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Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Morning Wink 12-11-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2


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TIME's Person of the Year 2013 Pope Francis, The People's Pope | TIME.com
TIME's Person of the Year 2013 Pope Francis, The People's Pope | TIME.com: Pope Francis, The People’s PopeHe took the name of a humble saint and then called for a church of healing. The first non-European pope in 1,200 years is poised to transform a place that measures change by the centuryBy Howard Chua-Eoan and Elizabeth DiasTo read about TIME’s choice in Spanish and Portuguese, click below.El Elegido: El Papa Francisco es la Persona del Año 2013 de TIMEA Escolha: O Papa Francisco é a Personalidade do Ano eleita pela Time em 2013On the edge of Buenos Aires is a nothing little street called P
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 12-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: A Parent Reports on John King’s Stacked Forum in BrooklynNew York Commissioner John King held his first meeting in New York City on the rushed implementation of the Common Core and the tests whose cut score was set so high that only 31% of students across the state passed. Among English learners, only 3% passed. Among students with disabilities, only 5% passed. The pass rates among African American and Hispanic students was 15-18%. In NYC, the passing rby dianeravitch / 6min Eva’s Success in Getting Whatever She Wanted from Blo
12-11-13 The Answer Sheet
The Answer Sheet: The 10 school districts with the most charter school studentsA new report on charter schools says that charter school enrollment around the country has grown 80 percent over the past five years — but represents only 5 percent of  total public school enrollment (a statistic that may seem surprising given all of the attention that school reformers give to charters). The report, which is  issued […]    by Valerie Strauss / 5h 12-10-13 The Answer SheetThe Answer Sheet: Millions in private money poured into Common Core promotionIt cost money to implement and promote the Common Cor

TODAY

12-11-13 Wait What?
Wait What?: State Department of Education continues to flaunt Connecticut’s Freedom of Information lawsThe Malloy administration, in general, and Commissioner Stefan Pryor and his State Department of Education, in particular, may very well go down as the least open and least transparent government entity since the adoption of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act nearly forty years ago. By co
12-11-13 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: Seeking Equity: Not “If,” But “How” and “Why”Fiction offers avenues to Truth, often hard Truths, that remain closed or less often traveled otherwise. While many people associate Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides, with themes addressing sexuality and gender, this novel also confronts readers with a vivid and insightful consideration of class, race, and cultural heritage.* Toward the m
12-11-13 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education
Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: Florida Council of 100Charter Schools USA’s Predicatable Rhetoric Over Hillsborough Board DecisionThe editors of the Tampa Bay Times write: …the board was right to follow the staff’s recommendation to reject the plan, because the sponsors were inconsistent about the lead
12-11-13 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Video: Wild Cycling!Show English Language Learners this video and have them describe what they see — but be sure to warn them to try this at home!by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h hide  //  saveYESTERDAYThe Best Year In Review Features — 2013I’ve usually done two different types of “year in review” annual posts — one focusing on photo
12-11-13 Fred Klonsky | Running for our pensions. | VOTE 4 Fred Klonsky
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Pension Thieves.  Greg Harris is a Democratic State Representative from the 13th District on Chicago’s north side. He targets older people, retired police, fire fighters, public service workers, public school teachers and state university employees. Approach with care. He should be considered a Republ
12-11-13 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Substance: Chitown CEO Nixed in NYC!... Byrd Bennett strikes out in New York City as her slavish adherence to Rahm's school closing quota catches up with herChicago schools Chief Executive Officer Barbara Byrd Bennett completed her main assignment from Mayor Rahm Emanuel at the Board of Education's May 22, 2013 meeting when she recommended the gutting of the city's real public sch
12-11-13 THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG Throughout December and January: Personalized Learning — Whole Child Education
Throughout December and January: Personalized Learning — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGThroughout December and January: Personalized LearningDecember 11, 2013 by Klea ScharbergHow do we help each student succeed? One promising way is to personalize learning and put each student at the center of her learning experience. Broader than individualized or differentiated instruction, persona
12-11-13 With A Brooklyn Accent
With A Brooklyn Accent: The Regents and Collateral Damage- Thoughts from a Bronx Common Core ForumThe amount of "collateral damage" those who call themselves "School Reformers" are willing to endure in their quest to prepare children ( including those not yet born) ready to compete in the Global Economy never ceases to amaze me. They claim to be motivated by idealism and a pass
12-11-13 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness
the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Schools Matter: Seeking Equity: Not “If,” But “How” and “Why”Schools Matter: Seeking Equity: Not “If,” But “How” and “Why”: Fiction offers avenues to Truth, often hard Truths, that remain closed or less often traveled otherwise. While many people associate Middle...by P.
