Sunday, September 2, 2012

Big Education Ape Nite Cap 9-2-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2



James Baldwin said it best: 

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."

A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP




Missouri Education Watchdog: Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education?: Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education? by stlgretchen This is what a Republican Superintendent supports in education. Does this look state driven to you? What happens educationally in Indiana will happen in Missouri will happen in Florida will happen in Utah....and in any other state signed on to the Common Core standards. If Romney is elected president, will his new Secretary of Education support these unproven and untested standards? Will a DOEd secretary support standards an... more »

TO A HIGHER STANDARD « Teachers Fight Back

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
TO A HIGHER STANDARD « Teachers Fight Back: TO A HIGHER STANDARD by alkleen When are teachers going to understand that they are held to a higher standard than a person in any other profession known to man? That high standard takes away many of the freedoms that people who work in other professions are allowed to have. Teachers don’t really have freedom of expression, freedom of speech, the right to express themselves politically, (at least in the classroom), the right to make moral choices that might offend a school board or a community, the right to act in any manner that might... more »

School Tech Connect: It Needs To Be Honoroed

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
School Tech Connect: It Needs To Be Honoroed: It Needs To Be Honoroed by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) Nice letter in the downstate press. To the Editor: My pension does not need to be reformed; it needs to be honored. I am a retired public school teacher. I did not earn or pay into the Social Security system during my years of teaching. I instead paid into the Teacher Retirement System every paycheck (almost 10 percent each month). This was not a choice; it was an automatic deduction from my paycheck. My employers also paid into the Teacher Retirement System. The TRS invested ... more »

Eh, Political - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Eh, Political - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: Eh, Political by Nancy Flanagan *Today is my birthday. I'm giving myself a day of relaxation--I've been working hard all week, keeping up with the political splatfest on TV and Twitter, from empty chairs to shopping for milk. Here's a reworked column I wrote in September of 2008. Guess what? Not much has changed.* I wish I had a stock certificate for every time I've heard a teacher exclaim "I'm not very political, but..." Or maybe I'd rather have a dollar, cash money in the cookie jar, given the times--but the poin... more »

Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram: Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in MaineDocuments expose the flow of money and influence from corporations that stand to profit from state leaders' efforts to expand and deregulate digital education. By Colin Woodard cwoodard@pressherald.com Staff Writer Stephen Bowen was excited and relieved. click image to enlarge Celestial McBride, left, 14, and her brother Sevan, 12, work on their online classes from the Florida Virtual School at their h... more »

UPDATE - Online Scandal in Maine: For-Profit Online Charter Scandal « Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
For-Profit Online Charter Scandal « Diane Ravitch's blog: Understanding the Online Scandal in Maine by dianerav If you read this article about how online companies bought American education, you would not be at all shocked or surprised by the scandal in Maine. There, the state commissioner of education is following the instructions of Jeb Bush’s education advisor and implementing the ALEC model legislation to change the laws to bring in for-profit online corporations. Corporations will make millions. Many children in Maine will get a lousy education, and the taxpayers in Maine will... more »

Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children: Event Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children KPFA Radio 94.1 FM with the Oakland Education Association and the Berkeley Federation of Teachers presents Jonathan Kozol FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children in America A Tribute to Jonathan Kozol & All Public School Teachers Hosted by Anthony Cody $12 advance tickets: brownpapertickets.com : (800) 838-3006 or Pegasus Books, Marcus Books, Mrs. Dalloway's, Moe's Books, Walden Pond, DIESEL, ... more »

Vice President Biden Selected to "Talk to the Chair" at the Democratic National Convention

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 hours ago
* **Vice President Biden Selected to* *"Talk to the Republican Chair"* *at the Democratic National Convention* * * * * * *

UPDATE: The Sunday Mail. « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
The Sunday Mail. « Fred Klonsky: The Sunday Mail. SEPTEMBER 2, 2012 . *John Dillon’s Pension Vocabulary:* “Who’s on first?” The Springfield art of finger-pointing and double talk. *My old Atlanta buddy Jim Skillman wrote an op-ed piece for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.* They wouldn’t print it. He wrote that all freedom loving Washington Post editorial: Illinois Dems are a problem for the national party on the eve of the DNC. by Fred Klonsky The Washington Post editorial today: *The Democrats Pension Dilemma.* For the party of activist government, the competing interests of th... more »

