Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Big Education Ape - Morning Wink 4-17-13 AM Posts #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2



BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS



There’s a lot of ‘acting’ at U.S. Education Department

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
There’s a lot of ‘acting’ at U.S. Education Department: There’s a lot of ‘acting’ at U.S. Education Department Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 17, 2013 at 10:51 am Education Secretary Arne Duncan Nearly six months after the presidential election, the Education Department is still riddled with “acting” officials, and Secretary Arne Duncan is losing some of his key aides. Deputy Secretary Tony Miller is departing within the next month, according to Acting Press Secretary Darren Briscoe, and Assistant Secretary Carmel Martin, who ran the office of planning, evaluation and policy deve... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, April 17, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: *Freedburg: More than half of suspensions are for “willful defiance” of school authorities* Education Headlines *Wednesday, April 17, 2013* Desert Sands Unified District to refinance bondsThe Desert Sands Unified school board unanimously voted Tuesday to refinance a portion of a school construction bond, saving taxpayers an estimated $4.8 million over the next two decades. Temecula, Perris school districts considering layoffsTwo Southwest County school districts will consider eliminating a total of 22 positions this week, includ... more »

NYC Public School Parents: Vertical linking & looking for feedback on this year's ELA exams

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
NYC Public School Parents: Vertical linking & looking for feedback on this year's ELA exams: Vertical linking & looking for feedback on this year's ELA exams by Leonie Haimson If you have children or students in grades 3-8 they are now in the midst of three days of state ELA standardized testing. Last year, the ELA exams werefull of errors and confusing and ambiguous questions, including the infamous Pineapple passage, which we first reported on our blog. This year, we have heard from teachers and principals that the reading passages were difficult and the questions extremel... more »

Revisiting the Compexities of Charter Funding Comparisons | School Finance 101

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago
Revisiting the Compexities of Charter Funding Comparisons | School Finance 101: Revisiting the Compexities of Charter Funding Comparisons by schoolfinance101 This Education Week Post today rather uncritically summarized a recently published article based on an earlier report on charter school spending “gaps.” I’ve not had a chance to dig into this updated study yet, but the Ed Week post also referred to an earlier study from Ball State University which I have critiqued on multiple occasions. Importantly, my previous critiques of this study point to the complexities of making thes... more »

UPDATE: The Ignored Arm of the Commons and the Invisible Hand of the Market – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago
The Ignored Arm of the Commons and the Invisible Hand of the Market – @ the chalk face: Postings on the BLK SHP Voices for Education event at the 92Y by Chalk Face, PhD On April 4th, I participated in a great event at the 92YTribeca as a panelist. I’m waiting for video on this, a DVD is being sent to me, so we’ll look at the record. But here’s a write-up of the event I was sent the other day. Interesting. Let me just quote my part: When Shawn Johnson (AKA The Chalk Face & self-proclaimed “Teacher Educator”) hit the stage, the gloves were off. Conveying a different sort of passi... more »

UPDATE: Rahm Emanuel and the myth of invincibility + Appearing to be invisible: An Oxymoron. | Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago
Appearing to be invisible: An Oxymoron. | Fred Klonsky: Rahm Emanuel and the myth of invincibility. by Fred Klonsky [image: F000029015] *Sammy Rayner, Harold Washington and the Reverand Jesse Jackson. 1977.* I think it was back in the 1970s. I was fairly new to Chicago and ignorant of much of its political and social history. A group of us who were attending a conference at the International House at the University of Chicago were taking a break from all the talk, sitting on the grass of the Midway Plaisance and smoking cigarettes. We did that in those days. A middle-aged Black man ... more »

Cracking the School-to-Prison Pipeline | California Progress Report

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago
Cracking the School-to-Prison Pipeline | California Progress Report: Cracking the School-to-Prison Pipeline by callen *By Anthony Asadullah Samad* There has been another raging discussion taking place over the past couple months, that of the school-to-prison pipeline. How many different ways can we say that the absence of investment in America's intellectual capital causes - even promotes - devastating social consequences? And how many different ways can we assess the racial consequences of misapplied forms of social control? No, there are no more "whites only" or "colored only" s... more »

