UPDATE: Schooling in the Ownership Society: What's so "special" about KIPP?

Schooling in the Ownership Society: What's so "special" about KIPP?:

Nowak out as Penn Fund chief. 'Differences in approach..."

by Mike Klonsky

Nowak

I have posted here several times about the role of the Wm. Penn Foundation and the Boston Consulting Group, two of the main architects of Philly's school privatization plan. Today we learn that Penn Fund power broker Jeremy Nowak is out as the foundations' chief exec. The Penn Foundation has already given $1.45 million directly — and helped obtain at least $1.2 million more — to pay the Boston Consulting Group to develop a so-called “Blueprint” for restructuring the troubled district.

According to The Notebook,

The William Penn Foundation, citing "differences in approach," has announced that it is searching 

What's so "special" about KIPP?

by Mike Klonsky

Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post - Trinity President Patricia McGuire, left, and communications student Yasmeen Newman, 20. Newman attended the KIPP D.C. Key middle school and then the private McLean School in Potomac.

Valerie Strauss at the Answer Sheet, describes the special status KIPP charters have with several elite colleges and universities who have recently signed "pledges" to track and recruit KIPP grads.

According to the story, 20 colleges and universities, including Georgetown, Brown and Duke universities, have signed pledges to work with KIPP to recruit some of the charter network’s students, 95 percent of whom are black and Latino. KIPP’s Web site says KIPP now has 125 

Sabrina Stevens Shupe: The Other Trouble With 'Elites'

Sabrina Stevens Shupe: The Other Trouble With 'Elites':

The Other Trouble With 'Elites'

Posted: 01/19/12 12:10 PM ET

@TeacherSabrina 

Wednesday morning, Denver progressive radio host David Sirota had DPS Superintendent (and Boulder, Colo. resident) Tom Boasberg on his show. The segment picked up on a point from Sirota's recent opinion piece, "America's dangerously removed elite": the significance of a high-profile school superintendent who, as neither an educator or a DPS parent, has virtually no stakeholder ties to the school district he runs.

Listening to Boasberg's comments, I was annoyed (though by now, not surprised) at his refusal to veer away from the standard DPS talking points, and I was grateful that I and other callers had the chance to address at least some of the problems he brushed over. But I spent the rest of the day irked by the fact that he didn't have to hear what was said, or question himself and his track record.

Though I'm skeptical by nature, I don't usually question the intentions of most people involved in this or other issues. For the most part, I find it's not a particularly useful exercise. I'm definitely 

UPDATE: UCI uses force to silence students right to protest.: Prop 30 Won’t Save Us | Occupy UCI!

November 8th: Prop 30 Won’t Save Us | Occupy UCI!:

Student Conduct Charges from Nov. 8th Rally + March

by Occupy UCI

In response to the previous letter the lawyer sent to the administration (see here: UAW Lawyer’s email to the UCI admin), the Office of Student Conduct has released their first charge against a student-worker that organized and participated in November 8th’s Rally and March against UC privatization.  Sure enough the charges are absurd, given that these are the same charges we accused the administration of taking against several student activists that same day.   (Notice how conveniently they changed the time to say ‘you started it first’… we’ll see about that).  This is how the UC chill’s student activist on campus.  First brute force and then “conduct sanctions.”

UCI uses force to silence students right to protest.

by Occupy UCI

On November 8th, about 200 students gathered at the flagpoles in dissatisfaction of the misplaced priorities of the University and the state in funding public education.  ”Prop 30 Won’t Save Us” because we have already suffered enough.  Our situation as it is is not acceptable.
After the march, students and workers peacefully attempted to march through the campus to notice the heavy amount of repressive forces placed at every.  Guards stood at every door of the administration building and public spaces such as the student center and the food court.
Check out the letter the UAW’s lawyer sent to the administration later on that week.

UAW Lawyer’s letter to UCI admin

November 8th: Prop 30 Won’t Save Us

by Occupy UCI

The Never-Ending Student Loan for Mothers « MomsRising Blog

The Never-Ending Student Loan for Mothers « MomsRising Blog:

The Never-Ending Student Loan for Mothers

by Valerie Young

As we find ourselves in the frenzy of holiday spending and gift giving, you may be surprised to know that the amount of student loan debt across the country actually exceeds the amount of credit card debt. It used to be that borrowing to buy a house or earn a college degree was called “good debt.” But is that still the case, if you can never pay off the loan? What if your ability to pay off the loan is affected by your gender? In other words, simply by being female, is your student loan debt burden likely to be greater than a man’s? The answer is yes, according to the latest data, and puts women, and especially mothers, at a serious disadvantage.
Imagine for a moment that Ms. Co-ed graduates, secures a job (lucky  her!)  and starts paying off her average debt of $20,000 in student loans. Eventually, she becomes a mother, assuming the joys and obligations of parenthood, all the while still making regular monthly debt payments. The debt goes down, but doesn’t go away, as her child grows up. Maybe she has a job loss, or a health issue, and misses a couple of payments. Then, 

Grades Limit My Learning (Guest Post by Student Justin Strudler) « Cooperative Catalyst

Grades Limit My Learning (Guest Post by Student Justin Strudler) « Cooperative Catalyst:

Grades Limit My Learning (Guest Post by Student Justin Strudler)

by dloitz

Is this learning?

We all stress ourselves out to memorize the formulas. We all have had that cram night before the final. We all BS homework at the last second so as not to “get a zero”. We all use Spark Notes. We all discuss answers post-test.

I started writing my ideas about learning on My Blog. Like many of the people likely reading this post, I am a student, and my interest in education unfortunately comes out of frustration. From the time I was young, school was about grades, “good grades” to be more specific. Why? Well to get into a good college of course.

I believe learning and school can, and should be a lot more than what school has made it out to be. I find learning in many things, for instance, I enjoy arguing with pundits on the news and exploring the city of New York (My favorite place on earth). Experiences like these make my mind what it is, and I am thankful for all the 

Schools Matter: School to Prison Pipeline in Mississippi

Schools Matter: School to Prison Pipeline in Mississippi:

School to Prison Pipeline in Mississippi

by Judy Rabin

From Alternet, originally published by Colorlines.com by  Julianne Hing 

The Shocking Details of a Mississippi School-to-Prison Pipeline

Wearing the wrong color socks, talking back and being late landed young Cedrico Green in jail. The Justice Department says there are many more students like him

November 27, 2012  |  

 

In Meridian, when schools want to discipline children, they do much more than just send them to the principal’s office. They call the police, who show up to arrest children who are as young as 10 years old. Arrests, the Department of Justice says, happen automatically, regardless of whether the police officer knows exactly what kind of offense the child has committed or whether that offense is even worthy of an arrest. The police department’s policy is to arrest all children referred to the agency.

Once those children are in the juvenile justice system, they are denied basic constitutional rights. They are handcuffed and incarcerated for days without any hearing and subsequently warehoused without understanding their alleged probation violations.

“[D]efendants engage in a pattern or practice of unlawful conduct through which they routinely and systematically arrest and incarcerate children, including for minor school rule infractions, without even the most basic procedural safeguards, and in violation of these children’s constitutional rights,” the DOJ’s 37-page complaint reads. Meridian’s years of systemic abuse punish youth “so arbitrarily and severely as to shock the conscience,” the complaint reads.

My Secretary of State - NYTimes.com

My Secretary of State - NYTimes.com:

My Secretary of State

By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

Published: November 27, 2012 Comment

Mr Friedman could be RIGHT!
If there ever was someone who could sell stuff!

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President Obama is assembling his new national security team, with Senator John Kerry possibly heading for the Pentagon and U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice the perceived front-runner to become secretary of state. Kerry is an excellent choice for defense. I don’t know Rice at all, so I have no opinion on her fitness for the job, but I think the contrived flap over her Libya comments certainly shouldn’t disqualify her. That said, my own nominee for secretary of state would be the current education secretary, Arne Duncan.

