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Friday, December 7, 2012

American Indian charter school parents speak out - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools

American Indian charter school parents speak out - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools:


American Indian charter school parents speak out

Thursday, December 6th, 2012 at 5:28 pm in No Comments

American Indian Model Schools supporters, seen here at an April Oakland school board meeting, before the final state report on the charter organization was published. Photo by D. Ross Cameron.
The fate of the American Indian Model Schools won’t be on Wednesday’s regular Oakland school board meeting agenda, but we can expect a large group of parents and students from the three schools at the meeting.
Bernadette Coleman, president of the schools’ new Family Advisory Committee, told me today she believes the Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team’s scathing report about the AIMS governance, operations and suspected financial fraud — which came out this summer, prompting OUSD to issue a “notice of violation” in September — was full of errors.
If and when the OUSD board holds a hearing on the subject, Coleman said, “it’ll be public knowledge what is true 
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How one school ‘turnaround’ worked (without firing the teachers)

How one school ‘turnaround’ worked (without firing the teachers):


How one school ‘turnaround’ worked (without firing the teachers)

Posted by Valerie Strauss on December 7, 2012 at 6:00 am

New data released by the Education Department shows that the results of its efforts so far to turn around the country’s  lowest-performing schools are mixed. The Obama administration has been pushing its turnaround policy through the School Improvement Grant program, which requires districts that get the money to choose one of four corporate-based options to improve student achievement  (which is evaluated on standardized test scores). 
Critics say that the four options — which all involve changing some or all of the teachers and administrators, including one that calls for closing the school entirely — are all punitive and won’t likely work in the long run. There are, though, other ways to improve schools 

The December dilemma: Santa in school

by Valerie Strauss

Every December the debate about religion and public schools is revived. Here Jill Davidson, the mom of three kids in the Providence Public Schools in Rhode Island, takes a personal look at what is and what isn't acceptable when it comes to bringing religion in the classroom. She is the director of publications and communications at Educators for Social Responsibility. This was published at the East Side Monthly.
By Jill Davidson
In first grade, our oldest son came home with "Olive, the Other Reindeer," borrowed from the school library. As we read it together, me giggling at the title, he said, "What's so funny? I don't get it." "It's a joke, honey, a pun," I explained. "You know, ‘all of the other reindeer' from ‘Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer'."
Nope, he didn't know. He didn't know about the renowned nasal exceptionalism which initially prompted 


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Opinion: CREDO’s Study of Charter Schools in NJ Leaves Many Unanswered Questions - NJ Spotlight

Opinion: CREDO’s Study of Charter Schools in NJ Leaves Many Unanswered Questions - NJ Spotlight:


Opinion: CREDO’s Study of Charter Schools in NJ Leaves Many Unanswered Questions

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By Julia Sass Rubin, Ph.D., December 7, 2012 in Opinion |3 Comments

Last week, with much fanfare, a study comparing standardized test scores of New Jersey’s charter school students to those of their public school peers was released by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO). As a professor of public policy, a supporter of public education, and a parent of a charter school student, I have four questions that I would like to ask the authors.
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Question #1: Why does the CREDO press release misrepresent the study’s findings?
The CREDO press release claimed that “New Jersey charter public schools significantly outperform their district school peers.” However, this is not even remotely what the CREDO study found.
First, the CREDO study looked at only about half of New Jersey’s charter schools (46 out of 86).
Second, the study excluded another quarter of the state’s charter school students (23 percent), particularly those from groups that score lower on standardized test scores (students who have to repeat a grade, students with special needs, and students with limited knowledge of English).
Third, the study did not include students who had left charter schools. This is especially problematic 

State May Ease Alternate-Route Rules for Charter-School Teachers
Education Department provision would provide more flexibility in hiring, training

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By John Mooney, December 7, 2012 in Education |1 Comment
The Christie administration has proposed easing some of the state’s teacher-certification rules for charter schools, saying the move would give the schools more flexibility in hiring.
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The provision, which is tucked deep within the administration’s Professional Licensure and Standards Code for NJ Teachers proposed new administrative code for teacher licensure], would essentially give charter schools their own alternate route similar to the state’s long-established and popular “alternate route” process for hiring public-school teachers who did earn a traditional education degree in college.
The proposal, which is now before the state Board of Education, is facing some resistance from the state’s dominant teachers union, among others. But it nonetheless moved ahead with preliminary 
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State considers shorter service for under-prepared teachers | California Watch