Daily Kos: what health care and education have in common

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Daily Kos: what health care and education have in common: what health care and education have in common by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) is that neither can be addressed in isolation I am writing this as a result of watching Melissa Harris-Perry this morning, where she had a focus on issues of health care - an overall shortage of doctors, a specific shortage of primary care physicians, the costs of getting the necessary education versus the returns one can get (in certain practices), and problems of geographical distribution of physicians. But what also was mentioned is that much ... more »

The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading - Wait, What?: The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading by jonpelto *Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram newspaper leads with the headline, “*Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine.” The reporting is a stunning tribute to what reporters can do when they look past the spin and the fancy press releases and really start digging. It is also another shocking example about how public education is falling to the education reform industry. Change the location from Maine to Connecticut and the ter... more »

Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.” « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.” « Fred Klonsky: Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.” by Fred Klonsky By guest blogger: MiC Shortly after a special session of the Illinois General Assembly ended a couple weeks ago, Representative Daniel Biss described the failure to enact pension “reform” by the politicians assembled in Springfield this way: *“We all look like idiots.”* This line, widely reported, pretty much summed up the view held prior to the special session of roughly 800,000 working and middle class Illinois public employees who keep us safe, care for our si... more »

C.O.R.E. video on Successful Chicago Strikes: Teachers set to walk out | Dailycensored.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
C.O.R.E. video on Successful Chicago Strikes: Teachers set to walk out | Dailycensored.com: C.O.R.E. video on Successful Chicago Strikes: Teachers set to walk out by Danny Weil Produced by CORE (the Caucus of Rank and File Educators of the Chicago Teachers Union) and Chicago’s Labor Beat. Titled “CTU Strikes: 1968 – 1987″, the video was made during the summer of 2012 in conjunction with the four CORE “Successful Chicago Strikes” forums. It is now up and available on You Tube. The video contains interviews from retired Chicago Teachers Union members who participated in these... more »

American Rhetoric: Lyndon Baines Johnson -- "The Great Society"

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
American Rhetoric: Lyndon Baines Johnson -- "The Great Society": A third place to build the Great Society is in the classrooms of America …We are still far from that goal. In many places, classrooms are overcrowded and curricula are outdated. Most of our qualified teachers are underpaid, and many of our paid teachers are unqualified. So we must give every child a place to sit and a teacher to learn from. Poverty must not be a bar to learning, and learning must offer an escape from poverty. Lyndon Baines Johnson *The Great Society* delivered 22 May 1964, Ann Arbor, MI Audio mp3 of... more »

Blue Collar

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago

Q & A: Chiefs of five school districts talk reform — and describe their biggest wish - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Q & A: Chiefs of five school districts talk reform — and describe their biggest wish - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: Q & A: Chiefs of five school districts talk reform — and describe their biggest wish By Valerie Strauss With the new school year upon us, we asked a handful of superintendents of districts in the greater Washington area to answer six questions so we could get a better understanding of their vision and challenges. Th school district chiefs were asked to talk about teacher evaluation, class size, new initiatives and more, including the one thing they would do ... more »

FCAT, PARCC: High-stakes testing by any other name - Other Views - MiamiHerald.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
FCAT, PARCC: High-stakes testing by any other name - Other Views - MiamiHerald.com: FCAT, PARCC: High-stakes testing by any other name BY KATHLEEN OROPEZAKATHLEENO@CFL.RR.COM Gov. Rick Scott and his advisors really need to get out more. If they were more clued in Scott would not be out there taking credit for stopping the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Here’s a newsflash: FCAT was always going away. Scott has nothing whatsoever to do with that. Gov. Charlie Crist implemented a plan to phase out the FCAT by 2014. The truth didn’t stop approval-hungry Scott from starring i...more »