Excellence Goggles: Seeing the World Like a New York Times Writer | EduShyster

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 50 minutes ago
Excellence Goggles: Seeing the World Like a New York Times Writer | EduShyster: Excellence Goggles: Seeing the World Like a New York Times Writer by edushyster2012 Excellence goggles like these are*de riguer* among *New York Times*writers. The *New York Times* has long been known as “the grey lady” referring to its historical tendency to present a higher-than-usual proportion of copy to graphics (thank you, Wikipedia!). But might that moniker also refer to the thick cloud of ganja smoke fog of excellence through which the *Times’* many excellent writers view the world? What else but... more »

Shanker Blog » America’s Union Suppression Movement (And Its Apologists), Part One

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago
Shanker Blog » America’s Union Suppression Movement (And Its Apologists), Part One: America’s Union Suppression Movement (And Its Apologists), Part One by Leo Casey *Last week, in “Is There A ‘Corporate Education Reform’ Movement?”, I wrote about the logic of forming strategic alliances on specific issues with those who are not natural allies, even those with whom you mostly disagree. This does not mean, however, that there aren’t those – some with enormous wealth and power – who are bent on undermining the American labor movement generally and teachers’ unions specifically. This... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: The Changing Terms of Common Core

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: The Changing Terms of Common Core: The Changing Terms of Common Core by Anngie Contracts are needed when you don't trust the other party to keep their word. If everyone was honest in their transactions and did what they promised, we wouldn't need lawyers to document every single term, party and deliverable. Since that is not the case, we get a lawyer, write it all down and sign our commitment to honor the terms. But what do you do when the other party keeps changing the terms of the agreement after you have signed? That seems to be the case with Common ...more »

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-17-13 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] Former Lt. Gov. Ratliff of Texas Joins the Honor Roll by dianerav Former Lieutenant Governor Bill Ratliff has spoken out loud and clear for the 5 million children in public schools in Texas. He knows the state cut the budget way too much. He knows that the state must put its money into improving education–not by “throwing money” at it–but by doing the right things. And he knows that the Legislature will be moved when they start hearing from angry Mamas. They ar... more »

Daily Kos: An important column from Harold Meyerson

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Daily Kos: An important column from Harold Meyerson: An important column from Harold Meyerson by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken) in today's *Washington Post*. Let me begin with the ending: Problem is, the Wal-Mart model of employment and service not only reflects but also reinforces the declining economic prospects of the majority of Americans. The nation’s largest private-sector employer has used its market power to impose its low-wage model all along its supply chain, leaving millions of Americans with no shopping option other than the kind of discount, and frustrating, experien... more »

More than half of suspensions are for “willful defiance” of school authorities | EdSource Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
More than half of suspensions are for “willful defiance” of school authorities | EdSource Today: More than half of suspensions are for “willful defiance” of school authorities - by Louis Freedberg by Louis Freedberg More than half of all suspensions and a quarter of expulsions in California schools are for “willful defiance” of school authorities, according to a new database that State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson is scheduled to release this Friday. Until now, only very limited data on school suspensions and expulsions by school were available to researcher... more »

Toolkit Tuesday: Post-Student Voice Live! Student Voice

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Student Voice: Toolkit Tuesday: Post-Student Voice Live! by Student Voice Toolkit Organizer *Celebrating Successes and Identifying Challenges* On Saturday April 13th 2013, students, educators, parents, policymakers and people throughout the world joined*Student Voice Live!* either in-person at the Microsoft Offices in New York City or online through watching the live-steam video. To co-create and co-facilitate a conference of such size was no easy task, but a team of dedicated students and adults worked collaboratively to empower the Student Voice. At the end of the Conference, the ... more »

‘Personalization’ of learning: Genuine or slick marketing?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
‘Personalization’ of learning: Genuine or slick marketing?: ‘Personalization’ of learning: Genuine or slick marketing? Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 17, 2013 at 4:00 am 2 Comments More [image: personal]You can’t have a conversation about education reform these days without, at some point, hearing the words “personalization” and “engagement.” What do they really mean? Here to explain is George Wood, superintendent and secondary school principal at the Federal Hocking Local School District in Stewart, Ohio. He is also the executive director of the Forum for Education and Democra... more »

solidaridad: United Adult Students (UAS) to rally against Governor Brown's plan

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
solidaridad: United Adult Students (UAS) to rally against Governor Brown's plan: United Adult Students (UAS) to rally against Governor Brown's plan by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: United Adult Students (UAS) to rally against Governor Brown's plan [image: United Adult Students (UAS) to rally against Governor Brown's plan]Los Angeles, California - April 16, 2013 - United Adult Students (UAS) have announced that they will hold a student rally and present petitions containing thousands of signatures opposed to Governor Brown's plan to move adult education to the C... more »

