Something to Smile About Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

Something to Smile About Diane Ravitch's blog 

A site to discuss better education for all

New York City: Charter School for “Social Justice” Fires 3/4 of Staff for Wanting to Join a Union

13by dianeravitch / 2h

This is both sad and funny. The “Charter High School For Law and Social Justice” fired 11 of its 15 teachers because they wanted to join the teachers’ union. Doesn’t social justice mean that you listen to the voices of those who feel in need 

SomeDam Poet Explains the Logic of the Supreme Court State-Church Decision

2by dianeravitch / 54min

SomeDam Poet writes about the Supreme Court decision requiring the state of Missouri to pay for the resurfacing of the playground of the Trinity Lutheran Church: At first, SDP was puzzled by the decision and asked, “Is playing on the playground part of the Lutheran religion? “Is that why refusing the Lutheran school public money for the playground resurfacing constitutes abridgement of free exerc

Portland, Oregon: Corporate Reformers Launch Vicious Attack on School Board Member

14by dianeravitch / 1h

Portland, Oregon, is in big trouble. Despite massive spending by the fake reform Stand on Children–err, Stand for Children–the corporate reformers lost in the school board election. Now, as local activist Deb Mayer reports , they are trying 

Texas: House Republicans Say “Hell, No,” to Vouchers, Again

2by dianeravitch / 54min

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has called a special session of the Legislature to deal with school finance and once again to push vouchers. Once more, he will try to bribe legislators to endorse vouchers if they want more funding. No vouchers, 

Ohio: State Auditor Reprimands ECOT for Using Public Money to Lobby Against Penalty of $60 Million

by dianeravitch / 0min

ECOT is the largest virtual charter school in Ohio and among the lowest-performing schools in the state. It has thrived over the years because its founder, William Lager, has given generously to elected officials. The New York Times reported last year that ECOT had the largest graduating class in the nation, but also the lowest high school graduation rate in the nation. The Electronic Classroom o

Lesson from Virginia: Real Democrats Support Public Schools

5by dianeravitch / 1h

Rachel Levy, a mother and public school activist in Virginia, explains here the lesson of the recent Democratic campaign for governor: Real Democrats support public schools. http://progressive.org/public-school-shakedown/as-democrats-struggle-to-find-their-footing-in-the-trump-era/ Dr. Ralph Northam, Lt. Governor, was a strong supporter of public schools. He won the support of the Virginia Educat

Wow! Editorial Writer at New York Daily News Moves Her Child from a Charter School to a NYC Public School: Guess Why?

12by dianeravitch / 2h

Alyssa Katz, an editorial writer for the New York Daily News, is switching her child from a charter school to a New York City public school. The teacher turnover at the charter school was constant and disruptive for her daughter, she writes. But that’s not all. She does not name the school, but it is likely a well-regarded school that she and her husband chose with care. She writes: Some extracur

YESTERDAY

Linda Weber Needs Your Help: She Is Running for Congress

6by dianeravitch / 20h

Linda Weber is a staunch friend of public education. She is running for Congress in New Jersey, seeking a seat now held by a Republican. She needs our help. Linda has raised $25,000 in the past two weeks. She must raise $8,500 by June 30! I sent a contribution, I hope you will too. You may not know Linda, but if you read this blog with regularity, you know her husband Mark Weber. Mark blogs as Je

Confession by a Teacher: “I’m Responsible for Betsy DeVos: Are You?”

6by dianeravitch / 22h

Jennifer Berkshire features an essay by a teacher who realizes that she was responsible for the appointment of Betsy DeVos. Why? She didn’t pay attention. Read her story. This is what she learned after a career of setbacks: “Neoliberalism is an attractive ideology precisely because it meshes so nicely with our existing cultural norms and myths. We all want to be successful, and neoliberalism’s em

Michigan: State Takeover Effort Collapses, Schools Will Return to Detroit Public School District

18by dianeravitch / 22h

Michigan’s Education Achievement Authority is closing down, and the low-performing schools put into the state-controlled district will be returned to the Detroit public schools. The EAA was a disaster from the beginning. Its leaders had total control, and they used it to run experiments on the children, using technology. They ran up the bills and produced no academic improvements. The first leade

Stuart Egan: North Carolina Legislature Attacks Teachers’ Benefits Again

12by dianeravitch / 22h

Which state legislature is working hardest to destroy public education and reduce the status of the teaching profession? Unless you can make a better case, the winner is North Carolina. The state legislature was swept by Rightwing extremists in 2010, and they promptly gerrymandered the state to protect their supermajority. Even when the public elected a Democratic governor in 2016, the legislatur

“Democracy”: The Problem with Ranking High Schools by AP Coursetaking

26by dianeravitch / 23h

A reader who takes the sobriquet “Democracy” adds this comment about Jay Mathews’ high school rankings, as critiqued by Carol Burris: I can appreciate Carol Burris’s critique of Jay Mathews Challenge Index. But her criticism falls way short. Advanced Placement is NOT what Mathews – or Burris – thinks it is. And Burris is wrong; Mathews should NOT make two Challenge Index lists; he should make non

Massachusetts: State Commissioner Mitchell Chester Dies

2by dianeravitch / 23h

State Commissioner Mitchell Chester died unexpectedly at the age of 65 . He was battling cancer. Although I disagreed with his reliance on corporate reform policies, I regret his untimely passing. R.I.P.

NPR on New Voucher Studies: With Enough Time, Students in Voucher Schools Catch Up with Public Schools

7by dianeravitch / 1d

Cory Turner and Anya Kamenetz of NPR look at two new voucher studies : one from Indiana, the other from Louisiana. The common thread is that voucher students lose ground academically in the first couple of years. Then, in the third or fourth year, they make up their losses and catch up with their public school peers. The Indiana study, not yet peer-reviewed, found: “The researchers studied studen

Conservative Scholars Disappointed by “Narrow” Supreme Court Ruling

6by dianeravitch / 1d

While supporters of public education were appalled by the Supreme Court decision awarding public funding to religious institutions, conservatives were disappointed that the decision did not go far enough to clear away any barriers to vouchers. Martin West, a professor at Harvard, expressed his chagrin in this article in Education Next. West was mentored at Harvard by choice advocate Paul Peterson

Peter Greene: The Supreme Court Knocks a Big Hole in the Wall That Separates Church and State

8by dianeravitch / 1d

Peter Greene reviews yesterday’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court , which said that the state must make public funding available to religious institutions so as not to discriminate against them. The case involved the Trinity Lutheran 

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

Facebook’s Secret Censorship Rules Protect White Men from Hate Speech But Not Black Children - ProPublica

Facebook’s Secret Censorship Rules Protect White Men from Hate Speech But Not Black Children - ProPublica:

Facebook’s Secret Censorship Rules Protect White Men from Hate Speech But Not Black Children
A trove of internal documents sheds light on the algorithms that Facebook’s censors use to differentiate between hate speech and legitimate political expression.

In the wake of a terrorist attack in London earlier this month, a U.S. congressman wrote a Facebook post in which he called for the slaughter of “radicalized” Muslims. “Hunt them, identify them, and kill them,” declared U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, a Louisiana Republican. “Kill them all. For the sake of all that is good and righteous. Kill them all.”

Higgins’ plea for violent revenge went untouched by Facebook workers who scour the social network deleting offensive speech.

But a May posting on Facebook by Boston poet and Black Lives Matter activist Didi Delgado drew a different response.

“All white people are racist. Start from this reference point, or you’ve already failed,” Delgado wrote. The post was removed and her Facebook account was disabled for seven days.

A trove of internal documents reviewed by ProPublica sheds new light on the secret guidelines that Facebook’s censors use to distinguish between hate speech and legitimate political expression. The documents reveal the rationale behind seemingly inconsistent decisions. For instance, Higgins’ incitement to violence passed muster because it targeted a specific sub-group of Muslims — those that are “radicalized” — while Delgado’s post was deleted for attacking whites in general.

Over the past decade, the company has developed hundreds of rules, drawing elaborate distinctions between what should and shouldn’t be allowed, in an effort to make the site a safe place for its nearly 2 billion users. The issue of how Facebook monitors this content has become increasingly prominent in recent months, with the rise of “fake news” — fabricated stories that circulated on Facebook like “Pope Francis Shocks the World, Endorses Donald Trump For President, Releases Statement” — and growing concern that terrorists are using social media for recruitment.

While Facebook was credited during the 2010-2011 “Arab Spring” with facilitating uprisings against authoritarian regimes, the documents suggest that, at least in someFacebook’s Secret Censorship Rules Protect White Men from Hate Speech But Not Black Children - ProPublica: 

Florida Business Leaders Can’t Enjoy Luncheon Due to Dismal Reading Scores

Florida Business Leaders Can’t Enjoy Luncheon Due to Dismal Reading Scores:

Florida Business Leaders Can’t Enjoy Luncheon Due to Dismal Reading Scores

Florida business leaders got together for lunch and the mood was somber. They were sad because children in Manatee and Bradenton are not reading well.

And they’re right. In Sarasota, 29 percent of third graders aren’t reading at grade level. In Manatee, it’s 50 percent. Between both counties, 40 percent of third graders are having trouble reading.

They fear not enough children will be able to read for future construction jobs, joining the military, service positions, and many other technical and professional careers.

I spent some time looking at the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-level Reading, highlighted in this report. They do some nice things for children. But they could do a lot better when it comes to reading. And they still lean in favor of reform ploys that don’t work.

If children aren’t reading, perhaps it’s time for a change. Here are my suggestions:

Care wholly about the children.

It still sounds icky when you talk about how a child’s poor reading results will be bad Florida Business Leaders Can’t Enjoy Luncheon Due to Dismal Reading Scores:

On the Supreme Court Case, Trinity Lutheran, and Its Potential Implications for School Vouchers | deutsch29

On the Supreme Court Case, Trinity Lutheran, and Its Potential Implications for School Vouchers | deutsch29:

On the Supreme Court Case, Trinity Lutheran, and Its Potential Implications for School Vouchers

On June 26, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a decision on the Trinity Lutheran vs. Comer case.

One great question concerns the bearing that the Trinity Lutheran decision will have on future SCOTUS decisions concerning the use of public money to pay for vouchers to private, religious schools.

I address this possible bearing near the end of this post. (Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer.)

But first, let’s turn our attention to Trinity Lutheran vs. Comer. Here is some background on the case, as included in the link above:

The Trinity Lutheran Church Child Learning Center is a Missouri preschool and daycare center. Originally established as a nonprofit organization, the Center later merged with Trinity Lutheran Church and now operates under its auspices on church property. Among the facilities at the Center is a playground, which has a coarse pea gravel surface beneath much of the play equipment. In 2012, the Center sought to replace a large portion of the pea gravel with a pour-in-place rubber surface by participating in Missouri’s Scrap Tire Program. The program, run by the State’s Department of Natural Resources, offers reimbursement grants to qualifying nonprofit organizations that install playground surfaces made from recycled tires. The Department had a strict and express policy of denying grants to any applicant owned or controlled by a church, sect, or other religious entity. Pursuant to that policy, the Department denied the Center’s application. In a letter rejecting that application, the Department explained that under Article I, Section 7 of the Missouri Constitution, the Department could not provide financial assistance directly to a church. The Department ultimately awarded 14 grants as part of the 2012 program. Although the Center ranked fifth out of the 44 applicants, it did not receive a grant because it is a church.

Trinity Lutheran sued in federal district court because it believed that denial of participation in the program violated the First Amendment Free Exercise clause; in other words, the church believed that it was being wrongly excluded from the recycled tire program for its playground because the law “prohibited the free exercise” of its religion.

The federal district court dismissed the suit for the following reason:

The Free Exercise Clause, the court stated, prohibits the government from 

On the Supreme Court Case, Trinity Lutheran, and Its Potential Implications for School Vouchers | 

 

Read the Opinion: Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer

Teachers Don’t Want All This Useless Data - Badass Teachers Association

Badass Teachers Association:

Teachers Don’t Want All This Useless Data

One of the most frustrating things I’ve ever been forced to do as a teacher is to ignore my students and concentrate instead on the data.

I teach 8th grade Language Arts at a high poverty, mostly minority school in Western Pennsylvania. During my double period classes, I’m with these children for at least 80 minutes a day, five days a week.

During that time, we read together. We write together. We discuss important issues together. They take tests. They compose poems, stories and essays. They put on short skits, give presentations, draw pictures and even create iMovies.

I don’t need a spreadsheet to tell me whether these children can read, write or think. I know.

Anyone who had been in the room and had been paying attention would know.

But a week doesn’t go by without an administrator ambushing me at a staff meeting with a computer print out and a smile.

Look at this data set. See how your students are doing on this module. Look at the projected Badass Teachers Association:

 

Education Lessons From A Sparkly District: Parents Deserve to Know Who Is Being Appointed to State Board of Ed

Education Lessons From A Sparkly District: Parents Deserve to Know Who Is Being Appointed to State Board of Ed:

Parents Deserve to Know Who Is Being Appointed to State Board of Ed

I spent a rather surreal day at NJ Senate's Judiciary Committee meeting yesterday. This Committee, headed by Democrat Nick Scaturi, is responsible for approving nominations of judges and members of various pubic boards - everything from Rutgers to the Delaware River Authority - including the NJ State Board of Education (SBOE). The Committee has been "interviewing" and passing nominees on for a full Senate vote. 

Yesterday was a bit of an eye-opener. Apparently, "interviewing" is a euphemism for thanks for coming to see us, or some version of that, followed by yes votes to move them along for a full Senate vote. To be fair, particularly in the case of the judges, these are people who have worked hard in their careers and are undoubtedly qualified to do the job they've been appointed for, but that's not the point of a public interview. That's in place for all of us, the taxpayers and constituents of this state. 

There have been two Judiciary Committee meetings in the last few weeks. Members of Save Our Schools NJ have been there to protest the lack of transparency in the SBOE appointment process. Susan Cauldwell wrote about those two Committee meetings here.

Why, then, were the SBOE nominees not interviewed?  Senator Scutari explained that the Committee doesn't have to. Well, since the Senate decides on how the nominees are handled, "doesn't have to" doesn't cut it. There is little transparency, and frankly, no checks or balances on the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE), so knowing who is being appointed is kinda important. 

At this Committee meeting, three of us testified in complaint of the complete lack of transparency in this process. Given that education makes up about one third of New Jersey's budget and the SBOE is gatekeeper of how that money is spent, you'd think these Senators would want to know who the nominees are. 

As you watch the video of our testimony, please note a few things: 1. Several Senators, including the Chair, Nick Scutari, walked away; 2. Senator Weinberg, Senate Majority Leader, is interrupted by Senator Scutari and he immediately moves to end her effort to have the Education Lessons From A Sparkly District: Parents Deserve to Know Who Is Being Appointed to State Board of Ed: