Tuesday, February 25, 2014

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 2-25-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:

from LAUSD IN THE NEWS /THE DISTRICT’S CLIPPING SERVICE Report: No Librarians At Half Of LAUSD Middle, Elementary School Libraries February 24, 2014 6:10 PM LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Budget cuts in the Los Angeles Unified School District have left about half of the 600 elementary and middle school libraries throughout the city without librarians, according to a report. As campuses across the

by smf / 34min

CALIFORNIA NEEDS THE YOUNG IF IT’S TO THRIVE: Age, not race or ethnicity, matters most for the state's future prosperity.

Op-Ed By Dowell Myers in the LA Times | http://lat.ms/1fCkrvt February 25, 2014 :: California is the world's largest experiment in social diversity. It has had no majority racial ethnic group since 1999, when whites fell below 50% of the population. In March, Latinos will become the largest group here, making up 39% of state residents, according to demographers in the state Department of

2 by smf / 1h

Scherzo! Barukhzy! Fantoccini! TWO SPELLING BEES END WITH EPIC TIES

Two pairs of spelling contestants duel for hours, forcing judges to suspend competition for a while. In one case, organizers ran out of words. By Matt Pearce | LA Times | http://lat.ms/NuyfNZ Sophia Hoffman, 11, and Kush Sharma, 13, remain tied after more than 60 rounds of spelling at the Jackson County Spelling Bee in Kansas City, Mo. (Jackson County Spelling Bee / February 22, 2014)

1 by smf / 1h hide // save

Former Mayor Tony Endorses Hudley-Hayes For Open Lausd Board Seat

by Vanessa Romo, LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1cLzVvZ Posted on February 24, 2014 :: Former mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has thrown himself into the District 1 special election race by endorsing Genethia Hudley-Hayes, one of 13 candidates running to join the LA Unified School Board. Former Mayor Villaraigosa >> Hudley-Hayes, who served as school board president until she lost her

1 by smf / 1h

IF YOU BUILD IT: "What if you could bring back shop class but this time orient the projects around things that the community needed?"

Oakland's Emily Pilloton retools shop class with conscience by Jessica Zack in the San Francisco Chronicle | http://bit.ly/1fnqYvg Mikaela James, 9, gains guidance from architect Emily Pilloton while using a miter saw during a class on how to fix things. Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle February 23, 2014 :: In a clip from her 2010 TED Talk that opens the new documentary "If

3 by smf / 1h

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 2-24-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Many L.A. Unified School Libraries, Lacking Staff, Are Forced To ShutBudget cuts leave about half of L.A. Unified's elementary and middle schools without librarians, and thousands of students without books. By Teresa Watanabe, LA Times | http://lat.ms/1jtWS8w Hands raised :: Raising their hands, Alexa Martinez, 7, back row, left; Jennifer Hernandez, 6

1 by mike simpson / 23h

Specific Learning Disabilities – What we don’t know has hurt us :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

Specific Learning Disabilities – What we don’t know has hurt us :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:

FEBRUARY 25, 2014

Specific Learning Disabilities – What we don’t know has hurt us

by Lee Funk

For anyone who has been involved in special education as a practitioner or policy maker for more than, say, 10 minutes, the term “specific learning disability” must have an odd connotation because there is nothing “specific” about the diagnosis.

On the contrary, the label SLD covers a broad range of difficulties that may be associated with reading, math, writing, spelling, attention, motor skills, or memory – to name just a few. And the approaches to teaching and remediation for the wide range of students who fit into this broad categorical description are every bit as diverse as the traits associated with the disability itself.

So the authors of the “State of Learning Disabilities: Facts, Trends and Emerging Issues,” recently released by the National Center for Learning Disabilities, certainly had their work cut out for them as they attempted to navigate their way through the various facts, numbers, legal requirements, state regulations, and philosophies associated with SLD.

