Monday, October 25, 2010

Bethel Park Teachers On Picket Lines - News Story - WPXI Pittsburgh

Bethel Park Teachers On Picket Lines

Posted: 7:36 am EDT October 25, 2010Updated: 7:46 am EDT October 25, 2010

BETHEL PARK, Pa. -- Teachers in Bethel Park are on the picket lines.

Channel 11 was there as the first teachers arrived early Monday morning outside the Bethel Park administration building.

The district and the teachers union could not come to a contract agreement over the weekend.

The head of the teachers union said she was hopeful the two sides would reach a deal before the strike.

"I felt we were pretty close. They had to come to some things we absolutely needed. They weren't able to come through," said Diane Smith of the Bethel Park Federation of Teachers.

Last week, the district prepared for the strike by notifying the parents of the district's more than 5,000 students.

The Answer Sheet - The real effect of teachers union contracts

The real effect of teachers union contracts

Teachers unions are a big target today of some school reformers who view these organizations as the biggest obstacle to improving student achievement. The film "Waiting for Superman" certainly did. So why are states without binding teacher contracts among the lowest-performing in the nation? Matthew Di Carlo, senior fellow at the non-profit Albert Shanker Institute, located in Washington, D.C., looks at this issue. Aversion of this post originally appeared on the institute’s blog. A follow-up to this post presented a supplemental analysis of the data.

By Matthew Di Carlo
For years, some people have been determined to blame teachers’ unions for all that ails public education in America. This issue has been around a long time (see here and here), but, given the tenor of the current debate, it seems to bear rehashing. According to this view, teachers unions negatively affect student achievement primarily through

Fear and lies on school reform - The Denver Post

Fear and lies on school reform

A campaign against charter schools in northeast Denver seeks to obstruct reform by scaring parents into keeping the status quo.

By The Denver Post

POSTED: 10/25/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT

Opponents of school reform in far northeast Denver have launched a campaign of fear-mongering and outright lies to scare parents in Montbello and Green Valley Ranch.

It is a shameful tactic, made even more disgraceful by the support we're told it is getting from a few Denver Public School board members who apparently will do anything to undercut DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg.

DPS has produced a thoughtful blueprint for reforming schools in northeast Denver, using programs and tools that have proven successful in other parts of the city.

DPS board members ought to publicly disavow the misinformation campaign that says charter schools

New Jersey’s Governor and the Public Education Debate - NYTimes.com

New Jersey’s Governor and the Public Education Debate

By BRENT STAPLES

Published: October 24, 2010

REPRINTS

New Jersey’s governor, Chris Christie, has been bludgeoning the state’s teachers and their unions since he took office earlier this year. The name-calling has raised his profile nationally, and made him a darling of the right. It has also made rational conversation on school reform nearly impossible.

Times Topic: Chris Christie

Last month, Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Facebook, seemed to address this problem when he announced that he was pouring $100 million into a school reform plan in troubled Newark, whose schools are controlled by the state. He said from the start that the plan would be a joint project of politicians, civic groups and the very teachers’ unions that Mr. Christie has been demonizing since Day 1.

The deal as it was originally announced called for Mr. Christie to cede some control of

NJ Spotlight | Church, State, and Charter Schools

Church, State, and Charter Schools
As an increasing number of religious institutions back charter schools, church and state issues may loom large

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By John Mooney, October 25 in Education |2 Comments

The announcement came about halfway through yesterday’s service at St. Matthew’s AME Church in Orange, when the Rev. Reginald Jackson broke from the celebratory music and prayerful message to talk education policy.

Jackson told his congregation of about 200 that he had applied to the state Department of Education to open a charter school, drawing applause.

“We want a charter school that will provide opportunities for every child to be the best they can be,” he said.

And Jackson asked for a little help: “I want you to be in prayer that the charter school be approved.”

Another Chapter

In another chapter in the pastor’s venerable and outspoken advocacy for school choice, Jackson had instantly added an intriguing twist to the New Jersey’s charter school movement.

CTA outspends ACSA in superintendent race | Thoughts on Public Education

CTA outspends ACSA in superintendent race - by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

In the surrogate battle in the race for Superintendent of Public Instruction, behemoth California Teachers Assn. has spent $3.4 million this year on behalf of its chosen one, Assembly member Tom Torlakson. This is more than double what the smaller Association of California School Administrators has spent promoting its favorite son, retired superintendent Larry Aceves [...]

This Week In Education: AM News: "Value-Added" Approach Spreads Into Higher Ed

AM News: "Value-Added" Approach Spreads Into Higher Ed

by Alexander Russo

Putting a Price on Professors WSJ: A 265-page spreadsheet, released last month by the chancellor of the Texas A&M University system, amounted to a profit-and-loss statement for each faculty member, weighing annual salary against students taught, tuition generated, and research grants obtained... 10 students burned as portable stove explodes at Torrance high school AP: Three of the gas-operated devices were being used in a classroom for cooking during a lunchtime fundraiser for UNICEF. Some students burned on their necks, faces and hands, and several of the injuries were considered serious... D.C. Teachers' Union election will affect survival of Rhee's initiatives Washington Post: District public school parents have a stake in the upcoming elections for leadership of the Washington Teachers' Union, which will have a major role in implementing some of outgoing Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee's reforms... New charter, transformation schools proposed in city in 2011 Baltimore Sun: Seven charter schools and four transformation programs are being proposed to launch in Baltimore next year, many of which would focus on single-gender education and unique curriculums... Jindal orders $107M in cuts to balance La. budget Associated Press: Gov. Bobby Jindal said higher education, health care and social services will take the largest cuts Friday when he orders reductions to rebalance the budget and close a $107 million deficit... Teacher drops lawsuit in burning crosses case AP: An Ohio public school teacher accused of burning the mark of a cross on students' arms said Friday he dropped a lawsuit over his firing because it would have interfered with a public airing of his complaint in a different venue.

The Cozy Relationship of UTLA and LAUSD (La �ntima relaci�n de UTLA y el LAUSD) by John Adams - Perdaily.com

The Cozy Relationship of UTLA and LAUSD (La íntima relación de UTLA y el LAUSD) by John Adams

by Leonard

(Mensaje se repite en Español) In his disability retirement and final escape from LAUSD and UTLA's ability to retaliate against him, recently retired teacher John Adams has finally shared one of his experiences dealing with the Duplicitous Duo. For those of you who either don't think you can wait to retire to speak out or think that if you wait that long there will not be a teaching profession to retire from, I strongly suggest that you get an anonymous gmail or AOL account and share your outrage with Perdaily. It is the best weapon you have to avoid the further dismantling of public education. Four million teachers, their families, and supporters in this country know a better alternative and just need to express it. Or you could continue to let the minority blame you for their incompetence.

The Perdaily articles dealing with teacher retaliation, and UTLA aquiescence of such retaliation are District-wide.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

One rich guy who wants to pay higher taxes: Bill Gates Sr. | McClatchy

One rich guy who wants to pay higher taxes: Bill Gates Sr.

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By Brad Shannon | Tacoma News Tribune

Bill Gates Sr., the retired lawyer and wealthy father of the Microsoft co-founder, thinks Washington state's tax system is out of whack and needs repair.

The poor pay too much tax, the rich pay too little, Gates says. And the school system, which is such a springboard for future economic growth in high-tech Washington, suffers with too little funding because the wealthy aren't paying their fair share of the investment, he says.

Gates' solution — an income tax on adjusted earnings that exceed $400,000 a year per couple or $200,000 for an individual — is drawing protest from Washington business leaders and owners, as well as anti-tax allies such as Tim Eyman, who says the phrase "income tax" is politically toxic in Washington.

Initiative 1098 would give tax credits to an estimated 80 percent of Washington-based businesses and would cut the state share of property taxes by 20 percent for businesses and homeowners. Critics say I-1098 would harm

Focus Walk

Student Teacher Fired for Saying He's Gay Gets Job Back

Seth Stambaugh Told Fourth Grader He Wasn't Married Because He Was Gay

11 comments

By DEAN SCHABNER

Oct. 24, 2010

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An Oregon student-teacher who said he was removed from a suburban Portland school because he told a fourth grader he was gay was given his job back and could be back in the classroom this week.

Seth Stambaugh was fired for answering a student about why he wasn't married.

Seth Stambaugh, 23, was banned from the Beaverton School District in September after he responded candidly to a question from a student at the Sexton Mountain Elementary School.

"The student asked me if I was married. I indicated that I was not," Stambaugh said at a news conference on Friday.

"He asked me if it was because I wasn't old enough. I told him no, that it would be because I would choose to marry another man," he said. "And he asked if I liked to hang out with other guys, and I said,

The Answer Sheet - Saving public education: the 'Dolly Solution'

Saving public education: the 'Dolly Solution'

This was written by Richard Slettvet, a special education teacher in Washington State. Prior to entering the teaching profession he worked as a U.S. Navy officer and for two Fortune 500 companies. He believes that many school reform advocates in government and industry would have a tough time surviving a single year as a classroom teacher in a public school. By Richard Slettvet I am proposing the Dolly Solution as an alternative to Charter Schools Secretary Arne Duncan’s “Race to the Top” (AKA, Grovel for Lucre) reform initiative, which, if other federal education programs are any guide, is destined to end in a muddle of red tape, unfunded mandates, and unintended consequences. The Dolly Solution refers to Dolly the Sheep, country-music superstar Dolly Parton’s namesake, not to Ms. Parton’s 2002 cover of Led Zepplin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” Dolly the Sheep, you may recall, emerged in 1996 from a surrogate ewe

Schools Matter: Everything Bold Deformers Never Wanted to Know About Education

Everything Bold Deformers Never Wanted to Know About Education

by Jim Horn

A hundred years ago the first "scientific" generation of bold reformers set out to right America's education ship. White, male, Protestant and business class all, they were armed with the new behaviorist psychology, the new principles of scientific management, and the new pseudo-science of eugenics. They created the perfect sorting machine based on intelligence testing and other standardized measures, where poor children at age 5 or 6 were slotted into industrial training schools or vocational prep if they were lucky. The high scorers went on to high school and college.

Today's education deformers, weaponized with the same antique armaments, advocate for no such distinctions in their education crusade. Everyone should go to college. And besides, there aren't any vocations anymore to require vocational training.

Old habits are hard to break, however, and the evidence for it can be found in the fact that we still use the same primitive sorting devices we used then to do a similar sort of sorting, except now we pretend that poverty is not an excuse for scoring poorly. Back then we just assumed the poor deserved to be poor because of defective

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Collabaorative Planning

Collabaorative Planning

by Mike Klonsky

He forgot to say, "Value-added"

Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo and brother Fred for forwarding this video.

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