Saturday, February 25, 2012

by Fred Klonsky

Cartoon: Paul Schickler
The coffee just seemed extra good this morning. Maybe because it is so cold out.
Everyone seems to be blaming themselves for the wet sloppy three to four inches of snow that came through the north side of the city on Thursday. They blame themselves because everyone has been talking about how there has been no snow this winter. It amazes me that normal, rational people think that if you talk about something it actually has an impact on nature.
Then there appears to be normal, rational people who think that if you keep closing schools, schools will get better.
That’s what was explicit in the

Old school.

by Fred Klonsky

Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Tracy Chapman, Peter Gabriel and Youssou N´Dour.
Popout

NYC Public School Parents: The diminishing number of black students at Stuyvesant and other NYC selective high schools

NYC Public School Parents: The diminishing number of black students at Stuyvesant and other NYC selective high schools:

The diminishing number of black students at Stuyvesant and other NYC selective high schools

by Leonie Haimson

There is an interesting NY Times article about the diminishing numbers of black students at Stuyvesant and other Specialized Science High Schools (SSHS) in NYC. It includes the following statement:

NY Times chart

Over the years, there have been a host of efforts to increase the number of black and Latino students at Stuyvesant and the other large specialized high schools in the city, Bronx High School of Science and Brooklyn Technical High School, like making interviews and grade-point averages part of the admissions process.

It is linked to an article that mentions an earlier DOE program to prep promising middle school minority students for the exam (which now has been recast as a program for economically disadvantaged students and has been heavily cut back in any case.) But it has no info that I can see about any efforts on the part of city to change the actual admissions process which is based solely on one high-stakes exam.

When there was a push by some advocates and elected officials to make the

All of Our Students! | Connected Principals

All of Our Students! | Connected Principals:

All of Our Students!

by Dave Meister

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a parent that has really set me to thinking about many things. Sometimes there are situations where students go way beyond the expectations of educators and achieve what was thought to be unattainable. When students exceed expectations we celebrate those great accomplishments and pat ourselves on the backs for a job well done. But, sometimes expectations are set so low that student growth and achievement are actually repressed. Sadly, this is sometimes the case with students that have IEP’s. Students in special education programs become labeled as those who “do not learn” as opposed to those “who learn differently” They are sorted into underserved groups, and are sometimes left out and are often left behind. Every once in a while a child overcomes great odds and makes remarkable progress despite the system. Sometimes it is a great teacher that makes the difference for a child with special needs, but without the diligent support and efforts of extraordinary parents many of the students in special education programs are doomed to low expectations and

Jersey Jazzman: Conspiracy in Connecticut

Jersey Jazzman: Conspiracy in Connecticut:

Conspiracy in Connecticut

by Duke

I thought we had it bad in Jersey:

But, bad as this is, Connecticut may be worse; check out Jon Pelto:

The situation as of 2012:
As of today, Alex Troy serves as the Chairman of the Board for Achievement First’s Amistad Academy and the Elm City College Preparatory School.
Jonathan Sackler is a member of Achievement First’s Board of Directors and 50CAN’s Board

Teach For America Corps Members in Dialogue: Can this Model Work? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

Teach For America Corps Members in Dialogue: Can this Model Work? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

Teach For America Corps Members in Dialogue: Can this Model Work?

By Anthony Cody on February 25, 2012 11:04 AM

Yesterday this blog featured a guest post from a current Teach For America corps member, Jameson Brewer. The following comment was posted by another TFA teacher. A response from Jameson Brewer follows.

As can be expected from a Corps Member, this is a reasonably accurate depiction of TFA's Institute and AIM, with one caveat. In my experience as a CM, TFA pushed CMs to focus within their "locus of control" and work relentlessly to pursue academic achievement for our students. The way I saw it, TFA didn't tell us to ignore socioeconomic challenges (to do so would be terrible) or to call call these challenges "irrelevant." Rather, TFA doesn't believe that socioeconomic challenges are an excuse to justify the achievement gap, and believes that good teachers and good schools together can close the gap in spite of socioeconomic challenges.

Is it more difficult to teach in a school where students are plagued by socioeconomic challenges? Of course! It's much easier to teach middle-class (mostly white) students in the suburbs who are already at/above grade level than struggling (mostly minority) students in the inner city. But socioeconomic challenges aren't insurmountable, and the students in these communities can and do outperform their more affluent peers when

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: UFT VP Leo Casey Live Internet Radio February 28!

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: UFT VP Leo Casey Live Internet Radio February 28!:

UFT VP Leo Casey Live Internet Radio February 28!

by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)

This Tuesday night, February 28 at 9 PM EST United Federation of Teachers Vice President Leo Caseyjoins us live to discuss the new NYS as well as NYC teacher evaluation that Governor Andy Cuomo brokered.

Mr Casey wrote a piece defending, as well as explaining, the new evaluation agreement at Edwize (the official blog of the UFT) yesterday, and has taken a lot of heat. Though we at SBSB disagree with Leo, we do applaud him for taking the heat.

The call in # for the show is (213) 943-3735

“Value Added” is wrong, not funny « JD2718 #soschat

“Value Added” is wrong, not funny « JD2718:

“Value Added” is wrong, not funny

by jd2718

The UFT took a good ad with the wrong graphic yesterday. We were right to push back, that was necessary. But not with this:

1. It is not NYC’s Value Added formula. It is a generic Value Added formula. Not sure if I’m right? The UFT calls it a “sample”.

2. This formula, with even more terms and symbols and subscripts and Greek letters, this formula on steroids – is what the UFT and NYSUT are helping New York State develop.

3. I can read this. I can teach you to, if you’d like. It’s hard, but not that hard. But it’s probably not worth it.

4. We are teachers, dammit. We don’t make fun of learning or knowledge. Or at least most of us don’t.

5. This great big formula is designed to see what difference each teacher makes “on the test.” That is wrong. Completely wrong. There is much more

Chicago Teachers Union joins with Rainbow/PUSH and community groups to seek changes at CPS - chicagotribune.com

Chicago Teachers Union joins with Rainbow/PUSH and community groups to seek changes at CPS - chicagotribune.com:

Teachers union, community groups want elected school board

Rev. Jackson says minorities have paid price for inequalities at CPS

The Rev. Jesse Jackson approaches the podium Wednesday at Chicago Public Schools headquarters. Jackson criticized a slate of school closings and changes that were adopted by the board. Friday he met with representatives of the Chicago Teachers Union and community groups to focus on returning the school board to an elected body. (William DeShazer, Chicago Tribune / February 22, 2012)

By Joel Hood, Chicago Tribune reporter

February 26, 2012

Stung by another round of school closings and turnarounds, some community leaders are looking at how Chicago can return to publicly electing its school board.

At a meeting Friday at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition headquarters on the South Side, Chicago Teachers Union officials met with the Rev. Jesse Jackson and representatives from civic groups that helped lead the attempt to block Chicago Public Schools' recent efforts to close or "turn around" 17 chronically underperforming schools.

The aim of these meetings, Jackson said, is to build momentum to wrestle control of Chicago's school board away from the mayor and restore it as a publicly elected body.

Teacher tenure: Teacher tenure is not what's causing schools to fail - Courant.com

Teacher tenure: Teacher tenure is not what's causing schools to fail - Courant.com:

Can't Blame Teacher Tenure For Failing Schools

By JASON COURTMANCHEThe Hartford Courant

February 26, 2012

Diane Ravitch, an education expert, points out that today's school reformers know nothing about what works in education, and so they try to make schools look more like businesses.

They propose to test students, evaluate teachers according to those tests and then reward or punish teachers consequently. Their proposals make little to no mention of curriculum or instruction. These reforms, as with those proposed by Gov.Dannel P. Malloyand state Commissioner of Education Stefan Pryor, rest upon the premise that teachers know exactly what needs to be done to improve education, but they simply aren't doing it. They assume that if we remove tenure and threaten teachers with reprisal, then teachers will do their jobs. In truth, the challenges in education are much more complex, and tenure is not to blame.

The biggest problem in Connecticut is the achievement gap between wealthy and poor students, which largely correlates with the gap between white and minority students. The fact of the matter is that the gap has everything to do with poverty and not a whole lot of anything to do with tenure.

Students in wealthy, educated towns such as New Canaan, Fairfield, Glastonbury or Mansfield succeed despite their teachers' tenure, yet we are supposed to believe that the struggles of students in neighboring towns such as Norwalk, Bridgeport,

The Whole Child Petition — Whole Child Education

The Whole Child Petition — Whole Child Education:

THE WHOLE CHILD PETITION

Sign the Whole Child Petition asking your state board of education to support policies and practices that ensure each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged. When your state has reached its goal, we will deliver the petition to your state board of education.

We Stand for Whole Child Education

In a time of rapid change and innovation, our education system is struggling to keep pace. The global marketplace is a reality; yet, as demands for a highly skilled and educated workforce and citizenry grow, too many communities have narrowed the curriculum, eliminated or reduced support for families, and failed to develop the talent of their youth.

We can do better.

Please support policies and practices that ensure

Each student enters school healthy and learns about and practices a healthy lifestyle.
Each student learns in an intellectually challenging environment that is physically and emotionally safe for students and adults.
Each student is actively engaged in learning and is connected to the school and broader community.
Each student has access to personalized learning and is supported by qualified, caring adults.
Each graduate is challenged by a well-balanced curriculum and is prepared for success in college or further study and for employment in a global environment.

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