LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-28-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

Anthony Cody: It Is Time for Bill Gates to Throw in the Towel

Anthony Cody points out that for the past dozen years or so, Bill Gates has had his fun experimenting with education reform. Obsessed as he is with measurement and data, he imagined that he could impose his narrow ideas on American public schools and bring about a magical transformation. Does American education need reform and improvement? Absolutely. Stuck as it is in the paradigm of testing and

1 by dianeravitch / 5min 

Politico: Rightwing Authors Warn: Watch Out for Teachers, They Are Obstacles to Our Reforms

Politico reports this morning: “WATCH OUT FOR TEACHERS: Harvard professor Paul E. Peterson is out with a new book urging Americans not to be lulled into thinking of teachers as regular folk. On the contrary, he writes in “Teachers versus the Public,” they’re part of a large and powerful special interest group — and their interests often diverge from the public’s. “We tend to think of teachers as

by dianeravitch / 5min 

EduShyster: The Waltons Love Little Children, Not Their Parents

After reading in the New York Times about how many gazillions the Walton family has given to create charter schools (and vouchers) so that poor children can escape from failing public schools, EduShyster was deeply moved by their charitable impulses. And then she thought about their parents, the ones who work for Walmart. She writes: “Tough love “I will stop briefly for a moment, reader, to all

by dianeravitch / 1min

Will Jonathan Pelto Run for Governor of Connecticut?

On issues related to education, Connecticut’s Governor Dannell Malloy is one of the worst governors in the nation. Jonathan Pelto, who served in the state legislature, is considering a run against Malloy. Pelto knows that Malloy has repeatedly let down students, parents, teachers, and communities. Malloy has followed the money–the hedge fund money–which supports charter schools for the few. Pelt

by dianeravitch / 4min 

Jeff Bryant in Salon: Why Common Core Is in Deep Trouble

Jeff Bryant is a marketing and communications expert, and he understands why Common Core is in deep trouble.   The “education reform movement” is not really a movement. It has no mass base. It is a public relations campaign created by a very small number of people with deep pockets. They thought they could pull a fast one.   But the American public is not buying.   The fake “reformers” made claims

1 by dianeravitch / 3min 

Randi Weingarten on the Real Retirement Crisis

In one of her very best articles, AFT President Randi Weingarten names the real retirement crisis. Many American workers, having paid into pension funds, will retire into a life of poverty because of a campaign to wipe out defined benefit pension plans. Randi writes: “America has a retirement crisis, but it’s not what some people want you to believe it is. It’s not the defined benefit pension pl

6 by dianeravitch / 1h hide  //  save

Mercedes Schneider: Who Are the 24 People Who Wrote the Common Core Standards?

A few days ago, I posted the names of the members of the “work groups” that wrote the Common Core standards. There was one work group for English language arts and another for mathematics. There were some members who served on both work groups.   Altogether, 24 people wrote the Common Core standards. None identified himself or herself as a classroom teacher, although a few had taught in the past (

77 by dianeravitch / 2h 

Susan Ochshorn: Will Little Children Be Sucked into the Academic Vortex?

Susan Ochshorn rightly worries that the current policy craze for universal pre-kindergarten will push developmentally inappropriate practices into the early years. Kindergarten will become what first grade used to be, and four-year-olds will be expected to read and take standardized tests. Ochshorn writes: “Fast-forward to the polar vortex of 2014. Nerissa Ediza’s tweet, on February 1, says it a

25 by dianeravitch / 3h 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-27-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Does Anyone Still Believe in VAM? The “Center for American Progress” Does.Despite the fact that major scholarly organizations have debunked value-added measurement as a way of identifying and quantifying teacher quality, there are still a few lonely defenders of VAM. There is the U.S. Department of Education, which bet nearly $5 bi

by mike simpson / 8h 

4-28-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

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

This Week In Web 2.0

In yet another attempt to get at the enormous backlog I have of sites worth blogging about, I’ve recently begin a regular feature called “The Week In Web 2.0.” (you might also be interested in The Best Web 2.0 Applications For Education In 2013). I also sometimes include tech tools that might not exactly fit the definition of Web 2.0: Appear.in seems like a super-simple video conferencing site fo

