LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-14-14 Diane Ravitch's blog A site to discuss better education for all

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

StudentsFirst Issues Another Ludicrous State Report Card

StudentsFirst, the organization created by Michelle Rhee to promote her ideas about fixing schools by high-stakes testing and choice, has issued its second state-by-state report card. The highest scoring states are not those whose students have the highest achievement on NAEP; that would be Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Connecticut. No, the highest scoring states are those that do what Rhee did i

10 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Chicago Parents Rally Against More Charters

MEDIA ALERT: TUESDAY FORUM PARENTS DEMAND HALT TO CHARTER EXPANSION- Community Organizations across Chicago Urge CPS to Vote Against Proposed Charter Expansion and Refocus on Protection/Funding of Neighborhood Schools What: Following the closure of 50 neighborhood schools due to budget and a so-called “underutilization crisis,” parents and community members are furious at the proposal for the crea

5 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Schneider Critiques Anti-Union Billboard in Times Square

Mercedes Schneider, who teaches High school English in Louisiana, saw a photo of an ominous 5-story-high billboard in Times Square, New York City, attacking teachers’ unions. She knew who paid for the ad: the so-called Center for Inion Facts. Schneider had already written about this corporate public relations firm, and the billboard got her thinking about who might have funded this particular ar h

2 by dianeravitch / 11min 

Will a Court Decision in Kansas Hurt Your School?

In an important opinion piece in the New York Times, David Sciarra and Wade Henderson explain how a court decision in Kansas might have national reverberations. In 2009, Kansas, like many other states, slashed school funding while approving tax breaks that benefited mostly upper-income Kansans. Spending on education dropped far below 2008 levels, leading to larger classes, layoffs of teachers and

2 by dianeravitch / 19min 

Teachers with Training Wheels?

Levi B. Cavener is a special education teacher in Idaho. He recently wrote an article arguing that Teach for America recruits with five weeks of training should not be assigned to special education students. A spokesperson for TFA responded that it was okay because they would be getting the training while they taught. Levi says that is like teaching with training wheels. He writes: It’s not ok for

by dianeravitch / 4min 

Politico.com Slants Its Coverage

In an article about the retirement of veteran Democratic Congressman George Miller, a favorite of hedge fund managers (DFER) and other supporters of high-stakes testing and privatization, politico.com used adjectives that showed a partisan bent. It wrote: “EDUCATION Miller exit leaves hole in ed leadership By MAGGIE SEVERNS and LIBBY A. NELSON and STEPHANIE SIMON 1/13/14 4:04 PM “Rep. George Mill

by dianeravitch / 10min 

Why Philadelphia Can’t Afford to Pay for Public Education

Did you hear about the budget crisis that stripped Philadelphia’s public schools of teachers, nurses, librarians, supplies, and many other things? Did you read that the school district has a budget deficit of $300 million and that Governor Corbett wants teachers to take salary cuts and layoffs to save over $100 million? Did you read about the 12-year-old child who died because she had an asthma at

by dianeravitch / 8min 

Two Anti-Parent Revolution Parents Accused of Vandalizing Charter School

Two parents who fought the takeover of their public school and its conversion to a charter school have been charged with vandalizing the school last June. They deny the charges. The vandalism occurred at the Desert Trails elementary school in Adelanto, California, which was the site of a bitter battle among parents after the state’s “parent trigger” law was invoked. The school is the first school

3 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Julian Vasquez Heilig: Time to Look at Evidence About Teach for America

A new report by Julian Vasquez Heilig and Su Jin Jez reviews the evidence about the effectiveness of Teach for America. Their study, published by the National Education Policy Center, “challenges the simplistic but widespread belief that TFA is a clear-cut success story. In fact, Heilig and Jez find that the best evidence shows TFA participants as a group are not meaningfully or consistently impro

3 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Columbus, Ohio: 17 More Charters Close

If schools were like shoe stores, they would open wherever there was a good location and close if they didn’t make a profit. Public schools, on the other hand, are community institutions, like parks and beaches. They should not be closed if they have low scores; they should get help. In Columbus, Ohio, charter schools are indeed like shoe stores. This year alone, 17 charter schools in that city cl

10 by dianeravitch / 2h hide  //  save

Gates Threatens to Yank $40 Million from Pittsburgh

According to Rick Cohen of the Nonprofit Quarterly, the Gates Foundation is threatening to take away $40 million from the Pittsburgh public schools if the district and union don’t agree on a plan to evaluate teachers by test scores, to reward the “best,” and retrain the rest. Does the Gates Foundation know that eminent researchers warn that VAM is inaccurate? Does it care that VAM has not worked

28 by dianeravitch / 3h 

Outrage in Ohio: Charter Founder Paid Millions Without Any Invoices

How gullible are taxpayers in Ohio? How long will they remain willing to pay millions of dollars to a charter founder who is best known for campaign contributions? Why does Ohio’s ignore this outrage? Plunderbund documents the empire created by William Lager, founder of the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT) was paid $1 million in the first year his school opened. It is now the largest chart

19 by dianeravitch / 3h 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-13-14 Diane Ravitch's blog A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: New Rochester Mayor Pledges More Charter SchoolsUpstate New York has had its share of failed charter schools. Some years back, Edison Schools had a charter school in Rochester, which was a disaster and later shuttered by its state authorizer.  Not far away another charter (acquired by Imagine Schools)  in Syracuse was shut down due

by mike simpson / 8h 

1-14-14 Wait What?

Wait What?:

Attn: Steve Perry – It’s called the CT Code of Professional Responsibility for School Administrators

As a certified school administrator in Connecticut you have the legal and moral obligation to uphold this code.  But the record increasingly reveals that Capital Prep Principal Steve Perry and the other administrators at Capital Preparatory Magnet School have consistently failed to meet the most basic elements of this code. For example, section (b) of […]The post Attn: Steve Perry – It’s called th

by jonpelto / 21min 

Vallas demand for $16,500 in extra taxpayer funds succeeds

Paul Vallas will be getting an extra $16,500 from Bridgeport and Connecticut taxpayers thanks to last night’s 5-4 vote of the Bridgeport Board of Education.  After heavy lobbying from Mayor Bill Finch and Vallas supporters, newly elected board member Democrat Dave Hennessey, who was part of the successful anti-Finch challenge slate in last September’s Democratic […]The post Vallas demand for $16,5

4 by jonpelto / 2h

1-13-14 Wait What?

Wait What?: Malloy administration action raises more ethics questions…Stefan Pryor, Governor Malloy’s Commissioner of Education, is no stranger to ethics issues. Pryor and his operatives at the State Department of Education are now engaged in activities that raise even more potential ethics violations. As reported yesterday in a post entitled, “Pryor schedules Corporate Education Reform Industry L

by mike simpson / 9h 

1-14-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education:

Most of Stewart’s Common Core Changes “Just Add Clarity”

Respected conservative education blogger, Shane Vander Hart, doesn’t think much of that changes Florida education commissioner made to Florida’s Common Core Standard and  poked holes in the process Stewart and the FLDOE used. The commenting period ordered by Florida Governor Rick Scott ended on 10/31/14.  The comments were supposedly evaluated and standards rewritten in 2 1/2 months (over the hol

by Bob Sikes / 36min 

Florida’s Cut and Paste Education Standards

A cryptic question came from a Common Core supporter today during the FLDOE’s workshop to explain Florida’s standards which we told are “truly our own.” Kathleen McGrory of the Miami Herald reports for the Times/Herald Tallahasee Bureau: Only a handful of people asked questions during Tuesday morning’s workshop on the proposed revisions to the Common Core State Standards. One question was technica

by Bob Sikes / 49min 

Michelle Rhee’s Florida Rep Says No Parent Trigger This Year

From Gradebook’s Jeff Solochek: A national advocacy group that in recent years has pressured Florida lawmakers to adopt the controversial “parent trigger” school takeover plan will not push that initiative again in 2014. Instead, StudentsFirst will spend its political capital urging the Legislature to improve the state’s financial reporting so that families can see clearly how spending is tied to

by Bob Sikes / 3h 

1-13-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: Skepticism in the Florida Senate on Common Core Roll-OutPam Stewart will be back at the legislature to deliver Florida’s own set of Common Core Standards, but it’s quite clear that senators on both sides of the aisle are skeptical of her being able to deliver on the enti

by mike simpson / 9h

Jacob Riis, School Reformer - Dana Goldstein

Jacob Riis, School Reformer - Dana Goldstein:

Jacob Riis, School Reformer

Essex Market School, the East Side. By Jacob Riis, ca. 1888-1895.

I just caught this poignant essay at the New York Times about How the Other Half Lives, Jacob Riis' 1890 exposé of day-to-day life in New York City tenements. Bill de Blasio mentioned Riis during his inaugural address, and the book -- which depicted urban squalor through vivid, flash photography (a new technology at the time) -- is credited with sparking the movement toward modern sanitation laws and housing regulations. 

What's less well known is that Riis' exploration of poverty in New York City turned him into an education reformer -- one who sounded a whole lot like today's teacher accountability hawks. His follow-up to How the Other Half Lives was a volume called The Children of the Poor. Here's a litte excerpt from my forthcoming book, The Teacher Wars (Doubleday, Sept. 2014), about the familiar arguent Riis made in that book:

Riis acknowledged the systemic constraints on immigrant children’s lives. The United States lacked strong anti-child labor laws and relied mostly on overextended local charities, many with a proselytizing 

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 1-14-14

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog:

Problems With the New Kings Arena

    To be fair, I'm not a fan of the Sacramento King's, but that doesn't mean that I am against them.  I don't believe that building a new arena downtown is going to solve any local problems, nor do I think it is right to carry out these plans without consulting those who live and work in the immediate area. They are the ones who will be immediate effected, so why not ask for a vote? Some of  City

by Carlos Cruz / 8h 

 

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 1-1314

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: $1 Trillion Spending BillVery recently ,negotiators of the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives has decided on a one trillion dollar spending bill in hopes of preventing another government shutdown until October. This new appropriation bill provides money in order to operate the federal government and it excludes social services and foreign military operations;

by mike simpson / 8h 

1-14-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL:

This Week’s Round-Up Of Good Posts & Articles On Education Policy

Here are some recent useful posts on education policy issues: Garbage In, Garbage Out: Or, How to Lie with Bad Data is from Medium. I’m adding it to The Best Resources Showing Why We Need To Be “Data-Informed” & Not “Data-Driven.” Fight over school funding starts Thursday is from The San Francisco Chronicle, and gives an excellent overview of California ed policy issues. On Listing Education

by Larry Ferlazzo / 40min 

Quote Of The Day: “John Wooden: An English Teacher Who Happened To Be A Hoops Legend”

John Wooden: An English Teacher Who Happened To Be A Hoops Legend is a great interview with a biographer of John Wooden. Here’s an excerpt:

by Larry Ferlazzo / 40min 

Video On Cesar Chavez

This is a good, short video on Cesar Chavez. It won’t be controversial in states like our which already have an official Cesar Chavez holiday. However, at its end, it does push for President Obama to declare March 31 as the Cesar Chavez National Day of Service, so teachers should use their judgement on whether to use it in class. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Learning About Cesar Chavez.

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1h 

TED Talks Unveils TED-Ed Clubs For Students

TED Talks has just unveiled a new program called TED-Ed Clubs. I’ve embedded a video below about it but, basically, it’s designed to encourage young people to create their own versions of a TED Talk through starting a school club. Helping students develop better speaking skills is great but, I don’t know about you, but I get tired just thinking of helping start and teach an after-school TED-Ed Cl

by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h 

Parent Engagement Is The Topic Of My Newest Ten Minute Podcast

How Do We Increase Involvement Among Parents Who Are Already Overwhelmed? is the title of my newest ten minute BAM! Radio podcast. I talk with Mai Xi Lee and Darcy Hutchins about the topic, and I’ll be publishing their written responses on Sunday at my Education Week Teacher blog.

by Larry Ferlazzo / 3h 

Here’s What My IB Theory Of Knowledge Students Are Doing For Their Semester “Final”

I’ve previously posted what my ELL Geography students and what my ELL History students (as well as my mainstream ninth-grade classes) are doing for their semester finals next week. I’ve also published what my ELL students are doing for their English “final.” I thought some readers might also be interested in what my IB Theory of Knowledge students are doing for theirs, too. I’ve picked what I thi

by Larry Ferlazzo / 3h 

Several Useful New Resources On Encouraging Intrinsic Motivation

Here are several new additions to The Best Posts & Articles On “Motivating” Students: What does neuroscience research say about motivation and the brain? is by Judy Willis. PISA 2012 Results in Focus: What 15-year-olds know and what they can do with what they know includes some very useful information, including this: Better teacher-student relations are strongly associated w greater student

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1h hide  //  save

YESTERDAY

A Couple Of Good Articles On Deliberate Practice

Here are two recent good articles on Deliberate Practice that are useful if you’re using the deliberate practice lesson found in one of my books, or if you just want to learn more about it: Perfect Practice Makes Perfect by Daniel Goleman might be the best short and accessible article on the concept that I’ve found. I’m definitely using it with my students. WHY “DELIBERATE PRACTICE” IS THE ONLY W

by Larry Ferlazzo / 8h 

1-13-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: My Latest NY Times Post: Learning Prepositions & Using Badly Translated Signs For Language LearningMy latest New York Times post for English Language Learners is on prepositions AND language-learning with badly translated signs. It includes a student interactive and teaching ideas. You might also be interested in The Be

by mike simpson / 8h 

1-14-14 Jersey Jazzman

Jersey Jazzman:

@GovChristie's Bridgegate Distraction: Shafting Students and Teachers

Whenever Chris Christie needs a distraction, he goes to his fallback position: screwing teachers, students, and schools: Republican Gov. Chris Christie, dealing with a political payback scandal that threatens to damage his second term, intends to unveil a plan to increase the amount of time children spend in public school in his State of the State message on Tuesday.The governor, widely seen as a

41 by Duke / 1h  

1-12-14 Jersey Jazzman

Jersey Jazzman: Normalizing "Plausible Deniability"I don't normally watch the Sunday talk shows... but how could I not this week? All Christie, all the time.The big question the punditocracy seems to care about now is "What did Christie know and when did he know it?" That's fine, to a point -- but it's also a problem. Because it sets a default position for Christie, and every o

by mike simpson / 7h