Big Education Ape 2nd Banana
Recap of Last Week's Best Post
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU by Mike Klonsky Obama, Emanuel & AxelrodWell, mercy me! Look who's behind those ads blasting the CTU. Why, it's ASGK Public Strategies and AKPD, David Axelrod's old firms. An embarrassed Axelrod is claiming that he no longer has any connection to the firms since he sold them in 2009, when he became Obama's Senior White House Advisor. But he's still very much connected (the A stands for Axelrod)... more »
Daily Kos: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education
Daily Kos: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education byplthomasEdDFollow 8 PERMALINK4 COMMENTS "For Lolo Jones, Everything Is Image" claimed Jere Longman for *The New York Times*. In part, Longman focused a scathing gaze at Jones herself as a prominent face (and body) put on the entire Olympics for Americans: "Women have struggled for decades to be appreciated as athletes. For the first time at these Games, every competing nation has sent a female participant. But Jones is not assured enough with her hurdling... more »
David Gelernter: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet School - WSJ.com
David Gelernter: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet School - WSJ.com: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet SchoolWe have the technology, the people and the institutions we need to usher an online-education revolution. BY DAVID GELERNTER We have big problems with our schools—and need new ideas about how to fix them. Deep changes are needed in our attitude toward teaching, leading education scholar Diane Ravitch wrote recently in the New York Review of Books. We need smarter, better-educated recruits to the profession. We need to value a teacher's experience properly and discard the ... more »
Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated | The Jose Vilson
Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated | The Jose Vilson: Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated by Jose This is the post where I almost started off with a “Dear White People.” This is going to lean towards education, but applies pervasively. I’m referring to the educators who still want to save the children, the ones who still think they’re teaching their subjects and not actual students, the ones who see teaching as a segue to administration or a central office job, the ones who use euphemisms for kids of color to advance their ... more »
Still waiting… « Cooperative Catalyst
Still waiting… « Cooperative Catalyst: Still waiting… by caseykcaronna Still Waiting… I am still waiting for that large, sweeping legislation in the house, senate, and presidency in regards to progressive education. It is ironic that I will post something on Facebook in regards to education and get “likes” both from my most conservative and liberal friends. Education is something that internally, I believe many of us understand. We get it emotionally and we are able to connect to that part of learning, that relationship part of learning. However, we are so fearful to take ... more »
Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers | Alternet
Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers | Alternet: Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers Bain Capital has received a lot of negative press lately from President Barack Obama's reelection campaign as it's the corporation once run by current Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. As it turns out Romney made a killing from his time as CEO of Bain, but he was far from a job creator. Through his work thousands of people lost their jobs. The corporation uses a "Corporate Reform" model tha... more »
Dear Meryl Parents United for Responsible Education
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Dear Meryl: Dear Meryl by admin Ms. Meryl Streep c/o Leslee Dart Dart Group sent by facsimile 212 277 7550 *If you really appreciate teachers, please pull out of* *phony “Teachers Rock” event promoting* *the themes of the “Won’t Back Down” movie:* *public school privatization and wholesale teacher firing* Dear Ms Streep: I am writing to ask you to reconsider your participation in the “Teachers Rock” event next week. As parents, we are concerned that this event is part of a larger propaganda campaign to force privatization on ... more »
Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes « School Finance 101
Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes « School Finance 101: Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes by schoolfinance101 Public preference for property taxes stands in perfect inverse relation to the public taste for parfaits. Everybody loves parfaits[i] and everybody hates property taxes.[ii] No, I don’t plan to spend this blog post bashing parfaits. I do like a good parfait. But, even more blasphemous, I intend to shed light on some of the virtues of much maligned property taxes. I often hear school funding equity advocates argue that if we could only get rid ... more »
Jersey Jazzman: The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last)
Jersey Jazzman: The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last): The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last) by Duke I've been breaking down Arne Duncan's interview with Tom Moran of the * Star-Ledger* all week: - Part I: Duncan's signature program, Race To The Top, has little evidence to back it up. - Part II: The real legacy of Duncan, Rhee, and Klein. - Part III: Arne has a lot to learn about what makes teachers tick. - Part IV: Duncan's totally befuddled thoughts about testing. - Part V: Duncan doesn't understand poverty or logic. And so we come to ... more »
RheeFirst! » DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report
RheeFirst! » DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report: DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report by admin The DC Inspector General has concluded its investigation into widespread test cheating during Rhee’s reign at DCPS. A 14-page report, focused on only one of the 103 schools flagged for possible cheating, surfaced yesterday. The report concludes—based on the findings at one of the 103 schools—that there is no evidence that cheating was widespread. Veteran DC schools reporter Jay Mathews wrote two months ago that he was expecting a cover-up. By all accounts, ... more »
Students Last: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell?
Students Last: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell?: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell? *Washington D.C.* - American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and former CNN journalist Campbell Brown received an unexpected invitation today from President Barack Obama. At a press conference, Obama invited both women to the White House for “some bagels and lox” (a nod to the fact that both women are Jews or have lived in New York City we don’t know which). He expressed his hope that the “Bagel Summit” would "cool things off between the two." The women have been digita... more »
Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey | Truth in American Education
Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey | Truth in American Education: Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey by Shane Vander Hart The Christie Administration just hired the Council of Chief State School Officers to help the New Jersey Department of Education develop school turnaround strategies. They are being paid $1.55 million to do this. The project will be two-pronged: First, help with the establishment of the state’s still-evolving Regional Achievement Centers (RACs), the immediate hubs for school im... more »
Jersey Jazzman: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE?
Jersey Jazzman: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE?: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE? by Duke Yesterday, I outlined the back story of how an expensive, computer-based math instruction program is finding its way to the Perth Amboy district in New Jersey. I'm always watching the connections between public, for-profit, and non-profit interests in this brave new world the reformyists are creating - and there were quite a few *interesting*, shall we say, connections in this particular tale. What I didn't discuss very much were ... more »
Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi | Scathing Purple Musings
Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi | Scathing Purple Musings: Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi by Bob Sikes ZZ Top’s tribute to Mississippi blues icon Howlin’ Wolf, *My Heads in Mississippi *opens thus: I’m shufflin’ thru the Texas sand, But my head’s in Mississippi. I’m shufflin’ thru the Texas sand, But my head’s in Mississippi. The blues has got a hold of me. I believe I’m gettin’ dizzy. (Spoken: Help me now.) Who can blame another rock legend, Jeb Bush, he of the education reform rock genre, had thes... more »
FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, August 8, 2012
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *UC Berkeley* Education Headlines *Wednesday, August 8, 2012* Education roundup: Greenfield poised to borrow money to pay billsThe Greenfield Union School District board on Wednesday is expected to approve a resolution to borrow $15 million from the Kern County Board of Education to help make ends meet, and also review a new board policy that will have trustees pay 10 percent of their medical benefits. Lodi Unified secures energy fundsLodi Unified will take on a $1 million loan from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to pay for energy-s... more »
NYC Educator: The Teacher Olympics
NYC Educator: The Teacher Olympics: The Teacher Olympics by Miss Eyre Like many of you, no doubt, I have been enjoying the Olympics for the past week or so, marveling at the feats of strength on display, the hideous interesting choices of uniforms on some of the athletes, and the raw, beautiful power of the human spirit. Which got me thinking, naturally, of another class of superhumans: Teachers. Of course, we'd need our *own* Olympics. It wouldn't be fair to put us up against the Usain Bolts and Gabby Douglases of the world. They would lose and be sad. I propose the following.
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS chatter
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS chatter: SOS chatter by Mike Klonsky Keynoters Deb Meier & Nancy Carlsson-PaigeI tried to explain to Teaching Now blogger Liana Heitin who was reposed by Edweek's Stephen Sawchuck, that it was okay that last weekend's SOS Convention was actually smaller and less celebrity-studded than last summer's march and White House rally. Others told Liana (who I find to be an otherwise highly capable and astute ed writer) that a march and a meeting have two different purposes and that one is often smaller than the other and that SOS was fine with that. It ... more »
Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA
Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA: Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School *Authors: Daniel J. Losen, Jonathan Gillespie, Foreword by Gary Orfield* Date Published: August 07, 2012 The first in an ongoing series of national studies by the Center for Civil Rights Remedies at the Civil Right Project. Related Documents - [image: Attached file] Opportunity Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School - [image: Attache... more »
Report pinpoints high-suspension districts | EdSource Today
Report pinpoints high-suspension districts | EdSource Today: Report pinpoints high-suspension districts ** August 7th, 2012 | Add a Comment | By John Fensterwald Share on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on google_plusone More Sharing Services African American students are more than three times as likely to handed out-of-school suspensions than white children, according to an extensive study released today by education researchers affiliated with UCLA. Nationwide, one out of six African American students nationwide is at risk of suspension every year, compared with one ... more »
Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education « Diane Ravitch's blog
Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education « Diane Ravitch's blog: Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education by dianerav Principal Carol Burris is one of the co-founders of the Long Island principals’ revolt against high-stakes testing. When she heard that Governor Cuomo’s commission would be holding hearings in New York City, she joined up with fellow principal Harry Leonardatos and they headed for the hearings. Read their gripping account of the proceedings, where the deck was stacked in favor of the corporate agenda. They were among the first to register, but soon discovered... more »
How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? « My Island View
How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? « My Island View: How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? by tomwhitby For educators who have been connected since the early days of social media, it is difficult to understand the reason people would ask, “What is #Edchat?” We must remember that many educators using social media for professional reasons have joined only recently. The idea of using social media for professional reasons is a relatively new concept. One would hope that it is having a positive effect because the Department of Education declared August Connected Educators Month.
Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Grantees Named - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education)
Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Grantees Named - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Winners of Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grants SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, today announced 342 schools will share $11.1 million in federal Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) grants. "Students who don't have enough nutritious food to eat can have a tough time succeeding in school," Torlakson said. "As part of my Team California for Healthy Kids initiative, we are working to help improve their health and physical fitne... more »
Spread the Word, Share the Blog « Diane Ravitch's blog
Spread the Word, Share the Blog « Diane Ravitch's blog: Spread the Word, Share the Blog from Diane Ravitch's blog by dianerav A retired teacher emailed me and said she found this blog to be extremely informative. She asked her union to put a link to the blog on its website. She thinks that other teachers will not only appreciate the opportunity to learn what is happening in other districts and states, but will find moral support and encouragement in our discussions. It is no accident that I constantly remind teachers how valuable they are. With all the negativity today in the medi... more »
Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges | California Watch
Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges | California Watch: Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges Erica Perez Jeramey Jannene/Flickr Among the findings of a U.S. Senate committee’s recently released investigation of the nation’s for-profit college industry is a stark assessment of the huge gap between what it costs to get a degree or certificate from a career college and the price tag of a comparable program at a public college or university in California. The two-year investigation [PDF] by the U.S. Senate Health, Educ... more »
Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page « NIKHIL GOYAL
Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page « NIKHIL GOYAL: Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page*Posted:* August 6, 2012 | *Author:* Nikhil Goyal | *Filed under:* Posts |Leave a comment » Today, I was banned from posting on the Students for Education Reform Facebook page. I was merely pointing out and informing their fans that the organization promotes a corporate agenda. All I said was: “Don’t get tricked by SFER tactics! It promotes a corporate agenda! It’s hurting millions of kids around the country. Read: http://teacherunderconstruction.co... more »
Students Last: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas
Students Last: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas *Laredo* - Today's New York Times editorial entitled "Carrots and Sticks for Schools" called for rewards for "good teachers while easing chronic low performers out of the system." What they apparently didn't know is that a small charter school in Texas beat them to it - literally. "When the principal first told me to bend over and accept the paddling, I thought he had lost his mind," recounts Jeremy Finn of Harmony Science Academy in Laredo. "But now I understand and can
Missouri Education Watchdog: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing
Missouri Education Watchdog: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing by Anngie Tomorrow, August 7th, you will be asked to vote on Amendment 2 to the Missouri Constitution. Most people recognize the amendment from the very limited language that will actually appear on the ballot. *Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to ensure:* - *That the right of Missouri citizens to express their religious beliefs shall not be infringed;* - *That school children have the right to pray and acknowledge God voluntaril... more »
10 most inaccurate school reform axioms - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post
10 most inaccurate school reform axioms - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: [image: Answer Sheet] 10 most inaccurate school reform axioms By Valerie Strauss Below Dov Rosenberg lists what he considers the 10 most inaccurate and damaging statements that some school reformers toss around. Rosenberg, who loves to help teachers use technology, has been serving North Carolina public school students and teachers for 11 years as a teacher and instructional technology facilitator. Here’s Rosenberg’s list: 1. High-stakes standardized test data produce the fairest, most reliable, (big..
School funding primer: A is for Alligator | EdSource Today
School funding primer: A is for Alligator | EdSource Today: School funding primer: A is for Alligator ** August 6th, 2012 | 1 Comment | By John Fensterwald Share on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on google_plusone More Sharing Services It’s called “the alligator chart” because it looks like a reptile’s gaping maw. Nicknamed by its creator, the Sacramento-based education consulting firm School Services of California, it’s one graph that voters should clip on their refrigerators to remind them what’s at stak
Schools Matter: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden
Schools Matter: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden by Jim Horn KIPP, Inc. has joined forces with the most corrupt and ruthless charter school operator that Philadelphia has to offer, in a takeover bid for large chunks of one of the most vulnerable school communities in America. Find on this money train, too, a posse of political predators and hungry hangers-on eager to fill their pockets from bleeding dry the public funds for Camden schools. And don't forget the other partner in this business deal, the Cooper Foundation, headed by Georg... more »
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-6-12 Diane Ravitch's blog
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Why Won’t Rahm Talk to Parents? by dianerav This parent activist in Chicago says that parents have good ideas about how to improve the schools but Mayor Rahm Emanuel won’t meet with them. Parents in New York City say the same about Mayor Bloomberg. Why won’t the mayor listen to the most informed and most committed stakeholders of all? Not the business community, not the entrepreneurs, but the parents of the children? *It would cost more than the city has which is a nearly 1 billion dollar deficit! Parent grou... more »
SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing - Politics K-12 - Education Week
SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing - Politics K-12 - Education Week: SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing by Stephen Sawchuk [image: SOS Save Our Schools] *By guest blogger Liana Heitin* In sharp contrast to last summer's celebrity-attended rally and march to the White House, the Save Our Schools gathering this year proved a quiet, 150-person affair. Held this weekend in the regal Wardman Park Marriott in downtown Washington, the convention featured presentations on an array of topics including advocacy, social justice, and elevating student voice, a... more »
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three by James Boutin This morning, I began the day by attending a session led by Monty Neill and Bob George where attendees offered suggestions for how Save Our Schools might adapt its policy recommendation literature for policymakers and the public. Rose Sanders speaksOver and over again, in the session and throughout the conference, participants railed against high-stakes testing as the illusion on which corporate reform is standing. I felt this to be the area in which we had largest consensus.... more »
What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay « Diane Ravitch's blog
What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay « Diane Ravitch's blog: What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay by dianerav In the early 1990s, I attended a meeting where the issues of education were debated. One of the attendees was Albert Shanker. I don’t remember where or when this meeting occurred. I can’t document it. But I remember what Al Shanker said that day about merit pay. After another member of the group predicted the great improvements that would occur if teachers could compete for merit pay, Shanker said the following: *“Let me get this straight,” he said. “The kids will work... more »
Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? « Diane Ravitch's blog
Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? « Diane Ravitch's blog: Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? by dianerav Carly Berwick writes about K12′s plan to establish a virtual charter school in New Jersey. It was turned down, but only temporarily, to provide a year of “planning” time. The poor academic results of K12 cyber charters are well known. They were written about in the New York Times and the Washington Post. They were reviewed negatively by the National Education Policy Center. The most startling statistic –of many–is that K12′s Colorado Virtual Academy had a graduation rate of 12 perce... more »
What it means when test scores plummet - Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee Was There
What it means when test scores plummet - Class Struggle - The Washington Post: What it means when test scores plummet By Jay Mathews *Was There* Last Thursday, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray and officials from D.C. public schools and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) held a news conference to crow about results on tests administered in April. Proficiency rates on both reading and math sections of the D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System exams were up slightly for many grades in schools across the district, the mayor said. He took credit for those improvements – ... more »
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 | Scathing Purple Musings
Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 | Scathing Purple Musings: Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 by Bob Sikes The kerfuffle caused by Michelle Rhee’s Florida reps call for Astroturf commenting in blogs isn’t the only activity by her empire. Rhee’s StudentsFirst made 12 different $500 contributions to Florida legislators during a period which began 11/18/2011 an ended on 1/12/2012 before the last legislative session. Save democrat senato... more »
LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards - LA Daily News
LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards - LA Daily News: LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards By Barbara Jones Staff Writer Posted: 08/04/2012 01:44:53 PM PDT Updated: 08/04/2012 02:37:42 PM PDT If you are having trouble, download the Flash® player. The way that teachers teach and students learn is about to undergo a radical transformation at school districts nationwide. Students will start learning basic algebra and geometry skills in kindergarten. Multiple-choice tests will be replaced with complex essays, taken and scored by computer. A... more »
Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!
Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization by millerlf The American Federation for Children (AFC), led by Betty DeVos, is spending money on Milwaukee’s present legislative races. The American Federation for Children spent $1.5 million helping Republicans during this year’s recall elections. That includes some $900,000 that it spent to help Scott Walker fend off Tom Barrett’s challenge... more »
Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 | FDL News Desk
Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 | FDL News Desk: Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 by David Dayen (photo: xomiele / flickr) Despite all the fanfare over the Obama Administration’s announcement of deferred action status for DREAM-eligible youth, it hasn’t actually begun. Eligible applicants must fill out a form to get the deferred action status for themselves, and that process will commence on August 15. And US Citizenship and Immigration Servicesannounced yesterday that the immigrants will have ... more »
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning by James Boutin Driver takes a question during the opening sessionThis morning began with an address by Shanta Driver, the national director for the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, and Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equity *B*y *A*ny *M*eans *N*ecessary - more commonly known as BAMN. Driver talked a lot about her experiences as an attorney and organizer in her hometown of Detroit, Michigan. She said that only one-third schools seven years ago are still opera... more »
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU: Axelrod's old firm behind 'Infrastructure Trust', Citibank, and attacks on CTU by Mike Klonsky Obama, Emanuel & AxelrodWell, mercy me! Look who's behind those ads blasting the CTU. Why, it's ASGK Public Strategies and AKPD, David Axelrod's old firms. An embarrassed Axelrod is claiming that he no longer has any connection to the firms since he sold them in 2009, when he became Obama's Senior White House Advisor. But he's still very much connected (the A stands for Axelrod)... more »
Daily Kos: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education
Daily Kos: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education: Blaming the Mirror: Lolo Jone and U.S. Public Education byplthomasEdDFollow 8 PERMALINK4 COMMENTS "For Lolo Jones, Everything Is Image" claimed Jere Longman for *The New York Times*. In part, Longman focused a scathing gaze at Jones herself as a prominent face (and body) put on the entire Olympics for Americans: "Women have struggled for decades to be appreciated as athletes. For the first time at these Games, every competing nation has sent a female participant. But Jones is not assured enough with her hurdling... more »
David Gelernter: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet School - WSJ.com
David Gelernter: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet School - WSJ.com: The Friendly, Neighborhood Internet SchoolWe have the technology, the people and the institutions we need to usher an online-education revolution. BY DAVID GELERNTER We have big problems with our schools—and need new ideas about how to fix them. Deep changes are needed in our attitude toward teaching, leading education scholar Diane Ravitch wrote recently in the New York Review of Books. We need smarter, better-educated recruits to the profession. We need to value a teacher's experience properly and discard the ... more »
Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated | The Jose Vilson
Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated | The Jose Vilson: Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated by Jose This is the post where I almost started off with a “Dear White People.” This is going to lean towards education, but applies pervasively. I’m referring to the educators who still want to save the children, the ones who still think they’re teaching their subjects and not actual students, the ones who see teaching as a segue to administration or a central office job, the ones who use euphemisms for kids of color to advance their ... more »
Still waiting… « Cooperative Catalyst
Still waiting… « Cooperative Catalyst: Still waiting… by caseykcaronna Still Waiting… I am still waiting for that large, sweeping legislation in the house, senate, and presidency in regards to progressive education. It is ironic that I will post something on Facebook in regards to education and get “likes” both from my most conservative and liberal friends. Education is something that internally, I believe many of us understand. We get it emotionally and we are able to connect to that part of learning, that relationship part of learning. However, we are so fearful to take ... more »
Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers | Alternet
Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers | Alternet: Corporate Reformer Bain Capital Much Like Terrible Corporate Education Reformers Bain Capital has received a lot of negative press lately from President Barack Obama's reelection campaign as it's the corporation once run by current Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. As it turns out Romney made a killing from his time as CEO of Bain, but he was far from a job creator. Through his work thousands of people lost their jobs. The corporation uses a "Corporate Reform" model tha... more »
Dear Meryl Parents United for Responsible Education
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Dear Meryl: Dear Meryl by admin Ms. Meryl Streep c/o Leslee Dart Dart Group sent by facsimile 212 277 7550 *If you really appreciate teachers, please pull out of* *phony “Teachers Rock” event promoting* *the themes of the “Won’t Back Down” movie:* *public school privatization and wholesale teacher firing* Dear Ms Streep: I am writing to ask you to reconsider your participation in the “Teachers Rock” event next week. As parents, we are concerned that this event is part of a larger propaganda campaign to force privatization on ... more »
Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes « School Finance 101
Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes « School Finance 101: Friday Finance 101: On Parfaits & Property Taxes by schoolfinance101 Public preference for property taxes stands in perfect inverse relation to the public taste for parfaits. Everybody loves parfaits[i] and everybody hates property taxes.[ii] No, I don’t plan to spend this blog post bashing parfaits. I do like a good parfait. But, even more blasphemous, I intend to shed light on some of the virtues of much maligned property taxes. I often hear school funding equity advocates argue that if we could only get rid ... more »
Jersey Jazzman: The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last)
Jersey Jazzman: The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last): The Incoherent World of Arne Duncan, Part VI (Last) by Duke I've been breaking down Arne Duncan's interview with Tom Moran of the * Star-Ledger* all week: - Part I: Duncan's signature program, Race To The Top, has little evidence to back it up. - Part II: The real legacy of Duncan, Rhee, and Klein. - Part III: Arne has a lot to learn about what makes teachers tick. - Part IV: Duncan's totally befuddled thoughts about testing. - Part V: Duncan doesn't understand poverty or logic. And so we come to ... more »
RheeFirst! » DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report
RheeFirst! » DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report: DC OIG whitewashes ErasureGate in narrow report by admin The DC Inspector General has concluded its investigation into widespread test cheating during Rhee’s reign at DCPS. A 14-page report, focused on only one of the 103 schools flagged for possible cheating, surfaced yesterday. The report concludes—based on the findings at one of the 103 schools—that there is no evidence that cheating was widespread. Veteran DC schools reporter Jay Mathews wrote two months ago that he was expecting a cover-up. By all accounts, ... more »
Students Last: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell?
Students Last: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell?: "Bagel Summit" for Randi and Campbell? *Washington D.C.* - American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and former CNN journalist Campbell Brown received an unexpected invitation today from President Barack Obama. At a press conference, Obama invited both women to the White House for “some bagels and lox” (a nod to the fact that both women are Jews or have lived in New York City we don’t know which). He expressed his hope that the “Bagel Summit” would "cool things off between the two." The women have been digita... more »
Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey | Truth in American Education
Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey | Truth in American Education: Common Core Standards Developers Hired to Help Failing Schools in New Jersey by Shane Vander Hart The Christie Administration just hired the Council of Chief State School Officers to help the New Jersey Department of Education develop school turnaround strategies. They are being paid $1.55 million to do this. The project will be two-pronged: First, help with the establishment of the state’s still-evolving Regional Achievement Centers (RACs), the immediate hubs for school im... more »
Jersey Jazzman: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE?
Jersey Jazzman: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE?: Is Computer-Based Instruction Making the Digital Divide WORSE? by Duke Yesterday, I outlined the back story of how an expensive, computer-based math instruction program is finding its way to the Perth Amboy district in New Jersey. I'm always watching the connections between public, for-profit, and non-profit interests in this brave new world the reformyists are creating - and there were quite a few *interesting*, shall we say, connections in this particular tale. What I didn't discuss very much were ... more »
Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi | Scathing Purple Musings
Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi | Scathing Purple Musings: Jeb Bush Covers ZZ Top on His US Ed Reform Rock Tour Show in Mississippi by Bob Sikes ZZ Top’s tribute to Mississippi blues icon Howlin’ Wolf, *My Heads in Mississippi *opens thus: I’m shufflin’ thru the Texas sand, But my head’s in Mississippi. I’m shufflin’ thru the Texas sand, But my head’s in Mississippi. The blues has got a hold of me. I believe I’m gettin’ dizzy. (Spoken: Help me now.) Who can blame another rock legend, Jeb Bush, he of the education reform rock genre, had thes... more »
FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, August 8, 2012
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *UC Berkeley* Education Headlines *Wednesday, August 8, 2012* Education roundup: Greenfield poised to borrow money to pay billsThe Greenfield Union School District board on Wednesday is expected to approve a resolution to borrow $15 million from the Kern County Board of Education to help make ends meet, and also review a new board policy that will have trustees pay 10 percent of their medical benefits. Lodi Unified secures energy fundsLodi Unified will take on a $1 million loan from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to pay for energy-s... more »
NYC Educator: The Teacher Olympics
NYC Educator: The Teacher Olympics: The Teacher Olympics by Miss Eyre Like many of you, no doubt, I have been enjoying the Olympics for the past week or so, marveling at the feats of strength on display, the hideous interesting choices of uniforms on some of the athletes, and the raw, beautiful power of the human spirit. Which got me thinking, naturally, of another class of superhumans: Teachers. Of course, we'd need our *own* Olympics. It wouldn't be fair to put us up against the Usain Bolts and Gabby Douglases of the world. They would lose and be sad. I propose the following.
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS chatter
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: SOS chatter: SOS chatter by Mike Klonsky Keynoters Deb Meier & Nancy Carlsson-PaigeI tried to explain to Teaching Now blogger Liana Heitin who was reposed by Edweek's Stephen Sawchuck, that it was okay that last weekend's SOS Convention was actually smaller and less celebrity-studded than last summer's march and White House rally. Others told Liana (who I find to be an otherwise highly capable and astute ed writer) that a march and a meeting have two different purposes and that one is often smaller than the other and that SOS was fine with that. It ... more »
Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA
Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School — The Civil Rights Project at UCLA: Opportunities Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School *Authors: Daniel J. Losen, Jonathan Gillespie, Foreword by Gary Orfield* Date Published: August 07, 2012 The first in an ongoing series of national studies by the Center for Civil Rights Remedies at the Civil Right Project. Related Documents - [image: Attached file] Opportunity Suspended: The Disparate Impact of Disciplinary Exclusion from School - [image: Attache... more »
Report pinpoints high-suspension districts | EdSource Today
Report pinpoints high-suspension districts | EdSource Today: Report pinpoints high-suspension districts ** August 7th, 2012 | Add a Comment | By John Fensterwald Share on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on google_plusone More Sharing Services African American students are more than three times as likely to handed out-of-school suspensions than white children, according to an extensive study released today by education researchers affiliated with UCLA. Nationwide, one out of six African American students nationwide is at risk of suspension every year, compared with one ... more »
Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education « Diane Ravitch's blog
Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education « Diane Ravitch's blog: Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education by dianerav Principal Carol Burris is one of the co-founders of the Long Island principals’ revolt against high-stakes testing. When she heard that Governor Cuomo’s commission would be holding hearings in New York City, she joined up with fellow principal Harry Leonardatos and they headed for the hearings. Read their gripping account of the proceedings, where the deck was stacked in favor of the corporate agenda. They were among the first to register, but soon discovered... more »
How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? « My Island View
How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? « My Island View: How Does #Edchat Connect Educators? by tomwhitby For educators who have been connected since the early days of social media, it is difficult to understand the reason people would ask, “What is #Edchat?” We must remember that many educators using social media for professional reasons have joined only recently. The idea of using social media for professional reasons is a relatively new concept. One would hope that it is having a positive effect because the Department of Education declared August Connected Educators Month.
Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Grantees Named - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education)
Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Grantees Named - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Winners of Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grants SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, today announced 342 schools will share $11.1 million in federal Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) grants. "Students who don't have enough nutritious food to eat can have a tough time succeeding in school," Torlakson said. "As part of my Team California for Healthy Kids initiative, we are working to help improve their health and physical fitne... more »
Spread the Word, Share the Blog « Diane Ravitch's blog
Spread the Word, Share the Blog « Diane Ravitch's blog: Spread the Word, Share the Blog from Diane Ravitch's blog by dianerav A retired teacher emailed me and said she found this blog to be extremely informative. She asked her union to put a link to the blog on its website. She thinks that other teachers will not only appreciate the opportunity to learn what is happening in other districts and states, but will find moral support and encouragement in our discussions. It is no accident that I constantly remind teachers how valuable they are. With all the negativity today in the medi... more »
Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges | California Watch
Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges | California Watch: Senate report finds large cost gap between for-profit, public colleges Erica Perez Jeramey Jannene/Flickr Among the findings of a U.S. Senate committee’s recently released investigation of the nation’s for-profit college industry is a stark assessment of the huge gap between what it costs to get a degree or certificate from a career college and the price tag of a comparable program at a public college or university in California. The two-year investigation [PDF] by the U.S. Senate Health, Educ... more »
Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page « NIKHIL GOYAL
Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page « NIKHIL GOYAL: Banned from the Students for Education Reform Facebook Page*Posted:* August 6, 2012 | *Author:* Nikhil Goyal | *Filed under:* Posts |Leave a comment » Today, I was banned from posting on the Students for Education Reform Facebook page. I was merely pointing out and informing their fans that the organization promotes a corporate agenda. All I said was: “Don’t get tricked by SFER tactics! It promotes a corporate agenda! It’s hurting millions of kids around the country. Read: http://teacherunderconstruction.co... more »
Students Last: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas
Students Last: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas: Grin and Bear It: Teachers Paddled in Texas *Laredo* - Today's New York Times editorial entitled "Carrots and Sticks for Schools" called for rewards for "good teachers while easing chronic low performers out of the system." What they apparently didn't know is that a small charter school in Texas beat them to it - literally. "When the principal first told me to bend over and accept the paddling, I thought he had lost his mind," recounts Jeremy Finn of Harmony Science Academy in Laredo. "But now I understand and can
Missouri Education Watchdog: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing
Missouri Education Watchdog: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing: MO Constitution Amendment 2 - Read The Whole Thing by Anngie Tomorrow, August 7th, you will be asked to vote on Amendment 2 to the Missouri Constitution. Most people recognize the amendment from the very limited language that will actually appear on the ballot. *Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to ensure:* - *That the right of Missouri citizens to express their religious beliefs shall not be infringed;* - *That school children have the right to pray and acknowledge God voluntaril... more »
10 most inaccurate school reform axioms - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post
10 most inaccurate school reform axioms - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: [image: Answer Sheet] 10 most inaccurate school reform axioms By Valerie Strauss Below Dov Rosenberg lists what he considers the 10 most inaccurate and damaging statements that some school reformers toss around. Rosenberg, who loves to help teachers use technology, has been serving North Carolina public school students and teachers for 11 years as a teacher and instructional technology facilitator. Here’s Rosenberg’s list: 1. High-stakes standardized test data produce the fairest, most reliable, (big..
School funding primer: A is for Alligator | EdSource Today
School funding primer: A is for Alligator | EdSource Today: School funding primer: A is for Alligator ** August 6th, 2012 | 1 Comment | By John Fensterwald Share on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on google_plusone More Sharing Services It’s called “the alligator chart” because it looks like a reptile’s gaping maw. Nicknamed by its creator, the Sacramento-based education consulting firm School Services of California, it’s one graph that voters should clip on their refrigerators to remind them what’s at stak
Schools Matter: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden
Schools Matter: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden: KIPP at Center of Corruption in Camden by Jim Horn KIPP, Inc. has joined forces with the most corrupt and ruthless charter school operator that Philadelphia has to offer, in a takeover bid for large chunks of one of the most vulnerable school communities in America. Find on this money train, too, a posse of political predators and hungry hangers-on eager to fill their pockets from bleeding dry the public funds for Camden schools. And don't forget the other partner in this business deal, the Cooper Foundation, headed by Georg... more »
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-6-12 Diane Ravitch's blog
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Why Won’t Rahm Talk to Parents? by dianerav This parent activist in Chicago says that parents have good ideas about how to improve the schools but Mayor Rahm Emanuel won’t meet with them. Parents in New York City say the same about Mayor Bloomberg. Why won’t the mayor listen to the most informed and most committed stakeholders of all? Not the business community, not the entrepreneurs, but the parents of the children? *It would cost more than the city has which is a nearly 1 billion dollar deficit! Parent grou... more »
SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing - Politics K-12 - Education Week
SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing - Politics K-12 - Education Week: SOS Event Draws Small Crowd, Focuses on Organizing by Stephen Sawchuk [image: SOS Save Our Schools] *By guest blogger Liana Heitin* In sharp contrast to last summer's celebrity-attended rally and march to the White House, the Save Our Schools gathering this year proved a quiet, 150-person affair. Held this weekend in the regal Wardman Park Marriott in downtown Washington, the convention featured presentations on an array of topics including advocacy, social justice, and elevating student voice, a... more »
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three: SOS Conference 2012, Day Three by James Boutin This morning, I began the day by attending a session led by Monty Neill and Bob George where attendees offered suggestions for how Save Our Schools might adapt its policy recommendation literature for policymakers and the public. Rose Sanders speaksOver and over again, in the session and throughout the conference, participants railed against high-stakes testing as the illusion on which corporate reform is standing. I felt this to be the area in which we had largest consensus.... more »
What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay « Diane Ravitch's blog
What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay « Diane Ravitch's blog: What Albert Shanker Said About Merit Pay by dianerav In the early 1990s, I attended a meeting where the issues of education were debated. One of the attendees was Albert Shanker. I don’t remember where or when this meeting occurred. I can’t document it. But I remember what Al Shanker said that day about merit pay. After another member of the group predicted the great improvements that would occur if teachers could compete for merit pay, Shanker said the following: *“Let me get this straight,” he said. “The kids will work... more »
Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? « Diane Ravitch's blog
Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? « Diane Ravitch's blog: Do Cities Need Virtual Schools? by dianerav Carly Berwick writes about K12′s plan to establish a virtual charter school in New Jersey. It was turned down, but only temporarily, to provide a year of “planning” time. The poor academic results of K12 cyber charters are well known. They were written about in the New York Times and the Washington Post. They were reviewed negatively by the National Education Policy Center. The most startling statistic –of many–is that K12′s Colorado Virtual Academy had a graduation rate of 12 perce... more »
What it means when test scores plummet - Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee Was There
What it means when test scores plummet - Class Struggle - The Washington Post: What it means when test scores plummet By Jay Mathews *Was There* Last Thursday, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray and officials from D.C. public schools and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) held a news conference to crow about results on tests administered in April. Proficiency rates on both reading and math sections of the D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System exams were up slightly for many grades in schools across the district, the mayor said. He took credit for those improvements – ... more »
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 | Scathing Purple Musings
Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 | Scathing Purple Musings: Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst Has Made Campaign Contributions to 12 Florida Legislators and One Curious 527 by Bob Sikes The kerfuffle caused by Michelle Rhee’s Florida reps call for Astroturf commenting in blogs isn’t the only activity by her empire. Rhee’s StudentsFirst made 12 different $500 contributions to Florida legislators during a period which began 11/18/2011 an ended on 1/12/2012 before the last legislative session. Save democrat senato... more »
LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards - LA Daily News
LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards - LA Daily News: LAUSD to begin phasing in Common Core curriculum standards By Barbara Jones Staff Writer Posted: 08/04/2012 01:44:53 PM PDT Updated: 08/04/2012 02:37:42 PM PDT If you are having trouble, download the Flash® player. The way that teachers teach and students learn is about to undergo a radical transformation at school districts nationwide. Students will start learning basic algebra and geometry skills in kindergarten. Multiple-choice tests will be replaced with complex essays, taken and scored by computer. A... more »
Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!
Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Right-Wing Alert: “American Federation for Children” Funding Democrats for Education Privatization by millerlf The American Federation for Children (AFC), led by Betty DeVos, is spending money on Milwaukee’s present legislative races. The American Federation for Children spent $1.5 million helping Republicans during this year’s recall elections. That includes some $900,000 that it spent to help Scott Walker fend off Tom Barrett’s challenge... more »
Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 | FDL News Desk
Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 | FDL News Desk: Application for Deferred Action for DREAM-Eligible Immigrants Will Cost $465 by David Dayen (photo: xomiele / flickr) Despite all the fanfare over the Obama Administration’s announcement of deferred action status for DREAM-eligible youth, it hasn’t actually begun. Eligible applicants must fill out a form to get the deferred action status for themselves, and that process will commence on August 15. And US Citizenship and Immigration Servicesannounced yesterday that the immigrants will have ... more »
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning
An Urban Teacher's Education: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning: SOS Conference 2012, Day Two Morning by James Boutin Driver takes a question during the opening sessionThis morning began with an address by Shanta Driver, the national director for the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, and Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equity *B*y *A*ny *M*eans *N*ecessary - more commonly known as BAMN. Driver talked a lot about her experiences as an attorney and organizer in her hometown of Detroit, Michigan. She said that only one-third schools seven years ago are still opera... more »
