What teachers know vs. what education policymakers do — Ravitch - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

What teachers know vs. what education policymakers do — Ravitch - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

What teachers know vs. what education policymakers do — Ravitch

by Valerie Strauss

This was written by education historian Diane Ravitch for her Bridging Differences blog, which she co-authors with Deborah Meier on the Education Week website. The item was first published on March 6. In their blog,Ravitch and Meier exchange letters about what matters most in education. Ravitch, a research professor at New York University, is author of “The Death and Life of the Great American School System,” a critique of the flaws in the modern school reform movement that she just updated.

By Diane Ravitch

We heard a lot last month about the MetLife Survey of the American Teacher. It showed that teachers across the nation are demoralized and that their job satisfaction has dropped precipitously since 2009. The proportion thinking of leaving teaching has gone from 17 percent to 29 percent, a 70 percent increase in only two years. If this is accurate, it would mean the exit of one million teachers. I hope it is not true.

What has happened in the past two years? Let’s see: Race to the Top promoted the idea that teachers should be evaluated by the test scores of their students; “ Waiting for Superman ” portrayed teachers as the singular cause of low student test scores; many states, including 

Reynoso on Pepper Spray: They Had a Plan, But it Was Not Adequate. And They Didn't Follow It Anyway. - Davis, CA Patch

Reynoso on Pepper Spray: They Had a Plan, But it Was Not Adequate. And They Didn't Follow It Anyway. - Davis, CA Patch:

Reynoso on Pepper Spray: They Had a Plan, But it Was Not Adequate. And They Didn't Follow It Anyway.

Note: Check back Thursday for video and more coverage. 
The introduction of the Reynoso Task Force Report pretty much sums it up the pepper spray findings:
“Our overriding conclusion can be stated briefly and explicitly. The pepper spraying incident that took place on November 18, 2011 should and could have been prevented.”
Just about everything else in the report exists to prop up those 26 words. That’s probably why Former California Supreme Court Associate Justice Cruz Reynoso began Wednesday night’s presentation by reading them to the crowd.
THE LACK OF A CLEAR PLAN
“It’s very important to know who’s in charge and what’s to be done,” Reynoso said of the UC Davis incident of Nov. 18. “The process did not work on this occasion.”
He said the task force found missteps from top to bottom: From Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi and Chief Annette 

New allegations of racist practices at for profit colleges emerge | Dailycensored.com

New allegations of racist practices at for profit colleges emerge | Dailycensored.com:

New allegations of racist practices at for profit colleges emerge

Written by Danny WeilBusiness, Education, MediaApr 11, 2012

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On Wednesday April 11 2012 Courthouse news reported Joseph Simpson, a former dean at for profit school Anthem Career College, filed a lawsuit in Federal Court alleging Anthem fired him for protesting racist hiring practices and the cheating of workers out of overtime pay.

 

According to Courthouse news the complaint stated “Ms. Nash [the school president] was only offering full time employment opportunities to white candidates and not to African-American candidates. Ms. Nash also repeatedly blocked plaintiff’s attempts to hire a fully qualified African-American registrar while pushing forward white candidates who were less qualified.”http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/04/11/45510.htm

 

The complaint is remarkably similar to a lawsuit filed against Kaplan University

NEA - Leading the Profession

NEA - Leading the Profession:

Leading the Profession: An NEA Agenda for Action

NEA President Dennis Van Roekel lays out a new action agenda to transform teaching. Photo by Gary Dwight Miller.

 

National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel has announced a new action agenda that will help advance the Association’s goals of transforming the teaching profession and accelerating student learning.

Incorporating proven best practices from thousands of leading teachers from around the country, and input from an independent Commission on Effective Teachers and Teaching, Van Roekel detailed three major strategies that will guide the union’s efforts to increase the quality of teacher candidates before they ever reach the classroom, to make sure that teachers remain at the top of their game throughout their careers, and to improve student learning by improving the teaching profession.

“It’s about the kids,” Van Roekel said. “NEA aims to ensure that every student has a qualified, caring and effective teacher. And NEA will support a stronger profession of teaching."

