6-15-13 @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER:

#edweek finds Nirvana.

by Timothy D. Slekar

A new piece of propaganda published by EdWeek and written by Crowe, Allen, and Coble begins with this assertion: Better-prepared teachers and greatly improved teacher-preparation programs are the essential ingredients of stronger academic outcomes for this nation’s K-12 students. It is then followed up with this evidence to support it. ?????????????????? That’s right. Nothing!  It […]

News Reel No. 2, Senate HELP and #ESEA

by Chalk Face, PhD

Part two of our series.

Creating Artificial Student Failure in New York @nysed @nysut

by Kris Nielsen

New York Teacher (I will post the name when I get permission) posted some pretty shocking information on the UOO Facebook site recently, along with her comments and a letter to Steven Katz, the Director of New York State Assessments.  This is blatant.  This is wrong.  If there was any doubt that New York has […]

Accountability for the bottom, immunity at the top, incompetence all around

by Chalk Face, PhD

Bill Maher’s recent New Rule is somewhat applicable to our current moment in education reform. Watch it now, or later, and come back here. One of the chief problems in education right now involves the actual workforce: uninspired, supervised, scrutinized, unappreciated, and underpaid. But the individuals populating the bloated bureaucracies of public school systems are […]

@EdWeekComm once again provides valuable line space to the ignorant hordes #teacherprep #highered

by Chalk Face, PhD

Education Week is once again serving the interests, via its commentary section, of non-educators. This time, from some fly-by-night LLC called Teacher Preparation Analytics in DC. Judging by the amateurish nature of the website, I can’t say I’d really want their advice or their analytics, whatever those are. But the three founders and partners in this organization […]

Save LAUSD’s SRLDP Preschools for English Language Learners

by rdsathene * Robert D. Skeels

First published on solidaridad on June 15, 2013 Because we know that language learning doesn’t occur in one year or even in a few months, it’s over time.—Becky Palacios, Ph.D. The School Readiness Language Development Program (SRLDP) is an amazingly effective Pre-K program for English Language Leaners. This isn’t the first time that Broad and […]

Report Back from the Trigger Happy Parent Revolution’s “Meet and Greet” with teachers and social justice organizers

by rdsathene * Robert D. Skeels

What troubles me is what you are doing with the millions you raise. You use it to sow dissension, to set parents against parents, parents against teachers, parents against principals. I don’t see this as productive or helpful. Schools function best when there is collaboration among teachers, parents, administrators, and students. Schools have a better […]

Merrow Is a Jolly Fellow (Not)

by plthomasedd

I hate even to acknowledge John Merrow’s most recent venture into not having a clue, but his attempt at humor is yet more evidence that the evidence doesn’t matter: The Common Core and the End of the World In Merrow’s evidence-free world, all who question the Mighty Common Core are nothing more than end-of-the-world loonies. […]

Do Not Shake Hands with #commoncore

by peggyrobertson

Some days it is terribly overwhelming to read the comments of despair and desperation from parents who are trying to figure out how to help their children who are suffering from severe anxiety after being told they will be retained due to failing the state test. Many of these children must take the test multiple […]

6-14-13 @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago

@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: [image: gears] #highered needs some consistency in its #MOOC concerns. Please. #AAUP by Chalk Face, PhD We don’t really cover MOOCs here all that much. Perhaps we need to get on it. But I was cued into a post on the Chronicle over the AAUP’s concern with intellectual property rights and MOOCs. I like the AAUP. It’s a relatively strong organization that seems to be the last really supporting academic freedom, […] @educationgadlfy reviews state science standards, but something’s missing #NGSS by Chalk Face, PhD For the record, a “gadfly” is... more »

NYC Educator: Financial Genius Mike Bloomberg Grades the English Regents Exam

NYC Educator: Financial Genius Mike Bloomberg Grades the English Regents Exam:

Financial Genius Mike Bloomberg Grades the English Regents Exam

by NYC Educator

In the old days, English and ESL teachers used to grade the English Regents exam. There would be days set aside for grading, and the teachers would sit and grade. This, however, was a terrible system, because all teachers are assumed to be dishonest, and are also assumed to pass all their own students for no reason whatsoever.

In January, a new system was begun. English teachers traveled to grading centers throughout the city, and graded tests of kids that didn't go to their schools. This was an improvement, because it was terrible that teachers who'd spent the entire year with kids, who knew the kids, who read their writing each and every day, were set to evaluate their writing. Better they be assessed by total strangers, decreed Reformy John King, and so it was. Unless, of course, the kids went to Montessori schools, like Reformy John's kids.

