The Wisdom and Legacy of George McGovern, Who Told America to Come Home | The Dissenter

The Wisdom and Legacy of George McGovern, Who Told America to Come Home | The Dissenter:

The Wisdom and Legacy of George McGovern, Who Told America to Come Home

by Kevin Gosztola

Screen shot from "Democracy Now!" special on McGovern nearing death

There is nothing I remember about the late Senator George McGovern, who just passed away at the age 0f 90. I was not alive when he made his historic run for president in 1972, energizing the antiwar movement and other Americans with hope. Nor was I alive in 1968 or 1984 when he also ran for president. And I did not ever get to vote for this man, however, I would like to take a moment to highlight the wisdom of McGovern and apply some of what he said about politics and society while he was alive to the present.
McGovern delivered remarks at the Jefferson-Jackson Day dinner in Detroit on April 25, 1972. The New York Times published his remarks under the title, “My Stand.” As the campaign of Ed Muskie floundered and Hubert 

Don’t demonize teachers because of pension system’s faults | toteachornototeach

Don’t demonize teachers because of pension system’s faults | toteachornototeach:

Don’t demonize teachers because of pension system’s faults

by aristotlethewise

Don’t demonize teachers because of pension system’s faults

By Steve Lopez
Yes, public pensions got out of hand. But teachers aren’t the biggest culprits, nor are they why California has some of the nation’s most shamefully underfunded schools.
Just as I was preparing to defend public school teachers and their retirement benefits, I got a form letter last week from my employer’s vice president for human resources.
Apparently he felt it was important to inform me that I had earned additional shares in the company’s stock ownership plan in 2011. Good news? Not really. The value of each share was “$0,” and my shares will be “extinguished” upon reorganization and “receive no return.”
This means I’m out there with all the other slugs who work in private enterprise, where pensions have all but 

NYC Public School Parents: "Won't Back Down" a "loss leader" for the privateers?

NYC Public School Parents: "Won't Back Down" a "loss leader" for the privateers?:

"Won't Back Down" a "loss leader" for the privateers?

by Leonie Haimson

See Diane Ravitch’s blog today about the fact that the anti-teacher, anti-public school film “Won’t Back Down” continues to tank.  The movie premiered Sept. 28, and had the worst opening of any film in thirty years opening “wide” (2500 screens), despite shameless promotion by CBS (remember their “Teachers Rock”concert show which featured the film?) and NBC’s Education Nation.

"Won't Back Down" revenues after 21 days

Yet on Thursday the film averaged $39 per day per screen.

The movie’s producer Philip Anschutz and distributor Rupert Murdoch have likely lost millions keeping this critical and financial flop in the theaters this long, helped by the fact that Anschutz also owns the Regal Cinemas theater chain, which was  offering two tickets for one to see the movie.  Murdoch was still buying half page ads in national papers, including the NY Times, featuring rave “reviews” of the film, that were actually drawn from Wall 

Ex-Marine turned teacher: ‘Stop demonizing me and my profession’:

Ex-Marine turned teacher: ‘Stop demonizing me and my profession’

Posted by Valerie Strauss on October 21, 2012 at 2:15 pm

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Matthew Swope has been teaching physics for 10 years and before entering the teaching profession, was a Marine and a police officer. The following piece by Swope was first published on Diane Ravitch’s blog. It is both moving and important.

By Matthew Swope

I am a teacher. Year 10. High school physics. I am a professional educator in a field that demands professional credentials, continuing education, skill and knowledge based licensing exams and background checks including fingerprints so I am deemed responsible enough and safe enough to work with children. I’m a mandated reporter of physical abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse.

There, now I’ve established my bona fides and authority to speak knowledgeably on the 

Reflection on Chicago’s Amplified School Segregation | The Classroom Sooth

Reflection on Chicago’s Amplified School Segregation | The Classroom Sooth:

Reflection on Chicago’s Amplified School Segregation

by classroomsooth

David is a teacher-organizer on the south side of Chicago.  He is a member of the Caucus of Rank-and File Educators (CORE) and I met him in 2009 fighting against school actions that destabilize students’ teaching and learning conditions and ultimately lead to neighborhood gentrification.
Recently Steve Bogira (@stevebogira) wrote an article comparing the educational conditions of two students in Cook County, IL. Hayley is a student at New Trier HS on the North Shore, and Jasmeen was David’s former student at Hirsch Metro HS on the south side of Chicago.
The article is gripping, and David provides wonderful added context from an educator’s perspective.  I encourage 

On Probation or Off Parole? You can Vote in California – Register Now! Here!:

On Probation or Off Parole? You can Vote in California – Register Now! Here!

by PATTY JONES on OCTOBER 21, 2012 · 0 COMMENTS

in CALIFORNIA, CIVIL RIGHTS, ELECTION, POLITICS, SAN DIEGO

Click on this image to register now!

