Monday, November 11, 2013

11-11-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Here's the first story, overtime pay for exempt employees and sick leave pay out.More to come.

by Charlie Mas / 16min

Water/electricity/heat are shut off. Illegal tenants have a generator running and "guards" at the building. There are many more signs up on the fence and black plastic draping the stairs.Naturally, there have been no classes going on and most educational materials are being stored in the portable at the site.KIRO reported receiving a voice mail asking them to not shine their camera lig

by Melissa Westbrook / 4min

Learn To Code

There is a big push throughout the country for all students (heck, everybody) to learn to code. Do I know how? Nope but I think it's a fine idea. It allows everyone to tweak or invent. Here's the latest from UW's Department of Computer Science & Engineering.Computer Science Education Week is December 9-15, 2013 but never too soon to start planning. What's an Hour of Code?It's a one-hour in

by Melissa Westbrook / 18min

Late Start Petition

If you are interested, read the petition and sign it. It has over 3500 signatures already.

by Melissa Westbrook / 4min

Job Board

Hey, Education Activists! Looking for a way to make a vocation of your avocation? Want to follow your passion? Do you believe that if you do what you love you'll never work a day in your life? Here's an opportunity!Teach for America is looking for a Development Manager in Seattle.Want to work for the District? There are exciting opportunities such as:Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finan

by Charlie Mas / 6min

District Scorecard

The Board will conduct a work session to discuss the District Scorecard on Wednesday, the 13th, starting at 4:30pm.Here is a link to the scorecard. You will notice that while the district made positive annual change on 20 of the 23 measures for Academic Growth and Student Outcomes, and has seen positive change over the baseline on 21 of the 23 measures, the District has met only 1 of the 23 target

by Charlie Mas / 19min

Slow the Train? Have a One-Year Plan? Full Speed Ahead?

As I wrote for the Seattle Schools This Week thread:FINAL Work Session: Growth Boundaries - Wednesday, November 13th, 5:30-7:30 pm. This is big because it will most likely be the first viewing of Director amendments to the plan and the discussion around it. If you can only attend one meeting, this one is it. The agenda has no presentation attached (and I doubt it will until Wednesday but I wil

by Melissa Westbrook / 9h

11-10-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Rules of Engagement at MannFrom the great and thorough coverage at Central District News.by Melissa Westbrook / 27min 11-9-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum WeekSeattle Schools Community Forum:Seattle Schools Community ForumMann Building UpdateThe Latest:Based on information I got today at the BEX Oversight Committee meeting, I knew that it was likely that an atte

by mike simpson / 4h

11-11-13 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University):

Is Mainstream Media Hiring from Write for America?

Is Mainstream Media Hiring from Write for America? via Is Mainstream Media Hiring from Write for America?.

by plthomasedd / 3min

Test and Punish Moratorium: “I Won’t be Ignored!” – @ THE CHALK FACE

by P. L. Thomas / 34min

Kurt Vonnegut’s Children’s Crusade: Kindness

In a 2004 Paris Review interview, Haruki Murakami explained: I liked to read Kurt Vonnegut and Richard Brautigan while I was a college student. They had a sense of humor, and at the same time what they were writing about was serious. I like those kind of books. The first time I read Vonnegut and Brautigan I was shocked to find that there were such books! It was like discovering the New World. Mura

5 by plthomasedd / 31min

Kurt Vonnegut’s Children’s Crusade: Kindness | the becoming radical

1 by P. L. Thomas / 26min

At the Chalk Face: The Poverty Trap: Slack, Not Grit, Creates Achievement | National Education Policy Center

1 by P. L. Thomas / 26min

The Poverty Trap: Slack, Not Grit, Creates Achievement | joaquin's dilemmas

1 by P. L. Thomas / 1h mark as read // save

remnant 39: “Lou Reed was massively important to ‘Island of Misfit Toys’ kids” | DISCOURSE as quilting

1 by P. L. Thomas / 2h

remnant 39: “Lou Reed was massively important to ‘Island of Misfit Toys’ kids”

remnant 39: “Lou Reed was massively important to ‘Island of Misfit Toys’ kids”.

by plthomasedd / 2h

11-9-13 Radical Scholarship

Radical Scholarship:From Spellings to Duncan: Using NAEP as Policy PropagandaWhile Secretary of Education (2005-2009), Margaret Spellings announced that a jump of 7 points in NAEP reading scores from 1999-2005 was proof No Child Left Behind was working. The problem, however, was in the details: During President George W. Bush’s tenure, NCLB was a corner stone of his agenda, and when then-Secretary

1 by mike simpson / 10h

11-11-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School:

