UPDATE: The in box. + Retired representation. Heading for the NEA RA in Atlanta + In the belly of the beast. | Fred Klonsky

In the belly of the beast. | Fred Klonsky:

The in box. Pension nuclear bomb may come to House floor on Wednesday.

by Fred Klonsky

From We Are One:

The Illinois legislature will return to Springfield on Tuesday, April 30, and will remain in session throughout the month of May.
House Speaker Michael Madigan has indicated that three bills – HB 1165, HB 1166, and HB 1154 — could be packaged together in a new “mega-bill” and voted on by the full House. (The new “mega-bill” has not yet been introduced and could include more than just these three bills.) We are hearing that the Speaker’s “mega-bill” could be unveiled — and even voted out of the House — on Wednesday, May 1. Your phone calls are needed immediately – click here to call your House legislator.
For now, the three bills that may be contained in the “mega-bill” are summarized below. These pension cuts would affect all active and retired public workers, except judges:

• HB 1165 is opposed by the coalition. It caps cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) at extremely low levels and delays COLAs for five years or until age 67, whichever comes first. The caps alone have the effect of reducing the value of a pension by one-third after twenty years in retirement. HB 1165 was approved by the full House in March and now awaits 

Retired representation. Heading for the NEA RA in Atlanta.

by Fred Klonsky

Popout.
NYC Educator writes a scathing critique of how the ruling Unity Caucus of the New York teachers union stays in power by relying on retired teacher voters. Based on a formula of weighted votes, the Unity Caucus and their electoral partners in the New Action caucus was able to, in part, hold off a challenge by the Movement of Rank-and-File Educators (MORE).
Here in Illinois the situation is quite different. The Illinois Education Association, the state organization to which locals are affiliated, treats retirees like the crazy old grandpa who lives in the attic. We get invited to come down for dinner, but otherwise keep it muzzled, will ya?
Comparing the situation in New York to Illinois is apples and oranges. The UFT bargains contracts. The IEA 

In the belly of the beast.

by Fred Klonsky

I have already reported that we had our first meeting of the Skokie Chapter of IEA Retired.
Although we know that there are over 400 dues-paying members of IEA – R living in the area covered by the Skokie office of IEA, there has been no chapter.
It is hard to pin down the reasons for this, but no matter. We have one now.
At our first meeting we made plans for Lobby Day on May 15th. There was some discussion about whether we should all go on one bus (we think we could fill one), or go with our old locals and meet up once we get to Springfield.
Which is what we voted to do.
I’m supposed to paint a Skokie IEA Retired banner.
I can do that.
There is a general sense that our chapter has a special responsibility.
A special burden that we carry.
Our area is located right in the belly of the beast.
Our State Senator is

Day of the Teacher 2013 - California Teachers Association

Day of the Teacher 2013 - California Teachers Association:

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To download a wallpaper of the California Day of the Teacher poster, select your screen resolution width:1024, 1280, 1600, 1920, 2048.

California Teachers: Honoring our past. Guiding the future.

On May 8, 2013 we will mark the 31th anniversary of California’s Day of the Teacher. To honor teachers and the 150th anniversary of CTA, we have chosen “California Teachers: Honoring the Past, Guiding the Future” as this year’s theme.

CTA has been making a positive impact on education for 150 years now. Our victories during that time include the establishment of free public schools for all children, the creation of our higher education system, the passage of significant funding initiatives and bonds to build and renovate schools, due process rights for teachers, class size reduction, and increasing respect for our profession.  In fact, California’s Day of the Teacher arose out of legislation co-sponsored by CTA and the Association of Mexican American Educators in 1982.

We continue to be engaged in and lead the efforts to improve education for all students in this state, now and for the future.

TEACHERS ARE REVERED: A SAMPLE THANK-YOU LETTER

Thank You, Teacher!

