Another Bizarre Day in Common Core Land: Name Calling and A Gates Funded Organization Wants to Know Your Opinion on CCSS | Missouri Education Watchdog

Another Bizarre Day in Common Core Land: Name Calling and A Gates Funded Organization Wants to Know Your Opinion on CCSS | Missouri Education Watchdog:

Another Bizarre Day in Common Core Land: Name Calling and A Gates Funded Organization Wants to Know Your Opinion on CCSS

inShare

Is a Wyoming survey to determine citizen CCSS opinion part of a revamped PR campaign by the supporters?

The CCSS supporters really want to know what you think about CCSS.  Really.  It only took them 4 1/2 years after the roll out to invite you to the table and ask your opinion, but be careful before you sit and partake.  Legislators and organizations supposedly want to know what you want, but be careful what/how you answer.  Those answers might be the basis of a new campaign to tell you why you really need them.  The above graphic comes from a presentation by Matt Gandal explaining the reason to up the PR campaign against those who oppose CCSS.  (Gandal’s power point presentation has been pulled from the Internet but visit the MEW link for the majority of the slides).

Why be cynical about legislators’ intentions to NOW ask how you feel about an educational reform plan that circumvented the political process and voters?  Let’s revisit how some legislators view your opinion.  The national media had a field day with Representative Mike Lair in Missouri when he inserted $8.00 into the budget for tin foil.  This was a nudge to the citizens to cease and desist who were raising concern about the Common Core State Standards Initiative at the statehouse during the last legislative session.  National Review Online titled its article about Representative’s Lair attempt at humor: Is This Guy America’s Most Arrogant State Lawmaker?

Rep. Lair might have earned that title for his smug marginalization of those who ask questions of their governmental officials and bureaucrats.  As in any contest, along with the winner, there are runner-ups.  Here is a state legislator who may have seen Lair crowned as the most arrogant and he wants to join the pageant of politicians who slap labels on constituents in an attempt to ridicule Another Bizarre Day in Common Core Land: Name Calling and A Gates Funded Organization Wants to Know Your Opinion on CCSS | Missouri Education Watchdog:

The Kid I Didn’t Kill (Ellie Herman) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

The Kid I Didn’t Kill (Ellie Herman) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

The Kid I Didn’t Kill (Ellie Herman)

Taken from “About” in Herman’s blog:

My name is Ellie Herman.  If you want to find out what I’m doing here and why, click here on why I’m writing this blog.  I’ve been working on this project since the beginning of September….

As for my bio, I’m a writer and English teacher.  From 2007 to 2013, I taught Drama, Advanced Drama, Creative Writing, English 11 and 9th grade Composition at a charter high school in South Los Angeles.

Before that, I was a writer/producer for many TV shows, including The Riches, Desperate Housewives, Chicago Hope and Newhart.  My fiction has appeared in many literary journals, including The Massachusetts Review, The Missouri Review and the O.Henry Awards Collection.

I attended public schools in Winnetka, Illinois from kindergarten through high school and graduated from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in English.  I have a teaching credential from Cal State Northridge.  My three children attended Oakwood School, a private school in the San Fernando Valley.  My husband, David Levinson, is a writer who runs the non-profit Big Sunday.  Our basset hound, Lou, appears ineducable, having channeled all of his energy into his good looks.  We live in Los Angeles.

Posted on September 26, 2013

I once ran over a student in the parking lot.  Gio was standing in front of my car, waving, grinning and doing a little hopping dance in apparent joy at seeing me, which made no sense because only an hour earlier he had brought my entire class to a standstill by taking a half-eaten pear and mashing it into the The Kid I Didn’t Kill (Ellie Herman) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

Organizing and Action - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform

Organizing and Action - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform:

Organizing and Action

BY MORNA MCDERMOTT · JULY 17, 2014

Don’t let summer pass us by! Now is a great time to begin organzing actions locally and nationally before the next school year begins. UOO state by state are currently being updated and will be ready for fall 2014! Start planning your local/state opt out letter writing parties today.

UOO suggests some of the following guidelines to help move forward in the fight to take back our schools and our children from the grips of corporate interests. It can feel overwhelming and defeating at times. But we know that this fight is win-able. We have to focus, organize and determine what actions are best. here are some tips (also see organizing chart link here):

1) Where to begin? Sometimes parents, teachers and other community members will stop before they even get started because the whole mess just feels so damn overwhelming!

2) To better understand how we are all connected. Its a Catch 22 really. Politicians and legislators are the ones with the power to write bills that end bad policy and initiate good ones. But politicians are motivated by voters. Parents, teachers and community members must put weight on politicians to get them to do anything! Most of them are either woefully uninformed or bought out by corporate interests. So they need educating and serious pressure from us, and;

3) Focusing not only on what we are against but what we are FOR. Effective strategy includes a vision of what we want! And taking steps to manifest it.

The chart itself is rather simple. Here are some suggestions for things to insert into the chart (or to consider):

Who are the People in Your Neighborhood? (sung to a jaunty tune):  Now, what “we” want depends on the “we.” Generally speaking its the real stakeholders: Children in public schools, parents, and members of the local communities most affected by the changes to their public school systems. For example, in your state or district are parents, teachers and communities of color being silenced, sold out, or colonized? (note: this is most likely “yes” where ever you throw a dart at the US map…) Who must have a voice and input for change to be meaningful and effective? Do you have a strong teachers union? Parent organizations? Involvement from Organizing and Action - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform:

Assets or Liabilities? | Taking Note

Assets or Liabilities? | Taking Note:

Assets or Liabilities?

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

If you ask professional educators in a public forum whether they view parents as assets or liabilities, the answers will vary only in decibel level: “Assets,” “Our greatest asset,” “invaluable partners,” and so forth.  But what if you caught them off guard, late at night after a few drinks, say?

Or, better yet, what if you simply examined how most schools treat parents?

In my experience, most administrators and many teachers hold parents in low regard, and their behavior and policies reflect that.

Perhaps that’s an inevitable consequence of attempting to elevate education to a high-status profession.  “After all, you wouldn’t expect a heart surgeon to consult with a child’s parents before replacing a ruptured valve and saving the child’s life,” the thinking goes, as if the work of educating a child were the equivalent of complex surgery.

It seems to me that most schools push parents away in subtle and not-so-subtle ways.  There’s the once-a-year “Back to School Night” and perhaps a “Parent Involvement Committee’ or a “Parent Advisory Board” that meets occasionally with the Principal.  Many schools expect parents to hold bake sales, auctions and fundraising drives (which can be a large chunk of a school’s budget these days) but that doesn’t treat parents as partners in their children’s education.

Unfortunately, it’s the rare educator who says “We cannot do a good job of educating your child without Assets or Liabilities? | Taking Note:

For Sam Pirozzolo Seven Years is Magic southbronxschool

http://www.southbronxschool.com:

For Sam Pirozzolo Seven Years is Magic

Lately on these pages we have been sharing the comedy stylings of Sam Pirozzolo, president of CEC 31 and optical store owner in Queens.

Yesterday we shared how Sam claimed that 80% of students are unable to read or write in NYC. We asked for proof, and Sam shared it with a report by the Annenberg Institute.

Today, Sam Tweeted out (In regards to theAnnenberg report);

We are still a bit confused. According to Sam, 80% of the students of NYC are illustrate. However, the report he cites is specifically geared to middle schools.

On the second tweet from Sam, that our criticism of the ELA and math exams in 2013 based on Common Core is unfounded because the Annenberg Report was written in 2007. Oops! We got caught with our knickers down.

The Crack Team did not read the report properly and did not see that on page 2 that it was written in 2007. We should have known and apologize to Sam.

But 7 years is a long time. How long is 7 years? Well Pon Farr is how long a Vulcan goes without http://www.southbronxschool.com:

NYC Educator: Unity or Non-Unity, You Still Get No Voice in UFT

NYC Educator: Unity or Non-Unity, You Still Get No Voice in UFT:

Unity or Non-Unity, You Still Get No Voice in UFT

Yesterday I wrote a little bit about rigged UFT elections, and I will have more about those tomorrow. Today I'm going to focus on our system of appointing chapter leaders to our schools. Whether or not your chapter leader is Unity, a good one should be able to help you within the school building. A good chapter leader should be familiar with the contract and other work rules, or at least able to access them when necessary. A good CL can advise you of your options when you encounter problems within the building.

Outside of the building, it's another story. If your chapter leader isn't Unity, your chapter gets no voice in UFT politics. When decisions are made behind closed doors, as most are, your chapter leader won't be there. And when there are conventions, your non-Unity chapter leader won't be there either. So even though you've chosen this person to represent you, UFT leadership has decided that the million-name ballot take precedence over your personal choice.

What may be surprising, though, is that if your chapter leader is Unity, as are most, your chapter still gets no voice in UFT, NYSUT, or AFT. If your CL isn't Unity and someone else in your building is, you also get no voice. That's because every single person in Unity has signed the loyalty oath and will vote as instructed in all union elections at every level. In fact, this precludes representing you at all. What if, say, the majority of your members oppose mayoral control, Common Core, charter schools, colocation, VAM, two-tier due process, or any number of things that hurt NYC Educator: Unity or Non-Unity, You Still Get No Voice in UFT:

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Water

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Water:

Water

In response to the unraveling situation in Detroit, the United Nations issued a statement out of Geneva last month that said, “Disconnection of water services because of failure to pay due to lack of means constitutes a violation of the human right to water and other international human rights.”

Warring factions in Ukraine are using basic necessities of life, such as water, as weapons against the civilian population. Horrible! A clear violation of basic human rights. The U.N. reports that half of Gaza population, "without water supply". Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon also expressed concern over reports that water supplies in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo were deliberately cut off by armed groups for eight days, depriving at least 2.5 million people of access to safe water for drinking and sanitation.

It raises the question, how can anyone stoop so low as to deny people, including small children, the aged and infirm, access to water? Unthinkable here in the U.S. Right?

The average monthly water bill for a family of four in Detroit is nearly double the national average. Chris Hayes reported on MSNBC that, Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Water:

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: BEFORE BUYING TECHNOLOGY, ASKING ‘WHY?’

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: BEFORE BUYING TECHNOLOGY, ASKING ‘WHY?’:

BEFORE BUYING TECHNOLOGY, ASKING ‘WHY?’

BY ROSS BRENNEMAN, EDUCATION WEEK TEACHER |  HTTP://BIT.LY/1MZSR3D

—Ross Brenneman

Published Online: June 18, 2014 /Includes correction(s): July 15, 2014  ::  District leaders and other advocates of personalized learning frequently say that the approach isn't about technology. But that’s easy for an administrator to say when every child in his or her district has a school-provided computer.

The record of spending certainly seems to suggest districts believe that one requires the other.

First, consider the nearly $400 million given out by the U.S. Department of Education for its Race to the Top district competitive-grant program in 2012, created to spur on personalized-learning initiatives in low-income areas. And then there’s the subsequent $120 million the department gave out in 2013 during the second round of that competition.

Out of the 21 total school districts to receive funds through those iterations of Race to the Top, almost all created 1-to-1 digital device plans. Even some of the districts without 1-to-1 ambitions in their applications, such as the Carson City, Nev., and Houston school districts, have nevertheless been working on getting laptops to their students.

Districts without such federal funding have also been entranced by 1-to-1 programs: In Arlington, Va., the district is piloting a 1-to-1 program among 2nd and 6th graders that will cost $200,000, before eventually expanding. The Madison, Wis., school system recently embarked on a $28 million 1-to-1 initiative that hints vaguely at personalized learning. Maine began implementing a statewide 1-to-1 initiative over a decade ago under former Gov. Angus King, although current Gov. Paul LePagealmost shut it down over concerns about cost-effectiveness. That program has poured millions of dollars into Apple MacBooks for students.

Some districts may have comprehensive instructional plans to go along with their technology purchases, but it's not like Apple—or hundreds of other technology 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: BEFORE BUYING TECHNOLOGY, ASKING ‘WHY?’:

Stress Impacts Student Performance | WagTheDog

Stress Impacts Student Performance | WagTheDog:

Stress Impacts Student Performance

Decades of research and studies have documented the impact of stress on cognitive performance such as critical thinking, judgment, and decision-making skills.

The ability to concentrate, follow directions, process new information, and make good decisions are all greatly diminished and impaired by stress.

The high level of stress induced by the high stakes consequences of standardized tests has in effect “poisoned the well” and directly undermines the reliability and validity of the Common Core assessments.

The new Computer Adaptive Tests (CAT) are supposedly superior to paper tests because they can measure a student’s ability and achievement level in a shorter amount of time using fewer questions.

This is possible because test questions are generated in real time based on how the student responded to the previous question and the difficulty of subsequent test items are adjusted to the student’s “perceived” ability level.

The impact of student stress will greatly diminish the reliability and validity of CAT because the test depends on each student performing at maximum cognitive ability and putting forth Stress Impacts Student Performance | WagTheDog:

Vergara ruling becomes campaign issue | EdSource

Vergara ruling becomes campaign issue | EdSource:

Vergara ruling becomes campaign issue

July 17, 2014 | By John Fensterwald | No Comments

State Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Marshall Tuck this week launched a petition calling on his opponent, incumbent Superintendent Tom Torlakson, not to appeal a lawsuit ruling that struck down statutes giving California teachers firing protections and rights to tenure and seniority. The move indicates Tuck views the decision in Vergara v. California as an election issue that can work in his favor.

Tuck, a former charter school executive from Los Angeles, is, like Torlakson, a Democrat.

The online petition letter reads:

To State Superintendent Tom Torlakson: The five laws that were struck down in Vergara v. California regarding teacher tenure, dismissal, and layoffs have made it nearly impossible to fire ineffective teachers. Instead of defending these laws, I urge you, as the defendant in this case, not to appeal this ruling. Let’s use this as an opportunity to make sure our schools are finally able to put an effective teacher in every classroom.– YOUR NAME

Torlakson, along with Gov. Jerry Brown and the State Board of Education, are named as defendants in the lawsuit brought by the organization Students Matter on behalf of nine student plaintiffs in 2012. In June, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu issued a tentative ruling that the five labor protection laws denied minority students their constitutional right to an equal opportunity for an education.

In a statement after Treu’s June 10 ruling, Torlakson said, “Teachers are not the problem in our schools, they are the solution.” And he said Treu’s decision could “inadvertently” complicate the task of attracting and retaining good teachers. But neither he nor Brown has directly commented on whether they would appeal Treu’s decision, although the California Teachers Association, which is also is a co-defendant, already has said it would appeal the ruling.

Brown did not mention the Vergara decision in remarks at the national convention of the American Federation of Teachers in Los Angeles last week, prompting his Republican opponent for governor, Neel Kashkari, to hold a press conference outside the convention hall in which he also called on Brown not to appeal Vergara.

There’s no rush for Torlakson or Brown. Treu has indicated he would take an extra month, through mid-August, to finish writing a permanent ruling on the case, which could differ from the tentative decision. Torlakson, Brown and the state would then have an additional 60 days to decide whether to Vergara ruling becomes campaign issue | EdSource:

US Department of Justice blasts California’s English Learner monitoring | 89.3 KPCC

US Department of Justice blasts California’s English Learner monitoring | 89.3 KPCC:



US Department of Justice blasts California’s English Learner monitoring

Officials with the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Justice said in a court filing Monday they're troubled California officials did not act on a 2007 student census that found 20,000 English learner students had received no specialized instruction.



“California’s EL students cannot afford to wait any longer,” the filing by Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels said.



The document was filed in support of a 2013 lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union against the state, claiming uneven English learner services are a violation of state law.



The US Dept. of Justice began investigating California's English learner monitoring in 2013.





State and federal law requires schools to give students who speak a language other than English at home specialized teaching to get them up to speed in academic English. The students in question make up less than 2 percent of the state's US Department of Justice blasts California’s English Learner monitoring | 89.3 KPCC:

HIP’s Statement on New Superintendent | Hmong Innovating Politics

[Press Release] HIP’s Statement on New Superintendent | Hmong Innovating Politics:

HIP’S STATEMENT ON NEW SUPERINTENDENT

July 17, 2014 · by Hip Sacramento · in Education, Media & Press. ·

Rebuilding Trust and Engaging Diverse Parents Among Challenges for New Superintendent

Community Members Optimistic About Collaborating to Better Serve Students and Families

Sacramento, CA –  On Thursday, the Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) voted to appoint a new Superintendent to oversee the district’s schools. Mr. Jose Banda, previously the Superintendent for Seattle Public Schools and Anaheim Unified School District, has a track record of engaging limited-English proficient families and improving student achievement among low-income communities. This background will serve Mr. Banda well as he enters a school district that has struggled with on-going strife and growing dismay among Sacramento’s diverse families. In particular, Mr. Banda inherits a district where the closure of seven neighborhoods schools has driven away hundreds of students from SCUSD and distrust has mounted as parents have felt continually ignored.

Despite these challenges, Hmong Innovating Politics (HIP), a community based organization actively involved in supporting parents during the school closure is eager to start anew with Mr. Banda’s leadership. As HIP organizer Laura Vu describes, “Having worked with parents for the last couple of years, I know that the community is eager to move forward with leadership that brings people together and reaches out to parents and families. We are very optimistic that Mr. Banda will draw from his experience working with immigrant and limited-English proficient students and families. Because we recognize that there are many challenges ahead, we are dedicated to working alongside the new Superintendent to help improve the outcomes of all students.”

<END>

**HIP is a grassroots-organizing group whose mission is to strengthen the political power of Hmong and disenfranchised communities through innovative civic engagement and strategic grassroots mobilization. We envision a Sacramento of empowered communities that thrive in a socially and economically just democracy.**

[Press Release] HIP’s Statement on New Superintendent | Hmong Innovating Politics:

Hmong Innovating Politics (HIP)

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Lesson 3: We Need Better Language to Describe Poverty | Gatsby In L.A.

Lesson 3: We Need Better Language to Describe Poverty | Gatsby In L.A.:

Lesson 3: We Need Better Language to Describe Poverty

 I recently worked with three groups of 8th and 9th grade students. All of the groups are comprised of students of color from families in poverty, which means they qualify for free or reduced-price lunch under a California program whose cutoff is for a family of four is an income of under $30,615 (free), or under $43,568 (reduced-price). Students from families like these who qualify for free and reduced lunch are generally the students we talk about when we talk about children in poverty.

My three student groups all meet this criterion. In addition, they all are highly motivated and academically proficient, with supportive parents who have enrolled them in an after-school college-prep enrichment program. They must all be alike, right?

Wrong.

In fact, these three groups of students seem markedly different. The first is a racially diverse group that includes Latino/a, African-American, Pacific Islander and Indian students; several of the parents and many of the students’ older siblings have attended college, often very prestigious colleges. They live in the Westside of L.A., a socioeconomically diverse area, and attend an honors magnet school that includes middle- and upper-middle class students of all races. This group is both more academically advanced and more sophisticated than the other groups. Some of the students have travelled with their families to other cities or countries, not just to visit family but for tourism. They read at or above grade level and their writing is generally fluid, with some complex sentences—a quality that in my experience indicates frequent outside Lesson 3: We Need Better Language to Describe Poverty | Gatsby In L.A.:

Sacramento City district names Banda as new superintendent - Education - The Sacramento Bee

Sacramento City district names Banda as new superintendent - Education - The Sacramento Bee:

Sacramento City district names Banda as new superintendent

By Loretta Kalb
lkalb@sacbee.com

Published: Thursday, Jul. 17, 2014 - 7:26 pm

Let the Games Begin!

Sacramento City Unified trustees, as expected, voted Thursday night to name José L. Banda as the district’s new superintendent, concluding a search that began about seven months ago when Superintendent Jonathan Raymond departed.

The 6-1 vote for Banda, with trustee Jay Hansen dissenting, came in closed session and was announced at the start of the subsequent open meeting.

Banda is superintendent for Seattle Public School, where he was hired in July 2012 from the Anaheim City School District.

Trustee Gustavo Arroyo, one of three board members who traveled to Seattle to explore Banda’s leadership, said local leaders there consistently credited Banda for his collaboration and his ability to bring stability to the district.

“It was a reassurance of the talent that Mr. Banda brings to the district,” Arroyo said.

Under the terms of the contract, Banda will receive $290,000 yearly in total compensation.

When former superintendent Jonathan Raymond left the district at the end of $2013, he earnedSacramento City district names Banda as new superintendent - Education - The Sacramento Bee:

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/07/17/6564821/sacramento-city-district-names.html#storylink=cpy

Lily Eskelsen García: Keynote @ Netroots Nation | Lily's Blackboard

Lily Eskelsen García: Keynote @ Netroots Nation | Lily's Blackboard:

Lily Eskelsen García: Keynote @ Netroots Nation

Jul 17th, 2014

by Lily.

NEA President-elect Lily Eskelsen García is not only now on Twitter (@Lily_NEA) she is also part of the opening keynote at Netroots Nation! Follow the livestream here!

Broadcast live streaming video on Ustream