This month, a new and improved system was rolled out. Rather than have English teachers grade tests during school time, Mayor Bloomberg's brilliant DOE determined it would be better to pay them to do it after school. After all, Mayor Mike had saved billions by denying teachers the raise all other city employees got between 

Louisiana Educator: Career Diploma Promoted

Louisiana Educator: Career Diploma Promoted:

Career Diploma Promoted

by Michael Deshotels

Superintendent White has just launched a major effort to breathe life into the Career Diploma. Why is this necessary when Louisiana is in the middle of implementing the common core curriculum? Why another major initiative? Let's look at the recent history of the high school diploma in Louisiana.

Louisiana education leaders have been on a mission to upgrade our high school curriculum for at least ten years now. The revelation by the Board of Regents several years ago that only 23% of our students were achieving a 4 year college degree, was shocking and considered to be an indictment of Louisiana's high school curriculum. Statistics were produced that showed that workers who had achieved at least a Bachelor's degree would have much greater lifetime earnings than students who entered the job force with only a high school diploma. Everyone agreed that something must be done immediately to better prepare our students for college. State education leaders concluded that the high school curriculum must be upgraded to align with college prep requirements. The Core 4 diploma was created which included all the high school courses recommended by the Board of Regents as necessary for students to succeed in college. Guidance counselors and high school principals were encouraged to get as many students enrolled in core 4 as possible. The idea was that students must be forced to do what we as adults knew "was good for them." You know, kind of like years ago when 

Pritzker – Public School Closings – Charter School Profits – Jail Program Investments – Goldman Sachs – Preschool Program Loans – Secretary of Commerce – Election Financing – ????? | Reclaim Reform

Pritzker – Public School Closings – Charter School Profits – Jail Program Investments – Goldman Sachs – Preschool Program Loans – Secretary of Commerce – Election Financing – ????? | Reclaim Reform:

Pritzker – Public School Closings – Charter School Profits – Jail Program Investments – Goldman Sachs – Preschool Program Loans – Secretary of Commerce – Election Financing – ?????

by kenpreviti

Penny Pritzker, Secretary of Commerce nominee and the billionaire Hyatt heiress who helped finance President Obama’s election, is the same person who, while an appointed Chicago School Board member, approved the closing of 50 Chicago public schools while approving the use of the same education funds to be paid to charter schools – including the Pritzker Academy.

Today: “Goldman is being joined in this effort (a childhood preschool early education program) by the Chicago investor J.B. Pritzker, (Penny’s brother) who is providing a subordinate loan of up to $2.4 million, bringing the total financing to $7 million. The loans will be announced at an event in Chicago on Thursday.” Read more HEREfrom the New York Times.
Also: “Goldman Sachs is making its second foray into an experimental method of financing social services, lending up to $4.6 million for a childhood education program in Salt Lake City.”
Also: “Though the effectiveness of this type of financing remains unproved, it has gained a prominent adherent in 

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-15-13

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:

4LAKIDS - SOME OF THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT

STATE BOARD OF ED HANDED JOB OF DEFINING RULES OF NEW FUNDING SYSTEM + smf’s 2¢

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 20 hours ago

By John Fensterwald | EdSource Today http://bit.ly/10ipL1R June 14th, 2013 | The Legislature will vote today on a bill establishing Gov. Brown’s historic school funding system that punts to the State Board of Education some key decisions on how dollars for disadvantaged students must be spent and accounted for. The language for implementing the Local Control Funding Formula is SB 91>>

GROUP URGES TEACHERS’ RAISES BASED ON STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 day ago

The local chapter of Educators 4 Excellence - part of the warp+weave of ®eform, Inc.– and a component in the new CLASS Coalition, offers a couple of plans …on the very day Superintendent Deasy must reveal the details of his budget proposal prior to next Tuesday’s board meeting. By Howard Blume, LA Times | http://lat.ms/16ju9N8 June 13, 2013, 8:00 a.m. ::  A local advocacy group is pushing

ANOTHER PRINCIPAL AT CORTINES HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS - The school formerly known as High School #9 - RESIGNS

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 day ago

The parents at LAUSD’s flagship school for the visual and performing arts are growing restless as another one bites the dust. from a posting masquerading as communication with all stakeholders on the Cortines VAPA website

INGLEWOOD UNIFIED'S FINANCES WORSEN DESPITE A STATE TAKEOVER AND AN INFUSION OF CASH: There is even talk of dissolution

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 day ago

By Stephen Ceasar, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/11K1Zdi Kindergarten students listen to their teacher as she reads them a story at the Bennett¿Kew Elementary School in Inglewood in December, 2011. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times / June 10, 2013) June 9, 2013, 5:31 p.m.  ::  Many in Inglewood thought the city's struggling school district had been handed a lifeline last year when the

DIANE RAVITCH’S REPLY TO BEN AUSTIN’S OPEN LETTER TO HER

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago

by Diane Ravitch, from her blog | http://bit.ly/1bxB8mi 7 June 2013 Diane Ravitch wrote: Earlier today, Ben Austin wrote an open letter to me on Huffington Post. He expressed dismay about my characterization of him and his group Parent Revolution. Read his letter here. << Diane Ravitch Ben Austin>> Here is my

BROWN’S BUDGET COMPROMISE SLOWS PACE OF SCHOOL DEFERRAL REPAYMENT

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago

By Tom Chorneau, SI&A Cabinet Report | http://bit.ly/14wNCdt Wednesday, June 12, 2013  ::  Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders joined Tuesday to applaud agreement on next year’s budget at a Capitol news conference – a plan that would seem to include the lion’s share of what the governor wanted. A close review, however, suggests the governor had to give up a cherished element of his

NEW EDUCATION FUNDING COMES WITH STRINGS: State wants accountability plan, lower class sizes for extra money

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago

Written by Roberto M. Robledo | The Salinas Californian |  http://bit.ly/11H4H33 Gov. Jerry Brown discusses the budget compromise reached with Democratic leaders, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento left, and Assembly Speaker John Perez, D-Los Angeles, right, during a Capitol news conference in Sacramento on Tuesday. / AP Jun. 12, 2013 4:34 AM   ::   According to the US

MICHAEL KIRST, FATHER OF THE LCFF, LOOKS BACK AND AT THE WORK AHEAD

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago

By John Fensterwald | EdSource Today | http://bit.ly/172AbWg June 12th, 2013 | It was the morning after the evening of the last revision, and the father of the Local Control Funding Formula looked upon all that the governor and Legislature had made, and declared, “Hey, not bad.” Michael Kirst>> Michael Kirst is relishing the all-but-certain passage later this week of the comprehensive

LA Times: BUDGET DEAL MIXES HOPE+RESTRAINT, CEMENTS BROWN’S LEGACY …or at least his reëlection

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 2 days ago

California budget accord balances restraint, social services Lawmakers and Gov. Jerry Brown announce a $96.3-billion deal, with new spending on welfare grants, tuition aid and dental care for poor adults. But they agree to pare some outlays until next year. By Chris Megerian and Anthony York, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/11VWbJt Senate leader Darrell Steinberg is all smiles as he

HOW CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICTS FARE IN PROPOSED FUNDING DEAL

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 3 days ago

Dan Smith in Sacramento Bee Capitol Alert - The latest on California politics and government | http://bit.ly/12keP3S June 10, 2013  -  Here is a list of how specific California school districts would fare under a school funding compromise circulating in the Capitol. LAUSD: a lot of noise for a per pupil gain of $364 next year. All Districts

State Controller: MAY REVENUES BEAT GOVERNOR’S ESTIMATES

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 3 days ago

Latest News From the  California State Controller's Office: Home http://bit.ly/11Fcn5T Controller John Chiang visits with Loyola Marymount University executive MBA students at the State Capitol. See more photos | Controller in the News | Contact the Controller Controller: May Revenues Beat Governor's Estimates Controller John Chiang reported the State's total revenues for May hit $7.27

Imposing Austerity?: BUDGET COMPROMISED REACHED AS REVENUE COLLECTIONS GROW

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 3 days ago

Budget compromise calls for LCFF next year, raises base grant for all schools By Tom Chorneau – News & Resources  |  http://bit.ly/12DMoPK Tuesday, June 11, 2013  ::  Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders reached agreement on a budget plan Monday that will usher in sweeping changes to school funding that give local officials far more control over spending decisions. While Brown got

IT’S A DEAL: Brown, top lawmakers raise base funding in finance formula

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 3 days ago

By John Fensterwald | EdSource Today | http://bit.ly/117yG4M June 11th, 2013 | In a nod to suburban districts that argued they would be shortchanged, Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders negotiated a new version of Brown’s plan for school finance reform that will increase the base funding level for all students and lower the extra dollars for some high-needs students. Late Monday, the

