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Saturday, January 19, 2019

Top Posts This Week 1/19/19 #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA









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Posts This Week


Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

by mike simpson / 43min
Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say L os Angeles teacher Natali Escobedo says she will never forget the image of a diabetic fourth-grader “wilting” at her school because there was no nurse on hand to administer his insulin. The episode, which followed years of tight budgets th
Dana Goldstein: Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. - The New York Times

by mike simpson / 55min
Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. - The New York Times Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. When 30,000 Los Angeles teachers went on strike on Monday, prominent Democrats — and potential presidential candidates — lined up to give their blessings. Senator Kamala Harris of California sai
Update: Day FIVE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

by mike simpson / 1h
Update: Day FIVE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... UPDATE: DAY FIVE OF THE L.A. TEACHERS’ STRIKE Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Learning About The L.A. Teachers’ Strike : Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. is from The NY Times. LAUSD teachers’ strike, Day 5: The sun’s out, L.A. strikers
NYC Public School Parents: What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size

by mike simpson / 1h
NYC Public School Parents: What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size Last week I published a column on the Washington Post Answer Sheet about how class size is the central issue in the Los Angeles teacher strike, now going on for a week. Los Angeles schools have a $1.8 billion surplus
The Mind Inside: Episode One - Network For Public Education

by mike simpson / 1h
The Mind Inside: Episode One - Network For Public Education The Mind Inside: Episode One The Mind Inside series was created by I Love Public Schools, a project of Nebraska Loves Public Schools. The series explores one of the most pressing and complicated issues in public education today, mental health. Schools are being asked to address immediate and varied needs of students and provide more soci

YESTERDAY

Who “Taught” Your LAUSD Student Last Week? – Carl J. Petersen – Medium

by mike simpson / 16h
Who “Taught” Your LAUSD Student Last Week? – Carl J. Petersen – Medium Who “Taught” Your LAUSD Student Last Week? “ The messages we are required to send [home to parents] are inaccurate and untruthful. Everything is not copacetic at all of our schools. Some schools have over 200 students with [just] one credentialed person. ” - Juan A. Flecha, President Associated Administrators of Los Angeles Th
Jeff Bryant: A Swelling Tide of Major Teacher Strikes Is Shifting Our Politics Against the Charter Agenda

by mike simpson / 17h
A Swelling Tide of Major Teacher Strikes Is Shifting Our Politics Against the Charter Agenda A Swelling Tide of Major Teacher Strikes Is Shifting Our Politics Against the Charter Agenda When charter schools pull funding from a public school, it damages the school’s ability to educate the students who remain This week, Republican lawmakers held a press conference on Capitol Hill to kick off Nation
CURMUDGUCATION: DeVos Offers Advice From Within The Bubble

by mike simpson / 18h
CURMUDGUCATION: DeVos Offers Advice From Within The Bubble DeVos Offers Advice From Within The Bubble Betsy Devos is rich. She was born rich, married rich, and barring any French Revolution style upheaval, she will die rich. This does not automatically make her evil, but it does make her susceptible to life in a bubble-- particularly since she never created nor ran any of the businesses that made
Black Teachers Buck Beutner’s Billionaire Boys Club - LA Progressive

by mike simpson / 18h
Black Teachers Buck Beutner’s Billionaire Boys Club - LA Progressive Black Teachers Buck Beutner’s Billionaire Boys Club While thousands of L.A. teachers, students, parents, caregivers and supporters took to the rain-soaked streets to strike and fight for the life of public education this week, LAUSD’s one-percenter superintendent Austin Beutner took to the op-ed pages of oligarch mouthpiece the
Oakland teachers holding 1 day 'sick-out' to protest contract talks | abc7news.com

by mike simpson / 18h
Oakland teachers holding 1 day 'sick-out' to protest contract talks | abc7news.com Oakland teachers hold rally, walkout over contract talks OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Oakland teachers protested outside of Oakland Tech High School Friday morning and then marched down Broadway to the school district offices to demand a 12 percent pay raise over three years and smaller classes. The district is current
As LA Teachers Strike Over Charter Schools, Democrat Cory Booker Speaks at Pro-Charter Rally | gadflyonthewallblog

by mike simpson / 19h
As LA Teachers Strike Over Charter Schools, Democrat Cory Booker Speaks at Pro-Charter Rally | gadflyonthewallblog As LA Teachers Strike Over Charter Schools, Democrat Cory Booker Speaks at Pro-Charter Rally What a slap in the face! In California, 30,000 Los Angeles teachers are on strike because charter schools are gobbling up their funding without providing the same level of quality services or
Backing Teachers, Sanders Says LA Strike Exposes National Need for 'Revolution in Public Education'

by mike simpson / 22h
Backing Teachers, Sanders Says LA Strike Exposes National Need for 'Revolution in Public Education' Backing Teachers, Sanders Says LA Strike Exposes National Need for 'Revolution in Public Education' "What we accept as normal today with regard to education, I want your grandchildren to tell you that you were crazy to accept," said the Vermont senator Tens of thousands of public school teachers an
In L.A. Teachers' Strike, the State Is the Real Problem - The Atlantic

by mike simpson / 22h
In L.A. Teachers' Strike, the State Is the Real Problem - The Atlantic Blame Sacramento In the L.A. teachers’ strike, the state is the real problem. Undeterred by an afternoon rainstorm, a band of students, teachers, and parents crowded the streets outside Hollywood High School the other day to chant, whistle, and brandish protest signs in support of United Teachers Los Angeles, the city’s striki
Study links black college enrollment to having black teacher in elementary school

by mike simpson / 23h
Study links black college enrollment to having black teacher in elementary school To Add Black College Students, Recruit Black Schoolteachers Study finds long-term impact of having a black teacher in kindergarten through third grade. Many studies have found a positive impact on black students from having black teachers in elementary and secondary schools. A new working paper from the National Bur
Betsy DeVos, in first public appearance after bike accident, criticizes helicopter parents who obsess on 'safety and security’ - The Washington Post

by mike simpson / 1d
Betsy DeVos, in first public appearance after bike accident, criticizes helicopter parents who obsess on 'safety and security’ - The Washington Post Betsy DeVos, in first public appearance after bike accident, criticizes helicopter parents who obsess on 'safety and security’ Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Thursday made her first public appearance since being sidelined in a cycling crash, turn
U.S. Public Education Is Driven by High-Stakes Testing. Are the Proficiency Cut-Scores Legitimate? | janresseger

by mike simpson / 1d
U.S. Public Education Is Driven by High-Stakes Testing. Are the Proficiency Cut-Scores Legitimate? | janresseger U.S. Public Education Is Driven by High-Stakes Testing. Are the Proficiency Cut-Scores Legitimate? Back in 2005, I worked with members of the National Council of Churches Committee on Public Education and Literacy to develop a short resource, Ten Moral Concerns in the No Child Left Beh
Special Education: How Has Teacher Preparation Changed?

by mike simpson / 1d
Special Education: How Has Teacher Preparation Changed? Special Education: How Has Teacher Preparation Changed? Sometimes parents of students with disabilities will complain that teachers don’t know how to teach special education. This generalization is difficult to pin down. What specifically makes parents believe this? What is it about their student’s teacher that makes them so critical? With m
Update: Day FOUR Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

by mike simpson / 1d
Update: Day FOUR Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... UPDATE: DAY FOUR OF THE L.A. TEACHERS’ STRIKE Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Learning About The L.A. Teachers’ Strike : What would a deal to end the LAUSD teachers’ strike look like? is from The L.A. Times. What Are L.A. Teachers Fighting For? is from Slate. Saving Public Education Isn’t Abou

JAN 17

Steven Van Zandt: Why I Joined the L.A. Teachers’ Strike – Rolling Stone

by mike simpson / 1d
Steven Van Zandt: Why I Joined the L.A. Teachers’ Strike – Rolling Stone Steven Van Zandt: Why I Joined the L.A. Teachers’ Strike “Teachers are an underfunded and underappreciated part of our working class,” E Street Band guitarist says Anyone scrutinizing photos of those picketing the current teachers’ strike in Los Angeles may have seen a familiar face (and clothed head) Wednesday: Steven Van Z
L.A. teacher strike may be cutting edge of a revolution against what’s rotten in America | Will Bunch

by mike simpson / 1d
L.A. teacher strike may be cutting edge of a revolution against what’s rotten in America | Will Bunch L.A. teacher strike may be cutting edge of a revolution against what’s rotten in America Joseph Zeccola, a part-time playwright and full-time educator whose passion in the classroom earned him Los Angeles County Teacher of the Year honors just last year, said he heard something recently from an o
The L.A. Teachers' Strike Highlights Growing Division On Who Decides: Parents or Government?

