LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-12-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

George Schmidt: How to Manufacture a Budget Crisis and Impose Harsh Remedies

George Schmidt, who taught for many years in the Chicago Public Schools but was fired by Paul Vallas for releasing test questions, edits Substance News. Here is his analysis of Chicago’s perennial budget crisis: Sorry this is very long, but I have a hunch that many people will want to know how the “austerity” lies that feed all those “necessary school closings” and teacher layoffs are created in t

by dianerav / 17min 

What the New York Times Article Left Out

Yesterday, the New York Times published an article about my forthcoming book that turned out to be a profile of me. The reporter, Motoko Rich, did a good job of describing me, my dog Mitzi, and the basic facts of my unusual philosophical and political journey over the past few decades. The headline was wrong, however, and I know that reporters don’t write headlines. Whoever wrote it is out of touc

9 by dianerav / 38min 

Can “Reform” Produce Illiterate Literacy?

In this letter, the executive director of the Tennessee Council of Teachers of English reflects on what literacy means in the age of “reform.” Is literacy the goal? Is literacy possible? Can we ignore “reform” and just talk about Frost and Whitman and literature? Or does “reform” require something else? The unspoken here, if I may interpret, is that the future of literacy is at stake; that “reform

by dianerav / 19min 

Corporate Reform Has New Setbacks

A great article in Politico.com by Stephanie Simon acknowledges that the primary election in New York City was a rejection of Bloomberg’s education policies of the past decade. Similarly, the election of the insurgent slate in Bridgeport, Connecticut, showed that the public was reclaiming public education from the corporate reform crew running the state. Jeffrey Henig of Teachers College, Columbia

by dianerav / 1min

How Many Teachers Leave the Profession and Why?

A regular reader has posted several comments that seem to imply that not enough teachers are being fired. Or that a system with a small number of teachers fired was not up to par, assuming that there are many “bad” teachers who have not been found out yet. This seems to be the assumption behind Race to the Top and the Gates’ approach to evaluation: stack ranking, from top to bottom. Fire the botto

by dianerav / 2min mark as read  //  save

Arthur Camins: What Matters Most?

Arthur Camins is director of the Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. When Camins read Paul Thomas’s latest commentary about the lack of evidence behind reform strategies, he wrote the following: “Over the past several years I have read countless articles and books all saying basically the same thing: The foundati

by dianerav / 2min 

Barbara Miner: The Voucher Boondoggle in Milwaukee

Barbara Miner is a veteran journalist and photographer who has been writing about education and Milwaukee for many years. Her most recent book tells the history of public education in Milwaukee: Lessons from the Heartland: A Turbulent Half-Century of Public Education in an Iconic American City. In this blog, she explains the history of vouchers in Milwaukee. Milwaukee is the poster district for vo

by dianerav / 7min mark as read  //  save

Is There a STEM Shortage?

We hear repeatedly about the shortage of qualified engineers and the need for more science, technology, and mathematics majors. I am all for that. I would also like to see more majors in the arts, philosophy, history, government, literature, and world languages. This reader–who signs as “Democracy”–offers thoughts about “the STEM crisis”–and examines the role of Lockheed Martin’s Norman Augustine,

6 by dianerav / 1h 

Diane in the Evening 9-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Breaking News: EduShyster Unmasks Herself!EduShyster is one of the most brilliant, clever, and downright funny bloggers in the pedagogic blogosphere. She is one of the very few bloggers who is consistently able to make me laugh out loud. For reasons she will explain here, she has decided to reveal her name. When I met her a year ag

by mike simpson / 1h 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New York election victory points the way in Chicago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New York election victory points the way in Chicago:

New York election victory points the way in Chicago

 

De Blasio's overwhelming win in yesterday's NY primary gives hope and new confidence to teachers and others who would like to see a similar outcome in the next Chicago mayoral election. De Blasio's stand on school issues seems closest to that  of some members of the City Council's Progressive Caucus.and other potential anti-Rahm candidates.

De Blasio is a strong advocate for public education; opposes charter school expansion and Bloomberg'a (read Emanuel's) corporate-style reform; wants to increase taxes on the wealthiest to solve the budget crisis; and says that inequality is the central issue of our times.” His strong stand against Bloomberg's racist stop-and-frisk policies resonated with many black and Latino voters. Sounds like a strong platform for a 2015 anti-Rahm candidate.

With his own poll ratings sinking like a stone, I'm sure that Rahm kept a close eye on the New York election. What he saw must have shaken him and his corporate backers, many of whom 

9-12-13 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL:

September’s (2013) Best Tweets — Part Two

Every month I make a few short lists highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. I’ve already shared in earlier posts several new resources I found on Twitter — and where I gave credit to those from whom I learned about them. Those are not included again in this post. If you don’t use Twit

5 by Larry Ferlazzo / 18min 

Video: “Kid President’s Pep Talk to Teachers and Students!”

Thanks to Wendi Pillars for sharing this video on Twitter:

14 by Larry Ferlazzo / 38min mark as read  //  save

Voyager Has Left The Solar System — Here Are Some Useful Resources

Here are some new additions to The Best Sites For Learning About Voyager 1 & Its Departure From Our Solar System: The Atlantic shares what Voyager heard as it left our solar system. Voyager’s epic journey: How long would it take you? is a neat interactive from The BBC. Exiting the Solar System and Fulfilling a Dream is from The New York Times and includes a lot of multimedia features. Voyager

2 by Larry Ferlazzo / 38min 

New Kindle Verision Of My Book, Self-Driven Learning, Now Available

The Kindle edition of my book, Self-Driven Learning, was pulled a couple of of months ago after Routledge bought its original publisher, Eye On Education. They made revisions to all the EOE books, and now, as of today, it’s back! You can get the Kindle version here on Amazon. They tell me that the new and improved Kindle version of Helping Students Motivate Themselves is not far behind. And look f

3 by Larry Ferlazzo / 17min 

Two Important Quotes From Massive NY Times Articles On Tablets In Classroom

Today, The New York Times published a very lengthy piece on the use of tablets in the classroom, focusing on Rupert Murdoch’s Amplify system (which I’ve written about in the past). The Times piece is headlined No Child Left Untableted. I think it’s an impressively thoughtful piece covering the broader questions about technology use in the classroom Here’s one excerpt that particularly resonated w

2 by Larry Ferlazzo / 2min 

9-11-13 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Study: Young People Respond Better To The Positive Than They Do To ThreatsIn a previous post, Emphasizing Pride, Not Shame, In Classroom Management, I talked about a study that showed determined having people think about the pride that they will feel in themselves after resisting temptation was a very successful self-contro

by mike simpson / 10h 

9-12-13 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online:

Heading to Portelos Hearing (Sept 12) This Morning at 10

A modern day Frank Serpico, only this one, Portelos, banished in often solitary confinement to the rubber rooms that the master of disinformation UFT president Mulgrew said were closed three years ago. Yes, public, know a teller of disinformation (Mulgrew) by the company he keeps (candidate Thompson) -read here and here, here, here, here.  ..... New York City EyeI may do some tweeting from there e

by ed notes online / 1min mark as read  //  save

Can UFT Close Achievment Gap Betweem Thompson and di Blasio?

14% pts bigger gap than Weiner had in 05-dropped out for unity. Thompson should DOASWEINERDID.But the elites, including the UFT, fearing di Blasio won't let him do it. They want to squeeze very ounce out of this race.So if we don't see 40% watch them all jump on board for Thompson. Bloomberg (behind the scenes) etc plus the UFT.So tell me my friends, which side are they on?Here is a comment on my

1 by ed notes online / 1min 

Ravitch and New Book Today at Judson Church

I'll be there taping and interviewing and some MOREistas will be there to distribute the hot off the press new newsletter, MORE Stuff in Your Mailbox. If there is one thing to fault Diane on in her book (and I haven't finished all of it) is her allowing the unions off the hook for their complicity in ed deform. I do get there are long-time relationships she has. But there were also long-time relat

1 by ed notes online / 1min 

Everything you ever wanted to know about the 9/11 conspiracy theory in under 5 minutes

This is almost funny. Almost. Or very scary.Posted at http://www.corbettreport.com/911-a-conspiracy-theory/11 Sep 2011 9/11: A Conspiracy Theory Posted by Corbett Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadEverything you ever wanted to know about the 9/11 conspiracy theory in under 5 minutes.(Watch French, German, Spanish, Italian, Hebrew or Portuguese translations of this video.)TRANSCRIPT: On the mor

1 by ed notes online / 7h 

9-11-13 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online: De Blasio at 40.02% With 95% Precincts ReportingI have an entire post ready to go talking about a Big Bill, Little Bill runoff. Thompson is about 26%, just a point or two off my prediction earlier in the day. I am surprised deB has held up at around 40%. I was expecting some blow-back to drive him down to about 36%.What a difference a few votes will make. My Sal Albanese vote may

by mike simpson / 10h 

9-12-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School:

Mulgrew On Thompson's Decision To Forge On

From Politicker:Mr. Thompson and his backers, at a private strategy session tonight at the United Federation of Teachers headquarters, decided to press forward, despite mounting pressure by other union officials, Democratic leaders–and even some of his former supporters–to drop his bid.“The first step in that is machine canvass on Friday and Saturday, and then we’ll go from there,” he said. “We be

by reality-based edu... / 1h mark as read  //  save

Bill Thompson Refuses To Withdraw From The Race

So Thompson emerged defiant from his meeting at 52 Broadway tonight:Bill Thompson said Thursday night that he will not concede the Democratic primary for mayor until the votes are counted. Thompson emerged from a meeting with top party leaders to say he'll stay in the game at least until the Board of Elections does a recanvass of the voting machine results from Tuesday's primary."It continues

by reality-based edu... / 1h 

Thompson, Supporters Meet At UFT Headquarters Tonight

Azi Paybarah at Capital NY:Bill Thompson's top supporters met tonight at the Manhattan headquarters of the United Federation of Teachers as their candidate discussed with them the possibility of ending his bid for the Democratic mayoral nomination before all the votes are counted. U.F.T. president Michael Mulgrew, who promised that his union would deliver a primary victory to Thompson, had vowed o

by reality-based edu... / 4min 

Thompson Can Short Circuit Runoff By Pulling Out By Tomorrow Night

Lisa Fleischer reports:The pressure intensified Thursday on Bill Thompson to abandon a runoff fight, with institutional supporters urging the Democrat to avoid splintering the party by continuing to pursue his campaign for New York City mayor. Mr. Thompson, the former city comptroller, was waiting Thursday for all votes from Tuesday’s Democratic mayoral primary to be counted to see whether Public

by reality-based edu... / 5min 

Charlie Rangel Says Thompson Supporters Having Strategy Meeting To See Where Thompson Campaign Goes Now

With the list of Democratic establishment figures and unions supporting Bill de Blasio for mayor getting longer and longer, Bill Thompson isn't going to get too much help if he decides to stay in the race and try and force a runoff.So far, Lew Fidler is still supporting him, telling waffling Thompson supporters to "grow a pair" and get back on the Thompson bandwagon.But Thompson supporte

by reality-based edu... / 1h 

Christine Quinn Urges Supporters To Back De Blasio

The de Blasio campaign had a "unity rally" today where they pulled out a bunch of former Quinn supporters, a few former Thompson supporters and a whole bunch of de Blasio supporters and had a party:Standing before the steps of Brooklyn Borough Hall, a mass of elected officials and unions, including the labor-backed Working Families Party, officially endorsed Public Advocate Bill de Blasi

by reality-based edu... / 4min 

General Petraeus Chased Down Street By Angry College Students

Not big on school pride, but this makes me feel it for CUNY:It was a rough first day of school for David Petraeus.The retired general was chased down the street by an angry mob after giving his first lecture at CUNY’s Macaulay Honors College on the Upper West Side, according to a video posted online Wednesday.The hecklers stalked the former CIA chief out of the campus Monday and called him “scumba

by reality-based edu... / 6min 

This Is Lhota's Strategy To Beat De Blasio?

