Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Nite Cap 6-18-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2



James Baldwin said it best: 

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."


A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP




Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform | Bill Ayers
Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform | Bill Ayers: Teacher Tenure and Corporate ReformAnalogy Test:High-stakes, standardized testing is to learning as:a). memorizing a flight manual is to flyingb). watching Hawaii Five-O is to doing detective workc). exchanging marriage vows is to a successful marriaged). reading Gray’s Anatomy is to practicing surgerye). singing the national anthem is to good citi
by mike simpson / 10min 
Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger
Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger: Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave NewarkMayor-elect Ras Baraka                Newark’s mayor-elect, Ras Baraka, said he is still determined to remove state-imposed schools superintendent Cami Anderson—and he believes state Education Commission
by mike simpson / 53min 
“Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy? | Taking Note
“Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy? | Taking Note: “Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy?by JOHN MERROW on 18. JUN, 2014 in 2014 BLOGSWhy did thousands and thousands of students opt out of standardized testing this spring? Which tests did they choose to skip? And how did school leaders react? Did they punish, ignore, or–horrors–reward the protesting students?Opt out numbers are hard to co
by mike simpson / 1h 
6-18-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: From A Horse’S Mouth:FROM A HORSE’S MOUTH:.2 by David Greene / 55min 6-17-14 @ The Chalk Face@ THE CHALK FACE: PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”. via PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”.1 by plthomasedd / 1h hide  //  saveNCTQ: “their remedies are part of the disease”NCTQ: “their remedies a
by mike simpson / 3h 
We Party Patriots » Going Postal: Mackinac Center’s Anti-Union Teacher Coercion Campaign Hits Michigan Mailboxes
We Party Patriots » Going Postal: Mackinac Center’s Anti-Union Teacher Coercion Campaign Hits Michigan Mailboxes: Going Postal: Mackinac Center’s Anti-Union Teacher Coercion Campaign Hits Michigan Mailboxes   Teachers across the state of Michigan this week are receiving postcards from the anti-union Mackinac Center suggesting they use their summer vacation to opt out of the Michigan Education Asso
by mike simpson / 4h 
6-18-14 The Whole Child Blog — dentifying Technology to Support Differentiation
The Whole Child Blog — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGIdentifying Technology to Support DifferentiationJune 18, 2014 by ASCD Whole Child BloggersPost written by Melinda Sota, Ben Clarke, Nancy Nelson, Christian Doabler, and Hank FienEducational technology is compelling, largely because of its promising capability in enabling differentiated instruction. In a classroom of 30 students wit
by mike simpson / 4h 
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-18-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: LAUSD BOARD REAPPOINTS MAGRUDER TO BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE: 3 stories+2¢LAUSD reappoints member of bond oversight panel after uproar Stuart Magruder, reappointed to LAUSD bond panel, was accused of intruding on instructional decisions Howard Blume | LA Times http://lat.ms/1phTm56 Students at a Los Angeles Unified school are seen playing with their dist
by mike simpson / 4h 
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Chicago's 'School Deserts'
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Chicago's 'School Deserts': Chicago's 'School Deserts'Brandon Johnson is deputy political director of the Chicago Teachers Union, and heads its Black Caucus. He posts this solid piece on Labor Notes, "‘School Deserts’ Hit Chicago’s Black Neighborhoods".Black students and Black educators have shouldered the weight of nearly 20 years of school closings, as ma
by mike simpson / 4h 
Vergara v. California: Concerns Beyond Teachers |
Vergara v. California: Concerns Beyond Teachers |: Vergara v. California: Concerns Beyond Teachers I received this “public letter” via email and felt compelled to share it with you all. It is written by Ed Johnson, “Advocate for Quality in Public Education” and devotee of W. Edwards Deming. It is about the quite honestly shameful testimony of Harvard Economics Professor Raj Chetty (the source of p
by mike simpson / 5h 
6-18-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Morning Read: Legislature votes on school bond bill todayState school bond faces critical vote today With a key committee vote set for today on legislation that would place a $9 billion, statewide school facilities bond on the November ballot, one group backing the proposal is already nearly a third of th
by mike simpson / 5h 
Opinion: Blaming Tenure May Be Free But it's a Cheap Shot - WNYC
Opinion: Blaming Tenure May Be Free But it's a Cheap Shot - WNYC: Opinion: Blaming Tenure May Be Free But it's a Cheap ShotWednesday, June 18, 2014 - 12:18 PMBy TIM CLIFFORDSharePrintEmailEnlarge(cybrarian77/flickr)The big buzz in education circles is the recent decision in California by Judge Treu eviscerating tenure for teachers on the grounds that it is discriminatory for poor and underprivileg
by mike simpson / 5h 
6-18-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Corrections and UpdatesCorrections I misspoke when I said that Jackie Bezos was Jeff Bezos' wife.  She is his mother.  She is the president of his family foundation.  I reported that two members of the Advanced Learning Committee were at the C&I meeting last week but I missed the name of one person.  That was Jeanne Thompson, the chair, who spoke at the meeting
by mike simpson / 5h 
The ‘common’ in Common Core fractures as state support falters | Hechinger Report
The ‘common’ in Common Core fractures as state support falters | Hechinger Report: The ‘common’ in Common Core fractures as state support faltersBy Alexandria NeasonThe Common Core’s main selling point was that new, shared standards would ensure American students were learning at the same rates across state lines. Common standards – linked to common tests – would tell schools in Illinois how they
by mike simpson / 7h 
Morning Wink 6-18-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSEducation Research Report: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All LevelsEducation Research Report: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All Levels: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All LevelsStudents from Immigrant Families Particularly AffectedAs California recovers from a severe budget crisis
by mike simpson / 7h 
Education Research Report: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All Levels
Education Research Report: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All Levels: California's Education Systems Face Critical Choices at All LevelsStudents from Immigrant Families Particularly AffectedAs California recovers from a severe budget crisis that hit immigrant students particularly hard, policymakers and education leaders face critical choices with respect to financing, imp
by mike simpson / 7h 
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 6-18-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Shocker: Obama Administration Proposes “Race to Top” Model for Indian Tribal SchoolsIn a bold effort to reorganize the tribal schools run by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Obama administration proposes a competition for funding based on Race to the Top. “A revamped BIE, as envisioned in the proposal, would eventually giv
by mike simpson / 7h 
6-18-14 Ed Notes Online Week
Ed Notes Online: What's Up Today, June 18, 2014: Jose Vilson, NYCEducator on Class Size, RBE on Abusive PrincipalsA quick reminder about tonight's: MORE, Change the Stakes Sponsor Jose Vilson Book Conversation in InwoodStill in Cape Cod at FIRST robotics conference so I can't make it. (I have so much to write about being with hundreds of people from all over the world and most states. And if your
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Schools Matter All Week #StopJebNow
Schools Matter: #StopJebNowA clip from the Wall Street Journal:Education policy was Jeb Bush’s political salvation. After his first bid for Florida governor in 1994 ended in defeat, he threw himself into founding the state’s first charter school in a blighted Miami neighborhood. He went on to serve two terms as the state’s “education governor” and become a national policy expert.Twenty years later
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy
Wait What?: Wait What? Insurance Executives Win; Citizens and Mental Health Advocates LoseAt the end of May, Governor Dannel “Dan” Malloy stunned healthcare advocates when he vetoed an important bill that would have required insurance companies to provide data about how much substance abuse coverage and related mental health care they are actually providing Connecticut residents. The legislation w
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Answer Sheet
Answer Sheet: Sarcasm, Scarlett Johannson and why machines should never grade student writingCan machines really grade essays as well as humans? Naturally, there is a study that says they can (there are studies saying just about everything), but a number of experts say otherwise. Here’s one of them, writing about why the machines are inferior graders and should not be used. It was written by Maja
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Wall Street and public pensions. A license to steal.North Carolina has the 7th largest public pension fund in the United States. It has one trustee. She is the State Treasurer Democrat Janet Crowell. Before becoming State Treasurer she was  the marketing director for the tech-focused firm SJF Ventures
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: The Best Articles (And Blog Posts) Offering Practical Advice & Resources To Teachers In 2014 – So FarI continue my mid-year “The Best…” lists… The title of this “The Best…” list is pretty self-explanatory. What you’ll find here are blog posts and articles this year (some written by me, some by others) that were, in my o
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Curmudgucation Week
CURMUDGUCATION: Inauthentic Reading AssessmentDoes it seem as if test writers come up with the most obscure, boring, reading-resistant passages possible for standardized test? It's not just you. It's a deliberate choice, and not necessarily an ill-intended one, but the result is a completely unreal inauthentic reading experience that real humans don't have anywhere except on standardized tests.One
by mike simpson / 8h 
6-18-14 Perdido Street School Week
Perdido Street School: Cuomo's "Fix" For APPR Teacher Evaluation Is No Fix At AllUnder Cuomo's reported "fix" for his APPR teacher evaluation system that holds teachers accountable for tests that don't count for students, teachers will still receive low ratings - there will just be a "safety net" on the forced firings:Under a proposal that Gov. Cuomo is supporting in
by mike simpson / 8h 
empathyeducates – Tenure Is Not the Problem
empathyeducates – Tenure Is Not the Problem: Tenure Is Not the ProblemBeing Class and Colormute will not better education. Blaming Teacher Tenure for any lack in our schools is also not a solution. Let us discuss a very real problem, and what we can do about segregation.Photograph Courtesy of ShutterstockTenure is Not the ProblemTeacher protections are not why poor schools are failing. Segregation
by mike simpson / 8h 
Sowing Empathy and Justice in Schools Through Restorative Practices | NEA Today
Sowing Empathy and Justice in Schools Through Restorative Practices | NEA Today: Sowing Empathy and Justice in Schools Through Restorative PracticesJune 18, 2014 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Mary Ellen FlanneryThe kid wants to serve the volleyball, but his high school classmates ignore him. “Shut up!” he pleads, but they carry on—laughing as if he said nothin
by mike simpson / 8h 
NYC Educator: On Class Size--Night and Day
NYC Educator: On Class Size--Night and Day: On Class Size--Night and DayI taught two double-period classes this year. One had 32 kids and the other had 14.I had a great year with both of them, to tell the truth. But they had quite different characters. The prime difference was that the large afternoon class required a lot of handling. I go quiet when I'm not happy. I stare the class down until we
by mike simpson / 8h 

YESTERDAY

6-17-14 Jersey Jazzman - Teachers & Students Ask: Will @GovChristie's Office Be Air-Conditioned This Week?
Jersey Jazzman: Teachers & Students Ask: Will @GovChristie's Office Be Air-Conditioned This Week?It was hot in Central Jersey today, and it looks like most of the state will be in the 90's tomorrow. This heat is potentially dangerous: an advisory is in effect until tomorrow night all through South Jersey. The National Weather Service says:A HEAT ADVISORY MEANS THAT A PERIOD OF HOT TEMPERATURES
by mike simpson / 18h 
for the love of learning: This will be my last year teaching in the hospital -- here are 3 things I learned
for the love of learning: This will be my last year teaching in the hospital -- here are 3 things I learned: This will be my last year teaching in the hospital -- here are 3 things I learnedThis will be my last year teaching in a children's psychiatric assessment unit. Next school year, I will be moving to a middle school where I will be teaching grade 6 language arts, grade 6 social studies and g
by mike simpson / 19h 
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Gets A Mention | New Haven Independent
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Gets A Mention | New Haven Independent: He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Gets A MentionBY Melissa Bailey | JUN 17, 2014 4:58 PMPost a Comment | E-mail the AuthorPosted to: Schools, State, Campaign 2014MELISSA BAILEY PHOTOWeingarten with Peletier at Tuesday’s convention.The head of a national teachers union praised a “dear friend” and third-party candidate who was barred from addre
by mike simpson / 21h 
Weingarten endorses Malloy, says Connecticut should not let Koch brothers take it
Weingarten endorses Malloy, says Connecticut should not let Koch brothers take it: Weingarten endorses Malloy, says Connecticut should not let Koch brothers take itRandi Weingarten and Garth Harries after AFL-CIO convention in New Haven NEW HAVEN >> Randi Weingarten, the national president of the American Federation of Teachers, told an enthusiastic group of union members Tuesday that the only way
by mike simpson / 21h 
Nite Cap 6-17-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
James Baldwin said it best: "For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAPExplained Variation Is Not A Measure of Importance | Paul BrunoExplained Variation Is Not A Measure of Importance | Paul Bruno: Explained Variation Is Not A Measure of ImportanceBy PAUL BRUNO | Published: JUNE 17, 2014Back in early April the Amer
by mike simpson / 23h 





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Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform | Bill Ayers

Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform | Bill Ayers:



Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform


Analogy Test:

High-stakes, standardized testing is to learning as:

a). memorizing a flight manual is to flying

b). watching Hawaii Five-O is to doing detective work

c). exchanging marriage vows is to a successful marriage

d). reading Gray’s Anatomy is to practicing surgery

e). singing the national anthem is to good citizenship

f). all of the above



On June 10, 2014, Judge Rolf M. Treu of Los Angeles Superior Court ruled that current teacher tenure laws deprive students of their right to an education under California’s constitution.Vergara v. Californiawas cast as a group of poor kids suing the state to get rid of bad teachers under the banner of an advocacy group called Students Matter, a not-for-profit founded by Silicon Valley billionaire David Welch in order to bankroll his multimillion dollar lawsuit.

Vergara was immediately hailed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan as an opportunity and “a mandate to fix these problems.” Give Arne Duncan credit for consistency: he called Hurricane Katrina “the best thing that happened to the education system in New Orleans” because it swept the slate clean and folks could just start over (never mind those Black bodies piled in the corner), and in 2010 he applauded the school board in Central Falls, RI, the most densely populated and one of the poorest cities in the state, for firing every teacher, guidance counselor, and the principal at the high school because of poor performance. “This is hard work and these are tough decisions,” Duncan said at the time. “But students only have one chance for an Teacher Tenure and Corporate Reform | Bill Ayers:
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Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger

Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger:



Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark

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Mayor-elect Ras Baraka
Mayor-elect Ras Baraka
                Newark’s mayor-elect, Ras Baraka, said he is still determined to remove state-imposed schools superintendent Cami Anderson—and he believes state Education Commissioner David Hespe will help him do it.
                “Ultimately, if she was smart she would just leave on her own,” Baraka said in an interview. “And if she really cared about the city, she would leave on her own. But I think that cooler heads will prevail and we will get together and begin to strategize how we can move the city forward with a new superintendent and a plan that is working  for every body.”
                Baraka, who takes office July 1, said he has discussed Anderson’s removal with Hespe. The mayor-elect, who ran on a campaign of ousting Anderson and stopping the controversial “One Newark” enrollment plan, said the commissioner has sent investigators into the city schools to review what Anderson is doing.
                “They have a team down here reviewing what’s going on in the city —we’re hoping  that they will come to the very obvious conclusion that the superintendent is actually an impediment to the growth of the city and not a catalyst for it,” said Baraka, who defeated a pro-Anderson mayoral candidate, Shavar Jeffries, a faculty member at Seton Hall Law School, 54 percent to 46 percent May 13.
                The new mayor, on leave as principal of Newark’s Central High School, said he was aware that, in the last few days, Anderson fired a number of school principals. Yesterday, she announced the hiring of eight new principals and also has declared Hawthorne Avenue School a so-called “renew school.”
                That would mean its principal, H. Grady James, and the rest of the staff at the school would be let go and have to reapply for their jobs. Just a few days ago, parent Mayor-elect Baraka says “cooler heads will prevail” and Cami Anderson will leave Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger:

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“Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy? | Taking Note

“Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy? | Taking Note:



“Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy?

by JOHN MERROW on 18. JUN, 2014 in 2014 BLOGS


Why did thousands and thousands of students opt out of standardized testing this spring? Which tests did they choose to skip? And how did school leaders react? Did they punish, ignore, or–horrors–reward the protesting students?
Opt out numbers are hard to come by. I have seen estimates ranging from 30,000 to 300,000 in just one state, New York. Even though the plural of ‘anecdote’ is not ‘data,’ it’s pretty clear that the opt-out phenomenon is tangible, real and growing.
Identifying the adult players in this battle is an interesting challenge. Some are Tea Party types who are opposed to anything–not just in education–that smacks of ‘big government.’ Here’s one website. This faction of “opt out” is way out on the right politically.
The left has an “opt out” faction as well, albeit less organized. For them, opting out is a way of protesting what they see as the excessive influence of large corporations in our schools, with the testing company Pearson often being singled out for criticism and scorn.[1]
With the blessing of the New York State Department of Education, Pearson has been “field testing” questions at about 4,100 schools. For those students it’s another day of testing, in addition to the six days of state-mandated, high-stakes tests. Some parents have refused to let their children take these additional tests, as Juan Gonzalez of the New York Daily News has reported.
Gonzalez believes that the extra tests won’t produce any reliable data because the kids know these extra tests don’t count and therefore don’t take them seriously.
When New York State signed with Pearson to let that company try out its tests on certain students, it reminded some critics of an earlier time in America’s history when landowners could assign their “Sit and Stare” to Prepare for Democracy? | Taking Note:
UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform
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6-18-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:





Details on La. Gov. Jindal’s Common Core and PARCC Exit
In a press release on June 18, 2014, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal made a number of statements regarding Louisiana’s participation in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the associated Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)– one of two assessment consortia (groups of states) connected to the CCSS. Some have questioned whether […]
2 by deutsch29 / 1h 


What do you want to be when you grow up? Our kindergartners at Malcolm X.
How will the PARCC prepare these kids to be a superhero or an “ice princess.” Huh.
1 by Shaun Johnson / 20min

Why Parents Should Not Fear Teacher Tenure
WHY PARENTS SHOULD NOT FEAR TEACHER TENURE. Now co-authored with NYS paren’t leader, Glen Dalgleish.
1 by David Greene / 28min h

BREAKING NEWS: Louisiana Governor Jindal Drops PARCC and Common Core
Jindal just finished a press conference. His words, summarized: PARCC selection did not comply with La state law requiring a bidding process– this voids PARCC agreement. Jindal has asked for a financial audit of PARCC spending and an open, competitive bidding process for assessment. He said that suspending PARCC is what he was able to do immediately via executive order. […]
by deutsch29 / 1min 

From A Horse’S Mouth:
FROM A HORSE’S MOUTH:.
2 by David Greene / 55min 


6-17-14 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”. via PREVIEW: New Film Opening June 17, 2014 – “NCTQ Hill”.1 by plthomasedd / 1h hide  //  saveNCTQ: “their remedies are part of the disease”NCTQ: “their remedies are part of the disease”. via NCTQ: “their remedies are part of the disease”.2 by plthomasedd / 1h 6-16-14 @ The
by mike simpson / 26min 




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