“Student Success Act” to Crush Religious Freedom, Private School Autonomy, Parental Rights: #NO on HR5 | COMMON CORE

“Student Success Act” to Crush Religious Freedom, Private School Autonomy, Parental Rights: #NO on HR5 | COMMON CORE:



“Student Success Act” to Crush Religious Freedom, Private School Autonomy, Parental Rights: #NO on HR5 

This one is such a betrayal.

I’ve never been so shocked and angry over a proposed Congressional bill that I burst into tears.  Not until tonight.

I’d been quietly reading and taking notes on H.R. 5, “Student Success Act” (SSA) when my husband simply, offhandedly asked me how I was doing.   Though I’d been quiet, I was boiling over as I read tucked-away portions of this 600+ page bill which,  despite the local-control-touting, anti-Common Core-sounding words (on page 10 and elsewhere), is terrible. When my husband asked how I was doing, I stood up, walked to the couch and explained through my hot, angry tears what destruction and reduction of vital freedoms will take place if this bill passes:

It ends private schools’ religious freedom from government control.  It harms funding freedom in private schools.  It puts into question parental rights and control over education.  It pushes sameness of testing.  Those are just a few things.  There are more.

We have conscious deceivers in D.C. pushing this bill:  its damages are so painfully ironic.  The bill is touted specifically to “reduce the federal footprint and restore local control while empowering parents“. What a poignant lie.

If H.R. 5 passes this week, in exchange for billions in federal funding, we will be crushed in the following ways.  The federal Department of Education aims to take over:

1.  STATE AUTHORITIES AND RIGHTS 

2.  PARENTAL RIGHTS TO DIRECT EDUCATION OF A CHILD

3.  RELIGIOUS FREEDOM – NO MORE RELIGIOUS COUNSELING, MENTORING OR TECHNOLOGIES ALLOWED IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS

4.  PRIVATE SCHOOL AUTONOMY: GOVERNMENT-APPOINTED OMBUDSMEN WILL MONITOR COMPLIANCE  

5.  PRIVATE SCHOOL FUNDING – PRIVATE SCHOOLS MUST CONSULT WITH PUBLIC DISTRICTS WHICH ENFORCE EQUALITY

H.R. 5  the “Student Success Act” won’t be enforced for five years– plenty of time for its promoters to plan implementation, and for the opposition to burn out, give up, to feel there’s no way to rein it in.

The bill is 600-plus-pages long but was just barely introduced“Student Success Act” to Crush Religious Freedom, Private School Autonomy, Parental Rights: #NO on HR5 | COMMON CORE:

Big Education Ape: Tell Congress: Vote NO on H.R. 5 – The Student Success Act http://bit.ly/1JwDIz3

Corporatizing a Child’s Basic Needs: Another Worry:

Corporatizing a Child’s Basic Needs: Another Worry

FEBRUARY 22, 2015 BY NANCY BAILEY LEAVE A COMMENT

I have been reading about the “Pay to Potty” plans in two schools where children had accidents and parents rightly got mad. You would think such a thing couldn’t have happened, and I know that in both situations the schools backed off. But I wouldn’t be surprised if the plan resurfaced again later. While these particular incidents sparked controversy with some, and others thought it was just unfortunate and no big deal, the Pay to Potty plan is right up the corporate alley of using harsh discipline to keep students in line.

Think of the revered school activities that have been discontinued under the appearance of helping students learn better. Who would have ever thought that young children would be made to sit for long periods with few breaks…tested over-and-over…with tests that will fire teachers and close schools?

Did you ever think children would lose recess? And who can believe how the use of personal information is given little consideration when it comes to student confidentiality? Strictly regulating bathroom visits seems like just another controlling feature of new corporate school reforms.

Children are viewed as products to be managed–not human beings with normal needs.

A child’s bathroom etiquette fits deceptively into this plan of harsh discipline involving children. There probably isn’t a teacher around who hasn’t dealt with a student who Corporatizing a Child’s Basic Needs: Another Worry:

Do PARCC Reading Passages Exceed Tested Grade Levels?:

Do PARCC Reading Passages Exceed Tested Grade Levels?

by Greg on February 22, 2015 · Leave a Comment

The apparent answer is a resounding YES.

We’ve had numerous readers contact us to share what they have discovered while looking at the publicly available PARCC practice reading tests, and the information is appalling.  Using an online tool — Readability-Score.com — we followed-up on readers’ tips and have independently analyzed the reading levels of every single passage on all of the PARCC practice reading tests.  Our analysis reveals that the majority of the passages are above the grade level for which the test is designed.  With the actual PARCC assessments hidden from public view, this analysis is all that can be performed objectively and we must assume that these tests are an accurate representation of the those that students will be taking that will determine their “ability” and be used to assign grades to Ohio’s teachers, schools, and districts.

Each grade level (3-8) has two practice tests available.  The first is the Performance-Based Assessment (PBA) that is to be given in February, and an End Of Year (EOY) test that is given in April.  The results you’ll see are reported by a number where the whole number represents the grade and the decimal represents the month.  For example, a reading level of 5.4 means that the reading selection is appropriate for the fifth grade, fourth month (i.e., approximately December of Grade 5).

It’s one thing to provide enough “stretch” on the assessments to allow advanced students to demonstrate higher ability, but when more than half of the test questions are based on these higher-level passages, even the “average” student is likely going to obtain a result that is not reflective of their true knowledge or ability (specifically see EOY assessments for grades 4-7).

The results for all of the practice test passages are below (Title of Passage, followed by reading-level analyses).

3rd Grade PBA:

3rd Grade EOY:Do PARCC Reading Passages Exceed Tested Grade Levels?:

Mark Ferrulo: Education community overwhelmingly opposes punitive testing - SaintPetersBlog

Mark Ferrulo: Education community overwhelmingly opposes punitive testing - SaintPetersBlog:

Mark Ferrulo: Education community overwhelmingly opposes punitive testing

By Mark Ferrulo on February 22, 2015

Do you think Florida’s school accountability system, with punitive high-stakes testing and unreasonable mandates, is out of control? To teachers and other folks on the front lines in the fight to improve our public schools, it most definitely is.

Last week, more than 6,000 teachers, parents, education advocates and other concerned Floridians participated in the “Speaking Up for Students” tele-town hall sponsored by Progress Florida. The overwhelming sentiment of participants – expressed both through online polling and the town hall discussion itself – is that it’s time to reclaim Florida’s public schools from toxic high-stakes testing.

More than 63 percent who attended the tele-town hall were teachers, while 23 percent said their main connection to education was as a parent. During the event, participants were asked if our schools were on the right track and only 13 percent thought so. More than 69 percent said our schools are headed in the wrong direction.

When asked to name their greatest concern regarding Florida’s public schools, nearly 50 percent of respondents cited too much standardized testing. Vouchers taking away public school resources and lack of funding for essential services were the primary concern of 18 percent and 16 percent of those polled, respectively.

Similarly, when asked what would most strengthen our education system, the runaway winner was reducing standardized tests at 43.5 percent. Greater parental involvement (25 percent), increased school funding (10 percent) and better technology in the classroom (9 percent) were also mentioned. But clearly, to the people that are closest to our schools, the one-size-fits-all testing regimen that has hamstrung public education in Florida desperately needs fixing.

The pushback against out-of-control testing has extended beyond teachers and parents. Some school districts such as Miami-Dade have opted out of certain standardized tests. Meanwhile, state lawmakers are finally realizing that Florida’s rash of accountability mandates have created a cynical environment where teachers, students and parents are distrusting of a system that wastes valuable classroom instruction time.

The 2015 legislative session offers lawmakers a chance to change course and implement a less intrusive system of assessment that gives educators and school districts needed flexibility, rather than the testing mandates the Legislature has imposed on our schools. A bill has been introduced to limit student testing times, but some districts do not have adequate mechanisms in place to track this information and there are concerns it will not have the desired effect.

What is clear from the growing furor over high-stakes testing is that the current system needMark Ferrulo: Education community overwhelmingly opposes punitive testing - SaintPetersBlog:

New Analysis Shatters Narrative of Charter School Success:

New Analysis Shatters Narrative of Charter School Success

Public schools are outperforming charter schools in Minnesota, in some cases "dramatically," according to a new analysis by the state's Star-Tribune newspaper.

In addition, many charter schools fail to adequately support minority students, close examination of the data revealed.

Journalist Kim McGuire looked at 128 of the state's 157 charter schools and found "that the gulfbetween the academic success of its white and minority students widened at nearly two-thirds of those schools last year. Slightly more than half of charter schools students were proficient in reading, dramatically worse than traditional public schools, where 72 percent were proficient."