Day of the Teacher is a special day for all of us. It’s a day to celebrate our profession the work we do with our students and in our schools. To remind us of the role we play in the lives of others, CTA created a “Thank You Teacher!” project last year - for Day of the Teacher's 30th Anniversary  - in which we asked our members to send in the letters and notes they received from grateful students and parents.  They’re sure to bring a smile on this year’s Day of the Teacher, and beyond.  Here's one example:

Mathieu H. Austin, a member of the Acton-Agua Dulce Teachers Association and a business teacher at Vasquez High School in Lancaster was pleased to find out the impression he made on one former student. Austin writes, “This is the most humbling letter I’ve ever received.”

Dear Mr. Austin,
On Monday I started college. I chose business as my major, not because I expect to be a rich entrepreneur or because I want to rule the stock market. I chose business because the theories and relevance of the field of flowing money and transactions interest me. The relationship between the details of the legal aspects and the general picture of a successful venture is something that I want to learn more about and ultimately apply in my life. I might not always succeed in everything I pursue, but I will be knowledgeable enough to pursue dreams without getting caught in loopholes and (hopefully) debt. You were my favorite teacher, and not just because of my grade. You made sure things weren’t vague, you took an active role in teaching, you graded fairly based on content and not semantics, and you gave me hope for a higher education. I wanted to take the time to thank you for all you’ve taught me, and the way you taught it. I hope many more students of all kinds get as much out of your class as I did. And, I appreciated your sense of humor.    Read more letters from our 30th Anniversary project. 

 For Day of the Teacher this year, post your note about a favorite teacher to our Facebook page.

Daily Kos: Monica Ratliff for Los Angeles School Board

Daily Kos: Monica Ratliff for Los Angeles School Board:

Monica Ratliff for Los Angeles School Board

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

The following is the contents of this blog post by Diane Ravitch, cross-posted here with her permission and encouragement.  If you want to stop the corporate takeover of public education, this is a place you can help make a stand
There is a big race in Los Angeles on May 21. It is a run-off that will determine who controls the board.
There are two candidates.
One–Monica Ratliff–is a working classroom teacher, the other worked on the staff of corporate-friendly Mayor Villaraigosa and has no education experience.
The teachers’ union supported both candidates, hedging their bets.
The mayor’s candidate has the support of the super-elite, the billionaires and their surrogates who don’t like public education, disparage teachers, and defend the status quo. That candidate will have a campaign chest of at least $1 million. Mayor Bloomberg of New York City gave $350,000. Rhee gave $100,000. Eli Broad gave $250,000. More is on the way.
Monica Ratliff is Monica Ratliff. She is a teacher. She can’t campaign during the day because she teaches.
She was raised in Arizona by a single mother from Mexico. Her dad was born in Ohio; he died when Monica was 13, the oldest of 3 kids. She got a National Hispanic Scholarship to attend Columbia University. After she graduated, she went to Columbia Law School.
After Monica finished law school, she worked for the NAACP as a public interest lawyer, helping poor people with their legal problems.
After working as a public interest lawyer, Monica decided to become a teacher. She earned a masters degree in education at UCLA and got a teaching job at San Pedro Elementary school, a high-poverty school. She has been teaching there for 11 years. She has taught 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. Her peers chose her as their union rep for UTLA. She recently was elected to the House of Reps of UTLA.
She ran for school board this spring. She spent $14,000 and got 34% of the vote. Her opponent accumulated $1.4 million and got 44% of the vote.
The third place finisher Maria Cano has endorsed Monica, as has the retired board member of the district, Julie Korenstein. So has current board member Bennett Kayser.
She has been endorsed by Republican Supervisor Mike Antonovich on the right and Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg on the left.
Monica is still in the classroom. She doesn’t campaign between 7:30 am and 2:45 pm because she is teaching fifth grade.
The LA Times has endorsed her, because of her experience as a teacher, as has the LA Daily News.
Monica will be overwhelmingly outspent. She can win if friends of public education turn out to vote.
She needs our help.
If everyone who loves teachers sends Monica a gift of any size, she would be the best-funded candidate in the race. Send whatever you can afford.
Please help Monica Ratliff if you can.

Shanker Blog » How Important Is Undergraduate Teaching In Public R1 Universities? How Important Should It Be?

Shanker Blog » How Important Is Undergraduate Teaching In Public R1 Universities? How Important Should It Be?:

How Important Is Undergraduate Teaching In Public R1 Universities? How Important Should It Be?

by Ian Robinson

Our guest author today is Ian Robinson, Lecturer in the Department of Sociology and in the Residential College’s interdisciplinary Social Theory and Practice program at the University of Michigan.
I ended my previous post by arguing that (1) if teaching is at least as valuable as research, and (2) nontenure-track (NTT) faculty teach at least as well as tenure-track (TT) faculty, then the very large pay disparities between the two classes of faculty that characterize American universities today violate a basic principle of workplace fairness: equal pay for equal work. When conditions (1) and (2) are met, then, all an institution can do to defend current practice is plead poverty: we can’t afford to do what we ourselves must acknowledge to be “the right thing.”
But what about places like the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, where I work? Is condition (1) met in what are sometimes called “R1” universities like mine? If not, maybe big pay disparities are warranted by the fact that, in 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-29-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

NYC Mayoral Education Debate, May 2 in Brooklyn

by dianerav

Want to know where the Democratic primary candidates stand on education? Ask!

View this email in your browser

A forum on the future of public educationin NYCwith Democratic primary mayoralcandidatesModerated byDiane Ravitch Thursday May 2nd 5:30-7:00 pm PS 29 (425 Henry Street, Brooklyn) What do 800,000+ New Yorkers have in common? We are NYC public school parents. And Parents Ask Questions. Ask Your Question* *Submit your question to questions@parentvoicesny.org. This event is being organized by ParentVoicesNY Because we are the parents voting for our kids’ future. Here’s a flyer you can send home in backpackmail, forward to friends via email, or post at your school.If facebook is your thing, please invite fb friends tothis event page. You can post your questions there too!

Jason Stanford: What We Can Learn from the Rise and Fall of Rhee

by dianerav

Jason Stanford, a first-rate journalist in a texas, looks for the lessons in the meteoric rise and astonishing descent of Michelle Rhee.
The major lesson, he says, is not so much about her as about the deep flaws in the test-and-punish philosophy she embodied. Putting the squeeze on subordinates to raise test scores leads to all sorts of negative 

Providence Student Union Will Counter Gist Speech

by dianerav

The Providence Student Union will give its first “State of the Student” address on April 30, shortly before Rhode Island State Commissioner Deborah Gist gives her annual State of Education Address to a joint session of the Legislature. The students will present their “positive vision” on what education should be, as opposed to the state’s present sterile and mindless emphasis on high-stakes testing.
The Providence Student Union has emerged in recent weeks as a national exemplar of brilliant, media-worthy civil dissent. Their political theater is amazingly effective.
First, they did a zombie protest in front of the headquarters of the Rhode Island Department of Education; 

Seattle Teachers Expand Testing Boycott

by dianerav

Seattlegeachers will hold a press conference today to announce their plans to extend and expand their test boycott.
MEDIA ADVISORY
Seattle Teachers Respond to Spring MAP Test:
Boycott Grows Bigger
New Message: Don’t Renew MAP Contract
Press Conference Called for Monday, April 29th, at 4:30 pm at the Garfield Community Center

Monica Ratliff for Los Angeles School Board

by dianerav

There is a big race in Los Angeles on May 21. It is a run-off that will determine who controls the board.
There are two candidates.
One–Monica Ratliff–is a working classroom teacher, the other worked on the staff of corporate-friendly Mayor Villaraigosa and has no education experience.
The teachers’ union supported both candidates, hedging their bets.
The mayor’s candidate has the support of the super-elite, the billionaires and their surrogates who don’t like public education, disparage teachers, and defend the status quo. That candidate will have a campaign chest of 