They did it, though, and they did it well, beginning with an overview of the topic then proceeding through public perceptions, LDs in the schools, learning disabilities in adult life, and finally concluding with a look at future possibilities in the “Emerging Issues” chapter. The report is imminently readable and a scrupulous resource for statistics and relevant information pertaining to this disability category – the largest group – 42 percent – identified under IDEA, according to th

Comparability Calculations: a critical component for budgeting

In the near future we will see a stricter focus on ensuring Title I schools receive their comparable amount of state and local funding. Now is the time to consider comparability as you build your 2014-15 budget.

by Rick Carder / 11min

Bad Apples in Corporate Education Reform (You Know Who They Are)

Bad Apples in Corporate Education Reform
(You Know Who They Are)

Dear Bill Gates, Eli Broad and the Walton Clan:

What are you going to do about the corruption in government that your money is causing? Do you feel any responsibility for the way your money is being spent to purchase your education reform? Are you going to continue to fund AstroTurf organizations that violate laws? Just askin'?

Mike Simpson
Big Education Ape

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Tuesday, February 25, 2014

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Rules to limit marketing unhealthy food in schools

Education Headlines

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.

Stockton USD request for substitute pay rankles Visalia board

Pacific Law Academy Spanish teacher Charles Ulmschneider will leave work two periods early this afternoon, then travel 167 miles to Visalia, where he serves as an elected member of the Visalia Unified School District Board of Trustees.

Trustee conduct tops Alisal agenda

The Alisal Union School District Board of Trustees is preparing to muzzle itself — at least partially — at its meeting Wednesday.

EdSource: New funding law puts focus on translation for non-English speakers

School districts with high concentrations of English-learner students are facing a new challenge in ensuring that parents who need language translation are informed of their role under the funding formula for schools.

Tackling how to spend additional school funding

The additional funds are modest at first. But over the next six years, the money coming to local school districts is going up by 80 percent in some cases. And officials need to involve parents, teachers and other community members to discuss how that money — often thousands of dollars per student — can be spent to improve education.

Galt elementary teachers expected to get 5 percent pay raise under tentative agreement

Galt Joint Union Elementary School District teachers are expected to receive a 5 percent pay raise under a tentative agreement approved by the union on Friday afternoon. The action ends stalled contract negotiations.

Embattled Centinela Valley high school district schedules emergency meeting for Tuesday

The Centinela Valley Union High School District has scheduled an emergency meeting for Tuesday, providing the first opportunity for the public to address the board since a series of Daily Breeze articles detailed the big-money politics in the tiny district serving Lawndale and Hawthorne.

Hundreds attend meeting in wake of Fullerton teacher's arrest

A standing room-only crowd of at least 500 parents and students turned out for a meeting at Nicolas Junior High School Monday, many applauding the swift response by administrators and police to a report of sexual misconduct by a teacher with two male students.

Rules to limit marketing unhealthy food in schools

Moving beyond the lunch line, new rules that will be proposed Tuesday by the White House and the Agriculture Department would limit marketing of unhealthy foods in schools. They would phase out the advertising of sugary drinks and junk foods around campuses during the school day and ensure that other promotions in schools were in line with health standards that already apply to school foods.

Alpine teachers, district reach tentative accord

A tentative agreement between striking Alpine teachers and the Alpine Union School District was reached in the earliest hours on Tuesday after a fourth day of negotiations.

Modesto school board gives students a break on citizenship marks

Modesto City Schools board members on Monday gave a vote of confidence to coaches serving as mentors, heard teacher comments on proposals for their next contract and received an upbeat report on enrollment. The board voted unanimously to make permanent a trial program allowing participation in sports and leadership classes despite two or more bad citizenship marks. Citizenship is a report card category.

Gov. Jerry Brown talks realignment, school funding in Stanislaus County

Gov. Jerry Brown met privately with about 20 Stanislaus County law enforcement and public education officials Monday, as he promoted his administration’s efforts to change where criminals are incarcerated and how schools are funded.

Transgender rights repeal misses California ballot

A referendum to overturn a new California law that provides transgender students certain rights in public schools will not appear on the November ballot because its backers failed to gather enough voter signatures to qualify the measure, the secretary of state said Monday.

Student at Sacramento’s Grant High School diagnosed with tuberculosis

Sacramento County health officials are testing dozens of Grant High School students for active tuberculosis after a classmate was diagnosed with the infectious disease.

Monday, February 24, 2014

Bassett Unified School District invests $80,000 in elementary library improvements

While larger school districts are cutting funding to libraries to focus more on technology, the Bassett Unified School District plans to invest $80,000 in upgrades tailored toward shelves and other furniture focused more on print books.