NEA's Three-Point Plan for True Education Reform

NEA President Announces New Three-Part Action Agenda to Strengthen Teaching Profession and Improve Student Learning 

Transforming Teaching: Connecting Professional Responsibility with Student Learning Report of the Commission on Effective Teachers and Teaching.

Comments by Maddie Fennell, the chairperson of the Commission on Effective Teachers and Teaching

Bills on school discipline clear first hurdle in state Legislature | 89.3 KPCC

Bills on school discipline clear first hurdle in state Legislature | 89.3 KPCC:

Bills on school discipline clear first hurdle in state Legislature

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

Three bills in the California Legislature that aim to address problems with school suspension rates and discipline cleared an initial hurdle and passed out of committee today. These include AB 2242, which seeks to reduce out-of-school suspensions for students under the category of "willful defiance," an often very subjective classification that includes behavior such as failing to bring materials to class, not paying attention or talking back. The bill would limit the use of such suspensions and instead have students sent to an in-school supervised suspension classroom. "We’re no... more »

LA Unified suspensions for 'defiance' are down

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

L.A. Unified has had roughly 1,400 fewer suspensions for defiance through February of this year compared to last year, said Superintendent John Deasy today. The district has worked to decrease its suspension rate, especially for defiance (a category that can include talking back or not following a teacher's directions), by encouraging school officials to deal with students on campus rather than sending them home. Since last year the district has tracked suspension rates on a monthly basis at the school level and officials plan to start doing so at the classroom and teacher level ... more »

LAUSD board president target of recall campaign

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

A few dozen people gathered outside L.A. Unified's downtown headquarters today to announce a campaign to recall school board president Monica Garcia. Holding signs that read "Pink Slip for Monica Garcia" and "Stop and Recall Monica Garcia," they spoke out against budget cuts that have slashed adult and early education. They also protested the issuing of more than 11,700 preliminary pink slips to district employees. "This board president has consistently ignored voices of the community," said Robert Skeels, a public education advocate. "We don't accept these answers...we believe th... more »

Task force recommends full review of UC Davis Police Department

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

The task force report on the use of pepper spraying of peaceful UC Davis protesters in November included recommendations for a full review of the campus police department, including an assessment by an outside agency of its command structure, personnel numbers and use-of-force protocol. The report also recommends a review of the police chief's job description, a review to bring the department's practices up to date, and the creation of annual competency trainings and annual performance evaluations. The 32-page task force report was released online at noon today but the task force ... more »

Arraignment pushed back to June for UCLA professor in fiery death of lab assistant

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has once again pushed back an arraignment hearing for a UCLA chemistry professor who faces felony charges in a deadly school lab fire. Flanked by his legal team, Patrick Harran briefly appeared in court where, for a third and final time, the judge delayed Harran’s arraignment until early June. Defense attorneys have requested time to continue plea negotiations. He faces felony criminal charges in an accident three years ago that fatally burned a 23-year-old research assistant, Sheharbano Sangji. She was not wearing a protective lab coat when a c... more »

Details: Task force releases report on UC Davis pepper spraying incident

Pass / Fail - 6 hours ago

The task force charged with investigating the November pepper spraying of peaceful protesters at UC Davis publicly released their report today finding the incident "should and could have been prevented" and that a breakdown in communication and leadership, plus a lack of proper protocols. The 32-page report includes a hefty appendix with the 131-page independent inquiry by New York-based investigative firm Kroll, which details the events leading up to the pepper spraying incident on Nov. 18, and also includes interviews with campus officials and police officers, whose names have b... more »

An overdue recognition that teachers must be partners in education reform | Thoughts on Public Education

An overdue recognition that teachers must be partners in education reform | Thoughts on Public Education:

An overdue recognition that teachers must be partners in education reform - by Ellen Moir

by Ellen Moir

This much we know. Never before has there been so much attention focused on teachers and teaching. And, according to the latest MetLife Survey of the American Teacher report, teachers’ satisfaction with their profession is down. Way down. These findings are particularly worrying given that there is a need to recruit two million [...]

CA lawmakers seek to curb school suspensions - by Kathryn Baron

by Kathryn Baron

The school discipline pendulum is on the move again, swinging from the uncompromising zero tolerance policies enacted in the aftermath of horrific massacres toward efforts to give school officials more discretion. The state Senate and Assembly education committees yesterday approved half a dozen bills with variations on the common theme of cutting back on expulsions and [...]