by mike simpson / 1d
The L.A. Teachers' Strike Highlights Growing Division On Who Decides: Parents or Government? The L.A. Teachers' Strike Highlights Growing Division On Who Decides: Parents or Government? TWEET THIS But this strike really isn’t about just pay and benefits. It’s about charter schools—specifically, killing them Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks during a teache
Sweetwater Union – the Largest High School District in California – Is Under Attack by Charter School Proponents – Including the San Diego U-T and Voice of San Diego

by mike simpson / 1d
Sweetwater Union – the Largest High School District in California – Is Under Attack by Charter School Proponents – Including the San Diego U-T and Voice of San Diego Sweetwater Union – the Largest High School District in California – Is Under Attack by Charter School Proponents – Including the San Diego U-T and Voice of San Diego Editordude: Here’s the latest post from Thomas Ultican about the la
Betsy DeVos’ bet on boot camps

by mike simpson / 1d
Betsy DeVos’ bet on boot camps Betsy DeVos’ bet on boot camps Why the Department of Education wants to get behind a popular—but unaccredited—new style of education. As Americans look to build the skills they need for the fast-changing job market, a new type of education provider has swept onto the scene: the coding boot camp, an intensive, short-term training program for students trying to land h
Update: Day THREE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

by mike simpson / 2d
Update: Day THREE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... UPDATE: DAY THREE OF THE L.A. TEACHERS’ STRIKE Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Learning About The L.A. Teachers’ Strike : Movies, Worksheets, Computer Time: Inside LA Schools During The Teacher Strike is from NPR. The Social-Justice Imperative Behind the L.A. Teachers’ Strike is from The New
Diane Ravitch Speaks at the Los Angeles Teachers Strike - Network For Public Education

by mike simpson / 2d
Diane Ravitch Speaks at the Los Angeles Teachers Strike - Network For Public Education Diane Ravitch Speaks at the Los Angeles Teachers Strike Diane Ravitch Speaks at the Los Angeles Teachers Strike - Network For Public Education
Education, Civil Rights, Civic and Child Advocacy Organizations Protest DeVos Action on School Discipline | janresseger

by mike simpson / 2d
Education, Civil Rights, Civic and Child Advocacy Organizations Protest DeVos Action on School Discipline | janresseger Education, Civil Rights, Civic and Child Advocacy Organizations Protest DeVos Action on School Discipline Among the most important guarantees promised by public schools is the protection of children’s rights. Civil rights laws ban discrimination at school, and it is the establis
Austin Beutner’s No Superintendent; He’s An Agent Of Austerity And Deception – redqueeninla

by mike simpson / 2d
Austin Beutner’s No Superintendent; He’s An Agent Of Austerity And Deception – redqueeninla Austin Beutner’s No Superintendent; He’s An Agent Of Austerity And Deception For a financial whiz-kid, Austin Beutner seems strangely uncomprehending of numbers and inordinately fond of trumped-up figures. Monday morning last he floated the patently absurd hypothesis that “…3,500 people were taking part in
John Engler Resigns as Michigan State Interim President, Says Sexual Abuse Victims “Enjoy Spotlight” | deutsch29

by mike simpson / 2d
John Engler Resigns as Michigan State Interim President, Says Sexual Abuse Victims “Enjoy Spotlight” | deutsch29 John Engler Resigns as Michigan State Interim President, Says Sexual Abuse Victims “Enjoy Spotlight” Former Michigan governor, John Engler, will resign effective January 23, 2019, from his position as Michigan State University (MSU) interim president following comments he made about vi
CURMUDGUCATION: FL: The Unsurprising Teacher "Shortage"

by mike simpson / 2d
CURMUDGUCATION: FL: The Unsurprising Teacher "Shortage" FL: The Unsurprising Teacher "Shortage" The Florida Department of Education has released a report on teacher shortages in the state , for the 2019-2019 school year, and the news is not great. The news is not just that there's a shortage (t hat's old new s), but that Florida deals with the shortages by filling classrooms with teachers uncerti
Why the L.A. teachers strike is so uncomfortable for so many Democrats - The Washington Post

by mike simpson / 2d
Why the L.A. teachers strike is so uncomfortable for so many Democrats - The Washington Post Why the L.A. teachers strike is so uncomfortable for so many Democrats Hey @arneduncan, why is it that when it came to guns in schools you were all for kids striking, but when their teachers want guidance counselors instead of arm[ed] guards, you blast them? Randi Weingarten That’s the text of a tweet tha
Picketing with UTLA: A Great and Inspiring Morning | Diane Ravitch's blog

by mike simpson / 2d
Picketing with UTLA: A Great and Inspiring Morning | Diane Ravitch's blog Picketing with UTLA: A Great and Inspiring Morning I had a very exciting morning with teachers, parents and students who were picketing outside Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles. Teachers and parents walked in front of the majestic exterior building, on the sidewalk where cars could see them. Several people held

JAN 16

There Are Few Things As Reprehensible as a Scab | gadflyonthewallblog #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

by mike simpson / 2d
There Are Few Things As Reprehensible as a Scab | gadflyonthewallblog There Are Few Things As Reprehensible as a Scab There is a special place in Hell for strikebreakers. Some people kill. Some rape and steal. But only a filthy, disgusting scab can do all of that in one. When you take someone else’s job, you’re stealing their bargaining power, killing the community’s chances for their kids, and –
Best of 2018: Top 10 Posts of The Year #redfored

by mike simpson / 2d
Best of 2018: Top 10 Posts of The Year Black congresswoman visibly annoyed as Betsy DeVos struggles to answer basic civil rights questions Black congresswoman visibly annoyed as Betsy DeVos struggles to answer basic civil rights questions : Black congresswoman visibly annoyed ... Rollbacks, attacks and tumult mark DeVos's first year - Education Votes Rollbacks, attacks and tumult mark DeVos's fir
Schooled | The New Yorker

by mike simpson / 2d
Schooled | The New Yorker Schooled Cory Booker, Chris Christie, and Mark Zuckerberg had a plan to reform Newark’s schools. They got an education. I. The Pact Late one night in December, 2009, a black Chevy Tahoe in a caravan of cops and residents moved slowly through some of the most dangerous neighborhoods of Newark. In the back sat the Democratic mayor, Cory Booker, and the Republican governor-
Update: Day TWO Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

by mike simpson / 3d
Update: Day TWO Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... UPDATE: DAY TWO OF THE L.A. TEACHERS’ STRIKE Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Learning About The L.A. Teachers’ Strike : ‘Lock the door and throw away the key’: As strike looms, LAUSD asks Newsom to intercede is from CALMatters (personally, I believe that our Governor IS going to intervene and t
'Class sizes should be reduced': Los Angeles parents support striking teachers despite chaos at home

by mike simpson / 3d
'Class sizes should be reduced': Los Angeles parents support striking teachers despite chaos at home ‘Class sizes should be reduced’: Los Angeles parents support striking teachers despite chaos at home Elizabeth Rietz says it hasn’t been easy taking care of her daughter at home during the first two days of a strike by Los Angeles teachers, while she and her husband try to start their own clothing
Next School Year, Ohio Is Likely to Expand Vouchers and Charters Based on School Report Cards | janresseger

by mike simpson / 3d
Next School Year, Ohio Is Likely to Expand Vouchers and Charters Based on School Report Cards | janresseger Next School Year, Ohio Is Likely to Expand Vouchers and Charters Based on School Report Cards For a long time the state of Ohio has used its school report cards, derived primarily from the aggregate standardized test scores from particular schools and school districts, as the measure of edu
Does @EducationNext still get it WRONG on Gülen charters? | Cloaking Inequity

by mike simpson / 3d
Does @EducationNext still get it WRONG on Gülen charters? | Cloaking Inequity DOES @EDUCATIONNEXT STILL GET IT WRONG ON GÜLEN CHARTERS? I am glad that Harvard’s EducationNext changed the original language in this piece about the Gulen charter schools and Turkey that incorrectly argued that the NAACP had rescinded its call for a charter school moratorium by stating that it had not been “renewed.”
Kids First?

by mike simpson / 3d
Kids First? Kids First? “[If there is a strike] these students’ health and safety would be in jeopardy. They could get hurt, hurt themselves, or hurt others.” – Exhibit A in LAUSD Court Filing With their teachers set to walk out of their classrooms, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) needs bodies. In order to get the upper hand in a strike , the District will need to keep their schoo

