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Friday, June 29, 2012

Big Education Ape - Morning Wink 6-29 AM Posts #soschat #edreform



BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS


Jersey Jazzman: Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 6 minutes ago
Jersey Jazzman: Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I: Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I by Duke Heads up, national readers: if you have any interest in the Broadification of American education, you need to check this one out, complicated as it may be. We'll start with this: looks like old Eli got his girl installed in Jersey City: *The Jersey City Board of Education tonight voted 6-3 to start negotiations with Delaware woman Marcia V. Lyles, who the board hopes will become the city’s new schools superintendent.* The three objectors were Marilyn Roman, Angel Valentin and Sterling W... more »

The right place for America's charter schools - Other Views - NewsObserver.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 minutes ago
The right place for America's charter schools - Other Views - NewsObserver.com: The right place for America's charter schools Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/06/29/2166133/the-right-place-for-americas-charter.html#storylink=cpy *and that's the truth* Let me say right up front that I celebrate any school that provides a child a first-class education. I do not care whether it is a magnet school, traditional public school, charter school or private school. I do not believe that public funds should be used for private schools, but I do believe that every child shou... more »

Advice for Bill Gates « Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 34 minutes ago
Advice for Bill Gates « Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Advice for Bill Gates by dianerav A reader with an engineering degree read my blog about Bill Gates’ ideas for reforming American higher education, and he offered his advice to Gates: *I’m sure that everyone who has felt the sting of the Gates approach to k12 education will really love his cavalier, innovate, make mistakes and learn approach. How nice for him to treat not just one school or state but the whole nation as his guinea pigs.* *What was chilling was his terrier like tenacio... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Friday, June 29, 2012

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 38 minutes ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Education Headlines *Friday, June 29, 2012* Rio approves budget, delays vote on fact-finding reportThe Rio School District board approved a budget on Thursday that would result in a negative ending balance in 2013 while putting off a vote on a fact-finding report that calls for a pay cut across the district. Ventura Unified puts parcel tax on November ballotVoters in the Ventura Unified School District will be asked in November to back a parcel tax to maintain academic programs in the 29-school district. Defeat of Calif. teacher bil... more »

Compromise on school fees bill | Thoughts on Public Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 46 minutes ago
Compromise on school fees bill | Thoughts on Public Education: Compromise on school fees bill Share Passage would end litigation by ACLU Posted on 6/29/12 • Categorized as Uncategorized By *John Fensterwald - Educated Guess* * * * * Advocates of a complaint process for parents and students who believe they’re being charged illegal fees have amended a bill to satisfy all of the main opponents, save the silent one who hasn’t been heard from yet. That’s Gov. Jerry Brown, who vetoed similar legislation last year. On Wednesday, the Senate Education Committee approved *AB 1575* without opp... more »

Conservatives: Saving America's Youth From "Overeducation" | OurFuture.org

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 49 minutes ago
Conservatives: Saving America's Youth From "Overeducation" | OurFuture.org: Conservatives: Saving America's Youth From "Overeducation" by Terrance Heath Now that our "do nothing" Congress is finally set to "do something" to stop interest on student loans from doubling, I think I’ve finally figured out what motivates conservatives on education in general, and conservative opposition to student loans in general. Conservatives are fighting to save our children - your children, my children, America’s children - from a fate worse than collective bargaining. Conservatives are fighting t... more »

Hechinger Report | Can the burgeoning world of online teacher training improve public education?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 51 minutes ago
Hechinger Report | Can the burgeoning world of online teacher training improve public education?: Can the burgeoning world of online teacher training improve public education? by Sarah Butrymowicz Screen shot from class Online teacher training involves much of the workload that traditional in-the-class instruction does: textbook lessons, classroom observations, student teaching. But the challenges of training successful teachers online were made clear to me during a recent online chat, when the professor in my “Foundations of Education” course slapped on heavy-duty headphones, peer... more »

I may be the only one who makes under a million bucks who had dinner with Rahm. « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 52 minutes ago
I may be the only one who makes under a million bucks who had dinner with Rahm. « Fred Klonsky: I may be the only one who makes under a million bucks who had dinner with Rahm. by Fred Klonsky Not long ago I posted a story about my dinner with Rahm. This wasn’t a planned dinner. It was an accident. Anne and I were having dinner at our neighborhood fine dining establishment, the wonderful Lula, and up drove a big black SUV and out came Rahm with some friends who plopped themselves down at the table next to ours. According to the latest column in the Chicago Reader by Ben Joravsky and ... more »