GOODBYE MR. DUFFY: Still-feisty former teachers union chief retires

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

A.J. Duffy’s career in education ends after two years at Phoenix High, working with students who need a second chance. He said he could relate. By Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times IN A BALLCAP & HAWAIIAN SHIRT…?   A.J. Duffy -- dressed considerably more casually than on his first day in the classroom in 2011 -- chats with students Emily Cedeno, 17, Jesse Chavez, 19, and others at Phoenix

NEARLY 50 YEARS UNDER A SCHOOL’S SPELL: Violin teacher Mickey Fruchter has been teaching at the Neighborhood Music School in Boyle Heights since he was 25, drawn to it by the love of his students.

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

'I'm like a big uncle,' he says. By Steve Lopez, LA Times columnist | http://lat.ms/16UUWmR June 8, 2013, 3:35 p.m.  ::  When Mickey Fruchter started teaching at the Neighborhood Music School in Boyle Heights in 1964, they didn't tell him how much he'd get paid. The violinist simply showed up, did his job and went home, figuring he'd get the going rate of between $4 and $6 an hour. "When I

Briefly from SI&A: LEGISLATION PENDING ON TESTING, CHARTER SCHOOLS, FACILITIES, DISCIPLINE, CTE +CHANGES @ DSA

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources http://bit.ly/17Aijl5 Legislation being considered that would subject charter schools to disclosure laws (Friday, June 07, 2013) For the third consecutive year, the Legislature will consider a bill that would make charter schools subject to open meeting laws and public disclosure rules.... Read More... API update not likely before fall; plans to

WHERE SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY JOIN

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

Themes in the News A weekly commentary written by UCLA IDEA on the important issues in education as covered by the news media. | Week of May 28-31, 2013 | http://bit.ly/102J0wa 5-31-2013   ::  In 1911, 400 civic leaders held a national conference in Madison, Wisc., to explore an educational and civic role for public schools that extended far beyond teaching students the defined subject matter of

EdSource Quick Hits: FRESH AIR IMPROVES ATTENDANCE, SENATE GIVES UP ON DELAY OF LCFF, SCHOOL NURSES IN SUPREME COURT

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

Quick Hits | EdSource Today http://bit.ly/11P2H4L Study: Improved ventilation in classrooms could reduce student absences June 7th, 2013 | Add a Comment | By Jane Meredith Adams California could significantly improve elementary school student attendance and health by increasing the amount of fresh air coming into classrooms, according to the largest U.S. study to date of ventilation rates in

C.L.A.S.S.: New Coalition Launches with High Hopes, Few Specifics + smf’s 2¢

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 5 days ago

Posted to LA Schools Report by Brianna Sacks | http://bit.ly/13vpRkJ Maria Brenes of InnerCity Struggle (in red) and other CLASS members address the audience at yesterday’s kickoff event. June 7, 2013   ::  Communities for Los Angeles Student Success (CLASS), a new coalition of eight community groups and education-related organizations, officially debuted on Thursday to resounding cheers and

NEW DATA SHOWS ‘®EFORMERS’ ARE GETTING IT WRONG

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 6 days ago

by David Sirota | Perspectives at Moyers and Co. | http://bit.ly/11rqdpr This article first appeared on Salon.com. Michelle Rhee, right, talks to third grader Kmone Feeling during a visit at J.O. Wilson Elementary School on Aug. 23, 2010 in Washington. D.C. Rhee was D.C.'s public schools chancellor at the time. Mayor Adrian Fenty, back second left, and school principal Sheryl Warley, left,

GALATZAN POLLS PARENTS, TEACHERS ON SCHOOL STAFFING LEVELS + smf’s 2¢

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 6 days ago

By Barbara Jones, Staff Writer, LA Daily News | http://bit.ly/13mLfXY 6/06/2013 09:49:43 PM PDT  ::  LAUSD board member Tamar Galatzan is polling parents and teachers on their spending priorities if lawmakers approve the Local Control Funding Formula for allocating education dollars. Proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown, the LCFF would provide districts with a base grant of about $6,800 per student,

DEPUTY MAYOR JOAN SULLIVAN NAMED CEO OF PARTNERSHIP FOR LA SHOOLS (sic)