While having a conversation about the upcoming Presidential debate I asked a coworker if he was going to be voting. He replied, “I wish I could, but I’m on probation.” Whoa… This was a moment in a busy shop, that is normally filled with Mitt Romney and Ron Paul supporters, where two like minded people had a few minutes to chat. The young man I was talking with is quiet about his political affiliations and before I could respond to his statement we were surrounded by republicans, once again.

Once I was back at my desk I did a quick internet search and printed a page from the Northern California ACLU website that I handed to him later in the day. He thanked me with a big smile on his face.

A misdemeanor conviction does not affect your right to vote. You can vote in all elections. If you are on probation or if you have completed your parole, post-release community 

Jersey Jazzman: The MASSIVE Failure of Jonah Edelman

Jersey Jazzman: The MASSIVE Failure of Jonah Edelman:

The MASSIVE Failure of Jonah Edelman

by Duke

I just can't let this go without comment:

Less than two months into a new school year, teacher strikes have popped up in Chicago and four suburbs — with a handful of potential walkouts on the horizon — despite a new state law that was expected to make it harder for work stoppages to occur.

Similar themes have surfaced in each district — the latest during last week's one-day strike in Highland Park's North Shore School District 112 — but officials on both sides agree that often, the issues go beyond disputes over raises. Before this year, there had 

Whitty Nails "Won't Back Down"

by Duke

Stephen Whitty of the Star-Ledger has Won't Back Down all figured out:

The far gentler "Won't Back Down," seems to be an upbeat story about a single mom and a dedicated teacher who band together to reform a failing school. "It's about making people aware of the problems with our education system and trying to inspire people to get active," says star Maggie Gyllenhaal. "I mean, whatever your politics are, how can you not support that?"
Except that the film's also a carefully contrived critique of teachers' unions. Backed by billionaire Philip Anschutz, it's designed not just to sell tickets, but to 

Jersey Jazzman: TFA Is a POLITICAL Organization

Jersey Jazzman: TFA Is a POLITICAL Organization:

TFA Is a POLITICAL Organization

by Duke

Leonie Haimson points us to a paper by the reformy Alex Russo, edited by the reformy Fredrick Hess, and published by the reformy American Enterprise Institute.

That's a whole lotta reformy.

For edunerds, Russo's paper is actually very interesting: it chronicles the political rise of Teach For America, the "training" program for teachers. It seems that Wendy Kopp's merry band wasn't always the darling of the Beltway; according to Russo, TFA was ill-prepared to lobby Washington when it first came on the scene. But it turns out TFA had laid the roots for "saving" itself:

Still, it probably did not hurt that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s education aide was Jason Unger, a TFA alumnus, or that TFA had recently opened a site in Las Vegas, his home 

Diane in the AFTERNOON Diane Ravitch's blog

Diane Ravitch's blog:

Florida’s Race-Based Academic Goals

by dianerav

Florida, in its wisdom or lack thereof, has adopted different standards for different racial groups.
Quite frankly, this is abhorrent.
Every child is a child, period.
We should look at each one as an individual, not as a racial representative.
This is NCLB thinking squared, cubed, and absurdist.
It is racist, it is insulting. It should stop. Now.

The Upside of the Florida VAM Disaster

by dianerav

A reader called my attention to this comment by an anonymous teacher in Florida. It appears following an article in the Tampa Bay Times about the disastrous implementation of the value-added methodology in Pinellas County.
I was reminded when I read this comment about a conversation with an economist in Austin, Texas, who wondered if it might be fruitful to study the question of why “reformers” assert they are improving education when everything they do demoralizes teachers. How can one improve the profession, she asked, by making it unattractive. I hope she follows through, because this is a crucial issue.
Teachers in Florida, Tennessee, and other states are suffering under the inaccuracy and invalidity of value-added 

America’s Best (and Worst) Educated States - 24/7 Wall St.

America’s Best (and Worst) Educated States - 24/7 Wall St.:

America’s Best (and Worst) Educated States

Posted: October 15, 2012 at 2:31 pm

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The number of Americans with college degrees has increased steadily in the last decade. According to the latest government data, 28.5% of U.S. residents 25 or older had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2011, up only slightly from 27.2% in 2005. While the number is relatively unchanged, there are substantial differences across the country. In West Virginia, the state with the lowest graduation rate, 18.5% of adults have at least a bachelor’s degree. In Massachusetts, the state with the highest graduation rate, the figure is 39.1%.

Read: America’s Best-Educated States

Read: America’s Worst-Educated States

Based on education data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s’ American Community Survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified the U.S. states with the largest and smallest percentages of residents 25 or older with a college

Read more: America’s Best (and Worst) Educated States - 24/7 Wall St. http://247wallst.com/2012/10/15/164232/#ixzz29x3Ik3MP

America’s Poorest Cities

Posted: October 4, 2012 at 3:53 pm

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Median household income in the United States declined for the second straight year, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau last month. The national median income was $50,502 in 2011, more than 8% below the 2007 pre-recession peak. The country’s largest cities followed the same pattern, with income falling in some cases by more than 10%. Even in the country’s wealthiest metropolitan areas median household income fell in many cases.

Read: America’s Poorest Cities

Read: America’s Richest Cities

What has not changed much is the gulf that separates how much people make, depending on where they live. In McAllen, Tex., the median household earned just $31,077 in 2011. In the Washington D.C. metropolitan area, the median household earned close to three times as much. These differences reflect vastly different economies and demographic makeups. Based on the 2011 Census Bureau American Community Survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified the cities with the highest and lowest incomes.

The biggest factor in determining a city’s income, according to Alex Friedhoff, a Research Analyst at Brookings Institute’s Metropolitan Policy Program, is the underlying industries that employ the most residents, as well as the type of jobs. High-tech jobs, particularly those related to computers and

Read more: America’s Poorest Cities - 24/7 Wall St. http://247wallst.com/2012/10/04/americas-poorest-cities/#ixzz29x3TeLCB

What Makes the Difference Today - Woodbridge, VA, United States, ASCD EDge Blog post - A Professional Networking Community for Educators

What Makes the Difference Today - Woodbridge, VA, United States, ASCD EDge Blog post - A Professional Networking Community for Educators:

Looking Ahead

What Makes the Difference Today

I have spent the last few days in Nassau, Bahamas celebrating the approval of Bahamas ASCD application to become an ASCD affiliate. It was just a year ago I came to attend their inaugural conference as an ASCD Connected Community, their first step in becoming an affiliate. I remember being impressed with how well planned and coordinated that first conference was…how committed the leadership was to building this new organization to meet the needs of educators and students in their country.

It was at the end of last year’s conference that Bahamas ASCD made the decision to complete the affiliate application. Over the past twelve months we worked together to complete the application process and ensure that it would be given every consideration for approval. Interestingly enough, the ASCD Board 

Daily Kos: The Polonius Chronicles: The Invisible Hand and the King Imperative

Daily Kos: The Polonius Chronicles: The Invisible Hand and the King Imperative:

The Polonius Chronicles: The Invisible Hand and the King Imperative

byplthomasEdDFollow

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Rust Limbo (a pseudonym to protect the innocent)

Prologue

Like Jane Goodall among the chimpanzees, I ventured briefly into the role of anthropologist several years ago, listening most days for extended periods of time to a national radio show host to gather the necessary evidence needed to identify the patterns of his narratives. Unlike Goodall, I was fortunate that my ape, I mean subject, was on the radio and my listening never disturbed his natural habitat. In many ways, this amateur ethnography was anthropology gold.

Two moments from those observations stand as powerful evidence of the conservative narrative and cultural norms of the U.S. both reflected in and perpetuated by the daily monologues lifting Rust Limbo (a pseudonym to protect the innocent) to unprecedented market success.

Evidence One: Limbo punctuated many monologues with references to "Ann" Rand. Naturally, I must assume that he means Ayn Rand, reigning Queen of literary philosophy presenting the 

The Education Report: Wealthy donors donate big money in Oakland school board races - Inside Bay Area

The Education Report: Wealthy donors donate big money in Oakland school board races - Inside Bay Area:

The Education Report: Wealthy donors donate big money in Oakland school board races

By Katy Murphy Oakland Tribune

Posted:   10/21/2012 12:00:00 AM PDT

This is a sampling of The Education Report, Katy Murphy's Oakland schools blog. Read more atwww.IBAbuzz.com/education. Follow her at Twitter.com/KatyMurphy.

Oct. 18: As we reported today, this Oakland school board election is a departure from past cycles -- and not just because every race is contested.

The Oakland Education Association revived its political action committee after 20 years, throwing its weight behind Thearse Pecot (District 1), Richard Fuentes (District 3), and Mike Hutchinson (District 5).

But the roughly $20,000 the OEA expects to spend on those candidates is dwarfed by that of another new PAC, Great Oakland Public Schools. It had raised more than $123,000 as of Sept. 30.

About 80 percent of that sum came from two people: Former Dreyers CEO Gary Rogers, whose son Brian ran for school board in 2008 against Jody London (District 1), and Arthur Rock, a well-known venture capitalist based in S