12-11-13 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Contract Negotiations Between UFT and City In State HearingVia James Eterno and Jeff Kaufman at ICEUFT, there is a must read Reuters piece about the contract negotiations between the city and the UFT:With just three weeks remaining before his team cedes power to Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg's administration will cite accounting rules at a closed-door state hearing o
Being Kevin Huffman
Shanker Blog » Being Kevin Huffman: Being Kevin HuffmanPosted by Matthew Di Carlo on December 11, 2013In a post earlier this week, I noted how several state and local education leaders, advocates and especially the editorial boards of major newspapers used the results of the recently-released NAEP results inappropriately – i.e., to argue that recent reforms in states such as Tennessee and D.C. are
Mississippi’s child poverty rate is twice as high as Lithuania’s. Why are we OK with that? | Hechinger Report
Mississippi’s child poverty rate is twice as high as Lithuania’s. Why are we OK with that? | Hechinger Report: Mississippi’s child poverty rate is twice as high as Lithuania’s. Why are we OK with that?By Jake McGrawThis story also appeared at:Rethink MississippiHere’s a question. If the United States’s child poverty rate ranks second-worst among the world’s developed countries, and Mississippi has
4LAKids - CHARTER SCHOOL GROUP WRITES REPORT THAT SAYS REGULAR SCHOOLS SUCK - 6 months later newspaper reports it as news
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: CHARTER SCHOOL GROUP WRITES REPORT THAT SAYS REGULAR SCHOOLS SUCK - 6 months later newspaper reports it as news: CHARTER SCHOOL GROUP WRITES REPORT THAT SAYS REGULAR SCHOOLS SUCK - 6 months later newspaper reports it as newsReport: In Silicon Valley, 'successful' schools fail poor and English-learning studentsBY SHARON NOGUCHI SNOGUCHI@MERCURYNEWS.COM |
NY Times Series Is About Homelessness, Poverty, Inequality and Public Education | janresseger
NY Times Series Is About Homelessness, Poverty, Inequality and Public Education | janresseger: NY Times Series Is About Homelessness, Poverty, Inequality and Public EducationPosted on December 11, 2013 by janressegerThis week’s New York Times feature series, Invisible Child, about a gifted Brooklyn preteen and her life for several years in a decrepit homeless shelter with her parents and six sibli
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: D.C.'s Mayor Gray under fire for Rhee-ism without Rhee
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: D.C.'s Mayor Gray under fire for Rhee-ism without Rhee: D.C.'s Mayor Gray under fire for Rhee-ism without RheeLike President Obama, who campaigned as a critic of the war in Iraq but then continued many of George W. Bush’s military policies once in office, Gray ran as a skeptic of the reforms being implemented by Rhee but continued them under Henderson, who also has c

YESTERDAY

A letter to the President: 'Teachers work in fear.' | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com
A letter to the President: 'Teachers work in fear.' | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com: A letter to the President: 'Teachers work in fear.' Previous PostsCharter schools increase as more existing schools seek to 'convert.'December 10, 2013Snow day turns into bad day for Oregon football December 10, 2013Excuses, excuses: The lies students tell their teachersDecember 10, 2013By Maureen DowneyHere is a let
OH THE HUMANITY – OUR STUDENTS AREN ‘T CHALLENGED ! | Teachers Fight Back
OH THE HUMANITY – OUR STUDENTS AREN ‘T CHALLENGED ! | Teachers Fight Back: OH THE HUMANITY – OUR STUDENTS AREN ‘T CHALLENGED !leave a comment »Chicago Tribune, you are hilarious. The Tribune is now boasting on page one how they obtained last year’s state school survey that was, “so provocative that the state withheld a full analysis of it from the public”.Here is an excerpt from the Tribune articl
12-10-13 Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog
Ms. Jablonski's Class Blog: Budget Deal Reached!As we all know a budget deal has been the issue in the House and Senate BUT today a budget deal has been reached by the House and Senate budget negotiators averting any future government shutdown in January. The agreement eliminates about $65 billion in across-the-board domestic and defense cuts while adding an additional $25 billion in deficit reduc
Patrick Kennedy, Welcome to the website for my Campaign for Sacramento County Supervisor, District 2.