Bloomberg Heckled At Final Veterans Day Memorial Service As Mayor

Authoritarian mayor Michel Bloomberg celebrates First Amendment rights:NEW YORK—Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s final address at the Veterans Day ceremony at Madison Square Park was interrupted by a heckler on Monday. The mayor, who arrived after the festivities started due to heavy traffic, was interrupted by mid-way through his short speech. A man seated near the front and dressed in a camouflage jack

by reality-based edu... / 25min

National Protest Against Common Core - November 18

Those in the corporate education reform establishment who like to paint opponents and critics of the Common Core as "special interests" should take note of this:Elbridge, NY - On Nov. 18, Danielle and Tim Karlik plan to keep their teenage daughters home from the Jordan-Elbridge schools for National Keep Your Child Out of School Day, a nationwide protest of the Common Core educational sta

by reality-based edu... / 14min

Commissioner King And Chancellor Tisch Restrict Public Access At Common Core Meetings

They're doing anything they can to make it look like they're having open public forums on the SED reform agenda without actually having open public forums on the SED reform agenda: Controversy is swirling over advance selection of speakers and admittance restrictions to education forums this week on Long Island featuring state Education Commissioner John B. King Jr., with some angry parents saying

by reality-based edu... / 39min

Maybe Somebody Should Look Into Bloomberg's Bribe Money?

Buzzfeed:One of Mike Bloomberg’s signal accomplishments in New York City was reversing the flow of corruption. In the old days, and in every other city in the world most days, favor-seekers bribe politicians — with cash in envelopes, with legal contributions, or with political support. In Mike Bloomerg’s New York, the mayor bribed you, buying the silence or cooperation of individuals, cultural org

by reality-based edu... / 5h

11-10-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School: In Which I Use The Danielson Rubric To Evaluate Buster KeatonEveryone knows that just as a teacher cannot be a great teacher without a great lesson plan, a director cannot be a great director without a great script.Those teachers who say they use bare bones notes to teach their classes, no matter how great those classes appear to be or how much the students in those classes

by mike simpson / 9h

The Network For Public Education | Election Updates

The Network For Public Education | Election Updates:

Election Updates

admin November 7, 2013 NPE News

Originally posted on http://dianeravitch.net/2013/11/06/election-updates/

by Diane Ravitch

The election yesterday produced mixed results for supporters of public education. We won some, we lost some. This is big progress. A few years ago, it appeared that the corporate reform crowd would have a free hand and would be able to buy school board seats wherever they chose.

As usual, a number of contests were showered with big money from corporate reformers. The Network for Public Education endorsed candidates who support public education. Of course, NPE was unable to match the spending of the corporate reformers; we don’t have any money, just the ability to give moral support and to help voters recognize which candidates really are trying to improve public education and which are flying under a false banner of “reform.”

Not all the results are definitive, but here are some updates.

All three of the candidates we endorsed for the Bridgeport Board of Education were elected. That means that the board will no longer be controlled by Mayor Finch and Governor Malloy. The people of Bridgeport have spoken, and they want something better for their children than the corporate reform agenda. Presumably, Paul Vallas will collect a sizable severance and

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Our Students and the Self Fulfilling Prophecy: Avoiding Gloom and Doom!

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Our Students and the Self Fulfilling Prophecy: Avoiding Gloom and Doom!:

Our Students and the Self Fulfilling Prophecy: Avoiding Gloom and Doom!

I remember when I was in college a LONG time ago, we learned about the self-fulfilling prophecy. I don't recall the professor who taught it, but somehow it has managed to stay in my head after all these years. If you believe it, it could happen, good or bad, positive or negative, our expectations influence those around us. When the professor introduced this concept, he wanted to emphasize the damage we could do to our students if we had preconceived notions about them and what they were capable of.

In the education field this is particularly true. We have a huge impact on what happens to the hundreds of lives who sit in our classrooms, year after year. How many times have we heard successful people credit a teacher who believed in

NYC Educator: The Business of Pearson Is the Business of America

NYC Educator: The Business of Pearson Is the Business of America:

The Business of Pearson Is the Business of America

It's vital that we enact Common Core Standards immediately. That's why Reformy John King has actually been compelled to go out there and listen to parents and teachers before ignoring them utterly as per usual. Because without the valuable lip service of New York's education commissioner, where would we be?

More importantly, there are books and supplies to be sold. Common Core is the only way we can teach our children to think critically, and those of us who haven't been trained in it will never know how to question anything. As Reformy John says, in front of God and everybody, anyone who doesn't like it is a "special interest." Perhaps, given they're getting in the way of the healthy commerce caused by Common Core, such opponents are communists or worse! It's too bad they haven't been trained in the essential critical thinking skills of Common Core, or they'd know that now is the time to sit down and shut up.

As John King likes to point out, this is an emergency. We haven't got time to worry about whether or not Common Core does any of the things he claims it does. We can't take time to question it, or wonder whether or not it works. And if it's damaging to our children, that's just part of

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND VALLAS QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND VALLAS QUOTABLES:

WEEKEND VALLAS QUOTABLES

Vallas (right) was beaten by Rod Blagojevich (left) in '02.