Daily Kos: On "Hostile Rhetoric," Laziness, and the Education Debate

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Daily Kos: On "Hostile Rhetoric," Laziness, and the Education Debate: On "Hostile Rhetoric," Laziness, and the Education Debate byplthomasEdDFollow 3 PERMALINK1 COMMENT In the early 1980s, I was newly married, seeking my first teaching job, and necessarily living in my parents' home, which also housed my sister, her husband, and child. We were a pretty interesting extended family nestled in the Upstate of rural South Carolina. One night, I was suddenly startled awake by my sister ripping the screened door off its hinges as she shouted for me to wake up. After a blur of jumping ... more »

Morning UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-2-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] The Reason for Public Education by dianerav A reader explains why we maintain public schools. It is not about being college and career ready; it is not about global competition. It is this: *The reason for universal, free, and compulsory education is is simply this: the job requirements of a citizen in a democratic society are far and away more demanding than the job qualifications of a serf in a feudal society.* *The age of emancipation from compulsory education may vary with circumstances, but the reason ... more »

Bridgeport Election Tuesday: What Excel Bridgeport failed to point out - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Bridgeport Election Tuesday: What Excel Bridgeport failed to point out - Wait, What?: Bridgeport Election Tuesday: What Excel Bridgeport failed to point out by jonpelto This Tuesday, September 4th, the voters of Bridgeport can finally go to the polls to select members of a democratically elected board of education. This new board will replace the illegal board of education that has been running Bridgeport’s school for more than a year. It is the illegal board that hired Paul Vallas and his entourage of outside consultants. Excel Bridgeport is the group that pushed for the state’s ... more »

School Tech Connect: Thoughts On The Strike Notice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
School Tech Connect: Thoughts On The Strike Notice: Thoughts On The Strike Notice by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman) Two notes from Karen Lewis's press conference following the 10-day notice. 1. It's brilliant. It's both a concise summary of what's going on in the negotiations and of the larger picture of what's going on in the nation. This isn't some slick eduhucktster with a PowerPoint--- this is a chemistry teacher, laying out exactly what is happening, why it's happening, and how it all fits into the bigger picture. 2. The narrative of disruption that's going on the press is b... more »

Daily Kos: Nicholas Kristof takes on Republicans over abortion

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Daily Kos: Nicholas Kristof takes on Republicans over abortion: Nicholas Kristof takes on Republicans over abortion by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) Today in America, more than one-third of teens say that when they began having sex, they had not had any formal instruction about contraception. Is this really the time for a Republican Party platform denouncing comprehensive sex education?Some Americans don’t even seem to have had any sex education by the time they’re elected to Congress. Like Todd Akin. That is the conclusion of Nicholas Kristof's Sunday *New York Times* column, tit... more »

Yes, they cheat at Harvard, too - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Yes, they cheat at Harvard, too - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: Yes, they cheat at Harvard, too By Valerie Strauss The scandal at Harvard University in which authorities are investigatingwhether nearly half of a class of 279 students cheated on a take-home final exam raises a number of questions, including this: Does everybody cheat? Dozens of Harvard University students are being investigated for cheating after school officials discovered evidence they may have wrongly shared answers or plagiarized on a final exam. (Elise Amendola - AP)At the moment, Harvard is dealing w... more »

"Yo Soy 132" Student Movement Protests Calderon Government in Mexico - Hispanically Speaking News

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
"Yo Soy 132" Student Movement Protests Calderon Government in Mexico - Hispanically Speaking News: “Yo Soy 132” Student Movement Protests Calderon Government in Mexico [image: “Yo Soy 132” Student Movement Protests Calderon Government in Mexico]Hundreds of people demonstrated outside Mexico’s Congress Saturday against President Felipe Calderon, a protest coinciding with the presentation of his final state-of-the-nation report. Members of the Yo soy 132 student movement, which arose in May as a reaction to the Mexican mass media’s bias in favor of now-President-elect Enrique Peรฑa Ni... more »

Democurmudgeon: We're a nation of American Suckers when it comes to Public School Bashing.

