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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

The NJEA's response: 'An insult to every teacher in New Jersey' - pressofAtlanticCity.com

The NJEA's response: 'An insult to every teacher in New Jersey' - pressofAtlanticCity.com

The NJEA's response: 'An insult to every teacher in New Jersey'



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"An insult to every teacher in New Jersey"

Christie administration again snubs professional educators

In an email sent to NJEA President Barbara Keshishian Monday evening, Acting Commissioner of Education Rochelle Hendricks refused NJEA's annual invitation to the Commissioner to address teachers and other school employees at the NJEA Convention in Atlantic City later this week.

The NJEA Convention is the largest professional development gathering for educators in the world. Tens of thousands of New Jersey educators attend to take part in more than 300 professional development seminars. They also hear from highly regarded keynote speakers and take advantage of opportunities to learn from colleagues in settings such as High Tech Hall, where NJEA members and other education experts present workshops on integrating technology into education.

Having apparently learned from her predecessor, Bret Schundler, that collaboration with

State releases new school ratings | EdNewsColorado

State releases new school ratings | EdNewsColorado

State releases new school ratings

Image of pencil and standardized test answer sheet.More than 80 percent of Colorado schools meet minimum expectations under the state’s new accountability system while the lowest 11 percent have five years to improve or face possible closure.

Denver Public Schools is home to 44 schools – by far the most of any district – charged with creating “priority improvement” or “turnaround” plans to bolster student performance before time runs out.

State Board of Education members today signed off on the first public release under the Education Accountability Act of 2009, the state law that is Colorado’s latest attempt to rate and improve its K-12 schools.

Today’s action was approval of the plans that each of the state’s 2,080 schools must put together and file with the Colorado Department of Education to demonstrate they’re on the path to continuous improvement.

Barry D. Wood: A Bittersweet DC Farewell for Michelle Rhee

Barry D. Wood: A Bittersweet DC Farewell for Michelle Rhee
Barry D. Wood

Barry D. Wood

Posted: November 2, 2010 05:28 PM

It was a glorious affair at the Kennedy Center Monday night when 662 of the best public school teachers in Washington, DC were recognized for their achievements. College professor and vice-presidential wife Jill Biden, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, New York Times columnist Tom Friedman and Meet the Press moderator David Gregory were among the luminaries paying tribute to teachers rated "highly effective" under the contentious evaluation system established by now former schools chancellor Michelle Rhee.

Entitled "Standing Ovation for D.C. Teachers," the long-scheduled event also became a farewell for the 40-year-old Rhee, the crusading educator featured prominently in the Waiting for 'Superman' documentary of reformers and failing urban schools. After three plus years leading the DC schools -- closing underpopulated schools, dismissing over 100 teachers, slimming a bloated bureaucracy -- Rhee resigned after her patron, outgoing DC mayor Adrian Fenty, lost his bid for re-election in the September Democratic party