Patrick Kennedy, Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education, Area 7: Welcome to the website for my Campaign for Sacramento County Supervisor, District 2.For 23 years, I have committed myself to the service of my community, first as a neighborhood leader and volunteer parent of four wonderful daughters, then as a planning commissioner. And for the past five as a member of the Sacram
Nite Cap 12-10-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
James Baldwin said it best: "For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP mark as read12-10-13 Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corp
12-10-13 Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?
Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?The following is from AFT in 2009, when the future for corporate ed reform seemed ascendant, and Randi was on a wave.  AFT has scrubbed the video from their site, but I plugged it in to where it had been previously deleted from the Press Release.  
John Thompson: Time is Right for "Principles that Unite Us" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher
John Thompson: Time is Right for "Principles that Unite Us" - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: John Thompson: Time is Right for "Principles that Unite Us"By Anthony Cody on December 10, 2013 4:23 PM Guest post by John Thompson.The seeds of the defeat of the accountability-driven reform movement, ironically, were sown in 2009 when union leaders decided that they had
How Public Schools Have the Edge Over Private Schools | NEA Today
How Public Schools Have the Edge Over Private Schools | NEA Today: How Public Schools Have the Edge Over Private SchoolsDecember 10, 2013 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Tim WalkerThe fuel that drives much of the pro-market education reform agenda is the belief that public institutions are inherently inferior. Therefore, all that ails the nation’s schools, accor
PSAT for 12-10-13: Send us your test schedules Parents United for Responsible Education
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » PSAT for 12-10-13: Send us your test schedules: PSAT for 12-10-13: Send us your test schedulesMore Than a Score is meeting with CPS testing officials later this week. Among the items on our agenda is a discussion of the actual number of tests given in CPS schools this year. You may remember that CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett announced at the
Bill Ayers Talks Obama, Nelson Mandela, and Toni Preckwinkle | Chicago magazine
Bill Ayers Talks Obama, Nelson Mandela, and Toni Preckwinkle | Chicago magazine: Bill Ayers Talks Obama, Nelson Mandela, and Toni PreckwinkleHe loves Cook County’s president, isn’t disappointed in POTUS, and would be happy to be a Supreme Court justice.Bill Ayers is now 68 years old and retired after 20 years as a UIC education professor. He’s slight, intense, balding, wears two hearing aids and t
Call Out by Parents to Protest at Board Meeting Wednesday | Classroom Struggle
Call Out by Parents to Protest at Board Meeting Wednesday | Classroom Struggle: Call Out by Parents to Protest at Board Meeting Wednesday On Wednesday, Dec 11, OUSD’s School Board will be discussing how millions of dollars are going to be used this year and how the entire district budget will be divided over the following year.Parents, teachers, students, and school workers are organizing all over
New Era of Cooperation in Newark Schools Gives Way to Animosity - NJ Spotlight
New Era of Cooperation in Newark Schools Gives Way to Animosity - NJ Spotlight: NEW ERA OF COOPERATION IN NEWARK SCHOOLS GIVES WAY TO ANIMOSITYJOHN MOONEY | DECEMBER 10, 2013One year after celebrated signing of teacher contract, national union president charges officials have reneged on promisesA year after final approval of Newark’s teacher contract – a “Kumbaya” moment hailed nationally as a lan
12-10-13 Jersey Jazzman
Jersey Jazzman: How The "Reform" Virus Is Spreading To NJ's Suburban SchoolsNew Jersey's schools are considered to be at the top of the nation; our suburban schools, in particular, are among some of the very best in the world. Nonetheless: the "reform" virus is spreading out from the urban areas into the 'burbs with frightening speed.How is this happening? Let's look at a test
Charter Schools Continue Dramatic Growth Despite Controversies
Charter Schools Continue Dramatic Growth Despite Controversies: Charter Schools Continue Dramatic Growth Despite ControversiesPosted: 12/10/2013 2:01 pm EST  |  Updated: 12/10/2013 2:19 pm ESTProtesters demonstrated outside Freire Charter School during a visit by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), Monday, Sept. 23, 2013, in Philadelphia. In Cantor's remarks he demanded that Attorney Genera
