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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Big Education Ape: 12-14-11 PM "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" EDition #edreform #ows

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now:

Published by Coopmike48 – 7 news spotters today

States Creating New Districts to Steer 'Turnarounds'

edweek.org - Published Online: December 12, 2011Published in Print: December 14, 2011, as Districts Created to Steer 'Turnarounds'If the job of a traditional superintendent is hard, imagine the complexities inv...

DianeRavitch

No double standards in sex abuse cases – USATODAY.com

usatoday.com - ColumnsIn addition to its own editorials, USA TODAY publishes a variety of opinions from outside writers. On political and policy matters, we publish opinions from across the political spectrum.Rou...

arneduncan

Daily Kos: Some thoughts on teaching

dailykos.com - which were occasioned by a recent conversation where i was asked if I thought teaching more of an art rather than a science. I responded that the question was a false frame, and was asked to expla...

DianeRavitch

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coopmike48 Christie deflects question on revenge against State Sen. Codey -NorthJersey.com - goo.gl/OnpYj29 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 State Allocation Board Projects Approved - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education) bit.ly/vxr5l6 #Eduabout 1 minute ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 Big Education Ape: Big Education Ape: 12-13-11 PM Time to occupy the education reform EDition#edreform #ows - goo.gl/wphsB43 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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Reforming the Debate to Reform Education

dailykos.com - Reforming the Debate to Reform Education This commentary from Marks is but one face and mindset among many, such as Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Bill Gates, Michelle Rhee, and, more specific...

DianeRavitch

The Evidence on Charter Schools and Test Scores

shankerinstitute.org - Policy Brief: The Evidence on Charter Schools and Test ScoresDecember 2011 Charter schools are among the most controversial issues in education today, with much of the debate focused on whether the...

DianeRavitch

Stressful connections to learning Other Views

newsobserver.com - CHAPEL HILL -- Amid the debates about our public schools and the need for education reform, the impact of poverty on student learning outcomes seems to be missing.Research has established a clear l...

DianeRavitch

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Bad Test Results ReachThe Bunker

chicagonow.com - By Alexander Russo, today at 2:52 pm Here's video that's been going around for a while now in which Adolph Hitler finds out that his school has not done well on the latest round of tests. The juxt...

coopmike48

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Jersey Jazzman: "If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy..."

bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Jersey Jazzman: "If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy...":"If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy..."by DukeI'd write a tone-deaf, dumb-ass column like this:If I was a poor black kid I would first and mo...

coopmike48

EnvironmentSee all

Thousands of birds make crash landing in Utah

northjersey.com - Wednesday, December 14, 2011 Last updated: Wednesday December 14, 2011, 4:09 PM ST. GEORGE, Utah — Thousands of migratory birds are dead or injured after they apparently mistook a Wal-Mart parki...

coopmike48

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    State Allocation Board Projects Approved - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education)

    State Allocation Board Projects Approved - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education):

    State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Funding
    for School Construction and Modernization Projects

    SACRAMENTO—The State Allocation Board (SAB) today disbursed $923.8 million to school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools for the construction and modernization of 377 schools, said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson.
    "Our schools and California's budget are in a state of financial emergency," said Torlakson. "These funds will give districts some of the resources they need to construct or rebuild our schools, create jobs in the community to help the state's economic recovery, and provide students with more modern facilities that advance their academic achievement."
    Torlakson applauded the SAB's quick action today to continue the successful and popular priority funding program created to fast-track school construction projects while at the same time stimulating the state's economy. The priority funding program requires school districts to have the project under construction within 90 days, versus the 18 months that is typically allowed.
    "With my Schools of the Future initiative, we encourage districts to foster 21st century student learning by modernizing their facilities, which might include new technology, solar power, and other renewable power sources," Torlakson said. "Our students deserve to learn in schools that are clean, safe, green, and not in facilities that are relics of the past."
    Torlakson is a member of the SAB, which determines policy for programs administered by the Office of Public School Construction. The activities include the School Facility Program, Charter School Facilities Program, Overcrowded Relief Grant Program, Critically Overcrowded School Facilities Program, School Facility Joint-Use Program, Career Technical Education Facilities Program, Emergency Repair Program, and the Deferred Maintenance Program.
    The 10-member SAB meets monthly to determine the allocation of state resources, such as proceeds from general obligation bond issues and other designated state funds used for the new construction and modernization of local public school facilities. The SAB also acts on appeals regarding disagreements with the Office of Public School Construction, and adopts policies and regulations regarding SAB programs.
    For information on the SAB, please visit the California Department of General Services Web site at State Allocation Board(Outside Source). For the complete list of the allocations, go to the December 14, 2011, agenda at December 14, 2011 Agenda (PDF; 12.3MB; 489pp.), click the "Action Items" tab, and then go to the page numbered 233. For more information on Torlakson's Schools of the Future initiative, please visit the California Department of Education's Web site at Schools of the Future Report (PDF; 1MB; 92pp.).
    # # # #
    Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction

    Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100
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    Ignoring the hard-won progress of English learners « Parents Across America

    Ignoring the hard-won progress of English learners « Parents Across America:

    Ignoring the hard-won progress of English learners

    by andreamerida
    The ballyhoo over a new school grading website piqued my interest, so I surfed over toColoradoSchoolGrades.com to check it out. After all, the power partners that have coalesced around the website’s development and launch know how to make a splash. And why wouldn’t I be interested in the fact that they’ve taken the pains to offer information in Spanish?
    After just a few searches for some of the schools in my southwest Denver subdistrict, however, I see that this website is still using more of the same accountability blinders that punish schools and kids for their English-proficiency differences by trying to lump them all
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    Other schools without space where city gave Moskowitz a home | GothamSchools

    Other schools without space where city gave Moskowitz a home | GothamSchools:

    Other schools without space where city gave Moskowitz a home

    by Geoff Decker

    By the end of tonight’s Panel for Educational Policy meeting, Eva Moskowitz’s new Success Academy charter school is virtually assured of having a home next fall in Brownstone Brooklyn. For another charter school that, unlike Moskowitz’s, had applied to open there, the future is less certain.

    The charter school that the Department of Education has proposed siting in District 15 was originally authorized to open in nearby District 13 or District 14, but in an unusual move, the city altered the plan.

    Meanwhile, the department has not yet proposed locations for two charter schools approved for District 15, and a founder of one of them says she isn’t optimistic that her school will open in the area.

    The Brooklyn Urban Garden School, a mom-and-pop charter middle school founded by a group of parents and

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    Test Scores Often Misused In Policy Decisions

    Test Scores Often Misused In Policy Decisions:
    Joy Resmovits
    Joy.resmovits@huffingtonpost.comBecome a fan of this reporter
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    Education policies that affect millions of students have long been tied to test scores, but a new paper suggests those scores are regularly misinterpreted.

    According to the new research out of Mathematica, a statistical research group, the comparisons sometimes used to judge school performance are more indicative of demographic change than actual learning.

    For example: Last week's release of National Assessment of Educational Progress scores led to much finger-pointing about what's working and whatisn't in education reform. But according to Mathematica, policy assessments based on raw test data is extremely misleading -- especially because year-to-year comparisons measure different groups of students.

    "Every time the NAEP results come out, you see a whole slew of headlines that make you slap your

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    What Happens When The Edu-Bubble Bursts? | OurFuture.org

    What Happens When The Edu-Bubble Bursts? | OurFuture.org:

    What Happens When The Edu-Bubble Bursts?

    by Jeff Bryant

    Heard the term "edu-bubble" yet? Chances are you will soon.

    No doubt you've heard of the "dot-com bubble." And if you're like millions of Americans, you may be currently experiencing the ravages of the "housing bubble." But the edu-bubble?

    During the dot-com bubble, from 1990-2000, speculative capital drove up the wildly inflated prospects of internet-based businesses. The speculation was driven to a great extent by venture capitalists and MBA-types who argued persuasively that the amount of "eye-balls" attracted to an internet site could be "flipped" into a revenue stream by "monetizing" the passing fancy of people searching the world wide web for just about everything other than haircuts.

    But not every business could make the flip. While gambling and porn did fine, selling real goods like healthcare advice, groceries, and pet supplies didn't always do so well, and the whole market came crashing down, and

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    Robert Reich (An Offer to the President Mr. President, we heard...)

    Robert Reich (An Offer to the President Mr. President, we heard...):

    An Offer to the President Mr. President, we heard what you said...

    Popout

    An Offer to the President
     
    Mr. President, we heard what you said last week in Kansas – about the dangers to our economy and democracy of the increasing concentration of income and wealth at the top.
     
    We agree.  And many of us are prepared to work our hearts to get you reelected – as long as you commit to doing what needs to be done in your second term:
     
    --  Raise the tax rate on the rich to what it was before 1981.  The top 1 percent has an almost unprecedented share of the nation’s wealth and income yet the lowest tax rate in 30 years.  Meanwhile, America faces colossal budget deficits that have already meant devastating cuts in education, infrastructure, and the safety nets we depend on.  The rich must pay their fair share.  Income in excess of $1 million should be taxed at 70 percent – the same rate as before 1981.
     
    --  Raise capital gains taxes to the same level.  It’s absurd that the 400 richest Americans – whose wealth exceeds the wealth of the bottom 150 million Americans put together – should pay an average 17 percent tax on their incomes, the rate day laborers and child-care workers pay.  That’s because so much of the income of the super-rich is considered capital gains, now taxed at only 15 percent.  Close this loophole.
     
    --  Tax financial transactions.  A tiny tax on every financial deal would yield billions of dollars more.  It would also slow specul
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    “I Don’t Believe That”: Reforming the Debate to Reform Education | Dailycensored.com

    “I Don’t Believe That”: Reforming the Debate to Reform Education | Dailycensored.com:

    “I Don’t Believe That”: Reforming the Debate to Reform Education

    Written by EducationDec 14, 2011
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    I have been an avid cyclist for almost thirty years now, riding as much as 10,000 miles each year. For many of those years, I have also shaved my head, resulting in hours and hours outside in adverse weather conditions such as extreme cold, rain, and even sleet and snow.

    When my mother-in-law was alive, she never failed to warn me about covering my head to ward off colds and all sorts of illnesses. I regret now that I often argued with her, explaining some times too harshly that we catch colds and other illnesses from germs, not simply being exposed (through our heads) to cold weather. I never budged her from her belief—or her genuine concern for my well-being: I was her daughter’s husband and her granddaughter’s father; she

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    Hey, who owns Maverick Charter Schools anyway? I bet many Floridians are wondering today: « Continuing Change

    Hey, who owns Maverick Charter Schools anyway? I bet many Floridians are wondering today: « Continuing Change:

    Hey, who owns Maverick Charter Schools anyway? I bet many Floridians are wondering today:

    by gatorbonbc

    “A Homestead charter school run by a for-profit company that promises to help at-risk kids graduate issued standard diplomas to only 18 students in the past two years, according to the Miami-Dade school district.”

    “Mavericks High of South Miami-Dade had 52 seniors enrolled during the 2009-2010 school year. Only two of them — or 3.8 percent of the class — graduated with a standard diploma.”

    WoW… only 3.8 %

    Talk about accountability…


    VIDEO Response from a Teacher to Rick Perry’s anti-gay STRONG commercial. I am a teacher, and I approve this message.

    by gatorbonbc

    As an educator,

    I will work to end mindless politicians war on science and reason,

    and I will fight teacher hating legislators who think nothing of cutting public school funding while advancing their own egregious political ambitions.

    .

    Public education made this country strong, and it can make it strong again.”

    Posted by at

    School closing protesters take over Chicago board meeting « Parents Across America

    School closing protesters take over Chicago board meeting « Parents Across America:

    School closing protesters take over Chicago board meeting

    by pureparents

    By Julie Woestehoff, PAA-Chicago
    TIME Magazine just named “The Protester” their “Person of the Year,” saying, “In 2011, protesters didn’t just voice complaints; they changed the world.” Today in Chicago, parents and teachers are demonstrating just how that happens.
    After camping out overnight in frigid rain in front of the Chicago Public Schools central office, people furious about the district’s years of failed, top-down school interventions took over the Board of Education meeting. driving school board members from the room and taking over the microphone to voice their anger.
    According to breaking news stories in the Tribune and Sun-Times, protesters said
    “Nearly 40 percent of new schools that have replaced ones that closed are performing at the lowest levels. We see through the sound bites. You have
    Posted by at

    Breaking: Occupy CPS. Board members run for cover. « Fred Klonsky #ows

    Breaking: Occupy CPS. Board members run for cover. « Fred Klonsky:

    Breaking: Occupy CPS. Board members run for cover.

    DECEMBER 14, 2011
    tags: , , ,
    Following last night’s vigil and camp out in front of 125 South Clark Street, today’s board meeting left Rahm’s hand-picked board members running for cover.
    From Tribune:

    In a chaotic scene at Chicago Public Schools’headquarters Wednesday, the school board abruptly ended its meeting and went into closed session after being shouted down by a couple dozen angry parents and union representatives upset over planned school closures, consolidations and turnarounds.

    At least 10 people were escorted by security out of the building after a systematic protest in defiance of the board’s actions. The proposed

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    Jersey Jazzman: "If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy..."

    Jersey Jazzman: "If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy...":

    "If I Were a Clueless Old White Guy..."

    by Duke
    I'd write a tone-deaf, dumb-ass column like this:
    If I was a poor black kid I would first and most importantly work to make sure I got the best grades possible. I would make it my #1 priority to be able to read sufficiently. I wouldn’t care if I was a student at the worst public middle school in the worst inner city. Even the worst have their best. And the very best students, even at the worst schools, have more opportunities. Getting good grades is the key to having more options. With good grades you can choose different, better paths. If you do poorly in school, particularly in a lousy school, you’re severely limiting the limited opportunities you have.
    So when you poor black kids show up to school hungry and from a home without books and parents with little
    Posted by at

    After chair steps down, charter school’s board pledges changes | GothamSchools

    After chair steps down, charter school’s board pledges changes | GothamSchools:

    After chair steps down, charter school’s board pledges changes

    by Rachel Cromidas

    The standing-room only audience at New York French American Charter School's meeting for the board of trustees and parents.

    Parents at a Harlem charter school that’s on probation got what they wanted Tuesday night: The chair of their board resigned.

    The resignation took place just minutes into a meeting of the Board of Trustees for New York French American Charter School, which the city put on probation last week because of “serious violations” of its charter and state law. It drew cheers from the standing-room only audience.

    Many of the roughly 50 parents who packed a small classroom on the school’s second floor said they had never been to a board meeting before but were anxious about how the board would resolve the school’s administrative

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