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Democurmudgeon: We're a nation of American Suckers when it comes to Public School Bashing.: We're a nation of American Suckers when it comes to Public School Bashing. by Democurmudgeon The rabid hatred of public schools by Republicans is spreading, thanks to the repetitive message and money spent on advertising “choice” and vilifying teachers. It’s called propaganda, and it works. Take a look at this right wing article pushing the latest results of a Gallup opinion poll on public schools. The public’s perception, surprise, is just the opposite of the truth. We really are turning i... more »

Bush, Levesque, ALEC and Their Corporate Bankrollers | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Bush, Levesque, ALEC and Their Corporate Bankrollers | Scathing Purple Musings: Bush, Levesque, ALEC and Their Corporate Bankrollers by Bob Sikes See the rest of thus worthwhile read from Colin Woodard from the *Maine Sunday Telegraph*

Are Kids Really Motivated by Technology? (Bill Ferriter) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Are Kids Really Motivated by Technology? (Bill Ferriter) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Are Kids Really Motivated by Technology? (Bill Ferriter) by larrycuban *Bill Ferriter (@plugusin) is a full-time elementary school teacher. He is also a Solution Tree author and presenter,a frequent blogger and a senior fellow in the Teacher Leaders Network. His commentary appeared in SmartBlogs on Education on August 17th, 2012* As a guy who delivers two-day edtech workshops during my breaks from full-time classroom teaching, I’m often asked the same questions again and... more »

More about Milk and Choice « Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
More about Milk and Choice « Diane Ravitch's blog: More about Milk and Choice from Diane Ravitch's blog by dianerav A teacher in New York City wrote to tell me that he worked in the dairy industry for many years before becoming a teacher. When he read about Jeb Bush touting the virtues of choosing schools the way we choose milk, he laughed. Did you know, he wrote, that a small number of big corporations control the dairy industry. No matter what label is on the carton, the odds are that you are buying from agri-business, not a small producer. There are really only

What Schools Can Learn From the World of Photography | Connected Principals

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
What Schools Can Learn From the World of Photography | Connected Principals: What Schools Can Learn From the World of Photography by George Couros The best camera you have is the one with you. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by Nico Kaiser I have taken a big interest in visuals and photography as I have found some amazing photo sites on the web, as well as simply enjoying using apps such as Instagram (along with a large chunk of the world). Recently, I was struck by this quote: “(On digital photography) No wasted film, slides, or prints. And we are aware of this relationsh... more »

NYC Public School Parents: More dissimulation from Eva

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
NYC Public School Parents: More dissimulation from Eva: More dissimulation from Eva by Leonie Haimson From Wikipedia: In 2010, according to Eva Moskowitz, she received around 13,000 applications for 69 teacher positions. In 2011, she said there were " *57,000 applications for 256 jobs*." (Sources: Rosato, Ken, host, *New York Viewpoint*,*July 25, 2010; *Phillips, Anna M., *High Teacher Turnover at a Success Network School*, in NYT*SchoolBook*, October 19, 2011) Yet from the below email it is clear that of yesterday, her schools *are still* looking for TFA teachers even afte

Diane in the Afternoon 9-1-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: Why Did We Forget About Integration? by dianerav A good discussion on NPR about an important issue that has been swept under the rug. The combination of racial segregation and poverty is toxic. Maybe Choosing Schools Is Like Choosing Toothpaste? by dianerav Deborah Meier writes to comment on Jeb Bush’s claim that choosing schools should be like choosing milk. Could have said cereal. There, two or three corporations own all the different brands. *Re Jeb Bush’s analogy—choosing schools is like choosing milk as you wander down the aisle. Among the * A New ...more »

Peg with Pen: Sitting Ducks in Suburbia

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Peg with Pen: Sitting Ducks in Suburbia: Sitting Ducks in Suburbia by Peggy I attended my son’s middle school Back to School Night this past week; you may recall that this is Sam’s first year in a public school. I especially enjoy these events because as a former public school teacher, I enjoy hearing teachers speak, I love being in their classrooms and I most definitely want to let them know I appreciate their talents, education, dedication and time spent working with our children. During my fifteen years of teaching my last five were spent teaching teachers and administrators ... more »