Diane in the Evening 4-28-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Dayne Sherman: Jindal’s War Against the People of Louisiana by dianerav Dayne Sherman is going to a rally at the state capitol in Baton Rouge on April 30. The people of Louisiana are waking up to Jindal’s war against the common weal. Now, says Sherman, even the Legislature is turning against Jindal. Four big issues stir public antipathy: *First, we have to repeal the tax give-aways passed under Jindal. Rep. Jerome “Dee” Richard (I-Thibodaux) has a bill to do this very thing. We now give away an extra 2 billion... more »

UPDATE: Dannel’s Spring Break 2013 – The White House Correspondent’s Dinner April, 27 2013 - Wait, What?

Dannel’s Spring Break 2013 – The White House Correspondent’s Dinner April, 27 2013 - Wait, What?:

Meanwhile, did you get paid $900 for working Sunday?

by jonpelto

No?

Well you need a contract like Paul Vallas, Bridgeport’s “superintendent of schools.”

According to the legal version of his contract, “…Mr. Vallas shall be paid a salary of $4,500 per week…It is understood and agreed that Mr. Vallas may engage in other employment and/or volunteer activities during the term (e.g. volunteer efforts in Haiti), the specific days of which will be taken in coordination with the Board Chairman and that he shall not receive compensation from the Board (at a debit of $900 per day) for days on which he engages in such activities.”

Simple enough…

According to his contract, when Mr. Vallas is off doing consulting for his company, The Vallas Group, or away from the district for any other reason, his $234,000 is reduced by $900 a day.

And not surprisingly, Vallas is away a fair amount of time.

According to the last schedule posted by Vallas’ staff on the Bridgeport Schools website, a schedule that covers the period from August 22, 2012 through January 25, 2013, Vallas was away from the school district at least one day for six of the weeks covered by the 

Dannel’s Spring Break 2013 – The White House Correspondent’s Dinner April, 27 2013

by jonpelto

“Malloy’s office issued no press release” is what the Hartford Courant reported, but our governor flew off to Washington D.C on Friday to join Conan O’Brien, Barbara Streisand, Kevin Spacey and a host of movie stars and media personalities at Saturday night’s White House Correspondent’s Dinner.

Or as Justin Bieber puts it in his “hit song” “Party like it is 3012″;

“Show you off, tonight I wanna show you off
What you got, a billion could’ve never bought

We gonna party like it’s 3012 tonight
I want to show you all the finer things in life
So just forget about the world, we young tonight
I’m coming for ya, I’m coming for ya”

Making the evening all the more magical was the fact that for first time, the television network, E! Entertainment, announced that it would “live stream the red carpet.  In fact, you can see a slide show of some of the best dressed here: http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/red-carpet-white-house-correspondents-dinner.html#slideshow=/slideshows/2013/04/26/white_house_correspondentsredcarpet2013.slideshow.json.slideshow.json%7CcurrentSlide=00045

According to today’s Hartford Courant, Governor Malloy was a guest of People Magazin

UPDATE: Fewer, Clearer, Higher – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

Fewer, Clearer, Higher – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER:

Info on #CPS testing schedule sent to me. In a word: INSANE

by Chalk Face, PhD

What you have here from the powers that be is a rather rudimentary and quantitative understanding of assessment as it relates to pedagogy. A listener of At the Chalk Face live tweeted during the show information about Chicago’s insane PreK-2 assessment schedule. Here’s the graphic, click for a larger version. What at first becomes obvious [...]

A potential for an education research boycott? #AERA13 #highered

by Chalk Face, PhD

I actually don’t know if “civilians” understand how academic publication works, at least for the humdrum, commoner, the everyday “scholar” who doesn’t have major book deals. Let me explain. So, in order to receive tenure and promotion as a faculty member, which I think might be over-rated at this point, a faculty member needs to [...]

AERA President Tierney Speech on Poverty Followed by Champagne Reception

by Jim Horn

AERA Presidential Address: William G. Tierney (#AERAPres)

Beyond the Ivory Tower: The Role of the Intellectual in Eliminating Poverty
Time: Mon, Apr 29, 4:35 – 5:50 pm
Location: Hilton Union Square, Ballroom Level – Continental 4-6

In his presidential address, William Tierney will examine the twin themes of how educational organizations might improve access and equity, and what the role of the intellectual is in the elimination of poverty. . . .

Can’t attend the session? Register to watch the livestream.

Fewer, Clearer, Higher

APRIL 29, 2013 BY KRIS NIELSEN LEAVE A COMMENT

I’m staying up way too late–again–preparing for a lecture series that I will be doing in some communities in eastern New York and Delaware, and I finally gathered all of the ELA standards for Kindergarten.  I’m going to paste them here (at the risk of being busted with the fair use policy).  As you peruse them, remember the motto that has been thrown around for CCSS: “fewer, clearer, higher.”  Focus on the first two words.

Oh, by the way, these are for Kindergarten.

READING: LITERATURE

Key Ideas and Details

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.1 With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.2 With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.3 With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.

Craft and Structure

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.4 Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

Serious Problems Remain for Stargel, Trujillo and Rhee on Parent Trigger Petition | Scathing Purple Musings

Serious Problems Remain for Stargel, Trujillo and Rhee on Parent Trigger Petition | Scathing Purple Musings:

Serious Problems Remain for Stargel, Trujillo and Rhee on Parent Trigger Petition

by Bob Sikes

As Kelli Stargel take to the Senate floor today to defend her Parent Trigger bill, she will be wondering  whether or not it was  a good idea to get involved with Michelle Rhee.
There were likely to be enough votes and political muscle behind it without having to resort to submitting a fraudulent petition into the debate. But Stargel and House sponsor Carlos Trujillo were getting beat up badly in committee debate and had to counter the overwhelming numbers on unpaid state opponents who appeared at hearings to testify. Top dollar lobbyists weren’t going to be enough..
The House went first, and Trujillo began mentioning that he had 800 signatures of support in his pocket and then 

Missouri Education Watchdog: Get Ready For DESE BINGO May 2nd

Missouri Education Watchdog: Get Ready For DESE BINGO May 2nd:

Get Ready For DESE BINGO May 2nd

by Anngie

Something a little light hearted for those of you who have been following Common Core for a while and are getting tired of the buzz words.

Here is a BINGO card you can use at the May 2nd meetings hosted by DESE to talk about Common Core. Check off every buzz word or phrase you hear. If you complete a row you are a winner, although there are no real winners with Common Core.

Click here for a downloadable pdf of the card.

Check back on Friday and let us know which row(s) you completed at which meeting location.

Daily Kos: "the economy is not like an individual family."

Daily Kos: "the economy is not like an individual family.":

"the economy is not like an individual family."

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

As Paul Krugman put it in The Story of Our Time, his Monday New York Times column, "may be the most crucial thing to understand" in what he offers in his "refresher" necessary to understand our current economic problems.
It is clearly written, very much to the point.  It is yet another example of why I wonder when Krugman will get the Pulitzer for commentary he deserves every bit as much as his Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics.
He explains that crucial point thusly:  And of course that is what we have experienced.  It doesn't matter, as he points out, whether we did so voluntarily or were forced to by our creditors, whether it was unwillingness or inability to spend, the result is the same"

The result was a plunge in incomes that also caused a plunge in employment, creating the depression that persists to this day.

Wait a minute?  Are we going to have to revoke his economist license?  Did he just use the dreaded D word?  Yes, he said "depression."  Forget whether or not the US economy meets the technical definition, it is clear looking at countries like Greece and Spain that attempting to address the economic woes by austerity can easily overcome any technical definitions.But there is, as is always the case with Krugman, so much more.

Jersey Jazzman: EXCLUSIVE: Newark Memo Shows Another Cerf Crony Enriched

Jersey Jazzman: EXCLUSIVE: Newark Memo Shows Another Cerf Crony Enriched:

EXCLUSIVE: Newark Memo Shows Another Cerf Crony Enriched

by Duke

Last week, I blogged about how the state-appointed administration of the Newark Public Schools (NPS) had lost credibility with students, teachers, and even its own "advisory board." Superintendent Cami Anderson, hand picked by Governor Chris Christie and Education Commissioner Cerf, has been taking a lot of knocks over budgeting and a lack of transparency.

After this post, I'm afraid things are bound to get worse: I've just come into possession of an internal memo from Anderson that outlines a deal that pays Cerf's former employee, Patrick Flynn, to run the district's "peer validation" system.

The memo, co-written with Vanessa Rodriguez, NPS's Chief Talent Officer, is addressed to Anderson's five Assistant Superintendents, and cc'd to Joseph Del Grosso, head of the Newark Teachers Union (NTU). I've posted images of the memo below.

The memo outlines the new "peer validation process" for NPS. This process is critical for teachers, as it is a 

California earns mediocre marks on national study of early childhood education | EdSource Today

California earns mediocre marks on national study of early childhood education | EdSource Today:

California earns mediocre marks on national study of early childhood education - by Lillian Mongeau

by Lillian Mongeau

Vannesa Carreto, 4, plays at the water table at the Creative
 Montessori Learning Center in East Palo Alto in March
. Credit: Lillian Mongeau, EdSource Today

California earned a lackluster rating on state spending, preschool access and program quality for early childhood education for the 2011-12 school year, according to the annual State of Preschool Report released Monday by the National Institute for Early Education Research.

Since early childhood education is not part of the K-12 system in most states, funding for and provision of the service varies widely. The annual report by the Rutgers University-based research organization is the only national study that gathers funding and policy data on early childhood education from each state and puts it into a comprehensive report that measures spending on a per-pupil basis.

“This is the thing we look to,” said Ernesto Saldaña of Early Edge California, an advocacy organization for early childhood education. “We get to compare with other states and see where we have to go.”

Among the 40 states that provide some form of state-funded preschool, California scored middling marks for both the public preschool access it provides and the amount it spends per enrolled child. Eighteen percent of 4-year-olds attend state-funded preschool programs in the state, and 9 percent of 3-year-olds do. By comparison, Florida sends 79.4 percent of its 4-year-olds to public preschool, the most of any state, but none of its 3-year-olds.

California spends an average of $4,136 per enrolled student. New Jersey, which pays preschool 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES:

What's the no-so-hidden curriculum at Walter Payton College Prep?

by Mike Klonsky

I know that Payton kids score high on standardized tests. The question is, what are they learning? What's the hidden curriculum?

Payton was in the news twice last week. Once for being the school of choice for the rich and powerful within CPS's two-tier system of supposedly public education. The other for its refusal to allow their baseball team to play a game at predominantly-black Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep in Roseland. Don't you love all this College 

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

by Mike Klonsky

Patronage lives: Ald. O'Connor's sister i hired to run school closing transitions.

Ald. Patrick O'Connor 

“If I had a role in this, she wouldn’t be engaged in the work she’s engaged in."  -- Sun-Times. "Key Chicago Public Schools job for alderman’s sister"

 Matthew Johnson, heads Dewey's Local School Council

"For two days in a row, my son didn't come home with any books because they had to do their inventory, so they basically disrupted the culture of our school and our kids' education." -- DNAInfo

Rene Heyback, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless

"I think 20,000 people have gone through a rigorous series of hearings over 21/2 months and