Thursday, May 3, 2012

At the Chalkface Radio Program Bucks the Education Reform Trend - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

At the Chalkface Radio Program Bucks the Education Reform Trend - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

At the Chalkface Radio Program Bucks the Education Reform Trend

by Anthony Cody


Scoop Nisker used to say, "If you don't like the news, go out and make some of your own." Two educators, Shaun Johnson and Tim Slekar, have taken up this challenge, and have entered the fierce world of commercial radio, with a provocative show called "At the Chalkface." This weekly broadcast goes out online here, and features guests who offer an alternative to the dominant education reform narrative. Recent guests have included Diane Ravitch and Bill Ayers.
I asked the hosts, Pennsylvania education professor Tim Slekar and Maryland education professor Shaun Johnson, and the producer of the show, Rex Charger, to share some of the story of this improbable venture.
Question: You've been in talk radio for 15 years. What makes @The Chalkface unique?

Rex Charger (Producer and Engineer): There seemed to be a void in the radio landscape for a show like this. The demographic is wide open: anyone with kids, anyone who's a teacher, anyone concerned about education. Tim and Shaun also offer a



Chalk Face




At the Chalk Face



A live podcast show about all things education. Follow the show on Facebook, Twitter, and the main website atthechalkface.com. A mainstream version of the show is available WTDY FM Madison, WI on Sundays at 10AM EST. ...read more


Chalk Face

At the Chalk Face

A live podcast show about all things education. Follow the show on Facebook, Twitter, and the main website atthechalkface.com. A mainstream version of the show is available WTDY FM Madison, WI on Sundays at 10AM EST. ...read more

On-Demand Episodes

Were talking today about the common core, the huge bath teachers are taking in Wisconsin, and how about we chat a little bit about Pearson? Join us. Chat will be open.
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We are going to share news about the premier education research conference, opting out as child endangerment, according to one principal, and experimental test questions in New York. Join the fun, the chat will be open.
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Were going to just have some fun today, so listen and find out.
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Were back At the Chalk Face talking the new, new Nation at Risk, Occupy the DOE, and perhaps a bit about the absolute REVOLT happening in Texas right now.
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@TCF is finally back after a little break. Were talking an education summit in Selma, AL, the VAM score release in NY, and confessions of a Bad Teacher. Join us... or it will be very unpleasant. e
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Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Building a bridge between teachers and parents

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Building a bridge between teachers and parents:


Building a bridge between teachers and parents

by Mike Klonsky
On last night's panel at DePaul were (right to left in photo) Monica Espinoza and Joanna Brown from Logan Square Neighborhood Association, Lynn Morton from Community Organizing and Family Issues, Julie Woestehoff from PURE, Wendy Kattan from Raise Your Hand, and Latrice Watkins, LSC chair of Piccolo Elementary, who led the Occupy Piccolo protest earlier this year (Cecile Carrol from Blocks Together arrived after this pic was taken).
Catalyst reports a growing connection being built between the Chicago Teachers Union and local parent groups.
In recent weeks, teachers at dozens of schools have made efforts to reach out to parents about 
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Schools Matter: Diane Ravitch Educates the Nation on ALEC

Schools Matter: Diane Ravitch Educates the Nation on ALEC:


Diane Ravitch Educates the Nation on ALEC


Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch

AlterNet

What You Need To Know About ALEC

By Diane Ravitch, Bridging Differences
Posted on May 3, 2012, Printed on May 3, 2012
http://www.alternet.org/story/155257/what_you_need_to_know_about_alec
Since the 2010 elections, when Republicans took control of many states, there has been an explosion of legislation advancing privatization of public schools and stripping teachers of job protections and collective bargaining rights. Even some Democratic governors, seeing the strong rightward drift of our politics, have jumped on the right-wing bandwagon, seeking to remove any protection for academic freedom from public school teachers.
This outburst of anti-public school, anti-teacher legislation is no accident. It is the work of a shadowy group called the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC. Founded in 1973, ALEC is an organization of nearly 2,000 conservative state legislators. Its hallmark is promotion of privatization and corporate interests in every sphere, not only education, but healthcare, the environment, the economy, voting laws, public safety, etc. It drafts model legislation that conservative legislators take back to their states and introduce as their own "reform" ideas. ALEC is the guiding force behind state-level efforts to privatize public education and to turn teachers into at-will employees who may be fired for any reason. The ALEC agenda is today the "reform" agenda for education.
ALEC operated largely in the dark for years, but gained notoriety because of the Trayvon 

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U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review | U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review | U.S. Department of Education:


U.S. Education Department Reaches Agreement with Butler University to Resolve Title IX Athletics Compliance Review

MAY 3, 2012

Contact:  
 Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov 

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights has entered into a resolution agreement with Butler University in Indianapolis to resolve a compliance review that was initiated at the university. The review examined whether the institution discriminates against female students by denying them an equal opportunity to participate in intercollegiate athletics and whether the university discriminates in awarding athletic scholarships.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX), 20 U.S.C. § 1681, and its implementing regulation, 34 C.F.R. Part 106, prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex. The university is a private, co-educational institution whose intercollegiate athletics teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Division I.
According to data provided by Butler, during the 2010-11 school year women made up 2,267, or 59.6 percent, of the university’s full-time undergraduate students.  But, the institution’s 164 female athletes comprised only 36.5 percent of its 449 athletes. Butler’s 285 male athletes represented 63.5 percent of its athletes. During the 2010-11 academic year, the university distributed more than $3.8 million in athletic scholarships to male and female athletes. Women received 53.4 percent of this amount and men 46.6 percent.
“The many benefits that students derive from participating in athletic competition are well-documented and extend far beyond the playing field,” said Russlynn Ali, assistant secretary for the Office for Civil Rights. “In this 40th anniversary year for Title IX, a case like this reminds us how critical this statute continues to be in ensuring equal opportunity for women in education. OCR is committed to ensuring that student athletes have equal access to those benefits, including equal opportunities to participate in sports and to be awarded scholarships based on their athletic abilities. Today’s announcement is an important step in OCR’s continued efforts to work with the nation’s institutions to accomplish this result.”
According to the agreement, by Sept. 1, the university has to demonstrate that it is accommodating effectively the interests and abilities of female students in order to provide them an equal opportunity to participate in sports or, if unable to demonstrate current compliance, submit a detailed plan to OCR to accommodate effectively the interests and abilities of female students in its athletics program over the next three academic years.  The plan must include a description of interim steps that the university will take during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 academic years to increase athletic participation opportunities for women.
With respect to scholarships, by Sept. 1, Butler must also demonstrate that during the 2011-2012 school year equal opportunities are being provided in awarding athletic scholarships to male and female athletes.  Or, if the university is unable to demonstrate this, it must submit a detailed plan to ensure that by the beginning of the 2014-2015 academic year, Butler is in full compliance with its Title IX obligation to provide athletic scholarships in a non-discriminatory manner.
The agreement makes clear that OCR does not require or encourage the elimination of any university athletic teams and that it is seeking action from the university that does not involve the elimination of athletic opportunities. The agreement also states that nothing in the agreement requires Butler to cut the amounts of athletic scholarships it offers to either sex, and that any such cuts are discouraged.
The enforcement of Title IX is a top priority of OCR.  Additional information about the office is available on its Web site at www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html.

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