Monday, January 3, 2011

We treat our teachers like they are interchangeable widgets: Rhee

We treat our teachers like they are interchangeable widgets: Rhee

We treat our teachers like they are interchangeable widgets: Rhee

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By IBTimes Staff Reporter | January 3, 2011 2:24 AM EST

Former chancellor of D.C. public schools Michelle Rhee, who created a buzz with the launch of her non-profit advocacy group StudentsFirst in December 2010, feels that one of the ways in which America can effectively battle the crisis that plagues its public education system is by ensuring that every classroom in the country recruits the best teachers. Unfortunately, the current culture and environment is not one which facilitates that, feels Rhee.

REUTERS/
Michelle Rhee, former chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools, speaks during "An Educated Workforce" session of the Wall Street Journal CEO Council on "Rebuilding Global Prosperity" in Washington, November 17, 2009. Rhee has now founded her own organization for promoting better education.

Speaking on The Dylan Ratigan Show on NBC last week, Rhee pointed out that it was important to make teaching a profession that high performers wanted to get into. That involved making it more selective, as well as introducing a system of differentiated remuneration that rewarded teachers on the basis of their

NYC Educator: "It's Not Our Fault," Says NYC Department of Education

NYC Educator: "It's Not Our Fault," Says NYC Department of Education

"It's Not Our Fault," Says NYC Department of Education

In Mayor Bloomberg's New York, accountability is paramount. For example, if your car is snowed in, it's your fault for parking it on the street. If you'd had any sense, you'd have brought it into your living room, where it could have stayed nice and warm. Don't suppose for a moment his chauffeur hasn't garaged his limo, and you should have garaged yours too.

So when the two genius principals at Jamaica High School decided to quash a play critical of Klein and the school closings, the DOE said they'd have been fine with it. After all, as a principal whose school can be closed at any moment, why would you worry about what Chancellor Klein thinks? Chancellor Klein wants the total unvarnished truth. When there's trouble, you should bring it to his attention immediately.

In fact, Jamaica High School has some experience with that. When Joel Klein said he wanted every incident scrupulously reported, their principal followed the

Some good advice to the new state Super | Thoughts on Public Education

Some good advice to the new state Super | Thoughts on Public Education

Some good advice to the new state Super

Challenge status quo; move to local control; focus on Pre-K
By John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

Tom Torlakson takes his oath today as the state’s 27th Superintendent of Public Instruction in a low-key ceremony at the high school in Concord where he last taught. His first order of business: Listen to the good, if somewhat conflicting, advice of seven educators and experts whom I asked to share their thoughts. And of course, listen to me as well (I’m last). I encourage readers to chime in, too.

Jeff Camp: Move to local control now

It has fallen to you to administer further cuts

Speaking: Educating Girls Conference at the Chapin School « Feminist Teacher

Speaking: Educating Girls Conference at the Chapin School « Feminist Teacher

Speaking: Educating Girls Conference at the Chapin School

Today I will be speaking at the Educating Girls conference sponsored by NYSAIS (New York State Association of Independent Schools) to be held at the all girls Chapin School. The title of my workshop is “Engaging Girls in Feminist Activism.”

I will begin the workshop with the following video highlighting some of the most exciting moments of my course Fierce and Fabulous: Feminist Women Writers, Artists, and Activists between the years 2008-10.

Focusing on best practices, the rest of the session will explore how I have engaged girls—and boys—in feminist

The Answer Sheet - The "bad teacher" bogeyman and its consequences

The Answer Sheet - The "bad teacher" bogeyman and its consequences

The "bad teacher" bogeyman and its consequences

This powerful post by educator Anthony Cody takes a deep look at what he calls a "systemic" attack on teachers and public schools. Cody taught science for 18 years in inner-city Oakland and now works with a team of science teacher-coaches that supports novice teachers. He is a National Board-certified teacher and an active member of the Teacher Leaders Network. This post appeared on his Education Week Teacher blog, Living in Dialogue. By Anthony Cody In the narrative being driven by "education reformers," the "bad teacher" has emerged as the greatest threat to our future. This threat is being used to justify a wholesale attack on the teaching profession. With our rights and even the institution of public education in danger, why have teachers been so slow to respond? Educators are unlikely warriors. In our classrooms we depend on the authority of the school as we exert our own authority

Schools Matter: Answering Arne Duncan

Schools Matter: Answering Arne Duncan

Answering Arne Duncan

Answering Arne Duncan.

Stephen Krashen

Comment posted on Washington Post website.

Original article at: Arne Duncan, School reform: A chance for

Answering Arne Duncan, part 2

Answering Arne Duncan, part 2

Comment posted on Washington Post website.

Original article at: Arne Duncan, School reform: A chance for bipartisan governing

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/02/AR2011010202378.html?referrer=emailarticle

Arne Duncan claims widespread support for new tests.

Yes, we all want accurate ways of measuring student growth. But does this mean we must have new tests and more testing than has ever been done before? I think we already have a wonderful and accurate way of

Answering Arne Duncan, part 3

Answering Arne Duncan, part 3

Stephen Krashen

Comment posted on Washington Post website.

Original article at: Arne Duncan, School reform: A chance for bipartisan governing

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/02/AR2011010202378.html?referrer=emailarticle

Duncan thinks that "More and more, teachers, parents, and union and business leaders want a real definition of teacher effectiveness based on multiple measures, including student growth, principal observation and peer

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: NEW YEAR QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: NEW YEAR QUOTABLES

NEW YEAR QUOTABLES

Two Americas
"'We're becoming two societies, two Americas,' [sociologist Robert] Putnam told me recently. There's a deepening class divide that shows up in many places. It's not just a matter of income. Education is becoming the key discriminant in American life. Family structure is part of it too."(Doyle McManus, L.A. Times)
More on China's test-crazy schools
"But don't the PISA results at least show that China's K-9 education is the best in the world, and that standardized testing, as U.S. President Barack Obama seems to believe, is necessary to

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The Mayor's Race

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The Mayor's Race

The Mayor's Race

Chicago's Louisiana Purchase?

Chicago mayoral candidate and Mayor Daley's hand-picked former school board prez, Gery Chico tried to think of something clever to say after rivalMiguel del Valle came out strongly against Daley's sell-off of the city's parking spaces. A spokeswoman for Chico issued a statement Friday saying:
“Gery thinks the parking meter deal was the worst since the Louisiana Purchase."
I don't know what beef Chico has with the Louisiana Purchase. I mean, the U.S. got all of present-day Arkansas

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Blog U.: Black Swans and Ed Tech in 2011 - Technology and Learning - Inside Higher Ed

Blog U.: Black Swans and Ed Tech in 2011 - Technology and Learning - Inside Higher Ed

BlogU

  • Black Swans and Ed Tech in 2011

    By Joshua Kim January 2, 2011 8:45 pm EST

    All of us love to think about the future. What ed tech trends will emerge in 2011? What new technologies will be introduced? What tech companies will merge? What new ed tech businesses will form?

    Some good ones:

    --Top 10 Ed Tech predictions for 2011 By Christopher Dawson
    --Ed Tech Forecasts for 2011 by Robert French
    --2011: My Predictions for Ed-Tech by Audrey Watters

    Can you add some more?

    My 2011 ed tech predictions come courtesy of Nassim Nicholas Taleb. CIO's of the world - please buy a copy of the The Black Swan for your direct reports, and schedule an hour over breakfast some time to bookclub. Ask everyone to come with the following two questions for discussion:

Recruiting by U.S. universities of Chinese undergrads is hottest new education trend - San Jose Mercury News

Recruiting by U.S. universities of Chinese undergrads is hottest new education trend - San Jose Mercury News

American universities are accelerating recruitment of undergraduate students from China, building an educational pipeline that delivered more than 40,000 undergraduates to the U.S. in the 2009-10 academic year, a 46 percent increase over the previous year. The newfound wealth of many Chinese and strong academic preparation make these students an admissions officer's dream.