Between 2011 and 2014, McGuire reported, 20 charter schools failed to meet the state’s expectations for academic growth each year, "signaling that some of Minnesota’s most vulnerable students had stagnated academically."

Charlene Briner, the Minnesota Department of Education’s chief of staff, told the newspaper that she was troubled by the information, "which runs counter to 'the public narrative' that charter schools are generally superior to public schools."

"Minnesota is the birthplace of the charter school movement and a handful of schools have received national acclaim for their accomplishments, particularly when it comes to making strong academic gains with low-income students of color," the Star-Tribune claims. "But the new information is fueling critics who say the charter school experiment has failed to deliver on teaching innovation."

Education analyst Diane Ravitch notes: "Minnesota was the home of the charter movement, which began with high expectations as a progressive experiment but has turned into a favorite mechanism in many states to promote privatization of public education and to generate profits for charter corporations like Imagine, Charter Schools USA, and K12. Today, charter advocates claim that their privately managed charters will 'save low-income students from failing public schools,' but the Minnesota experience suggests that charters face the same challenges as public schools, which is magnified by high teacher turnover in charter schools."

The findings back up a report (pdf) put out last fall by the Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity at the University of Minnesota Law School, which examined the success and failures of the charter school system in Chicago, Illinois.

That study concluded:

Sadly the charters schools, which on average score lower that the Chicago public schools, have not improved the Chicago school system, but perhaps made it even weaker. Further 

New Analysis Shatters Narrative of Charter School Success:

Scott Walker Loses Education Control Fight in Court

Scott Walker Loses Education Control Fight in Court:

Scott Walker Loses Education Control Fight in Court

byPuddytatFollow

 
 
• 196 Comments / 196 New

Still just as dumb as he looks.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R-DonateBigMoneyToMeAndI'llDoYourBidding) has a sad today.

A unanimous state appeals court on Thursday deemed unconstitutional a portion of a 2011 law that gave Gov. Scott Walker the ability to halt administrative rules by Schools Superintendent Tony Evers, who is independently elected.

The ruling by the Madison-based District 4 Court of Appeals upholds a 2012 decision by Dane County Circuit Judge Amy Smith.

Walker signed the law in May 2011, which gave his administration a greater say in writing administrative rules, which are used to implement state laws. Administrative rules include more specifics than state statutes and carry the force of law.

Looks like Scott Walker got caught ignoring the State Constitution:

The state constitution says that "the supervision of public instruction shall be vested in a state superintendent and such other officers as the Legislature shall direct." In a 1996 case that the appeals court repeatedly cited, the state Supreme Court held that lawmakers and the governor cannot give "equal or superior authority" over public education to any other official.

The Supreme Court's ruling found that the state constitution prevented then-Gov. Tommy Thompson from transferring powers from the Department of Public Instruction to a new Department of Education overseen by the governor's administration.

"In sum, the Legislature has the authority to give, to not give, or to take away (the school superintendent's) supervisory powers, including rule-making power. What the Legislature may not do is give the (superintendent) a supervisory power relating to education and then fail to maintain the (superintendent's) supremacy with respect to that power," Appeals Judge Gary Sherman wrote for the court in Thursday's decision.

No, Scott Walker, you can't control state education. You've defunded K-12 education by $2 billion and you're stripping $300 million from our previously wonderful State University system. You've made taxpayers fund the private education of rich kids, too.

You have already done more than enough damage.

Since his 2011 inauguration, he's taken complete control of virtually ALL state agencies and has been hard at work on legislation giving him complete control over Scott Walker Loses Education Control Fight in Court:

TODAY on The War Report on Public Education - School to Prison Pipeline and how it affects our youth of color

The War Report on Public Education with Dr James Avington Miller Jr | BBS Radio:

 Black History Month continues on The War Report on Public Education as Dr. James Avington Miller Jr. and Arash Daneshzadeh ( ELA teacher at San Quentin Prison ) discuss the School to Prison Pipeline and how it affects our youth of color. Don't miss this conversation.

Show Times: 
2 PM Pacific
4 PM Central
5 PM Eastern

UPDATE! War Report will have a 2nd hour tomorrow and our guest host will be Tanaisa Brown reporting to us on the Newark Students Union's occupation in Newark this week! Hold on to your hats - this is going to be one awesome show!


