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Friday, May 19, 2017

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 5/19/17


Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 5/19/17
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California's Democrats Meet: Unfinished Business - LA Progressive




Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education
by mike simpson / 15min
Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education : Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education :
Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization. | Fred Klonsky
by mike simpson / 1h
Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization. | Fred Klonsky : Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization . Here is this week’s podcast of our radio, Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers. Anne and I were at the welcome back parade for returning Puerto Rican independence fighter Oscar Lopez Rivera yesterday, down Paseo Boricua in Chicago’s historically Puerto Rican Hu
HB-536: Who really puts children first? – Educate Louisiana
by mike simpson / 1h
HB-536: Who really puts children first? – Educate Louisiana : HB-536: Who really puts children first? On May 18, 2017, several bills I have been involved with were heard in the House Education Committee. One particular bill, HB-536, has been my personal labor of love for more than seven months. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Vincent Pierre, was intended to protect students from discrimination and pu
Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle - Network For Public Education
by mike simpson / 2h
Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle - Network For Public Education : Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and her favored school choice policies have faced fierce criticism, but this hasn't stopped the march to choice and the defunding of public schools. A copy of the White House's preliminary budget proposal ha
CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car
by mike simpson / 3h
CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car : PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car Pennsylvania has been a big, fat profitable garden of cyber schools, taking an early lead over even California in letting virtual education take root. And there are so many aspects of cyber-schooling in Pennsylvania that we could discuss. As always, I'll preface this by saying that there are students fro whom
Sacramento school district uses telemedicine to treat students | The Sacramento Bee
by mike simpson / 5h
Sacramento school district uses telemedicine to treat students | The Sacramento Bee : The doctor is only a click away at these Sacramento schools. Not everyone is happy. Fifth-grader Fred Amey was upbeat when he arrived at an Ethel I. Baker Elementary School office for his appointment with the doctor. Social worker Erin Ryan ushered him into a nearby room and took his vitals – blood pressure, blo
Oh Say Can You See Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
by mike simpson / 6h
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all : Oh Say Can You See Diane Ravitch's blog A site to discuss better education for all Anthony Cody: Activists Fight Corporate Media with Short Videos and Powerful Message by dianeravitch / 4min Anthony Cody, co-founder of the Network for Public Education and retired teacher, describes the day nearly three weeks ago when education ac
10 Things Parents Just Don't Understand About Teachers - Teacher Habits
by mike simpson / 6h
10 Things Parents Just Don't Understand About Teachers - Teacher Habits : 10 Things Parents Just Don’t Understand About Teachers I’ve eaten at hundreds of restaurants in my life, but I’ve never worked at one. My wife was a waitress in college, so when we go out to eat and I complain about something, she’s usually able to offer me a logical explanation. The table next to ours received their food f
Reformed to Death: Discipline and Control Eclipse Education | radical eyes for equity
by mike simpson / 6h
Reformed to Death: Discipline and Control Eclipse Education | radical eyes for equity : Reformed to Death: Discipline and Control Eclipse Education An enduring gift of being a student and a teacher is that these experiences often create lifelong and powerful personal and professional relationships. Reminiscing about these experiences, however, is often bittersweet because we are simultaneously re
California's Democrats Meet: Unfinished Business - LA Progressive
by mike simpson / 7h
California's Democrats Meet: Unfinished Business - LA Progressive : California’s Democrats Meet: Unfinished Business T his weekend, the California Democratic Party, the largest Democratic Party organization in the largest Democratic state, holds its annual convention in Sacramento. Approximately 2,500 delegates will chart their future in the wake of the debacle last fall. The Problem Unfortunatel
Schott Foundation Celebrating 25 Years of Supporting Education Justice | Schott Foundation for Public Education
by mike simpson / 7h
Celebrating 25 Years of Supporting Education Justice | Schott Foundation for Public Education : Celebrating 25 Years of Supporting Education Justice Telling Our Story at 25 by dequendre / 1h In 1991, the Schott Foundation was founded on the notion that the American public education system is one of the most important lifelines to secure opportunity in our nation. Through our efforts to expand acc
Lessons From The Nation's Oldest Voucher Program : NPR Ed : NPR
by mike simpson / 7h
Lessons From The Nation's Oldest Voucher Program : NPR Ed : NPR : Lessons From The Nation's Oldest Voucher Program Milwaukee has the nation's longest-running publicly funded voucher program. For 27 years it has targeted African-American kids from low-income families, children who otherwise could not afford the tuition at a private or religious school. The vouchers are issued by what's known as th
L.A. teachers union faces tough questions in wake of charter election wins - LA Times
by mike simpson / 7h
L.A. teachers union faces tough questions in wake of charter election wins - LA Times : L.A. teachers union faces tough questions in wake of charter election wins Los Angeles’ teachers union, for decades a dominant political force in school district politics, suffered a crushing defeat this week that speaks to a larger power shift away from labor and toward the growth of the well-heeled charter s
New Study Finds That Bullying Remains High at School, But Has Declined Over Time = Education Law Prof Blog
by mike simpson / 8h
Education Law Prof Blog : New Study Finds That Bullying Remains High at School, But Has Declined Over Time A new study on bullying at school offers both good and bad news. The bad news is that bullying remains a constant aspect of daily life for many students at school. Anywhere from 13 to 29 percent of students report being bullied in the last month. Half of students indicated that they have wit
Trump’s K-12 Education Budget Expands Choice, Won’t Help Public Schools Meet Myriad Needs | janresseger
by mike simpson / 8h
Trump’s K-12 Education Budget Expands Choice, Won’t Help Public Schools Meet Myriad Needs | janresseger : Trump’s K-12 Education Budget Expands Choice, Won’t Help Public Schools Meet Myriad Needs This blog will take a week-long late spring break after today. Look for a new post on May 30! On Wednesday, the Washington Post acquired a leaked, near final copy of the budget the Department of Educatio
Badass Teachers Association: If I Ever Leave Teaching it Will Be Because of the Adults, Not the Kids by Kelly LaLonde
by mike simpson / 9h
Badass Teachers Association: If I Ever Leave Teaching it Will Be Because of the Adults, Not the Kids by Kelly LaLonde : If I Ever Leave Teaching it Will Be Because of the Adults, Not the Kids by Kelly LaLonde Originally posted at: https://urbanesl.wordpress.com/2017/05/18/if-i-ever-leave-teaching-it-will-be-because-of-the-adults-not-the-kids/ A Facebook “On This Day” popped up in my newsfeed toda
Trump’s Proposed Title I Intrusion Plan: FOCUS | deutsch29
by mike simpson / 9h
Trump’s Proposed Title I Intrusion Plan: FOCUS | deutsch29 : Trump’s Proposed Title I Intrusion Plan: FOCUS According to Reuters, the White House is supposed to release its proposed 2018 budget on May 23, 2017. On May 17, 2017, the Washington Post purportedly received advance notification of Trump’s proposed 2018 federal education budget. One of the items in that proposed ed budget is a new progr
Tech Tip o’ the Day for Seattle Public Schools: How to get kids and teachers in front of computers all day | Seattle Education
by mike simpson / 9h
Tech Tip o’ the Day for Seattle Public Schools: How to get kids and teachers in front of computers all day | Seattle Education : Tech Tip o’ the Day for Seattle Public Schools: How to get kids and teachers in front of computers all day The following email was brought to my attention today. It was sent to all Seattle Public School staff. From: Cranston, Gary Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2017 12:35 PM Su

YESTERDAY

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 5/18/17
by mike simpson / 23h
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 5/18/17 Featured Post Here are K-12 education programs Trump wants to eliminate in 2018 budget - The Washington Post Researchers, advocates divided over reclassifying English learners | EdSource by mike simpson / 15min Researchers, advocates divided over 

Top Posts This Week



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Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education

Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education:

Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget
Image result for tweet them

Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget

Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget


Tweet Trump and DeVos about their bad budget - Network For Public Education:
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Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization. | Fred Klonsky

Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization. | Fred Klonsky:

Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers #16. Globalization.

CLACK


Here is this week’s podcast of our radio, Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers.
Anne and I were at the welcome back parade for returning Puerto Rican independence fighter Oscar Lopez Rivera yesterday, down Paseo Boricua in Chicago’s historically Puerto Rican Humboldt Park neighborhood.
After Mikes intro, I shared a short sound montage of what really was more of a party than a march.
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Mike Klonsky, Jerry Harris and me.
The rest of the show – aside from a little fingering wagging at Illinois Democrats who voted for pension theft last week – was all about globalization with the head of the Global Studies Association, Jerry Harris.
The trick here is to make this conversation not too academic.
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HB-536: Who really puts children first? – Educate Louisiana

HB-536: Who really puts children first? – Educate Louisiana:

HB-536: Who really puts children first?


On May 18, 2017, several bills I have been involved with were heard in the House Education Committee. One particular bill, HB-536, has been my personal labor of love for more than seven months. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Vincent Pierre, was intended to protect students from discrimination and punishment when their parent makes a decision to exclude them from state assessments. I began drafting the bill in late August 2016 after realizing that I had amassed a significant number of complaints from parents across the state detailing their experiences with their school districts when they attempted to opt-out their children from statewide assessments. Many, if not most, districts handle this situation with the utmost respect to parents and students; however, some of the complaints I received were horrifying.
(L/R: Rep. Mark Abraham, Conner Long, Rep. Stephen Dwight and Sen. Ronnie Johns.)
Members of the SWLA delegation were on hand to support Conner and gave him a tour of the House and Senate.
At some point, HB-536 became an integral part of a situation that occurred in my own parish. The family opted to appear before the House Education Committee to tell their story and ask the committee to support the bill. Admittedly, their situation is mild compared to some of the complaints I received. It should be noted that regardless of the severity, these things should not happen. It is unfortunate that overemphasis on testing, and Louisiana’s interpretation of federal law, places parents in an unnecessary position of conflict with schools.
I want to use this opportunity to explain the events leading up to the committee meeting. In its original form, the bill sought to address the huge conflict between schools and parents by excluding students from the school’s SPS score when a parent submits a signed request to exclude their child. This was met with huge push back from various organizations. The most frequent response was, “We have to hold schools accountable. Parents depend on assessments to exercise ‘Choice’ in making decisions about their children’s education.” My standard response to that is “Accountable to who? Parents, right?” Here are two totally disregarded facts that are two sides of the same coin.
  1. If a parent “chooses” to exclude their child from state assessments, they have already made their educational choice and used some method of assessing the school other than the state assessment.
  2. If a parent absolutely relies on the assessment to make educational choices, they will certainly see to it that their child takes the test.
Those are rather simple, undeniable facts. Nonetheless, when we sought to meet with the Louisiana Department of Education, they insisted on the removal of all things related to accountability. As I explained to Rep. Vincent Pierre, the bill’s sponsor, the central most important part of the bill is to protect the students. If we had to remove the effort to insulate the school, then so be it. So, we did.
By the time the bill reached the committee, it had been reduced to two simple provisions. 1.) Don’t hurt the kids. 2.) Don’t force them to stay in the testing room. Unbelievably, nine organizations, that claim to put children first, objected to the bill.
  1. Stand for Children (SFC)
  2. Louisiana School Boards Association (LSBA)
  3. Council for a Better Louisiana (CaBL)
  4. Louisiana Family Forum
  5. Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI)
  6. Baton Rouge Area Chamber (BRAC)
  7. Education’s Next Horizon
  8. Democrats for Education Reform (DFER)
  9. Responsive Education Solutions
I want to point out that Louisiana Family Forum reached out to us stating they while they were in attendance, they did not oppose HB-536: Who really puts children first? – Educate Louisiana:


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Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle - Network For Public Education

Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle - Network For Public Education:

Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle


Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and her favored school choice policies have faced fierce criticism, but this hasn't stopped the march to choice and the defunding of public schools.
A copy of the White House's preliminary budget proposal has been released, and it contains a $9.2 billion cut to the Department of Education. $400 million will be spent to expand charter schools and private and religious school vouchers. Their budget sets $1 billion aside to steer public schools toward choice-friendly policies. Funding for college work-study programs would be cut along with public-service loan forgiveness. Hundreds of millions of dollars that our schools now use to reduce class size, and provide mental health services for students would also be cut.
Make sure your members of Congress know that you want them to defend public education from Trump and DeVos's hostile budget.Defend Your Public School from the Trump/DeVos Budget Debacle - Network For Public Education:

