Report detailing Boston Consulting Group’s findings and recommendations released | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Report detailing Boston Consulting Group’s findings and recommendations released | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:

Report detailing Boston Consulting Group’s findings and recommendations released

by Dale Mezzacappa on Aug 02 2012 Posted in Latest news

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Tags:

• budget cuts
 
• English language learners
 
• District budget
• privatization
 
• special education
• funding equity
 
• transportation
• Pedro Ramos
 
• Thomas Knudsen
 
• Renaissance Schools
 
• Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
 
• school choice
• transformation blueprint

By Dale Mezzacappa and Benjamin Herold

The School District released on Thursday a 119-page document summarizing the analyses and recommendations of the Boston Consulting Group, an outside firm retained at private expense to help the District avert a financial meltdown by radically overhauling its business operations and delivery of education.  

The document details BCG’s work and thinking on hot-button topics ranging from charter expansion to labor negotiations.  It also includes the previously unreleased analyses behind controversial District proposals to close dozens of schools and reorganize those that are left into decentralized, independently managed “Achievement Networks.”

“This presents a summary of our key findings and recommendations – some of which have been accepted by the school district and integrated into their proposed blueprint, while others await further community input and District decisions,” reads 

Special needs child can't accept school voucher - KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather & Sports

Special needs child can't accept school voucher - KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather & Sports:

Special needs child can't accept school voucher

Posted: Aug 01, 2012 3:43 PM PDTUpdated: Aug 01, 2012 3:43 PM PDT

By Brittany Pieper - bio | email

 

• KSLA NEWS 12 HEADLINESmore>>

• NAACP joins fight of former city employees against mayor

  Updated: Aug 02, 2012 3:09 AM PDT
  The NAACP is now getting involved in Port Allen politics, working on behalf of former city employees. Several of those former employees have accused Mayor Roger Bergeron of being racist. They are questioningMore >>

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) -

The Louisiana Department of Education had more interest in the new private school voucher/scholarship program than they had spots this year. In Caddo Parish less than half the people who applied got a scholarship.

Trailais Tillman's son, Aidan, will start Kindergarten this year. He's zoned to go to a failing public school, so when the state announced they would give private school vouchers, Tillman applied right away.

"I was seeking other options, smaller atmosphere, more family oriented type environment, which is what he's used to," she said.

Tillman was thrilled to find out Aiden's name was pulled during the lottery to attend Evangel Christian Academy. She was equally disappointed when she 

More Youth Run Away Who Attend Schools in the West, Have a Lack of Parent Involvement at School, or Have Larger Class Sizes - MarketWatch

More Youth Run Away Who Attend Schools in the West, Have a Lack of Parent Involvement at School, or Have Larger Class Sizes - MarketWatch:

More Youth Run Away Who Attend Schools in the West, Have a Lack of Parent Involvement at School, or Have Larger Class Sizes

CHICAGO, Aug. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- National Runaway Switchboard's New Study Finds a Connection Between School Characteristics and Adolescent Runaway Behavior

Many school level characteristics are predictors of youth runaway behavior, as determined in a new study released today by the National Runaway Switchboard (NRS), 24/7 hotline and online services for runaway, homeless and at-risk youth. The study reveals that it's more common for youth to run away who attend schools in the West, have less parent involvement at school or have schools with larger average class sizes.

"Studies like this help the National Runaway Switchboard better understand what's affecting today's youth so it can continue to provide programs and services that help them," said Maureen Blaha, NRS executive director. "This study offers compelling 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-2-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

Diane Ravitch's blog:

When Talking and Listening Are Not Enough

by dianerav

A reader responds to another post:
I agree we need to do all of what you say, god knows I do, but I’m worried that we may exchange the support we give to each other and ourselves for a quiet waiting, a further hunkering down. Make no mistake, teaching is a gender issue for all of us as well as anything else. We are in a classic abusive relationship with ed deform. Most of us are women, and we are being treated in a traditionally determined way because of it. We are being treated like children: told what to do, how to think, our professional lives run from the top, told to “shut up and teach.”
This year, the state I teach in underwent the most devastating pension theft in the country. There were groups that escaped unscathed:judges, correctional officers, and state police. The word was that the legislature couldn’t 

Should You Game the System?

by dianerav

in response to a post about the meaning of fiction in our lives today, a reader sent this advice:

To my dear teachers of America, I ask you to game the system. Yes, you must teach how to tackle the test, you must teach how to use elimination to solve multiple choice questions. But you can ALSO teach the real thing. Who is stopping you? Take extra classes. Use the normal classes to teach according to the system but take extra ones to really teach. We are accustomed to a system that works and is now broken. But despair not. Those of us who were product of broken systems did not wait for system

Campaign Contributions Matter

by dianerav

A reader reports on the campaign contributions of a major charter school owner in Ohio.

Okay, here’s some more numbers that will astound you: David Brennan founded White Hat Management Company in 1998. The company is a charter school management group with approximately 30 schools, mostly in Ohio, including an online charter and numerous “dropout recovery” schools (http://www.whitehatmgmt.com). David Brennan’s campaign donations over

Teachers: Keep Talking, Keep Listening

by dianerav

In response to the discussion about why teachers are silent, this reader writes:
The climate of fear and distrust can undermine a teacher’s self confidence – can make a person begin to doubt his/her own competence and perceptions about what students need to succeed.  With the teachers around us trying to keep their jobs and staying silent in the face of harmful policies, we lose our sense of trust in ourselves and our process of learning and working together to bring our students along.  The undermining of the professionalism of teachers, the quieting of teachers’ voices is a fact of life today.  For whatever reason the public is continuing to scapegoat us perhaps because they do not want to look at the realities of poverty and the price tag of really saving our country’s children.  We have to talk to one another.  We have to reach out and 

Time for Roland Fryer to Give Back His Pay

by dianerav

Today, Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post has an editorial simultaneously praising the New Teacher Project report called “The Irreplaceables” (those fabulous young teachers who know how to raise test scores [in one year] but are leaving the classroom) and the Roland Fryer study on loss aversion. The Post says that if New York City took Fryer’s recommendation, paid $4,000 upfront to teachers, and then took it away if the scores don’t go up, that would be a huge improvement in holding onto the “irreplaceables” while raising test scores.
Whew. The city has been cutting schools’ budgets, yet now it is going to come up with millions to try the latest

Investigating The E-Scam in Ohio

by dianerav

Ohio is utopia for sham reform. In that state, two major charter operators have given generously to politicians, and their campaign contributions have been ilke yeast in an oven. A small amount goes a long, long way in returns to them.
The good news is that the word is getting out. This article in a Cincinnati journal sets out the indisputable facts about the e-schools: Big profits for the owners, poor education for the kids.
Eventually the public will understand that they are being bamboozled, and some politicians might stand up and 

Teachers, Be Silent No More

by dianerav

This reader says–in response to an earlier post– there is a way for teachers to get involved in fighting for public education without risking their jobs.
Perhaps it would be easier to contact their publicists, agents, or managers:
1. Dave Grohl – Foo Fighters – Agent: Don Muller – WME 1325 Avenue Of The Americas, New York, NY 10019 T.212.586.5100 F.212.246.3583
2. Adam Levine – Maroon 5 singer – Manger: Career Artist Management – 1100 Glendon Avenue, Suite 1100 | Los Angeles, CA 90024 |310.776.7640 (p) | 310.776.7659 (f)
3. Jack Black – Agent: WME 1325 Avenue Of The Americas, New York, NY 10019 T.212.586.5100 F.212.246.3583
4. Meryl Streep – Publicist: Leslee Dart. Dart Group. 90 Park Avenue. 19th Floor. New York, NY 10016. Phone: 212-277-7555.
5. Viola Davis – Agent: Agency for the Performing Arts (APA) 45 West 45th St. 4th floor, New York, NY 10036 T. 212.687.0092 F. 212.245.5062
6. Morgan Freeman – Publicist: Stan Rosenfield & Associates, Inc., 2029 Century Park E., Suite 1190, Los Angeles, CA 90067, USA. Phone: (310) 286-7474, Fax: (310) 286-2255.
7. Josh Groban
8. Maggie Gyllenhaal (last, but not least)
I’m not sure if these are correct.  I pieced the information together from various sources found on the Internet.  I also noticed that some of these celebs have official website forums and facebook pages.  Maybe if enough teachers started posting the truth, it would get noticed.

Back-To-School: Education Cuts Favored By Americans Include Teacher Salary Freezes, Administration Cuts, Survey Says

Back-To-School: Education Cuts Favored By Americans Include Teacher Salary Freezes, Administration Cuts, Survey Says:

Back-To-School: Education Cuts Favored By Americans Include Teacher Salary Freezes, Administration Cuts, Survey Says

by Joy Resmovits

As school districts suffer from increasing costs and not enough cash, only 11 percent of Americans are willing to pay more in taxes to fund communities' schools, according to a new report released Thursday.

Instead, almost half (48 percent) said that the best approach to fixing a school-district deficit would be "dramatically changing how it does business," and 26 percent would "change as little as possible and wait for times to get better."

But that doesn't mean they don't recognize the school funding problem. Seventy-seven percent said they expect '

Sal Khan responds to a critic — and the critic answers back - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Sal Khan responds to a critic — and the critic answers back - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

Sal Khan responds to a critic — and the critic answers back

By Valerie Strauss

A guest post I recently published critiquing the Khan Academy received a great deal of response, including an e-mail from Salman Khan, founder of the academy. Now here’s the next part of the debate: A response from the critic.

Salman Khan, founder of the Khan Academy, in 2010. (Courtesy of Khan Academy)For those who may not know, the Khan Academy is essentially a library of more than 3,300 videos on subjects including math, physics, and history that are intended to allow students to learn at their own pace. Questions were raised about the quality of some of the math videos in the guest post mentioned above as well as in others elsewhere on the Web.

Below is Khan’s e-mai

Khan Academy: Readers weigh in

by Valerie Strauss

Recent posts on the Khan Academy — including an e-mail I posted from founder Sal Khan — sparked a lot of interest and reaction from readers.
The Khan Academy is essentially an on-line library of more than 3,300 videos on subjects including math, physics, and history that are designed to allow students to learn at their own pace and for teachers to use as instructional tools.
Read full article >>

NYC Educator: Bloomberg Clarifies Breast Milk Position

NYC Educator: Bloomberg Clarifies Breast Milk Position:

Bloomberg Clarifies Breast Milk Position

by NYC Educator

In another quick turnaround, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg has set out to clear up the confusion between public perception and what he claims to be his actual position. The Mayor has taken quite a bit of flack for his restrictions on baby formula. In fact, some New Yorkers are saying this action deprives mothers of a fundamental choice, and that he has no business whatsoever getting involved in such personal decisions.

"It's all a misunderstanding," said the Mayor today. "The press can't wait to put out some sexy story, so they twist my words."

When pressed to explain, the Mayor said, "What I really wanted was to make sure babies are not drinking 32 ounce sodas. It's not healthy for babies to drink that much Coca 

Missouri Education Watchdog: StudentsFirst, the Full Court Press (Arne Duncan would be Proud) and Olympic Videos in Missouri.

Missouri Education Watchdog: StudentsFirst, the Full Court Press (Arne Duncan would be Proud) and Olympic Videos in Missouri.:

StudentsFirst, the Full Court Press (Arne Duncan would be Proud) and Olympic Videos in Missouri.

by stlgretchen

StudentsFirst practicing Arne Duncan's love of basketball moves.

StudentsFirst's full court press has started in Missouri.  We've gotten 2 new lobbyists for the organization (one is from the national office), Lea Crusey lets us know which Missouri politicians support RTTT-like mandates  and we now have a video from the organization with an Olympic theme of American students falling behind in educational competition with other countries. We are somewhat behind the curve of some folks in getting this video.  It hit the national circuit last week and it has not been a critical success with many bloggers, educators and writers.  They take

teacher/poet/musician glen brown: Any Assault on Public Employees’ Rights and Benefits Is an Attack on the Entire Middle Class

teacher/poet/musician glen brown: Any Assault on Public Employees’ Rights and Benefits Is an Attack on the Entire Middle Class:

Any Assault on Public Employees’ Rights and Benefits Is an Attack on the Entire Middle Class

How should we think about the legislative folly of the past several months? When we realize competent and ethical leadership does not exist in the Illinois General Assembly; that the majority of Illinois legislators pass bills they do not read because “doing something” is all that really needs to be done regardless of the disastrous consequences, then our belief in a representative democracy and justice becomes infected by cynicism and anger.

Past state governments created the severe unfunded liability for the five public employees’ retirement systems in Illinois, and the legitimacy of the Illinois General Assembly is doubtful. The current state government is attempting to isolate and offer up one group of people for hardship and, for many of these 

A Math Teacher and Dad Comments on Khan Academy (Jerry Brodkey) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

A Math Teacher and Dad Comments on Khan Academy (Jerry Brodkey) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

A Math Teacher and Dad Comments on Khan Academy (Jerry Brodkey)

by larrycuban

Jerry Brodkey teaches at Menlo-Atherton High School in Menlo Park, California. He has been a public secondary school teacher since 1975, and has taught most of the subjects in Social Studies and Mathematics. He now teaches remedial algebra and Advanced Placement Calculus.  His undergraduate degree was from Rice University (BA 1974), and has graduate degrees from Stanford (MA 1976, Ph.D. 1987).
 He has written guest posts on “smart” boards and stress on high school students. Here he comments on the recent post criticizing the Khan Academy including a rebuttal from Khan.
I first heard of the Khan Academy two years ago when one of my Calculus students told me he reviewed 

Lori Wheal Is Not Only a Master Teacher, But Master of Her Domain.southbronxschool.com

http://www.southbronxschool.com:

Lori Wheal Is Not Only a Master Teacher, But Master of Her Domain

The great teacher debate is on yet again. The New Teacher Project, which was created by Michelle Rhee, has come out with another slanted study that we are losing "great" teachers as the same rate as "bad" teachers. That being said, so what?

Of course before one can whistle the Ride of the Valkyries the sycophants got their marching orders and were out in full force parroting all the ed deform talking points on how we are not keeping "great" teachers, yet keeping the "bad" ones. So blah, blah, blah.....

Of course the New York Post came out this morning with a guest columnist by a self anointed, self righteous "great" 

Broad Foundation Alert | Could State-Run ‘Achievement School District’ Be Last Resort for Failing Schools?

NJ Spotlight | Could State-Run ‘Achievement School District’ Be Last Resort for Failing Schools?:

Could State-Run ‘Achievement School District’ Be Last Resort for Failing Schools?

Grant application to Broad Foundation sheds light on Cerf’s idea for lowest-performing schools

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By John Mooney, August 2, 2012 in Education |Post a Comment

Credit: Governor's Office/Tim Larsen

Education Commissioner Chris Cerf is mulling an "Achievement School District" for failing schools.

The Christie administration is weighing the idea of creating a separate state-run “achievement school district” that would be comprised of New Jersey’s very lowest-performing schools, complete with vast new powers in controlling personnel and programs.

The proposal was part of a $7.6 million grant application to the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation made last February, a proposal that never moved to full fruition after the foundation approved a smaller amount, officials now say.

But it will nonetheless be at least part of a broader study of last-resort options for schools that is being conducted by an outside national organization, officials said

Schools Matter: Duncan Dishes $21.5 Million to College Board and Calls It Helping the Poor

Schools Matter: Duncan Dishes $21.5 Million to College Board and Calls It Helping the Poor:

Duncan Dishes $21.5 Million to College Board and Calls It Helping the Poor

by Jim Horn

Arne Duncan has a No Excuses approach to education, and to prove it once more, he has just signed off on a plan to give every American child living in a car, motel room, or urban hovel a chance to take another test to show how hopelessly behind she is.  As a side benefit for the testing-industrial complex, the College Board collects the entire sum:

 The U.S. Department of Education announced the award of more than $21.5 million in grants to 43 states to cover all or part of the fees charged to low-income students for taking Advanced Placement tests. . . .

"These funds will help eliminate financial roadblocks for more low-income students and 

NYC Public School Parents: Please help The Children's School expand!

NYC Public School Parents: Please help The Children's School expand!:

Please help The Children's School expand!

by Leonie Haimson

The following post is by Nicole Krieger, parent at The Children's School, a very special  inclusion school in Brooklyn that has been asking DOE for  years for more space to expand into the middle grades.  Too often the folks at Portfolio Office seem eager to find space for charters over the needs of even our most successful public schools.  Please lend your support to this  campaign.

Parents’ Committee for The Children’s School Expansion has begun a campaign to garner wide community and political support for the school’s most recent application to the NYC DOE Division of Portfolio Planning to expand The Children’s 

School Tech Connect: A Fundraiser in August

School Tech Connect: A Fundraiser in August:

A Fundraiser in August

This in from Matt Farmer:

Shortly after sunrise on July 10, three teenagers not only attacked, robbed and killed 62-year-old Delfino Mora in an alley near his West Rogers Park apartment, they filmed themselves doing it.

Mr. Mora happened to be in the alley collecting aluminum cans to make a few extra dollars for his family.

Not long after posting their violent video on Facebook, the three teens were arrested and charged with murder.

Mr. Mora left behind a wife and 12 children.

On Sunday, August 12, please join us at McKellin's Pub (Touhy & California) in West Rogers Park for a musical benefit for the Mora family.

Mr. Mora was a celebrated musician in his native Michoacan, Mexico, and, according to a recent Sun-Times article, his old band, Los Coralillos, once "played before 10,000 screaming fans at Toreros de Cuatro Caminos in Mexico City."

Our friends at McKellin's Pub can't fit 10,000 bodies in their tavern, but they're going to help us honor a fallen local musician by hosting a three-hour rock-n-roll benefit to help our neighbors in their time of need.

I’ve reassembled the Blue State Cowboys (with special guest Chris Winters on electric guitar) for this event, and we'll be joined throughout the evening by Chicago soul man extraordinaire Gerald McClendon.

There is no admission fee or cover charge for this event. We ask only that you stop by, say hello, have a drink, and offer up a few bucks for the Mora family to help them through this unimaginable time.

Please take a couple of minutes to read the remarkable story of Delfino Mora.

http://www.suntimes.com/photos/galleries/13926282-417/facebook-beating-victim-delfino-don-vale-moras-sad-journey.html

We are still soliciting prizes for the raffle that we’ll be holding at the benefit, so if you’re willing to donate, say, some late-season baseball tickets, pre-season football tickets, or a gift certificate, etc., please let me know.  Finally, if you can’t make the benefit but would still like to assist the family, you can write a check payable to “Mora Family,” send it to me at the address below, and I will deposit it into a special account that was set up for the family after this tragedy.

Thanks,

Matt Farmer  

I have the address--- if you want to send a check just get in touch and I'll pass it along. Meanwhile, come to McKellin's  on Sunday, August 12. I'll have a start time closer to the date. 

Key Florida US Representative Calls For Duncan to Investigate State’s Test-Obsessed Accountabilty System | Scathing Purple Musings

Key Florida US Representative Calls For Duncan to Investigate State’s Test-Obsessed Accountabilty System | Scathing Purple Musings:

Key Florida US Representative Calls For Duncan to Investigate State’s Test-Obsessed Accountabilty System

by Bob Sikes

From Lauren Roth of the Orlando Sentinel:

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, a Tampa Democrat, has asked U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan to step in and investigate Florida’s school accountability sytem, and particularly the state FCAT tests.
“We need some accountability for Florida’s accountability system,” Castor said. She said the high-stakes nature of the test — which is tied to promotion and graduation decisions, school grades and teacher pay — means it needs to be above reproach. She said she was building on an anti-