Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Mid Morning Posts #ows #edreform

Can everybody claim MLK’s principles? | Being Latino Online Magazine

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Can everybody claim MLK’s principles? | Being Latino Online Magazine:Can everybody claim MLK’s principles?by Daniel Cubiasby Daniel CubiasRecently, I wrote about affirmative action and its (presumably short) future.As I stated, one can object to the program without being racist. There are legitimate questions about constitutionality, legal principles, and unintended consequences.However, one argument irks many ethnic minorities. That is whenever a white conservative insists that his opposition to affirmative action is based upon his deep love for Martin Luther King and ... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: More Superintendent Talk from the Times

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Seattle Schools Community Forum: More Superintendent Talk from the Times:More Superintendent Talk from the Timesby Melissa WestbrookLynne Varner at the Times once again is chiming in with some very similar words on finding a superintendent. She speaks of superintendents past."Each left behind lessons that maybe we're now ready to learn." NOW?! It's only taken our district a decade or more to learn some important lessons? And when can we expect this learning to take place at the Times?She speaks of ... more »

Daily Kos: You still have a chance to make a big difference

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Daily Kos: You still have a chance to make a big difference:You still have a chance to make a big differenceby rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)for NN12 in Providence.Let me back up.While I had a few Black classmates in high school and one in my original college class, I grew up white middle class with little exposure to people all that different that myself. Well, okay, at least when it came to race and socio-economics. Our lower middle class kids were largely Italian. ... more »

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top AM Posts #ows #edreform

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Mother Crusader: Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F wordBig Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All)-5 hours agoMother Crusader: Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F word:Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F wordby darciecimaJersey Jazzman's take on Cerf's interview with the Associated Press reminds me of a letter from the Cherry Hill Superintendent and School Board. They were responding to Pastor Amir Khan who wrote an editorial in which he reported that in Cherry Hill “the ... more »

NYC Educator: No Excuses, Say Troglodytes at DOE

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NYC Educator: No Excuses, Say Troglodytes at DOE:No Excuses, Say Troglodytes at DOEby NYC EducatorIt's time to shut down Grace Dodge High School in the Bronx. So says the PEP, the rubber-stamp fake Board of Education that Mike Bloomberg set up to exercise the absolute power that is mayoral control in Fun City. Never mind that 25% of the school is either pregnant or a teen parent.As usual, the DOE has sound reasons for its decision:“The 2010-11 attendance rate was ... more »

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: ATR's!!! Look Upon Little Evan Stone And Be Led!

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SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: ATR's!!! Look Upon Little Evan Stone And Be Led!:ATR's!!! Look Upon Little Evan Stone And Be Led!by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)I read Chaz's latest blog posting this afternoon with a heavy heart. It seems that jolly old St Nick is not immune from the pratfalls of the long arms of the ATR (Absent Teacher Reserve) system. We here at SBSB feel for Santa on this last night of Hanukkah 5772 and pledge our support to the man in ... more »

What Meat-Industry's Meatingplace Won't Tell You About LA School Lunches | MyFDL

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What Meat-Industry's Meatingplace Won't Tell You About LA School Lunches | MyFDL:What Meat-Industry’s Meatingplace Won’t Tell You About LA School Lunchesby Phoenix WomanSchool Lunch (image: krikketgirl/flickr)You could smell the schadenfreude — not that most of big-meat-industry organ Meatingplace’s readers or writers would know the word, much less be able to spell it — a mile away (full article viewable by free subscription only):Participation in the [LA Unified School District's] lunch program, which serves 650,000 meals daily, dropped by the thousands, ... more »

Standardized Testing & Creative Thinking | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…

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Standardized Testing Creative Thinking | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…:Standardized Testing Creative Thinkingby Larry FerlazzoAn interesting piece in the Huffington Post titled The Education Reform Paradox and the Extinction of Higher Level Thinking Skills led me to another article in The Week, which included this section:While IQ scores are indisputably on the rise, American creativity levels are bottoming out. Analysis of the results of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking suggests that the creative abilities of American children have ... more »

Does School Audit = School Accountability? I Don’t Think So! « Diary of a Public School Teacher!

