Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 1/22/15

CORPORATE ED REFORM

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig: Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod.Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders debate in Charleston, S.C. (Mic Smith / AP)Every major union or progressive group that let its members decide the organiza

by mike simpson / 54min 

CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!

CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!: CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!The issue of Competency-Based Education is very much in the news, so I thought I would revive this post.Competency-Based Education (CBE) is being promoted as the way to “personalize” education, but it is a cold impersonal method of teaching on the computer. It fails to teach

by mike simpson / 2h 

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report: Annual Equitable Access ReportIt's January again and therefore time for another annual report on Equitable Access.This report is required by Board Policy 2200 which delegates authority for program placement to the Superintendent, but sets the criteria for program placement and requires an annual report to allow the Board the opportun

by mike simpson / 2h 

Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive

Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive: Facing the Music in FlintThe Flint water crisis and the poisoning of black children is yet another example of violence waged against African-Americans each and every day.Sometimes, the crimes take the form of bullets (from police or otherwise) riddling innocent black bodies. Other times, the acts of torture are protracted, prolonged and gradual — like Fl

1 by mike simpson / 4h 

Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times

Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times: Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency ManagersProtesters in Detroit on Wednesday held signs depicting Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan and Darnell Earley, the new emergency manager for the city’s public schools. Critics say the appointment of emergency managers by the state disenfranchises local voters. Credit Laura McDer

7 by mike simpson / 6h 

Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California

Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California: Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in CaliforniaWhen it is becoming clear that creativity and innovation are the benchmarks of the new, global, knowledge economy, California is emerging as a leader in the effort to reinvent education.Last year, the California Arts Council received a one-time $5 million increase in its 2014-15 budget, bringi

2 by mike simpson / 6h 

NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015 Public Survey for ​Standards, Curriculum, and Testing- NYS Allies for Public Education

NYS ALLIES for Public Education - NYS Allies for Public Education:NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015Public Survey for ​Standards, Curriculum, and TestingNYS Test Refusal LetterNYSAPE Response to USDOE Funding ThreatsSit & Stare & Verbal Refusal AdvisoryRebuttals to Misinformation from School DistrictsPublic service announcement ON CBS RADIOWe are supporters of Public Education who believe

2 by mike simpson / 6h 

Hoosier Voices For Public Education: "Twitter Storm" Supporting Public Education

HOOSIER VOICES FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATIONIts time for a PUBLIC ED support "Twitter Storm" in light of the Institute for Quality Education's upcoming Quality Education Celebration, celebrating National School Choice Week by celebrating school choice options in Indiana, being held in the

2 by mike simpson / 7h 

Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate

Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate: Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SATConnecticut’s political and educational leaders have sold us a bill of goods with the new SAT. Last spring the legislature and the State Board of Education hastily decided to replace the 11th-grade SBAC with the newly designed SAT. The move was in response to outcry about the invalidity of the SBAC and a

6 by mike simpson / 7h 

CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem

CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem: The Non-White Teacher ProblemAnd here comes yet an other piece of research to add to the stack.New research from Jason A. Grissom and Christopher Redding looked for new information to explain the underrepresentation of students of color in gifted programs. It's complicated problem, but the researchers came up with one answer-- white teachers are far l

2 by mike simpson / 7h 

EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5 | Diane Ravitch's blog

EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5 | Diane Ravitch's blog: EXCLUSIVE: ESSA and Special Education: Part 5EXCLUSIVE: Lamar Alexander’s Staff Explains ESSA: PART 1 | Diane Ravitch's blog http://bit.ly/1QlmO8KEXCLUSIVE: Senator Alexander’s Staff: ESSA and Teacher Evaluation, Part 2 | Diane Ravitch's blog http://bit.ly/1RzT9KjEXCLUSIVE: What Does ESSA Say About Bottom 5% of Schools: Part 3 |

2 by mike simpson / 7h 

With A Brooklyn Accent: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York State

With A Brooklyn Accent: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York State: Why Why Need Betty Rosa As Regents Chair in New York StateOne of the reasons we need to have Betty Rosa as the next Regents Chair in New York State is because she can help shine a light on the damage the whole "Receivership Schools" program is doing to education in the state. The damage is not only being

2 by mike simpson / 8h 

Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’ - The Washington Post

Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’ - The Washington Post: Detroit teacher: ‘Why is separate and unequal okay in 2016?’Burton International Academy computer advanced teacher Denice McGee, bottom left, holds a sign as she and other protesters wait to cross the street Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in Detroit. Most of Detroit’s public schools closed for the day on Wednesday due t

by mike simpson / 8h 

Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold Back

Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold Back: Common Core: 5 Teachers Open Up, And They Don't Hold BackEducation in America is an evolving thing: After 14 years of No Child Left Behind, President Obama replaced the much-loathed, standardized, test-heavy law with one that allows states to set their own benchmarks and standards. Now it looks like Common Core will soon follow NCLB into t

by mike simpson / 8h 

How Gifted Education Fuels Injustices - Higher Education

How Gifted Education Fuels Injustices - Higher Education: How Gifted Education Fuels InjusticesAfter the Supreme Court’s second hearing with the Fisher vs. UT-Austin case almost two weeks ago, debates about affirmative action and nature vs. nurture were revived.“There are those who contend that it does not benefit African-Americans to get them into the University of Texas where they do not do well

by mike simpson / 8h 

Three questions to ask about the business to-do list for Sacramento mayoral candidates - Sacramento Business Journal

Three questions to ask about the business to-do list for Sacramento mayoral candidates - Sacramento Business Journal: Three big questions about the mayoral to-do listSeveral leaders of Sacramento’s business community released a pro-growth manifesto this week to the candidates running for Sacramento mayor. The document, spelling out goals for making the city more prosperous and business-friendly, r

by mike simpson / 8h 

NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schools : Lincoln, NE Journal Star

NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schools : Lincoln, NE Journal Star: NSEA poll shows support for public schools over charter schoolsA majority of Nebraskans don’t think public tax dollars should pay for charter schools, a Nebraska State Education Association poll shows.The poll, conducted by Research Associates for the NSEA, asked 900 Nebraskans equally divided among the thr

by mike simpson / 8h 

Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter Network

Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter Network: Parents and Local Politicians Combat Success Academy Charter NetworkSuccess Academy is New York City's largest charter school network. About 11,000 children attend its thirty-six schools. The network receives federal and state funding and free space from New York City for all of its schools. But apparently it also discriminates

by mike simpson / 9h 

Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed results

Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed results: Charter schools cost taxpayers, produce mixed resultsAttentive kindergarten students sit at a classroom table with Jeff Castleberry on a mid-week morning as he rolls dice and dabs spots for a Do-A-Dot Art math assignment.One of the highlights each school day for the Pensacola Beach Elementary School principal is teaching math to Jennifer Neal’

by mike simpson / 9h 

Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's Water

Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's Water: Rick Snyder's Misleading Claim About Who Changed Flint's WaterThe city's leaders didn't start this mess At his annual State of the State address on Tuesday, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) accepted blame for the water crisis in Flint and offered an explanation for how it started. "This crisis began in the spring of 2013, when the F

by mike simpson / 9h 

YESTERDAY

What makes a good teacher? | Johnathan Chase | LinkedIn

What makes a good teacher? | Johnathan Chase | LinkedIn: What makes a good teacher?"We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we

by mike simpson / 18h 

Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of Bias - The New York Times

Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of Bias - The New York Times: Success Academy Founder Defends Schools Against Charges of BiasEva S. Moskowitz defended her Success Academy charter schools on Friday, two days after a group of parents filed a federal complaint accusing the network of discriminating against students with disabilities.The complaint, which was filed on Wednesday

by mike simpson / 20h 

State to reimburse costs related to Common Core tests | EdSource

State to reimburse costs related to Common Core tests | EdSource:State to reimburse costs related to Common Core testsSchool districts in California may get a new influx of money to reimburse as much as $600 million in estimated costs related to the administration of mandated tests, based on a state commission’s decision Friday.The Commission on State Mandates found that required Internet access,

by mike simpson / 22h 

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Talking about Race

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Talking about Race: Talking about RaceA number of events /reports have crossed my path in the last couple of weeks and I thought it worth a thread.Next Saturday, January 30th,  there will be an Education Roundtable to discuss the impacts of student discipline on communities of color.   Among the groups involed there are The Washington State Commission on African Am

