This Week's Education Research Report 6-29-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

Education Research Report

THIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORT

New NAEP Report Compares Today’s Student Performance With That of 40 Years Ago

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 day ago

* Long-term trend assessment shows improvement for black and Hispanic students since the 1970s* Today’s 9-and 13-year-old students scored higher in reading and mathematics than their counterparts did 40 years ago according to The Nation’s Report Card: Trends in Academic Progress 2012, a long-term trend assessment designed to track changes in the achievement of students ages 9, 13 and 17 since the 1970s. However, 17-year-olds did not show similar gains. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) long-term trend assessment is administered every four years and measures basic... more »

Teachers Spend $1.6 Billion of Their Own Money on Educational Products for their Classrooms

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 2 days ago

The National School Supply and Equipment Association (NSSEA) has just released the *2013 NSSEA Retail Market Awareness Study* estimating that public school teachers spent $3.2 billion in educational products in the 2012-2013 school year, $1.6 billion of it from their own pockets. This study reports on teachers' knowledge of parent-teacher stores, including their spending patterns, funding sources, shopping preferences, and factors that influence their purchasing decisions. Other highlights: - On average, teachers surveyed said they spent a total of $268 on school supplies ... more »

Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2012

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 2 days ago

A joint effort by the Bureau of Justice Statistics and National Center for Education Statistics, this annual report examines crime occurring in school as well as on the way to and from school. This report presents data on crime at school from the perspectives of students, teachers, principals, and the general population from an array of sources--the National Crime Victimization Survey, the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the School Survey on Crime and Safety and the School and Staffing Survey. Data on crime away fr... more »

The Magnitude of Student Sorting Within Schools

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 2 days ago

The authors of this study use administrative data from three large urban school districts to describe student sorting within schools. Students are linked to each of their teachers and students’ classmates are identified. There are differences in the average achievement levels, racial composition, and socioeconomic composition of classrooms within schools. This sorting occurs even in self-contained elementary school classrooms and is much larger than would be expected were students assigned to classrooms randomly. Much of the racial and socioeconomic sorting is accounted for by d... more »

Language Intervention Levels Playing Field for English Language Learners

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

A new approach to teaching pre-kindergarten could take a bite out of the achievement gap and level the playing field for America’s growing population of English language learners, according to a recently published study by researchers at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of education and human development. “We are excited that we have helped teachers develop ways of teaching that result in such remarkable gains among children,” David K. Dickinson, professor of education and one of the project's leaders, said. “Our teachers are committed to continuing using the approaches that are workin... more »

SPATIAL TRAINING BOOSTS MATH SKILLS

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

Training young children in spatial reasoning can improve their math performance, according to a groundbreaking study from Michigan State University education scholars. The researchers trained 6- to 8-year-olds in mental rotation, a spatial ability, and found their scores on addition and subtraction problems improved significantly. The mental rotation training involved imagining how two halves of an object would come together to make a whole, when the halves have been turned at an angle. Past research has found a link between spatial reasoning and math, but the MSU study is the fi... more »

Kids’ Reading Success Boosted by Long-Term Individualized Instruction

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

Students who consistently receive individualized reading instruction from first through third grade become better readers than those who don’t, according to new research published in *Psychological Science*, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. These findings come after a three-year study that followed several hundred Floridian students, who received varying amounts of individualized instruction, from first to third grade. “Our results show that children need sustained, effective instruction from first through third grade if they are going to become proficient r... more »

Study finds improvement in the overall performance of charter schools since 2009

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

*"Gains" include slower declines than traditional public schools 71% (math)-75% (reading) of charter schools aren't doing any better than traditional public schools 31% of charter schools significantly weaker in math "Gains" fueled by closing of the worst charter schools* A new, independent national study finds improvement in the overall performance of charter schools, driven in part by the presence of more high-performing charters and closure of underperforming charter schools. The National Charter School Study 2013, released by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CRE... more »

Value of education rises in crisis but investment in this area is falling

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

The jobs gap between well-educated young people and those who left school early has continued to widen during the crisis. A good education is the best insurance against a lack of work experience, according to the latest edition of the OECD’s annual Education at a Glance. Unemployment rates are nearly three times higher among people without an upper secondary education (13% on average across OECD countries) than among those who have a tertiary education (5%). Between 2008 and 2011, the unemployment rate for the poorly-educated rose by around 4 percentage points, while it increased b... more »

Let’s Begin with the Letter People® has no discernible effects on oral language or phonological processing

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) has an updated report on the preschool literacy programs Let’s Begin with the Letter People®. Let’s Begin with the Letter People® is an early childhood literacy curriculum that uses 26 thematic units (each of which covers a letter of the alphabet) to develop children’s language and early literacy skills. A major focus of the program is phonological awareness, including rhyming, word play, alliteration, and segmentation. The WWC found that Let’s Begin with the Letter People® has no discernible effects on oral language or phonological processing and... more »

Doors to Discovery™ has potentially positive effects on oral language and print knowledge

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 3 days ago

The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) has released an updated report on a preschool literacy programs, Doors to Discovery. Doors to Discovery™ is a preschool literacy curriculum that uses eight thematic units of activities to help children build fundamental early literacy skills in oral language, phonological awareness, concepts of print, alphabet knowledge, writing, and comprehension. The eight thematic units cover topics such as nature, friendship, communities, society, and health. Each unit is available as a kit that includes various teacher resources. The What Works Clearinghouse... more »

How School and District Leaders Support Classroom Teachers’ Work With English Language Learners

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 4 days ago

This study examines the ways in which school and district leaders create systems of support for classroom teachers who work with linguistically diverse students. The authors attempt to uncover the intentional supports leaders put in place for classroom teachers and how this may be part of a broader teaching and learning effort. Through a qualitative case study of four districts serving different populations of English Learner (EL) students, the authors examine school and district leadership actions aimed at helping teachers provide instruction that is responsive to EL learning nee... more »

Quality Matters More Than Quantity for Word Learning

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 4 days ago

Several studies have shown that how much parents say to their children when they are very young is a good predictor of children’s vocabulary at the point when they begin school. In turn, a child’s vocabulary size at school entry strongly predicts level of success throughout schooling even into high school and college. A new study by psychologists at the University of Pennsylvania now shows that early vocabulary improvement is likely to have more to do with the “quality” of the interactions in which the words are used rather than the sheer quantity of speech directed at young child... more »

Effectiveness of Cognitive Tutor Algebra I at Scale

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

This article examines the effectiveness of a technology-based algebra curriculum in a wide variety of middle schools and high schools in seven states. Participating schools were matched into similar pairs and randomly assigned to either continue with the current algebra curriculum for two years or to adopt Cognitive Tutor Algebra I (CTAI), which uses a personalized, mastery-learning, blended-learning approach. Schools assigned to implement CTAI did so under conditions similar to schools that independently adopt it. Analysis of posttest outcomes on an algebra proficiency exam finds... more »

Mindfulness Can Increase Wellbeing and Reduce Stress in School Children

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

Mindfulness -- a mental training that develops sustained attention that can change the ways people think, act and feel -- could reduce symptoms of stress and depression and promote wellbeing among school children, according to a new study published online by the *British Journal of Psychiatry. * With the summer exam season in full swing, school children are currently experiencing higher levels of stress than at any other time of year. The research showed that interventions to reduce stress in children have the biggest impact at this time of year. There is growing evidence that mind... more »

Student Engagement—Essential for Success in School—Is More Complex, Changeable Than Previously Thought

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

*“Enhancing student engagement has been identified as the key to addressing problems of low achievement, high levels of student misbehavior, alienation, and high dropout rates.” – Pitt professor Ming-Te Wang* A student who shows up on time for school and listens respectfully in class might appear fully engaged to outside observers, including teachers. But other measures of student engagement, including the student’s emotional and cognitive involvement with the course material, may tell a different story—one that could help teachers recognize students who are becoming less invested ... more »

Bullying and suicide among youth is a public health problem

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

*Expert research from CDC panel provides details and clarity, reports the Journal of Adolescent Health* Recent studies linking bullying and depression, coupled with extensive media coverage of bullying-related suicide among young people, led the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to assemble an expert panel to focus on these issues. This panel synthesized the latest research about the complex relationship between youth involvement in bullying and suicide-related behaviors. Three themes emerged: 1) Bullying among youth is a significant public health problem, with wides... more »

The vital role of the humanities and social sciences

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

A new report by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences Commission on the Humanities and Social Science, titled The Heart of the Matter, looks at the vital role of the humanities and social sciences in preparing and sustaining Americans for the responsibility of productive citizenship in the United States and the world. The Heart of the Matter focuses on five areas of concern—K-12 Education; Two- and Four-Year Colleges; Research; Cultural Institutions and Lifelong Learning; and International Security and Competitiveness—and makes recommendations to achieve three goals: - Educ... more »

Foster Youth Face Significant Academic Hurdles

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

A new study, Foster Youth Transitions, released by the Institute for Evidence-Based Change (IEBC), in conjunction with the University of California, Berkeley’s Center for Social Science Research (CSSR), examines the educational outcomes of foster youth in comparison to peers from similar disadvantaged backgrounds. Foster youth often experience instability and are deprived of support vital for the completion of educational milestones, such as high school graduation and college enrollment. Results from the study, a longitudinal survey which tracks the educational outcomes of more t... more »

The schools preparing teachers have become an industry of mediocrity

Jonathan Kantrowitz at Education Research Report - 1 week ago

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ)'s Teacher Prep Reviewreports that the colleges and universities producing America’s traditionally prepared teachers have become an industry of mediocrity, churning out first-year teachers with classroom management skills and content knowledge inadequate to thrive in classrooms with ever-increasing ethnic and socioeconomic student diversity. They assigned overall ratings based on a set of key standards for 608 institutions. Those ratings can be found at www.nctq.org/teacherPrep, where there is additional data on another 522 institutions.... more »

All Week 6-29-13 @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER: 

Thought for the Day

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 hours ago

On my WeatherBug smartphone App, the pollen tab notes: This lack of change in airborne pollen will continue to affect those who suffer from allergies and those who live with allergy sufferers. How is it, then, that the “no excuses” education reform crowd is unable to admit that poverty affects those living in poverty and […]

Have Four Decades of Test Based Accountability Closed the Public and Catholic School Score Gaps?

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 14 hours ago

One way to gauge the effects of over four decades of more testing with higher stakes is to examine how NAEP public school scores compare over time with the Catholic schools, which have not and do not use high stakes standardized testing, even though they have participated in NAEP since 1980. The Catholic schools have […]

No schools shut down that opted out, many shut down that opted in

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 16 hours ago

Reclaiming the Conversation on Education See 9:19 in, Ceresta Smith Tagged: high-stakes accountability

In Case You Were Wondering…?

Timothy D. Slekar at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 18 hours ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgPePk3kGZk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jKahlEKo0Q http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_fM_TBn_Do Follow Tim Slekar on Twitter: @slekar

Center for American what? Progress? I don’t think so. @EdProgress

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 23 hours ago

My behavior on social media differs from others. Folks claim RTs aren’t endorsements and that to me seems rather silly. Why would I propagate information and send it forward to followers if I don’t think it should be spread? Seems like lots of folks are getting busted for errant RTs, so perhaps there’s some genuine […]

The ridiculousness in the resistance of #commoncore

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 23 hours ago

Last evening, I saw a link posted on social media about an organization hosting an anti-CCSS conference call. Interesting. The organization? Concerned Women for America. They.Are.Ridiculous. They’re already calling for the end of civilization because of the recent SCOTUS ruling on marriage equality. I see folks calling for collaboration in resisting CCSS between various locations […]