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Does School Audit = School Accountability? I Don’t Think So! « Diary of a Public School Teacher!:Does School Audit = School Accountability? I Don’t Think So!by OldschoolteachIt began in September. We received news that our school was going to be audited. They called it CSR, the Comprehensive Success Review. We were told it would be for our own good. A group of people from the state would come in, observe us for one day, and then offer their wisdom on ... more »

PREDICTIONS FOR 2012 « Teachers Fight Back

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PREDICTIONS FOR 2012 « Teachers Fight Back:PREDICTIONS FOR 2012by alkleen1. The hot topic for teacher workshops will be about overcoming the stereotype that girls are not as interested in, and adept at math and science as boys.2. Several states will begin to legalize internet gambling and tax it as an additional source of revenue to fund schools.3. There will be a shortage of teachers as many of the older ones take early retirement because of their disgust with the “teach ... more »

Mother Crusader: Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F word

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Mother Crusader: Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F word:Charter advocates LOVE to throw around the F wordby darciecimaJersey Jazzman's take on Cerf's interview with the Associated Press reminds me of a letter from the Cherry Hill Superintendent and School Board. They were responding to Pastor Amir Khan who wrote an editorial in which he reported that in Cherry Hill “the share of black children who failed the standardized eighth-grade language arts test was three times the corresponding share ... more »

Still Watching Colorado « InterACT

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Still Watching Colorado « InterACT:Still Watching Coloradoby David B. CohenRecently, I wrote a blog post about a court ruling in the case of Lobato v. Colorado, in which Judge Shelia Rappaport found that the state’s funding of public education was totally inadequate and irrational, and failed to meet the state’s constitutional requirement to provide a public education for Colorado children.Today, the Colorado State Board of Education voted 4-3 to appeal that ruling. One of the “no” votes came from Elaine ... more »

OCCUPY EDUCATION - Asking students: revolutionary? #ows

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OCCUPY EDUCATION - Asking students: revolutionary?:Asking students: revolutionary?OCCUPY EDUCATION - 6 minutes agoAsking students: revolutionary?Whether I shall be the hero of my school life, or whether that...OCCUPY EDUCATION - 3 weeks agoWhether I shall be the hero of my school life, or whether that station will be held by anyone else I cannot tell. All I can say is I am Devoted and Dedicated to my education. That is WHY I OCCUPY!I Occupy Education because they say we don’t CARE. ... more »

New Year, New Teacher-my classroom resolutions for 2012 « Cooperative Catalyst

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New Year, New Teacher-my classroom resolutions for 2012 « Cooperative Catalyst:New Year, New Teacher-my classroom resolutions for 2012by Tinashe BlanchetIt has been a long time since I’ve posted on my own blog because lately, I have gone into survival mode–just getting grades done and hanging on to my sanity leading up to the holiday break. The fall semester was filled with triumphs and successes for my students and me, but I also must admit that in the end, I was ...more »

Continuing the Deliberately Misleading and Coordinated Smear on Florida’s Teachers for Opposing Blaine Amendment Repeal | Scathing Purple Musings

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Continuing the Deliberately Misleading and Coordinated Smear on Florida’s Teachers for Opposing Blaine Amendment Repeal | Scathing Purple Musings:Continuing the Deliberately Misleading and Coordinated Smear on Florida’s Teachers for Opposing Blaine Amendment Repealby Bob SikesJames Madison Institute public policy director Robert Sanchez was a busy man two days before Christmas. His first order of business was in contributing to a Tallahassee Democrat piece which touted school choice as” the civil rights issue of this era.”Sanchez has obviously staked out a ... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Cerf: Facts Have A Racial Bias

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Jersey Jazzman: Cerf: Facts Have A Racial Bias:Cerf: Facts Have A Racial Biasby DukeThere is no other way to read this latest pronouncement from ACTING NJ Education Commissioner Cerf:AP: What's the state of public education in New Jersey? How do we compare to other states?Cerf: We compare very well from an aggregate perspective if you take the NAEP, the National Assessment of Educational Progress. New Jersey typically ranks within the top two to four in each of the four major ... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: 2011 in Review

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Seattle Schools Community Forum: 2011 in Review:2011 in Reviewby Charlie MasMy, but this was a year of change for Seattle Public Schools.Change at the top.The biggest news of the year was the sudden dismissal of the superintendent, Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson. The Board, which had dragged their feet from June to March in response to the State Auditor's report, acted expeditiously between their receipt of a report from an internal investigation of the Regional Small Business Development Program and their decision ... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Still Not Getting It On Charters

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Jersey Jazzman: Still Not Getting It On Charters:Still Not Getting It On Chartersby DukeOh, Star-Ledger: what do I have to do to get you to start understanding the charter school debate?As charter schools begin to spread beyond the urban districts where they first took root, they are provoking a political backlash in the suburbs that could weaken support for the overall movement. We've seen the brush fires in Cherry Hill, East Brunswick, Millburn, Montclair and Princeton.In our view, the opposition ... more »

Daily Kos: blame this one on Jotter

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Daily Kos: blame this one on Jotter:blame this one on Jotterby rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)thanks to his retrospective lists of top ten diaries, I encountered one I posted two years ago on Christmas.Even as we are past that day now, I have just reread it, it still speaks to me, and I thought perhaps I would share it again. If you prefer the original for the thread, you can read it herePlease indulge me a bitecause this will be another diary where ... more »

Daily Kos: TFA: BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE

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Daily Kos: TFA: BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE:TFA: BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACEby rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)TFA = Teach for America. The title of this post is borrowed from this piece from my good friend David Greene, who has mentored Teach for America recruits for a number of years.I think it is one of the most important things for understanding the problems with Teach for America. Thus I asked Dave for permission to cross-post it here, which he ... more »

Schools Matter: Follow up: TFA in Charleston SC

Schools Matter: Follow up: TFA in Charleston SC:

Follow up: TFA in Charleston SC

I posted before about TFA coming to Charleston SC schools:


http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2011/12/holding-journalists-media-accountable.html


And the journalist did write a follow-up piece, with some challenges included to TFA:


Teach for America has supporters, critics


By Diette Courrégé
dcourrege@postandcourier.com
Wednesday, December 28, 2011


I am quoted, and solid comments against TFA are included, but the supporting comments are baffling, misguided, and disturbing. . .

Modern School: Charles Darwin: Killer of God or Role Model for Pious Students?

Modern School: Charles Darwin: Killer of God or Role Model for Pious Students?:

Charles Darwin: Killer of God or Role Model for Pious Students?

by Michael Dunn

Evolution of Lego Man (Image from Flickr, by mwbocekmann)

Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution are typically portrayed by creationists as fundamental threats to Christianity. Yet Darwin himself was so religious he delayed publication of his book, “On the Origins of Species,” for twenty years (until 1859) in part, many believe, out of fear of upsetting his religious family and friends.

In “Charles Darwin about the Evolution of Religion,” Michael Blume discusses Darwin’s chapter on religion in “Descent of Man” (1871), in which Darwin said:

“There is no evidence that man was aboriginally endowed with the ennobling belief in the existence of an Omnipotent God. On the contrary

Hashtags for state-, province-, and national-level education conversations [SPREADSHEET] | Dangerously Irrelevant

Hashtags for state-, province-, and national-level education conversations [SPREADSHEET] | Dangerously Irrelevant:

Hashtags for state-, province-, and national-level education conversations [SPREADSHEET]

by dr.scott.mcleod@gmail.com (Scott McLeod)

In Iowa we use #iaedfuture to organize our online conversations about education in the state. In Wisconsin they use #wiedu. In the United Kingdom, they use #ukedchat to have similar conversations at the national level. What are other states, provinces, and/or countries using? (beyond the generic#edchat)

I made a publicly-editable Google spreadsheet to organize all of these geography-bound education hashtags. These are different from hashtags for conferences or for particular education topics (e.g., STEM or teaching History). Instead, they're hashtags that allow folks to talk about the present and future state of education in their area, to share ideas and resources, to propose and push back on proposed laws and policies, and to otherwise organize themselves. It's often said that the Internet destroys geography.

I’ve always had an interest in the 10th Congressional District in Illinois. « Fred Klonsky

I’ve always had an interest in the 10th Congressional District in Illinois. « Fred Klonsky:

I’ve always had an interest in the 10th Congressional District in Illinois.

by Fred Klonsky

Some years ago the political action committee of the Illinois Education Association, which is called IPACE, endorsed Mark Kirk for Congress in the 10th Congressional District over a progressive African-American candidate. I received plenty of unhappy calls from members of my local union who live in the 10th CD over that IPACE endorsement.

The 10th Congressional District is a swing district along Chicago’s north shore. It includes some of the wealthiest towns in the country like Winnetka, Glencoe and Highland Park. And in includes some of the poorest, like North Chicago.

The teachers who called me could not understand how our Association could endorse Kirk, who supported the

Blue Jersey:: The Cerf Charter Report Countup Clock!

Blue Jersey:: The Cerf Charter Report Countup Clock!:

The Cerf Charter Report Countup Clock!

by Jersey Jazzman

Governor Christie may have told ACTING DOE Commissioner Cerf to back off on his plan to introduce morecharter schools into Christie's suburban base. But charters are still part of the plan - even though we don't have the data from Cerf to determine if they really work.

See, Cerf caught a lot of flack last winter when he released a report about charter schools' "successes" that didn't take into account the make up of the charters' student bodies. In other words, Cerf's report didn't show whether charter schools were succeeding by "cream skimming" - taking fewer children with special needs or limited English proficiency than schools in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Many people objected, including scholars like Matt DiCarlo and Bruce Baker, and reporters like Bob Braun of the

School Tech Connect: I Love A Parade

School Tech Connect: I Love A Parade:

I Love A Parade

by noreply@blogger.com (Tim)

I'm back. The miracle of modern rest and ginger ale! Since this is the first day I've felt human in a week, I'm going to spend it outside-- rewarding Scout with a trip to the forest preserve. The dog has not left my side in five days, except discreetly to use the yard, and to triage visitors with growls of warning.

Meanwhile, I found this gem from the past. I once taught in a school where Hebrew was taught and there was also a lot of Go, Israel on the menu. It was a wonderful place--- I gave fewer tests in seven years there than in any single year of public school. But never mind that for now.

The important thing is that everyone occasionally flubs a bulletin board. And English vowel combinations are

Grumpy Educators: No Unnecessary Tests (NUT) Report: Good Riddance Day

Grumpy Educators: No Unnecessary Tests (NUT) Report: Good Riddance Day:

No Unnecessary Tests (NUT) Report: Good Riddance Day

by Sandra

Today is Good Riddance Day, a tradition to say goodbye to something that caused misery, worry, and other negative reactions during the year. To join this event, Grumpy Educators wishes to say good riddance to unnecessary tests and illogical forced compliance.

For followers, the story of South Carolina mother, Gretchen Herrera, is familiar. For others, the story crystallizes the twisted nature of compliance-driven high stakes assessment regimes, which puts the health and well-being of children at risk. After denied exemption from standardized testing for her son based on a

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: What the 1%ers have to say for themselves

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: What the 1%ers have to say for themselves:

What the 1%ers have to say for themselves

by Mike Klonsky

Quotes from New York Magazine piece, by Noreen Malone, ‘I Stand Guilty of Being a Fat Cat.’

Yuck!
Billionaire Tom Golisano:

“If I hear a politician use the term ‘paying your fair share’ one more time, I’m going to vomit.”

Right-wing loony
Home Depot Ken Langone reclaimed certain terms that have been used to oppress his people:

"I am a fat cat, I’m not ashamed. If you mean by fat cat that I’ve