by mike simpson / 22h 

Activism Is Good Teaching • Reclaiming the profession

Activism Is Good Teaching • Reclaiming the profession: Activism Is Good TeachingReclaiming the profession It was a sunny afternoon in May 2015. Several dozen Albuquerque Public School (APS) teachers gathered around a metal garbage can outside district headquarters just a few minutes before the final school board meeting of the year. As local news cameras rolled, the teachers came forward one by on

by mike simpson / 22h hide  //  save

Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed | pro public ed

Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed | pro public ed: Supreme Court’s motive in Friedrichs revealed“State’s rights” Court begins dismantling of state laws Teachers rally as the Supreme Court hears Friedrichs oral arguments IN his vitriolic dissent last June from the Supreme Court’s same-sex marriage decision, Justice Antonin Scalia accused the majority of having carried out a “judicial pu

by mike simpson / 22h 

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 1/22/15

CORPORATE ED REFORMPerhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum. | Reclaim ReformPerhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum. | Reclaim Reform: Perhaps President Obama would choose libraries instead of a mausoleum.Libraries for the living seem much more valuable than a mausoleum for one past political leader.The Pyramid at Giza is indeed impressiv

by mike simpson / 1d 

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig:

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders debate in Charleston, S.C. (Mic Smith / AP)

Every major union or progressive group that let its members decide the organization’s endorsement in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary campaign has selected Bernie Sanders, while all of Hillary Clinton’s major endorsements have come from groups in which the leadership decides.

“It’s perhaps the clearest example yet of Clinton’s powerful appeal to the Democratic Party’s elite, even as support for Sanders explodes among the rank and file,” reports Zaid Jilani at The Intercept:

For example, Clinton got an endorsement from the Human Rights Campaign this week. That decision was made not by a vote of HRC’s membership list but instead by a 32-member executive board that includes Mike Berman, the president of a lobbying firm that works for Pfizer, Comcast, and the health insurance lobby. Northrup Grumman is among its list of major corporate sponsors.

The Sanders campaign blasted the group as “establishment” and said that Sanders has a much stronger record on LGBT equality than Clinton. Outspoken gay activist Michaelangelo Signorile wrote that HRC had clearly traded its early endorsement for “access to the White House” for its leaders. […]

The one major labor union that did allow for a vote was the Communications Workers of America. CWA followed a three-month process that included meetings with members, telephone town halls, and 

Members of Unions and Progressive Groups Back Sanders. When the Chiefs Pick, Clinton Gets the Nod. - Truthdig:

CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!

CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!:

CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!

The issue of Competency-Based Education is very much in the news, so I thought I would revive this post.

Competency-Based Education (CBE) is being promoted as the way to “personalize” education, but it is a cold impersonal method of teaching on the computer. It fails to teach to the whole child and merely provides fragmented drill. It will be coordinated with Common Core, and there are concerns about student private information being compromised.

Competency-Based Education (CBE) itself has been around for years. Teachers pretest, or figure out what a child doesn’t know or understand. They provide instruction that addresses what the student lacks. Then the teacher reassesses to see if their instruction made a difference. If the instruction works, the teacher moves on. If it doesn’t work, they rethink their teaching strategy and do something different.

Teachers might not think about CBE much because it is usually automatic. Special CBE Online is Neither Personalized Nor Higher-Order Thinking!:

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report:

Annual Equitable Access Report

It's January again and therefore time for another annual report on Equitable Access.

This report is required by Board Policy 2200 which delegates authority for program placement to the Superintendent, but sets the criteria for program placement and requires an annual report to allow the Board the opportunity to confirm that the Superintendent's program placement decisions are aligned with those criteria. The Superintendent submits quarterly reports throughout the year and an annual report in January. The reports are delivered in Friday Memos to the Board. Every quarterly report and every annual report is deficient in some important way. This year is no exception.



The first thing you will notice about this report is that it contains no mention of the elimination of the Middle College site in Southwest Seattle. How this decision does not qualify as worthy of mention in this report is beyond me.

You'll notice that the report, which is supposed to include any decisions which, although not yet made, are under consideration, does not make any reference to Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Equitable Access Report:

Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive

Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive:

Facing the Music in Flint

The Flint water crisis and the poisoning of black children is yet another example of violence waged against African-Americans each and every day.