Fran Spielman

Sources said Vallas alienated teachers unions by privatizing some New Orleans schools and forging partnerships with Connecticut Republicans in a desperate attempt to hang onto his job there. -- Sun-Times

Carol Felsenthal

[Paul's brother] Dean Vallas supported conservative Republican Brady against Quinn in 2010 because he thought Quinn lacked “the political skills to navigate around a Mike Madigan." -- Chicago Magazine

CTU Pres. Karen Lewis

"While he was CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, Vallas pioneered the corporate driven education model in our city. His policies continue to devastate our schools system, which recently suffered 50 school closures, deep and

11-9-13 Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Schooling in the Ownership Society All Week

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog:Schooling in the Ownership SocietyMike Klonsky's SmallTalk Schooling in the Ownership SocietyWe thought we were done with Vallas but... he's backLook out. Vallas is back in town. We tried to finish him off back in 2001 but...No sooner had I finished posting about how the Working Families Party and allies were running Paul Vallas out of Bridgeport, than I get the news

1 by mike simpson / 10h

Louisiana Educator: Stop Predatory Charters!

Louisiana Educator: Stop Predatory Charters!:

Stop Predatory Charters!

Charter Schools - Dividing Communities since 1991

The following is a letter to the editor by BESE member Dr. Lottie Beebe. I believe this letter alerts us to an extremely disruptive force in Louisiana education which I call Predatory Charters. In my opinion the only purpose of predatory charters is to use our tax dollars to enrich entrepreneurs who have figured out how to use the current education reform movement to their advantage. Here is Dr. Beebe's letter:

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor:

The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE)'s decision on October 16, 2013 to approve charter school applications for Lafayette Parish – against the wishes of Lafayette’s elected education leaders – sets a dangerous precedent that should alarm all Louisiana citizens.

BESE approved 5 charter school applications in Lafayette Parish from two groups, Charter Schools USA and National Heritage Academies. Both Charter Schools USA and National Heritage Academies are for-profit corporations headquartered outside of Louisiana. While these companies claimed their charter schools would provide choice for parents and ease student crowding in the classroom, many citizens of Lafayette Parish expressed legitimate concerns.

Citizens were concerned the for-profit companies would retain ownership of the facilities built with taxpayers’ dollars should the charter schools fail to deliver on their promised student

“Diversity is Hard”: Will Charter Schools In Your Locale Choose Equity? | Cloaking Inequity

“Diversity is Hard”: Will Charter Schools In Your Locale Choose Equity? | Cloaking Inequity:

“Diversity is Hard”: Will Charter Schools In Your Locale Choose Equity?

I am not of the ilk that charters are all bad news (See all of Cloaking Inequity’s post on charter schools here). As most people know, I am a charter school parent, currently serve on a charter school board, and was an instructor at an Aspire charter school. I realize that I have prominent friends and allies that are 100% anti-charter. I am okay with those feelings because I have serious concerns with equity in the charter movement.

Here in the Lone Star State I am unsure if there is a community more enamored with charters than San Antonio. This love affair has been spurred by millions of dollars in donations by the Brackenridge Foundation and otherventure philanthropist involved in “Choose to Succeed.” Previously on Cloaking Inequity I have taken aim at corporate charter chains because of my concerns with their equity for low-SES students (See Great Hearts, BASIS, and KIPP). In fact, I began Cloaking Inequity so that I could respond to a KIPP press release criticizing our peer-reviewed study about the attrition of African American students from charters in Texas (“Work Hard, Be Nice?”: A Response to KIPP).

What is the state of charter movement? Well, if you look at graduation and dropout numbers in Texas you will probably be shocked. I was. I pulled the following table from the most recent Texas dropout and completion report

The Myth of Teachers Not Changing | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

The Myth of Teachers Not Changing | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

The Myth of Teachers Not Changing

Look back at schooling in 1900 and compare to schooling today.

Then: bolted down-desks and wood-burning stoves, teachers teaching a lesson to the whole group, students standing to recite textbook answers, dunce caps, teachers disciplining students with switches and sticks, and classes running to 50 or more students in city schools.

Now: movable desks and tables where students sit and face one another, air-conditioning and central heating, students giving PowerPoint presentations, small groups and pairs of students working together, computer devices strewn around the classroom, after-school drama, athletics, and robotics clubs and cafeterias where students eat breakfast and lunch. And classes that have between 20-30 students.

Schools have, indeed, changed. What about teaching?