Schools Matter: Is there really a crisis in science and math education?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Schools Matter: Is there really a crisis in science and math education?: Is there really a crisis in science and math education? by skrashen Sent to the Austin-American Statesman, April 16, 2013 Lonny Stern’s claim that “Investment in science, math is good business” (April 15) is based on his assertion that there are 2.5 STEM jobs available for every unemployed person. Mr. Stern may want to consult research done by Rutgers Professor Hal Salzman, who concludes that there are two to three qualified graduates for each science/tech opening: There appears to be surplus, not a shortag... more »

Rhee Needs Parent Trigger More than Parent Trigger Needs Her | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Rhee Needs Parent Trigger More than Parent Trigger Needs Her | Scathing Purple Musings: Rhee Needs Parent Trigger More than Parent Trigger Needs Her by Bob Sikes Ann Kane and M. Catharine Evans have been chronicling Michelle Rhee’ s story since she was DC schools chancellor in the influential conservative website *American Thinker*. While I’ve not always agreed with their conclusions, they’ve been spot of with their criticism. They weighed in yesterday on John Merrow’s PBS story which serves as the metaphorical smoking gun for Rhee’s involvement in the DC cheating scandal that h... more »

L.A. Unified board ratifies 'parent-trigger' partnership - latimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
L.A. Unified board ratifies 'parent-trigger' partnership - latimes.com: L.A. Unified board ratifies 'parent-trigger' partnership by By Dalina Castellanos The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday ratified a partnership between the school district and a charter school to take control of struggling 24th Street Elementary under a controversial parent-empowerment law. The vote marks the first time a school district has elected not to challenge a petition submitted by parents under the state’s “parent-trigger” law. The law grants petitioners substantial authority, giving them optio... more »

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 4-16-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
*Nite Cap UPDATE* * * ** *UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE* ** *CORPORATE ED REFORM* Leaders Urge Colleges to Expand Sports Programs for Students With Disabilities from Diverse by cmaadmin [image: Illinois Athletes]At the University of Illinois, work has been done since 1949 to provide programs specifically for disabled students on adaptive methods to include disabled students. The world watched as Oscar Pistorius eased his prosthetic racing legs into the starting blocks on the track at the Olympics last summer, taking the first steps to making history as the first amputee to race... more »

Freestyle Week: How Politeness Kills Even The Pretense of Justice | The Jose Vilson

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
Freestyle Week: How Politeness Kills Even The Pretense of Justice | The Jose Vilson: Freestyle Week: How Politeness Kills Even The Pretense of Justice by Jose Vilson [image: Former NE Patriot Joe Andruzzi Helps Another Runner At The Boston Marathon] Former NE Patriot Joe Andruzzi Helps Another Runner At The Boston Marathon *This week, I’m writing blog posts based on people’s submissions to my Facebook page right here. My first one is based on online friend Michael Doyle’s suggested title, “How politeness kills even the pretense of justice.” Let’s go …* The Boston Marathon shouldn’t... more »

John Thompson: Did Duncan Load the Bullets into Michelle Rhee's Smoking Gun? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
John Thompson: Did Duncan Load the Bullets into Michelle Rhee's Smoking Gun? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: John Thompson: Did Duncan Load the Bullets into Michelle Rhee's Smoking Gun? by Anthony Cody *Guest post by John Thompson.* The current headline is that John Merrow found "the smoking gun," or the confidential memo warning Michelle Rhee of the extent of cheating that may have occurred in Washington D.C. schools in response to her draconian "reforms." Merrow's "Michelle Rhee's Reign of Error" summarizes the evidence of an inexcusable failure to investigate the ... more »

Photos: Ohio is Jazzed About #StopCommonCore | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Photos: Ohio is Jazzed About #StopCommonCore | Truth in American Education: Photos: Ohio is Jazzed About #StopCommonCore by Shane Vander Hart Ohio had some informational meetings about the Common Core at three different locations throughout the state. Ohioans Against Common Core has an update here. Between 850-1000 attended. The photos below are from Jamie Gass of the Pioneer Institute who was one of the speakers. The speakers for these events were: *Cincinnati *– held April 12th held at the Anderson Twp. Center. Hosted by Anderson. - Emmett McGroarty – American Principles Pr... more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJDOE's Failed Charter Office

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman: NJDOE's Failed Charter Office: NJDOE's Failed Charter Office by Duke In the name of "choice," the NJDOE granted a charter last year to the Newark-based 100 Legacy Academy Charter School. Enormously pleased with themselves, the Christie Administration and the NJDOE nearly dislocated their shoulders from patting themselves on the back so vigorously: Demonstrating the *Christie Administration’s strong support for increasing the number of high-quality school options for New Jersey students*, the Department today approved 9 charter schools to open in September, bringin... more »

Mother Crusader: Newark And Irvington Kids Stuck In Cerf's Charter Revolving Door

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
Mother Crusader: Newark And Irvington Kids Stuck In Cerf's Charter Revolving Door: Newark And Irvington Kids Stuck In Cerf's Charter Revolving Door by darciecima Today John Mooney wrote about the revocation of 100 Legacy Academy's charter. It can't be stressed enough that this charter was just opened in September. This is the schools FIRST year of operation. While I will concede that the charter was granted before Cerf became commissioner, the rest of the decisions to open this charter rest squarely on his shoulders. He could have avoided this at multiple turns. I guarantee the... more »

NYC Educator: Will Union Help You When You Sue Over a Bad Evaluation?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 16 hours ago
NYC Educator: Will Union Help You When You Sue Over a Bad Evaluation?: Will Union Help You When You Sue Over a Bad Evaluation? by NYC Educator Teacher Ken has a great piece about the awful Florida evaluation system. Apparently, a teacher of the year was rated unsatisfactory. One more rating like that and she'll be putting on a Mickey Mouse costume for 8 bucks an hour. And the NEA, as well as the Florida Education Association, are parties in a lawsuit with 7 teachers. Apparently, they're all great teachers, hooked by the VAM monster. Value-added comes to NYC next year. If the intrep... more »

State Democrats decide who's a REAL Democrat - latimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
State Democrats decide who's a REAL Democrat - latimes.com: State Democrats decide who's a REAL Democrat By Karin Klein April 16, 2013, 5:30 a.m. Real Democrats don’t back school reform, apparently. Or maybe the message is that Democrats don’t let Democrats shake up the school scene. In any case, real Democrats clearly aren’t allowed to disagree with the California Teachers Assn. It’s more than a little disturbing to read that the California Democratic Party voted to condemn groups that lobby for major change in the schools, such as Democrats for Education Reform, and called them... more »

The Business of American Business Is Education | Ideas & Innovations | Smithsonian Magazine

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
The Business of American Business Is Education | Ideas & Innovations | Smithsonian Magazine: The Business of American Business Is EducationFrom corporate donations to workplace restrictions, what’s taught in the classroom has always been influenced by American industry || |SHARE ON REDDITREDDIT|SHARE ON DIGGDIGG|SHARE ON STUMBLEUPONSTUMBLE|SHARE ON EMAILEMAIL|MORE SHARING SERVICES - By Dana Goldstein - Smithsonian.com, April 15, 2013, Subscribe [image: Tuskegee Institute] Industrialist Andrew Carnegie (front row, center) financially supported the Tuskegee Institute and its... more »

UPDATE: 2012-13 Academic Achievement Award Recipients - Academic Achievement Awards (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
2012-13 Academic Achievement Award Recipients - Academic Achievement Awards (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces 2012-13 Title I Academic Achievement Award Schools SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced that 56 California public schools with sustained progress in academic improvement among low-income students have been chosen for the 2012-13 Title I Academic Achievement Award. "These schools serve students facing real challenges, and they've risen to meet them through hard work and dedication," Torlakson s... more »

Diane in the Evening 4-16-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Poor ALEC! Someone Disagrees with Their Radical Agenda by dianerav ALEC has operated in the background since 1973, funded by major corporations who want to advance a corporate-friendly agenda into state legislatures. Some 2,000 state legislators belong to ALEC and attend its posh conferences, where they hobnob with corporate lobbyists. ALEC suffered a PR setback when Trayvon Martin was killed last year in Florida by a man who invoked ALEC’s “stand your ground” law. The bad publicity caused some 40 corporations t... more »

Principals: Reach Beyond the Walls of Your School — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago
Principals: Reach Beyond the Walls of Your School — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: Ken Endris]Principals: Reach Beyond the Walls of Your School April 16, 2013 by Ken Endris For the past five years, Fouke (Ark.) Elementary School has witnessed academic improvement in all six grade levels, K–5. Attendance has also improved over the same time period. These accomplishments have not happened by accident, instead they are the results of the hard work by staff, students, and families. Not I as principal, not one teacher, or not one program alone is responsible for the... more »

PCAPS plans its next steps | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 20 hours ago
PCAPS plans its next steps | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: PCAPS plans its next steps by Ron Whitehorne The Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools will hold a general assembly on Wednesday, April 17 to launch new campaigns around school funding, charter school accountability, and community schools. The coalition, formed a year ago, has grown to include 15 labor and community-based organizations, embracing school staff, parents, students, and neighborhood activists. Over the last year, PCAPS developed an alternative to the School Reform Commission's blueprint in... more »

Rather than fess up to a budget shortfall (and make Jindal sad), White chooses to steal money from schools | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago
Rather than fess up to a budget shortfall (and make Jindal sad), White chooses to steal money from schools | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Rather than fess up to a budget shortfall (and make Jindal sad), White chooses to steal money from schools by crazycrawfish I just read an article on The Lens that tripped my BS meter. (Pretty much anytime John White opens his mouth it goes off these days.) It’s about school counts and funding, which I was in charge of for almost 9 years before John White arrived on this scene with his band of bandits. Only a few months before their fiscal year ends,... more »

Consumed by Manufactured Demons: The “-ism’s” that Blind | the becoming radical

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Consumed by Manufactured Demons: The “-ism’s” that Blind | the becoming radical: Consumed by Manufactured Demons: The “-ism’s” that Blind Posted on April 16, 2013 by plthomasedd Science fiction and horror are two genres that often find themselves intersecting where some form of power reduces humans to mere cogs in the machine. Technology, the future, aliens, and the like, it seems, can be terribly frightening. George Orwell’s *Nineteen Eighty-Four* stands as one of the most comprehensive and enduring examinations of when that power abuse is in the hands of a*totalitarian* governme... more »

UPDATE: Duncan = Failed Testing and Accountability Policies Schools Matter: Michelle Rhee's Situational Ethics

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Schools Matter: Michelle Rhee's Situational Ethics: Duncan Celebrates Three Decades of Failed Testing and Accountability Policies by Jim Horn On April 16, it will have been 30 years since the publication of *A Nation at Risk* (ANAR), the discredited scare document produced by the Reaganites in 1983 to introduce the beginning of the end of public education in America. Now here is your quiz to test your capacity to predict outcomes based on past history. To acknowledge the beginning of fourth decade of failed education policies inspired by *ANAR*, Duncan will meet with a) public ... more »

UPDATE: PSAT for 4-16-13: Get out your smocks and get ready to play! Parents United for Responsible Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » PSAT for 4-16-13: Get out your smocks and get ready to play!: This week’s leg fax: corporate reform not working in Chicago by admin [image: FAX Machine 19]In 2007, FairTest’s Monty Neill and I wrote a report called “Chicago School Reform: Lessons for the Nation,” which strongly cautioned against using Chicago and its mayoral controlled school district as a model for school improvement. Six years later, our concerns have been confirmed by researchers Elaine Weiss and Don Long for the Broader, Bolder Approach to Education grou... more »

D.C. custodial staff were evaluated by student test scores. Really.

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
D.C. custodial staff were evaluated by student test scores. Really.: D.C. custodial staff were evaluated by student test scores. Really. Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 16, 2013 at 12:56 pm [image: Ron Hillyer, who retired earlier this year, is getting a hallway named after him at Janney Elementary School in the Tenleytown section of Northwest D.C.] Retired D.C. schools custodian Ron Hillyer had a hallway named after him at Janney Elementary School. How obsessive have school reformers been with linking student standardized test scores to the evaluations of adults in school buildin... more »

Withering "Rhee-form" | CTQ

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Withering "Rhee-form" | CTQ: Withering "Rhee-form" *Posted by Barnett Berry on Monday, 04/15/2013* Over the last week or so, there has been an unusual spate of news reports, research studies, and op-eds published suggesting that the current teaching quality reform—or perhaps better titled “Rhee-form”—agenda may be beginning to wither. The narrow focus on judging teachers by student test-score gains is losing ground. No longer can we use value-added measures (VAM) on once-a-year, bubble-in, multiple-choice assessments, and then pay teachers with higher VAM ratings more and fire th... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Bill Gates and the 2009 Common Core Speech to State Legislators

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: Bill Gates and the 2009 Common Core Speech to State Legislators: Bill Gates and the 2009 Common Core Speech to State Legislators by stlgretchen Here is a rough transcription of Bill Gates' comments at the National Conference of State Legislators in 2009. My comments are in parentheses. It is ironic that the legislators said they never knew about it. At least a few did in 2009. And didn't it occur to them that these educational changes circumvented the legislative process? No red flags? Access all the clips from youtube here: http://www.yout... more »

NEA - NEA, FEA file a federal lawsuit over Florida’s teacher evaluation procedure

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
NEA - NEA, FEA file a federal lawsuit over Florida’s teacher evaluation procedure: *NEA, FEA file a federal lawsuit over Florida’s teacher evaluation procedure * [image: NEA Logo] WASHINGTON - April 16, 2013 - The National Education Association (NEA) and the Florida Education Association (FEA) filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the evaluation of teachers based on the standardized test scores of students they do not teach or based on subjects they do not teach. The lawsuit is brought by seven accomplished teachers and the local education associations in Alachua, Escambia and ... more »

Some states forge ahead on common core, CA not alone in struggle to implement SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 22 hours ago
SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources: Some states forge ahead on common core, CA not alone in struggle to implement As California labors to bring the new common core English language arts and mathematics curriculum standards in its classrooms, other states are dealing with similar issues – some further along in the process and some rethinking the whole idea. Take New York, for instance. Students in the Empire State will today begin taking new assessments aligned to the common core despite the fact that many schools have yet to begin teaching content based on the new standards. I... more »

Surprise, Surprise… State Board of Education approves “special school leadership program” for Vallas - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Surprise, Surprise… State Board of Education approves “special school leadership program” for Vallas - Wait, What?: Surprise, Surprise… State Board of Education approves “special school leadership program” for Vallas by jonpelto Paul Vallas doesn’t have the credentials necessary to be a superintendent of schools in the State of Connecticut. Governor Malloy’s “education reform” law included language that would allow Malloy’s Commissioner of Education, Stefan Pryor, to waive Vallas’ certification requirements IF Vallas successfully completed his one year probationary period and com... more »

Insights About The Principalship — Whole Child Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Insights About The Principalship — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG [image: ASCD Whole Child Bloggers]Insights About The Principalship April 12, 2013 by ASCD Whole Child Bloggers [image: The Principalship - ASCD Educational Leadership] In times of increasing expectations, decreasing resources, and rigorous accountability, school principals are faced with complex challenges and a huge array of initiatives to implement. These realities have discouraged many principals from staying on the job. How can schools stop the revolving door of the principalship and energize principal... more »

UPDATE: NYSUT Clamps Down on Free Speech #stopcommoncore Reminder of the #edreform Mad Lib you can share and use. – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Reminder of the #edreform Mad Lib you can share and use. – @ the chalk face: NYSUT Clamps Down on Free Speech by Lauren Cohen Dear Readers, I would like to share with you an email I sent last week to my class parents: *April is the cruelest month*… I doubt the NY State Education Department had T.S. Eliot in mind when they made the state testing schedule, but it does seem appropriate. Even with trying to keep test prep – oops, I mean “Defense Against the Dark Arts” – at a minimum, there’s so much I feel obligated to do! [Other 5th grade teacher] and I were talking about the uncerta... more »

Best of the Ed Blogs | National Education Policy Center

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Best of the Ed Blogs | National Education Policy Center: Best of the Ed Blogs *Best of the Ed Blogs* features a frequently updated selection of interesting and insightful blog posts on education policy. The views expressed by the bloggers on our blog roll are thoughtful, original, and entirely their own. We hope you make *Best of the Ed Blogs* your first stop for concise takes on today's most important education topics. Anti-Bullying PSA Project [LESSON] Best of the Ed Blogs Bill Ferriter April 16, 2013 The New Jersey Kidz Are Alright Best of the Ed Blogs EduShyster April 16, 201... more »

UPDATE: Enrollment Projections Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools and Data Confidentiality

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle Schools and Data Confidentiality: Guess Which One is NOT Like the Others? by Melissa Westbrook Ed News by Melissa Westbrook I actually have a backlog of education news stories but these two from today rose to the top. One story is about teacher evaluations and the other is about a high-profit "education summit" going on this week in Arizona. From Ed Week: The NEA has filed a lawsuit on behalf of several teachers in Florida against that state's education department, saying that the teacher evaluation formula being used violates their cons... more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Tuesday, April 16, 2013

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Education Headlines *Tuesday, April 16, 2013* RIVERSIDE: Schools to get more counselorsRiverside Unified School District will need to hire counselors to fill 3.2 full-time positions for 2013-14 under a tentative agreement with the Riverside City Teachers Association, Deputy Superintendent Mike Fine said Monday, April 15. L.A. school board to consider faster investigation of teachersSexual misconduct allegations at Miramonte Elementary School sparked a surge of investigations of Los Angeles teachers, pushing the ranks of those in... more »

K-12 National Standards for Financial Literacy, New Framework for Teaching Personal Finance in Schools CEE: Leading Organization for Economics and Financial Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago
CEE: Leading Organization for Economics and Financial Education: *Council for Economic Education Introduces K-12 National Standards for Financial Literacy, New Framework for Teaching Personal Finance in Schools* * * *National Standards for Financial Literacy Raise the Bar for Financial Literacy Education* *NEW YORK, April 16, 2012* – This week, the Council for Economic Education (CEE) introduces the *National Standards for Financial Literacy*, a framework for the body of knowledge and skills that should be contained in a K-12 personal finance curriculum. Developed by a team of expe... more »

A Progressive and a Conservative Find Common Ground Opposing the Common Core - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
A Progressive and a Conservative Find Common Ground Opposing the Common Core - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: A Progressive and a Conservative Find Common Ground Opposing the Common Core by Anthony Cody *In recent months I have written about the growing opposition to the Common Core, from across the political spectrum. I recently connected with two citizens who embody this, and asked them to share their very divergent backgrounds, and the describe how they have found agreement in regards to the Common Core.* * I am Paul Horton.* I am a life long Democrat who attende... more »

Open Letter to NY Ed Commissioner John King: Thank You! – @ the chalk face

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
Open Letter to NY Ed Commissioner John King: Thank You! – @ the chalk face: Open Letter to NY Ed Commissioner John King: Thank You! by Kris Nielsen Dr. King, Thank you for mobilizing the parents and students of New York State! As one of my good friends said earlier this week, the two most important people behind the New York testing revolt are Dr. John King and Gov. Andrew Cuomo. If you’re sitting in your office today, wondering how this all came to be, I’d be happy to explain it. It’s been a long couple of months for most of us. Thanks to some very dedicated and well-read parents, w... more »

UPDATE: #StopCommonCore Twitter Rally Today (And We Will Be Broadcast!) | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago
#StopCommonCore Twitter Rally Today (And We Will Be Broadcast!) | Truth in American Education: So, I spent more time than necessary in the #stopcommoncore thread by Chalk Face, PhD Wow. Pretty wild. Basically, a very active stream of mainly conservative leaning folks stormed twitter at noon today to show their distaste of the CCSS, egged on mainly by it looks like uber-conservative blogger Michelle Malkin. Let me be clear:* I do not support the common core at all*. But there are some key differences in my arguments against it, as a left of center progressive and advocate for publi... more »