The Weekly Update: Rallies at the DNC, it’s all about the money for some folks and Michelle Rhee & ALEC – a marriage made in… | Seattle Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
The Weekly Update: Rallies at the DNC, it’s all about the money for some folks and Michelle Rhee & ALEC – a marriage made in… | Seattle Education: The Weekly Update: Rallies at the DNC, it’s all about the money for some folks and Michelle Rhee & ALEC – a marriage made in… by seattleducation2011 *The Weekly Update for the news you might have missed* Check out their Facebook page. *Action Alert: Rally at the DNC!* Parents Across America founding member, Pamela Grundy, is one of the organizers of the following events that will occur in Charlotte, NC next week. To follow is the informat... more »

PAA’s Parent Online Toolkit for the WBD* movie and beyond « Parents Across America

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
PAA’s Parent Online Toolkit for the WBD* movie and beyond « Parents Across America: PAA’s Parent Online Toolkit for the WBD* movie and beyond by pureparents Parents Across America is a network of **active parents doing the hard work of change in our public schools. We know that our schools need help. Knowing what to do is the problem. Knowing what works in improving schools is even more important. We know that most parents don’t want to close their schools or turn them into charters. They want to improve their local neighborhood public schools by stopping budget cuts, reducing cla... more »

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Global Learning: Helping to Prevent "The Ugly American" Stereotype!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Global Learning: Helping to Prevent "The Ugly American" Stereotype!: Global Learning: Helping to Prevent "The Ugly American" Stereotype! by Lisa M "I have a nosy wife". My husband and I were sitting in the Windjammer Cafe on the Royal Carribean's Explorer of the Seas. And I was doing what I usually do when I am around a large number of people. In between conversing with my hubby, I listen to conversations taking place around me. So while eavesdropping,listening, I heard a conversation between a man, who was sitting with his son, and the

GOP Divided on ObamaCore | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
GOP Divided on ObamaCore | Truth in American Education: GOP Divided on ObamaCore by Shane Vander Hart It is so good for EdWeek to point out that yes there is dissention in the ranks. Not all Republicans have bought into Governor Jeb Bush’s vision of education reform, as far as, national standards are concerned. On the one hand, there’s Jeb Bush, a key Romney surrogate and the former GOP governor of Florida. He points out that a majority of GOP governors have embraced the standards. And then you’ve got Gayle Ruzeicka, president of the Utah Eagle Forum, and a delegate to the Repub... more »

Jeb Bush ‘s Irrational and Potentially Catastrophic Exercise in Hubris | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Jeb Bush ‘s Irrational and Potentially Catastrophic Exercise in Hubris | Scathing Purple Musings: Jeb Bush ‘s Irrational and Potentially Catastrophic Exercise in Hubris by Bob Sikes Jeb Bush’s predictable RNC performance centered on school choice with a dash of teacher union bash. The later, red meat for the GOP base; the former, code for vouchers with a lustful eye on total privatization of education. But Bush knows that his Florida test-based way is collapsing and he’s desperately trying to control the narrative with spin. He knows that for some republican voters, playing the uni... more »

THE “DISHONOR YOUR PROFESSION AWARD” « Teachers Fight Back

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
THE “DISHONOR YOUR PROFESSION AWARD” « Teachers Fight Back: THE “DISHONOR YOUR PROFESSION AWARD” by alkleen *Next to the Broad Prize the Charter School Emmy and the * *DISHONOR YOUR PROFESSION AWARD **are most * *coveted prizes in all of Reformdumb* It’s time to create a new award. The “Dishonor Your Profession Award” will be given to teacher groups that agree to humiliating and degrading contracts. The first award recipient is the Libertyville and Vernon Hills high school teachers who after six months of negotiations have agreed to a pathetic contract. The teachers accepted a sala... more »

Stand in Solidarity with CTU: Action for the Week of 9/2/2012 | United Opt Out National

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Stand in Solidarity with CTU: Action for the Week of 9/2/2012 | United Opt Out National: Stand in Solidarity with CTU: Action for the Week of 9/2/2012 by admin *The Chicago Teachers Union stands up against the powers of fear, intimidation, coercion and oppression against the rights of children, teachers, parents and their communities. We support their courageous actions as they confront the education de/formers. CTU’s actions are a model for national action. CTU says “We have had enough!” And we agree with them. We hope more schools, teachers and communities will follow their lea... more »






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Missouri Education Watchdog: Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education?

Missouri Education Watchdog: Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education?:


Does Tony Bennett Reflect the GOP's View of Education?

This is what a Republican Superintendent supports in education.  Does this look state driven to you?


What happens educationally in Indiana will happen in Missouri will happen in Florida will happen in Utah....and in any other state signed on to the Common Core standards.

If Romney is elected president, will his new Secretary of Education support these unproven and untested standards?  Will a DOEd secretary support standards and assessments that are decided by private consortia instead of state driven standards and assessments?  Will a DOEd secretary support giving away state power of educational decisions to federally funded consortia busy creating a national curriculum and set of standards?

The Huntington Teacher has published an excellent blog containing these type of questions to Indiana superintendent Tony Bennett.  He has been rumored to be a candidate for Secretary of Education and is 

TO A HIGHER STANDARD « Teachers Fight Back

TO A HIGHER STANDARD « Teachers Fight Back:


TO A HIGHER STANDARD

When are teachers going to understand that they are held to a higher standard than a person in any other profession known to man? That high standard takes away many of the freedoms that people who work in other professions are allowed to have. Teachers don’t really have freedom of expression, freedom of speech, the right to express themselves politically, (at least in the classroom), the right to make moral choices that might offend a school board or a community, the right to act in any manner that might be outside of the norms of an “extremely responsible adult”.
A guidance counselor at a south suburban Chicago high school has been placed on administrative leave. He was also the girls basketball coach, and he voluntarily resigned from that position.  What caused the counselor and 

School Tech Connect: It Needs To Be Honoroed

School Tech Connect: It Needs To Be Honoroed:


It Needs To Be Honoroed

To the Editor:
My pension does not need to be reformed; it needs to be honored. I am a retired public school teacher. I did not earn or pay into the Social Security system during my years of teaching. I instead paid into the Teacher Retirement System every paycheck (almost 10 percent each month). This was not a choice; it was an automatic deduction from my paycheck. My employers also paid into the Teacher Retirement System. The TRS invested and continues to invest the money contributed to the system, with an average rate of return of 9 percent per year over the last 30 years.
However, 1952 was the last year the state of Illinois contributed its actuarial share to the TRS. Now, the 

Eh, Political - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

Eh, Political - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:


Eh, Political

Today is my birthday. I'm giving myself a day of relaxation--I've been working hard all week, keeping up with the political splatfest on TV and Twitter, from empty chairs to shopping for milk. Here's a reworked column I wrote in September of 2008. Guess what? Not much has changed.
I wish I had a stock certificate for every time I've heard a teacher exclaim "I'm not very political, but..." Or maybe I'd rather have a dollar, cash money in the cookie jar, given the times--but the point stands: teachers, individually, are caught between a rock and a murky place when it comes to politics.
When teachers say they aren't political, what they usually mean is partisan. Or some variant of dogmatic,intolerant or aggressively and publicly involved. Teaching is an inherently political occupation, however.
The daily work, from kindergarten to Chemistry class, is built on authority, rules, governance structures, practical 

Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram

Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram:


Special Report: The profit motive behind virtual schools in Maine

Documents expose the flow of money and influence from corporations that stand to profit from state leaders' efforts to expand and deregulate digital education.

Stephen Bowen was excited and relieved.
click image to enlarge
Celestial McBride, left, 14, and her brother Sevan, 12, work on their online classes from the Florida Virtual School at their home in Mims, Fla.
2011 AP file photo

RELATED HEADLINES


Maine’s education commissioner had just returned to his Augusta office last October after a three-day trip to San Francisco where he attended a summit of conservative education reformers convened by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s Foundation for Excellence in Education, which had paid for the trip.
He’d heard presentations on the merits of full-time virtual public schools – ones without classrooms, playgrounds or in-person teachers – and watched as Bush unveile

• KEY FINDINGS
PULLING THE STRINGS: Maine's digital education agenda is being guided behind the scenes by out-of-state companies that stand to profit on the changes.
FLORIDA CONNECTION: The LePage administration has relied heavily on former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's Foundation for Excellence in Education, a conservative think tank, in writing policies to create taxpayer-funded virtual schools in Maine.
FOLLOW THE MONEY: This foundation and its top officials receive funding from online education companies, which will profit if the initiatives go forward.
REMOTE CONTROL: The foundation wrote much of the language in Gov. Paul LePage's Feb. 1 executive order on digital learning, which embraces foundation policies.
BACKSTAGE MEETINGS: The secretive American Legislative Exchange Council -- a corporate-backed political group for state legislators -- developed digital learning legislation that was introduced by Maine lawmakers. Stephen Bowen (pictured) was a private-sector member until he was appointed education commissioner in Maine.
FAILING GRADES: Virtual schools have no classrooms, little or no in-person teaching and a poor track record compared to public schools. (Sidebar, A5)
CRITICS REACT: National education leaders say democratic governance is being superseded by corporate control.
• BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS
Comparison of Gov. LePage's executive order on digital learning and the
draft order provided by the Foundation for Excellence in Education.
Digital Learning Now! agenda (adopted by LePage administration)
American Legislative Exchange documents leaked to Common Cause showing Stephen Bowen's membership and attendance at ALEC meetings.
Emails between Stephen Bowen and Patricia Levesque, executive director of Foundation for Excellence in Education.
Patricia Levesque's compensation (from Foundation for Excellence in Education's 2010 IRS filing)
• ADDITIONAL READING

UPDATE - Online Scandal in Maine: For-Profit Online Charter Scandal « Diane Ravitch's blog

For-Profit Online Charter Scandal « Diane Ravitch's blog:


Understanding the Online Scandal in Maine

If you read this article about how online companies bought American education, you would not be at all shocked or surprised by the scandal in Maine. There, the state commissioner of education is following the instructions of Jeb Bush’s education advisor and implementing the ALEC model legislation to change the laws to bring in for-profit online corporations.
Corporations will make millions. Many children in Maine will get a lousy education, and the taxpayers in Maine will be ripped off.
That’s known these days as reform.



For-Profit Online Charter Scandal

Maine’s State Commissioner of Education Stephen Bowen went to San Francisco to hear Jeb Bush tout the glories of for-profit online charter schools. Jeb Bush’s foundation paid for the trip. The commissioner met with Jeb’s chief education aide, Patricia Levesque, whose company lobbies for the online corporations. She promised help.
This is what the Maine Sunday Telegram found after getting access to public records of the correspondence:
Bowen was preparing an aggressive reform drive on initiatives intended to dramatically expand and deregulate online education in Maine, but he felt overwhelmed.
“I have no ‘political’ staff who I can work with to move this stuff through the process,” he emailed her from his 


CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS WEBSITE



CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS
A compilation of news articles about charter schools which have been charged with, or are highly suspected of, tampering with admissions, grades, attendance and testing; misuse of funds and embezzlement; engaging in nepotism and conflicts of interest; engaging in complicated and shady real estate deals; and/or have been engaging in other questionable, unethical, borderline-legal, or illegal activities. This is also a record of charter school instability and other unsavory tidbits.
Couldn't Find Your Own Special Charter School Scandal
Just Type the name of your city or charter school in the box below
  

CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS

If you don't find yours today
Keep checking

CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS

Be sure to check out two other Great blogs:

Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children

Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children:

Event

Jonathan Kozol: FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children
KPFA Radio 94.1 FM with the Oakland Education Association and the Berkeley   Federation of Teachers presents

Jonathan Kozol
FIRE IN THE ASHES: Twenty-Five Years Among the Poorest Children in America
A Tribute to Jonathan Kozol & All Public School Teachers
Hosted by Anthony Cody

$12 advance tickets: brownpapertickets.com : (800) 838-3006
or Pegasus Books, Marcus Books, Mrs. Dalloway's, Moe's Books, Walden Pond, DIESEL, A Bookstore, and Modern Times  ($15 door)
$5 for public school teachers, public school workers,
& public school students with ID: available by calling 510.763.4020
Information: www.kpfa.org/events    KPFA benefit

Jonathan Kozol is the National Book Award-winning author of Savage Inequalities, Death at an Early Age, The Shame of the Nation, Amazing Grace, Letters to a Young Teacher, Rachel and Her Children, Children of the Revolution, The Night Is Dark, and I Am Far From Home, among others.  He has worked with children in inner-city schools for nearly fifty years. Jonathan will sign his new book, which will be for sale during the event.