'No Child' waiver creates rift among Fresno education leaders

Nearly seven months after Fresno Unified and seven other California school districts got one year of relief from strict federal accountability rules for student academic performance, administrators are now looking to reapply for flexibility from the much-maligned No Child Left Behind law.

Centinela Valley superintendent got low-interest loan from district to buy $910,000 home despite bankruptcy

Superintendent Jose Fernandez was going through his second bankruptcy and had lost his family home when the Centinela Valley Union High School District threw him a golden lifeline in 2012 — a $910,000 home loan with no down payment to be repaid at 2 percent interest over 40 years.

What’s the best equipment for students taking new computerized school tests?

Local school districts are spending millions of dollars to buy new computers to prepare for the computerized testing the state will require in the next school year, as well as the practice tests that begin next month.

Alpine teacher talks break down; strike to continue Monday

Marathon negotiations over the weekend between the Alpine Union School District and its teachers union didn’t produce a contract agreement, setting the stage for more picketing by teachers Monday.

Northern San Joaquin Valley, Sierra teacher learn the latest about educational technology

More than 800 teachers spent Saturday learning about the latest innovations in educational technology during a daylong conference at Gregori High School. From social media platforms and digital tools to iPad applications and Chromebook curriculum, dozens of tech topics were explored in classroom workshops.

San Lorenzo: $6 million high school digital arts center opens

Soon, high school students will film movies and produce television shows in a new $6 million digital arts studio with a 3,100-square-foot sound stage, a control room, an editing suite, a voice-over room and a TV studio complete with several cameras and a teleprompter.

NYC Public School Parents: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - NYSAPE Urges Legislators to Cast No Vote for Incumbents at Board of Regents Election if Nominated

NYC Public School Parents: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - NYSAPE Urges Legislators to Cast No Vote for Incumbents at Board of Regents Election if Nominated:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - NYSAPE Urges Legislators to Cast No Vote for Incumbents at Board of Regents Election if Nominated

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 25, 2014

More information contact:

Eric Mihelbergel (716) 553-1123; nys.allies@gmail.com

Lisa Rudley (917) 414-9190; nys.allies@gmail.com

NYS Allies for Public Education (NYSAPE) www.nysape.org

NYSAPE Urges Legislators to Cast No Vote for Incumbents at Board of Regents Election if Nominated

New York State Allies for Public Education (NYSAPE), a coalition of 45 organizations from around the state, is urging New Yorkers to contact their Legislators to attend the joint Legislative session on Tuesday, March 11 during which four Regent board members will be selected. Although the four Regent incumbents, Cea, Cottrell, Jackson, and Norwood have applied to retain their seats, parents, educators, and community members are asking their Legislators to vote “No” to any incumbent who is re-nominated. NYSAPE will be keeping score of how each Legislator votes at www.nysape.org

Parents across New York State have expressed outrage at the Board of Regents’ failure to respond to the concerns of both parents and educators. The incumbent Regent candidates have failed to take action to amend current policies or speak out against them. The recent recommendations of the Regents’ Taskforce Report did little to address the critical problems associated with the Common Core standards, the flawed modules, high stakes testing, or student data sharing. According to South Side High School principal Carol Burris, “The so-called delay in full implementation of high school graduation Common Core standards was a political ploy. First, the Common Core Regents exams were not delayed—students will begin taking them this spring. Second, the new “passing scores” had never been established—and with good reason. If those two scores (75 on the English Regents and 80 on a Math Regents) were put in place, our graduation rate would plummet to 35%.”

Last week, the State Education Department also announced that they plan to upload sensitive, personal student data to inBloom, starting in July. New York is the only state of the nine original inBloom participants not to pull out completely or put their data sharing plans on indefinite hold.

In recent weeks, Legislators had the opportunity to interview both new applicants and the incumbent candidates for the four open positions on the Board of Regents. “It is inconceivable to think that Legislators would vote for an incumbent simply out of deference to his or her previous service. I watched the interviews, I read the Regents Taskforce Report. I know that the Regents Cea, Cottrell, Jackson, and Norwood are not the best candidates for the job and do not deserve to be re-appointed. The future of public education in this state hangs in the balance and this vote will help influence how thousands of parents in turn cast their votes come November,” said Bianca Tanis, parent and co-founding member of NYSAPE.

"I would urge our Legislators to show up and vote,” said Eric Mihelbergel, Ken-Ton public school parent and founding member of NYSAPE. “They are more than aware of parent concerns and as elected officials, I am hopeful that members of the Senate and Assembly will carry out the wishes of their constituents to use this election as an opportunity to exert their influence to bring change to current policies and safeguard our children’s education.”

NEA’s Read Across America Kicks Off in South Texas | NEA Today

NEA’s Read Across America Kicks Off in South Texas | NEA Today:

NEA’s Read Across America Kicks Off in South Texas

February 25, 2014 by twalker
Filed under Featured News, Top Stories

The Global Teacher | Connected Principals

The Global Teacher | Connected Principals:

The Global Teacher

by George Couros • February 25, 2014 • 0 Comments

I have talked about the notion of “classroom teacher” vs. “school teacher” in posts before, and have begun to rethink this notion.

Simply put, a “classroom teacher” is someone that focuses on their classroom and students only. Although there can be a huge benefit to their own students, this often leads to weaker relationships with other students. They often see other kids as someone else’s issue and will avoid dealing with them. They also keep their practices to themselves and have their classroom door closed, sometimes literally, but most often figuratively.

Then you have the “school teacher“. This to me was the ideal as this teacher connected with every student in their classroom, as well as students and educators around the school. They see supervision as an opportunity to connect with others and build relationships with kids. They share their practices openly with others because their focus is always on “what is best for kids“. If they can share something, and you can take it, remix it, and use it for your students, they make everyone better. They think of the school as a village and their expertise and experience is shared exponentially not to only help their kids, but all kids in their school.

So now I have started to think about the “global teacher“. The global teacher has the best elements of

The White House and USDA announce School Wellness Standards | The White House

The White House and USDA announce School Wellness Standards | The White House:

The White House and USDA announce School Wellness Standards

First Lady Michelle Obama and U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announce proposed school wellness standards and roll out of breakfast and lunch programs for schools that serve low income communities

Washington, DC – Today, First Lady Michelle Obama joins U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to announce proposed guidelines for local school wellness policies. The bipartisan Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 mandated that the USDA set guidelines for what needed to be included in local school wellness policies in areas such as setting goals for nutrition education and physical activity, informing parents about content of the policy and implementation, and periodically assessing progress and sharing updates as appropriate. As part of local school wellness policies, the proposed guidelines would ensure that foods and beverages marketed to children in schools are consistent with the recently-released Smart Snacks in School standards. Ensuring that unhealthy food is not marketed to children is one of the First Lady’s top priorities; that is why it is so important for schools to reinforce the importance of healthy choices and eliminate marketing of unhealthy products.

“The idea here is simple—our classrooms should be healthy places where kids aren’t bombarded with ads for junk food,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “Because when parents are working hard to teach their kids healthy habits at home, their work shouldn’t be undone by unhealthy messages at school.

This action comes after the White House Summit on Food Marketing to Children last fall where Mrs. Obama called on the country to ensure children’s health was not undermined by marketing of unhealthy food.

“The food marketing and local wellness standards proposed today support better health for our kids and echo the good work already taking place at home and in schools across the country. The new standards ensure that schools remain a safe place where kids can learn and where the school environment promotes healthy choices. USDA is committed to working closely with students, parents, school stakeholders and the food and beverage industries to implement the new guidelines and make the healthy choice, the easy choice for America’s young people,” Secretary Vilsack said.

To help schools with the implementation of the school wellness policies, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has launched a new “School Nutrition Environment and Wellness Resources” website, which includes sample wellness policy language for school districts and a dedicated page of resources for food marketing practices on the school campus.

These new resources will complement a second announcement which highlights the nationwide expansion of a successful program that was piloted in 11 states with the goal of ensuring children who are in need of nutritious meals are receiving them. Beginning July 1, 2014, more than 22,000 schools across the country—which serve primarily low-income students—will be eligible to serve healthy free lunches and breakfasts to all students. This will help as many as 9 million American children eat healthy meals at school, especially breakfast, which can have profound impacts on educational achievement. Research shows that kids who eat breakfast in the classroom preform over 17% better on math tests and have fewer disciplinary problems.

For more information, go to http://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/

Louisiana Educator: Real Reform That Provides Career Opportunities for Our Students

Louisiana Educator: Real Reform That Provides Career Opportunities for Our Students:

Real Reform That Provides Career Opportunities for Our Students

I hope all my readers will go to the following link to read about The School Standards Rebellion.

According to the article in Politico, this is what is now happening in Texas:

"Parents furious about the state’s heavy focus on standardized testing teamed up with educators irate at the one-size-fits-all curriculum. Then an even more powerful ally stepped aboard: TheJobs for Texas Coalition, representing trade groups and businesses that collectively employ 6 million Texans, a third of the state’s workforce.

The coalition argued that the college prep curriculum eats up so many hours — especially when kids fail a required class and must retake it — that students have no time for vocational courses that introduce them to skilled trades. That’s led to fewer students seeking out jobs in construction and manufacturing. Those who do apply lack the technical training and the soft skills — such as on-the-fly problem solving — such classes nurture.

“For 20 years, we’ve been ratcheting up the rigor required to get out of high school, and we started to see unintended consequences,” said Mike Meroney, a spokesman for the coalition.

"Letting kids opt out of college prep doesn’t mean they’ll spend a lifetime flipping burgers, Meroney said. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists two dozen fast-growing occupations that don’t

2-25-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:

A Liberal and a Conservative Reach Remarkable Agreement on Edu-Philanthropy

Richard Kahlenberg moderated a discussion between Joanne Barkan and Rick Hess at the Shanker Institute. As it turned out, no moderator was needed. By the end of the conversation, there was a remarkable consensus about the overreach of foundations. Barkan kicked the discussion off with a historical analysis regarding the use and abuse of […]

by John Thompson / 11min hide // save

What Shall We Do About Reading Today? (1942)

What Shall We Do About Reading Today? (1942). via What Shall We Do About Reading Today? (1942).

1 by plthomasedd / 23min

Cornel West and Carl Dix say: Hoodies Up! on February 26

Cornel West and Carl Dix say: Hoodies Up! on February 26. via Cornel West and Carl Dix say: Hoodies Up! on February 26.

by plthomasedd / 24min

2-24-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE: Knowledge: Not If, but How (and Who Decides)Knowledge: Not If, but How (and Who Decides). via Knowledge: Not If, but How (and Who Decides).1 by plthomasedd / 42min hide // saveYESTERDAYuntitledWhile writing my post on the NEA-Teach Plus “partnership,” my attention was drawn to more of the information available regarding grant payment on the Gates grants search engine. My curios

by mike simpson / 22min

Comparing Oak Trees’ “Apples to Apples,” by Stanford’s Edward Haertel |

Comparing Oak Trees’ “Apples to Apples,” by Stanford’s Edward Haertel |:

Comparing Oak Trees’ “Apples to Apples,” by Stanford’s Edward Haertel

A VAMboozled! follower posted this comment via Facebook the other day: “I was wondering if you had seen this video by The Value-Added Research Center [VARC], called the “Oak Tree Analogy” [it is the second video down]? My children’s school district has it on their web-site. What are your thoughts about VARC, and the video?”

I have my own thoughts about VARC, and I will share these next, but better than that I have somebody else’s much wiser thoughts about this video, as this video has in many ways gone “viral.”

Professor Edward Haertel, School of Education at Stanford University, wrote Linda Darling-Hammond (Stanford), Jesse Rothstein (Berkeley), and me an email a few years ago about just this video. While I could not find the email he eloquently drafted then, I persuaded (aka, begged) him to recreate what he wrote then, here, for all of you.

You might want to watch the video, first, to follow along, or least, to more critically view the contents of the video. You decide, but Professor Haertel writes:

“The Value-Added Research Center’s ‘Oak Tree’ analogy is helpful in conveying the theory [emphasis added] behind value-added models. To compare the two gardeners, we adjust away various influences that are out of the gardeners’ control, and then, as with value added, we just assume that whatever is left over must have been due to the

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