Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 4-1-14

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog:

untitled

Residents of a 12 mile zone in are being aloud to inhabit their homes after three years of recovery from Japanese nuclear power plant disaster that shook nearly three years ago. This decision to revitalize the zone affects nearly 117 households, and 357 people. It was decided that the radiation levels of the zone were low enough to be inhabitable, but many of the residents are skeptical on the s

by Robert Mitchell / 6h hide  //  save

YESTERDAY

North and South Korea Trade Fire

March 31, 2014 North Korea and South Korea fired multiple shots at each other from across the western sea border separating the two nations. This incident ultimately strengthened the tensions between the two with the North threatening to continue in their nuclear testing. Earlier in the day, North Korea told South that they were going to conduct live firing drills in seven zones along the maritime

by Elias Burbick / 8h 

Domestic Abuse Within The United Arab Emirates

    Gender equality has always been a problem in the Middle East, and that's an understatement. At the moment there's several controversial laws regarding domestic abuse stemming from a 2010 ruling by the United Arab Emirates Federal Supreme Court. This particular ruling in question upheld Section 53 of the UAE penal code which states the following:     "There shall be no crime, if the act ta

by Kyle Luper / 8h 

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 3-31-14

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: United Arab Emirates: there's an app for thatThe United Arab Emirates has launched the first-ever smart government app store. In conjunction with Google and Apple, local and federal governments have created over 100 apps to serve around 700 people at a time in one location. The plan is for the UAE to transition to smart government by the middle of 2015, only a little ov

by mike simpson / 9h 

4-1-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

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

Lingua.ly Launches App ELLs Might Like

I’ve previously posted about Lingua.ly, a very useful Chrome extension for people learning another language, including English (see Lingua.ly Is A Useful Tool For Second-Language Learners). In fact, it’s on The Best Websites For English Language Learner Students In 2013 list. They just launched their first mobile app (it’s Android-only now, but they should have a version for the iPhone, too) that

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1h hide  //  save

YESTERDAY

“Testing Talk” Is A Forum For Feedback On “Next Generation” Of State Tests

Testing Talk is a new site designed to solicit feedback from educators on this next generation of state standardized testing. I’m not quite clear on how it’s different from the Assessment Advisor, developed by the National Education Association (you can read my post about it at NEA Partners With Teach Plus & Creates Online Rating System For Student Assessments). I do have to say that the com

by Larry Ferlazzo / 8h 

I Am Tired Of “School Reformers” Using The Civil Rights Movement Legacy To Support Their Agenda

Los Angeles Schools Superintendent John Deasy spoke today at USC on the Vergara lawsuit (see The Best Resources On California Court Case Attacking Teacher’s Rights). Los Angeles Times reporter Howard Blume is not going to write a story about his speech, but he did send out these tweets: L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy, in USC address today, links Vergara court case to the chain of civil rights stru

by Larry Ferlazzo / 8h 

3-31-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: My Latest NY Times Post For ELLs Is About Nouns, Soccer In China & More!Learn about nouns, soccer (football) in China, and using interviews as an engaging sequencing activity for learning English — all in my latest post in the New York Times. A student interactive and teaching activities are included. You can find all m

by mike simpson / 8h 

“Unprecedented” numbers opt out of state tests–what’s next? | Digital

“Unprecedented” numbers opt out of state tests–what’s next? | Digital:

“Unprecedented” numbers opt out of state tests–what’s next?

Today students in New York State begin three days of state-mandated tests in English language arts.  But thousands of families across the state, from Syracuse and Buffalo to the Hudson Valley, Long Island to New York City, will sit out the tests, citing concerns with their relevance and the sense that the curriculum has been taken over by preparation.

“It shifts the entire focus of the classroom,” says Jeannette Deutermann, the organizer behind Long Island Opt Out, a Facebook group with almost 16,000 members. “They seem way too young to have that much testing and that much focus on the tests.”

An opt-out T-shirt worn by kids in Suffolk County.

The spring of 2014 has seen a wave of grassroots activism against both standardized tests and the Common Core that Bob Schaeffer, a longtime activist with the group Fairtest, calls “unprecedented.” The numbers are small, but they’re found around the country. Chicago, site of the 2012 teachers’ strike, and Colorado have seen the most action so far, although opt-out protests have been reported in Oklahoma, New Mexico, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennslyvania, New Jersey, andAlabama among other states.

Now it is New York’s turn. This is the second year that New York State students are taking Common Core aligned exams, which last year showed a 25-30 point drop in scores compared to previous tests, raising the ire of parents. It is unusual for parent activists in heavily democratic Greenpoint, Brooklyn to be on the same page with those in more conservative Syracuse, hundreds of miles away in Western New York. But the same pattern is repeating around the country. The convergence of resistance to the Common Core, a cause championed by libertarian and other right-wing groups, with resistance to state standardized tests, often backed by progressive teachers’ unions and civil rights groups, has led to what Schaeffer calls a “strange-bedfellows alliance.”

But based on organizers I’ve talked to in Texas, Washington State, Colorado and New York while researching my new book, most of the opposition to school testing honestly doesn’t have a prearranged political agenda at all. ”The policy and funding elites–the Gates, Walton, and Broad foundations–major campaign donors, and the elite mass media are pushing for more tests and the Core,” Schaeffer says. On the other side, “There’s really a populist pushback–lots of just plain parents and teachers who think layering on even more test driven curriculum is not going to have the results we want.”

That describes Deutermann. She got involved in organizing “by accident” when the older of her two sons, then in 3rd grade, started crying and begging not to go to school.  ”He had stomachaches at 

Does Pre-K really help?

The big news in New York City this week is that Mayor Bill de Blasio got the money he was looking for to fund universal pre-kindergarten in the city. It’s also a national story, though, because many states and cities across the country, egged on by an Obama administration initiative, have been pushing for more early childhood education, particularly for the most disadvantaged children. Universal p

5 by Sarah Garland / 2h 

4-1-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

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

Vote for Fred #19

CTU. Outrage at Rahm’s pension proposal.

Dear Fred, In carefully examining the pension “deal” put forth recently by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, we have found that the plan does not, in any way, solve Chicago’s pension problem. As we have said many times before, over and over and over again: This is a revenue problem. Our members are rightfully enraged, as the cuts that the mayor is proposing are just more of the same—more of the same burden bein

by Fred Klonsky / 0min 

Ten minute drawing. Not an April Fool’s Day joke.

by Fred Klonsky / 10min hide  //  save

More on Rahm’s pension deal.

I posted earlier today about Rahm’s claim he had a city pension deal. He claimed a few days ago through the Sun-Times reporter Fran Spielman that a pension deal with the CTU was “hours away.” The CTU quickly shut that nonsense down. Back before the elections Senate President John Cullerton declared that passing a bill cutting city pensions was job one when the General Assembly got back in session

by Fred Klonsky / 6min 

Mark Stefanik. I’m sorry.

- Mark Stefanik is a middle school Language Arts teacher and frequent contributor to this blog. I am so sorry for all of the name-calling that I’ve promoted and enjoyed on this blog site. I regret surrendering to my wicked Irish tongue. In the future, I will write to collaborate, not excoriate. I have learned a fundamental truth: elected representation, whether union leadership or statehouse memb

by Fred Klonsky / 36min 

Rahm is not waiting for the courts to decide. He announces an unconstitutional agreement.

When I spoke with my State Senator Iris Martinez last November about her vote on pension theft, her answer was a strange one. “I’m against the bill, but I’m voting for it. We should let the courts decide.” Senate Bill 1 passed. Unions and organizations representing the state’s public employees and retirees have filed suit. Those suits have all be consolidated and will be heard in Sangamon County

by Fred Klonsky / 1h hide  //  save

I’m endorsed by Reclaim Reform’s Ken Previti. “He’s not just another pretty face.”

Ken Previti’s Reclaim Reform.

by Fred Klonsky / 2h 

Conventional wisdom is often not wisdom at all when it comes to retired and active teachers.

SORE members hold a soup kitchen and serve half a cola outside Representative Robyn Gabel’s Evanston office. Our chapter of IEA Retired, the Skokie Organization of Retired Educators, met over lunch yesterday with Will Lovett from IEA Government Relations. Among other things, Will is our IEA Springfield pension lobbyist. It was a full room at Ruby Tuesdays, down the street from Old Orchard Mall -

1 by Fred Klonsky / 2h 

3-31-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Standardized testing? “We’re out.”1 by Fred Klonsky / 1h hide  //  saveWeingarten Rights. Our Miss Brooks never got in trouble with the principal or central office administrators.. For all the many years that I was Grievance Chair, union local Vice President and President I always made a big thing abo

by mike simpson / 9h 

4-1-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"

Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement":

“Parents have few, if any venues to express their concerns”

The headline quotation is from Jose Luis Vilson, who contributed to the New York Times “Room For Debate” forum on Should Parents Opt Out of Testing? Check out his full contribution and comments from others. I’m adding it to The Best Posts On Parents “Opting-Out” Of Standardized Tests For Their Children.

by Larry Ferlazzo / 10h hide  //  save

 

3-31-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"

Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “A Recipe for Home Visits: 1 Afternoon, 2 Neighborhoods, 4 Families & Frijoles”A Recipe for Home Visits: 1 Afternoon, 2 Neighborhoods, 4 Families & Frijoles is a nice post by Jessica Cuthbertson. Here’s an excerpt: With the help of a multilingual colleague, a teacher workday, and a few phone calls, we visited four f

by mike simpson / 8h 

Whiteface Rulez | EduShyster

Whiteface Rulez | EduShyster:

Whiteface Rulez

 Will you help me realize my dream of attending Camp Reform-a-Lot?

Whiteface Lodge – look how nice it looks!

Reader: it’s a well known fact that nothing thrills me more than the prospect of attending an elite gathering of education reform elites. Which is why when I learned about this all-star camping trip of elite reform all stars, to be held next month at none other thanWhiteface Lodge in the Adirondack Mountains, I knew that I had no choice but to go. Alas, there was a problem—actually a great many problems. You see, it turns out that all-star camping is not an inexpensive proposition. And to put students *first class* costs even more.

Meet the originals
First: I know what you’re thinking: there’s something about that name… Not Whiteface Lodge, shallow reader; I’m talking about Camp Philos: A Philosopher’s Camp on Education Reform. No doubt you are aware that this moniker harkens back 

4-1-14 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online:

Opt-Out Update: Change the Stakes releases open letter to Chancellor: Stop bullying by admins

I've been neglectful in reporting the awesome stuff going on at Change the Stakes - blame my preoccupation with the play. As a peripheral member of their steering committee I am privy to all the internal debates, etc. though I stay in the background while the amazing parents run things. But I do get to see how the sausage is made and they are fabulous chefs.One constant thread has been the hassle

by ed notes online / 14min hide  //  save

Change the Stakes -- Tonight CEC19 (East NY, Brownsville)

CTS continues its outreach and message to communities regarding testing and opting out.From Katie Lapham, MORE steering committee - Jia Lee, Fred Smith (Change the Stakes) and I are going to attend the CEC D19 meeting tonight. We are on the agenda to speak about testing. I teach in D19. It's from 6:45 - 9:45 pm; here's the address. Place: P.S. 13 Address: 557 Pennsylvania Ave.between Livonia and R

by ed notes online / 14min 

Worst Practices: You Don't Have to Teach in a Charter School to Get That Experience -

High staff turnover rates were considered a negative at one time -- now that is considered a good thing.Public school principals are using charter school tactics, not only in the way they treat staff -- aiming for constant turnover, etc, but also in how they treat kids -- push-outs, suspensions, no excuses, etc. The key to the cheap labor, high turnover concept is making teaching teacher-proof --

by ed notes online / 52min 

3-31-14 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online: Chapter Leader Takes on Murry Bergtraum Closer/Hatchet Princpal Lottie AlmonteThe Bloodletting - The aftermath of 2012-2013After the first year, over 51 staff members left, mostly voluntary in the form of transfers, hastened retirements and voluntary excess. This out of about 170 total staff in the building. No complaints from the Department of Education, not even UFT headquarters

by mike simpson / 8h