Everyone is invited to listen, call in, and become part of the conversation:
http://bbsradio.com/thewarreport
A direct listen-in line only
Station 1 - 716-748-0150
To call-in and interact live
Station 1 - 888-627-6008

The War Report on Public Education 

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Today

at 2:00pm - 3:00pm

Starts in about 4 hours 

Unbridled school choice a race to the bottom:

Unbridled school choice a race to the bottom

Does mainstream public education in Arizona have a viable future under the current governor and the Republican majority at the State House?

And if the answer is “No” – as some are beginning to believe – does education in general and even Arizona as a state have much of a future?

And is it time for the education grassroots – teachers and parents with children in mainstream public schools – to mobilize politically before it is too late?

We ask those questions not for strategic reasons, such as leveraging more funds for schools or building momentum behind the Common Core curriculum. Those are goals worth achieving, but they are only part of what should be a larger debate over individual school choice vs. the shared responsibility of a community to educate all of its children.

RIGGED IN FAVOR OF CHOICE

So far, though, there has been little debate because Republicans have rigged the school finance and accountability game so much that the outcome in favor of choice – that is, charter and private schools -- is nearly predetermined. From classroom spending quotas to hiring only certified teachers, providing buses and making room for any local child who walks through the door, the exclusive mandates on mainstream public schools make it nearly certain they will have higher costs and more varied outcomes than charters and privates.

Yet Gov. Ducey and legislative Republicans want equal outcomes while not holding the charters and privates accountable to the same standards or sending more funds to high-need schools. One Senate panel even wants to take money away from the mainstream publics for not spending more money in the classroom – after the Legislature itself cut school subsidies during the recession and forced teacher layoffs, thus reducing classroom spending.

To rub salt in the wound, charters and private schools are not included in the bill, and there is no counterproposal to raise the proportion of classroom spending by simply giving schools more funds for teachers. With Arizona wallowing among the bottom five states in the nation on spending per pupil, it’s not as if such a move would label the Republicans as spendthrifts.

WHICH SCHOOLS REALLY BEST?

Or take another example: the proposal by Ducey to make sure all students have access to the “best” schools, no matter which type, by providing more state funds for their expansion. To date, high test scores have made up the bulk of Arizona’s school rating system, and the college prep charter schools have come out on top. But it doesn’t take a math major to see that withdrawing top-scoring students from mainstream publics and concentrating them in charters will lower the median scores of the former. We challenge Ducey to come up with a definition of “best” that measures improvement and a value-added education, not how many high-scoring students enroll in a charter school.

Then there is Ducey’s objection to Common Core based on a conspiracy theory that, against all evidence, says it was the federal government that developed and imposed the new, more rigorous curriculum. In fact, Arizona’s former school superintendent along with educators from this state and others developed Common Core. The business community certainly sees the value in it, but a common curriculum doesn’t square with individual choice, so the federal government is the default bogeyman when all other arguments fail.

The game is rigged not only by blind allegiance to individual choice over community but to a tax-cutting, trickle-down theory of economics that by definition means public disinvestment when revenues fail to keep up with rising costs. Even shifting state spending, such as from prisons to schools, is off the table, so wedded are Republicans to a choice mantra that is a code word for dismantling the mainstream public schools and their communitarian ethos.

SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC SEGREGATION

And where does all this lead public education and Arizona itself? The trend is already clear: Parental choice means academic tracking as early as the fifth grade. That might be justified in a mainstream public school, where the gifted and talented rub shoulders at lunchtime, recess and band practice with those students less well-off academically and financially. But at the charters and privates, which can cap enrollment and, at the latter, pick and choose among applicants, choice has meant a socio-demographic segregation that utterly frustrates the ideals of a democratically educated society.

And, ultimately, unbridled choice and public disinvestment will fail the private economy, too. As mainstream schools see their funds siphoned off to lower-cost charters and privates while the Unbridled school choice a race to the bottom:

Why Don't Kids Walk to School Anymore? - The Atlantic

Why Don't Kids Walk to School Anymore? - The Atlantic:

Why Don't Kids Walk to School Anymore?

Feb 04, 2015 | 159-part series 

Video by CityWalk

In the late 1960s, nearly 50 percent of American children walked to and from school each day. In this short film produced by City Walk, experts discuss the decline of a once-common activity—and why it would still benefit children today. "Kids need to walk to school so they learn about active transportation," says University of Utah professor Elizabeth Joy. "When you have to go two, three, or four blocks, that doesn't mean you get in the car. You can actually walk."

Author: CityLab

Take Action Against the Governor's Anti-Public Education Agenda | NYSUT.org

Take Action Against the Governor's Anti-Public Education Agenda | NYSUT.org:

13 things you can do right now to fight back.

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Every NYSUT member is needed to defend public education and the teaching profession from Gov. Cuomo's Billionaires' Agenda.

Tell the governor to stop scapegoating... stop teacher bashing and focus on what #AllKidsNeed.

Here's your to-do list.

1. Take action on this week's campaigns.

The latest actions will always be right here in the No. 1 spot.

UPDATE: Feb. 20

• Ask lawmakers to support fair and proper funding for higher education
• Ask lawmakers to support due process and tenure
• Watch and SHARE the TV ad

2. Call your state senator. Now.

• Stop what you're doing and call your state senator with this message: stand up to the Governor's "Bigfoot" tactics and defend our outstanding New York public schools!
• You can look up the number at the NYSUT Member Action Center.

Sign up for MAC text alerts!

Take 10 seconds and sign up for MAC text alerts on your phone!

Here's how:

STEP 1: Text the word "NYSUT" to the contact number 38470.

STEP 2: That's it! There is no Step 2!

3. Sign the petitions.

• Tell the governor: New York's public schools are not for sale.
• Demand Gov. Cuomo and Chancellor Tisch Stop the Assault on Public Education by signing the NYS Allies for Public Education petition.

4. Sign up for the in-district lobby day on Feb. 12.

• Take part in a face-to-face meeting at your state legislator's local office.
• For information, email pcaruso@nysutmail.org. Please include the number of your Senate district. (Not sure? Look it up at the MAC.)

5. Call out the governor.

• Invite the governor to visit your class to learn what #AllKidsNeed. Tweet out an invite directly at him and be sure to include his Twitter handle @NYGovCuomo and the hashtag #InviteCuomo if you want your tweet to be seen and heard.
• Not on Twitter? See step 8.

6. Get connected to the MAC.

• BY TEXT. Get real-time text messages about urgent news and actions by texting the word NYSUT to the number 38470.
• BY EMAIL. Subscribe to the NYSUT Member Action Center email alerts for updates on this campaign. If you're registered via email as a NYSUT MAC e-activist you'll also be the first to know about upcoming rallies, protests and more.
• BY APP. Download the NYSUT MAC App for your iPhone or for your Android phone. Be sure notifications are enabled to receive alerts on new action items.

7. Get connected on Facebook.

• "Like" the Facebook pages for the NYSUT Member Action Center and NYSUT United, share our posts, and join the conversation.
• Replace your Facebook profile photo with the cover of the February NYSUT United, which exhorts all to FIGHT BACK!

8. Get connected on Twitter.

• Join Twitter and follow @NYSUT to be part of the social media army.
• Once a day (or as often as possible) tweet your thoughts on what #AllKidsNeed - more science labs, music and art classes, school libraries, smaller class sizes and more. We're reminding the governor to focus on what matters! Follow the conversation in real-time for some great examples from parents and educators.

9. Share the poster.

• Download, print and share the "Fight Back" poster  (PDF) and other resources available on the "Tools" page.
• NYSUT local union presidents may order in bulk at orders@nysutmail.org.

10. Wear the button.

• Wear and share NYSUT's Respect Public Education: It Works! button that Gov. Cuomo prohibited at his recent public appearances.Seriously.
• Your local union president can order buttons in bulk via email to orders@nysutmail.org.

11. Take part in community forums.

• Keep an eye on nysut.org/allkidsneed for information on upcoming NYSUT-sponsored Community Forums to Save Public Education in every region of the state.

12. Talk it up.

• Get the conversation going - online and offline. Read "Where We Stand" and use it to craft social media messages, send letters to the editor, and brief friends and colleagues.
• Circulate and share print materials and videos.

13. Support "Take Action Tuesday."

• Mark your calendar to support NYSUT's "Take Action Tuesday" every week. Be on the lookout for updates.

And finally... check back.

• Check www.nysut.org/allkidsneed for frequent updates!

Learn more at www.nysut.org/allkidsneed.