After Forty Years of Test-Based Acccountability, Almost Nothing and Less than Zero

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 day ago

The federal information clearinghouse, ERIC, had 9 entries for the subject, “educational accountability,” in 1970. By 1972, there were 440 entries for that year. In 2010, the number of entries peaked at 2,200. You may say, with good evidence to back it up, that “educational accountability” has essentially dwarfed or completely erased every worthy […]

Perhaps the NEA and AFT both adhere to an old model of lesson planning

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 day ago

This whole idea of monetizing lesson plans seems like a very antique method. This from the Huffington Post on a very similar initiative soon to be released by the NEA that is strikingly similar to AFT’s Share My Lesson, or whatever. The NEA’s is called, what, BetterLesson or something? I mean, OK, I guess. Who […]

Charter Schools, the Invisible Hand, and Gutless Political Leadership | the becoming radical

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

What connection is there among Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, charter schools, the Invisible Hand, and gutless political leaders?* Read this to find out: Charter Schools, the Invisible Hand, and Gutless Political Leadership | the becoming radical. * WARNING: You may become unstuck in time.

Arne Duncan, Civil Rights Visionary of Our Era

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

When he attended the star-studded premiere in 2010 for Davis Guggenheim’s slick propaganda film, Waiting for Superman, Arne Duncan called it a “Rosa Parks moment.” In making this stunning analogy, it became clear that corporate education reform schoolers were no longer going to sit at the back of the corporate jet. No longer would they […]

When Jeanne Allen Comes Out Against the CREDO Study, the News Can’t Be Good for Charters

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

Apparently, world champion charter industry promoter, Jeanne Allen, did not get the memo from the corporate ed offices that all corporate education welfare recipients should pretend that the new CREDO study was full of good news for the corrupt charter school industry. Jeanne, who otherwise is a lifelong member of the Test and Punish Society […]

Duncan: Pay no attention to who is behind the #CCSS curtain

Chris Cerrone at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been quite busy lately making the rounds defending the Common Core. Yesterday Duncan gave a speech to the American Society of Newspaper editors which Valerie Strauss titled “Arne Duncan tells newspaper editors how to report on the Common Core.“ Duncan stated that opponents of the Common Core were “spreading […]

Ultra badass student activists in Chicago giving it to CPS #stuvoice

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

I am quoting, via Facebook: Just spoke out against the Board of Education with students from the CSOSOS! Most bad ass thing in the world! Security had no idea what was going on as students across the room stood up and spoke against the Board. It was pure chaos! My thirty second stand up speech: […]

Duncan: Pay no attention to who is behind the #CCSS curtain.

Chris Cerrone at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been quite busy lately making the rounds defending the Common Core. Yesterday Duncan gave a speech to the American Society of Newspaper editors which Valerie Strauss titled “Arne Duncan tells newspaper editors how to report on the Common Core.“ Duncan stated that opponents of the Common Core were “spreading […]

Let’s Unite in Opposition to Criminalization of Absenteeism in Texas

John Thompson at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

A couple of weeks ago, I tackled the daunting task of posting constructive criticism of the UCLA Civil Rights Project’s support for data-driven efforts to end some types of school suspensions. Now, I get to issue full-throated praise to a federal civil rights lawsuit against criminal prosecutions of Texas students for truancy (while acknowledging the […]

Propaganda, Plagiarism, and Public Misleading on CREDO

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 days ago

The corporate charter industry is working every angle to put the best makeup on the CREDO charter study of 2013. And “news coverage” in Tennessee shows their efforts paying off. Two examples of Tennessee media “coverage” of the 2013 CREDO charter school study are provided below, and as you can see, they are both lifted from […]

Evidence? Secretary Duncan, You Can’t Handle the Evidence

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan appears now to be assuming the mantle of self-righteous indignation—a tenuous perch for someone who is leading a field in which he has no experience or expertise. As Valerie Strauss has reported, Duncan has lambasted news editors, berating them for failing to demand evidence for claims against the precious Common […]

A fun graduation song

Chris Cerrone at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

A music educator gives a nice presentation via song at the graduation ceremony for Williamsville East High School in suburban Western New York. Please bear with the video, the first part is a little blurry. Song starts around one minute mark. Lyrics: Is it an A, or a B, or a C, or a D? […]

Reclaiming the conversation video series, check it out.

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

Some very familiar names throughout this series. Listen, learn, share. Tagged: edu4, reclaiming the conversation

Reclaiming the conversation video series, check it out.

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

Some very familiar names throughout this series. Listen, learn, share. Tagged: edu4, reclaiming the conversation

CREDO Charter Study Finds Over 70 Percent of Charters Testing Worse or No Better than the Poorest Public Schools

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

The new CREDO charter school study is out, which means that we point out once more the wasted billions in tax dollars that are now going to corporate apartheid schools that are, in the majority of cases, underperforming the poorest matched public schools in the same communities. Even though you have to dig through the […]

Helpful tips from an #education #reformer

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

I may have forgotten all about these. But I have a few images from a rather helpful ad campaign, “Tips from an Education Reformer.” Hopefully you find them as helpful as I do in dismantling a free system of public education. Tagged: certification, public schools, racism, TFA, tips from an education reformer

CREDO v. Kids Count

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 3 days ago

I make a predication, about the fact that kids still don’t count. Please read HERE about CREDO’s new charter study and the 2013 Kids Count report. Tagged: CREDO, Kids Count

Meaningless Debates

Activism in paradise - Voices from down under at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 4 days ago

by David Hood Retired after 50 years in education Career includes 25 years as teacher and principal, Department of Education official, senior manager of Education Review Office, establishment CEO of New Zealand Qualifications Authority, and consultant since 1996. Author of Our Secondary Schools Don’t Work Anymore [1998] davidhoodassoc@xtra.co.nz ———- Debates on (New Zealand’s) National Standards, […]

Understanding NCTQ’s Essential Role in Eliminating Caring Teachers

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 4 days ago

NCTQ, ELC, and their ilk were/are like cockroaches that have slightly evolved brains. They still scurry when the light is turned on, but they do their best to create diversions or fake scares aimed to make sure you don’t flip the switch or shine the light their way. But they are many and well-fed. What they […]

Tennesseans Respond to Chief Kevin’s Latest Assault on Teaching

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 4 days ago

The other news that got buried by Huffman’s new brain disorder to rob teachers of future step increases in pay has to do with the accompanying plan to cut the professional license from 10 to 6 years and to require arbitrary student test score gains in order to renew a license. Huffman tried to defend […]

Is #ISTE13 a substantive debate on #edtech or just a business convention?

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 4 days ago

I’m guessing the latter based on sponsorship (Microsoft, Pearson, DELL, etc.). The really interesting thing is to examine the various presentations and you start to wonder who’s an actual scholar versus some company hack trying to sell something. It’s difficult with all of the organizations and research firms that are made to sound like some […]

Our recent show on NCTQ. Consider this the end of the discussion.

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 4 days ago

We returned to the air last evening to discuss the various reactions to the latest NCTQ report. This for me is the end of the debate. We need not comment on it further unless further developments ensue. Other authors are welcome to continue the dialogue, however. One of our callers raised a very excellent point. […]

And Still I Teach….

antiqueteacher60 at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 5 days ago

In the past 6 days, the Badass Teachers Association has grown from a handful to over 12,000 members. Earlier this week, Dr. Mark Naison, one of the founders, put out a challenge to all the BATs to take a stab at recreating Maya Angelou’s “And I Still I Rise”. With permission from the author, Sue […]

Be Ready #optout #refusethetest

peggyrobertson at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 5 days ago

Obama is planning to roll out high speed internet connection for our public school students within the next 5 years. This was my comment on FB after reading Stephen Krashen’s post: Cut off from good nutrition, health care, libraries much more serious than cut off from the web. While hungry children wrap food […]

Chief Kevin Huffman Leads Effort To Kill Teacher Recruiting in Tennessee

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 5 days ago

We know that Tennessee has become the poster state for every untried corporate reform idea that ALEC can craft in a statute and pass on to the semi-literate Republican Taliban which now runs the State–with the support of homegrown oligarch, Bill (Pilot Oil) Haslam. And thanks to coaching by Gates Foundation drones in late 2009, […]

Who’s Building the “Army of Teachers”

Kris Nielsen at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 6 days ago

The National Center for Teacher Quality is a bogus organization, since it comes to us from a non-scientific point of view and tons of people who know next to nothing about teaching. When an agenda and a bunch of policy ideas are predetermined, and the studies comes later, you know something’s going on. But the […]

End slacktivism in education

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 6 days ago

I modeled these images off of a very poignant UNICEF campaign, that “liking” Facebook pages and groups, while important initially, fails to do anything of real substance. There is indeed a lot of this same bluster in education. Maybe we need to end slacktivism in education […]

Good friend “Teacher Nicole” from WI explains common in #commoncore

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

Here’s her post on CCSS, as an actual educator for ELL/ESL students. We’ve interviewed her on At the Chalk Face, I need to dig those up. Look back here later. She’s great. Tagged: at the chalk face, common core, nicole, WI

education activists gather, talk, strategize: reclaim the conversation

Barbara Madeloni at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

On May 4, 2013 a group of educators, parents, students, and community activists gathered at Barnard College to share their experiences within the assault on public education, draw connections of understanding, strengthen ties, and plan actions. One of our first actions was to create the video linked below. In it organizers and participants talk about […]

Did Arne Duncan Give “Reformers” Enough Rope to Hang Themselves?

John Thompson at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

The Huffington Post’s Joy Resmovits reports that Secretary of Education Duncan announced a voluntary pause in using test scores in teacher evaluations during the transition to Common Core. She explains that the new policy is seen by some as a “tacit recognition of the Obama administration’s overreach into nitty-gritty management of America’s schools.” Of course, I […]

At the Chalk Face is back, this Sunday, June 23rd, 6PM EST

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

At the Chalk Face is back, this Sunday, June 23rd at 6PM EST. Educated educators talking education, this time on the recent NCTQ report on teacher preparation. Remember, we are at the helm in the BTR chatroom, live tweeting @thechalkface, and you can always call in to speak with us live, 805-727-7111. Tagged: at the […]

Does this qualify as “intimidation” from NCTQ? Watch out #highered and #teacherprep

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

I received an email message the other day from someone at NCTQ regarding an account I had of a meeting with them in 2011. In my first year as a faculty member, I decided to meet and speak with a number of education policy and advocacy organizations to see how folks in my position could get […]

A Letter to Educators Who Embrace the #commoncore

peggyrobertson at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

Dear Educator Friends, While the common core may not be an issue for you, or your school, do know that for others it will be a major issue. And the problem is this, while the standards might work for you and your school, there are many standards in CC that do not work for many […]

Deborah Carter: The Reality of #Teaching

Kris Nielsen at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

Maryland Teacher and member of the Badass Teacher Association, Deborah Carter, summarizes the reasons she teaches. This week, a girl called me a bitch. A mom emailed the same day, demanding that her 11th grade son receive full credit for an assignment that did not come close to following the directions (and was turned in […]

#Occupylafayette, happening now, shaking my head

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 week ago

Parents, students, and educators occupied Lafayette ES in Chicago, slated for closure. This is a brilliant form of protest, everyone there should be applauded for their courage. This is quite a beautiful building in the picture. I cannot imagine what the city is planning to do with it. Below is an image from a friend […]