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Friday, April 12, 2013

Big Education Ape - Morning Wink 4-12-13 AM Posts #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2



BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS



What We Know About Teaching Teachers | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
What We Know About Teaching Teachers | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights: What We Know About Teaching Teachers by American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education *Learning the art of preparing effective teachers never ends for the teacher education community. Each day, we discover new ways to review, modify and apply the best methods that will ultimately address the learning needs of all students. But what are the core ideals and characteristics that serve as the foundation beneath this evolving knowledge? I asked Alison Hilsabeck, who leads a successful pr... more »

Q&A: UFT President Mulgrew readies his union for a “seismic shift” | Hechinger Report

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Q&A: UFT President Mulgrew readies his union for a “seismic shift” | Hechinger Report: Q&A: UFT President Mulgrew readies his union for a “seismic shift” by Philissa Cramer [image: Q&A: UFT President Mulgrew readies his union for a “seismic shift”] United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew runs the largest teachers union local in the country representing the teachers of New York City. Like many teachers union affiliates nationwide, the UFT has been fighting with policymakers over issues such as merit pay, school closures and charter schools, which pose a threat to unio... more »

Some Stats on Marriage Equality |

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Some Stats on Marriage Equality |: Some Stats on Marriage Equality by Angus Johnston Seeing that France and Uruguay are about to legalize same-sex marriage, I got curious. So I looked up some stats, because I’m a dork. And I’m sharing them, because some of you are dorks too. Eleven countries, not including France and Uruguay, have marriage equality nationwide. Three more — Brazil, Mexico, and the United States — have marriage equality in some jurisdictions but not others. Although same-sex marriage is allowed in less than half of Brazil, it’s still the country with the most same-s... more »

Modern School: NEA Sheds Crocodile Tears for the Poor

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Modern School: NEA Sheds Crocodile Tears for the Poor: NEA Sheds Crocodile Tears for the Poor by Michael Dunn President Obama has sent his budget plan to Congress, hoping to appease Republicans by slashing $400 billion from Medicare and other health programs (according to NEA Today) and cutting cost of living increases for Social Security recipients. Not surprisingly, Republicans are saying this isn’t enough and they have no intention of supporting any tax hikes, whatsoever. Some pundits are referring to the process as Obama negotiating with himself. Needless to say, the cuts wi... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: The New Spin from Common Core Proponents

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: The New Spin from Common Core Proponents: The New Spin from Common Core Proponents by stlgretchen Get ready for the new talking points from the proponents of Common Core. The first comes from the Indiana PTA (already repeated by Missouri DESE) in that because we've spent money on unproven, non-researched standards and teacher training that may or may not be good educational practices, we need to keep spending more to "see if it works". Maybe if Ford had gone along with that line of thought the Edsel would have been an even more expensive boondoggle.... more »

Feminism, Child Development, and the Legacy of Shulamith Firestone - Dana Goldstein

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Feminism, Child Development, and the Legacy of Shulamith Firestone - Dana Goldstein: Feminism, Child Development, and the Legacy of Shulamith Firestone by Dana Goldstein [image: Screen Shot 2013-04-12 at 9.28.13 AM]Like a lot of other people, I was riveted bySusan Faludi's*New Yorker*reporton the work, life, and death of Shulamith Firestone, a Second Wave feminist theoretician and organizer whose name I knew, but whose legacy I was barely cognisant of. Faludi deals beautifully with Firestone's repressive Orthodox Jewish upbringing, her struggle with schizophrenia and social isolati... more »

SES IS A MESS: State investigators: 3 Dallas-area tutoring companies fraudulently billed Garland and San Antonio ISDs | Education Blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
State investigators: 3 Dallas-area tutoring companies fraudulently billed Garland and San Antonio ISDs | Education Blog: State investigators: 3 Dallas-area tutoring companies fraudulently billed Garland and San Antonio ISDs by Holly K. Hacker Three local tutoring companies submitted fraudulent bills to the Garland and San Antonio school districts, according to state investigations. Diverse Learning, Avenue Academy and Boost Academy sent invoices to both districts so they could get paid for tutoring low-income students, as allowed under the federal No Child Left Behind law. But th... more »

Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee ignore her own cheating scandal? A new memo suggests clear evidence was discounted. | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee ignore her own cheating scandal? A new memo suggests clear evidence was discounted. | Get Schooled: Did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee ignore her own cheating scandal? A new memo suggests clear evidence was discounted. by Maureen Downey Michelle Rhee speaking to Georgia lawmakers last year. (AJC Photo) PBS education reporter John Merrow writes about the erasure analyses, clear evidence of cheating and concealment of that evidence. No, he is not writing about Atlanta Public Schools and former Superintendent Beverly Hall. He is writing abou... more »

Schools Matter: The New Republic Provides Wedding Details for Randi Weingarten and Bill Gates

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Schools Matter: The New Republic Provides Wedding Details for Randi Weingarten and Bill Gates: The New Republic Provides Wedding Details for Randi Weingarten and Bill Gates by Jim Horn *To the 800,000 K12 teachers who are paying dues for AFT union support:* Your union dues are not going protect you and your students from the corporate onslaught by efficiency zealots, privateers, and proto-fascist ideologues. In fact, your president, Randi Weingarten, has joined forces with the oligarchs to begin the Accountability Testing 3.0 regime that has failed so miserably in the two previo... more »

Friday AM Graphs: Just how biased are NJ’s Growth Percentile Measures (school level)? | School Finance 101

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Friday AM Graphs: Just how biased are NJ’s Growth Percentile Measures (school level)? | School Finance 101: Friday AM Graphs: Just how biased are NJ’s Growth Percentile Measures (school level)? by schoolfinance101 [image: Slide1] New Jersey finally released the data set of its school level growth percentile metrics. I’ve been harping on a few points on this blog this week. SGP data here: http://education.state.nj.us/pr/database.html Enrollment data here: http://www.nj.gov/education/data/enr/enr12/stat_doc.htm First, that the commissioner’s characterization that the growth percenti... more »

Which Came First, the Practice or the Policy? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago
Which Came First, the Practice or the Policy? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: Which Came First, the Practice or the Policy? by Nancy Flanagan Gary Rubinstein wrote a rather extraordinary piece this week where he describes, in some detail, teaching practice in the lone KIPP high school in New York City. There are lots and lots of blogs on What Teachers Do--but what makes Rubinstein's piece so compelling is his deceptively casual but spot-on analysis of the teaching he observes. A few examples: A teacher who can't get a video clip to run as his pupils lose foc... more »

Voodoo Education Reform – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Voodoo Education Reform – @ the chalk face: Voodoo Education Reform APRIL 12, 2013 BY PLTHOMASEDD LEAVE A COMMENT [image: @TCF on Blog Talk Radio] Some things are funny and not funny at all, simultaneously. Some things are so rich with commentary, however, they deserve careful attention. Consider the voodoo economics/Laffer curve scene (1’13″) fromFerris Bueller’s Day Off: ( —– While satire and somewhat exaggerated, this moment in the classroom highlights the supreme failure of the teacher- and content-driven classroom—the teacher as mechanistic dispenser of a state-endorsed core

Do as I say, not as I do: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee and the public education paradox | Money | guardian.co.uk

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Do as I say, not as I do: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee and the public education paradox | Money | guardian.co.uk: Do as I say, not as I do: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee and the public education paradox Education activist argues for radical change in public schools but sends her children to private school, like many other officials [image: Michelle Rhee at NOAA] Michelle Rhee's daughter attends a $22,000-per child private school in Nashville. Photograph: Iris Harris/US Department of Commerce Our personal finances play an all-but-unspoken role in how our children are educa... more »

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-12-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Florida: Don’t Let a Charter Corporation Steal Your Neighborhood School by dianerav Bill Sublette is a former Florida state representative who is now chairman of the Orange County school board. He is a Republican. In this excellent article, he explains how the parent trigger bill, which just passed in the Florida House, will allow charter corporations to grab neighborhood schools, public property paid for by local citizens. And once the corporation takes contro... more »

Conversation with Karen. | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Conversation with Karen. | Fred Klonsky: Conversation with Karen. by Fred Klonsky Last night Logan Square supporters of the Chicago Teachers Union leadership hosted a fundraiser at Weegee’s Lounge. President Karen Lewis, VP Jesse Sharkey and Financial Secretary Kristine Mayle were there to share drinks, food and conversation with neighborhood folks. Weegee’s, a popular Logan Square cocktail joint, is named for the famous black and white photojournalist. [image: IMG_0265][image: IMG_0267][image: IMG_0268][image: IMG_0269][image: IMG_0271][image: IMG_0273] The IL Supremes will decid... more »

NY’s 2013 ‘High School Principal of Year’ is fighting state over reform

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
NY’s 2013 ‘High School Principal of Year’ is fighting state over reform: NY’s 2013 ‘High School Principal of Year’ is fighting state over reform Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 12, 2013 at 6:00 am 0 Comments More [image: carol burris]New York State’s new High School Principal of the Year is Carol Burris, a school leader in Long Island who has been a leader in a fight with state officials over reforms, including standardized test-based educator evaluations. Burris, a frequent guest blogger on The Answer Sheet, was given the award jointly by the School Administrators Association of ... more »

A Warning to Young People: Don’t Become a Teacher | toteachornototeach

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
A Warning to Young People: Don’t Become a Teacher | toteachornototeach: A Warning to Young People: Don’t Become a Teacher by aristotlethewise [image: 1schools_out1]*A Warning to Young People: Don’t Become a Teacher* by Randy Turner Nothing I have ever done has brought me as much joy as I have received from teaching children how to write the past 14 years. Helping young writers grow and mature has been richly rewarding and I would not trade my experiences for anything. That being said, if I were 18 years old and deciding how I want to spend my adult years, the last thing I would wan... more »

Connecting with Anti-Common Core State Groups on Facebook | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Connecting with Anti-Common Core State Groups on Facebook | Truth in American Education: Connecting with Anti-Common Core State Groups on Facebook by Shane Vander Hart Thanks to Laura Rambeau Lee at Right Reason for compiling a list of anti-Common Core Facebook pages and groups by state. We have many of these Facebook pages, as well as, organization websites here (we typically only list the Facebook page if they don’t have a website). She has 55 groups so far. While it is ok to have more than one Facebook page and group per state for maximum effectiveness I’d encourage groups to... more »

Update: Tony Smith and AIMS - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Update: Tony Smith and AIMS - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools: Update: Tony Smith and AIMS By awoodall Wednesday, April 10th, 2013 at 4:39 pm in charter schools, lawsuits, OUSD central office, superintendent search, Tony Smith, Uncategorized. At 6 p.m. tonight, the OUSD board is expected to speak publicly for the first time about the resignation of schools superintendent Tony Smith last week. There is nothing on the agenda but the board will say a few words and maybe we should expect some public comment. In the meantime, at 5 p.m., AIPCS teachers will... more »

Daily Kos: Michelle Rhee was warned about scope of DC test cheating

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Daily Kos: Michelle Rhee was warned about scope of DC test cheating: Michelle Rhee was warned about scope of DC test cheating by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) Veteran education John Merrow obtained a copy of a previously "missing" memo from an outside consultant, and wrote about it this evening in a blog post he titled Michelle Rhee’s Reign of Error. In italics, under the title we read *With the indictment of former Atlanta School Superintendent Beverly A. Hall and 34 other public school employees in a massive cheating scandal, the time is right to re-examine other situations o... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Michelle Rhee's Day Has Finally Come

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman: Michelle Rhee's Day Has Finally Come: Michelle Rhee's Day Has Finally Come by Duke Oh, my... District of Columbia Public Schools officials have long maintained that a 2011 test-cheating scandal that generated two government probes was limited to one elementary school. *But a newly uncovered confidential memo warns as far back as January 2009 that educator cheating on 2008 standardized tests could have been widespread, with 191 teachers in 70 schools "implicated in possible testing infractions."* [..] The USA TODAY investigation found that, as far back as 2008, th... more »

#Teachers, #Principals, and the Snitches Who Care – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
#Teachers, #Principals, and the Snitches Who Care – @ the chalk face: #Teachers, #Principals, and the Snitches Who Care by Kris Nielsen [image: mqdefault] I told you all to watch New York, and I meant it. The movement has changed from “opt out” to “refuse.” Parents across the state, in dramatically increasing numbers, are organizing and preparing themselves for the magic of April 16. When the state standardized tests are administered on that date, students of all ages and ZIP codes will politely shake their heads, push it away, offer an “I refuse this test” note, or simply sit a... more »

Do weaker math students end up with weaker teachers? | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Do weaker math students end up with weaker teachers? | Get Schooled: Do weaker math students end up with weaker teachers? by Maureen Downey [image: math (Medium)]We’ve spent a lot of time on this blog discussing the under performance of Georgia students in math. We’ve debated the controversial and now abandoned math reforms introduced by former state school chief Kathy Cox, which stumbled in part because teachers were not adequately trained. We’ve talked about whether the problem owes to what’s being taught or who’s teaching it Here’s some fodder to further our debate. Education Week... more »