Policymakers, dressed up as reformers and reformers dressed up as experts,

A Sociological Eye on Education | When policymakers don’t understand basic statistics

A Sociological Eye on Education | When policymakers don’t understand basic statistics:

When policymakers don’t understand basic statistics

Imagine, if you will, that the Stuarts have two children, Kylie and Frederick. Kylie was born in 1997 and Frederick was born in 2001, both in Toledo, Ohio. The Stuarts measure Kylie’s height when she reaches the spring of fourth grade, in 2007, and learn that she is 52” tall, or 4’4”.

Shortly thereafter, the family moves from Toledo to Kansas City, Mo., and Mrs. Stuart decides to change the family’s diet, reducing the red meat content and adding more whole grains and fresh fruit. When Frederick is in the spring of his fourth-grade year, in 2011, the Stuarts measure his height. They find that Frederick is 54” tall, or 4’6”—two inches taller than Kylie was at the same age.

Mrs. Stuart is ecstatic. “The family’s height has grown over time!” she exclaims. “Our fourth-grader’s height in 2007 was 52 inches, and our fourth-grader in 2011 was 54 inches tall. That’s growth over time!” Giddy, she says, “And I’m sure that the growth is because of the change in diet. It really works! If other families did this, their kids would grow just as much as ours did from 2007 to 2011!”

Mrs. Stuart may not know it, but she has a future in politics. The mangled logic on which she relies is no different than what emerged last week from the mouths of well-known policymakers upon the release of the 2013 scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Every two years, the federal government assesses a sample of fourth- and eighth-grade children in reading and mathematics in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as students in a sample of urban school districts. When the scores are released, policymakers and pundits scramble to

Private, for-profit colleges see unaccustomed setbacks

Once the hottest things in higher education, private, for-profit colleges and universities have suddenly found themselves on the business equivalent of academic probation. The for-profits –– which range from beauty colleges and truck-driving schools to industry behemoth the University of Phoenix — enjoyed booming enrollment, which more than tripled from 1991 to 2011, and annual profits in the bi

1 by Matt Krupnick / 37min

NYC Teacher Franceso Portelos Challenges The Department of Education on The Issues of Retaliation and Secrecy by Betsy Combier - ParentAdvocates.org

Parent Advocates - ParentAdvocates.org:

NYC Teacher Franceso Portelos Challenges The Department of Education on The Issues of Retaliation and Secrecy by Betsy Combier

He started to blog what he found at his school, IS 49, whose Principal, Linda Hill, was hoping she could get away with improper documentation of school funds. And then the Department charged him with misconduct, put him in a rubber room, and submitted a gag order to a Federal Judge. The NYC DOE corruption cannot survive in the open, so they are retaliating against Francesco for his courage to expose their corruption and fraud. I am a big fan of Francesco and his blog.

Francesco Portelos

Francesco Portelos is a very intelligent man, a charismatic and excellent teacher, father, and blogger. It's the last category which may have been the "straw that broke the camel's back" and landed him in the rubber room - which 'no longer exist' (according to the UFT's April 15, 2010 agreement which neither the UFT nor the NYC DOE give a hoot about). Many people now know, after reading the blogs and websites on the global internet, that government personnel lie....so do union Presidents and staff. The media doesn't get the story straight, either.

(The Staten Island reporter did a better job) As you will see below,Francesco's story is generic, a mixture of DOE retaliation, dislike, exposure of secrets, and ludicrous errors. Francesco won an "A For Accountability" Award from my Foundation. Soon after he was removed from his classroom, I filed a Freedom of Information request for Principal Linda Hill's personnel file. Here are the results of my FOIL request:

Hill-files
school-files

I did not start my blog, NYC Rubber Room Reporter, until 2007. but since I studied the Soviet and American Military Industrial Complex at Columbia University and at Johns Hopkins' School For Advanced

New Research from Stanford Finds an Achievement Gap at 18 Months | Eye on Early Education

New Research from Stanford Finds an Achievement Gap at 18 Months | Eye on Early Education:

New Research from Stanford Finds an Achievement Gap at 18 Months

November 11, 2013 by Alyssa Haywoode

Photo: Caroline Silber for Strategies for Children

When do achievement gaps begin to take root? A new study from Stanford University found that by 18 months, “toddlers from disadvantaged families are already several months behind more advantaged children in language proficiency,” according to a Stanford News article. However, parents of all income levels can help close this gap, according to the study’s author.

Decades of research already pointed to early achievement gaps among children, including the well-known Hart-Risley study, which found that children from higher-income families hear and acquire more words than their lower income peers. By age three, children showed marked differences in their vocabularies.

Building on past efforts, the Stanford study, which was published in Developmental Science, “is the first to identify an ‘achievement gap’ in language processing skills at such a young age and could inform strategies to intervene and bring children up to speed,” the article continues.

Anne Fernald, a Stanford psychology professor, conducted the study. She started by assessing a convenient sample of 20 18-month-olds who were

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