UPDATE: Rules of Engagement | Bill Ayers

Rules of Engagement | Bill Ayers:

Posted by the brilliant MICHELLE ALEXANDER, August 28, 2013

For the past several years, I have spent virtually all my working hours writing about or speaking about the immorality, cruelty, racism, and insanity of our nation’s latest caste system: mass incarceration. On this Facebook page I have written and posted about little else. But as I pause today to reflect on the meaning and significance of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington , I realize

by billayers / 11min mark as read  //  save

NPR: National Pentagon Radio

NPR has long been home base for the Chicken-Hawks and the Liberal-Hawks, featuring sweet narratives about the lives of soldiers and their families, heart-warming tales of heroism and loss, soft-ball interviews with generals and military commanders, and cloying conversations with members of the administration about war and foreign affairs. There is never a probing line of questioning for the war ma

by billayers / 14min 

Rules of Engagement

Rule Number One: The US is forbidden to bomb any country that a majority of Americans can’t find on a blank world map.
This proposal, if enacted, is guaranteed to dramatically reduce the level of global violence overnight. At this moment 80% of Americans age 18-25 cannot find Israel/Palestine on a map; 80% cannot find Iraq; 40% can’t find England; and 10% can’t find the US.
So much of what happens next is up to us: speak up, write your senators and reps in Congress, submit an op-ed to your local paper, rally your friends and alert your networks.
Say NO to WAR!

Rules of Engagement

Rule Number Two: John McCain should be appointed official barometer regarding the use of US military force—read the McCain Barometer every morning; if he supports invasion, occupation, intervention, air strikes, or bombings in a given situation, oppose it and you will be on the right side. Senator McCain has been wrong on every major US foreign policy initiative for half a century. Check the publ

by billayers / 7min 

9-3-13 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.:

No comment. Come up with your own.

  Photo: Springfield Journal-Register Springfield Journal-Register: While the IEA is focused on improving education for students in Illinois, they also must fight the perception that their overriding concern is the well being of teachers. One of Klickna’s goals as president is to change how the general public perceives her organization. “If you say ‘association,’ everyone thinks you’re great. If

1 by Fred Klonsky / 27min 

Safe Passage.

  Graphic: Fred Klonsky

by Fred Klonsky / 4min 

Who will the IEA take to the dance? Or will we dance alone?

  AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “Quinn won’t forget who took him to the dance,” IEA President Cinda Klickna reportedly told a reader of this blog. That was a couple of years ago. More recently AFSCME President Lee Saunders was quoted as saying this about Pat Quinn and other turncoat Democrats. I am sick and tired of the fair-weather Democrats. They date us, take us to the prom, marry us, and the

2 by Fred Klonsky / 17min 

This morning Philadelphia teachers are working without a contract.

  Philly teachers rally in 2011. This morning Philadelphia teachers are working even though their contract expired this weekend. That’s not what I said yesterday. There was a flurry of Facebook reports that the Philly teachers had voted to strike. I did a quick Google search. It appeared to be true. It was true. Ten years ago. I should have noticed that the ABC story I posted mentioned a Philly M

5 by Fred Klonsky / 21min 

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: You can’t scare me, I’m stickin’ to the unionYou can’t scare me, I’m stickin’ to the union.Happy Labor Day, the US Congress’ alternative to May Day. The politicians believed that May Day, which originated here in Chicago, had too rough and militant a content to it. And it had too many Reds involved. H

by mike simpson / 7h 

Is there really a shortage of STEM graduates? If so, why are... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com

Is there really a shortage of STEM graduates? If so, why are... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com:

Is there really a shortage of STEM graduates? If so, why are wages stagnant?  

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Previous Posts

• Is Betty Crocker the wrong recipe for today's students? 
  September 2, 2013
• Stay with Common Core: "We have it right. Please don't mess it up."
  August 30, 2013
• Banning books: Are we still doing that? Why? 
  August 30, 2013

By Maureen Downey

Hardly a week goes by without another dire prediction about how the shortage of science and math graduates is crippling the U.S. economy. Many leaders, including President Obama, have called for a concerted effort to increase the numbers of students majoring in what are known as the STEM fields, science, technology, engineering and math.

Several studies have documented a shortage.

But there is also evidence that the claims are exaggerated. Every time I write about the purported shortage, I receive emails from STEM graduates who cannot find jobs.

For example, we are constantly being told that other countries have taken the lead in producing the next generation of engineers. But, as I reported a while back, a Duke study refuted the contention that India and China are dramatically out producing us in engineers. The study found that comparisons often include foreign graduates who would be considered technicians in the 

Cutting Physical Education and Recess: Troubling Trends and How You Can Help | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

Cutting Physical Education and Recess: Troubling Trends and How You Can Help | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights:

Cutting Physical Education and Recess: Troubling Trends and How You Can Help

By National PTA on September 3, 2013

By Erica Lue, Advocacy Coordinator, National PTA

S\ince the 2001 passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, many schools have struggled to find ways to meet the act's rigorous assessment standards. One avenue schools have been taking to find time for more academics is to cut out physical education classes and recess. Another approach has been to withhold time allotted for physical activity as a punishment for poor classroom behavior, or for extra tutoring time for struggling students. While estimates on cutbacks to school recess differ while accommodating a more vigorous academic curriculum, what is certain is that the trend is on the rise. With the troubling statistics regarding childhood obesity, health experts, educators, and parents are expressing concern that cutting recess will further contribute to weight and health problems without actually improving academic performance.
Recess, with its unstructured play time and the ability to allow students' choices in the activities they pursue, is a particularly troubling cut that many argue actually has detrimental effects on students.  In its resolution on recess, National PTA outlined the numerous benefits of recess and physical activity, including “greater academic achievement and cognitive functioning; better classroom behavior; increased socialization, school adjustment and overall social development; and improved physical and mental health.” In addition to these positive outcomes, establishing an active lifestyle in childhood leads children to be more active adults. Because of the benefits of physical activity and unstructured play time, the National Association for Sport and Physical 

A Research Roundup on Early Education |

A Research Roundup on Early Education |:

A Research Roundup on Early Education

September 3, 2013 by Alyssa Haywoode

Photo: Kate Samp for Strategies for Children

What have we learned – and what else do we need to know?

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES), established in 2002 as a research division of the U.S. Department of Education, asks this question in a recent report — “Synthesis of IES Research on Early Intervention and Early Childhood Education.”

The report summarizes findings from IES-funded early education research that has been published in peer-reviewed journals through June 30, 2010. The studies examined a broad range of early childhood research projects focusing on curriculum, professional development models, child outcomes in early math and literacy, children’s social/emotional development, and more. The authors focused on research that has looked at improving “school readiness for children who are at risk for later school failure,” as well as at improving “developmental outcomes and school readiness” for children from birth through age five who have or are at risk of having disabilities. In addition to summarizing what has been learned from IES-funded projects, the authors suggest “avenues for further research to support 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-3-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

LA Times: $500 Million for iPads Did Not Include Keyboards

Howard Blume reports in this morning’s Los Angeles Times that the school district’s $500 million purchase of iPads did not include the keyboards that will be necessary when the students use them to take standardized tests. The district has also committed to spend another $500 million to install wireless Internet in every school. The iPads were purchased for testing students on the new Common Core.

1 by dianerav / 12min 

Paul Thomas: What We Know Now and Why It Doesn’t Matter

In this excellent analysis, Paul Thomas lists the many education policy ideas that are at the core of corporate reform–and how they have been proven wrong. At first glance, it is infuriation to realize that no part of the corporate reform agenda works. But on second thought, it is encouraging to realize that the policies the reformers are pushing ARE the STATUS QUO and IT IS FAILING. It is failing

by dianerav / 4min mark as read  //  save

Breaking News: Mayoral Candidate de Blasio Attacks Co-Location of Charters

New York City mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio attacked the Bloomberg administration’s policy of placing privately managed charter schools in public school buildings. Not only does this cause overcrowding and increased class size, but it creates a two-class system, with privileged charters sited alongside public school students who must make do with less access to their library, their playground,

7 by dianerav / 14min 

What Is a “Failing School”?

Two years ago, Kevin Kosar, a former graduate student of mine, conducted an Internet search for the term “failing school.” What he discovered was fascinating. Until the 1990s, the term was virtually unknown. About the mid-1990s, the term began appearing with greater frequency. With the passage of No Child Left Behind, the use of the expression exploded and became a commonplace. Kosar did not spec

by dianerav / 6min 

Jon Pelto: Teaching Obedience Above All

In this post, Jonathan Pelto describes the rigid discipline at the Jumoke Academy in Connecticut. The astonishing thing about this school is who is not enrolled. First came the Jumoke Academy, a Hartford based, discipline oriented charter school that over its history failed to take a single bilingual or non-English speaking student since it opened, despite the fact that one in five Hartford studen

4 by dianerav / 22min 

Special Education Teacher: As I Begin My Final Year of Teaching

Arthur Getzel has been a teacher of special education in New York City since 1978. On his blog, he describes his preparations as the school year begins. It is his last year. He goes shopping for supplies and spends $200 of his own money for necessities. He cleans the classroom to get it ready for his students. He knows everything is supposed to change this year because of Common Core. But, he wri

1 by dianerav / 22min mark as read  //  save

Common Core Tests in NY Widen Achievement Gaps

I first learned about the Common Core standards while attending a briefing for Congressional staff at a conference sponsored by the Aspen Institute in 2009. it was held at Wye Plantation, a lovely and isolated conference center in Maryland. Dane Linn of the National Governors Association described the development work. I was invited to talk about the history of standards in the U.S. In the discus

19 by dianerav / 1h 

Diane in the Evening 9-2-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: More Secret Emails in Indiana about PrivatizationFrom a reader who read the emails gathered by investigative reporter Tom Lobianco of the Associated Press, insights about the back room discussions to impose “reforms” without talking to legislators.   She wrote:   “Todd Huston, Tony Bennett’s Chief of Staff, Indiana Department of Ed

2 by mike simpson / 1h 

A Parent's Guide to Corporate Education Reform: Why Rich Guys are Screwing Up Our Public Schools

A Parent's Guide to Corporate Education Reform: Why Rich Guys are Screwing Up Our Public SchoolsAKAREIGN OF ERROR. An incisive, comprehensive look at today’s American school system that argues against those who claim it is broken and beyond repair; an impassioned but reasoned call to stop the privatization movement that is draining students and funding from our public schools.I Got Mine and I Can'

1 by mike simpson / 7h 

Elite degrees don’t necessarily earn more, study finds | Hechinger Report

Elite degrees don’t necessarily earn more, study finds | Hechinger Report:

Elite degrees don’t necessarily earn more, study finds

By Jon Marcus

Graduates of elite colleges and universities don’t necessarily make more money than their counterparts at less well-known schools, according to new research.

Using the first-year earnings of graduates of colleges and universities in five states, the study found that those from regional and second-tier campuses, on average, earn about the same as those who go to prestigious flagship universities.

Credit: American Institutes for Research

It also confirms that students with associate’s degrees often out-earn bachelor’s degree-holders, and that some new graduates in science fields including biology or chemistry don’t make much more than English language or literature majors.

“The findings challenge some conventional wisdom, showing, for example, that what you study matters more than where you study,” said Mark Schneider of theAmerican Institutes for Research, which issued the report.

The study looked at first-year earnings of graduates in Arkansas, Colorado, Tennessee, Texas and 

Q&A: Flexibility, accountability key to districts’ NCLB waiver

September 3rd, 2013 | Add a Comment | 
By Sarah Amandolare / The Hechinger Report

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Rick Miller, executive director of the California Office to Reform Education. Credit: The Hechinger Report

Dozens of states have been granted waivers from No Child Left Behind since 2011, when the Obama administration adopted a more flexible approach to the Bush-era act. When the Department of Education denied California’s waiver application in December 2012, a consortium of eight districts pushed for autonomy from the state. Dubbed CORE, the California Office to Reform Education, the districts developed their own set of strategies, emphasizing shared accountability and a holistic approach to student evaluation.

Earlier this month, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan granted CORE a waiver from certain aspects of No Child Left Behind, the first waiver for districts rather than a state. CORE districts now have the flexibility to spend approximately $110 million in Title I funding as they see fit. CORE Executive Director Rick Miller took inspiration from Michael Fullan, the mastermind behind world-renowned schools in Ontario, whose significant population of English language learners resembles California’s. The Hechinger Report talked to Miller about what the waiver will mean for the nearly 1.2 million students in CORE districts, including Fresno Unified, Long Beach Unified, Los Angeles Unified, Oakland Unified, Sacramento City Unified, San Francisco Unified, Sanger Unified,