The Educated Reporter: Should Citizenship Test Be Used to Measure High Schoolers' Civic Knowledge?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
The Educated Reporter: Should Citizenship Test Be Used to Measure High Schoolers' Civic Knowledge?: Should Citizenship Test Be Used to Measure High Schoolers' Civic Knowledge? by Emily Richmond I was intrigued by Robert Pondiscio’s proposal over at The Atlantic, recommending that every high schooler in America demonstrate the same knowledge of the nation's history and laws as adult individuals applying for citizenship. Impossible! Not fair! Too difficult! Actually the bar is already set quite low, as Pondiscio -- executive director of CitizenshipFirst, a nonprofit initiative that... more »

For Special Ed Contractor, Huge Fees and Shoddy Care - NYTimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
For Special Ed Contractor, Huge Fees and Shoddy Care - NYTimes.com: Soaring Charges by a Contractor With Special EdBy DAVID M. HALBFINGERPublished: April 11, 2013 Cheon H. Park ran a company that had begun to prosper on government contracts, but he had bigger ambitions. So he tore down his shabby headquarters on a quiet street in Flushing, Queens, and replaced it with a lavish three-story building that had marble floors, granite countertops, red carpets and a soaring chandelier. Enlarge This Image Niko J. Kallianiotis for The New York Times Cheon H. Park founded the Bilingual SEIT ... more »

Ed Notes Online: Brooke Parker: Standardized Tests Make Age-Inappropriate Demands on Kids / “They’re designed to fire teachers”

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Ed Notes Online: Brooke Parker: Standardized Tests Make Age-Inappropriate Demands on Kids / “They’re designed to fire teachers”: Brooke Parker: Standardized Tests Make Age-Inappropriate Demands on Kids / “They’re designed to fire teachers” by ed notes online *Leaving aside the absurdity of explaining what “on track for college” looks like to children who say “Justin Bieber” when asked what they want to be when they grow up, Walcott would have gotten his message across more succinctly by simply sending a barf bag to parents.* *The good news for parents is that the “opt out” moveme... more »

LAUSD teachers release no confidence vote against Superintendent John Deasy | Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
LAUSD teachers release no confidence vote against Superintendent John Deasy | Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC: LAUSD teachers release no confidence vote against Superintendent John Deasy by Adolfo Guzman-Lopez [image: Los Angeles schools Supt. John Deasy sp] *Los Angeles schools Superintendent John Deasy has received an overwhelming vote of no confidence from LAUSD teachers. ; Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images* United Teachers Los Angeles, the union that represents L.A. Unified’s instructors, announced Thursday a 91 percent vote of no confidence against school district Superintendent John Deasy.... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools Enrollment Predicted to Top 51,000 Next Year

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools Enrollment Predicted to Top 51,000 Next Year: Seattle Schools Enrollment Predicted to Top 51,000 Next Year by Melissa Westbrook From the Audit & Finance Committee meeting today comes news of the first Open Enrollment Data. As stated in the headline, SPS enrollment looks to go over 50,000 for the first time in decades, to just over 51,000. That is based on an increase of 1300 students for next year. Interestingly, it is NOT at kindergarten where projections show a lower number, just under 300 students. The real increase is at 6th... more »

My little advocate says “checkmate” – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago
My little advocate says “checkmate” – @ the chalk face: My little advocate says “checkmate” by Chris Cerrone We are less than a week away from the state assessments in New York State and my oldest received the annual state testing notice informing parents children should get a good night’s sleep, eat breakfast, and of course bring plenty of #2 pencils. Well aware of our family’s stance on high-stakes testing, she decided to take action on the flyer: [image: rip opt out] Well, I really would have like to have read the actual time of the testing period… In the last year of our famil... more »

On preserving the sanctity of teacher labor – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
On preserving the sanctity of teacher labor – @ the chalk face: On preserving the sanctity of teacher labor by Chalk Face, PhD [image: 20130411-193338.jpg] Outcomes based eduction, or shall I say outcomes obsessed, is an attempt to subvert teaching to something completely measurable and quantifiable. This renders the teacher incapable of preserving a professional culture. Outcomes based education formulates the discipline into something easily achievable and recognizable. It brings Education activists take note by Chalk Face, PhD I’m typing on the road in New Hampshire. Heard this ... more »

