Radical Scholarship: 2011 @ The Daily Censored: P. L. Thomas

Radical Scholarship: 2011 @ The Daily Censored: P. L. Thomas:

2011 @ The Daily Censored: P. L. Thomas

by P. L. Thomas

-----. (2011, January 10). Supermen or kryptonite?—Legend of the fall, pt. V. The Daily Censored.http://dailycensored.com/2011/01/10/superman-or-kryptonite%E2%80%94legend-of-the-fall-pt-v/

-----. (2011, January12). 21st century segregation: Inverting King's dream. The Daily Censored.http://dailycensored.com/2011/01/12/21st-century-segregation-inverting-kings-dream/ also @ truthout21st Century Segregation: Inverting King's Dream

-----. (2011, January 23). "Top level kids" and accountability—A radical response. The Daily Censored.http://dailycensored.com/2011/01/23/top-level-kids-and-accountability%E2%80%94a-radical-response/

-----. (2011, February 16). The great accountability and "world-class workforce" scam. The Daily Censored. http://dailycensored.com/2011/02/16/the-great-accountability-and-world-class-workforce-scam/

-----. (2011, February 8). Lessons in education from South Carolina? The Daily Censored.http://dailycensored.com/2011/02/08/lessons-in-education-from-south-carolina/

-----. (2011, February 27). Celebrity "common sense" reform for education--Legend of the fall pt. VI. The Daily Censored. http://dailycensored.com/2011/02/27/celebrity-common-sense-reform-for-education-legend-of-the-fall-pt-vi/

-----. (2011, March 7). My challenge to the false prophets of education reform. The Daily Censored.http://dailycensored.com/2011/03/07/my-challenge-to-the-false-prophets-of-education-reform/

-----. (2011, March 18). Test scores fail students, teachers, but remain a political prop. The Daily Censored. http://dailycensored.com/2011/03/18/test-scores-fail-students-teachers-but-remain-a-political-prop/
Reposted at The Answer Sheet/Washington Post: How test scores are used as a political prop

-----. (2011, April 6). Meritocracy myth v. the advantages of privilege (A tale of hubris). The Daily Censored. http://dailycensored.com/2011/04/06/meritocracy-myth-v-the-advantages-of-privilege-a-tale-of-hubris/

-----. (2011, April 19). Standardized students, silenced teachers: The Un-American education agenda.The Daily Censored. http://dailycensored.com/2011/04/19/standardized-students-silenced-teachers-the-un-american-education-agenda/

-----. (2011, May 14). Maher’s “Real Time” education debate failure redux: Legend of the Fall, pt. VII. The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, May 27). How do teachers matter? Not as change agents but as learning opportunities. The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, July 7). Test-based accountability and international comparisons—Lessons ignored. The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, August 8). Poverty and testing in education: “The present scientifico-legal complex" pts. 1 and 2. The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, August 31). Michael Vick's America: Redemption of the pawns. The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, September 26). "We hold these truths to be self-evident. . ."? Daily Kos. Reposted at The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, October 5). Top student crisis!: A call for trickle-down education reform. Daily Kos. Reposted at Schools Matter. Reposted at The Daily Censored.

-----. (2011, October 30). Le Guin's "The ones who walk away from Omelas”: Allegory of privilege. Daily Kos. Reposted at The Daily Censored (2011, November 3).

-----. (2011, November 15). Diversity and the rise of majority-minority schools. Daily Kos. Reposted atSchools Matter and The Daily Censored. Reposted at truthout.

-----. (2011, December 22). Poverty matters!: Part 1 and Part 2. The Daily Censored. Reposted attruthout.

2011 @ Room for Debate/NYT: P. L. Thomas

by P. L. Thomas

-----. (2011, May 30). Avoiding the poverty issue. Room for Debate. The New York Times.

-----. (2011, July 10). Breaking with tradition. Room for Debate. The New York Times.

2011 @ The Answe Sheet/WaPo: P. L. Thomas

by P. L. Thomas

-----. (2011, March 21). Reposted at The Answer Sheet/Washington Post: How test scores are used as a political prop

-----. (2011, April 5). A case against standards. The Answer Sheet/Washington Post.http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/2011/04/04/AFgXSFgC_blog.html

-----. (2011, May 14). Bill Maher’s “Real Time” education debate failure.

Re-posted at The Answer Sheet/ The Washington Post.

-----. (2011, June 4). Reposted at The Answer Sheet: NBA finals and ‘no excuses’ charter schools

-----. (2011, September 13). A primer on navigating education claims. Reposted at The Answer Sheet.

-----. (2011, October 6). Idealism that blinds: Facing social and educational inequity. Daily Kos. Reposted at The Answer Sheet as Are top students being shortchanged? (2011, October 21).

-----. (2011, December 21). Christmas miracle 2011: Poverty matters! Daily Kos. Reposted (December 23, 2011) at The Answer Sheet.

2011 @ truthout: P. L. Thomas

by P. L. Thomas

-----. (2011, January 26). Belief culture: "We don't need no education." truthout. http://www.truth-out.org/belief-culture-we-dont-need-no-education67154

-----. (2011, April 22). Why advocacy and market forces fail education reform. truthout.

-----. (2011, July 13). High-stakes testing: Lessons ignored. truthout.

-----. (2011, September 1). Poverty and testing in education: “The present scientifico-legal complex" pts.1 and 2. truthout.

-----. (2011, October 18). Click, Clack, Moo: Why the 1% always wins. Daily Kos. Reposted at truthout(2011, November 3).

-----. (2011, November 15). Diversity and the rise of majority-minority schools. Daily Kos. Reposted atSchools Matter and The Daily Censored. Reposted at truthout.

-----. (2011, November 21). "[N]ot the time...to follow the line of least resistance." Daily Kos. Reposted atSchools Matter and truthout.

-----. (2011, December 22). Poverty matters!: Part 1 and Part 2. The Daily Censored. Reposted attruthout.

Daily Kos: America was not intended to be a pure free-market society

Daily Kos: America was not intended to be a pure free-market society:

America was not intended to be a pure free-market society

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

absent government regulation. The very text of the Constitution makes this clear

Article I Section 8 begins with the words The Congress shall have Power to

among those power one notes the following, each of which is in some way an infringement of an absolutely free market

lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises

regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes

establish . . . Uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States

fix the Standard of Weights and Measures

promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and

Money Does Not Make One Smart | The G Bitch Spot

Money Does Not Make One Smart | The G Bitch Spot:

Money Does Not Make One Smart

by G Bitch

Or an expert.

I know that’s hard for some Americans to believe. Or, rather, feel because the equating of material wealth with spiritual, moral and other types of worthiness is not a thought but a gut feeling/mass delusion.

In Waiting for Superman, Bill Gates is referred to as an “education expert.” What qualifies him as such? The Gates Foundation money poured into charter schools and related entities? Or is it this TED talk from February 2009 in which he compares malaria to education, comparing one “simple solution” to another?

So, it’s simple. All you need are those top quartile teachers….So it’s going to take brilliant people like you to study these things, get other people involved — and you’re helping to come up with solutions. And with that, I think there’s some great things that will come out of it.

So what’s the problem? Education is not a disease, or disease process, with a single cause and predictable

Rick Scott’s “Governed Very Differently Than What He Campaigned On” | Scathing Purple Musings

Rick Scott’s “Governed Very Differently Than What He Campaigned On” | Scathing Purple Musings:

Rick Scott’s “Governed Very Differently Than What He Campaigned On”

by Bob Sikes

Lakeland republican senator Paula Dockery dropped her gubernatorial bid when she realized she couldn’t compete with Rick Scott’s money. Nonetheless, she served on his transition team after Scott’s victory over Alex Sink. In today’s Orlando Sentinel story by Aaron Deslatte, Dockery has some sharp criticism for Scott:

“I think he has governed very differently than what he campaigned on,” said Sen. Paula Dockery, a Lakeland Republican who served on Scott’s transition team but has criticized his decisions to kill the high-speed train and cut education and environmental spending.

Dockery says Scott, who had lived in Florida for only seven years when he ran for governor, refused

Moody Blues - Nights in White Satin (extended version)

Moody Blues Nights In White Satin Lyrics

Nights in white satin, never reaching the end,
Letters I've written, never meaning to send.
Beauty I'd always missed with these eyes before.
Just what the truth is, I can't say anymore.

'Cos I love you, yes I love you, oh how I love you.

Gazing at people, some hand in hand,
Just what I'm going through they can't understand.
Some try to tell me, thoughts they cannot defend,
Just what you want to be, you will be in the end.

And I love you, yes I love you,
Oh how I love you, oh how I love you.

Nights in white satin, never reaching the end,
Letters I've written, never meaning to send.
Beauty I've always missed, with these eyes before.
Just what the truth is, I can't say anymore.

'Cos I love you, yes I love you,
Oh how I love you, oh how I love you.
'Cos I love you, yes I love you,
Oh how I love you, oh how I love you.

Breath deep
The gathering gloom
Watch lights fade
From every room
Bedsitter people
Look back and lament
Another day's useless
Energy spent

Impassioned lovers
Wrestle as one
Lonely man cries for love
And has none
New mother picks up
And suckles her son
Senior citizens
Wish they were young

Cold hearted orb
That rules the night
Removes the colours
From our sight
Red is gray and
Yellow white
But we decide
Which is right
And
Which is an Illusion

Amy Winehouse - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow

Schools Matter: Protect Your Children's Future by Saying No to High-Stakes Testing

Schools Matter: Protect Your Children's Future by Saying No to High-Stakes Testing:

Protect Your Children's Future by Saying No to High-Stakes Testing

by Jim Horn

Plan for National Opt Out Day, January 7th

A New Year is upon us. It is paramount that we make the most of it and organize and ACT to end corporate education reform.

We must move out into our neighborhoods, our communities, and support others in understanding the absolute destruction surrounding the tactics of the corporate education reformers.

Opting out is essential if we are to end their rampage on our public schools and our children. Begin by making a New Year’s Resolution to OPT OUT of corporate education reform.

January 7th is National Opt Out Day.

Print out flyers and posters at www.mediafire.com. Use Login: jayrivett81@gmail.com and Password:unitedoptout.

Organize a protest in your community. Mail the opt out postcards that can be found atwww.zazzle.com/unitedoptout.

Ring in the New Year with a resolution to reclaim public education for all of America’s children.

The Few Like You Are Still The Few Like You « Cooperative Catalyst

The Few Like You Are Still The Few Like You « Cooperative Catalyst:

The Few Like You Are Still The Few Like You

POSTED BY PAULA WHITE ⋅ JANUARY 1, 2012 ⋅ LEAVE A COMMENT

Following up on Pam’s post, “Once Upon a Time We Put a Human on the Moon,” I have to say I agree with much of what she said. In the “olden days,” there were desks in rows, kids doing worksheets, very little choice in assignments, mostly the teacher as dictator, and teachers who taught as they had been taught. So the profession has continued to perpetuate itself, much as it ever was, and yet people cry foul–that the tests made us this way.

No, the tests didn’t. No, accountability didn’t. Our reluctance to reinvent the profession did. Our fear of change did. Our belief in the myths we grew up with as students did. So we walk into classrooms and see much of what we saw 20 or 30 years ago in many classrooms. And sometimes, even in a classroom where the desks have been traded out for tables or there are beanbags or rug areas, we still see a very traditional teacher who has simply changed the seating–but not her practices.

But, in a few classrooms all over, there have always been teachers who dared to be different. Think Steven Levy, who describes his

Weekly Address: Working Together in the New Year

President Obama tells the American people that, by joining together, we can move past the tough debates and help to create jobs and grow the economy in the new year.

4LAKids - WE MUST PRESERVE PUBLIC EDUCATION

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: WE MUST PRESERVE PUBLIC EDUCATION:

WE MUST PRESERVE PUBLIC EDUCATION

OP-ED BY PATRICE APODACA IN THE NEWPORT BEACH DAILY PILOT | HTTP://BIT.LY/RTOTZI

December 31, 2011 | 6:49 p.m. :: By many measures, 2011 was a momentous year.

Osama bin Laden was finally tracked down and killed. The Arab Spring uprisings toppled ruthless regimes. The Eurozone's unity was sorely tested. The Occupy protest movement swept across America.

Closer to home, Costa Mesa became a key battleground in the municipal belt-tightening wars. The Newport-Mesa public schools chief was charged with three felony counts that could send him to jail. And a group of teenagers launched an effort to preserve a cherished local icon, the Balboa Fun Zone.

2012 will be another year of great import, for no other reason than it is an election year. That voters are discontented is not in

Occupy Wall Street Ringing in the New Year (LIVE VIDEO) | The Dissenter #ows

Occupy Wall Street Ringing in the New Year (LIVE VIDEO) | The Dissenter:

Occupy Wall Street Ringing in the New Year (LIVE VIDEO)
By: Kevin Gosztola Saturday December 31, 2011 10:19 pm	Tweet15

Occupy Wall Street is celebrating the New Year in the streets. OccupyWallSt.org has posted a roundup on the website of what has happened thus far tonight. There have been multiple tents. A “tiny tent” went up in Zuccotti Park. People have been jumping barricades at Liberty Park. The police have chased down marchers too.

Occupy Wall Street has this posted on their website about the night’s activities:

2011 was an amazing awakening. Let’s start 2012 off right! Come celebrate with thousands of other members of the 99%, at our park and in the streets, as we make our special New Years Revolution together. Bring a drum! Bring your instrument! In the 2 hours before, we will reclaim our park and the area around it.

First, come to the Noise Demo outside the Metropolitan Correction Center (150 Park Row, New York, NY) at 9:00pm. Then, at 10:00pm, we will gather in Liberty Square. At midnight, the party goes mobile!

Once Upon a Time We Put a Human on the Moon « Cooperative Catalyst

Once Upon a Time We Put a Human on the Moon « Cooperative Catalyst:

Once Upon a Time We Put a Human on the Moon

by pamelamoran

Despite complaints that NCLB has reduced classrooms to one-size-fits all test prep environments, my perspective is that our classrooms have mostly always been, with a few exceptions, one-size-fits all teaching spaces. In working at all three levels of Pk-12, elementary educators do seem more likely to create spaces where students have resource material choices, opportunities to work collaboratively and participate in a variety of groupings, and experience differentiated activities. Secondary education classrooms

Walking to School: Dear NEA,

Walking to School: Dear NEA,:

Dear NEA,

I have a New Year's Resolution for you: Man-up.


That's what my students would say. That's much of what your membership seems to be saying. And that's what I implore you to do.


I have been a teacher since 1978 and an NEA member for almost as long. But the fact of the matter is that, as I improved in my abilities to teach through an association with other professional organizations (the National Writing Project, The National Council of Teachers of English), the NEA became less and less important in my professional life. I came to think of my membership as an insurance policy: a fall back in case I ever found myself battling against the district that employed me which, it was clear, would treat me like a freelancer and leave me twisting in the legal winds should anything go awry in my teaching life. (And there are so many things.....)


The NEA has done nothing to change that view over the years. I hear from my organization almost weekly, but only to excite my interest in an NEA MasterCard, an NEA low-interest loan, an NEA

Schools Matter: Occupy the Schoolhouse! #ows

Schools Matter: Occupy the Schoolhouse!:

Occupy the Schoolhouse!

by Kathleen Lynch

Time magazine has named the Protester as 2011’s Person of the Year. However, as I read the Time article reviewing the year in protests and revolutions, I found one critical protest missing from the narrative: the Save Our Schools movement. Aside from some limited coverage around the national march in July, the national media has largely ignored this important protest against the latest education “reform” movement . The Occupy movement, on the other hand, with its diffuse anger and unnamed frustration, gets plenty of play. But the SOS movement? Not so much. As I read the Time article, I began to wonder why.

Of course, there is the obvious: the Occupy movement made an obstacle of itself in city after city, disrupting the normal operation of the establishment. The Save Our Schools movement, on the other hand, did not occupy the schoolhouse or disrupt the delivery of education to children anywhere. Do not get me wrong: I share the anger and frustration behind the Occupy movement and I’m sympathetic to their actions. I just think the movement