Modern School: New Orlean Teachers Union Rising From the Dead?

Modern School: New Orlean Teachers Union Rising From the Dead?:

New Orlean Teachers Union Rising From the Dead?

by Michael Dunn

Zombie Teachers Union? (Nanning Teachers College, Guangxi, image by Rex Pe, Flickr)

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans became the poster child for what Naomi Kline dubbed “Disaster Capitalism.” Businesses came ostensibly to “help” residents recover, but in actuality were there primarily to help themselves to billions of dollars in disaster relief funds.

While Katrina did not do significant damage to the school system, the general chaos and misery that followed provided excellent cover for public education profiteers, who convinced the city to turn over most of the school district to private charter school operators and fire all 7,500 of its teachers, driving a hefty spike into the heart of the union. Since Katrina, the feds have pumped $3 billion into New Orleans schools (Labor Notes reports), providing 

Schools Matter: Bob George Lies Again About Corporate Connections

Schools Matter: Bob George Lies Again About Corporate Connections:

Bob George Lies Again About Corporate Connections

by Jim Horn

Just before I posted last week on the continued crumbling of SOS under the non-leadership of the Catatpult Learning Vice President, Bob George, I talked with a former Board member who told me there was a rumor afloat that Bob George was retiring from Catapult.  Could Corporate Bob's intentional mismanaging and steering of SOS into the ditch be so important as to end his day job with a company that gets fat on federal cash intended for poor kids?  

Two days ago I emailed another current Board member who had recently spoken out against the patronizing chauvinism of NEA's man onBoard at SOS, Mike Klonsky, who obviously provides the man muscle during meetings to keep the group away from adopting a position against the next high-stakes test delivery system, 

Gloria Romero to Antonio Villaraigosa: We’re not removing you from Prop 32 ad | Politics Blog | an SFGate.com blog

Gloria Romero to Antonio Villaraigosa: We’re not removing you from Prop 32 ad | Politics Blog | an SFGate.com blog:

Gloria Romero to Antonio Villaraigosa: We’re not removing you from Prop 32 ad

The other day, we told you that LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was ticked that the pro-Prop 32 folks were using his name and comments “out of context” in an ad. He asked them to remove his name/comments from the ad promoting the measure on the November ballot that would ban unions and corporations from using automatic payroll deductions to fund political campaigns.

On Monday, the pro-32 folks responded to his request: Uh, no.

Gloria Romero, the former Democratic legislator who stars in the online ad which Tony V objected to, wrote him a letter Monday which said:

Not only did you clarify that you aren’t supportive of Prop 32, which was never
implied in campaign materials, but you insisted that the public ignore your lengthy
record of speeches, press conferences, and sound bites about how special

Clark: As education in Illinois changes, don't forget students - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register

Clark: As education in Illinois changes, don't forget students - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register:

Clark: As education in Illinois changes, don't forget students

Pension reform. Education reform. Common Core Standards. Budget cuts. As we start a new school year in Illinois the most important priority is probably the least discussed: The children in our public school systems.

Standardized tests, higher standards and new laws aside, anyone who ever has run a school system will tell you that people – teachers, principals, administrators and parents – are the most important factors in a child’s educational success. 

Despite all of the attacks on public education and the educators themselves, 77 percent of the public school children in Illinois met or exceeded the standards for all standardized tests last year. That’s a 28 percent improvement compared to the 60 percent that passed in 2002, according to the Illinois Interactive Report Card.

Public education never has been more 

Special education advocates to rally in Lansing over class sizes, caseloads | Metro Detroit | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

Special education advocates to rally in Lansing over class sizes, caseloads | Metro Detroit | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:

Special education advocates to rally in Lansing over class sizes, caseloads

Advocates for special education students will rally Wednesday in Lansing, hoping to influence state officials to abolish rules they say are leading to increased class sizes and caseloads.

A key issue is a state rule -- adopted in the early 2000s -- that allows the state's 57 intermediate school districts (ISDs) to stray from state guidelines on a number of issues, including how many students can be in a classroom or how many students are assigned to one teacher's caseload.

The ISDs are agencies that provide a number of services to local districts located within their geographic boundaries. About 50 of them have taken advantage of the flexibility the state rule allows by developing alternative plans for delivering special education services. Rally organizers say it's having a detrimental effect on students with special needs.

"Teachers are overburdened and overstressed. It's not sustainable," said Marcie Lipsitt, a parent advocate and co-founder of the Michigan 

Morning UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-28-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

Diane Ravitch's blog:

The Importance of Humor

by dianerav

In tough times, it is important to laugh.
Laughter is good for you.
Some people say it extends your life.
If you see any great videos or websites that help educators laugh at the absurdities now piled on their heads, please send them to me and I’ll share them.
Here is a terrific website created by a teacher to laugh about the nutty ideas now popular among policymakers.
The “hero” of this website is a make-belief upper-crust reformer who is totally clueless.
Enjoy.

Are Charters Hurting Private Schools?

by dianerav

The libertarian CATO Institute, which supports vouchers and school choice, today published a study of the way that charters are affecting private schools.
Briefly, charters are drawing many students from private schools. In urban districts, about 1/3 of charter elementary students come from private schools (mostly Catholic), causing these schools to be in deep financial distress. CATO writes that charters:
are wreaking havoc on private education. Charter schools take a significant portion of their students from private schools, causing a drop in private enrollment, driving some schools entirely out of business, and thereby raising 

The Silent Crisis in Higher Education

by dianerav

This is a shocking article. It describes the new world of academia, where adjuncts may be paid $10,000 a year to teach five courses. They get no benefits.
It was written by a woman who just received her Ph.D. in anthropology and is wondering if she will get a job and wondering how an academic can survive. After all, $10,000 a year is well below the poverty line.
Most people who teach in higher education are adjuncts. They are sometimes called “contingent faculty.”

Philly Mayor: No Difference Among Public, Private, Religious Schools?

by dianerav

The mayor of Philadelphia says there is no difference among different kinds of schools, be they public, private, religious, charter, whatever.
He sees no special responsibility to support public education.
In a sense it is understandable since the people of Philadelphia lost control of their schools to the state years 

Whose Side Are You On?

by dianerav

We know about the people who are using “reform” as their stepping stone to fame and fortune.
We know about those who demand more testing, more standardization, more dehumanization.
We know about the policymakers and pundits who think that test scores are the object of education.
Nothing else matters to them.
What do we know about the administrators and teachers who look on their students as if

How to Win the War of Ideas

by dianerav

I am often asked what teachers and parents can do to get across how absurd the “reform” ideas are.
Most important is to reach the public, to enable the public to understand what is happening, and how little evidence there is for any of the reformers’ claims or their strategies.
But here is another tack.
The most effective tool of all may be humor.
The New South Wales Teachers Federation in Australia has begun to create videos to spoof the nonsense that 

About the KIPP Debate: Be Nice

by dianerav

Defenders of KIPP sent two comments in response to a post I wrote calling on KIPP to take over an entire small district. Both comments, one from Jonathan Schorr and another from Dr. Daniel Musher, questioned my integrity as a researcher and scholar (and implicitly, as a person, since the insults suggested that I lie, distort and manipulate data).
Be it noted that my post contained no personal insults of any kind. I did not question the integrity of those associated with KIPP. In fact, I said that I like Michael Feinberg, the co-founder of KIPP, who was very welcoming when I visited Houston in 2010. On the few occasions when I have written about KIPP, I have spoken 

Brave Maine Superintendent Rebukes Governor

by dianerav

Maine Governor Paul LePage has made a name for himself insulting Maine educators and proposing vouchers, charters, and evaluating teachers by student test scores. One superintendent, Paul Perzanoski of Brunswick, decided he had had enough.
In his back to school letter to school staff (not parents or children), he proposed that the governor take the SAT and publish his scores.
This is how the local  press described his letter and the reaction to it.
“The legislators passed new laws on bullying this spring but they failed to include the Blaine House,” Perzanoski 

Alfred North Whitehead Speaks to Us Today

by dianerav

A colleague in Korea wrote to exchange ideas about civic education. In the course of our exchange, my friend offered these astonishingly relevant quotes from the esteemed philosopher Alfred North Whitehead. Let me be frank and say that I did not resonate to his ideas when I first read them half a century ago. I do now. These thoughts apply with equal force not only to our typical standardized approach to public schools but also to the charter chain approach:

“And I may say in passing that no educational system is possible unless every question directly asked of a pupil at any examination is

either framed or modified by the actual teacher of that pupil in that subject.

Rick Perry Appoints New Texas Commissioner of Education

by dianerav

Governor Rick Perry has appointed Michael Williams to be the new state Commissioner of Education in Texas.
Mr. Williams is a former general counsel to the Republican Party.
Most recently he served on the commission that regulates the oil and gas industry.
He was born in Midland, Texas, the same town as George W. Bush.
Mr. Williams doesn’t believe in climate change.

Missouri Education Watchdog: What's Going On at CNN?

Missouri Education Watchdog: What's Going On at CNN?:

What's Going On at CNN?

by stlgretchen

Why does CNN keep deleting readers' comments about the administration's plans for education reform?

Diane Ravitch had an interview with Randi Kaye about education and it has been an interview to remember, maybe not so much because of the interview itself, but the firestorm created when commentors responded on the site.   The web director or someone at CNN kept deleting the comments criticizing Kaye's questions and general tone of the interview. The questions Kaye asked Ravitch sound as if they came from a StudentsFirst, ACLU or Department of Education press release.

New study: Urban charter schools draw nearly a third of their students from private schools | Get Schooled

New study: Urban charter schools draw nearly a third of their students from private schools | Get Schooled:

New study: Urban charter schools draw nearly a third of their students from private schools

by Maureen Downey

A new study released today by the Cato Institute Center for Educational Freedom examines a question that hasn’t garnered any attention in the charter school debate here in Georgia: Where do public charter schools get their students, from traditional public schools or private schools?
I hope to talk today to the economist who authored the Cato study, Richard Buddin with the RAND Corporation, but here is the essence of his surprising findings: Despite their intention to target poor and under-served students, charters schools draw nearly a third of their elementary school enrollments from students who would have attended private, not public schools. This exodus from private schools to public charter schools costs taxpayers $1.8 billion a year, according to the study.
The study found:

Weinberg: Extra money makes a huge difference in student outcomes - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools

Weinberg: Extra money makes a huge difference in student outcomes - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools:

Weinberg: Extra money makes a huge difference in student outcomes

By Katy Murphy
Monday, August 27th, 2012 at 11:25 pm in Uncategorized.

Steven Weinberg, a retired Oakland teacher and Education Report contributor, makes a case for the Proposition 30 tax initiative on the November ballot.

Does providing schools with more money lead to improvements in student achievement?

The experience of Oakland middle schools over the last three years shows that it does.

Several years ago four Oakland middle schools with test scores in the lowest 20 percent of state schools received multiyear grants of $900 per student to reduce class sizes and fund other improvements. The grants were not given to all schools in the lowest 20 percent because the state wanted to be able to compare differences in improvement between those schools that received the extra money and those that did not.

After three years the differences in Oakland’s middle schools are dramatic. The 

To: Sec. Duncan Re: What you said about New Orleans schools - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

To: Sec. Duncan Re: What you said about New Orleans schools - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

To: Sec. Duncan Re: What you said about New Orleans schools

By Valerie Strauss

To: Education Secretary Arne Duncan

Re: What you said about New Orleans schools

It was a pleasure talking with you on your recent visit to The Washington Post to speak with journalists from editorial and news about your efforts to reform schools.

One thing I wish we had more time to discuss was New Orleans and the Recovery School District, where about 75 percent of the public schools are charters.

You approvingly noted that it was the fastest-improving school district in Louisiana (in 2011 you called it the most improved school district in the entire country), but we quickly moved on to other subjects — such as 

Daily Kos: August 28

Daily Kos: August 28:

August 28

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

1963 on this day, a quarter million people came to Washington DC for the March for Jobs and Freedom.  We now refer to it as the Civil Rights March, and it is true, it had a focus on Civil Rights for African Americans -  perhaps 80% of those in attendance were Black.
Only one labor union had a significant presnece -  the United Auto Workers.
And among the 20% who were white was a just graduated from high school 17 year old boy from Larchmont New York about to leave for his freshman year at Haverford.
I think of that day, 49 years ago, where I came to Washington because I saw inequity in our nation, because I saw discrimination against people because of the color of their skin.
I think of August 28 this year, a Republican convention that will nominate Mitt Romney, whose campaign is already using racial dog whistles against America's first Black president.
Perhaps I should be ashamed for my country - not that politicians use racial dog whistles, because there are 

Susan Ohanian's Testing Outrages (Susan Ohanian Speaks Out)

Susan Ohanian's Testing Outrages (Susan Ohanian Speaks Out):

Defending the Indefensible: KIPP

Ohanian Comment: Mostly, I ignore KIPP. I can't cover everything and I choose not to do much with charters and other entrepreneurial efforts. Not because they aren't important but just because I can't.

Schools Matter does a very good job with this.

Praise be.

That said, I decided to post Paul Thomas' ongoing fine challenge to KIPP here. And I've added a bit, something I think is critical to the argument.

Thomas links to a piece by Jonathan Schorr. Well, who's Jonathan Schoor? If you don't follow all this controversy as closely as a louse follows garbage, then you might not know that Jonathan Schorr was in the first cohort of Teach for America acolytes and then went on to become a partner in the San Francisco office of the NewSchools Venture Fund, where he oversees public relations, among other things.

It just seems like this is relevant to any word about public schools that leaves his mouth. 

Educators Have No Political Party

Publication Date: 2012-08-28

  By P. L. Thomas  

This is from Daily Kos, Aug. 23, 2012. Anyone who thinks either political party supports public education hasn't been paying attention.

For about thirty years now, public education as well as its teachers and students have been the focus of an accountability era driven by recurring calls for and the implementation of so-called higher standards and incessant testing. At two points during this era, educators could blame Ronald Reagan's administration for feeding the media frenzy around the misleading A Nation at Risk and George W. Bush's administration for federalizing the accountability era with No Child Left Behind (NCLB)--both Republican administrations.

For those who argued that Republicans and Democrats were different sides of the same politica

Oakland's first day of school: Children, teachers from closed schools adjust to new environment - ContraCostaTimes.com

Oakland's first day of school: Children, teachers from closed schools adjust to new environment - ContraCostaTimes.com:

Oakland's first day of school: Children, teachers from closed schools adjust to new environment

By Katy Murphy Oakland Tribune

Posted:   08/27/2012 03:51:22 PM PDT

Updated:   08/27/2012 05:10:19 PM PDT

 

1 of 13

Lakeview Elementary students join Burckhalter students on the first day of school

Students check the class lists to see what teacher they have on the first day of school at Burckhalter Elementary School in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012. Burckhalter Elementary School starts the 2012-2013 school year with nearly an additional 100 students, eight teachers, and one principal after absorbing students and staff from the now closed Lakeview Elementary. (Laura A. Oda/Staff)

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OAKLAND -- Outside the closed Lakeview Elementary School Monday, Mamadou Guisse and his younger sister Awa Mar boarded a van that would take them and other former Lakeview students to their first day at a new school. Meanwhile their parents, Ami Diankha and Mamur Guisse, waited at its destination: Burckhalter Elementary. They wanted their children to become accustomed to taking the van, but they weren't about to miss their first day.

"They're here! They're here! They're coming!" Diankha said as a small group of children approached. "How was the ride? Pretty good?" she asked them. They nodded.

Mamadou, 11, and Awa, 9, are among hundreds of Oakland schoolchildren adjusting to new routines, new people 

Mt. Diablo school board allows Clayton Valley charter to use KVHS for one year

By Theresa Harrington Contra Costa Times

Posted:   08/27/2012 10:49:41 PM PDT

Updated:   08/27/2012 10:49:41 PM PDT

CONCORD -- The Mt. Diablo school board conditionally agreed to allow Clayton Valley Charter High to pursue a radio course for one year through the Contra Costa County Office of Education's Regional Occupational Program.

Trustees unanimously agreed to allow the school to operate the program on the KVHS radio station on the campus through the end of the 2012-13 school year, even if a buyer such as KQED in San Francisco makes an offer. Originally, staff had recommended that the district give the school 90 days notice if it intended to sell the station.

Trustees said that would not be fair to students, but they asked staff to continue investigating the value of the station.

The board also voted 4-1 to appoint Kerry Mills interim superintendent of pupil services and special education. Trustee Cheryl Hansen voted against the appointment because she did not agree with the contract language, which would allow Mills to assume the position permanently in June, if she receives a positive evaluation. Hansen wanted to allow more community input into the decision to extend the contract in June.

Trustees unanimously agreed to eliminate busing for some "overflow" students who must attend schools not in 

JONATHAN KOZOL SPEAKS IN L.A.: What is the Future of Education in America? (Jonathan Kozol HABLA EN LA: ¿Cuál es el futuro de la educación en Estados Unidos?) - Perdaily.com

JONATHAN KOZOL SPEAKS IN L.A.: What is the Future of Education in America? (Jonathan Kozol HABLA EN LA: ¿Cuál es el futuro de la educación en Estados Unidos?) - Perdaily.com:

JONATHAN KOZOL SPEAKS IN L.A.: What is the Future of Education in America? (Jonathan Kozol HABLA EN LA: ¿Cuál es el futuro de la educación en Estados Unidos?)

by Leonard Isenberg

(Mensaje se repite en Español)

(For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post)
What is the Future of Education in America?


The Willows Community School Hosts Guest Speaker 

Jonathan Kozol

Award-Winning Author and Renowned Educational Activist

Contact:  Susan Sleeper

The Willows Community School
Direct 424.258.3575
ssleeper@thewillows.org

The Willows Community School proudly announces an evening with internationally acclaimed speaker, author and activist Jonathan Kozol on:

 Monday, September 10, 2012, at 7:00 pm
The Willows 
Community School Theater
 8509 Higuera Street, Culver City, 90232. 

Mr. Kozol will present a talk, FIRE IN THE ASHES - Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children in America (the title of his newest book.) His lecture, followed by a book signing, will focus on the journeys of inner-city children, introduced in Mr. Kozol's earlier books as they grow into adulthood igniting a flame of hope for themselves and our society.

This event is free and open to the public. 

A New York Times Best-Selling Author, National Book Award Winner and definitive voice on education in America, Mr. Kozol has been featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show.Author Elie Wiesel has lauded Mr. Kozol's work stating, "Jonathan's struggle is noble, his appeal urgent. What he says must be heard. His outcry must shake our nation
out of its guilty indifference."

Devoted for four decades to issues of education and social justice, Mr. Kozol began his educational career as a fourth grade school teacher in a Boston inner-city school during the Civil rights movement in the early 1960's. His book "Death at An Early Age" describes his first year of teaching. His most recent book "Fire In The Ashes" is a powerful, culminating work, in which Kozol returns to the scene of his other prize-winning books "Savage Inequalities," "The Shame of the Nation" and "Amazing Grace." Mr. Kozol has been called "today's most eloquent spokesman for America's disenfranchised."

"As part of our commitment to lifelong learning, we are pleased to bring Jonathan Kozol to the Los Angeles community to share his vast educational experience and insight," says Lisa Rosenstein, Head of School.

The evening is free and open to all.  Seating is limited; a reservation is required.  

Please RSVP at:

https://www.thewillows.org/calendars/events.aspx.

Interviews and photos available upon request. 

About The Willows:

The Creep of Marketplace Reasoning into Public Schools (Part 3) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

The Creep of Marketplace Reasoning into Public Schools (Part 3) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

The Creep of Marketplace Reasoning into Public Schools (Part 3)

by larrycuban

In What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets, Michael Sandel says that today “almost everything is up for sale.” He gives some examples.
*Rent out space on your body to display ads: Air New Zealand paid 30 people $777 to shave their heads and wear temporary tattoos advertising their flights.
* Volunteer to be a guinea pig for pharmaceutical drug trials and earn up to $7500 or more depending on how much toxicity accompanies drug.
*Stand in line to hold a place ($20 an hour) for Capitol Hill  lobbyists    who want to attend congressional