Kevin Kumashiro at Occupy the Dept of Ed on Vimeo

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
Kevin Kumashiro at Occupy the Dept of Ed on Vimeo: *Occupy the Dept of Ed on Vimeo* * * California Father | Educating Sullivan: [image: California Father] * * 1. Daiyu Suzuki at Occupy the Dept of Ed 11 hours ago 2. Linda Nathan at Occupy the Dept of Ed 19 hours ago 3. Kevin Kumashiro at Occupy the Dept of Ed 1 day ago 4. Diane Ravitch at Occupy the Dept of Ed 3 days ago 5. Helen Moore at Occupy the Dept of Ed 4 days ago 6. Malcolm London at Occupy the Dept of Ed 4 days ago 7. Karen Lewis at Occupy the Dept of Ed: Part 3 4 days ago 8. Karen... more »

California Distinguished Schools for 2013 - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
California Distinguished Schools for 2013 - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces California Distinguished Schools for 2013 SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today named 218 public middle and high schoolsCalifornia Distinguished Schools for their strong commitment and innovative approaches to improving student academic achievement. "These schools have gone the extra mile to provide high-quality instruction that puts their students on the right path toward career and college," Torlakson said. "Given the eno... more »

Modern School: The Real Cheating Scandal Occurs Each Year At Every School in America

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Modern School: The Real Cheating Scandal Occurs Each Year At Every School in America: The Real Cheating Scandal Occurs Each Year At Every School in America by Michael Dunn *“The real cheating scandal that has been going on for years is that kids are being cheated out of meaningful learning by focusing on test scores. Standardized tests like the CRCT measure what matters least. . . Standardized tests are lousy measures of thinking. They assess some combination of (a) family wealth and (b) how much time has been diverted from real learning in order to make kids better at taking test... more »

Testimony of US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan—FY 2014 Budget Request | U.S. Department of Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Testimony of US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan—FY 2014 Budget Request | U.S. Department of Education: Testimony of US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan—FY 2014 Budget Request *House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Other Related Agencies* APRIL 11, 2013 *Contact: * (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov Good morning Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee. I'm pleased to be here today to talk with you about President Obama's priorities and plans for the Department of Education. I'm happy that the President's 2014 budget was submitte... more »

Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s Reign of Error | Taking Note

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s Reign of Error | Taking Note: Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s Reign of Error by John Merrow Michelle A. Rhee, America’s most famous school reformer, was fully aware of the extent of the problem when she glossed over what appeared to be widespread cheating during her first year as Schools Chancellor in Washington, DC. A long-buried confidential memo from her outside data consultant suggests that the problem was far more serious than kids copying off other kids’ answer sheets. (“191 teachers representing 70 schools”). Twice in just four ... more »

Defense Department Schools Memo: Furlough Days Nixed For This School Year

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Defense Department Schools Memo: Furlough Days Nixed For This School Year: Defense Department Schools Memo: Furlough Days Nixed For This School Year by Joy Resmovits For the last few months, teachers in America's military schools have scrambled to understand how across-the-board cuts to the Department of Defense, or sequestration, would affect their schools. Like other military employees, teachers expected furloughs. Parents wondered whether there would be school on Fridays or doubled up classrooms. The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), which administers the schoo... more »

Ed Notes Online: Gotham Links to Bogus Charter School Wait List Reports

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Ed Notes Online: Gotham Links to Bogus Charter School Wait List Reports: Gotham Links to Bogus Charter School Wait List Reports by ed notes online *An appropriate analogy might be if Harvard began referring to the 32,994 students it didn’t admit this year as a “waiting list,” then added that number to the 32,270 it didn’t admit last year, giving it a “waiting list” of 65,264, or a fiercely urgent case for lifting the Crimson Cap.* *I propose that any charter that currently has fewer students enrolled than it has capacity to educate welcome some of the students on the waiting list ... more »

Raise Hell Not Tuition: On the Indiana University Strike |

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Raise Hell Not Tuition: On the Indiana University Strike |: Raise Hell Not Tuition: On the Indiana University Strike April 11, 2013 in Students I’ve been preoccupied with other stuff today, so haven’t had the chance to liveblog this, but a number of students, faculty, and staff are striking today and tomorrow at Indiana University. The group aren’t aiming to shut the university down, but they have reportedly reduced attendance considerably, and are staging teach-ins, marches and other events on both a campuswide and class-by-class basis. They’re calling for a reduction in tuition ... more »

Tony Monfiletto: A Charter School in No-Man's Land - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago
Tony Monfiletto: A Charter School in No-Man's Land - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Tony Monfiletto: A Charter School in No-Man's Land by Anthony Cody *In December of last year, I wrote about an unusual charter school I visited, ACE Leadership High, which actively recruits students who have dropped out or are doing poorly in the regular schools. I pointed out that this school faces challenges similar to those of other high poverty schools, given our current accountability paradigm. I have stayed in touch with the principal there, Tony Monfiletto, and today he offers... more »