Sometimes, the crimes take the form of bullets (from police or otherwise) riddling innocent black bodies. Other times, the acts of torture are protracted, prolonged and gradual — like Flint, Michigan.

Someone needs to go to prison for it.

The predominantly black children of Flint are inflicted with Third World problems in the wealthiest nation on earth, in a region surrounded by water from the Great Lakes.

Instead, they were provided with swill, waste water that even GM refused to mess with because it was corroding the car parts. But it was fine for black children, because some officials may view them as thugs and animals anyway or likely to end up in jail.

Lead poisoning will haunt these girls and boys for the rest of their lives.

This disaster demonstrates that, once again, black people are sitting targets, accused of being a criminal element yet suffering as perpetual victims of crime who never find justice. A few days ago, seeking clarity on the situation and hoping to vent the outrage and frustrations of people out there, I decided to tweet about it here.

And based on the feedback I received, I’ve decided to expand on this idea.

There is no shortage of black people, particularly black men, who are in prison over nonviolent drug offenses, targeted exclusively for arrest, prosecution and prison, even as whites and blacks consume such substances, including marijuana, at similar rates. Billions of dollars are wasted on millions of race-based marijuana arrests, according to the ACLU, with blacks 3.73 times more likely Facing the Music in Flint - LA Progressive:

Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times

Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times:

Anger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers

Protesters in Detroit on Wednesday held signs depicting Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan and Darnell Earley, the new emergency manager for the city’s public schools. Critics say the appointment of emergency managers by the state disenfranchises local voters. Credit Laura McDermott for The New York Times

LANSING, Mich. — In the spring of 2013, Detroit was groaning under the weight of its troubles. It had accumulated billions in debt, was riddled with crime and had seen much of its affluent tax base disappear. A former mayor, Kwame M. Kilpatrick, was convicted of racketeering and fraud.

Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican, swept in with a rescue plan: the appointment of an emergency manager, Kevyn D. Orr, who was charged with saving a city in fiscal despair. Many Detroiters were furious that Mr. Orr, then a high-profile bankruptcy lawyer from Chevy Chase, Md., had been given a role with extraordinary power, usurping control from local elected officials.

That anger has been revived in Michigan this week. Public outrage over the tainted water in Flint and the decrepit schools in Detroit has led many people to question whether the state has overreached in imposing too many emergency managers in largely black jurisdictions.

In Flint, emergency managers not only oversaw the city — effectively seizing legal authority from the mayor and City Council — but also pressed to switch the source of the financially troubled city’s water supply to save money.

In Detroit, the schools are on the brink of insolvency after a series of emergency managers dating to 2009 repeatedly failed to grapple with its financial troubles, while also falling short on maintaining school buildings and addressing academic deficiencies. The current emergency manager for the schools, Darnell Earley, previously served in that role in Flint.

Under the administration of Mr. Snyder, who has held office since 2011, seven cities or school districts have been declared financial emergencies and placed under appointed management, state officials said. During the eight-year tenure of his predecessor, Jennifer M. Granholm, a Democrat, five cities or school districts were given emergency managers.

Three school districts — but no municipalities — remain under the control of emergency managers, a state official said.

Residents of majority-black cities have long cried foul over the practice. They argue that it disenfranchises voters and violates a deeply felt ethos of American democracy that allows for local representation. They also say emergency management gives influence to what is now a mostly white, Republican leadership in Lansing, the state capital. And they worry that in their decisions, emergency managers are more concerned with fiscal discipline than public health.

“Tell me what race dominates in those communities that get emergency managers?” said Hubert Yopp, the mayor of Highland Park, Mich., which is 93 percent black and in past years has had an emergency manager. “People have a very real reason to question what that’s about. It would be one thingAnger in Michigan Over Appointing Emergency Managers - The New York Times: 

Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California

Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California:

Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California

When it is becoming clear that creativity and innovation are the benchmarks of the new, global, knowledge economy, California is emerging as a leader in the effort to reinvent education.

Last year, the California Arts Council received a one-time $5 million increase in its 2014-15 budget, bringing its total support from the general fund to $6 million. This year, Governor Brown signed a state budget that included a $7.1 million permanent increase in general fund support for the Arts Council, and the Council in turn, has funded more communities throughout the state, and, together with the California Department of Education, helped craft a "Blueprint for Creative Schools," which eventually will be adopted by all California schools.

This is not just another government report to gather dust. It is a well thought-out set of recommendations and an action-oriented directive. The Blueprint has recommendations that touch on every aspect of teaching and learning in all K-12 schools. But what makes this effort most attractive is the commitment to developing a long-term agenda, insuring sustainability and creating a program of assessment and accountability.

Significant, also, is the creation of CREATE CA, a new non-profit coalition charged with ongoing convening of the California arts education community, coordinating action among the members of the coalition, and broadly marketing arts education advocacy to the greater public."

With a permanent staff, and a management structure, it is bringing all the major organizations together including the California Alliance for Arts Education (CAAE), the California Department of Education (CDE), the California Arts Council (CAC), the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA), the California Parent Teacher Association (PTA), and representatives of other significant arts organizations and initiatives.

While the Blueprint and CREATE CA have not been the diving force in all of the schools, the idea of a well-rounded curriculum using arts and arts integrated techniques is taking hold and a movement is taking shape in education throughout the state.

Public broadcast station KQED, reported, "in a first-grade classroom at Peralta Elementary School in Oakland, children concentrate on detailed pencil drawings of scenes from the underground railroad. Safehouses and trap doors appear on paper... (But) at Peralta, art is never just about art. These first-graders are learning about history, but they're also practicing math, measuring with their fingers to figure out where to draw horizon lines."

At Twin Rivers Unified in Northern Sacramento, Jacqueline White, Director, Arts and Career Education, says her district started to deploy arts integration with the Concept of Creatve Schools Taking Hold in California:

NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015 Public Survey for ​Standards, Curriculum, and Testing- NYS Allies for Public Education

NYS ALLIES for Public Education - NYS Allies for Public Education:

NYSAPE Common Survey Results - 2015

Public Survey for 

​Standards, Curriculum, and Testing

NYS Test Refusal Letter

NYSAPE Response to USDOE Funding Threats

Sit & Stare & Verbal Refusal Advisory

Rebuttals to Misinformation from School Districts

Public service announcement ON CBS RADIO

We are supporters of Public Education who believe excessive testing and inappropriate sharing of private student data without parental consent threatens the futures of our students, our schools and our state.   For more see About Us

​ Latest Press Releases & Action Alerts:
Groups Supporting:
Regent Betty Rosa for Chancellor &
Regent Beverly Ouderkirk for Vice Chancellor

Strong, Collaborative Leadership
A Must for the Board of Regents 
to Steer NY Education on the Right Path

Put a Stop to New NYSED Student Data Project
​Take Action Here

Two Vacant Seats on the NYS Board of
Regents - Candidates Needed

Parents Will Continue to Opt Out Until Ed Law Repealed & 
Real Change Seen in the Classrooms

​
Lisa Rudley's Testimony to the Governor Common Core Task Fore on Thursday, October 29, 2015 at the College of New Rochelle.  

lisarudleygovtaskforcepres102915.pptx

Download File

- See more at: http://www.nysape.org/#sthash.xFEoWzPT.dpuf

HOOSIER VOICES FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION

HOOSIER VOICES FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION:

"TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION

Its time for a PUBLIC ED support "Twitter Storm" in light of the Institute for Quality Education's upcoming Quality Education Celebration, celebrating National School Choice Week by celebrating school choice options in Indiana, being held in the Indiana Statehouse Atrium on Monday, January 25.

The "Storm" will run from 4:00pm Sunday, January 24 until 5:00pm Monday, January 25.  During this storm we ask that PUBLIC ED advocates post tweets that include links to great public schools data, the effects of vouchers on public schools, and any highlights of positives of Indiana's PUBLIC schools.

Recently The Institute for Quality Education took a quote from a Chalkbeat article and published it on their twitter account claiming that ISTA President Teresa Meredith "supports" vouchers.  

Here is the actual full quote from the article.

"Clearly the public is unhappy with direction our state has gone and wants to get back to common sense support for students and public schools,” said Indiana State Teachers Association President Teresa Meredith in a statement. “Students’ chances for success should not depend on winning a charter lottery or living in the right zip code.”

Hoosier Voices For Public Education founder, Philip D. Arnold, states that he believes the intention of the quote was to say Public Schools are being robbed by the use of vouchers and "scholarships" being handed out based on geography or affluent status. 

When asked about the quote, President Meredith told Mr. Arnold, "Our government is selling off Public schools with vouchers and 'scholarships'.  No kid should have to have a voucher to get a good education"

Philip Arnold points out information from reviews critical of the Friedman research cited in the Chalkbeat article. An article posted by The National Education Policy Center states, " A recent report from the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice purports .... But a new review of that report finds it is based on weak underlying research and that it misrepresents findings."  Read full article.

To show our continued support and advocacy for our PUBLIC SCHOOLS, let's flood twitter feeds with our PRO-PUBLIC ED information leading up to, and during, the big I4QED "choice" celebration.  When you tweet or post pro-public education please use #INpublicED along with any other of your "hashtags" and please tweet @i4qed @h4qed and @HoosierVoices along with others you wish to tweet to.  

In recent days Indiana's Public Education Advocates have pushed for positive moves in the current legislative session.  We need to continue our push of support and continue to show that our PUBLIC schools are worth the fight as we take on the volatile and poisonous "reform" minded legislators and the benefactors of their legislative agenda (benefactors like Institute for Quality Education, The Mind Trust, Hoosiers for Quality Education, Charter school operators , Private School financial officers, ALEC, Koch brothers, Friedman Foundation)HOOSIER VOICES FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION: "TWITTER STORM" SUPPORTING PUBLIC EDUCATION:

Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate

Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate:

Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT

Connecticut’s political and educational leaders have sold us a bill of goods with the new SAT. Last spring the legislature and the State Board of Education hastily decided to replace the 11th-grade SBAC with the newly designed SAT. The move was in response to outcry about the invalidity of the SBAC and about the addition of another standardized test for juniors.

As I wrote previously (http://bit.ly/1Kv8TXk), our leaders did not wait for the SAT to be validated, nor did they validate any accommodations that English Language Learners (ELL) or students with disabilities would need.

Instead, they misrepresented the facts to parents and students.

In December, the State Department of Education (SDE) sent districts a sample letter intended for parents. In it, SDE claimed that “(b)y adopting the SAT, we are eliminating duplicate testing.”

That assertion is false for many Connecticut students and SDE knew that when it wrote this letter. In a separate document sent at the same time but addressed to district leaders, not parents, SDE acknowledged that the vast majority of ELL students taking the SAT with accommodations will be unable to report their scores to colleges, because the College Board does not accept ELL accommodations. Similarly, many students with disabilities using accommodations will not be able to report scores either, as the College Board has more stringent criteria for disability accommodations. For those students, the SAT will only count for state accountability purposes.

In other words, for thousands of students, the state-mandated SAT will not count for college applications and they will have to take another test — either the SAT or ACT without accommodations.

Our state leaders also misled us by claiming that the new SAT is appropriate as an accountability exam aligned with Wendy Lecker: The lies in the new SAT - StamfordAdvocate:

CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem

CURMUDGUCATION: The Non-White Teacher Problem:

The Non-White Teacher Problem

And here comes yet an other piece of research to add to the stack.

New research from Jason A. Grissom and Christopher Redding looked for new information to explain the underrepresentation of students of color in gifted programs. It's complicated problem, but the researchers came up with one answer-- white teachers are far less likely than teachers of color to identify students of color as gifted. (Consider this the second cousin of the finding that police view young Black men as older and less innocent than whites). 

Research from last spring suggests that students do better in classes taught by same-race teachers.

Common sense that says students need to see an adult in school who is like them.

And yet, the trend in education has worked the other way since the days of Brown vs. Board of Education. At a moment when the student population in the US is less than 50% white, the teacher pool is overwhelmingly white and female. 

In some cases, Black educators have been pushed out of the classroom (post Katrina New Orleans went from a 71% Black teaching pool to less than 50%). But research keeps repeating the same basic finding on a larger scale-- we are failing to hold onto men and non-white teachers.

Why? Articles keep asking the question, but nobody seems to have an answer.

There are theories. The low pay, which can have impact on men who feel the need to support a