Contact Federal Elected Officials

  • President Donald Trump - Contact the President of the United States by filling out the online contact form or by calling the White House switchboard at 202-456-1414 or the comments line at 202-456-1111 during business hours.
  • Members of the U.S. Congress
    • U.S. Senators - Get contact information for your Senators in the U.S. Senate.
    • U.S. Representatives - Find the website and contact information for your Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives.



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CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car

CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car:
PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car


 Pennsylvania has been a big, fat profitable garden of cyber schools, taking an early lead over even California in letting virtual education take root. And there are so many aspects of cyber-schooling in Pennsylvania that we could discuss. As always, I'll preface this by saying that there are students fro whom cyber-schooling is a useful option. But the modern cyber charter industry is not aimed at them. It is aimed at money-- as much money as they could cram into a crowded clown car. When we talk about cybers in PA, there is so uch to discuss.

We could talk about how some are linked through not-entirely-admirable means to Pearson, the great money-grabbing educorporation.


We could talk about the astonishing amount of profit generated by cybers like K12, the school founded by an ex-Goldman Sachs exec. Or that chain's rather loose association with ethical behavior and telling the truth. 

We could talk about how cyber charters have performance so lousy that even other supporters of the charter industry talk smack on them and call for them to be more heavily regulated. We could talk about how the widespread failure of cyber schools is obvious enough to make it into even mainstream media. 

We could talk about massive cyber-school fraud, like the case of Nicholas Trombetta of Pennsylvania Cyber School, who was convicted of siphoning off $8 million of the tax dollars funneled to him from CURMUDGUCATION: PA: Cyber School Crowded Clown Car:

Image result for big education ape cyber charter

Image result for big education ape cyber charter


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Sacramento school district uses telemedicine to treat students | The Sacramento Bee

Sacramento school district uses telemedicine to treat students | The Sacramento Bee:

The doctor is only a click away at these Sacramento schools. Not everyone is happy.



Fifth-grader Fred Amey was upbeat when he arrived at an Ethel I. Baker Elementary School office for his appointment with the doctor.
Social worker Erin Ryan ushered him into a nearby room and took his vitals – blood pressure, blood oxygen level, temperature and weight – and recorded the stats on an iPad aimed at an empty chair.
What happened next could soon spread district-wide: As Fred, 11, sat in the chair, the face of a Hippo MD doctor appeared on the iPad.
Hippo MD, named after the Hippocratic Oath for doctors, began testing telemedicine in early 2016 at John H. Still Elementary in the Meadowview area of south Sacramento. The company now serves about 3,000 students at five elementary schools, and both the district and the San Francisco-based company are working on a plan to expand the service across the Sacramento City Unified School District starting this fall.
It marks the first use of telemedicine among large school districts in Sacramento County. The idea, according to proponents, is to reduce chronic absenteeism among students in low-income neighborhoods who lack ready access to medical care.
Amaya Weiss, an executive community director for Sacramento City Unified, said the service means a student “can be linked to a doctor immediately, doesn’t have to work out transportation, doesn’t have to wait for an appointment, but rather is able to be seen and then is able to be sent back to class.”
The approach, however, has drawn the ire of school nurses. In March, all but one of the district’s 27 nurses signed a three-page protest itemizing their objections to the expansion and the use of non-medical personnel to assist with doctor visits.
The nurses complained the district had violated its labor contract by using district resources to advance the interests of a for-profit company. They also objected to using teachers as “sales people,” referring to $500 bonuses that John Still teachers received toward classroom supplies if they got consent for nearly all students to use Hippo MD. It is headed to arbitration.
Backers, however, say the service at John Still already has significantly reduced chronic Sacramento school district uses telemedicine to treat students | The Sacramento Bee:
Image result for Hippo Health
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