Daily Kos: We need ACA but its not enough

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 53 minutes ago
Daily Kos: We need ACA but its not enough: We need ACA but its not enough by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) The World Health Organization gives the U.S. health system an overall ranking of 37th in the world, far below other Western democracies. The CIA World Factbook — hardly the work of a bunch of left-leaning one-worlders — reports that life expectancy in the United States is not just lower than in other industrialized countries but also lower than in Jordan and Bosnia.Infant mortality in this country, according to the CIA, exceeds that of Slovenia and Cuba. It is possible to qui... more »

The 29th Edition Of The ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival Is Up! | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
The 29th Edition Of The ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival Is Up! | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…: The 29th Edition Of The ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival Is Up! by Larry Ferlazzo Sharon Turner has just posted the 29th edition of the ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival! As she writes: *The posts… represent future visions, perspectives and warnings of all kinds pertaining to English Language Education.* Thanks, Sharon! David Deubelbeiss will be hosting the September 1st edition. I’ll post here when he publishes info on if that edition will have a “theme” or if it will be a general one on ESL/EFL te... more »

New Report Links Teacher Satisfaction to Supportive Work Environments | Education Trust

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
New Report Links Teacher Satisfaction to Supportive Work Environments | Education Trust: New Report Links Teacher Satisfaction to Supportive Work Environments [image: Share this] In recent years, much attention has been paid to developing meaningful teacher evaluation systems as a strategy to improve public education, and rightly so. But while states and districts implement better ways to identify their strongest educators, too many are giving short shrift to the culture and work environments in schools, particularly in high-poverty and low-performing schools. In a new studyreleas... more »

How GERM is infecting schools around the world - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
How GERM is infecting schools around the world - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: How GERM is infecting schools around the world By Valerie Strauss This *was written by Pasi Sahlberg, author of “ Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn About Educational Change in Finland? and director general of Finland’s Center for International Mobility and Cooperation. He has served the Finnish government in various positions, worked for the World Bank in Washington D.C. and for the European Training Foundation in Italy as senior education specialist. Sahlberg has also advised governme... more »

Pearson Spends “Hundreds of Thousands” to Influence Florida Politicians | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Pearson Spends “Hundreds of Thousands” to Influence Florida Politicians | Scathing Purple Musings: Pearson Spends “Hundreds of Thousands” to Influence Florida Politicians by Bob Sikes From *WFTV *and the work of investigative reporter George Spencer: Despite scoring problems and student failures, the state is paying Pearson $249 million for five years of tests and grading. WFTV also found that Pearson spend hundreds of thousands to influence those same leaders. “Public education is open for business. Whoever the best bidder is, you can come in and administer our test for us,” said... more »

Edu-Implications of Yesterday's Supreme Court 7-2 Medicaid Ruling :: Frederick M. Hess

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Edu-Implications of Yesterday's Supreme Court 7-2 Medicaid Ruling :: Frederick M. Hess: Edu-Implications of Yesterday's Supreme Court 7-2 Medicaid Ruling Yesterday, the Supreme Court upheld the bulk of President Obama's health care reform. Amidst the drama, it was easy to overlook SCOTUS's 7-2 ruling to strike down the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion. Yet, that ruling had some important implications for education. The Court limited Uncle Sam's ability to withhold aid from states which refuse to comply with new federal mandates. This has potentially big impacts on current a... more »

The insurance companies are happy. And so am I. I guess. « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
The insurance companies are happy. And so am I. I guess. « Fred Klonsky: The insurance companies are happy. And so am I. I guess. by Fred Klonsky *In the summer of 2009, Anne and I drove to Wakarusa, Indiana to support Obama’s plan for health care with a public option.* Great. The Supreme Court decided people without health insurance shouldn’t die. What a country. Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad Obamacare got passed the crazies like Scalia, Alioto and Thomas on the Supreme Court. Millions of people are better off because of the decision. I don’t treat that lightly. I’ve read a lot of a... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Is StudentsFirst Prompting Candidates?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: Is StudentsFirst Prompting Candidates?: Is StudentsFirst Prompting Candidates? by Anngie One of the hardest things to do is write a questionnaire that does not reveal the questioner's bias. If you want to see thee worst example of such bias, look at any survey in a teen magazine. The "right" answer is obvious. A really good researcher could produce a questionnaire where an argument could be made for any answer. But sometimes, the mere act of offering the questionnaire biases the taker. Is this the case with the latest nationwide candidate survey from ... more »