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

By Barbara Jones, Staff Writer, LA Daily News | http://bit.ly/11uOMF4 /05/2013 05:59:11 PM PDT  ::  Joan Sullivan, the education deputy to outgoing Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, has been named CEO of the 22-campus Partnership for Los Angles Schools, {aka: “The Mayor’s Partnership”) officials said Wednesday. Sullivan will succeed Marshall Tuck, who is resigning as head of the Partnership, a joint

L.A. UNIFIED OFFERS TO SETTLE 40 ADDITIONAL CLAIMS FROM MIRAMONTE STUDENTS

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

The district offers $17 million to settle 40 legal claims involving a teacher who allegedly committed lewd acts against children. A lawyer representing 23 victims calls the offer 'insulting.' By Stephen Ceasar, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/13dadsw Mark Berndt, right, was charged in 2012 with 23 counts of lewd conduct involving allegations that he spoon-fed semen to blindfolded

Op-Ed: LAUSD SHOULD HAVE MORE PUBLIC MEETINGS

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

By Bennett Kayser Op-Ed in the Los Angeles Daily News | http://bit.ly/17rhf2Q 6/05/2013 04:27:00 PM PDT  ::  The members of the Board of Education of the Los Angeles Unified School District need to work harder and be more available to the public. I know this because I am a member of the board. Since 2006, board members have had the option of assuming the job as a fulltime, paid position, albeit

MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD ON THE NEW SCHOOL FUNDING FORMULA: California has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve how we fund our schools. We must get it right.

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

smf: Yesterday the LAUSD heard from many LAUSD local budget priorities and from one side only on the so-called Local Control Budget Formula and State Education Budget Reforms.| http://t.co/bHDHy3E7KK  No public comment was permitted on the LCFF presentation..The Bd of Ed heard from the Governor’s side only, no one spoke to them

“More graduates, fewer inmates”: ENDING OUR PUNISHMENT CULTURE

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

Marqueece Harris-Dawson, President and CEO, Community Coalition from the Huffington Post | http://huff.to/11rqonJ 6/04/2013 6:01 pm  ::  Imagine standing in front of a crowded classroom of 40 teenagers. Some sit on the floor because there are not enough desks and many need to share books. One student looks out the window bobbing his head to pounding music that escapes his oversized headphones,

LAUSD BOARD MEETS (TWICE) TO HEAR BUDGET PRIORITIES

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

LAUSD board hears pleas to boost campus hiring, academic programs in 2013-14 By Barbara Jones, Staff Writer, LA Newspaper Group [Daily Breeze/Daily News]  | http://bit.ly/13873q8 Pleas for more school funding come amid budget warnings By Howard Blume.LA Times | http://lat.ms/1388GUx UPDATE: LAUSD board postpones

L.A. TIMES WISHY WASHES CHILD WELFARE SCANDAL: There must be zero-tolerance for tragic child deaths from DCFS, the Board of Supes and The Times

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

Lessons of the Gabriel Fernandez case Yes, there will always be deaths in the child welfare system. But that doesn't mean we can't, and shouldn't, do better. LA Times Editorial | http://lat.ms/17WIPFV   Relatives of Gabriel Fernandez, seen in an undated family photograph, want L.A. County to take child abuse more seriously. (Handout / May 29, 2013) June 4, 2013  ::  There is

L.A. STUDENTS TACKLE SOCIAL PROBLEMS FOR ASPEN IDEAS FESTIVAL

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

The high school teams' projects include growing and selling healthful food, teaching inland communities about protecting the ocean and giving small children hands-on lessons about plants. By Dalina Castellanos, Los Angeles Times http://lat.ms/11UXpdI Westchester Enriched Sciences Magnet High students Jordan Keligond, left, Isaiah Dunn and Mia Brumfield are part of a team creating an

This just in: YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE SEX …and get STD test results by text message

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

LAUSD Students Share HIV/STD Statuses Via Text Message CBS Los Angeles  | http://cbsloc.al/141q00g Why is LAUSD helping high school students get STD-test results by text message? AirTalk with Larry Mantle | 89.3 FM Weekdays 11 a.m.-1 p.m. May 30, 2013 3:01 PM  ::  LOS ANGELES (

MOST CRENSHAW HIGH TEACHERS BEING DISPLACED IN LAUSD REORGANIZATION

smf at 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit - 1 week ago

The school is being split into three magnets in an effort to boost test scores and reduce the number of dropouts. Only 29 of the school's 62 teachers were asked to return next year. By Dalina Castellanos, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/17Q554k Marshawn Martindale Jr. of Crenshaw High School joins a rally outside a May 14 school board meeting to demand that Prop. 30 funds be used to