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Saturday, December 10, 2011

Last Week's Best Posts on Big Education Ape » PostRank #ows #EDreform #sosmarch #p2 #1u






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For-Profit College Rules Scaled Back After Lobbying - NYTimes.com

2011-Dec-9
For-Profit College Rules Scaled Back After Lobbying - NYTimes.com:With Lobbying Blitz, For-Profit Colleges Diluted New RulesBy ERIC LICHTBLAUPublished: December 9, 2011RECOMMENDTWITTERLINKEDINE-MAILPRINTSINGLE PAGEREPRINTSSHAREWASHINGTON — Last year, the Obama administration vowed to stop for-profit collegesfrom luring students with false promises. In an opening volley that shook the $30 billion industry, officials proposed new restrictions to cut off the huge flow of federal aid to unfit programs.Enlarge This ImageAssociated Press PhotoCass R. Sunstein, the White House official who oversees rulemaking, described the industry’s ...
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Child Nutrition Reauthorization 2010 - Letters (CA Dept of Education)

2011-Dec-9
Child Nutrition Reauthorization 2010 - Letters (CA Dept of Education):December 9, 2011Dear County and District Superintendents, Charter School Administrators, School Business Officials, and Nutrition Service Directors:CHILD NUTRITION REAUTHORIZATION 2010: INDIRECT COST GUIDANCEThe California Department of Education (CDE) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recognize the complexity that local educational agencies (LEAs) face in allocating costs amongst various federal and non-federal programs. As part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, the USDA recently released a 113-page guidance ...
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Minor Omission: Teacher in that ad stands with Scott Walker AND National Right to Work Legal Foundation |

2011-Dec-9
Minor Omission: Teacher in that ad stands with Scott Walker AND National Right to Work Legal Foundation |:Minor Omission: Teacher in that ad stands with Scott Walker AND National Right to Work Legal FoundationDecember 9, 2011By bluecheddarChannel3000 did a nice clarification on the anti-recall add by Kristi LaCroix in their “Reality Check” feature and that got me looking at the whole thing again.The gist of the original ad is that those of us who are recalling don’t really have grounds ...
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Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The real Chicago "miracle" -- Arne Duncan still has a job

2011-Dec-9
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The real Chicago "miracle" -- Arne Duncan still has a job:The real Chicago "miracle" -- Arne Duncan still has a jobby Mike KlonskyThe only miracle emerging from the past decade of Chicago's corporate-style school reform is that former CEO and current Sec. of Education Arne Duncan hasn't resigned from either posts out of sheer embarrassment.The latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) once again put Chicago near the bottom compared to other large ...
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Without warning, Bed-Stuy school learns it could close in June | GothamSchools

2011-Dec-9
Without warning, Bed-Stuy school learns it could close in June | GothamSchools:Without warning, Bed-Stuy school learns it could close in Juneby Geoff DeckerThe Bedford-Stuyvesant building that houses the Academy of Business and Community Development, which could close in June.It was bad enough news when staff and students at the Academy of Business and Community Development in Bedford-Stuyvesant found out last month that its middle school grades might phase out.But on Thursday, the all-boys student body was herded into the auditorium ...
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Estelle Matthews out of 440 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

2011-Dec-8
Estelle Matthews out of 440 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:Estelle Matthews out of 440by Erika Owens on Dec 08 2011 Posted in Latest newsCOMMENTS (2)PRINTEMAILTags:leadershipChief Talent Development Officer Estelle Matthews was escorted from District headquarters yesterday after a District investigation, sources told the Daily News.The District's Inspector General John Downs said they launched an investigation after angry laid-off workers shared concerns. Downs said he submitted a draft of findings from the
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Illinois tax breaks for giant corporations. What happened to “Illinois is broke?” Tell ‘em no. « Fred Klonsky

2011-Dec-8
Illinois tax breaks for giant corporations. What happened to “Illinois is broke?” Tell ‘em no. « Fred Klonsky:Illinois tax breaks for giant corporations. What happened to “Illinois is broke?” Tell ‘em no.by Fred KlonskyGrassroots opposition is building to the Emanuel-Madigan plan to give tax breaks to the Board of Trade, Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Sears.A vote in the House is expected Monday.The SEIU website, Progress Illinois reports:The growing protests against corporate tax break legislation in Springfield are clearly taking place ...
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A Veteran Principal Describes Testing Day (Dave Sherman) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

2011-Dec-8
A Veteran Principal Describes Testing Day (Dave Sherman) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:A Veteran Principal Describes Testing Day (Dave Sherman)by larrycubanDave Sherman is an elementary school principal in a suburb north of Chicago. He described a day of testing in Education Week, March 5, 2009.Tuesday was the first day of [state tests]for all 3rd through 8th grade students in the State of Illinois. This is a big deal for Illinois schools…. Each school’s percentage of students ...
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School Tech Connect: Chicago's Miracle Workers

2011-Dec-8
School Tech Connect: Chicago's Miracle Workers:Chicago's Miracle Workersby noreply@blogger.com (Tim)Well, the NAEP Urban District Assessment is out, and it pretty much re-confirms everything that everyone has already known. I don't think you can make conclusions beyond the executive summary of any high-quality study, and here's the thrust of it for the reading portion.Scores for some groups are creeping a little higher since 2002, after a decade of test-centric reforms and all
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: Lacking a Sensitivity Chip

2011-Dec-8
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Lacking a Sensitivity Chip:Lacking a Sensitivity Chipby Melissa WestbrookIf you've been following the local news, there's a couple in our region, living in a $1.2M lakefront home, and the woman has been collecting welfare for a couple of years. She claimed she and her two children lived on $5,000 a year and her husband was the "landlord." They've collected over $100,000 and, of course, live pretty well. (To her credit, she did put down their real ...
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When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listens - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

2011-Dec-8
When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listens - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listensby Anthony CodyThree days ago, Valerie Strauss' Answer Sheet blog in the Washington Post published the hardest-hitting critique of testing of the year. Before discussing that, I want to take a moment to recognize her work. Ms. Strauss is the ONLY blogger in the mainstream media to consistently address education issues from ...
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When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listens - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

2011-Dec-8
When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listens - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:When a School Board Member Takes a Test, the World Listensby Anthony CodyThree days ago, Valerie Strauss' Answer Sheet blog in the Washington Post published the hardest-hitting critique of testing of the year. Before discussing that, I want to take a moment to recognize her work. Ms. Strauss is the ONLY blogger in the mainstream media to consistently address education issues from ...
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MomsRising Blog

2011-Dec-8
MomsRising Blog:#HERVotes Blog Carnival: Extend Unemployment Insurance!Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner at MomsRising Blog - 7 minutes agoWelcome to the #HERVotes Blog Carnival, this time focused on the need to extend unemployment insurance. Why? One reason is that far too many children in our nation (nearly 1 in 4) live in families who are struggling to put food on the table because of poverty. And for them, this holiday season will be [...]Women, The Economy, and Unemployment InsuranceAngel Savoy at MomsRising Blog - ...
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How To Break Up a Peaceful Protest Peacefully - Forbes #ows

2011-Dec-8
How To Break Up a Peaceful Protest Peacefully - Forbes:How To Break Up a Peaceful Protest Peacefully+ Comment nowThe eviction of Occupy St. Louis was surprisingly calm.Occupy St. Louis was evicted recently, but it didn’t end in blood and tears. No pepper-spray was deployed. No protesters found themselves on the other end of a baton. In fact, if reports are accurate, police in St. Louis decided to opt for wits over brute strength, and common sense over riot gear. Via ...
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SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: An Inane Soliloquy Of Venting

2011-Dec-7
SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: An Inane Soliloquy Of Venting:An Inane Soliloquy Of Ventingby noreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)I am thisclose to being fed up with teaching. With education. With the NYC DOE.I'm tired of hearing the rhetoric of "students first" or children first." It's all bullshit. The more one claims its about the students, the less it is.This "passing the buck," shit ain't working either. The only people out there who do not pass the buck are the teachers. Everyone else, administrators, parents, ...
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Senate Youth Delegates Selected - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education)

2011-Dec-7
Senate Youth Delegates Selected - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education):State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Selects High SchoolStudents for 2011 U.S. Senate Youth ProgramSACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced the selection of two exemplary California high school students as delegates, along with two alternates, to the prestigious and highly competitive United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP).Nina Arati Kamath of Saratoga (Santa Clara County) and Morgen Diane Harvey of Oregon House (Yuba County) will travel to Washington, D.C., ...
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The Education Optimists: Billionaire Education Policy (Guest Post)

2011-Dec-7
The Education Optimists: Billionaire Education Policy (Guest Post):Billionaire Education Policy (Guest Post)Posted by Sara Goldrick-RabThe following is a guest posting by my colleague and friend Robin Rogers, associate professor of sociology at Queens College and the Graduate Center at the City University of New York (CUNY). She is the author of “Why Philanthro-policymaking Matters” in The Politics of Philanthrocapitalism, Society 2011, The Welfare Experiments: Politics and Policy Evaluation (Stanford University Press, 2004) and numerous articles on politics and social policy. ...
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School Tech Connect: Those Terrible Teachers

2011-Dec-7
School Tech Connect: Those Terrible Teachers:Those Terrible Teachersby noreply@blogger.com (Tim)I can't add anything to Sharon's lovely, sad piece about the AUSL infomercial on the 29th at Morton. I occasionally read commentary from so-called reformers to the effect that nobody is attacking teachers, so stop saying that reformers are attacking teachers. Well, the mayor of Chicago is attacking teachers. It's his M.O.These parents who were rounded up to slam the teachers from the pre-AUSL Morton, let me just say this about ...
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: Charter Expansion and Enrollment Up in US

2011-Dec-7
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Charter Expansion and Enrollment Up in US:Charter Expansion and Enrollment Up in USby Melissa WestbrookThe number of children in the US attending charter schools has passed the two million mark according to an AParticle in the Seattle Times. But read the article closely and you'll see all is not well.From the article:The growth represents the largest increase in enrollment over a single year since charter schools were founded nearly two decades ago. In all, more than ...
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sidwell friend school is serving "asian" food today. so what? | angry asian man

2011-Dec-7
sidwell friend school is serving "asian" food today. so what? | angry asian man:sidwell friend school is serving "asian" food today. so what?Wow. I guess things are pretty slow in the WUSA 9 news room. Because this story, written by Manny Fantis, appears to be a blatant attempt to create some bullshit controversy out of nothing. It's also flat-out ignorant as hell: Sidwell Friends School, Sasha and Malia Obama's School, Opts For Asian, including Japanese Food On Pearl Harbor Day.Today ...
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Education Research Report: Results From the 2011 NAEP Trial Urban District Assessments (TUDA) in Mathematics and Reading

2011-Dec-7
Education Research Report: Results From the 2011 NAEP Trial Urban District Assessments (TUDA) in Mathematics and Reading:Results From the 2011 NAEP Trial Urban District Assessments (TUDA) in Mathematics and Readingby Jonathan KantrowitzΩData from the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) show that students from large cities nationally have made gains since 2009 at both grades 4 and 8 in mathematics and at grade 8 in reading. The Nation’s Report Card: Mathematics 2011 TUDA and The Nation’s Report Card: Reading ...
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An overview of neo-school reformers. « Fred Klonsky

2011-Dec-7
An overview of neo-school reformers. « Fred Klonsky:An overview of neo-school reformers.by Fred KlonskyKen Libby does a good job of giving an overview of the network of what he calls EAOs, or Education Advocacy Organizations on Shanker Blog.He focuses on those with a national presence like Democrats for Education Reform and Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst (what’s the deal with no spaces between words?)I take a certain personal satisfaction that Libby’s reference to Stand for Children has the obligatory reference to their ...
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Both Sides of the Classroom « The Whole Child Blog « Whole Child Education

2011-Dec-7
Both Sides of the Classroom « The Whole Child Blog « Whole Child Education:Both Sides of the Classroomby ASCD Whole Child BloggersPost submitted by Whole Child Blogger Carole HaywardAdora Svitak, ASCD’s youngest member at 14 years old, became involved in classroom teaching when her first book was published at age 7. As a current high school student, Svitak has a truly unique perspective of seeing both sides of the classroom.At a general session at ASCD’s Fall Conference in October, Svitak ...
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John Thompson: Diane Ravitch and the History That "Reformers" Do Not Know

2011-Dec-6
John Thompson: Diane Ravitch and the History That "Reformers" Do Not Know:John ThompsonAward-winning Historian, Lobbyist and Guerilla-gardener, and Inner City TeacherGET UPDATES FROM JOHN THOMPSON Like134Diane Ravitch and the History That "Reformers" Do Not KnowDiane Ravitch has again done the seemingly impossible. She prompted Education Sector's Kevin Carey to take a glance at the history of education. Even so, Carey's piece in The New Republic, "The Dissenter," indicates that he did not read carefully.Carey wrote that Ravitch "left a polarized ...
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CA Dem chair John Burton (bleeping) kills on The Daily Show (VIDEO) | Politics Blog | an SFGate.com blog

2011-Dec-6
CA Dem chair John Burton (bleeping) kills on The Daily Show (VIDEO) | Politics Blog | an SFGate.com blog:CA Dem chair John Burton (bleeping) kills on The Daily Show (VIDEO)Share 90On the day after Gov. Brown proposed a tax-raising ballotmeasure, “The Daily Show” did a hilarious — but ultimately, for those of us who live here, sad – take Monday on California’s messed up initiative process. The star of the bit was California Democratic Party chair John Burton.It was even ...
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NYC Public School Parents: Leonie Haimson on CNN this morning

2011-Dec-6
NYC Public School Parents: Leonie Haimson on CNN this morning:Leonie Haimson on CNN this morningCarol Costello interviewing me today on CNN's American Morning. Here's an accompanying article from the CNN blog.After the show, I looked up Forest Hill HS; only 38% of their graduates are college ready, meaning they will need remediation. I'm sure that even this relatively successful school could do better by its students if it provided them with smaller classes.Posted by Leonie Haimson at 12/06/2011 05:47:00 PM ...
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: What Does Testing Mean?

2011-Dec-6
Seattle Schools Community Forum: What Does Testing Mean?:What Does Testing Mean?by Melissa WestbrookI read these two articles and thought, "What are we doing?" and "How did we get here?"The first is a blog entry from the Washington Post blog, The Answer Sheet, by Valerie Strauss who, in turn, had a guest blogger, Marion Brady. It's called, Revealed: The School Board Member Who Took a Standardized Test. The board member failed the test. But that's not really the story. Here's what ...
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Support PURE! » PSAT for 12-6-11: School principals, unite!

2011-Dec-6
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » PSAT for 12-6-11: School principals, unite!:PSAT for 12-6-11: School principals, unite!by adminLast night we watched a charming movie, “Amreeka,” about a Palestinian mom and her son who emigrate to Illinois the same week the US invaded Iraq. Not surprisingly, they encounter some challenges. Somewhat surprisingly, one of the film’s heroes is the mild-mannered principal of the local high school.School principals are popularly portrayed as creeps, crooks, or idiots (anyone besides me ...
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RheeFirst! » How many DC schoolkids were left behind by all of the cheating by adults on the DC-CAS?

2011-Dec-6
RheeFirst! » How many DC schoolkids were left behind by all of the cheating by adults on the DC-CAS?:How many DC schoolkids were left behind by all of the cheating by adults on the DC-CAS?by adminWritten by Guy Brandenburg for his blog. Read the entire post here.“Let us not lose sight of the real victims of the massive cheating scandal on the DC-CAS standardized tests here in the nation’s capital.It’s the students who are being falsely claimed as being proficient ...
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: American

2011-Dec-6
Seattle Schools Community Forum: American:Americanby Charlie MasYou’re invited to attend a special screening of a recently released documentary on teaching in the U.S., American Teacher, on December 12 at 6:00 PM at Town Hall Seattle, 1119 8th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101. Seats are limited, so please register.The film is being shown in communities across the country to facilitate discussion and attention on the role teachers play in providing a quality education to our nation’s children. Weaving interviews and startling facts ...
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Seattle Schools Community Forum: Innovation Schools, Er, "Creative Approach Schools"

2011-Dec-6
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Innovation Schools, Er, "Creative Approach Schools":Innovation Schools, Er, "Creative Approach Schools"by Melissa WestbrookThe initial draft of the MOU between the district and the SEA about innovation schools (now renamed "Creative Approach Schools") is clearly a work in progress. But it is promising.It's interesting because I think some fear this as an intro into charters; I see it as a way to strong-arm off charters. Why do you need charters if districts and unions are willing to ...
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How to Rescue Education Reform - NYTimes.com

2011-Dec-6
How to Rescue Education Reform - NYTimes.com:How to Rescue Education ReformGracía LamBy FREDERICK M. HESS and LINDA DARLING-HAMMONDPublished: December 5, 2011RECOMMENDTWITTERLINKEDINE-MAILPRINTREPRINTSSHARETHE debate over renewing No Child Left Behind, the education reform act that will be 10 years old in January, has fallen along partisan lines even though school improvement is one of the few examples of bipartisan cooperation over the last decade.Related in OpinionMore on Education »Though the law was initiated and signed by a Republican president, presidential candidates like ...
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ALEC Education Task Force Approves Anti-Common Core Model Legislation | Truth in American Education

2011-Dec-5
ALEC Education Task Force Approves Anti-Common Core Model Legislation | Truth in American Education:ALEC Education Task Force Approves Anti-Common Core Model Legislationby Shane Vander HartThe American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) met last week in Scottsdale, AZ. They are an organization whose mission is “to advance the Jeffersonian principles of free markets, limited government, federalism, and individual liberty, through a nonpartisan public-private partnership of America’s state legislators, members of the private sector, the federal government, and general public.” They have several ...
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Meet the 12 People Who Will Investigate the UC Davis Pepper Spray Incident - Davis, CA Patch #ows

2011-Dec-5
Meet the 12 People Who Will Investigate the UC Davis Pepper Spray Incident - Davis, CA Patch:Meet the 12 People Who Will Investigate the UC Davis Pepper Spray IncidentThe task force will assign blame in the pepper spraying incident that took place on the UC Davis quad and quickly gained international attention.By Patch StaffEmail the author2:29 pm Email Printnbps; Comment Add your photosA task force that will investigate the UC Davis pepper spraying incident was named today. It's purpose will ...
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UCSD Reclaims Revelle’s CLICS Library « occupy california #OWS

2011-Dec-5
UCSD Reclaims Revelle’s CLICS Library « occupy california:UCSD Reclaims Revelle’s CLICS Libraryby *from RebelRadio:Hello Community,UCSD Student’s have RECLAIMED the Library known as CLICS located in Revelle College. The University shut it down earlier this year due to “budget cuts.” This has had a dramatic effect on all students and further illustrates the Universities Privatization. The school just placed a $1.3 Million Dollar installation on the Jacob’s School of Engineering but couldn’t afford to keep the Library open.Students have spoken out ...
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4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: In the know: LAUSD TEACHER EVALUATIONS

2011-Dec-5
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: In the know: LAUSD TEACHER EVALUATIONS:In the know: LAUSD TEACHER EVALUATIONSEDITORIAL IN THE UCLA DAILY BRUIN BY GINA KASS | HTTP://BIT.LY/VUB57KDecember 5, 2011, 12:07 am :: The Los Angeles teachers’ union and the Los Angeles Unified School District are currently in dispute over a proposed new method of teacher evaluation which takes into account standardized test scores. This began after a legal challenge posed by the teachers’ union was dropped.The two ...
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David Kolb: The end of public schools, a right-wing dream, may be in sight | MLive.com

2011-Dec-5
David Kolb: The end of public schools, a right-wing dream, may be in sight | MLive.com:David Kolb: The end of public schools, a right-wing dream, may be in sightPublished: Wednesday, November 30, 2011, 7:29 AM By David Kolb | The Muskegon Chronicle Follow29ShareEmailPrintDavid KolbRepublicans who control the Michigan Senate deserve points for their anti-public school creativity, or at least bright red achievement stickers for their notebook covers.The spectacle of these politicos stooping to the idea of passing a bill to ...
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Why Education Innovation Tends to Crash and Burn :: Frederick M. Hess

2011-Dec-5
Why Education Innovation Tends to Crash and Burn :: Frederick M. Hess:Why Education Innovation Tends to Crash and Burnby Frederick M. Hess • Dec 5, 2011 at 8:07 amCross-posted from Education Week Print Send RSS ShareHaving opined a good bit about "innovation" (check out Ed Unbound for much of my current thinking), I'm sometimes asked about why it's so hard to scale promising programs, models, pilots, and notions. On that note, I just had the chance to spend a few ...
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When an adult took standardized tests forced on kids - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

2011-Dec-5
When an adult took standardized tests forced on kids - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:When an adult took standardized tests forced on kidsby Valerie StraussThis was written by Marion Brady, veteran teacher, administrator, curriculum designer and author.By Marion BradyA longtime friend on the school board of one of the largest school systems in America did something that few public servants are willing to do. He took versions of his state’s high-stakes standardized math and reading testsfor 10th graders, ...
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Big Education Ape: 12-4-11 PM High School Student Walkout and March Against Budget Cuts EDition #ows #edreform

2011-Dec-4
Big Education Ape: Ed News Now:Published by Coopmike48 – 6 news spotters todayNext update in about 11 hoursSee all articlesHEADLINESEDUCATIONSOCIETYPOLITICSHEALTHBUSINESSENVIRONMENT#EDU#CORPREFORMVideos: Garfield High School Student Walkout and March Against Budget Cutsseattleducation2010.wordpress.com - After the arrest of Jesse Hagopian, a teacher at Garfield High School, on Monday, November 28th, the students at Garfield organized a march to Seattle City Hall in response to their teacher’s arres...DianeRavitchChicago to join Gates Foundation charter compact | catalystcatalyst-chicago.org - Though they are still in negotiations over ...
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Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts #ows #edreform

2011-Dec-4
School Tech Connect: The Week in BooksBig Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All)-15 minutes agoSchool Tech Connect: The Week in Books:The Week in Booksby noreply@blogger.com (Tim)This week's haul from the Rogers Park branch library. My tech thought for the week is this: if your kids aren't reading a lot of books, on their e-readers or tablets or whatever, it doesn't matter what else you're doing: something has gone horribly awry.Here are my micro-reviews from last week. Each Litte Bird That ...
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Gates Foundation Grants ALEC A Hefty Sum For 'Education Reform' | Crooks and Liars

2011-Dec-4
Gates Foundation Grants ALEC A Hefty Sum For 'Education Reform' | Crooks and Liars:Gates Foundation Grants ALEC A Hefty Sum For 'Education Reform'29 commentsBy karoliENLARGEThis is exactly why I've always been suspicious of Bill Gates' "philanthropy." Yes, I understand that he's done wonderful things in Africa, but the United States is where we live and there is a very real and lasting battle going on over the future of public education.While union-busting is certainly one goal of the privatization monsters, ...
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OCCUPY EDUCATION - - Ive seen locked doors open due to my education  ...

2011-Dec-4
OCCUPY EDUCATION - - Ive seen locked doors open due to my education ...:- Ive seen locked doors open due to my education - I want to...OCCUPY EDUCATION - 5 minutes ago- Ive seen locked doors open due to my education - I want to see money equally distributed to ALL schools, no matter that location of the institution or the race of the student body. - innovatively injecting education into the minds of the youth will cripple “the cycle” ...
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What Is to Be Done about the Oligarchy? | Firedoglake

2011-Dec-4
What Is to Be Done about the Oligarchy? | Firedoglake:What Is to Be Done about the Oligarchy?by masaccioWe can’t afford this miserable oligarchy any more; so what should we do? There are two basic approaches. One is to cut down on the material inequality between the oligarchs and the rest of us. Another is to hem in the behaviors of Oligarchs so that their ability to damage the rest of us is significantly reduced. We can try both at the ...
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Chicago to join Gates Foundation charter compact | catalyst-chicago.org #edreform #ows

2011-Dec-4
Chicago to join Gates Foundation charter compact | catalyst-chicago.org:Chicago to join Gates Foundation charter compactBy: Sarah Karp / December 02, 2011Tags: charter schools finance and budgetsThough they are still in negotiations over the details, Chicago Public Schools officials are set to sign on to a national intiaitive that encourages stronger cooperation between charter schools and traditional schools, as well as providing equitable district funding for charters.Nine cities have already signed such agreements, called District Charter Collaboration Compacts, which are being ...
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Daily Kos: Teachers - Thank Goodness!

2011-Dec-4
Daily Kos: Teachers - Thank Goodness!:Teachers - Thank Goodness!by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)The sole purpose of this blog post is to get you to go read a blog post written by someone who is 86 years old, Norman Blumenthal. Perhaps you have heard those who argue we can do away with much of what happens in schools by teaching through online classes. Or perhaps you read Michael Bloomberg arguing at MIT that NYC should fire half their teachers and pay those left ...
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Videos: Garfield High School Student Walkout and March Against Budget Cuts | Seattle Education

2011-Dec-4
Videos: Garfield High School Student Walkout and March Against Budget Cuts | Seattle Education:Videos: Garfield High School Student Walkout and March Against Budget Cutsby seattleducation2011After the arrest of Jesse Hagopian, a teacher at Garfield High School, on Monday, November 28th, the students at Garfield organized a march to Seattle City Hall in response to their teacher’s arrest and to his demands to fully fund education in the state of Washington.Seattle Public Schools have seen the loss of librarians, much-needed family ...