MPS School Board President Michael Bonds Refutes Wisconsin Policy Research Institute’s Fabrications « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
MPS School Board President Michael Bonds Refutes Wisconsin Policy Research Institute’s Fabrications « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: MPS School Board President Michael Bonds Refutes Wisconsin Policy Research Institute’s Fabrications by millerlf A misleading picture of MPS liability By Michael Bonds June 27, 2012, Milwaukee JS The Christian Schneider column published Wednesday contains information that is, at best, flatly misleading. Before he even gets to the main point of his argument – and there are critical problems there, too – Schneider falsely claims Milwaukee Pub... more »

The Educated Reporter: Public-Private Partnerships For School Improvement Efforts

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
The Educated Reporter: Public-Private Partnerships For School Improvement Efforts: Public-Private Partnerships For School Improvement Efforts by Emily Richmond Turning good intentions into meaningful action is one of the toughest elements of trying to improve public education. How can school and community partners most effectively join forces to produce positive academic, physical, and social outcomes for those students who arrive with the fewest advantages? These were some of the questions The After School Corporation (TASC) and the Partnership For Youth Development tackled earl... more »

NYC Educator: Mayor4Life Must Be Kept Cool

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
NYC Educator: Mayor4Life Must Be Kept Cool: Mayor4Life Must Be Kept Cool by NYC Educator While more than a million kids get swelter in hundred-year-old buildings and tin-coated trailers, New York City is investing in innovative ways to keep billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg cool. Mayor4Life travels in SUVs, and they must be equipped withhome air conditioners, because regular auto AC simply does not meet his discerning standards. Mayor4Life is a regular guy, of course, and wants to conserve energy. That's why he takes the subway to work after two SUVs drive him there. I mean, yo... more »

Spreading the word about United Opt-Out | The Classroom Sooth

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 hours ago
Spreading the word about United Opt-Out | The Classroom Sooth: Spreading the word about United Opt-Out by classroomsooth [image: leader3] As I passed through Eaton, OH, I met Mary who runs a health foods store just outside of town. She let me fill my water from her tap, and I got to chatting with her over a luna bar and sweet tea. When she found out I was a teacher and headed to DC for NEA, she felt compelled to tell me how testing is just the worst thing in education right now. I told her about the United Opt-Out campaign, and she was very excited to spread the word among her ... more »

We Need To End This Liberal Enabling of Bad Behavior in Our Schools www.southbronxschool.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
http://www.southbronxschool.com: We Need To End This Liberal Enabling of Bad Behavior in Our Schools by noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher) My son turned 11 years old today. Time sure does fly. Part of me wishes that he would have stayed 5 years old forever, the other half of me can't wait to see what kind of man he grows up to be. I remember when my wife was pregnant we were discussing how we would be as parents. Basically it came down to that our household will not be a democracy, but rather a benign authoritative junta. What we say goes. Wait, before you think I am a crazy perso... more »

Hebrew Language Charter Schools: Who Knew? | Re:education in Baltimore

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Hebrew Language Charter Schools: Who Knew? | Re:education in Baltimore: Hebrew Language Charter Schools: Who Knew? by Edit Barry The language spread of Hebrew in the United States according to U. S. Census 2000 and other resources interpreted by research of U. S. ENGLISH Foundation, percentage of home speakers, via Wikimedia Commons A Hebrew language charter school won approval last week to open in Harlem. In April, Washington, D.C., approved its first Hebrew language charter school. In March, San Diego approved one for a September 2012 opening. There is a Hebrew language charter sc... more »

Rick Ayers: It's the Curriculum, Stupid!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Rick Ayers: It's the Curriculum, Stupid!: It's the Curriculum, Stupid! While many educators believe the development of a just, multicultural society is central to our values, very powerful forces have been fighting against such a vision for decades. Here's the kind of thinking that drives the education standards writers: "The costs of multiculturalism -- in terms of disunity, the clash of classes, and declining trust -- are likely to be huge in the long run. *All cultures are not equal when it comes to promoting progress, and very few can match Anglo-Protestantism in this respect... more »

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Jersey Jazzman: Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I

Jersey Jazzman: Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I:


Broadie Infestation of NJ: Part I

Heads up, national readers: if you have any interest in the Broadification of American education, you need to check this one out, complicated as it may be.

We'll start with this: looks like old Eli got his girl installed in Jersey City:
The Jersey City Board of Education tonight voted 6-3 to start negotiations with Delaware woman Marcia V. Lyles, who the board hopes will become the city’s new schools superintendent.
The three objectors were Marilyn Roman, Angel Valentin and Sterling Waterman. Board member Carol Harrison-Arnold called Lyles a “remarkable woman,” and disputed protester’s claims that the new superintendent should come from within the 28,000-

The right place for America's charter schools - Other Views - NewsObserver.com

The right place for America's charter schools - Other Views - NewsObserver.com:


The right place for America's charter schools

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/06/29/2166133/the-right-place-for-americas-charter.html#storylink=cpy


and that's the truth

 Let me say right up front that I celebrate any school that provides a child a first-class education. I do not care whether it is a magnet school, traditional public school, charter school or private school. I do not believe that public funds should be used for private schools, but I do believe that every child should have access to a great public school.
This year has been the worst year I have ever witnessed for attacks on public schools. Politicians and reformers who believe they are helping children by providing vouchers, tax credits, closing public schools or lifting caps on charter schools are missing the big picture. In an effort to help a few children, they are doing great harm to most children, and they are undermining the keystone of our country’s democracy.
I know that charter schools are public schools, but I would contend that we are at a point in their development where they have become enablers in weakening a strong public school system for America. The purpose of charter schools was to create laboratories for developing innovative instructional programs that improved student learning. Now, too many charters have become segregated, personality-driven and

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/06/29/2166133/the-right-place-for-americas-charter.html#storylink=cpy

Advice for Bill Gates « Diane Ravitch's blog

Advice for Bill Gates « Diane Ravitch's blog:
Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch



Advice for Bill Gates

A reader with an engineering degree read my blog about Bill Gates’ ideas for reforming American higher education, and he offered his advice to Gates:
I’m sure that everyone who has felt the sting of the Gates approach to k12 education will really love his cavalier, innovate, make mistakes and learn approach. How nice for him to treat not just one school or state but the whole nation as his guinea pigs.
What was chilling was his terrier like tenaciousness that his focus on education will be there 15-20 years from now until his job is done.
Someone out there please give this man a real job to do. His so called philanthropy is killing education, is warping parts of the planet ecologically and is 

A Confusing Job Market

We have all heard the stories about how American workers don’t have the skills to get the good jobs there are waiting for them, so American businesses have to hire people from other countries. This is meant usually as an indictment of public education, although it is really quite a stretch since the skills that are allegedly lacking are usually in highly technical jobs, not in jobs where high school students are likely to be prepared.
Consider an example of this is in the New York Times on Thursday. The story in the business section goes on at great length about how the CEO of a small web design company in New York City searched high and low to fill


This Iowa Parent Wants Real School Choice

I received an email with a copy of this blog by a parent in Iowa who happens also to be a law professor.
He is justifiably incensed that the people, the policymakers and the legislators who love choice have taken away all his choices as a parent.
He wants his kids to go to a school where there is no high-stakes testing, but he doesn’t have that choice.
He wants his kids to go to a school where teachers are allowed to use their professional judgment, but he doesn’t have that choice and neither do the teachers.
He wants his kids to go to a school where his children have time for physical activity and play, but he doesn’t


Is This the Future of U.S. Education?

I received a notice of a major conference of equity investors in the for-profit education industry.
It will be held on July 26 at a private club in New York City.
Tickets are $1,195 for the day.
The invitation to purchase a ticket came from the respected K-12 journal Education Week, which is a “media partner” for the event.
I think I am entitled to a discount because I am a subscriber.
I don’t want to go.
I don’t want to see the for-profit corporations taking over more schools.


A Change in Policy

Dear Readers,
As you know, I have been posting about four to ten blogs every day since I started doing this at the end of April. There are now more than 300 blogs in the archive.
This summer, I am trying to do something I have never done before. I am trying to write a book during the months of July and August. My deadline is Labor  Day. I don’t know if I can do this, but I am going to try. The only book that I ever wrote on a short timeline was The Language Police, and that took six months. (My other books took years.) I am now in the realm of “I think I can, I think I can…”
So, to give myself more time to write the book, I plan not to blog on weekends. Maybe I’ll post only three or four blogs a day. I’ll see how it goes. For me, the blogging is so much fun that it is almost irresistible. I love sharing my thoughts, and I love giving voice to teachers and parents through my blog. I think of this blog as my hometown newspaper, but this hometown is not in one geographic spot.
So, please do read the blog on weekends, use it as a time to go into the archives.
And keep reading Monday through Friday.
Diane