JAN 15

RECAP OF DAY 1 OF LOS ANGELES TEACHERS STRIKE TO DEFEND PUBLIC SCHOOLS FROM THE PRIVATIZERS #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

by mike simpson / 3d
RECAP OF DAY 1 OF LOS ANGELES TEACHERS STRIKE TO DEFEND PUBLIC SCHOOLS FROM THE PRIVATIZERS Flying to Los Angeles | Diane Ravitch's blog - https://wp.me/p2odLa-ly1 via @dianeravitch Billionaires vs. LA Schools - https://www.jacobinmag.com/2019/01/la-teachers-strike-charters-privatization Teachers, undeterred by more rain, flood picket lines for Day 2 of the LAUSD strike - Los Angeles Times - http
What Could Be Wrong With The “Community School” Model? Revisiting A November 2015 Piece, Post-FEPA – Wrench in the Gears

by mike simpson / 3d
What Could Be Wrong With The “ Community School” Model? Revisiting A November 2015 Piece, Post-FEPA – Wrench in the Gears What Could Be Wrong With The “Community School” Model? Revisiting A November 2015 Piece, Post-FEPA I wrote the piece below in November 2015 during the lead up to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which passed the following month and cemented into place “Pay for Success” f
Opinion: Charter schools are draining LA’s public schools. That’s why I’m on strike | PBS NewsHour

by mike simpson / 3d
Opinion: Charter schools are draining LA’s public schools. That’s why I’m on strike | PBS NewsHour Opinion: Charter schools are draining LA’s public schools. That’s why I’m on strike On paper, my school looks good: high test scores, 100 percent graduation rate, an award-winning journalism program (my humble brag) and the smallest comprehensive high school in the Los Angeles Unified School Distric
UTLA president calls for more money for teachers ‘in a city rife with millionaires’ - Los Angeles Times

by mike simpson / 3d
UTLA president calls for more money for teachers ‘in a city rife with millionaires’ - Los Angeles Times UTLA president calls for more money for teachers ‘in a city rife with millionaires’ UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl addressed a crowd of teachers and children through a bullhorn in front of Marshall High School on Monday morning, raising his voice over chants and honking cars as the first teac
3 reasons to pay attention to the LA teacher strike

by mike simpson / 3d
3 reasons to pay attention to the LA teacher strike 3 reasons to pay attention to the LA teacher strike The first mass teacher labor action of 2019 is unfolding in California as the United Teachers Los Angeles walked out for the first time in 30 years . This strike, which began on Jan. 14, isn’t just important to people in Los Angeles. Here are three reasons the nation should pay attention. 1. Th
Opinion | What’s Really at Stake in the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike - The New York Times

by mike simpson / 4d
Opinion | What’s Really at Stake in the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike - The New York Times What’s Really at Stake in the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike Can California provide sufficient resources to support an effective public education system? Or will charter schools cripple it? LOS ANGELES — For decades, public schools were part of California’s lure, key to the promise of opportunity. Forty years
CURMUDGUCATION: Jeanne Allen on LAUSD: Fire Them All

by mike simpson / 4d
CURMUDGUCATION: Jeanne Allen on LAUSD: Fire Them All Jeanne Allen on LAUSD: Fire Them All The Center for Education Reform is a charter advocacy group whose most visible feature is Jeanne Allen, CEO and sometimes President of a board that includes pioneering privatize Chris Whittle. Allen loves charters and hates teachers unions. As you might guess, she has some thoughts about the LA teacher strik
The Meaning of the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike | janresseger

by mike simpson / 4d
The Meaning of the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike | janresseger The Meaning of the Los Angeles Teachers’ Strike Yesterday 30,000 Los Angeles school teachers went on strike. The Los Angeles Unified School District is the nation’s second largest, with 600,000 students enrolled in 900 schools. The school district has been merely inching up its offers to more fully staff the meager institutions teacher
Imbellus Assessments: Out of the Gate with $23M and McKinsey & Co. as Client | deutsch29

by mike simpson / 4d
Imbellus Assessments: Out of the Gate with $23M and McKinsey & Co. as Client | deutsch29 Imbellus Assessments: Out of the Gate with $23M and McKinsey & Co. as Client On January 11, 2019, Mark Bauerlein of the James B. Martin Center posted a piece entitled, “Be Wary of This Test,” about a testing startup, Imbellus, which has an impressive website deficient in any substance. Even so, Imbellus alrea

JAN 14

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Can We Get Her Involved in the Struggle to Save Public Schools from Plutocrats? @AOC #AOC

by mike simpson / 4d
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Can We Get Her Involved in the Struggle to Save Public Schools from Plutocrats? Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Can We Get Her Involved in the Struggle to Save Public Schools from Plutocrats? The New York Times wrote that the first-year member of Congress, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who was tending bar in the Bronx a year ago, is pushing the Democratic Party to the left. Alexan
SYHS fears insolvency over payments to Olive Grove Charter School - Santa Ynez Valley Star

by mike simpson / 4d
SYHS fears insolvency over payments to Olive Grove Charter School - Santa Ynez Valley Star SYHS fears insolvency over payments to Olive Grove Charter School A decision by the California Department of Education apparently requires the Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District to pay more than $700,000 this year to help operate Olive Grove Charter School, which high school district officials say
LAUSD strike: Why LA teachers are walking off the job - Vox

by mike simpson / 5d
LAUSD strike: Why LA teachers are walking off the job - Vox Why thousands of Los Angeles teachers are going on strike The second-largest school district in the country joins a growing national movement for better school funding and higher teacher pay. Monday morning, tens of thousands of Los Angeles educators will leave their classrooms and go on strike, throwing the weight of the country’s secon
CURMUDGUCATION: SAT: New Frontiers In Pointlessness

by mike simpson / 5d
CURMUDGUCATION: SAT: New Frontiers In Pointlessness SAT: New Frontiers In Pointlessness David Coleman, he who single-handedly built the architecture of Common Core ELA in the image of his own (untrained) biases about how language should be taught, is taking a step back from some of his College Board duties. That news has been accompanied by further evidence that the SAT is increasingly pointless.
LA Teachers Strike is About Charter Schools and High Stakes Testing | gadflyonthewallblog

by mike simpson / 5d
LA Teachers Strike is About Charter Schools and High Stakes Testing | gadflyonthewallblog LA Teachers Strike is About Charter Schools and High Stakes Testing On Monday more than 30,000 teachers at 900 schools in Los Angeles, California, will be on strike . And unlike the wave of teachers strikes last year in red states like West Virginia , this time educators are taking to the streets due to the

JAN 13

CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Jazz In Church Edition (1/13)

by mike simpson / 5d
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Jazz In Church Edition (1/13) ICYMI: Jazz In Church Edition Today was m day to visit my brother's church to play some jazz versions of old hymns. Fun times, but it ace for a full family day. Nevertheless, I have some reading for you from the week. Remember-- if you think it's a good one, share it and amplify the voice. Charter Lobby Still Spending Money in Connecticut Wendy
Enrique Baloyra: UTLA teachers striking for smaller class size - YouTube #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed

by mike simpson / 5d
UTLA teachers striking for smaller class size - YouTube UTLA teachers striking for smaller class size It looks like tomorrow teachers in the nation’s second largest school district will be going on strike. Over 600,000 students could be affected. On Friday the Los Angeles Unified School District and United Teachers of LA failed to reach a last minute agreement. Thirty-some thousand teachers are e
The Collective Of Strike Perspectives – redqueeninla

by mike simpson / 5d
The Collective Of Strike Perspectives – redqueeninla The Collective Of Strike Perspectives Hollywood paints a rather simple picture of strikes. There are good guys and bad guys . Workers and non-workers. But the imminent teacher’s strike here in LA is complicated. For one thing, it’s a public service union . So the owners are a complicated notion. The boss of public school teachers are we the peo
A Charter School Pawn #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed

by mike simpson / 5d
A Charter School Pawn A Charter School Pawn I f I asked my teachers in my old school for help, they wouldn’t worry about it. They worried more about their pay .” – 4th Grade Charter School Student Jose, a fourth-grade student at a charter school, was so nervous as he spoke before the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) School Board that he was fighting back tears. The tension in the galle
How to Teach Virtue? Start with a Charter School. | Teacher in a strange land

by mike simpson / 5d
How to Teach Virtue? Start with a Charter School. | Teacher in a strange land How to Teach Virtue? Start with a Charter School. Yes. The title is sarcasm. But the idea must be acknowledged. It sprang from the mind of one of most venerable Famous Educators, a hoary pillar of the never-ending education reform movement, Chester E. Finn, known to his fellow reformistas as ‘Checker.’ Checker is curren
Marie Corfield: How NJ Politicians—D & R—Stuck It To Consumers

by mike simpson / 5d
Marie Corfield: How NJ Politicians—D & R—Stuck It To Consumers How NJ Politicians—D & R—Stuck It To Consumers "Are you ready for some football good ole' fashioned consumer screwing?" This blog has been quiet for some time. The "shock and awe" of Trumplandia has left me mouth-agape, clinging to the lifesavers tossed by our better angels in the not-"fake news" who remind me that while the rudder is
The Grand Scam: The Economy’s Turned Around But Where Is the Praise for Schools?* | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

by mike simpson / 6d
The Grand Scam: The Economy’s Turned Around But Where Is the Praise for Schools?* | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice The Grand Scam: The Economy’s Turned Around But Where Is the Praise for Schools?* Why is it that now with a bustling economy, rising productivity, and shrinking unemployment American public schools are not receiving credit for the turnaround? In light of scathing
Teach for America: Their Harmful Effect on Special Education

by mike simpson / 6d
Teach for America: Their Harmful Effect on Special Education Teach for America: Their Harmful Effect on Special Education Since 1990, America has put many school children, usually poor, in classrooms with Teach for America Corps Members (CMs) who get five weeks of training. They’ve also placed novices in special education classrooms. Many corporations and individuals donate to this group, undermi
Upcoming Legislative Session: Will the Legislature/Governor Agree to a Moratorium on the Creation of New Charter Schools? | Ed In The Apple

by mike simpson / 6d
Upcoming Legislative Session: Will the Legislature/Governor Agree to a Moratorium on the Creation of New Charter Schools? | Ed In The Apple Upcoming Legislative Session: Will the Legislature/Governor Agree to a Moratorium on the Creation of New Charter Schools? n December, 1998 Governor Pataki called the legislature back into session, sessions after Election Day are called “lame duck” sessions, l

JAN 12



Top Posts This Week 1/12/19 #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

by mike simpson / 6d
Top Posts This Week 1/12/19 Those Wishing to Destroy Public Education Are Retooling for 2019 Challenging the myths about teachers – Live Long and Prosper Tacos for Teachers: GoFundMe's Try to Feed Students, Teachers 


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Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say

Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say



Los Angeles teacher Natali Escobedo says she will never forget the image of a diabetic fourth-grader “wilting” at her school because there was no nurse on hand to administer his insulin.

The episode, which followed years of tight budgets that left little money for medical staff, highlights the potential impact of a lack of nurses throughout the Los Angeles Unified School District, one of the key reasons Escobedo and her colleagues are on strike.
In L.A., as in many districts across the United States, the school nurse is the first and sometimes only point of entry for many families into a complicated and expensive health-care system.
Like most schools in the more than 1,200-campus district, Lockwood Elementary, where Escobedo teaches, has a nurse just once a week. Children who become ill are left to the care of first-aid trained administrators or simply wait for a nurse to come from a nearby school to help them.
“There were times when the student would be struggling because of his condition,” Escobedo said. “He would have to wait or the nurse would get sidetracked due to some other emergency and my student had to sit in the office like a wilting flower waiting for his medicine to arrive.”
Teachers in the massive district, which serves more than 600,000 students, have been on strike since Jan. 14.
In an unusual twist for a labor negotiation, the two sides are fairly close on salary, but teachers say they are holding out for an improvement in student conditions, citing the need for more school nurses, psychologists and smaller class sizes in a district where as many as 46 students are sometimes crammed in a single classroom.
The teachers are demanding a full-time nurse at every school in the district, compared CONTINUE READING: Lack of school nurses puts Los Angeles students at risk, striking teachers say

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Dana Goldstein: Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. - The New York Times #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. - The New York Times

Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education.


When 30,000 Los Angeles teachers went on strike on Monday, prominent Democrats — and potential presidential candidates — lined up to give their blessings.
Senator Kamala Harris of California said she was “standing in solidarity” with teachers, who are demanding higher pay, smaller classes and more support staff.
“I’m with teachers all the way,” Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts said on Twitter.
Senators Cory Booker, Sherrod Brown, Kirsten Gillibrand and Bernie Sanders all shared similar sentiments about a strike that has drawn broad public support but disrupted the routines of half a million, mostly low-income children.
In 2019, after a year of teacher walkouts across the country, it is practically impossible for a national Democrat to profess anything short of full-throated support for picketing educators. But many of them this week steered clear of the most contentious underlying cause of the strike: the teacher union’s opposition to the growth of charter schools, and the union’s claim that district officials — who are largely Democrats — favor charter schools over traditional ones.
The unified cheers from Democrats belie deep and long-running rifts in the party over what public education should look like, at a time when the party is debating its direction. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, likened the Los Angeles strike to “a gladiator fight” between two factions.
On one side are those who have hewed to President Barack Obama’s centrist position on schools: supporting high-performing charters, which are publicly funded but privately managed, while putting pressure on teachers’ unions to raise student achievement and give up some of their traditional seniority protections.
On the other side is organized labor, which has resisted the growth of the mostly nonunion charter sector. Union leaders say charters take students and public dollars from traditional neighborhood schools.
But as democratic socialism, and sympathy for unions, is on the rise among young Democrats, the Obama-era view that charters create more competition and better choices for families no longer rules the party.
Over the past year, teacher walkouts, including six in conservative and swing states, have captured the public’s attention. The movement has “reshaped the discussion within the Democratic Party nationally,” said Alex Caputo-Pearl, the firebrand president of United Teachers Los Angeles, the union that is currently on strike. “Do we need to back away from what corporate Democrats have been promoting for a long time, which is charter schools and privatization?” CONTINUE READING: Democrats Are United on Teacher Strikes. But They’re in a ‘Gladiator Fight’ Over Education. - The New York Times



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Update: Day FIVE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

Update: Day FIVE Of The L.A. Teachers’ Strike | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

UPDATE: DAY FIVE OF THE L.A. TEACHERS’ STRIKE





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NYC Public School Parents: What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size #UTLA #REDFORED #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA

NYC Public School Parents: What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size

What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size



Last week I published a column on the Washington Post Answer Sheet about how class size is the central issue in the Los Angeles teacher strike, now going on for a week.

Los Angeles schools have a $1.8 billion surplus, and yet Superintendent Austin Beutner still insists that he can ignore any and all class size caps in the teacher contract, because of a loophole that was inserted in the contract after the great recession hit, a decade ago.

Ignoring these contractual caps - which are still too high -- means that class sizes in Los Angeles can rise to 35 or 40 in many schools, which are ridiculously large and far too large to provide any student with  sufficient feedback from their teachers.

In the piece, I also explained how many insiders suspect that the real reason the pro-charter LA school board and  Superintendent so obdurately refuse to lower class size is that this would take up space in their schools that instead they'd prefer to give to the expanding charter schools.

I also dispute the risible claims made in an oped by Arne Duncan, in which he tossed in the red herring of unreliable average class size data as cited by the district, rather than admit that the real focus of discontent among parents and teachers are the maximum class sizes that many LA students suffer.  Duncan also went on to repeat the tired straw man argument that parents would prefer their children have a good teacher than a small class- as though that's a real world choice any parent should have to make.

Class sizes have increased across the country since the recession, and even though we're a decade past that point, school budgets haven't fully recovered.  I'm encouraged that in Los Angeles as well as many of the other states where teachers led strikes and walk-outs last year, including Oklahoma,  Colorado,  and Arizona,  this has led to a resurgence in people's awareness of the key issue of class size, because its a too often-ignored component of any real school improvement strategy.

Despite all the more trendy proposals will concerning online learning, community schools or pre-K expansion, class sizes in grades K-12 are far too large in most public schools around the country to provide kids with a real opportunity too learn.  As Dale Farran, one of the lead investigators in the Vanderbilt preK study -- the most authoritative large-scale experiment ever done on expanding preK, has concluded: 

“Too much has been promised from one year of preschool intervention without the attention needed to the quality of experiences children have and what happens to them in K-12.”
Here in NYC, class sizes also remain far bigger than they were when the state's highest court  said they were too large to offer students their constitutional right to a sound basic education in the decision in the CFE case. 

The union class size caps in NYC public schools are also are far too large, and haven't been lowered in over fifty years - CONTINUE READING: NYC Public School Parents: What LA teachers are teaching the country about the need to reduce class size




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The Mind Inside: Episode One - Network For Public Education

The Mind Inside: Episode One - Network For Public Education

The Mind Inside: Episode One

The Mind Inside series was created by I Love Public Schools, a project of Nebraska Loves Public Schools. The series explores one of the most pressing and complicated issues in public education today, mental health. Schools are being asked to address immediate and varied needs of students and provide more social, emotional, and behavioral support services than ever before.
The first episode lays the foundation for The Mind Inside series, establishing what life looks like in public schools today and how mental health impacts the classroom.
Watch the film
Watch stories from students, hear from school leaders, and understand the growing need for compassion, empathy, and support for students.
The Mind Inside: Episode One - Network For Public Education




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