Jersey Jazzman: Who's More Unpopular: Rhee or Romney?

Jersey Jazzman: Who's More Unpopular: Rhee or Romney?:

Who's More Unpopular: Rhee or Romney?

by Duke

This is interesting:

Hoping that New Yorkers will think of “Romney” as a dirty word, a coalition of labor unions and liberal advocacy groups is beginning a campaign on Thursday to tie the presumptive Republican presidential nominee to defenders of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s education policies.  

The coalition, New Yorkers for Great Public Schools, said it planned to highlight donors who supported both Mitt Romney and StudentsFirstNY, a political group formed as a counterweight to teachers’ unions that oppose much of Mr. Bloomberg’s education agenda. 

The line of attack is somewhat selective — the StudentsFirstNY board includes several major 

Ten Reasons Young People Should Come Forward For Deferred Action « MomsRising Blog

Ten Reasons Young People Should Come Forward For Deferred Action « MomsRising Blog:

Ten Reasons Young People Should Come Forward For Deferred Action

by Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez

On August 15, the first of perhaps a million or more people who qualify for the DREAM Act began stepping forward to apply and pay fees for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a form of temporary deportation relief for undocumented immigrants who meet certain criteria. Each case will be evaluated individually, but I am encouraging those who meet the basic criteria to consider applying for DACA or at least get all the information they can about whether it is the right thing for them. Thousands will join me and Senator Dick Durbin, the author of the DREAM Act, and Mayor Rahm Emanuel in Chicago at the Navy Pier for a workshop on the new program conducted by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and numerous local groups.
Almost all of the young people I have talked to are eager to come forward. They fought hard for deportation relief and want to be able to work, drive, go to school, and fight on for broader, permanent immigration reform, 

Meet the PAA founders: Leonie Haimson « Parents Across America

Meet the PAA founders: Leonie Haimson « Parents Across America:

Meet the PAA founders: Leonie Haimson

by pureparents

This profile is part of an ongoing series of portraits of key PAA members.

In the beginning, there was Leonie Haimson.

Leonie was a key force in the creation of Parents Across America, and remains at the heart of our activities. From her computer in her Greenwich Village office, she writes, researches, and stays in touch with activists and reporters across the country. After more than a decade of educational work, she has become an expert in the ins and outs of politics and policy – how to organize a conference or a demonstration, when to alert the press to an important story, when and how to investigate a dubious educational claim.

Leonie always grounds her actions in schoolhouse-level reality, drawing on her lengthy experience as a New York public school parent. Her educational activism began when her daughter was in first grade in a large class at a New York City public elementary school, and the teacher remarked how much more the children learned on days when some of them were absent. Leonie, then a reporter on environmental issues, did some digging and 

From Oregon SOS: Why We Need to Move Away From High-Stakes Testing

by pureparents

This is Oregon SOS’s latest blog post about high stakes testing — a response to a newspaper opinion piece by Sue Levin of Oregon Stand for Children” In response to Sue Levin’s commentary in the Oregonian on July 31st regarding high-stakes testing, the real question shouldn’t be how many times does a student test, but [...]

Where My Fatherhood Comes From [It Turned Into a Poem] | The Jose Vilson

Where My Fatherhood Comes From [It Turned Into a Poem] | The Jose Vilson:

Where My Fatherhood Comes From [It Turned Into a Poem]

by Jose

My fatherhood is born of a desire to change
everything that happened before me. Or before me.
My fatherhood was born from not having a father figure present,
and constantly seeking them in the form of
priests, popular athletes, and men who only had time
for a yearly visit.
My fatherhood wasn’t prescribed,
and,
for all the reading I did,
I knew I’d have to write this one out
on my own.
My fatherhood is an amalgamation of
everything that went wrong with
me,
the abuse,
the isolation,
the fear
tossed out the window
just to help me start over again.
My fatherhood hums where screams are appropriate,
drags where others bounced,
inhales where far too many coughed.
My fatherhood forgives
those who never taught it to me,
extinguishes the burn in my chest
where I once thought love went.
My fatherhood isn’t magic,
mystical,
delivered divinely,
but something I continuously have to tend,
craft with my own hands and mind.
My fatherhood fills the shoes worn
very loosely
by no one in particular,
simultaneously well dressed and battle torn,
fully expecting to win.
My fatherhood only matters,
though,
if the boy who receives it now
never has to feel as though he had to earn it.
Like I did.
Jose

Chicago Teachers Union Vs. Astroturf Billionaires

The Chicago Teachers Union is currently on the front lines of a fight to defend public education. On one side the 30,000 members of the CTU have called for a contract that includes fair compensation, meaningful job security for qualified teachers, smaller class sizes and a better school day with Art, Music, World Language and appropriate staffing levels to help our neediest students.

On the other side, the Chicago Board of Education—which is managed by out of town reformers and Broad Foundation hires with little or no Chicago public school experience—has pushed to add two weeks to the school year and 85 minutes to the school day, eliminate pay increases for seniority, evaluate teachers based on student test scores, and slash many other rights.

Teachers, parents and community supporters in Chicago have fought valiantly—marching, filling auditoriums at hearings and parent meetings, even occupying a school and taking over a school board meeting. Most recently, 98 percent of our members voted to authorize a strike. But now we find ourselves facing new opponents—national education privatizers, backed by some of the nation's wealthiest people. They are running radio ads, increasing press attacks, and mounting a PR campaign to discredit the CTU and the benefits of public education.

Cosmo Garvin's Parting Shot at Kevin Johnson | The Sacramento Coalition to Save Public Education

Cosmo Garvin's Parting Shot at Kevin Johnson | The Sacramento Coalition to Save Public Education:

Cosmo Garvin's Parting Shot at Kevin Johnson

by Kate_Lenox

KJ, Inc.
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/k-j-inc/content?oid=7177019
Cosmo Garvin's last article for the Sacramento News and Review is an excellent piece of investigative journalism on how Kevin Johnson is funneling private dollars into quasi-public endeavors including his astro-turf education group Stand Up Sacramento. Along with that he is also using public dollars and city office space in a self-agrandizing effort to enlarge his staff and extend his political reach.

None of the non-profits discussed in the article have produced any tangiblebenefits for the city of Sacramento, but those who work for them receive nice paychecks. (If it's in the public record who gets paid what). The city of 

UPDATE: Jersey Jazzman: What Eduction "Reform" Is Really About: $$$

Jersey Jazzman: What Eduction "Reform" Is Really About: $$$:

It's Good To Be Chris Cerf's Friend!

by Duke

When we last visited Jersey City, mayoral candidate Steve Fulop was setting up secret meetings with members of the JCBOE and Education Commissioner Chris Cerf, even though Cerf denies he had anything to do with the appointment of the new superintendent. Remember: Marcia Lyles and Cerf are both graduates of the Broad Superintendents "Academy," the unaccredited program that brings corporate values to public schools (the last thing they need).

A lot of people in Jersey City are fed up with the state dictating to them how they should run their schools, and they're fed up with Chris Cerf's autocratic attitude toward their district. It now looks like a few of them are willing to stand up and say, "Enough":

Jersey City's incoming new superintendent of schools, Dr. Marcia Lyles, had planned to start her new job on Monday, Aug. 20. But in a somewhat stunning development, the school board failed to 

What Eduction "Reform" Is Really About: $$$

by Duke

It's NOT all about the kids.

The banksters have stopped trying to hide what the charter school movement is really about:

RIFuture.org has a transcript. It's really unbelievable:

Anchor: Charter schools have become very popular as parents seek more choice in educating their children. But are charter schools a wise addition to your investment portfolio? Well let’s ask David Brain, President and CEO of Entertainment Properties Trust. David, why would I want to add charter schools into my portfolio?