Briefly Revisiting the Central Problem with SGPs (in the creator’s own words) | School Finance 101

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago
Briefly Revisiting the Central Problem with SGPs (in the creator’s own words) | School Finance 101: Briefly Revisiting the Central Problem with SGPs (in the creator’s own words) by schoolfinance101 When I first criticized the use of SGPs for teacher evaluation in New Jersey, the creator of the Colorado Growth Model responded with the following statement: Unfortunately Professor Baker conflates the data (i.e. the measure) with the use. A primary purpose in the development of the Colorado Growth Model (Student Growth Percentiles/SGPs) was to distinguish the measure from the use: ... more »

Notice of Public Meeting - Public Schools Accountability Act (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago
Notice of Public Meeting - Public Schools Accountability Act (CA Dept of Education): April 23, 2013 Meeting of the Full CommitteeDate, Time, and Location April 23, 2013 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. California Department of Education 1430 N Street, Suite 1101 Sacramento, CA 95814 Agenda To be discussed and take action as necessary and appropriate: 1. Welcome and Introductions 2. Recommendations to the Superintendent on alternatives to the decile ranks as a method for determining eligibility, preference, or priority for statutory programs 3. Recommendation to the Superintendent o... more »

Diane in the Evening 4-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: G.F. Brandenburg on the Rhee “Smoking Memo” by dianerav G.F. Brandenburg has covered the reign of Rhee for years. Here he explains the key insights in the memo leaked to John Merrow. His summary: “(1) Rhee gave lots of money to adults who cheated (2) She put impossible pressure on principals to cheat; they, in turn, put that pressure on their teachers Breaking News: John Merrow Finds Mystery Memo in Rhee Scandal by dianerav Someone in the District of Columbia education department leaked a memo to John Merrow about ... more »

The test didn’t make them cheat

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
The test didn’t make them cheat: The test didn’t make them cheat Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 11, 2013 at 1:00 pm [image: test2]A tough piece I posted by Bill Ayers about theAtlanta test cheating indictments said the road to the scandal “runs right through the White House.” Ayers, a retired professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago who may be better known for his radical activism during the 1960s and ’70s. (During the 2008 presidential campaign right-wing commentators incorrectly said he had a close relationship with then candidate Barack Obama, whom Aye... more »

Daily Kos: Write off Begich & Pryor and primary them

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Daily Kos: Write off Begich & Pryor and primary them: Write off Begich & Pryor and primary them by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) I would not necessarily say that were they to vote against gun control directly, given the politics of their states. But this was a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to debate. No one who is willing to filibuster a motion to proceed to debate belongs in the Democratic Party. there are things that are beyond the pale for a Democratic We believe in having the debate so the American people can here the arguments The unwillingness to have that discussion h... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Thursday, April 11, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *New teaching standards delve more deeply into climate change* Education Headlines *Thursday, April 11, 2013* Calaveras Unified trims staff as enrollment dipsCalaveras Unified trustees this week voted unanimously to send layoff notices to three part-time classified employees - a van rider, a custodian, and a yard duty worker. The district's teaching staff is also going to be smaller, with five fewer teachers reporting to district classrooms when a new school year begins late this summer, according to District Superintendent Mark ... more »

Closing the learning-time gap | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Closing the learning-time gap | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Closing the learning-time gap by thenotebook *by James H. Lytle* With all the debate about addressing the achievement gap, one obvious explanation has escaped attention: the amount of time kids from different backgrounds spend engaged in school or school-related activities. Having worked in or observed both public and private schools -- including inner-city, magnet, suburban, independent, and boarding schools -- I’ve concluded that there is a striking and straightforward explanation for why kids in the inner city d... more »

Explaining KIPP's 'SLANT' - Bridging Differences - Education Week

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Explaining KIPP's 'SLANT' - Bridging Differences - Education Week: Explaining KIPP's 'SLANT' by Deborah Meier *Elliott Witney blogs again with Deborah Meier today.* Dear Deb, You've asked how we can reconcile our practices with the Golden Rule of "Do unto others what you would have others do unto you." Or, in other words, how aligned are our practices with our beliefs? That's a question I've been focused on since I was in college, and I deeply appreciate the chance to get into it with you. I'll devote this second letter to discussing the educational practice you asked about, know... more »







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