State considers shorter service for under-prepared teachers | California Watch:


State considers shorter service for under-prepared teachers

Under proposals the state's teacher credentialing agency is set to consider today, school districts would need to show on a case-by-case basis that no fully credentialed teachers are available before they resort to less-qualified educators, and under-prepared teachers could serve a maximum of three years instead of five.
The Commission on Teacher Credentialing is weighing the changes after expressing concern that under-prepared teachers disproportionately serve students who are living in poverty and learning English.
"Until that changes, we need to tighten up our process a little bit," Commissioner Kathleen Harris said at a September commission meeting, where possible regulatory changes for under-prepared teachers were first discussed.
California grants emergency permits to credentialed teachers so they may instruct English language learners, 
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All Things Education: Sex, Shit 'n Standardized Testing!

All Things Education: Sex, Shit 'n Standardized Testing!:


Sex, Shit 'n Standardized Testing!

by Rachel Levy

First, there was this:
"You get this rage up that we're wasting time testing, and you're making testing shorter and shittier," Coleman said at a Brookings panel Thursday.

That's David Coleman, one of the architects of the Common Core English & Language Arts Standards, and president of the College Board. This isn't the first time Coleman has cursed when speaking publicly about education. Several months ago, he reportedly said in another public speaking engagement, “as you grow up in this world, you realize people really don’t give a shit about what you feel or what you think.”

But people do give a shit about what language you use. As I always tell my students, cursing is not wrong, but there's a time and a place for it and an art to it, and school and academic work (making exceptions for creative 
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Recent Books to Read About Schools! Part III « Deborah Meier on Education

Recent Books to Read About Schools! Part III « Deborah Meier on Education:


Recent Books to Read About Schools! Part III

by debmeier


On Purpose Before Twenty, by Adam Cox (Four Corners Press).
A fascinating and deeply moving account of the author’s unique interviews with boys and young men as part of a two-year study on the subject.   His focus is on “life purposes”—or, as he puts it, work.  It’s a powerful examination (that applies as well to girls, he suspects) on the impact of disrespecting work, viewing it as “necessary” but unworthy of high ideals.  It goes well alongside Mike Rose’s Minds at Work.   Cox raises a core problem—while play is (he agrees) the essential work of childhood,  that does not mean that the work of adults is the opposite of play—dull drudgery which requires justification.
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People Who Write Open Letters To Obama Actually Want Him To Read Them [EdWeek] | The Jose Vilson

People Who Write Open Letters To Obama Actually Want Him To Read Them [EdWeek] | The Jose Vilson:


People Who Write Open Letters To Obama Actually Want Him To Read Them [EdWeek]

by Jose

An excerpt from a follow-up post I wrote for Education Week:
“What it also means, though, is that your primary supporters feel like they should have a seat at your table from the very beginning when they don’t. At least not consistently. This dynamic matters especially with regard education, where the collective experience of participants and practitioners on the ground matter just as much as those who set the policy, if not more so. We bear the burden of the errors, yet get little of the credit for the successes of said system. The policies we currently abide by (e.g., Race to the Top, No Child Left Behind) inspire less collaboration amongst all vested members than finger-pointing in the name of accountability.”
Read the rest here. Share. Like. Love, even. Thanks!
Jose, who assumes every public official reads everything he writes …

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Lessons: From Katrina: Raising Awareness… Raising FundsSave Our Schools

Lessons: From Katrina: Raising Awareness… Raising FundsSave Our Schools:


Lessons: From Katrina: Raising Awareness… Raising Funds

by Server
Save Our Schools Webinar and Fundraiser
Lessons: From Katrina: Raising Awareness… Raising Funds
Louisiana Residents,
Educators Karran Harper Royal, Raynard Sanders
New Jersey and New York Residents,
Educators, Terry Moore and Rosalie Friend
Sunday, December 16, 2012 8:30 PM Eastern Time [ET}
Please Join Us!