DB: Well I think it’s a very stable business, very recession-resistant. It’s a high-demand product. There’s 400,000 kids on waiting lists for charter schools, the industry’s growing about 12-14% a year. So it’s a high-growth, very stable, 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Pension-grabber Quinn is now toast

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Pension-grabber Quinn is now toast:

Pension-grabber Quinn is now toast

by Mike Klonsky

Popout

Afterward, union leader and lifelong Democrat Ruby Robinson, of Aurora, was furious. “Not one other vote will I cast for a Democrat who is posing as a Democrat but who’s actually acting out as a Republican, as a Tea Partier, and that’s exactly what Gov. Quinn and his group is doing today,” said Robinson, a longtime Department of Employment Security employee and head of an AFSCME local. “They’re carrying out the same kind of activities as Gov. [Scott] Walker did in Wisconsin.”  -- Sun-Times

There is no Chicago Republican Party and statewide the GOP is in shambles. So it's been left to the Democrats to lead the state's great pension grab on behalf of the corporate reformers. They may pay a big political price for 

Has Teach for America betrayed its mission? - US news - Life - Education - NBCNews.com

Has Teach for America betrayed its mission? - US news - Life - Education - NBCNews.com:

Has Teach for America betrayed its mission?

Third of recruits go to privately run charter schools; classroom efficacy in question

By Stephanie Simon

updated 8/16/2012 11:10:21 AM ET

• Print
• Font:

When Wendy Kopp, just out of Princeton, founded Teach for America in 1989, she dreamed of recruiting 500 elite college graduates to teach the nation's neediest children. "My dear Miss Kopp," a college advisor told her, "you are quite evidently deranged."

Kopp pressed on, and this fall Teach for America will send a record 10,000 teachers into classrooms from New York to California. The nonprofit boasts $300 million in assets and collects tens of millions a year in public funds, even at a time of steep cuts to education budgets. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan praises it for having "made teaching cool again." And TFA veterans have emerged as the most influential leaders of a bipartisan education reform movement.

But critics, including a handful of disillusioned alumni, 

Schools Matter: Chicago Teachers Union Versus Astroturf Billionaires

Schools Matter: Chicago Teachers Union Versus Astroturf Billionaires:

Chicago Teachers Union Versus Astroturf Billionaires

by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene

PopoutBillionaires like the Koch Brothers, Betsy DeVos, and Bill Gates fund astroturf tools like Jonah Edelman, Rebecca Nieves Huffman, and Kyle Olson. Working with anti-working class politicians like Rahm Emanuel, these groups and individuals strive to privatize public education, union bust, and profit off the sufferings of the poor. Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is on the front lines of the battle to save public education, but they are 

Community, Parent and Labor Organizations Call for NYC Candidates to Reject StudentsFirstNY Support

New Yorkers for Great Public Schools:

 New Report Exposes StudentsFirst Romney Money that Could Poison NYC Schools and Elections

Community, Parent and Labor Organizations Call for NYC Candidates to Reject StudentsFirstNY Support

New York, NY—On the heels of a new report, outraged parents called on elected officials and candidates for state and local office to reject any financial support, either directly or via independent expenditures, from StudentsFirstNY and their various affiliate entities.

The report, titled StudentsFirst Romney First: How Romney Donors and Republican Insiders Plan to Use Their Political Capital—and Bain Capital—to Control NYC Education, uncovers deep connections between StudentsFirstNY leaders and donors with efforts to defeat President Obama, details the web of interconnected non-profit and political committees that comprise StudentsFirst and closely examines the shared and unsuccessful education agenda of Mitt Romney and StudentsFirst.  It documents that StudentsFirstNY board members and donors are contributing over $2 million to efforts to defeat President Obama and several board members have been very outspoken in their attacks on the President.  Sixty-eight percent of the candidates StudentsFirst supports nationally have been Republicans, indicating they are out of step with New York City school parents.