Josh Haner/The New York Times

Thomas L. Friedman

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Yes, yes, I know. Duncan is not seeking the job and is not the least bit likely to be appointed. But I’m nominating him because I think this is an important time to ask the question of not just who should be secretary of state, but what should the secretary of state be in the 21st century?

Let’s start with the obvious. A big part of the job is negotiating. Well, anyone who has negotiated with the Chicago Teachers Union, as Duncan did when he was 

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Special Ed PTSA General Meeting This Week

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Special Ed PTSA General Meeting This Week:

Special Ed PTSA General Meeting This Week

by Melissa Westbrook

Seattle Special Education PTSA
General Meeting

THIS WEEK! SPECIAL DATE!
"Meeting Special Education Student Needs in General Education Classrooms"
featuring Dr. Bridget Walker
Assistant Professor in Seattle University's Master in Teaching Program

Wednesday, Nov 28, 2012 
7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
John Stanford Center, Room 2700
2445 3rd Ave. S., Seattle 98134

We have a fantastic program for you and for your child's teachers. Please invite them, and
your friends! "Special Education Students are General Education Students First!" But when
the rubber hits the road, with crowded classrooms, funding shortages, limited
opportunities for teacher professional development, and parental questions about how to
start a conversation with teachers, are our children's learning needs fully being met
alongside their typically developing peers?

Dr. Walker, who works with school districts throughout the area on special education
issues, offers practical, timely, cost-effective information for parents and teachers in
differentiating instruction for the spectrum of student learning needs in general education
classrooms. Q&A will follow.

Also scheduled: Updates on state legislation issues of interest to the special education
community, as well as an SPS District update on its progress in reshaping the Special
Education department.

The meeting will also provide you with an opportunity to renew your PTSA membership.
Last year's membership expired at the end of October. Bring cash or a check. General
membership fees are $14 and educator memberships are $10. Membership keeps our
PTSA robust and enables our PTSA leaders to advocate for your interests.

Kimble's Corner: Congressman Kimble Gives Up on Food Stamp Challenge

Kimble's Corner: Congressman Kimble Gives Up on Food Stamp Challenge:

Congressman Kimble Gives Up on Food Stamp Challenge

by Representative Kimble

It is with great sorrow that I throw in the towel on the Food Stamp Challenge that I began only a few days ago with such trepidation.  I can tell you right now, it is an amazing feat to be able to feed oneself on a meager $31.50 a day.   What doomed me in the long run was a miscalculation on my part.  I went out to dinner with former Congressman Tom Ensign to discuss a new PAC he wishes to start advocating for candidates with a strong focus on Family Values.   Unfortunately, I mistakenly thought it was his turn to treat.   In reality, I got stuck with the bill for steaks and Maker's Mark Manhattans totaling $325 blowing my budget out of the water for the week.   The only way to have made it work, would have been to rely solely on my own kitchen for the rest of 

Video: U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan discusses Dallas ISD | Education Blog

Video: U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan discusses Dallas ISD | Education Blog:

Last Stand for Children First: Chicago Public Schools Want to Do the Right Thing

Last Stand for Children First: Chicago Public Schools Want to Do the Right Thing:

Chicago Public Schools Want to Do the Right Thing

by Last Stand for Children

When I was a child, I had the cutest dog in the world named Milton after University of Chicago economist Milton Friedman.  The dog was always happy to see me when I came home from my private tutoring and he always smiled and wagged his tail.  Unfortunately, he also drooled and as a result my cousin took an instant dislike to Milton.  My cousin used to kick the dog and pull his tail until the dog yelped and I cried. 

Finally, when I was 9 and my cousin was 11, I told him that he had better leave my dog alone or he'd be sorry.   He looked down at me and though he was much bigger than I was, he must have seen the determination in my face.  He told me, "Let me kick Milton really hard 10 times.  If you do that, I won't kick him again for 5 years."