Lessons: From Katrina: Raising Awareness… Raising Funds[This is Part One of a Two Part Hurricane Sandy Webinar/Fundraiser Series]
We each remember when Hurricane Katrina first struck the shores of Louisiana. However, few understood the long-term effects of the storm. Communities were changed beginning with our schools. State government used school closures as a means to turn public education learning centers into corporately managed charter schools. “Public school “choices” were minimal, and schools were not easily accessible. Teachers were fired, illegally. “Return to work” notices were sent to homes that no longer existed. The consequences are visible today.
Although the situations in New Orleans and the Northeast are somewhat different, the issues faced by communities made-up of families, students, and educators, could be similar. The potential for another tempest after the storm is one we must consider. People are warned to prepare for Hurricanes. Mostly we think to take care of our personal property and our physical needs. Katrina teaches us that there is much more to ponder.
We invite you to reflect with us. On Sunday evening, December 16th from 8:30-10:o00 PM Eastern Standard Time [EST] Raynard Sanders, Ed.D.,, Host of the New Orleans Imperative Radio Show, and Karran Harper Royal, Co-Founder of Parents Across America will share what they learned firsthand in New Orleans. New Jersey/New York Educators and Save Our Schools Information Coordinators, Terry Moore and Rosalie Friend will speak to the situation on the ground post-Sandy. Each will reflect on what they believe to be similarities in the systems, and differences in the situations. Hazards and the help needed will also be discussed.
Specific topics will include:
1) The current state of affairs in New Jersey and New York
2) Federal and State policies that are helpful or harmful to resuming classroom instruction
3) The potential for corporate reformers to take advantage of vulnerabilities within the communities; such as the state of schools and the circumstances families find themselves in.
4) The impact on teachers’ job security when students are transferred from damaged schools to neighboring schools.
[Issues related to student trauma and the need for a moratorium on testing will be the focus of the next webinar.]
This webinar is the first in a two-part fund raising event for the Hurricane Sandy Student and Teacher Support Fund We are taking donations at this time and will make the entire day of the webinar a one day push to raise funds for the children and teachers in the affected area.
Speakers
Raynard Sanders

Raynard Sanders – Louisiana
Raynard Sanders has over thirty years of experience in teaching, educational administration, and economic and community development. As a principal of a New Orleans high school, he developed the first high school DNA lab in the state of Louisiana and created the Creole Cottage Project, an innovative program for his students to build and renovate houses in the school’s community. Dr. Sanders also served as the Executive Director of The National Faculty at New Orleans, a professional development agency designed to improve the quality of teaching in poor performing schools throughout the Mississippi Delta. He also served as the Director of the Urban Education Graduate Program at Southern University at New Orleans.
Dr. Sanders presently hosts The New Orleans Imperative, the only weekly radio show that focuses on public education in New Orleans. His radio program has been critical in eliminating the information void regarding the privatization of public education post Hurricane Katrina. Dr. Sanders received his B.A. from Dillard University in New Orleans, an M. Ed. from Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and his Doctorate of Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City.
Karran Harper Royal

Karran Harper Royal – Parents Across America – New Orleans, Louisiana
Karran Harper Royal works as an Education Advocate in New Orleans. She is the Assistant Director ofPyramid Community Parent Resource Center. Her work at Pyramid involves providing one to one support to parents of children with disabilities and conducting workshops to help parents understand their rights under federal special education law. In addition to working with Pyramid, Mrs. Harper Royal is a founding member ofParents Across America, a contributor to Research on Reforms and is a consultant to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Mrs. Harper Royal is a tireless advocate for students with disabilities and has appeared in a number of broadcasts and publications related to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and public education reform in New Orleans and is a member of several community groups. She is married with two sons Mrs. Harper Royal blogs at Education Talk New Orleans.
 On Twitter…@KHRoyal
Terry Moore 

Terry Moore – Educator and Save Our Schools Information Coordinator – New Jersey
Terry Moore is a retired third grade teacher in NJ who taught for 35 years and lives in Verona, N.J. During his tenure, he co-founded an after school activist club that worked to research educate and take action on many issues including hunger, peace action landmine removal, Fair Trade and labor. W.I.T.S (World Improvement for Tenafly Students), in which he is an advisor emeritus, is responsible for a bill pending in the NJ Assembly that will designate November as “Children’s Product Safety Awareness Month.”
He has written for Rethinking Schools Magazine and JSD, the Leaning Forward Journal for educators. He has taught writing and reading process to teachers at Columbia University in New York City. He travels to schools and universities speaking on Social Responsibility in Our Schools and to community centers and local clubs as part of a group called V!BE on Hunger at Home: Beyond the Food Drop-Off.
Terry is the New Jersey Information Coordinator for Save Our School March and a member of the local NJ SOSM, which is also part of the Our Children/Our Schools coalition.
He is founder of Hospitality, a musical group that visits children’s and adult hospitals to sing and play for the patients.
Terry has also written The Watchers, a children’s book about a trio of kids who band together to protect the horseshoe crabs along the Jersey Shore.
His wife, Kim, is a respiratory therapist and grassroots’ activist. His daughter, Kate, is a brand new ELL teacher.
Rosalie Friend 