"Our eyes are wide open we can see clearly by following the money that StudentsFirstNY and Romney are in bed together. The vow of the Super PAC, StudentsFirstNY, to raise $50 million is an attempt to buy our NYC public schools, like a corporate takeover. Our schools are not for sale. We are demanding that our elected officials denounce StudentsFirstNY's money and stand with us as we chart a new direction for our public schools," said Zakiyah Ansari, parent of eight and Advocacy Director for the Alliance for Quality Education.

“New York City’s future as a thriving, economically prosperous city depends on our having strong, vital public schools,” said Lenore Friedlaender, Vice President of 32BJ SEIU. “But public education in our city is under attack by privatization forces represented by groups like StudentsFirstNY. 32BJ stands with our city’s middle-class and working families against the forces that want to dismantle public education.”

The report was published by New Yorkers for Great Public Schools -- a coalition of community based organizations, parent and labor groups.  While StudentFirstNY describes itself as a “union for students,” its board members are ideologically, educationally and economically deeply out of step with the families served by New York City public schools.  They promote an education agenda that is identical to Romney’s emphasizing privatization, testing, and vouchers while ignoring class sizes, after school programs, and a college and careers curriculum. Across the country StudentsFirst has failed to fight against school cuts and contributed $100,000 to a campaign promoting cuts to public schools.

“As a parent of a special needs student in the New York City school system, I don’t want to people like Michelle Rhee playing politics with my daughter’s education. The last thing our city needs is a group like StudentsFirstNY, run by hedge fund managers who have no idea what life is like for New York City parents and students, interfering in our schools, " said Juan Pagan, parent leader, New York Communities for Change.

"Parents and students and communities need our schools to succeed. Our students and families are diverse, and our needs are many. StudentsFirstNY is not prioritizing the needs of our students. We shouldn't have to struggle to make our voices heard over all of the money that the people behind StudentsFirstNY are planning to pump into elections," said Elizabeth Lee, Program Manager, Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF).

"I know that my school needs real programs that work for me, my parents, my teachers and their administration, and my community. What we don't need are more high stakes tests and more school closings. But, those corporate styles of reform are what StudentsFirstNY is all about," Lawrence Booker, youth leader, Urban Youth Collaborative.

For a copy of StudentsFirst Romney First: How Romney Donors and Republican Insiders Plan to Use Their Political Capital—and Bain Capital—to Control NYC Education, please visit http://www.nygps.org/report

Ed Tech Task Force Recommendations - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education)

Ed Tech Task Force Recommendations - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education):

Modern Technology a Major Tool in Preparing Students
for the Future, Educators and Other Experts Say

"Education Technology Task Force" Submits Recommendations to State Schools Chief

SACRAMENTO—Rather than seeing smart phones and other electronic devices as barriers to learning, educators should be using them as central tools in preparing students for the careers of the 21st century economy, according to a new report that teachers and other education experts prepared for State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson.

Torlakson created the Education Technology Task Force under his No Child Left Offline initiative earlier this year to begin setting the stage for a modern California Education Technology Blueprint. A plan for education technology in California's public schools has not been thoroughly updated in more than a decade.

The 48-member Task Force includes teachers, superintendents, chief technology officers for school districts, and representatives of the business community, among others. This week, members submitted a memo to Torlakson that contains an initial look at the challenge and opportunities facing schools as they move toward modern education technology.

"With its ubiquity and its adaptability, computing technology is changing the face of education—and rightfully so," said Torlakson, who authored legislation when he was in the California State Senate to support teachers' use of technology. "It can be a powerful tool for preparing kids for the economy they will become a part of once they leave school.”

Advanced instructional technology already is being used to great effect in schools and districts across California. At New Technology High School in the Napa Valley Unified School District, for example, students are using individual devices—or "1:1 computing"—to work together and solve problems. And at Otay Elementary School in the Chula Vista Elementary School District, adaptive software gives teachers a clear picture of each student's needs depending on their English proficiency.

State and national research consistently shows that teachers and students all believe that increasing the use of technology can improve learning and help students connect their education to life after school. The Task Force identified goals for the use of technology for teaching and administration, as well as obstacles that stand in the way.