Source tells me that GOP oppo research on @deBlasioNYC includes ACORN/UFT connect, WFP/DFS scandal, thin resume of accomplishments.— Michael Benjamin (@SquarePeg_Dem) September 12, 2013To which someone on Twitter replies: .@maggiepolitico GOP's going to go after de Blasio over ACORN and the UFT (who endorsed someone else)? They've so got this.— Xenocrypt (@xenocryptsite) September 12, 2013Michael

by reality-based edu... / 7min 

Al Sharpton Urges Bill Thompson Out Of The Race

It's only a matter of time before Thompson is gone.The Daily News reports that not only have three of the Quinn unions quickly endorsed de Blasio post-primary, but Al Sharpton is also urging Thompson out for the sake of the Democratic Party:A day after the primaries, the mayoral campaign hit the pause button Wednesday for the anniversary of 9/11 — but behind the scenes, Democratic leaders were wor

by reality-based edu... / 41min mark as read  //  save

How Long Until Bill Thompson Is Forced From The Race?

Unions are holding a "unity rally" for Bill de Blasio today:Well, that didn't take long. A steady stream of diehard Christine Quinn supporters have endorsed Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, and plan to gather Thursday in Brooklyn for a "unity rally" to publicly stand behind the Democratic frontrunner. The event includes top labor leaders like Retail, Wholesale, and Department St

by reality-based edu... / 2h 

9-11-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School: 98% Counted - De Blasio 40.2%, Thompson 26%Still 2% to be counted, plus the absentee ballots.From the time I signed off last night to now, Thompson lost 0.02%, de Blasio's percentage stayed the same.As of 7:15 AM, de Blasio has 90,518 more votes than Thompson.There are still votes to be counted, but if the trajectory of the race stays essentially the same, will Thompson chal

by mike simpson / 10h 

What does ‘quality teacher’ mean anyway?:

What does ‘quality teacher’ mean anyway?

By Valerie Strauss, Published: September 12 at 4:00 amE-mail the writer

0

Comments

More

In the big push for “quality teachers,” the question about what that means gets short shrift. Here’s a piece on the subject byMike Rose, a professor at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies and author of several books. His most recent works are “Back to School: Why Everyone Deserves a Second Chance at Education, and “Public Education Under Siege,” which he co-edited with Michael B. Katz.

By Mike Rose

Go to YouTube and type in “Harriett Ball.”  You’ll find three or four short clips on this wonderful Houston teacher, including a tribute (she died in 2011) from KIPP charter school founders Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin.  It seems that in 1992, when the young Feinberg and Levin—fresh Teach For America recruits—landed in Houston, ready, in Feinberg’s words, “to change the world by lunchtime,” they didn’t have an easy go of it.  As Feinberg put it, he lost control of his class by lunchtime and didn’t regain it until Christmas.

Harriett Ball was teaching down the hall, and Feinberg and Levin found her, and had the 

Obama’s education gap: Rhetoric vs policies

There is a big gap between what President Obama says about educational equity and the consequences of his policies. Here’s a post on this by Arthur H. Camins, director of the Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education at … Continue reading →    

2 by Valerie Strauss / 1h 

Two Sides Find Common Ground in Airing Concerns About Common Core - NJ Spotlight

Two Sides Find Common Ground in Airing Concerns About Common Core - NJ Spotlight:

TWO SIDES FIND COMMON GROUND IN AIRING CONCERNS ABOUT COMMON CORE

JOHN MOONEY | SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

Republican, Democrat both urge NJ to go slowly on tougher standards and testing, but Christie administration proceeds with implementation.

Protesters at event for U.S Senate candidate Steve Lonegan.

New Jersey's decision to implement the federal Common Core State Standards and to field-test the exams that are part of the package has never lacked critics, but it hasn't met with much outright resistance.

Until now.

While still very much a minority voice, a collection of strange bedfellows is increasingly speaking up against New Jersey’s adoption of the new, more rigorous standards and testing.

Yesterday, it was Steve Lonegan, the conservative Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, who held a press conference in front of the state Department of Education to decry the federal standards as another power grab by Washington.

While outnumbered by journalists, Lonegan was nonetheless joined by a half-dozen other conservative and Tea Party activists.

“No one-size-fits-all model will serve these children, nor will it serve our nation,”