Friday, April 27, 2012

Today's Big Education Ape - PostRank Top 4-27 AM Posts #soschat #edreform


Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Coming next week to a neighborhood near you

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Coming next week to a neighborhood near you: Coming next week to a neighborhood near youbyMike KlonskyWas this version of The Surge, Rahm's idea or John McCain's? Will the troops be stationed here permanently? Will they be using drones along with boots on the ground, to attack anti-war protesters? How long will the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution be suspended? These are some questions I have for the Mayor. It appears that members of the ... more »

NJ Spotlight | Opinion: A Tale of Two Cities: Charter Schools in Philadelphia, Camden

NJ Spotlight | Opinion: A Tale of Two Cities: Charter Schools in Philadelphia, Camden: Opinion: A Tale of Two Cities: Charter Schools in Philadelphia, CamdenThe key to successful charters: keep the focus on the kids, keep the unions happyprint|email|shareByLaura Waters,April 27, 2012inOpinion|Post a CommentThe big education news this week in the Delaware Valley is the Philadelphia Public School District's announcement that it will close 40 of its 250 schools in September 2013.Related Links"A Blueprint for Transforming Philadelphia's Public Schools"Urban Hope ... more »

Compton's "Parent Trigger" Education Fight Heats Up | Mother Jones

Compton's "Parent Trigger" Education Fight Heats Up | Mother Jones: Compton's "Parent Trigger" Education Fight Heats UpbyKristina RizgaLooks like the"parent-trigger law"debate is heating up betweenCompton' pro-charter parents and the Compton Unified School District.If you haven't been following the news out of Compton, last monthI bloggedabout how parents of kids attending LA's public McKinley Elementary School are trying something new: Shutting down the chronically struggling institution and demanding that it be replaced by a charter school. And yes, they can do ... more »

Education Quote of the Week: Arne Duncan on No Child Left Behind | Mother Jones

Education Quote of the Week: Arne Duncan on No Child Left Behind | Mother Jones: Education Quote of the Week: Arne Duncan on No Child Left Behind—ByKristina Rizga| Thu Jan. 20, 2011 1:03 PM PST4Photo of Arne Duncan: Department of EducationHere's Education Secretary Arne Duncan on the widelyexpected overhaulof the nine-year-oldNo Child Left BehindAct, formally called the Education Elementary and Secondary Education Law,as quoted by AP:"Everyone I talk to really shares my sense of urgency that we have to do ...more »

The Church Speaks to Public Education Justice #soschat

Public Education: Public EducationYou shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." - Matthew 22: 35-39The Church Speaks to Public Education JusticeAs we think about whether American society embodies Jesus' teaching that we should love our neighbors as ourselves, we need to be concerned about public schools, the ... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Tom Moran: Reformy Mind Reader

Jersey Jazzman: Tom Moran: Reformy Mind Reader: Tom Moran: Reformy Mind ReaderbyDukeWhat are we going to do with Tom Moran?Congratulations to the Perth Amboy school board for the double-whammy last night when itvoted to place Superintendent Janine Caffrey on administrative leave.This move will waste money and hurt kids. Nice going.Caffrey did nothing to deserve this. The charge against her was led by the board president, Samuel Lebreault, who is under investigation for trying to get free lunch for his kids ... more »

The Difference Between a Speech and a Lesson [Open Thread] | The Jose Vilson

The Difference Between a Speech and a Lesson [Open Thread] | The Jose Vilson: The Difference Between a Speech and a Lesson [Open Thread]byJoseI don’t know if I should reveal this, but, oh well. When I was approached months ago about becoming a speaker for TEDxNYED, I did my usual nod of approval and, “Cool.” I felt a certain surprise about being asked to speak to people I consider colleagues about my passions. Plus, I felt honored because, well, at ... more »

Petulant [pech-uh-luhnt] - Wait, What?

Petulant [pech-uh-luhnt] - Wait, What?: Petulant [pech-uh-luhnt]byjonpeltoPetulant [pech-uh-luhnt]:Adjective: (of a person or their manner) Childishly sulky or bad-tempered.Synonyms: testy – pettish – peevish – irritable – cantankerousIt may very well be the single most shocking development in this entire bizarre situation. Yesterday, Connecticut’s municipal officials came to the State Capitol to talk with the Governor and their legislators about the problems facing Connecticut’s cities and towns.Governor Malloy spoke to these Connecticut’s local elected officials and told them “not... more »

School Tech Connect: The Appearance of a Process

School Tech Connect: The Appearance of a Process: The Appearance of a Processbynoreply@blogger.com (Tim Furman)I have been critical of Elaine Nekritz over time, I admit it. I thought her performance during the committee hearing on SB512 was lacking, and of course her vote there was insane. She voted for a thing the consequences of which were totally unknown.However, she is not afraid of answering questions, so for that, I give her props. I send out a lot of emails and ...more »

Village of Attachment — Whole Child Education

Village of Attachment — Whole Child Education: Village of AttachmentbyASCD Whole Child BloggersPost submitted by Bev Ogilvie and Steve CairnsByrne Creek Community Secondary Schoolis committed to its culture of teacher collaboration. A weekly dedicated time slot is used by teams of staff to discuss student achievement and develop support plans. One student support plan was The Village of Attachment. Over six months, a group of staff met to learn the foundations and employ the strategies of this powerful paradigm.Drawing on ... more »

RheeFirst! » The Best Posts About Michelle Rhee’s Exaggerated Test Scores

RheeFirst! » The Best Posts About Michelle Rhee’s Exaggerated Test Scores: The Best Posts About Michelle Rhee’s Exaggerated Test Scoresbyadmin Dated, but oh so good.Written by Larry Ferlazzo for his blog. Read theentire post here.“The education blogosphere, and parts of the education media, have been abuzz the past couple of days over the discovery that Michelle Rhee’s often-claimed astronomical student test gains when she was a teacher were not true. This, of course, does not mean that Rhee was not ... more »

The superintendent candidates for Seattle Public Schools: The good, the bad and the ugly | Seattle Education

The superintendent candidates for Seattle Public Schools: The good, the bad and the ugly | Seattle Education: The superintendent candidates for Seattle Public Schools: The good, the bad and the uglyfromSeattle Education 2010byseattleducation2011I will focus on two of the candidates, Enoch and Husk. They are, in a sense, polar opposites. Banda seems “nice enough” but we need more than that in Seattle, particularly now after having to live through Broad and Goodloe-Johnson forcing their will on Seattle Public Schools with ... more »

Public education as a human right | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Public education as a human right | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Public education as a human rightbyNijmie DzurinkoPlease help us welcome our newest blogger, Nijmie Dzurinko, former executive director of Philadelphia Student Union.In the blurry world of education reform parents, students, educators, and communities need a guiding light to keep us on track. What could public education look like in our city and state if education was fundamentally a human right guaranteed in our society? How can we proceed in ... more »

Schools Matter: "Support Our Schools" Astroturf Group Rallies With Letter Writing Campaign to County Commissioners

Schools Matter: "Support Our Schools" Astroturf Group Rallies With Letter Writing Campaign to County Commissioners: "Support Our Schools" Astroturf Group Rallies With Letter Writing Campaign to County CommissionersbyJim HornThe shenanigans going on this spring in Knoxville, TN, offer a powerful case study of corporate control of schools in action.A few weeks before Eli Broad's East TN transplant, Jim McIntyre, delivered his State of the Schools speech in January of this year, a newgrassrootsastroturf group was formed to push the Broadie ... more »

Education Research Report: Lasting Impacts of Effective Teachers

Education Research Report: Lasting Impacts of Effective Teachers: Lasting Impacts of Effective TeachersbyJonathan KantrowitzTeachers who raise test scores have long-term effects on students’ college enrollment and earnings as adultsA study showing the large impacts that highly skilled teachers have on students’ academic achievement and lifetime earnings is available on the Education Next website, www.educationnext.org. Researchers Raj Chetty and John N. Friedman of Harvard University and Jonah E. Rockoff of Columbia University analyzed school-district data from grades 3–8 for 2.5 mi...more »

My visit to Philadelphia « Diane Ravitch's blog

My visit to Philadelphia « Diane Ravitch's blog: Diane Ravitch WebsiteDiane Ravitch WebsiteMy visit to PhiladelphiabydianeravYesterday I went to Philadelphia to speak to the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Before I left New York City, the local spokesperson for Parents Across American, Helen Gym, asked if I would meet with some journalists to talk about the “reform” plan just released the day before. She sent me a link to the plan, and as I read ... more »

RheeFirst! » Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mention

RheeFirst! » Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mention: Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mentionbyadminThis first hand account was sent by Terry Winters of CT, who attended a massive teachers’ rally before the State Capitol yesterday. The State Senate President Pro Tem and other legislators spoke at the rally.“Connecticut teachers converged on the State Capitol to stand up for students and the teaching profession—emphasizing that lawmakers need a meaningful education reform ... more »

PAA Action News Parents Across America

Parents Across America: Information and action for parents coming together to strengthen our public schools. Comments? Suggestions? Stories? E-mail usinfo@parentsacrossamerica.org.More atwww.parentsacrossamerica.org.Looking for regular updates on key education stories? Join the PAA News list. EmailPAAnews-subscribe@yahoogroups.comPAA Action NewsGO TONational Resolution on High-Stakes TestingPAA Action AlertJoin the Pineapple Rebellion! Sign theNational Resolution against High-Stakes Testing!PAA and our allies raised a powerful challenge to the testing industry this week. First, our ... more »

FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award | FairTest

FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award | FairTest: FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award Submitted by fairtest on March 26, 2012 - 1:52pmabout us assessment FairTest in the News in house k-12national news whats newDate and Time:Tuesday, 5 June, 5:30-830 p.m.Place: Julia Richman Educational Complex, 317 East 67th St., New York CityDiane Ravitch is an internationally renowned and respected historian of education. Formerly a ...more »

The Corporate Tax Loophole...or "The Hole".

The Corporate Tax Loophole...or "The Hole"...uses animation to highlight the importance of getting corporations to pay their fair share and the negative impact corporate tax loopholes have on students, public education, and the middle class. Make you voice heard. Sign the petition at: EdVotes.org/loopholes

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Another Black Eye for the District

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Another Black Eye for the District: Another Black Eye for the DistrictbyMelissa WestbrookI knew about this investigation and the results. I had being holding off on raising the issue until next week out of courtesy to the superintendent search. The Times got the info anyway. (I don't have a total for the amount of money that is likely gone/missing but I think it is around $20-30K which is a great deal of money for Van Asselt.)From ... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Tough Choices or Wrong Choices

Missouri Education Watchdog: Tough Choices or Wrong Choices: Tough Choices or Wrong ChoicesbyAnngie"The education system is merely a support for the political system we choose."- Vicky DavisIn 2007 the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE) produced a report entitledTough Choices or Tough Times. In it, they outlined a view for the American education system as the supplier of workers for the 21st century in a global economy. From her blogChanneling Reality, Davis summarizes the the findings of the ... more »

Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized testsByValerie StraussThis is a letter that P.S. 321 Principal Elizabeth Phillips sent to John B. King Jr., the New York State education commissioner, about questions she has seen on this year’s standardized tests recently administered to students in various grades.Late last week King decided toinvalidate one set of questions on a reading test just given ... more »

New testing system could mean more time for instruction | The Salt Lake Tribune

New testing system could mean more time for instruction | The Salt Lake Tribune: New testing system could mean more time for instructionSchools » Program tests literacy in early grades.By Lisa Schencker| The Salt Lake TribuneFirst Published Apr 24 2012 06:22 pm • Last Updated Apr 25 2012 11:07 amTeacher Heather Musser sat directly across from first-grader Benjamin Blake as he read a story about hats Tuesday.But she wasn’t just listening.PhotosJoin the DiscussionPost a CommentShe followed along on an iPad ...