Wednesday, November 14, 2012

by Michael Dunn

“The nonprofit sector, which roots for the underdog, supports tax breaks to the wealthy because charitable deductions help us.”

--Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits (quoted in the Bay Citizen)

Corruption or Rational Response to an Irrational Premise

Non-profit organizations are often the strongest advocates for the neediest Americans, yet they also tend to be strong advocates for tax breaks for the nation’s millionaires. From their perspective, this is not a corruption, but an expedient: they desperately need money and the wealthy are the ones most able to provide it. Not only do the rich have more disposable income to give away, but the tax system provides incentives for them to give to charities by allowing them to write-off their donations.

This may seem paradoxical, but only because charities and non-profits start with an irrational premise. Some believe they can solve a social problem by giving money or services to its

Is Segregation the New Black? | EduShyster

Is Segregation the New Black? | EduShyster:

Is Segregation the New Black?

by edushyster2012

Closing the achievement gap requires any means necessary, even segregating minority students into special schools with all white teaching staffs.

Once upon a time there was something terrible in our nation’s schools called segregation. Reader: this separation of students into racial groups was viewed as a terrible scourge. In fact ending segregation in the public schools was viewed as so essential that it became the civil rights issue of our time.
I only bring up this *awkward* little trip down memory lane because in today’s upside down world of education rephorm, something rather strange has occurred. Whereas once segregation was once seen as the enemy of educational progress, today it is upheld by achievement gaptivists as a necessary solution to closing said achievement gap. That’s because the achievement gap is the civil rights issue of our time, and must be closed

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 11-14-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

Diane Ravitch's blog:

Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch

Michigan Plans to Expand Power of Emergency Manager Covington

by dianerav

Last week, voters in Michigan repealed the state’s draconian emergency manager law, which allowed a hand-picked appointee of the governor to abolish public education in financially stressed districts. In two of those districts, the emergency manager turned the children over to for-profit charter chains.
To compensate for the repeal, the Legislature in Michigan plans to expand the powers of the Achievement Authority Chancellor. The Achievement Authority is a non-contiguous district into which the state will cluster all low-performing schools. It is currently headed by John Covington, who was trained by the unaccredited Broad Superintendents Academy. Covington previously served as superintendent of Kansas City, where he proposed to

Charters Expand Despite Lack of Evidence for Their Success

by dianerav

Joy Resmovits has a good article at Huffington Post describing the growth of charter school enrollments and the absence of adequate oversight.
Currently, about 5 percent of all American students are enrolled in these privately managed schools. In some urban districts, the proportion is much larger. The districts with the greatest number of students in charters are New Orleans, Detroit, Washington, D.C., Kansas City, and Flint, Michigan. In 25 districts, at least 20 percent of students attend charters.
With the support of a bipartisan combination of President Obama, Congress, conservative governors, and rightwing groups like ALEC, these numbers are sure to grow. And the privatization of one of the nation’s most essential public services will continue.
The article mentions that local school boards “argue” that charters reduce their funding. That’s not an argument,

Pedro Noguera’s Good Agenda Going Forward

by dianerav

Pedro Noguera, my colleague AT&T New York University, took my place as blogging partner with Deborah Meier at “Bridging Differences.”
In his latest column, Pedro says that it is not enough to recognize that No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top have failed. It is necessary to shape a new agenda.
Pedro offers these three elements to a new agenda.
1. “The federal government should call for the creation of a comprehensive support systems around schools in low-income communities to address issues such as safety, health, nutrition, and counseling. This should include

Researcher: Is New Orleans a District in “Academic Crisis”?

by dianerav

Research on Reforms, a research group in New Orleans, reviewed the latest state test scores and school grades.
The author of the report and one of the founders of the organization, Charles Hatfield, can’t understand why New Orleans has been treated by its champions as a national model.
Here is his overview of the state data:

Recovery School District in New Orleans: National Model for Reform or District in Academic Crisis?
The 2012 achievement results for the RSD-NO show that after 7 years of operation, it still ranks among

Good News from Florida

by dianerav

I should have reported this sooner, but other election returns distracted me.
Jeb Bush’s latest privatization scheme suffered a major setback at the hands of Florida voters.
He and his allies pushed Amendment 8 to allow public funds to flow to religious schools. As usual with “reform” measures, this one had a misleading name. It was about “religious freedom,” but voters recognized it was a

Diane in the Evening 11-13-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: Sirota Exposes the Big Lie Technique by dianerav David Sirota, an author and talk-show host, here analyzes the election results and says they exposed the Big Lie of the corporate reform movement. The public is not hankering to privatize their public schools. The corporate leaders and rightwing establishment dropped millions of dollars to push their agenda of LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 11-13-12 Diane Ravitch's blog coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Testing Toddlers in Lou... more »

Charter Schools Grow Rapidly, Adding 200,000 Students: Report

Charter Schools Grow Rapidly, Adding 200,000 Students: Report:

Charter Schools Grow Rapidly, Adding 200,000 Students: Report

by Joy Resmovits

Twenty years after their creation, charter schools constitute the fastest-growing sector of American public education, according to a report released Wednesday.

Enrollment in these publicly funded but often privately run institutions rose by more than 200,000 students in the 2011-2012 school year compared to the previous year, the report found. That increasing enrollment has yielded a total of more than 2 million students in charter schools -- about 5 percent of the number of kids in public schools across the country.

The report is an annual attempt by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, an advocacy group, to track the trajectory of these schools and their market share in different places. The number of charter school students has ballooned in cities like New Orleans, Detroit, Washington, D.C., Kansas City, Mo., and Flint, Mich. -- the five districts with the highest percentage of charter school students, according to the report. And for the first

Daily Kos: In the afterglow (or is it aftermath) of the election

Daily Kos: In the afterglow (or is it aftermath) of the election:

In the afterglow (or is it aftermath) of the election

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

Some reflections of a political junkie.
1. Non-partisan redistricting and its effects. The pattern is not completely clear. In Iowa, which went from 5 to 4 seats, the Democrats went from a 3-2 majority to a 2-2 tie in a state Obama won by more than 5%. On the other hand, in AZ, which added a seat, and in which the Governor tried to mess with the results of the non-partisan redistricting effort, the Dems went from 3-5 to an apparent 5-3 (assuming Ron Barber holds on to his lead) in a state Obama lost by 10%. On the other hand, nationally Dems drew half a million more votes for the House than did the Republicans yet failed to take control of the chamber in large part because of gerrymandering. This can be seen in states like OH and PA, which Obama won, but in which Republicans maintained large leads in the delegation. I do not think the answer is for our side to gerrymander in return, although with the Texas precedent we could now do that in MN and CO and gain a few seats in time for the next election. The country would be better served with districts that are more compact and do a better job of recognizing subsidiary political boundaries (cities, towns, counties) and having the parties compete more vigorously.
2. Given the gerrymandered districts, moves like that of Ohio Secretary of State Husted to change that state's

Republican Hypocrisy

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

4 Americans died in the tragedy of Benghazi. Now many Republicans are calling for massive investigations, ostensibly bi-partisan and bi-cameral, because they claim the American people want to know.
On September 11, 2001, almost 4,000 people died, including American military personnel. Many of these same Republicans opposed any serious investigation of what had happened, and even when an inquiry was empaneled, backed the Bush administration in limiting the scope of the inquiry.
4 versus 4,000.
Oh yes, there is one other difference.
The 4 died on the watch of a Democratic President.
The 4,000 on the watch of a Republican President.
As I said, Republican Hypocrisy.

The ultimate education reform

The ultimate education reform:

Problems with D.C. teacher retention report

by Valerie Strauss

A new report says that the D.C. schools system, operating under reforms instituted by former chancellorMichelle Rhee, is holding onto its best teachers at nearly twice the rate as its lowest performers, though teacher turnover is still too common. But there are issues with the report that raise serious questions about its conclusions.
Read full article >>

The ultimate education reform

Posted by Valerie Strauss on November 14, 2012 at 4:00 am

Text Size
Print
Reprints

Veteran educator Marion Brady has a very different take on reform than the so-called education reformers that dominate the schools debate today. He has a big idea, which he outlines here.

By Marion Brady

(By SUSAN BIDDLE-The Washington Post)

We learn most of what we know by doing something while thinking about it—learn about cooking by cooking, learn about getting through airport security by going through airport security, learn about removing appendices by removing appendices.

No textbook ever printed, no lecture ever delivered, no computer program ever written, puts school subjects to more relevant use, more thoroughly engages every thought process, or more directly simulates creativity, than learning by doing while thinking about it.

In learning, place is important. Learning to cook is easier in kitchens than in garages. Learning airport procedures is easier in airports than in shopping malls. Learning to

Math Professor Teaches High School Classes (Darryl Yong) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Math Professor Teaches High School Classes (Darryl Yong) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

Math Professor Teaches High School Classes (Darryl Yong)

by larrycuban

Darryl Yong is a professor of mathematics at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont (CA). For the entire PDF, see rtx121001408pDarry Yong
During the 2009–2010 academic year I did something unusual for a university mathematician on sabbatical: I taught high school mathematics in a large urban school district. This might not be so strange except that my school does not have a teacher preparation program and only graduates a few students per year who intend to be teachers.
Why did I do this? I, like many of you, am deeply concerned about mathematics education and I wanted to see what a typical high school in my city is like. Because I regularly work with high school mathematics teachers, I

General Strike! Historic Transeurope Solidarity Against Austerity | OccupyWallSt.org

General Strike! Historic Transeurope Solidarity Against Austerity | OccupyWallSt.org:

General Strike! Historic Transeurope Solidarity Against Austerity

by OccupyWallSt

via http://europeanstrike.org [with minor edits -- see below an extensive list of General Strike actions]:

European Strike: people of Europe, rise up!

On November the 14th, Portugal, Spain and other peoples will engage global strike to say "NO" to austerity measures. Everywhere in Europe, activist social movements are organising themselves to say "STOP" to austerity, "STOP" to those ultraliberal politics serving finance. Portugal and Spain will be on global strike the 14th November, many countries prepare to join them to maximize rejection to austerity mesures. ETUC, responding to popular pressure, decided to call for strike demonstrations and meeting for November the 14th.
People have to rise up against the austerity politics, organized social fractures that are used to pay back some debt that is not theirs… People have to fight politics that protect, encourage a minority part of the class who gets richer and richer with this increasing austerity and these illegitime debt interests. Yes, this debt is illegitime, contracted by the financial world against people’s real interests: jobs, housing, education, heathcare, and a world that can survive the century. This debt is not our own, we owe nothing to them and we’ll pay nothing.
This day of global strike won’t be a one-time action. It must mark the the start of a rapport de force built by people against politicians, banks, the market and industrial trusts. After this day of struggle, it is an absolute necessity to build together a global unlimited strike. People of Europe, rise, up, struggle together for a Social Europe, full of equality where none will be left aside.

Watch Live:

DEUTSCHLAND

ITALIA

Turin: http://www.facebook.com/events/464580600252602/
Parma: http://www.facebook.com/events/279799498808430/

FRANCE

GREAT BRITAN

NEDERLAND

Etudiant Stike : https://www.facebook.com/events/452680744767595/
Amsterdam : https://www.facebook.com/events/290558121050032/
Den Haag : http://www.facebook.com/events/284270535026256/
Tilburg : http://www.facebook.com/events/367652786652165/
Ede : https://www.facebook.com/events/463652787007316/
Rotterdam https://www.facebook.com/events/506171439402328/
Woerden http://www.abvakabofnv.nl/nieuws/nieuws/europese-dag-actie-solidariteit

ÖSTERREICH

Wien: https://www.facebook.com/events/195500207251950/
Wien: https://www.facebook.com/events/111872682307158/

POLAND

http://www.facebook.com/events/189021024556148/

PORTUGAL

https://www.facebook.com/events/437793312923304/

SPAIN

SWEDEN

General event http://www.facebook.com/14nSweden
Stockholm : http://www.facebook.com/events/373066096110327/
Lund : http://www.facebook.com/events/192683890868656/
Göteborg http://www.facebook.com/groups/188253397966095/?ref=ts&fref=ts
Malmö http://www.facebook.com/groups/484434964934523/?ref=ts&fref=ts

School Tech Connect: Your Common Core Moment

School Tech Connect: Your Common Core Moment:

Your Common Core Moment

by noreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman)

From a discussion they evidently had over in Frankfort, which I formerly thought was in Germany but is actually in Illinois:

Grand Prairie Elementary School principal Eileen Nelson explained how the school is making changes in accordance with the new state standards. She said Grand Prairie is encouraging student engagement and transitioning from a knowledge and recall style of teaching to a style focused on application and analysis. For example, the school no longer conducts spelling tests, because Nelson said research doesn’t support it.

Several board members asked questions and requested further discussion of specific topics surrounding Common Core’s nontraditional approach to education.

“I don’t want kids being the only people teaching kids — I want teachers teaching kids,” said board member Christopher McFadden.

However, administrators expressed confidence in the new standards.

“There’s a place for explicit instruction,” said Simpkins. “We haven’t abandoned that.”

Second of all, someone tell Perfection Learning to stop cranking out these Common Core spelling workbooks, which look exactly like the old spelling workbooks I used in the 80's, but are aligned in the most serious way now.

By the way, I love the actual CCSS treatment of spelling; here's the specific spelling standard for 8th grade:

That's what you call waving a magic wand.

And first of all, this notion that currently we all have this "knowledge and recall style of teaching" but we're

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Numbers that leave me shock-and-awed

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Numbers that leave me shock-and-awed:

Numbers that leave me shock-and-awed

by Mike Klonsky

I am hardly one to try and quantify everything, particularly teaching/learning. But there are some numbers that I find fascinating if only for purposes of shock and awe. Here are a few:

50.8 -- The percent of votes cast by Washington state voters in support of Initiative 1240. The new law will permit up to 40 privately-run charter schools over the next five years in the state. Votes are still being counted a week after the election which marked the fourth time since 1996 that Washington voters have been asked to approve charters. Previous bills have been rejected by voters despite millions of dollars behind the charter campaigns. This time, a handful of billionaires, led by Bill Gates put in more cash than ever before, and had a 10:1 financial edge over opponents. Given all that money, opponents have said they are happy the vote was close. -- Maureen Downey, ajc

738 -- The number of minutes over a three-week period (12 hours and 18 minutes), preparing for and

UC Irvine Student Government Passes Israel Occupation Divestment Resolution « Student Activism

UC Irvine Student Government Passes Israel Occupation Divestment Resolution « Student Activism:

UC Irvine Student Government Passes Israel Occupation Divestment Resolution

by Angus Johnston

The student government at the University of California at Irvine last night voted unanimously to divest itself of investments in companies that support the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, and to urge the UC Irvine administration to do the same.
The resolution, titled “Divestment from Companies that Profit from Apartheid,” is the second such policy to be adopted by a UC student government in recent years. (A similar resolution at Berkeley was passed, and thenrescinded, amid intense media attention in 2010.) It passed by a vote of 16-0, with no abstentions.
The student government’s vote is unlikely to have any immediate practical effect. There is no indication that the UCI student government has any investments in corporations supporting the Israeli occupation, and UC

Jersey Jazzman: Cheating At Chris Christie's Fav Charter School?

Jersey Jazzman: Cheating At Chris Christie's Fav Charter School?:

Cheating At Chris Christie's Fav Charter School?

by Duke

Ruh-roh:

Three officials from a Newark charter school under investigation for possible cheating on state tests were found to have breached the security of sixth grade students' tests, according to a report released today by the State Department of Education.

The school, Robert Treat Academy, is among the state's oldest and most celebrated charter schools. Founded by Newark political boss Steve Adubato, the school has been praised by members of the state legislature and the Christie Administration for helping impoverished students succeed academically.

The report, written by the state Department of Education's Office of Fiscal Accountability and Compliance, faults Principal Michael Pallante, Vice Principal Theresa Adubato and Vice Principal Sarag Buttino for "failing to physically secure the test documents when they were not in use."

State investigators flagged this school and 14 others for further inquiry because some tests had unusually high rates of wrong-to-right erasure marks. Robert

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

European Strike: people of Europe, rise up!

Watch Live:

AMERICA

EUROPE :

BELGIQUE

CZECH REPUBLIC

DEUTSCHLAND

ITALIA

FRANCE

GREAT BRITAN

NEDERLAND

ÖSTERREICH

POLAND

PORTUGAL

SPAIN

SWEDEN