Some of its initial recommendations include:

• Promote expanded use of online instructional materials and student access to technology for standards-based curricula. In Elk Grove Unified School District, schools have begun using online instruction to supplement other coursework.
• Every student has access to at least one Internet device for learning anytime and anywhere, often called 1:1, which the Task Force calls "possibly the biggest challenge facing public education" in this context.
• Form public-private partnerships for the funding and use of technology in the classroom.
• Develop guidance documents for students and their schools on safety and appropriate use, as well as existing laws and regulations.
• Create modern, personalized assessments for students that can help tailor their instruction—even within one class period.
• Encourage and reward teachers' and administrators' use of technology, including offering professional development to prepare them for its use across the education spectrum.
• Continue pursuing minimum bandwidth standards across the state.

The full memo from the Task Force can be found online at Education Technology Task Force Work Group Memos (PDF). Torlakson will consider these recommendations as well as public comment in working toward an updated Education Technology Plan.

# # # #

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

Daily Kos: A simple question for Mitt and Ann Romney

Daily Kos: A simple question for Mitt and Ann Romney:

A simple question for Mitt and Ann Romney

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

In 2009 the Internal Revenue Service had a one-time amnesty for those who had failed to pay taxes on overseas accounts.  To quote from the frequently asked questions document on the program, issued in May of 2009, the objective of the amnesty program was

to bring taxpayers that have used undisclosed foreign accounts
and undisclosed foreign entities to avoid or evade tax into compliance with
United States tax laws.  Additionally, the information gathered from taxpayers
making voluntary disclosures under this practice will be used to further the IRS’s
understanding of how foreign accounts and foreign entities are promoted to
United States taxpayers as ways to avoid or evade tax.  Data gathered will be
used in developing additional strategies to inhibit promoters and facilitators from
soliciting new clients.

Those who had previously failed to report income on such accounts and entities could voluntarily disclose them and pay back taxes without being subject to penalties.

Legislators Challenge NEA and AFT to Merge - John Wilson Unleashed - Education Week

Legislators Challenge NEA and AFT to Merge - John Wilson Unleashed - Education Week:

Legislators Challenge NEA and AFT to Merge

By John Wilson on August 16, 2012 7:00 AM

Can you imagine being a pro-public school and pro-union state legislator and have to deal with competing teacher unions as you move legislation that will help all teachers and education support professionals? Louisiana and West Virginia come to my mind as two prime examples. I am sure there are state legislators who feel they walk on eggshells when trying to work with the local and state affiliates of the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers.

Recently, this issue emerged at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). Dennis Van Roekel, President of NEA, and Randi Weingarten, President of AFT, were on a panel espousing collaboration and "doing things with their members, not to their members." One legislator was channeling his personal experiences and threw out to the union presidents a challenge of "coming together with a common voice."

It must have surprised Van Roekel when Weingarten picked up that challenge and stated that NEA and AFT should try again to merge. The word on the street had been that AFT was unlikely to support merger during Weingarten's term. Van Roekel responded, "That's a 

LA School Report | Everything You Need to Know About What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report | Everything You Need to Know About What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD:

Welcome to LA School Report

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Jamie Alter Lynton

Today I am pleased to announce the official launch of LA School Report. My goal is to provide meaningful coverage on issues related to the Los Angeles public schools and to shine a light on a system that receives little attention despite its enormous importance. As the second largest school system in the country and one that commands an annual budget of over $6 billion dollars, the Los Angeles Unified School District faces complicated and controversial challenges that too often receive little scrutiny. LA School Report will provide news coverage, analysis and commentary on these issues and enrich the discourse on issues related to public officials, school policies and ultimately about the future of this city. I encourage you to get informed, be engaged, and to have an impact on education in Los Angeles.

ASCD SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TOOL

ASCD  SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TOOL Home Page:

Fast, Free, Online: Because You Can’t Wait to Get Better

by Molly McCloskey

All educators want to improve what they do for kids, but need help doing so. On a daily basis, we’re thinking, planning, and taking steps to improve school climate and culture, provide high-quality curriculum and instruction, be leaders, assess meaningfully, engage our families and communities, support our own professional development, build staff capacity, and more. How do we balance these multiple school improvement priorities in our schools and with each other?

At ASCD, we believe a whole child approach to education is the way to make these improvements. Ensuring that each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged sets the standard for comprehensive, sustainable school improvement and provides for long-term student success. The ASCD School Improvement Tool is the newest and best way to get a snapshot of how well your school or district is doing and then identify what steps can be taken to get to the next level.
Designed for use in schools and districts around the world, this free tool offers educators a comprehensive and completely online needs assessment. It includes a survey based on the indicators (PDF) of a sustainable whole child approach to education which span school climate and culture, instruction and curriculum, leadership, family and community engagement, professional development and staff capacity, and assessment.
Based on your unique results, the tool points you to professional development resources that can help immediately address school-wide challenges. Get started today and start the new school year with data and solutions!

GO To ASCD  SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TOOL Home Page:

That Dog Won’t Hunt « The Core Knowledge Blog

That Dog Won’t Hunt « The Core Knowledge Blog:

That Dog Won’t Hunt

by Robert Pondiscio
August 16th, 2012

Tags: CCSS, Fordham, Kathleen Porter-Magee, Literacy, Lucy Calkins, publishing
Posted in Education Practice, Literacy | No Comments »

“How many legs does a dog have if you call its tail a leg?” Abraham Lincoln is famously reported to have asked.   Four, said Abe.  “Because calling it a leg doesn’t make it one.”

And calling your ELA curriculum Common Core aligned doesn’t mean it really is.

At Fordham’s Common Core Watch blog last week, Kathleen Porter-Magee posted a piece that deserves more attention.  It’s an eye-opening look at how literacy guru Lucy Calkins is “rewriting the Common Core” to basically argue for the same old literacy practices that have largely failed our students.  A new book by Calkins, Mary Ehrenworth and Christopher Lehman, Pathways to the Common Core “sounds like a useful resource that ELA teachers can use to figure out how to align their instruction to the new standards,” writes Porter-Magee. However…

“Unfortunately, it misses the mark. Part ideological co-opting of the Common Core (CCSS) and part defense of existing—and poorly aligned—

The power of positive technology « Teaching Between the Lines

The power of positive technology « Teaching Between the Lines:

The power of positive technology

by Laura

Convincing my students to work with new technology is a snap — if the laptops are on their desks, they are usually happy and productive.  But recently I presented the wonders of technology to a tougher audience: older folks in a retirement community.  Although they came willingly to my presentation, which was part of a series on  keeping their brains active, I heard a bit of grumbling along the lines of, “This is about technology?  I’m not staying,” “I don’t even have a computer,” and “I hate blogs!”
I knew they had recently learned about the power of positive thinking, so I focused my presentation on how they can take advantage of technology to improve their own lives.  And as I spoke, I realized that those same benefits are what make new technology vital to my classroom today.  If you’re a teacher who has wondered if it’s worth the effort to make new technology part of your classroom, I encourage you to consider these powerful perks:

1. Collaboration: working in groups is tricky when my 8th graders are crowded 32 students to a room.  When they drag their desks into groups, they are crammed so 

Missouri Education Watchdog: Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee or one of her TFAers Write These Rambling Letters?

Missouri Education Watchdog: Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee or one of her TFAers Write These Rambling Letters?:

Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rheeor one of her TFAers Write These Rambling Letters?

by stlgretchen

Her words are empty and vague.  So are her educational reform ideas. See if you can discern what they are and what she wants...other than your money.

Michelle Rhee and her organization StudentsFirst just won't leave Missourians alone with her talking points on educational reform sent via email.  She's about as vague on her reform plans as Arne Duncan saying we need "great teachers".  What's the definition of educational reform and what's the definition of a "great teacher"?  Who and what organizations define and implement those plans for public