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1h 

Class Activity: Setting A Goal For The Last Six Weeks Of School

I’ve written in my books and here on this blog about student goal-setting lessons and activities (see The Best Posts On Students Setting Goals). I’ve previously written about my typical end-of-year goal-setting activities and how students announce and publicly display them (along with research supporting that strategy). I decided to put a couple of different twists on it this year. I had students

by Larry Ferlazzo / 5min 

Using Dance To Teach English Is Topic Of My Latest NY Times Post

My latest New York Times post for English Language Learners is focused on dance as a language-learning activity. It includes a new type of student interactive, as well as teaching ideas. You can access all my many NY Times posts here.

by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h 

4-27-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Around The Web In ESL/EFL/ELLI’ve started a somewhat regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention: Lizzie Pinard recounts a question/answer session with Sugatra Mitra at a recent language conference in this post. I’m ad

by mike simpson / 7h 

Open Space Offices and Open Space Schools–Borrowing Across Organizations? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Open Space Offices and Open Space Schools–Borrowing Across Organizations? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

Open Space Offices and Open Space Schools–Borrowing Across Organizations?

Some viewers and friends ask me from time to time where do I get my ideas for writing twice-weekly posts about school reform and classroom practice. I tell them that I read lots of blogs, magazine articles, and curated websites written by teachers, administrators, school board members, historians of education, and state and federal policymakers. I listen to current and former graduate students who stay in touch with me. And then there are films I watch, magazines and books I read, and friends and family I talk with every week where schooling, policy, and classroom teaching are completely absent.

From all of these writings, conversations, and experiences I get ideas and jot them down on post-its or make copies of the blog, article, or video and put them on my desktop screen as reminders for possible posts. I think about each one, scratching out some entries on post-its and deleting PDFs but keeping a few. More often than not, I consider how “new” ideas, innovations, popular policies, and classroom practices have a history that often goes unnoted.

And that is how I came to write about open space offices and schools.

Connecting Office Cubicles and Open Space Schools

A week ago, I saw an article criticizing open space in offices, the open areas filled with cubicles for employees that began in the U.S. and Europe in the 1950s , Open Space Offices and Open Space Schools–Borrowing Across Organizations? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

Report on School Privatization in Milwaukee | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!

Report on School Privatization in Milwaukee | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!:

Report on School Privatization in Milwaukee

Filed under: Charter Schools,Privatization,Vouchers — millerlf @ 8:53 am 

Do Poor Kids Deserve Lower-Quality Education Than Rich Kids? Evaluating School Privatization Proposals in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
By Gordon Lafer | April 24, 2014
During the past year, Wisconsin state legislators debated a series of bills aimed at closing low-performing public schools and replacing them with privately run charter schools. These proposals were particularly targeted at Milwaukee, the state’s largest and poorest school district.

Ultimately, the only legislation enacted was a bill that modestly increases school reporting requirements, without stipulating consequences for low performance. Nevertheless, the more ambitious proposals will likely remain at the core of Wisconsin’s debates over education policy, and legislative leaders have made clear their desire to revisit them in next year’s session. To help inform these deliberations, this report addresses the most comprehensive set of reforms put forward in the 2013–2014 legislative session.

Backers of these reforms are particularly enamored of a new type of charter school represented by the Rocketship chain of schools—a low-budget operation that relies on young and inexperienced teachers rather than more veteran and expensive faculty, that reduces the curriculum to a near-exclusive focus on reading and math, and that replaces teachers with online learning and digital applications for a significant portion of the day. Rocketship proposes that its model—dubbed “blended learning” for its combination of in-person and computerized instruction—can cut costs while raising low-income students’ test scores (Rocketship Education 2011).

The call for public schools to be replaced by such tech-heavy, teacher-light operations comes from some of the most powerful actors in local and national politics: the major corporate lobbies, including Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, Americans for Prosperity, and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC). It is these groups, rather than parents or community organizations, that provided the impetus for legislators to consider proposals for mass school closure and privatization in Milwaukee.

In advocating school privatization, MMAC, allied corporate lobbies, and corporate-funded think tanks claim to be acting out of social altruism, motivated by the tragedy of poor children whose needs are unmet in the public school system. Yet—as is detailed later in this report—these same organizations have traditionally opposed what are typically considered two of the fundamental building blocks for improving education, particularly for poor children: adequate school funding and effective anti-poverty policies.

This report evaluates the “blended learning” model of education exemplified by Rocketship and seeks to understand how the “school accountability” legislation debated during the most recent legislative session would likely affect Milwaukee schools. This briefing paper also explains how such proposals might fit within the broader economic agenda of both local and national corporate lobbies. Above all, the report questions why an educational model deemed substandard for more privileged suburban children is being so vigorously promoted—perhaps even forced—on poor children in Milwaukee.

Upon examination, it appears that charter privatization proposals are driven more by financial and ideological grounds than by sound pedagogy:
• National research shows that charter schools, on average, perform no better than public schools. There is thus no basis for believing that replacing traditional public schools in MilwaukeeReport on School Privatization in Milwaukee | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!:

 A Walmart Fortune, Spreading Charter Schools

By Motoko Rich NYTimes April 25, 2014 WASHINGTON — DC Prep operates four charter schools here with 1,200 students in preschool through eighth grade. The schools, whose students are mostly poor and black, are among the highest performing in Washington. Last year, DC Prep’s flagship middle school earned the best test scores among local charter schools, far outperforming the average of the city’s tra

by millerlf / 6min 

Right-wing Voucher Supporters Train Potential Political Candidates

American Federation for Children, MMAC and Democrats for Education Reform provide candidate training By Lisa Kaiser Shepard Express That’s what former Republican Assembly speaker turned voucher school lobbyist Scott Jensen instructed potential candidates in a day-long training session on April 12. Jensen was responding to a question posed about whether candidates should accept checks from a donor

by millerlf / 3min 

4-28-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida ALL Week

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education:

Influential National Hispanic Civil Rights Organization Opposed to Voucher Expansion

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) are emphasizing their opposition to school vouchers in their education platform: LULAC strongly opposes vouchers and any other funding method that will limit public education resources. All Latinos should have access to safe, quality and desegregated public education. Public schools should be improved and rehabilitated, and be provided with adeq

by Bob Sikes / 2h  

4-27-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida ALL Week

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: Florida Senate Voucher Sponsor Earmarked $2.3 Million for Voucher Eligible Sports AcademyFrom Matt Dixon in the Tampa Tribune: TALLAHASSEE _ Powerful state Sen. Bill Galvano says he had nothing to do with a client of his private law firm securing millions during the 2013

by mike simpson / 8h 

All Week 4-28-14 @ THE CHALK FACE

@ THE CHALK FACE:

Bush and Rhee Endorse a Book– Fortunately, Not Mine

As I announced on April 27, 2014, my book on key individuals and organizations exploiting public education is now published: A Chronicle of Echoes: Who’s Who in the Implosion of American Public Education. Harvard professor and senior fellow at the Hoover Institute Paul Peterson and two others also have a book coming out; it entitled, Teachers versus the […]

2 by deutsch29 / 2h 

Humanities and LSAT reflect Critical Thinking versus Core Knowledge debate

“In short, the real literacy crisis occurs whenever we deploy a pedagogy that asks our students only to consume texts and not to produce them as well.” — Richard E. Miller The ABA Journal recently posted a piece entitled “Students with these college majors had the highest LSAT scores” that discusses the findings of Pepperdine University […]

7 by Robert D. Skeels ... / 6h  

All Week 4-27-14 @ THE CHALK FACE

@ THE CHALK FACE: Video: Bill Gates “Explains” Common CoreIn the following six-minute video at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) in March 2014, Bill Gates demonstrates his privileged view of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Gates has contributed over $4.3 million to AEI, with over $1 million in 2012 for “exploring the challenges of Common Core,” among other issues, so it is only fitti

by mike simpson / 8h 

4-28-14 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School:

What Are Some Things You'd Like To See In The UFT Contract Agreement?

The Daily News reported that the UFT and the city are going at negotiations over the new contract pretty hard and heavy, which makes sense because Mulgrew has told us that he wants a contract agreement done that can be voted on by the membership before the end of the school year.I posted earlier about something that I don't want to see in the agreement - extra time added to our workday for PD. The

by reality-based edu... / 18min 

Daily News Says New UFT Contract Will Add Time To Teachers Schedule For "Professional Development"

Here is what the News says may happen: The city is closing in on a multiyear contract with the teachers union that could include significant retroactive raises, sources said. One deal being discussed with the United Federation of Teachers would give them retroactive raises for most of the five years the contract has been expired at a rate of 4%, 4%, 0%, 1% and 2% — although it is unclear how the p

by reality-based edu... / 2h 

4-27-14 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School: NY Post: Mulgrew, Farina Say Teachers "Should Embrace" New Evaluation SystemThis is buried at the bottom of a pierce about the city paying three leases for Eva Moskowitz and Success Academies:Meanwhile de Blasio, Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña and teachers union boss Michael Mulgrew spoke of “unity” at the United Federation of Teachers spring conference Saturday

by mike simpson / 7h 

Oh No! Now Arne Duncan’s Going to Rate Teacher Training Programs | janresseger

Oh No! Now Arne Duncan’s Going to Rate Teacher Training Programs | janresseger:

Oh No! Now Arne Duncan’s Going to Rate Teacher Training Programs

Posted on April 28, 2014 by janresseger

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced last Friday that the Obama administration plans to develop ratings of colleges of education to make them more accountable for their graduates’ performance. Motoko Rich in the NY Times reports that the U.S. Department of education will propose rules to evaluate teacher training programs “using metrics that could include the number of graduates placed in schools, as well as pass rates on licensing exams, teacher retention rates and job performance ratings of teachers,” job performance ratings that presumably take into account the scores on standardized tests of the students in the classes of the teachers being rated.

Nobody thinks teacher training programs should be unaccountable.  In her book, Reign of Error, Diane Ravitch devotes several pages (pp. 274-277) to the topic of strengthening the teaching profession.  Her expectations are clear and explicit:  “To raise the quality of education in our schools, states and districts must strengthen the education profession.  Ideally, teachers should have a four-year degree with a major in the subject or subjects they plan to teach… Once they are admitted into a professional education program, they should engage in a year of study of such subjects as cognitive science, literacy, child development and adolescent psychology, the sociology of the family and the community, cultural diversity, the needs of students with disabilities, the nature of testing, and the history, politics, and economics of education. They should deepen their knowledge of the subject or subjects they plan to teach, with opportunities to plan lessons and work with mentors.  They should practice teaching under the guidance of an experienced teacher.  No one should be allowed to teach who has not spent a hear in the study and practice of the profession.  Once hired, they should work closely Oh No! Now Arne Duncan’s Going to Rate Teacher Training Programs | janresseger:

"Is that your final answer?": What's allowed during standardized testing in Oregon, and what's not | OregonLive.com

"Is that your final answer?": What's allowed during standardized testing in Oregon, and what's not | OregonLive.com:

"Is that your final answer?": What's allowed during standardized testing in Oregon, and what's not

Education Northwest analyzed test scores and procedures at King School after the Northeast Portland building saw huge swings in test scores from year to year. (Faith Cathcart/The Oregonian)

Portland Public Schools last week released an Education Northwest report delving into a spike in state test scores at King School in 2012. The examination, based on interviews with school staff, documented testing practices teachers said they believed appropriate at the time.

Neither the initial Portland Public Schools investigation nor the new Education Northwest report concluded that practices employed at King constituted irregularities.

We compared the test practices described at King with what’s prescribed by testing experts andwritten in the Oregon Department of Education’s testing manuals. We spoke to: Joe Suggs, Portland Public Schools’ director of research, evaluation and assessment; Crystal Greene, an Oregon Department of Education spokeswoman; and Jim Wollack, director of testing and evaluation services at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The issue has wider significance as standardized testing becomes more and more central to rating schools and teachers. Testing security experts say officials need to standardize testing protocols so students aren’t given unfair advantages.

In some cases, the practices at King appeared to follow what’s recommended. In others, they deviated substantially. Here’s what we found:

From the report: “One interviewee also noted adults could ask students, ‘Is that "Is that your final answer?": What's allowed during standardized testing in Oregon, and what's not | OregonLive.com:

Prompting of NE Portland students during standardized testing was at odds with Oregon guidelines

The kind of help offered at King School flies in the face of instructions from the Oregon Department Education's own testing manual.

by Nicole Dungca | n... / 0min 

unitedoptout.com/

OPT OUT GUIDES BY STATE

Common Core testing goes smoothly but expenses mount :: SI&A Cabinet Report

Common Core testing goes smoothly but expenses mount :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:



APRIL 28, 2014

Common Core testing goes smoothly but expenses mount

by Kimberly Beltran

(Calif.) Despite a near-flawless rollout of a new, computerized student testing system aligned with the Common Core, school officials are still hoping a revenue boost for transition costs will be forthcoming when Gov. Jerry Brown releases his updated budget plan next month.

California this week crossed the halfway point in conducting field trials of its new assessments, when just over half of the three million students lined up for testing, completed the task. And, state officials report, there were few – if any – major technological issues.

“We’re just so pleased that things have been moving along efficiently and effectively,” the California Department of Education’s Deb Sigman said Friday. “We’re hearing good reports from the field and, anecdotally, we’re hearing good stories from the kids.”

California is among a group of 21 states working together as the Smarter Balanced coalition to design, produce and test new computer-aided assessments aligned to new Common Core State Standards.

While the state will spend about $150 million this year and next on the Smarter Balanced testing process, the actual cost to schools to transition to teaching new standards and administering assessments online has been estimated by CDE to be $3 billion. Others claim it could be as high as $6 billion.

Either way, the cost is well above the one-time allocation of $1.25 billion Brown included in his 2013-14 budget to help schools make the transition.

Brown’s proposed 2014-15 spending plan includes no new money for schools for Common Core Common Core testing goes smoothly but expenses mount :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:

 

Despite voter ban, state guide embraces bilingual ed

(Calif.) Updated guidance from the state on how to teach California’s estimated 1.3 million English learners relies heavily on a strategy largely prohibited by voters 16 years ago – bilingual education.

by Tom Chorneau / 6h 

NYC Educator: Sell Your Tenure And You Sell Your Soul

NYC Educator: Sell Your Tenure And You Sell Your Soul:

Sell Your Tenure And You Sell Your Soul

As public education is increasingly pushed into the arms of private business, market-minded individuals seek to end tenure.  They argue tenure protects the incompetent and strips students of their civil rights.  The war against tenure is presently being waged in Los Angeles in the Vergara Case.

Some argue if tenure doesn't work for private business, it can't work for public schools.  Small businesses cannot afford to absorb losses generated by inferior employees.  In general, the entire argument might go:  "What's good for General Motors is good for the country."  Of course, in defense of Charles E. Wilson, I would like to point out that he actually said something far more sensible and quite distinct from this.

People who frame the debate in these terms fail to understand that public education and private business are two very different birds, despite the best efforts of some to meld them into one.  Public education is a public trust.  No individual (or party of individuals) holds a monopoly upon the truth, or upon a single superior curriculum, not even Pearson with its Common-Core aligned standardized state tests, despite any product claims they may make to the contrary.

Good teaching demands academic freedom. Teachers need to be able to broach a variety of topics in the classroom.  Teachers should encourage debate.  Students need to hear both sides of issues and learn how to make their own informed decisions.  If there is no student on the other side of a debate, the teacher must be that person who helps students understand how someone might think differently.

Teachers need to be able to stuff their schools' suggestion box, so to speak,NYC Educator: Sell Your Tenure And You Sell Your Soul: 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES:

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Justice Sonia Sotomayor's brilliant dissent   

“In my colleagues’ view, examining the racial impact of legislation only perpetuates racial discrimination. This refusal to accept the stark reality that race matters is regrettable...The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to speak openly and candidly on the subject of race, and to apply the Constitution with eyes open to the unfortunate effects of centuries of racial discrimination.”  -- Schuette v. BAMN

Civil rights attorney Shanta Driver

“This is a racist decision that takes us back to an era of state’s rights...The old Jim Crow [law] is now the new Jim Crow.” -- FOX News

John Cassidy

Did you see the statement from President Obama criticizing Tuesday’s SCOTUS decision upholding a Michigan ban on race-based college admissions? No, neither did I. (White House spokesman Jay Carney said the President had no Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES: