6-19-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum:

Common Core; Who Knew?

Polling.  Our country loves this stuff.  Naturally, for anyone who has taken a decent high school civics class (or sociology/poly sci course in college), we all know to take polling with a grain of salt. Depends on who does it, who paid for it (not always the same) and, most of all, the shaping of the questions.  Nowhere is this more visible than in polling around Common Core. The most hilarious p

by Melissa Westbrook / 9min 

I Must Be Blind

I must be blind because I can't see what the Seattle Times editorial board sees when they look at the legislature's response to the McCleary decision.They say that the McCleary ruling has already done a lot of good. I'm not seeing that. What good has this ruling done? The legislature is no closer to fully funding public K-12 education now than they were when the ruling was made. So what good has t

by Charlie Mas / 8h 

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 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: VALLAS/RAUNER, 2 PEAS IN A POD

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: VALLAS/RAUNER, 2 PEAS IN A POD:

VALLAS/RAUNER, 2 PEAS IN A POD

Thanks to S-T's Dan Mihalopoulos for stating the obvious.

When it comes to some of the most important issues in education today, Quinn’s running mate in the November election — the former Chicago Public Schools chief executive Paul Vallas — appears to have plenty in common with Rauner.

 Effective or not, what Vallas did during the many years between leaving CPS and returning home to run for Illinois lieutenant governor seems very much in line with what Rauner says he would love to see more of here.

While Rauner continues to be portrayed by state union leaders as the worst of two evils in the upcoming governor's race (and he may well be), it's hard for me to imagine him doing anything worse than what Vallas has already done, including the post-Katrina charterizing and privatizing the entire school district of New Orleans, busting the teachers union and firing each and every teacher in the district. Black teachers made up 73% of the workforce in New Orleans, and Vallas' mass firings further devastated the city's black community after the hurricane. Vallas went on to replace them with mostly-white, lower-paid, non-union, 5-week wonders from TFA.

Mihalopoulos writes:

But a spokeswoman for the Quinn-Vallas campaign declined repeated requests for an interview about his time in New Orleans, Philadelphia and elsewhere.

That’s too bad. Teachers at least should demand to know why Quinn, who 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: VALLAS/RAUNER, 2 PEAS IN A POD:

6-19-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:

John White’s PARCC Contract Problems

In January 2005, I bought a house in Muncie, Indiana, to remodel. It was quite the adventure for a number of reasons, one of which was the creative ways that the previous owner managed to dodge making structurally-sound renovations. For example, the electrical system was in chaos. When the electrician opened up the breaker box, […]

1 by deutsch29 / 21min 

U.S. and Education Reform Need a Critical Free Press

U.S. and Education Reform Need a Critical Free Press. via U.S. and Education Reform Need a Critical Free Press.

2 by plthomasedd / 58min 

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

6-18-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University):

U.S. and Education Reform Need a Critical Free Press

Few things are worse than mainstream media coverage of education. Except for that sentence above, which stretches hyperbole beyond credibility. But that is exactly where the mainstream media finds itself when covering education. Journalists, in their quest to maintain the traditional commitment to “fair and balanced” journalism [1], consistently endorse and perpetuate organizations without credibi

6 by plthomasedd / 1h 

6-17-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): NCTQ: “their remedies are part of the disease”Accordingly, with admirable, though misdirected intentions, they very seriously and very sentimentally set themselves to the task of remedying the evils that they see. But their remedies do not cure the disease: they merely p

by mike simpson / 8h 

6-19-14 Curmudgucation Week

CURMUDGUCATION:

TNTP Evaluates NCTQ

It's a rare day when one titan reformsylvania decides to critique another's work, but that's what we have over at the TNTP blog, where Karolyn Belcher suggests that the NCTQ evaluation of teacher programs could use some tweaks. Mind you, they think that NCTQ is doing God's work, and doing it well. Their ratings will stir up controversy and "it's the right conversation to have on a critical is

3 by Peter Greene / 1h 

Lessons from EdCamp

Tom Murray, from the Alliance for Excellence in Education in DC, shared a "What I Learned at EdCamp" post over at the USDOE blog, and it's a striking study in how disconnected the work of the USDOE is from its words.Murray lists five takeaways from the DOE's convocation of teachers from all over the place.Relationships and Culture Matter at All LevelsPersonally, how will I foster relatio

1 by Peter Greene / 37min 

Another CCSS Writer Awakens

Psychology Today ran a great interview in January, talking to Dr. Louisa Moats, a psychologist, teacher, and researcher who was a contributing writer for the Common Core Standards, that is now making the rounds. The interview is worth reading in its entirety, but let me entice you with some highlights. And let me start by noting that David Coleman recruited Dr. Moats to work on the project, so thi

by Peter Greene / 6min 

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 

6-19-14 Perdido Street School Week

Perdido Street School:

Harlem Success Academy 1 Has 44% Graduation Rate, 56% Attrition Rate

Eva Moskowitz and her backers like to tout a 100% graduation rate at her schools, but as Norm Scott points out in an Ed Notes piece, it's not a 100% graduation rate when 56% of the students disappear from the school before graduation:The longer Success Charters are in business, the more they get exposed. This one is big. I'm sure the remaining 32 kids out of the 73 who began 8 years ago are fine.

by reality-based edu... / 4min 

Federal Prosecutor Closes In On Chris Christie

Big news out of Esquire:Paul Fishman, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, wades through the sewage of Christie’s stewardship. Two sources with intimate knowledge of the case say Fishman’s pace is quickening -- he has empaneled a second grand jury, and the U.S. Justice Department has sent assistant prosecutors and FBI agents to work the case.  “What’s taking the most time,” according to one source, “

by reality-based edu... / 7min 

Cuomo Tweaks APPR, Insists New York Remains A "Leader" In Holding Teachers Accountable

Capital Confidential details the program bill Cuomo released today, along with explanatory memo, that tweaks the APPR teacher evaluation system:Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s program bill tweaking teachers evaluations related to the Common Core rollout has been released. The legislation would for two years protect teachers or principals rated “ineffective” or “developing” if that score was due to poor perfor

by reality-based edu... / 39min 

How To Take On The Bullies On The Board Of Regents And At NYSED

Sandra Stotsky exhorted parents to not let themselves be bullied by the state educrats who are pushing the CCSS/Endless Testing agenda down the throats of children all over the state.But as Patrick Sullivan pointed out in a comment, it's difficult to bring about changes to the state's education policies when the Regents have the full support of the Democratic majority and NYSED Commissioner John K

by reality-based edu... / 6min

Sandra Stotsky: Don't Let Yourself Be Bullied By State Education Officials

Jessica Bakeman at Capital NY:ALBANY—A former Massachusetts state education official who has emerged as a national critic of the Common Core standards told parent-lobbyists at the Capitol on Tuesday that they should fight for their rights and empower their older children as activists. Sandra Stotsky, who helped developed Massachusetts' academic standards when she served as association commissioner

by reality-based edu... / 57min hide  //  save

Why Hasn't NYSED Commissioner John King Been Fired?

Statement yesterday from Governor Andrew M. Cuomo:“We’re working on a bill that would make adjustments to teacher evaluations,” Cuomo said at a news conference. “We’re literally working on them as we speak.”Cuomo added it’s the state Education Department’s roll out of Common Core, however, that has created the effect of needing to change the evaluation law, which is tied to Common Core-based testi

35 by reality-based edu... / 5h 

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 

Is Common Core Dead in Louisiana? | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

Is Common Core Dead in Louisiana? | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

Crazy Crawfish's Blog

Zesty Louisiana Education Politics

Is Common Core Dead in Louisiana?

Posted on June 19, 2014

1

Yesterday Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal announced he was withdrawing from PARCC testing and pulling Louisiana out of Common Core because while we believe in high standards for our children, we do not believe in federally imposed one-size-fits-all standards. Almost immediately Louisiana Superintendent of Education John White and BESE President Chas Roemer released statements saying they were staying the course on implementing both PARCC and Common Core, regardless of Jindal’s declaration. This is where things get interesting. At the mundane level, both White and Roemer have asserted that Jindal has no power to prevent PARCC or Common Core form going forward or prevent BESE or LDOE from entering into exclusive multi-million dollar contracts that violated the state’s contract bidding laws. Jindal’s commissioner of Administration, Kristy Nichol’s stated the state would not be purchasing the Common Core tests and she temporarily suspended the contract with the state’s current testing vendor to ensure White did not direct them to buy the tests. I see this as an interesting chess match.

I knew this move by team Jindal was coming weeks ago, although I can’t disclose exactly how I knew it, and while I was actually surprised this happened on one level, I was completely expecting it. Watching how this happened behind the scenes has been very enlightening, but this was not an off-the-cuff maneuver, I assure you. The framework for this decision was being laid for weeks, if not months. Some folks pointed to White’s quick response as indication this is just a play put on for our benefit and for the benefit of the national stage and to garner some Fox News interviews. While I can’t say for sure that this is not pandering at some level, I don’t actually think that’s all this is. What’s more, I would not use White’s quick press release as proof that there is collusion on this issue. This move has been telegraphed for some time – probably to feel out the waters before taking the final plunge. I would have been more surprised if John White was caught flat-footed or if this withdrawal did not happen soon.

Listening to this Jindal speech I admit I was a little impressed by the lack of strained small-talk and superficial frills. It was different than more widely panned ones like his Kenneth the Page Is Common Core Dead in Louisiana? | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

1.17 Million Children in U.S. Survive on $2 per Day or Less | janresseger

1.17 Million Children in U.S. Survive on $2 per Day or Less | janresseger:

1.17 Million Children in U.S. Survive on $2 per Day or Less

Posted on June 19, 2014 by janresseger

We know how poverty among children constrains opportunity and affects school achievement, but it is difficult to consider what can be done. Yesterday’s NY Times published a short, comprehensive and extraordinarily moving column by Thomas Edsall, professor of journalism at Columbia University, about how our nation’s welfare policies have shaped poverty in the United States today: Cutting the Poor Out of Welfare.  I urge you to read it.

Edsall reports that even when the value of food stamps and the earned income and child care tax credits are calculated, there has been dramatic growth in the number of households in the United States in which each member of the family survives on $2 a day or less, “from 409,000 households in 1996, before passage of welfare reform, to 613,000 households in 2011, including 1.17 million children.”

It is difficult for most of us to sort out and remember how welfare policy has been shaped—the end of Aid to Families with Dependent Children in 1996 and its supposed replacement with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)—the impact of the earned income tax credit since its enactment in 1975—the passage of the child and dependent care tax credit in 1997 to provide childcare assistance for low-income and middle-income families—the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010.  Haven’t we helped our poorest citizens with these programs?  According to Edsall, our federal policies have reduced poverty overall, but they have not helped our most desperate families including over a million children.

Edsall concludes: when added together, these programs clearly benefit parents who are married and those who have been able to secure jobs, even low-income jobs.  “For the poorest of the poor, the results have been devastating:  in 1983,  56 percent of total government transfers going to the poor and near-poor went to those on the bottom, those making 50 percent or less of the federal poverty level income.  By 2004, that number had fallen to 32 percent.”  Overall, inflation-adjusted federal spending on the poor grew by 74 percent between 1975 and 2007, “But those on the lowest rungs of the ladder have seen their government benefits decline….”

Federal policy has been designed to require work, encourage marriage, and penalize those who, we imagine, lack initiative. Edsall reports, however, that the problem is neither primarily 1.17 Million Children in U.S. Survive on $2 per Day or Less | janresseger:

NYC Educator: Chalkbeat NY---All the Reformy News that Fits

NYC Educator: Chalkbeat NY---All the Reformy News that Fits:

Chalkbeat NY---All the Reformy News that Fits

I rarely read Chalkbeat anymore. I appreciate that they send me their Rise and Shine every morning, as I'm kind of an ed. news junkie, but I haven't got the time to plod through their ponderous site and figure out what is new, what is recycled, and what is just glitzy nonsense. The comments on the sidebar used to grab me, but they're not there anymore. Nonetheless, when I see links like this one on Facebook or Twitter, I check them out.

Apparently, a bunch of reformy folks got together and criticized the UFT Contract for not being draconian enough. I'm the first to credit the Chalkbeat staff for their keen perception of the obvious. Michelle Rhee's brainchild, TNTP, and whatever Rheeplacement leader they have determine it doesn't benefit kids. Chalkbeat offers typically trenchant commentary:

The criticism is unsurprising...

I imagine someone at Chalkbeat shouting stop the presses, even though it's a blog. Another brilliant pundit suggests that if the city pays teachers more, there will be less money to pay for other things. Naturally I'm amazed by his financial acumen, and grateful that Chalkbeat deemed his insight worth sharing. I would never have guessed if you spent money on one thing you could not spend it on another.

Yet another pundit suggests that people who have relationships sometimes disagree. I was poised to read about how the world would be better if people were nicer, but alas, no one saw fit to inform the reporter.

The thing that most amazed me, though, was that anyone sees a bunch of reformy people saying reformy things as news. Chalkbeat is the outfit that brought us the world-shattering news that 100 E4E members supported more work for less pay, or some other such thing. I actually asked whether anyone could send a petition signed by 100 people and have it merit a story. One of their writers said yes it did.

At the time, NYC was having ESL teachers grade English Regents exams of schools that contained high percentages of ESL students. My large school had more ESL students than many of those schools, but a lower percentage. I got 100 signatures asking that ESL teachers grade ESLNYC Educator: Chalkbeat NY---All the Reformy News that Fits: 

Details on La. Gov. Jindal’s Common Core and PARCC Exit | deutsch29

Details on La. Gov. Jindal’s Common Core and PARCC Exit | deutsch29:

Details on La. Gov. Jindal’s Common Core and PARCC Exit

June 18, 2014

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 Jindal is serious or just showcasing for the cameras.

He is serious.

Jindal Suspends PARCC

First, allow me to offer the text of the executive order that Jindal issued to the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) regarding the suspension of PARCC for the 2014-15 school year:

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. BJ 2014 – 6

BOARD OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION –

SUSPENSION OF STATEWIDE ASSESSMENT STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

RULE REVISIONS

 WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Article IV, Section 5 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, as amended, and La. R.S. 49:970, the Governor may issue an executive order which suspends any rule or regulation adopted by a state department, agency, board or commission within thirty days of adoption; and

 WHEREAS, on February 20, 2014, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education published a notice of intent in the Louisiana Register of proposed revisions to Bulletin 118—Statewide Assessment Standards and Practices (LAC 28:CXI.113); and

 WHEREAS, on May 20, 2014,  the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education published a final notice in the Louisiana Register to adopt revisions to Bulletin 118—Statewide Assessment Standards and Practices (LAC 28:CXI.113); and

 WHEREAS, the revisions to Bulletin 118—Statewide Assessment Standards and Practices (LAC 28:CXI.113), broadly construed, inappropriately 

Details on La. Gov. Jindal’s Common Core and PARCC Exit | deutsch29:

Seniority, Tenure and the Vergara Decision » CounterPunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names

Seniority, Tenure and the Vergara Decision » CounterPunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names:

An Appeal for Action

Seniority, Tenure and the Vergara Decision

by JACK GERSON and ANDY LIBSON

On June 10, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu issued a ruling that threatens to strike down California education code statutes protecting teacher due process rights, including seniority and “tenure”. The lawsuit on which Treu ruled, Vergara vs. California, was brought by nine California students, but it was supported by an array of corporate education “deform” forces, among them President Obama’s education secretary (Arne Duncan), the Los Angeles school district superintendent (John Deasey), a corporate-funded education “reform” group (Schools Matter) that has pushed anti-union initiatives in several other states, and a right-wing Silicon Valley billionaire foe of teacher unions (David Welch).

The Vergara lawsuitasserts that laws protecting more senior teachers in times of layoff cause the schools to keep “grossly ineffective teachers in classrooms while pushing highly effective, but less senior teachers out.”Judge Treu agreed, stating in his written decision: “The number of grossly ineffective teachers has a direct, real, appreciable, and negative impact on a significant number of California students. The evidence is compelling, indeed it shocks the conscience…ineffective teachers disproportionately impact low income and minority students and that getting rid of bad teachers is nearly impossible,”

The state’s largest teacher unions, the California Federation of Teachers (CFT) and the California Teachers Association (CTA), issued a joint statement describing the ruling as “misguided”. CFT President Josh Pechthalt said that far from protecting students of color in vulnerable urban districts, the ruling “is fundamentally anti-public education, scapegoating teachers for problems originating in underfunding, poverty, and economic inequality.”

This description of the ruling is only half right. There is no doubt that both the lawsuit and the decision are anti-public education, anti-union and fit entirely within the narrative of all that is wrong in public Seniority, Tenure and the Vergara Decision » CounterPunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names:

Parents want to convert closed Sacramento campus into charter school - Education - The Sacramento Bee

Parents want to convert closed Sacramento campus into charter school - Education - The Sacramento Bee:

Parents want to convert closed Sacramento campus into charter school

By Loretta Kalb

lkalb@sacbee.com

Published: Wednesday, Jun. 18, 2014 - 5:10 pm

A group of parents tonight will urge Sacramento City Unified trustees to approve a charter schoolat Joseph Bonnheim Elementary, one of seven campuses closed last year due to falling enrollment.

The petition – initiated by parents late last year – seeks to educate more than 320 K-6 students starting in the fall. The charter school would hire district teachers, administrators and classified staff subject to collective bargaining. That approach helped parents win support last month of the Sacramento City Teachers Association, which historically has been critical of charter schools.

Many backers of New Joseph Bonnheim Community Charter School opposed the elementaryschool closures, which predominantly affected lower-income neighborhoods with disadvantaged students. Before Bonnheim’s closure, 94 percent of students at the south Sacramento campus qualified for free or reduced price meals.

The school’s theme would be based on agriculture, drawing from the industry in the region. It touts support from agricultural organizations and educational institutions. The charter school also would pursue a “body-brain approach to teaching” that incorporates physical activity into academic exercises.

The educational plan, according to the petition, mirrors the Yav Pem Suab Academy on South Land Park Drive, which includes a Hmong language component. The academy was founded by Dennis Mah and approved as an independent charter in the district in 2010. Mah has offered to lend $300,000 in startup costs and to work pro bono at Bonnheim, he said.

New Joseph Bonnheim proponents initially submitted an application in December, but district staff recommended that the board reject the school. They said petitioners failed to adequately describe challenges facing the school’s target population, show an understanding of student needs or define approaches that would meet those needs. The board at the time voted to table the petition so that it could be retooled for reconsideration.

The latest petition has found similar district resistance. In a report Friday, staff reviewers found the proposed educational program lacked of clarity in governance and hiring matters. And they repeated warnings that the petitioners are unlikely to succeed in launching the charter school and did not meet state Education Code requirements in explaining programs.Parents want to convert closed Sacramento campus into charter school - Education - The Sacramento Bee:

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/06/18/6494392/parents-want-to-convert-closed.html#storylink=cpy

Who Is Protecting the Status Quo? | educarenow

Who Is Protecting the Status Quo? | educarenow:

Who Is Protecting the Status Quo?

Posted on April 23, 2013 | 1 Comment

When an educator questions the dominance of testing as a tool for school reform, you will often see that educator criticized for ‘protecting the status quo.’ As an example of this accusation, here is a link to a recent opinion piece in the Detroit News. The article supports the new Michigan Educational Achievement Authority, which is designed to be a turnaround program for the lowest 5% (as measured by test results) of the schools in that state. The headline reads, “Let’s Stop Protecting the Status Quo.” (Read the whole article for a flavor of the way test scores become the sole determinant of what constitutes a ‘failing’ school.)

The problem with this accusation is that actually, any attempt to improve schools through means that relies on its measurement of success via test data simply works to replicate social inequality. Thus, this accusation of ‘protecting the status quo’ is actually a Orwellian attempt to protect the status quo.

In Good Education in an Age of Measurement, Gert Biesta criticizes what he calls a “common sense view of what education is for,” a view that exists in the void of any broader frame of the “aims and ends of education.”

He writes,
“The prime example of such a ‘common sense’ view about the purpose of education is the idea that what matters most in education is academic Who Is Protecting the Status Quo? | educarenow: