LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-23-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

Mayor Rahm Emanuel: Don’t Close Dyett High School!

As I write, community activists in Chicago are demanding that Mayor Emanuel allow Dyett High School to remain open.   The local community is fighting for the school. They want it to be a school dedicated to global leadership and green technology. Only 13 students remain in the school. They remain as a symbol that the community will not give up. They will not abandon a high school that they cherish

6 by dianeravitch / 2h 

Jersey Jazzman Tries to Educate Editorial Writer Tom Moran About Charter Schools in Hoboken

Jersey Jazzman is not only a music teacher; he has been earning his doctorate in statistics at Rutgers University. In this post, he uses his knowledge of classroom and statistics to try to educate the chief editorial writer for the Star-Ledger, Tom Moran, about the difference between the public schools of Hoboken, New Jersey, and the charter school of Hoboken, New Jersey. As you can see from JJ’s

1 by dianeravitch / 30min 

Matthew Di Carlo: The Fatal Flaw of the Reformers

Matthew Di Carlo of the Shanker Institute says that the reformers cannot succeed, despite their best intentions, because they over promise what they can accomplish. Whether it is a promise of closing the achievement gap in short order, turning around 1,000 schools a year for five years, college for all, or making every single child proficient by the year 2014, they set goals that might–if all goes

by dianeravitch / 16min 

New York: Shame on the League of Women Voters

The League of Women Voters is sponsoring a debate between gubernatorial candidates in Néw York. For some reason, only Governor Cuomo and Republican challenger Rob Astorino have been invited. The Green Party and other qualified parties were not invited. This is not right. It is good that Cuomo agreed to debate at all. He refused to debate his primary opponent Zephyr Teachout or even to mention her

2 by dianeravitch / 25min hide  //  save

Worcester Educators Oppose PARCC testing

Educators in Worcester, Massachusetts, spoke out against the school committee’s decision to adopt the federally-funded Common Core test, at least partially, splitting the district between PARCC and the established Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). PARCC was field-tested last year in Massachusetts. See what the teachers say about it. The Commissioner of Education in the state, M

10 by dianeravitch / 56min 

Bloomberg News: Google Quits ALEC

Bloomberg News reports that Google will or has quit ALEC. Probably this means Google will not renew its membership in this radical extremist organization, which writes model laws to bust unions, privatize public education, restrict voting rights, oppose gun control, deny climate change, and eliminate regulations on corporations. Google was alarmed about climate change denial. Apparently the rest

by dianeravitch / 8min 

My Review of Kristen Buras’ Counter-Narrative of the “New Orleans Miracle”

The first thing to be said about Kristen Buras’ new book is that the publisher overpriced the book ($125). As the author, she had nothing to do with that poor decision. This is a book that should be widely read, but at that price, it won’t be. There will eventually be a softcover edition, but probably not for a year. Urge your library to buy it, or get together a group of friends to pool the cost.

7 by dianeravitch / 39min 

Providence Teachers Reject Contract

By an overwhelming margin, the Providence Teachers Union rejected a contract that would have eliminated all job security. “PROVIDENCE — The Providence Teachers Union on Monday rejected a three-year contract proposal that would have eliminated the job-security clause and allowed management to create a new compensation system that would have awarded extra pay for additional responsibilities. The 1

3 by dianeravitch / 1h 

VAMboozled: Jesse Rothstein on VAM and Tenure

Audrey Amrein-Beardsley here summarizes and comments on a very enlightening interview with Jesse Rothstein in the Washington Post. Rothstein, an economist, conducts research on teacher evaluation and accountability. Rothstein, on teacher evaluation: “In terms of evaluating teachers, “[t]here’s no perfect method. I think there are lots of methods that give you some information, and there are lots

10 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Alan Singer Does a “Close Reading” of the Great Common Core Debate

Alan Singer, a professor of social studies at Hofstra University on Long Island, New York, adopts the close reading strategy of the Common Core to critique the “great debate” about Common Core. You may recall that the debate pitted educator Carol Burris and Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute against Mike Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and Carmel Martin of the Center for Am

11 by dianeravitch / 2h 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-22-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Joanne Yatvin: Let More Teachers Re-Invent the Wheel, Or Why We Don’t Need StandardizationJoanne Yatvin, now retired, wrote the following commentary in 1990, almost 25 years ago. It was published in Education Week. It remains as pertinent today as it was then. In fact, with the Common Core adopted by most states, it is even more pe

1 by mike simpson / 8h 

Amid iPad, attendance system controversies, school board to weigh superintendent's performance | 89.3 KPCC

Amid iPad, attendance system controversies, school board to weigh superintendent's performance | 89.3 KPCC:



Amid iPad, attendance system controversies, school board to weigh superintendent's performance

 After weathering a solid year of criticism for his controversial iPad program, taking a high-profile position in a case against teacher tenure and now dealing with the fallout of an irksome new attendance system, Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent John Deasy is about face the school board for his an annual review.

As ever, he is a lightning rod: The teachers union is calling for Deasy's resignation; his supporters are placing the blame on the board.

"In reality, when it's this dysfunctional, it just prevents action and creativity," Jason Mandell, spokesman for the California Charter School Association, wrote on Twitter. 

Deasy's problems were fewer last October, when they concerned mainly a botched rollout of the iPad program. Still, rumors swirled then that Deasy would be fired or step down. Neither happened.

It's extremely rare for a school board to fire a superintendent. After the Centinela Valley school board discovered contract perks pushed Superintendent Jose A. Fernandez's compensation up to $663,000, the board still hired investigators to search for "cause" to avoid a pricey buyout. Faced with opposition, superintendents are more likely bow out. 

There's no question Deasy is under mounting scrutiny.

Launched this fall, a new student database, MISIS, failed to track attendance, schedule student classes and allow teachers to input grades. District officials have said the problems affected less than 1 percent of students, but teachers and principals had more widespread complaints.

The district’s inspector general has reopened his investigation into whether Apple and Pearson got a leg up in the $500 million iPad contract after emails obtained by KPCC showed early meetings and planning with Deasy and other high-level staff.

Deasy vehemently denied any impropriety, saying he ended communication with vendors during the bidding process and arguing earlier emails were related to a pilot that never got off the ground.

"In view of the many false and misleading statements of fact that have been made public for what seems to be primarily political reasons, I believe it is incumbent on me to set the record straight so that an extremely important initiative does not continue to be undermined or compromised," Deasy said in a six-page statement released to board members earlier this month.

Deasy declined to comment for this story. 

Less than three weeks after KPCC published the emails, one of Deasy's top deputies, Ron Chandler, requested the school board purchase software programed to automatically destroy emails older than one year, a policy that had been previously passed but never implemented. 

The school board approved the $294,500 purchase, but after public outcry, vowed to Amid iPad, attendance system controversies, school board to weigh superintendent's performance | 89.3 KPCC:

Shanker Blog » The Common Core And Failing Schools

Shanker Blog » The Common Core And Failing Schools:

The Common Core And Failing Schools

Posted by Matthew Di Carlo on September 23, 2014

In observing all the recent controversy surrounding the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), I have noticed that one of the frequent criticisms from one of the anti-CCSS camps, particularly since the first rounds of results from CCSS-aligned tests have started to be released, is that the standards are going to be used to label more schools as “failing,” and thus ramp up the test-based accountability regime in U.S. public education.

As someone who is very receptive to a sensible, well-designed dose of test-based accountability, but sees so little of it in current policy, I am more than sympathetic to concerns about the proliferation and misuse of high-stakes testing. On the other hand, anti-CCSS arguments that focus on testing or testing results are not really arguments against the standards per se. They also strike me as ironic, as they are based on the same flawed assumptions that critics of high-stakes testing should be opposing.

Standards themselves are about students. They dictate what students should know at different points in their progression through the K-12 system. Testing whether students meet those standards makes sense, but how we use those test results is not dictated by the standards. Nor do standards require us to set bars for “proficient,” “advanced,” etc., using the tests.

That said, it is true that the new CCSS-aligned tests will, in most states, result in lower proficiency rates than did the old tests, and I have no doubt that many (but not all) policymakers and advocates will use those lower rates to ratchet up their “failing schools” rhetoric.

But that only means that they are misinterpreting the results by conflating student and school performance – that is, operating under the mistaken assumption that how highly students score on tests, and/or whether they meet cut scores that determine their “proficiency,” is entirely (or even mostly) a function of school effectiveness.

When they argue that the Common Core will result in more “failing schools,” opponents of high-stakes testing are, rather ironically, co-opting this flawed assumption when they should be opposing it, regardless of which standards are in place. They seem to be taking for granted the existence of a problem, instead of confronting its cause – the fact that this is a misinterpretation of the data, one which has plagued U.S. public education for a long time. In fact, to whatever degree testing data can be used to gauge schools’ actual effectiveness, proficiency cut scores need not (I would argue should not) play any role in those measures.

Based on my prior experience, I would anticipate the following reaction to these points: Matt, you’re being naïve if you believe that there’s any hope policymakers will use the standards correctly and interpret the data appropriately. They have shown time and time again that they are unwilling or unable to do so.

That may very well be true, but, again, it doesn’t change a simple fact: This misinterpretation is already causing harm under the old/existing standards. Anyone who opposes education policies simply because some people misinterpret testing data surrounding those policies will have trouble finding anything to support.

Now, to be clear: If your argument is that the Common Core is poorly-designed vis-a-vis existing systems, or that Shanker Blog » The Common Core And Failing Schools:

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 9-23-14

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog:

U.S. Launches Air Strikes Against ISIS Targets in Syria

The Guardian has the story here.Obama said in a televised address on 10 September that he would expand the US war against Isis into Syria, reversing a longstanding caution against involving the US in the bloody confusion of Syria’s civil war...The escalation of the war into Syria comes without explicit congressional authorisation. Last week, Congress agreed to provide $500m requested by Obama for

by L. Jablonski / 1h 

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog 9-20-14

Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: Strong Mayor Proposal for Sacramento: Debate on MondayStudents in periods 3 and 4, here is an opportunity for political participation credit by learning more about the controversial November ballot proposal backed by mayor Kevin Johnson to change city governance into what's commonly known as a "strong mayor" system. Details:The Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Assoc

1 by mike simpson / 19h 

9-23-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

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

“How Diversity Makes Us Smarter”

When we do group work in my classes, I often select who goes in which group to make sure there’s a good ethnic, gender and ability balance. At other times, though, I will let students choose their own groups. I always preface that self-selection process, though, at the beginning of the year with a discussion of research that shows the benefits of diversity in groups. I then ask that they keep that

4 by Larry Ferlazzo / 5min 

The Best Resources For Banned Books Week

© 2008 Mike Licht, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio   It’s Banned Books Week. This week: is an annual awareness campaign that celebrates the freedom to read, draws attention to banned and challenged books, and highlights persecuted individuals. The United States campaign “stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them” and th

8 by Larry Ferlazzo / 50min 

You Can Now Pre-Order My Upcoming Book On Student Engagement

My upcoming book, Building A Community Of Self-Motivated Learners: Strategies To Help Students Thrive In School and Beyond, is now available for pre-order at Routledge and on Amazon. I will be published in early March, 2015. It’s the third volume in my student motivation “trilogy.” You can read excerpts from the previous two volumes, Helping Students Motivate Themselves: Practical Answers To Clas

6 by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h 

It’s A Bit Early, But Here Are A Zillion Halloween Resources

© 2005 lobo235, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio It’s obviously early, but I’ve begun to see Halloween posts on the web and thought I’d remind readers of my massive list, The Best Websites For Learning About Halloween. It’s one of my most popular “Best” lists. Let me know if you have suggestions for resources I should add to it.

8 by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h 

9-22-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Research Studies Of The WeekI often write about research studies from various fields and how they can be applied to the classroom. I write individual posts about ones that I think are especially significant, and will continue to do so. However, so many studies are published that it’s hard to keep up. So I’ve started writing

1 by mike simpson / 8h 

9-23-14 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.:

2014 CPS testing schedule.

2 by Fred Klonsky / 1h 

Push poll.

1 by Fred Klonsky / 53min 

Banned Books Week.

This is Banned Books Week. Remember when the Rahm Emanuel administration banned Persepolis from CPS?

4 by Fred Klonsky / 1h 

Kathy Myalls committed voter fraud.

17th District Republican challenger Kathy Myalls and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. She committed voter fraud to vote for him. I’ve always made the argument that the Republicans exaggerate the problem of voter fraud to push voter suppression rules that are aimed at poor and minority voters. It appears there is a problem with voter fraud, however. And it’s a Republican problem. Kathy Myalls is r

1 by Fred Klonsky / 11min hide  //  save

A living wage comes to Hammond. It’s what being in a union should mean.

. Hammond, Indiana. From here, it’s just a twenty minute drive down I-90. 700 workers make automobile seats for Lear Corporation in Hammond. It’s a UAW union shop. Their contract provided the employer with a two-tier salary schedule. 500 employees were stuck at entry level salary. Rochelle Weathersby landed a job at Lear Corp.’s seat-making factory in Hammond three years ago. Despite working in a

3 by Fred Klonsky / 39min 

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: My old friend UNO’s Juan Rangel.1 by Fred Klonsky / 7min hide  //  saveThe solution to the problem of the CTU bargaining with the Mayor is the Mayor getting out of the the school-running business.DFER Illinois’ Rebecca Nieves-Huffman. Photo: Substance. What is the deal with telling Karen Lewis that sh

1 by mike simpson / 8h