรญa construida en base a la industria manufacturera de EE.UU., la energรญa de EE.UU., las habilidades para los trabajadores de EE.UU., y una renovaciรณn de los valores de EE.UU. Una economรญa construida para que perdure.

Muchas gracias, que Dios los bendiga, y que disfruten su fin de semana.

Part 3: Washington State Bill Proposals HB 2427/SB 6203 and HB 2451: Teacher evaluations based on test scores: The Washington Education Association responds | Seattle Education

Part 3: Washington State Bill Proposals HB 2427/SB 6203 and HB 2451: Teacher evaluations based on test scores: The Washington Education Association responds | Seattle Education:

Part 3: Washington State Bill Proposals HB 2427/SB 6203 and HB 2451: Teacher evaluations based on test scores: The Washington Education Association responds

It looks like my query went out far and wide. I have received responses from all over the country on teacher evaluations particularly as it pertains to the Washington State House and Senate bills regarding teacher evaluations based on test scores.

For information regarding these bills, please see