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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Save Seattle Schools Community Blog: Charter Law - Third in the Series on Charter Schools

Save Seattle Schools Community Blog: Charter Law - Third in the Series on Charter Schools:

Charter Law - Third in the Series on Charter Schools

This is probably the most difficult piece of the charter puzzle because (1) there are 41 charter laws and (2) the mission and goals of those laws vary greatly (although the language might be similar).

Just by the numbers, there are about 5600 charter schools across the country. More than 500 open across the country in fall 2011 and 150 closed with California leading in both categories. California opened 100 new schools, closed 34 schools. Florida opened 76 new schools and closed 18 schools. Arizona opened 35 new schools and closed 22 schools.

Charter law covers a huge number of issues. Some of these include:

Top 5 Misconceptions About Teacher Leadership / Coaching | The Jose Vilson

Top 5 Misconceptions About Teacher Leadership / Coaching | The Jose Vilson:

Top 5 Misconceptions About Teacher Leadership / Coaching

Tightrope Walker

I don’t know whether it’s because I’m young, Black / Latino, and / or well-dressed more often than not, but people have serious misconceptions about what I actually do in the building. This seems to be the case with lots of teachers I’ve met who, for whatever reason, have been pulled out of the classroom. Some of us are an ambitious lot who don’t really want to be in the classroom but want to work in education. Others just want to become administrators (no way). Most of the the teacher leaders and coaches I know, however, simply believe that they would better serve their community at large by having this in-between role where they could have a teacher’s voice in a board room. That often has mixed results, but that’s not the point of this particular post. So,

UC Davis Students become Powerful Teachers - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

UC Davis Students become Powerful Teachers - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

UC Davis Students become Powerful Teachers

Yesterday I joined my 19-year-old son, a sophomore at UC Davis, and about 10,000 other people, for a demonstration on the Quad at his school. This was the location of Friday's infamous incident, when peacefully protesting students were sprayed in the face with military-grade pepper spray. But on this day, no police were to be seen. That made the place feel much safer.davis3.jpg

We heard first from the students who had been sprayed. They related their experiences one after the other, in shocking detail.

Here is some of what student David Buscho shared with us.


Someone yelled 'pepper spray,' and I closed my eyes. My arm was around my girlfriend and I kissed her on the cheek. My friends buried their faces into their chests. And then it happened. At that point I entered a world of pain. It felt like hot glass was entering my eyes. I couldn't see anything. I wanted to open my eyes but every time I did the pain got worse. I wanted to breathe but I couldn't because my face was covered in pepper spray and every time I breathed I was nauseous. I couldn't see anything. I could feel my friends and my girlfriend writhing in pain. I wanted to cover her face but I couldn't because my hands were covered in pepper spray. I didn't know where the police were. I didn't want to stand up because I thought I would be arrested. I was afraid. I was no longer

Do we need better parents? | Taking Note

Do we need better parents? | Taking Note:

Do we need better parents?

A Classroom Activist Deals with High-Stakes Testing « City School Stories

A Classroom Activist Deals with High-Stakes Testing « City School Stories:

A Classroom Activist Deals with High-Stakes Testing

Teacher Stories

Submitted by Serena on November 23, 2011

Teaching in Philadelphia these days at a time of high-stakes testing requires educators to think beyond our administrative leaders’ expectations of an effective teacher. The Administrative District Teams that walk through our school buildings and classrooms are understandably anxious that students perform well on the standardized state test, but they do not ask the tough questions about how we are truly meeting the needs of our students, and whether or not authentic and deep learning is taking place.

I do not mind spending some time preparing students for the PSSA, nor do I mind looking at Predictive Test data or giving effective feedback on constructed responses, but that is only one way for me to help my students

What Happened to Freedom of the Press? | Seattle Education #ows

What Happened to Freedom of the Press? | Seattle Education:

What Happened to Freedom of the Press?

Why is it that the only news outlets showing what’s really going on in the streets of the United States are online news outlets such as Democracy Now, truthout and other blogs such as Common Dreams and the Occupy Nowwebsites around the country and Livestream websites as in Oakland and New York City? And yes, other blogs like this one and a few others?

The Seattle Times so-called education writers used to post only press releases from our Broad-trained superintendent and the Seattle Foundation that is funded by Gates’ money. Now they write faux op-ed’s and columns written by so called education writers who only write the corporate/company line that are fed to them by the League of Education Voters, Stand for Children and the Seattle Foundation pushing charter schools and

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts #ows #edreform


It Turns Out That Being an Effective Parent’s Not That Difficult | GeekDad | Wired.com

It Turns Out That Being an Effective Parent’s Not That Difficult | GeekDad | Wired.com:It Turns Out That Being an Effective Parent’s Not That DifficultBy Dave Banks November 22, 2011 | 6:00 am | Categories: Science and EducationImage by Flickr user Neeta Lind, used under CC LicensingEducators and parents have been saying for years that parental involvement is one of the most important factors in a child’s education. But what does that mean? Cooking brownies for a bake sale? Attending ... more »

CAP/C-SPAN Panel on Student Involvement in University Governance Now Online « Student Activism #OWS

CAP/C-SPAN Panel on Student Involvement in University Governance Now Online « Student Activism:CAP/C-SPAN Panel on Student Involvement in University Governance Now Onlineby Angus JohnstonThe panel discussion I participated in yesterday at the Center for American Progress in Washington DC is now online. It was a good discussion, I think, and particularly timely given the events of the last week in California.http://www.americanprogress.org/images/rd2/flash/flowplayer.commercial-3.0.5.swfAlong with myself, the panel included Tiffany Loftin, vice president of the United States Student ... more »

Former Marine, Officer Calls Pike “Cowardly” in Open Letter - Davis, CA Patch #OWS

Former Marine, Officer Calls Pike “Cowardly” in Open Letter - Davis, CA Patch:Former Marine, Officer Calls Pike “Cowardly” in Open LetterCaptain Souza,My proudest accomplishment in life was earning the title United States Marine. Today, I continue to espouse the Marine qualities of honesty, integrity and courage. I have worked many protests as a DC policeman and as a United States Marine fighting in Iraq. I am perplexed as to how a non-violent demonstration would necessitate police in riot gear or ... more »

Nonviolence, Resisting Arrest, and the Student Movements of the Sixties and Today « Student Activism #OWS

Nonviolence, Resisting Arrest, and the Student Movements of the Sixties and Today « Student Activism:Nonviolence, Resisting Arrest, and the Student Movements of the Sixties and Todayby Angus JohnstonA recurring theme in criticism of the students pepper-sprayed at UC Davis last week is that in forming a ring around police and their fellow activists they were violating the principles of nonviolent resistance. “A fundamental tenet of civil disobedience is to accept arrest when protesting injustice,” Berkeley Daily Cal columnist Casey Given ... more »

Hechinger Report | Should value-added teacher ratings be adjusted for poverty?

Hechinger Report | Should value-added teacher ratings be adjusted for poverty?:Should value-added teacher ratings be adjusted for poverty?by Sarah GarlandIn Washington, D.C., one of the first places in the country to use value-added teacher ratings to fire teachers, teacher-union president Nathan Saunders likes to point to the following statistic as proof that the ratings are flawed: Ward 8, one of the poorest areas of the city, has only five percent of the teachers defined as effective under the new evaluation ... more »

More on Rocketship Charters « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students! #OWS

More on Rocketship Charters « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!:More on Rocketship Chartersby millerlfA Retro-Rocketship to the Future: Corporate Education Reform Blasts Off in Silicon ValleyWritten by Adam Bessie The Daily Censored, Nov 18, 2011Rocketship is blasting off in Silicon Valley, with great fanfare – and no, it’s not a new tech start up, propelled by the genius of another 22-year old wunderkind who has invented the latest, most innovative way to virally spread videos of silly cats playing ... more »

Education Research Report: Formative Assessment Initiatives in Two States

Education Research Report: Formative Assessment Initiatives in Two States:Texas school districts teaching about contraception along with abstinence in sex education classesby Jonathan KantrowitzΩReport Shows Big Increase in Public Schools A new Texas Freedom Network Education Fund (TFNEF) study shows a big increase over the past three years in the percentage of Texas school districts teaching about contraception along with abstinence in sex education classes.This encouraging shift away from failed abstinence-only policies is especially important because Texas has one Formative Asses... more »

Anti Teachers’ Union Activity in the State of Washington | Seattle Education #OWS

Anti Teachers’ Union Activity in the State of Washington | Seattle Education:Anti Teachers’ Union Activity in the State of Washingtonby seattleducation2011Have you seen this in your inbox yet?Dear School Board Director,RE: NONUNION PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR ASSOCIATIONBecause you are a leader in your community’s education system, we wanted to inform you about Northwest Professional Educators (NWPE) andour work supporting your mission to provide students with the best possible education.NWPE is a state partner of the Association of American Educators (AAE), the fastest-growing

Teachers union leader says battle's just begun - Washington Times

Teachers union leader says battle's just begun - Washington Times:'Teachers union leader says battle’s just begunPredicts labor inroads against GOP20 Comments and 0 Reactions|ShareTweet|Email|Print|By Ben Wolfgang-The Washington TimesMonday, November 21, 2011NEA President Dennis Van Roekel isn’t holding out much hope that sweeping changes to education laws can be enacted before the 2012 presidential election. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)Text Size: +-Click-2-ListenSTORY TOPICSPoliticsEducationDennis Van RoekelScott WalkerJohn KasichFOLLOW US ONFACEBOOKFOLLOW US ONFACEBOOKQUES... more »

Blue Jersey:: Occupy Education Reform #ows #edreform

Blue Jersey:: Occupy Education Reform:Occupy Education Reformby Jersey JazzmanCross-posted from Jersey Jazzman.In America today, students who peacefully question the status quo can expect this:Obviously, these kids never learned to conform, which demonstrates a failure of our public education system. Because schools are not supposed to produce critical thinkers capable of independent thought who can see past the corporate propaganda our media grinds out every second. No, schools are there to produce "21st Century workers" - people who are smart enough ... more »

Special Education Students and Charter Schools « A "Fuller" Look at Education Issues

Special Education Students and Charter Schools « A "Fuller" Look at Education Issues:Special Education Students and CharterSchoolsPosted on November 21, 20110Rate ThisNot much here but a table. The table lists the number and percentage of public and charter districts that enroll at least 1 student in each special education category. It appears to me that fewer charter districts enroll the most difficult and costly to instruct special education students. For example, 40% of public districts in Texas enroll at least ... more »

Schools Matter: "[N]ot the Time. . .to Follow the Line of Least Resistance"

Schools Matter: "[N]ot the Time. . .to Follow the Line of Least Resistance":"[N]ot the Time. . .to Follow the Line of Least Resistance"by P. L. Thomas"[N]ot the Time. . .to Follow the Line of Least Resistance"In a major journal from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), a teacher and scholar laments the current state of implementing the research in language: "A brief consideration will indicate reasons for the considerable gap between the research currently available and the utilization ... more »

Kimble's Corner: My Thanksgiving Memories

Kimble's Corner: My Thanksgiving Memories:My Thanksgiving Memoriesby Representative KimbleThanksgiving was always a special time for my family when I was growing up. My father worked very hard to give us an upper middle class lifestyle, but he never wanted us to forget the type of poverty that his father used to pretend he came from.On Thanksgiving, we didn’t have a fancy feast. We used to go down to the local kitchen where we would see those much less fortunate than ... more »

Wow. « Student Activism #ows

Wow. « Student Activism:Wow.by Angus JohnstonFrom the homepage of the UC Davis Department of English:The faculty of the UC Davis English Department supports the Board of the Davis Faculty Association in calling for Chancellor Katehi’s immediate resignation and for “a policy that will end the practice of forcibly removing non-violent student, faculty, staff, and community protesters by police on the UC Davis campus.” Further, given the demonstrable threat posed by the University of California Police Department and other law enforcement

Jersey Jazzman: Reformy Turf Wars?

Jersey Jazzman: Reformy Turf Wars?:Reformy Turf Wars?by DukeSpeaking of Derrell Bradford: we never really did get a full accounting of how and why he left Excellent Eduction for Everyone (E3), the voucher... uh, sorry, scholarship proponents here in New Jersey. Derrell went to Better Education for Kids (B4K), a shop set up using scads of hedge fund money, with great fanfare. I read a fair bit of the coverage when he left, and I don't remember anyone asking him who ... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Are there really too many 'mediocre' charter schools?

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Are there really too many 'mediocre' charter schools?:Are there really too many 'mediocre' charter schools?by Mike KlonskyIncubatorRight-wing think-tankers at the Fordham Institute are looking for answers and I'm sure they'll find them. You see, it's all in how you pose the question.Their latest quest has to do with charter schools. Fordham, which doubles as a charter school lobbying and support group in Ohio, and their business-minded partners, Cities for Education Entrepreneurship Trust (CEE-Trust), are getting together ... more »

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top Early Evening Posts #ows #edreform

Why It Matters: Occupy Student Debt! | HyperVocal #owsBig Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All)-13 minutes agoWhy It Matters: Occupy Student Debt! | HyperVocal:Occupy Student Debt!POSTED NOVEMBER 21ST 3:14PM BY CRYN JOHANNSENREAD MORE: TAGS: EDUCATION, OCCUPY STUDENT DEBT, OCCUPY WALL STREET, STUDENT LOAN DEBT, STUDENT LOANS 12 share32Today, November 21, 2011 is the beginning of the National Campaign to Occupy Student Debt. According to an official statement, the pledge consists of three things:1) A debtor’s pledge to refuse loan payments.The ... more »

Dear John, Education Sector Thinks A Lot About Teachers and More School Time

Dear John, Education Sector Thinks A Lot About Teachers and More School Time:Dear John, Education Sector Thinks A Lot About Teachers and More School Timeby ELENA SILVA on NOVEMBER 21, 2011in TEACHER QUALITYShareMy colleague Susan Headden and I recently wrote a piece about extending school time for the Wallace Foundation’s report “Reimagining the School Day” John Thompson’s response rightly praised the Wallace Foundation’s attention to expanding not just time but high-quality learning. He also suggested that Susan and I did ... more »

Grumpy Educators: 2011 EduBlog Award Nominations

Grumpy Educators: 2011 EduBlog Award Nominations:2011 EduBlog Award NominationsNon-educators, parents and students are writing and reading blogs to become informed on initiatives that affect their communities. As a non-educator, I read widely to make meaning of the rapid changes occurring. These bloggers have provided consistent fact based information. I applaud the increase in parent blogging. Here's my list for 2011 Edublog Award consideration.

Yee calls for independent probe into UCD pepper-spraying | Davis Enterprise #ows

Yee calls for independent probe into UCD pepper-spraying | Davis Enterprise:Yee calls for independent probe into UCD pepper-sprayingby Enterprise staffState Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, has called on UC President Mark Yudof to launch an independent probe of Friday’s incident in which UC Davis police pepper-sprayed peaceful, seated protesters on campus.In a statement emailed Monday, Yee said actions by Yudof and UCD Chancellor Linda Katehi are not good enough.Yudof said he would convene the 10 UC campus chancellors to ensure ... more »