Why Illiterate Educators? | My Island View
Why Illiterate Educators? | My Island View: Why Illiterate Educators?December 10, 2013 by tomwhitbyWhen it comes to an understanding of the term “literacy” most people understand it as the ability to read and write in an effort to communicate, understand and learn. That has been the accepted understanding of literacy for centuries. Of course with the advancement of technology in our world today th
12-10-13 THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG ED Pulse Poll Results: How Interested Are You in Multicultural Competency Training? — Whole Child Education
ED Pulse Poll Results: How Interested Are You in Multicultural Competency Training? — Whole Child Education: ED Pulse Poll Results: How Interested Are You in Multicultural Competency Training?ASCD continually seeks to provide solutions to the challenges that face educators of all levels. Recently, the ASCD SmartBrief ED Pulse poll addressed the need for and the interest in multicultural competency
Is Andy Shallal the next Bill de Blasio? | Ward 8 DC Teacher
Is Andy Shallal the next Bill de Blasio? | Ward 8 DC Teacher: Is Andy Shallal the next Bill de Blasio?by ANGEL CINTRON JR. • DECEMBER 10, 2013If yesterday’s WTU-sponsored town hall event is any sign of things to come, then the 2014 D.C. mayoral race will turn out a “game changer” in the education reform landscape within the nation’s capital. Although education reform in D.C. is often a one-sided d
Did Michelle Rhee's Policies In D.C. Work?
Did Michelle Rhee's Policies In D.C. Work?: Did Michelle Rhee's Policies In D.C. Work?DIANE RAVITCH – DECEMBER 10, 2013, 11:31 AM EST240Michelle Rhee has been one of the most polarizing figures in American education in recent years. Some consider her the face of the current “reform” movement. After serving for nearly four years as chancellor of the D.C. public schools, she then created a group cal
On the way to Madiba's Freedom there was Stephen Bantu Biko | South African History Online
Stephen Bantu Biko | South African History Online: Names: Biko, Stephen BantuBorn: 18 December 1946, Tylden, Eastern Province (now Eastern Cape), South AfricaDied: 12 September 1977, Pretoria, South AfricaIn summary: Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) leader, South Africa’s most influential and radical student leader in the 1970s, law student, banned person, political prisoner. Biko was killed in
12-10-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Tuesday Open ThreadSo no snow in my area so here's hoping yours is dry as well. I received my Seattle Public Library newsletter and wanted to alert readers with high school students about a new scholarship opportunity.  It's the Stim Bullitt Civic Courage Scholarship.  (This is a bequest from the late Stimson Bullitt who supported public libraries.) High school sen
Cali Education Headlines Tuesday, December 10, 2013
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: California schools fear losing millions for low-income studentsEducation HeadlinesTuesday, December 10, 2013FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.Tracy Unified, union reach dealA tentative contract agreement ra
Choosing Democracy: Reclaim School Reform from the Corporate Raiders
Choosing Democracy: Reclaim School Reform from the Corporate Raiders: Reclaim School Reform from the Corporate RaidersReclaim School Reform The NationOne of the greatest challenges facing American education today is a fantasy, spun by billionaire-funded “think tanks” and often repeated uncritically by
politicians and pundits, that our schools are failing, that teachers are shirking their responsib
Common Core Standards Distract From Real Educational Reform - US News and World Report
Common Core Standards Distract From Real Educational Reform - US News and World Report: A Distraction from Real Education ReformThe emphasis on common standards is drawing attention away from bigger problemsBy ERIC HANUSHEKOctober 28, 2013 RSS Feed PrintComment ()inShare6Policymakers and reform advocates alike have rallied around introducing a set of national content standards, suggesting that thi
Morning Wink 12-10-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS mark as readLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 12-10-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: AFT Video: The Real Lessons of PISAThe AFT prepared an excellent video about the real lessons of PISA. It shows graphically what the high-performing nations are doing. It shows tha