CTA opposition stalls bills - by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess

Amid concerted opposition from the California Teachers Association, the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday delayed acting on two bills that would make it easier and quicker to dismiss teachers for misconduct. Both SB 1530 and SB 1059, along with an identical bill, AB 2028, introduced in the Assembly, are in response to criminal charges of sexual [...]

NYC Educator: Walcott Explains This Week's Turnaround Plan

NYC Educator: Walcott Explains This Week's Turnaround Plan:

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Walcott Explains This Week's Turnaround Plan

by NYC Educator

 Good morning New York. I'm Dennis "Waffles" Walcott, NY Schools Chancellor.

You know, we here at Tweed take the education of our youngsters very seriously. That's why, two years ago, Mayor Bloomberg decided to utilize the "transformation model" for 33 schools in the city. I fully supported this great innovation, as supporting our schools is something it's important for us to do. And also, using the Danielson Framework was helpful. While some people, including Danielson, felt our rubric was kind of a "gotcha" thing, I thought we did a pretty good job, especially since none of us had actually been trained in how to use the darn thing. I fully supported the way we used it.

Now, once the UFT and us were unable to come to an agreement on evaluation, I fully supported Mayor 

One Teacher's Perspective: A Mildly Depressed Teacher's Perspective

One Teacher's Perspective: A Mildly Depressed Teacher's Perspective:

A Mildly Depressed Teacher's Perspective

by Imagine Wisconsin

On the 20^th anniversary of my father’s death, myfamily had a remembrance weekend in his honor. That weekend, we did some importantand healthy reflecting about the traumatic experience. The meaningful weekend validatedhow well our family had bonded through our shared suffering. However, what was mostsurprising was how our shared experience still resulted in such differentperspectives about my dad’s death.

Sorting through a shared, painful experience can be complicated.Each person’s personality, past experiences, emotional state, educationalbackground, sexuality, gender, life stage, philosophy, and much more plays intocomprehending the communal experience.

Emotionally and politically charged experiences can make thesorting out all the more difficult.  Thispast year, all of Wisconsin has suffered through the passage and enactment of emotionallycharged legislation designed to weaken the role of public workers and theirunions in the state government, local governments, 

Daily Kos: Bully

Daily Kos: Bully:

Bully

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

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On Tuesday evening, the auditorium at the headquarters of the NEA was packed for a viewing of the new film by Lee Hirsch, "Bully."   It is a powerful examination of the experience and impact of bullying upon our school children.
Below the fold I will tell you a bit about the movie and the concerted roll out, which begins tomorrow in something 

LAUSD: THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN (LAUSD: EL mundo al revés) - Perdaily.com

LAUSD: THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN (LAUSD: EL mundo al revés) - Perdaily.com:

LAUSD: THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN (LAUSD: EL mundo al revés)

by Leonard Isenberg

(Mensaje se repite en Español)

(For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post)

When I hear a story one time, I think it might be an anomaly, but when I get numerous calls over the last several months saying exactly the same thing, my interest is peeked. It hardly seems surprising that students have figured out that administrators at LAUSD are targeting teachers at the top of the salary scale, about to vest in lifetime health benefits under the Rule of 80, or who are just trying to actually teach students and not go along with the purposefully dumbed down LAUSD culture that moves students from grade to grade, whether or not they pass the previous grade.

This has inspired students, that have been socially promoted without foundational skills or the work habits 

Missouri Education Watchdog: Community Schools in Chicago? Arne Duncan's and Rahm Emanuel's Dream...Parents Say "Not so Fast'

Missouri Education Watchdog: Community Schools in Chicago? Arne Duncan's and Rahm Emanuel's Dream...Parents Say "Not so Fast':

Community Schools in Chicago? Arne Duncan's and Rahm Emanuel's Dream...Parents Say "Not so Fast'

by stlgretchen

Oops.  One of Arne Duncan's goals of education, envisioning schools becoming community centers to supplant parental influence and responsibility, might have hit a snag in Chicago schools. 

First, Duncan's vision of how schools should operate:

...we need to lengthen the school day. We need to lengthen the school year. Our calendar is based upon