Rosalie Friend, Ph.D. – Save Our Schools Information Coordinator –New York
Rosalie Friend, Ph.D. is a retired educational psychologist specializing in the cognitive processes of reading. She taught assessment, educational psychology, and reading instruction to teacher candidates at City University of New York after teaching reading and study strategies to incoming freshmen.
Please Contribute
The SOS Hurricane Sandy Student and Teacher Support Fund
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The Fatal Disconnects in Florida’s Education Accountability System and the Emerging Education Industrial Complex | Scathing Purple Musings

The Fatal Disconnects in Florida’s Education Accountability System and the Emerging Education Industrial Complex | Scathing Purple Musings:

The Fatal Disconnects in Florida’s Education Accountability System and the Emerging Education Industrial Complex

by Bob Sikes

When Florida’s interim education commissioner Pam Stewart took the stage yesterday before the Senate Subcommittee on Education Appropriations to spin the release of SB 736 teacher evaluation data, her focus was on form and nuance. The only voice coming from the thicket was that of Sen. Bill Montford (D-Tallahassee). This from Florida Current reporter James Call:
“You telling me that a first grade teacher’s evaluation will be dependent upon students who perhaps that teacher had never seen?” said Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee.
“That is correct,” Stewart said. “There are some districts that have assessments that do measure first grade teachers and kindergarten teachers and some that do not.”
Naturally Stewart has a self-preservation gene and knew how to hit the tough question out of the ball park:
“That is correct,” Stewart said. “There are some districts that have assessments that do measure '
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NYC Educator: All Aboard the Junk Science Express

NYC Educator: All Aboard the Junk Science Express:


All Aboard the Junk Science Express

by NYC Educator
It's mind boggling. Everywhere you read, oh no, it's an emergency! NYC can lose 300 million bucks if we don't agree on an evaluation system! The astroturf shills at E4E are rallying! How will the educators for excellent know whether or not they really are excellent if they haven't got a value-added system on which to base their self-styled opinions? Fellow astroturfers Students First NY are putting up wads of corporate cash to push it through. Bloomberg, predictably, blames the union (though it's likely his monumental ego and intransigence preventing the deal).

Here’s the thing, though—if you read, say, Gary Rubinstein, Aaron Pallas, Tim Clifford, Carol Burris, Diane Ravitch, or the hundreds of NY principals who oppose it, you begin to suspect that there may be some fundamental flaws to this “value-added” system. With further examination, you see it has no validity whatsoever. You begin to notice that, despite eloquent pleas for it by very powerful people, it is nothing but junk science.

Now my union is contemplating an agreement with the city, so that we can get 300 million dollars. That’s a lot of 
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Jersey Jazzman: Chris Christie: Divisive Hypocrite

Jersey Jazzman: Chris Christie: Divisive Hypocrite:


Chris Christie: Divisive Hypocrite

by Duke




(9:37) When you're trying to narrow people into corner, Jon, and call them names, it makes it much harder to get them to the table and compromise. And that's what we're supposed to be doing. People elected us to get things done, not to bloviate. 

Pre-fleece Chris Christie:
"Scaring students in the classroom, scaring parents with the notes home in the bookbags, and the mandatory 'Project Democracy Homework' asking your parents about what they're going to do in the school board election, and reporting back to 


Joel Klein: Shameless

by Duke

Joel Klein is the former Chancellor of New York City's public schools and the current CEO of Amplify, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp focusing on education technology.

Joel Klein is also utterly shameless. 

Parent advocate Leonie Haimson called him "an educational Bernie Madoff" at the end of tenure in NYC. His greatest scheme was convincing New York's voters that he had worked miracles while leading the schools in NYC; it's clear he did not. Klein was happy to keep pointing at rising state test scores as proof of his success, but those scores turned out to be an illusion. On national test scores, Klein's NYC did no better - and, to be fair, really no worse - than other major US cities.

That, of course, never stopped Klein from tooting his own horn. He's now taken this unbridled enthusiasm for his own apparent genius into the private sector: this week, he made a big pitch to investors to get in on the ground floor of his new company by both touting his own successes and vilifying the rest of the education system:
Klein’s point is that U.S. K-12 education is a “broken model,” with shockingly low 

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