"Despite the steep odds stacked against these childrenwhich too many cannot overcomethis is a hopeful book thanks to those who do. The incredible resilience, grit and grace of children like Pineapple are a call to urgent action". Marian Wright Edelman, President, Children's Defense Fund

"Jonathan Kozol is America's premier chronicler of life among the children of societal neglect. And FIRE IN THE ASHES may be his best book yetKozol does not just write about these people; he becomes an intimate part of their lives, sharing their triumphs, defeats, and, too often, mourning their deathsIf you care about the children who are the future of America, this is a book you must read."
Ellis Cose, author of The End of Anger and The Rage of a Privileged Class.

This special event offers gratitude and great respect to all public school teachers.
Host, Anthony Cody, who has taught science and math at Bret Harte Middle School in Oakland for eighteen years, has written numerous articles on teacher leadership and education policy, and has presented around the US and the world. Also speaking will be Cathy Campbell (President of Berkeley Federation of Teachers) and Trish Gorham (President of Oakland Education Association). 

Vice President Biden Selected to "Talk to the Chair" at the Democratic National Convention


Vice President Biden Selected  to "Talk to the Republican Chair" at the Democratic National Convention



UPDATE: The Sunday Mail. « Fred Klonsky

The Sunday Mail. « Fred Klonsky:


The Sunday Mail.

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

.
John Dillon’s Pension Vocabulary: “Who’s on first?” The Springfield art of finger-pointing and double talk.
My old Atlanta buddy Jim Skillman wrote an op-ed piece for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. They wouldn’t print it. He wrote that all freedom loving


Washington Post editorial: Illinois Dems are a problem for the national party on the eve of the DNC.

The Washington Post editorial today: The Democrats Pension Dilemma.

For the party of activist government, the competing interests of their public-sector union backers and their other constituents spell trouble, in both political and policy terms. It’s a conflict that Democrats may be uniquely well positioned to resolve, given their close ties to unions — or uniquely incapable of resolving, for the same reason. As the experience of California and Illinois shows, it’s an 



Ryan and Scott Walker’s Janesville GM blooper revisited.


Back in January I posted a story of Scott Walker’s Wisconsin Blooper.
Who knew the story would blow up again at last week’s Republican National Convention?
In January Walker put up a giant billboard right in front of the shuttered Janesville General Motors plant. The billboard claimed that Walker Creates Jobs for Wisconsin. A claim not exactly supported by the Wisconsin employment data.  It was such a stupid and embarrassing thing to do that the Walker campaign quickly had the


Ten minute drawing. Romney borrows slogan from the Ku Klux Klan.

Daily Kos: what health care and education have in common

Daily Kos: what health care and education have in common:


what health care and education have in common

is that neither can be addressed in isolation
I am writing this as a result of watching Melissa Harris-Perry this morning, where she had a focus on issues of health care -  an overall shortage of doctors, a specific shortage of primary care physicians, the costs of getting the necessary education versus the returns one can get (in certain practices), and problems of geographical distribution of physicians.
But what also was mentioned is that much of what is being addressed in medical treatment are issues outside of medicine - the conditions of housing (asbestos, lead based paint, and to which we can add vermin and insects), the lack of appropriate nutrition, and we could also mention lack of air conditioning and lack of heat.
These are issues of poverty.  These are issues of inequitable distribution of resources.  This is barriers to those who might want to provide necessary services.  These are issues of policy silos that cannot fix issues in 

The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading - Wait, What?

The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading - Wait, What?:


The destructive power of “Education Reform” is spreading

Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.” « Fred Klonsky

Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.” « Fred Klonsky:


Guest blogger: “Do they think WE’RE idiots.”


By guest blogger: MiC
Shortly after a special session of the Illinois General Assembly ended a couple weeks ago, Representative Daniel Biss described the failure to enact pension “reform” by the politicians assembled in Springfield this way:
“We all look like idiots.”
This line, widely reported, pretty much summed up the view held prior to the special session of roughly 800,000 working and middle class Illinois public employees who keep us safe, care for our sick and elderly, inspire our