Needless to say, I was overjoyed.  When my cousin was done, Milton was in agony for a few days, but afterwards, he didn't have to worry about my cousin teasing him or picking on him.   When I visited my cousin in prison last Summer, I reminded him of the story and we shared a laugh about how I stood up to him and 

Schools Matter: Private Prison Corporation Participates in Public School Drug Raid Plus other Stuff

Schools Matter: Private Prison Corporation Participates in Public School Drug Raid:

Private Prison Corporation Participates in Public School Drug Raid

by Jim Horn

Vista Grande High School in Case Grande has this the bottom of its lengthy list of violation and procedures on its Discipline Page:

The administration retains the right and privilege to issue consequences for acts of behavior not specifically stated herein and to alter any consequences, as they consider necessary. Furthermore, the administration reserves the right to amend any provisions in this handbook which they deem to be in the best interest of the educational process. We promise that students are the focus of all our efforts.

Students must have been the focus of their efforts last month when the principal approved the use of Corrections Corporation of America to participate in a drug raid at the school.  Could this part of an Adopt-A-School Program, whereby the school collects an institutional bounty for every bed they help fill for one of the 

Hey, ExxonMobil: Let's Solve This!

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 4 hours ago

ExxonMobil is spending millions in PR lying to us about how committed they are to solving the world's biggest problem: *bad teachers.* Meanwhile, their CEO continues as one of the world's richest global warming deniers, even as the grip of climate change begins to cut off our air supply. It provides me no consolation that Exxon Mobil executives will die along along with the rest of our grandchildren as a result of corporate duplicity, lies, and misleading propaganda. Moving forward after Hurricane Sandy has her 15 minutes of infamy, one thing is for sure: ExxonMobil's karma beco... more »

Why Schools Are Tools of Indoctrination

Storm at Schools Matter - 8 hours ago

Wisdom, be attentive. *** Excerpted from Jonathan Schwartz at A Tiny Revolution. *Oliver Stone's Untold, Unboring History of the United States* * * *American history! Whose heart doesn't race when you remember being initiated into its excitement and mystery in high school? There's the Logan Act of 1799! And the presidency of Benjamin Harrison! And the Open Door Policy. And, uh, and the Fordney–McCumber Tariff of 1922...and "A Return to Normalcy"... and the Federal Aid Highway Aczzzzzzzzzzzzzptsphttzzzz.* * * *Almost everyone in high school hates history, and they should. Just 7% of U... more »

Jim McIntyre Tries Pushing Knoxville Onto Dollar Guzzling Charter Reform School Bus

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 11 hours ago

If there is another thing that Knoxville does not need and can't afford (besides Lane Kiffin) is a string of corporate welfare charter reform schools that will benefit Wall Street hedge fund investors and philanthrocapitalists like Eli Broad, while draining millions from public schools. This was issued this morning: *KCS issues charter school request for proposals* The Knox County Schools is accepting charter school proposals for the 2014-2015 school year to cultivate strong school capacity to provide high quality academic instruction. Proposals will be entertained b... more »

Louisiana Constitution on Trial and Schools on the Chopping Block

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 1 day ago

Louisiana has the highest number of black student retentions in the nation to go along with the highest black incarceration rate in the U. S. The private prison industry is worth $182 million a year when beds are full, and "Louisiana's incarceration rate is nearly five times Iran's, 13 times China's and 20 times Germany's." To say that it is a police state is hardly an exaggeration, and the charter reform schools in poor black areas are run like junior penitentiaries. The State hired a new State Superintendent a couple of years back, a former English major from UVA with TFA cred... more »

Ohanian: I wonder why The New York Times gives so much space to the opinion of amateurs without even a nod to professionals in the field.

skrashen at Schools Matter - 1 day ago

Susan Ohanian responds to Sara Mosle’s What Should Children Read” (http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/22/what-should-children-read/) “I wonder why The New York Times gives so much space to the opinion of amateurs without even a nod to professionals in the field.” Dear Editor: Bringing about 20 years more teaching experience than Sara Mosle brought to her out-of-balance article (“What should children read?” Nov. 25), I can cite hundreds of instances of student writing being informed by the fiction they love, though, admittedly, I'm not talking about a fixation on sentence ... more »

A very short open letter to President Obama

skrashen at Schools Matter - 1 day ago

A very short open letter to President Obama There is enormous frustration and dissatisfaction among professional educators about current educational policy. Many, especially those in the classroom and closest to the children, feel that current policy, one of closing public schools, encouraging privatization, and imposing more testing than has ever been seen on this planet, is badly misguided and will lead to tragic consequences for our children, damage that will take decades to repair. Professional educators feel that government is not paying attention to their expert opinions, an... more »

Long-Term English Learners: Invest in Libraries and Librarians

skrashen at Schools Matter - 2 days ago

Sent to the Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA, Nov. 25, 2012 Most of the proposals to deal with long-term English learners (“California's English language learners getting stuck in schools' remedial programs,” November 25) focus on tracking and measurement. None discuss a cure. Our research shows that students who develop a pleasure reading habit in English do better on English language tests, and a number of case histories confirm that those who successfully acquire “academic English” were dedicated readers. California makes this very difficult to happen. Many English learners come from ... more »

Refocusing LAUSD on reading and learning instead of testing

Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene at Schools Matter - 3 days ago

First published on Robert D. Skeels for School Board on November 24, 2012. ------------------------------ *It's difficult to explain exactly what being poor is all about, or why access to books and ideas might be as important as a free breakfast. — Walter Dean Myers* [image: The Power of Reading by Stephen Krashen]*Hope Is an Open Book*, an op-ed piece by author Walter Dean Myers, was tweeted this morning by educator Susan Ohanian. While written in 2005, Myers' message about access to books is profound and even more urgent today with canned corporate education solutions that narr... more »

Division of Labor: Conquering the "Public"

P. L. Thomas at Schools Matter - 3 days ago

Anthony Cody, in his Living in Dialogue blog, has recently addressed the strategy common among "No Excuses" Reformers (NER) using a corporate playbook to render all that is public *private*: Cody identifies "division [as] the key weapon that reformers will be using in the years to come." Divide and conquer has never been more powerful and subtle than it is in the education reform debate, driven by Big Money (Bill Gate), faux-progressives (Michelle Rhee and Arne Duncan), and tepid political leadership (Barack Obama). To the strategies aimed at dividing workers against themselves, the... more »

Walmart "Associates" and Charter School "Scholars"

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 4 days ago

The Gates Team out in Washington are trying to scare up some media attention on a "study" bought by the charter reform school industry that purportedly shows that charters, long known to exclude special ed kids, are, indeed, enrolling larger numbers of them. Even if you were to believe the findings, we still have the more serious and widespread law-breaking that takes place when no special ed teachers are to found in the charter reform schools that have special ed kids with IEPs. I recently visited a charter reform school in Memphis that provided a clear example of special needs c... more »

Let's Be Thankful for Karen Lewis: Hear a Real Union Leader's Vision for Education

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 6 days ago

You won't get this kind of honesty and genuine care from the mealy-mouthed sellouts who run AFT and NEA. Karen Lewis speaking at the City Club of Chicago on November 20:

Houston, You've Got a Problem: It's Called EVAAS

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 6 days ago

Never really understood what value-added test scores mean, and how they affect teachers and kids? Ever wondered why the National Academy of Sciences sent a a 14-page letter to Arne Duncan warning him against high stakes use of value-added in RTTT. That's okay, you're not alone--many of us are puzzled. One thing is for sure, however--when teachers band together and get a couple of good lawyers to shine a penetrating light on this Oz-inspired scheme and the wreckage it is causing, that's when this house of cards will come tumbling down. Take a few minutes to have a look at this vide... more »

Rhee Announces Teachers Should Suffer During Holidays, Too

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 6 days ago

Exclusive: Michelle Rhee Takes Aim at Teachers During Holidays [image: Michelle Rhee] The former D.C. chancellor, leader of Michelle First, believes that if we’re going to use tenure to retain teachers, we must do it 'based on measures that matter' to Eli Broad and Bill Gates Read More >> When you get on the *Waiting for Superman* email list like I did, you get an uninterrupted supply of propaganda, with headlines, stories, and pics like the one above (slightly altered) of Eli Broad's poisonous puppet, Michelle Rhee, in one her most Hitlerian poses, complete with backlighting spots.... more »