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Sunday, August 18, 2013

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda | Alternet #CHEATS4Change

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda | Alternet:

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda

The recent scandal ousting Florida's top education official shows the privatization movement is about profits.


 
Paradoxes come in all different forms, but here’s one that perfectly fits this Gilded Age: The most significant lesson from the ongoing debate about American education has little to do with schools and everything to do with money. This lesson comes from a series of recent scandals that expose the financial motives of the leaders of the so-called education “reform” movement — the one that is trying to privatize public schools.
The first set of scandals engulfed Tony Bennett, the former Indiana school superintendent and much-vaunted poster boy for the privatization push. After voters in that state responded to his radical agenda by throwing him out of office, he was quickly hired to lead Florida’s education system. At the same time, his wife not-so-coincidentally landed a gig with the Florida-based Charter Schools USA, a for-profit company that not only has an obvious interest in Bennett 

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows | deutsch29

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows | deutsch29:

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows

August 18, 2013


On August 17, 2013, the Associated Press (AP) announced that a survey they conducted in June and July 2013 found that not only do parents really like standardized tests– they approve of the high-stakes usage of such tests and believe that the number of standardized tests administered is “about right”:
Often criticized as too prescriptive and all-consuming, standardized tests have support among parents, who view them as a useful way to measure both students’ and schools’ performances, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll. Most parents also say their own children are given about the right number of standardized tests, according to the AP-NORC poll.
The release of this propaganda is certainly strategic timing given the recent New York debacle of Mayor Bloomberg’s aligning Common Core assessments to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and flunking most New York schoolchildren by design.
It is also interesting to note that at the same time the AP was conducting its survey, 

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you)

Posted on August 18, 2013



Sometimes life hands you stories that are simply better than any cheap fiction you can pick up from a newsstand or checkout line. Take for example this on-again-off-again “data sharing” relationship between Iwan Streicheicenberger, CEO of inBloom, (a data piracy and reselling outfit masquerading as a non-profit student-centric organization) and John White, student data pimp, (masquerading as a state Superintendent of Education.)
At first, Iwan and inBloom were avidly pursuing a relationship with John White and John White didn’t even know they existed when he first rolled into town. Before long though, over a few leisurely dinners, John was being wooed by Peter Gorman, Iwan’s Cyrano d’ Bergerac over at Wireless Generation (the authors of the inBloom database run by Iwan) the air beneath his wings, and his recharger.
If you are available for dinner on Wednesday night, I would love to take you and discuss Broad school reform and other issues but no pressure on that either. I know how precious 

Peg with Pen: My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014

Peg with Pen: My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014:

My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014


Sam - who has never taken a standardized test

Dear ---,

My name is Peggy Robertson and my son, Sam, will be attending --- High School tomorrow as a freshman. He is beyond excited! We are equally as thrilled to have Sam become a part of the --- HS family. I was so impressed at orientation with the focus on community as well as academics. I feel very lucky to have Sam at a school which allows him to express himself in so many ways. He will be in the orchestra and is gearing up for his first cross country meeting tomorrow.

I wanted to let you know that I am one of the founders of United Opt Out National, the movement to end corporate education reform. We focus intensely on supporting parents in opting out/refusing any high stakes and low stakes tests that are used to privatize public education. Sam will not be participating in any of these tests. I know that --- has the TCAP this year as well as MAP. I wasn't sure if there were any other tests being used, any test prep, and/or any surveys. I also wasn't sure if --- HS has a program similar to Reading Counts, which Sam opted out of at --- last year and completed book reports for his teacher instead. Sam will have a copy of this letter in his backpack to share with teachers if needed. Are there any other tests that Sam and I need to be aware of?

I refuse to allow Sam to participate in these tests for many reasons. Foremost, I refuse because they are using these tests to fail children, teachers, schools and communities all over the country, and ultimately, they are being used to dismantle the public school system. I also refuse these tests because I believe Sam's teachers are professionals who are able to determine Sam's strengths, attempts and next steps. These tests are unnecessary.  I trust --- High School teachers and know that they will be able to support Sam every step of the way. I do ask that Sam be allowed to read or engage in other learning activities during testing times.

I am also a public school teacher and I have a deep appreciation for all that you do for --- High School students. Have a wonderful school year.

Best,
Peggy Robertson
www.pegwithpen.com
www.unitedoptout.com 

Sacramento Press / Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance

Sacramento Press / Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance:

Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance

by Michael Murphy, published on August 18, 2013 at 4:21 PM


I have lived in Central City for over 25 years. I have had the pleasure of watching my neighborhood grow organically throughout the years. Small businesses have blossomed. We calmed the traffic. We created Second Saturday, which promotes local artists and artisans, and made many other positive changes during those years. Midtown was not the celebrated neighborhood that it is today.
This ordinance was a reaction to an ill-conceived plan by Westfield Mall to bring a Wal-Mart at the Downtown Plaza. Westfield’s Roseville Galleria gets Tiffany’s and Downtown Sacramento gets Wal-Mart. Residents reacted and the City Council listened and enacted the big box ordinance.
I believe that an Economic Impact Analysis (EIA) with a wage benefit analysis component is critical for a community. It protects our local business community. It allows small businesses the opportunity to weigh in and allows the community a chance to make sure a big box store compliment our community. It also studies a host of other issues such as wage and benefit analysis, environmental issues, traffic, an exit strategy, and a host of other issues.
The wage and benefit analysis is a true indicator as to whether a big box store will truly benefit the community. An EIA compares how many jobs a big box store will create vs. how many a big box store will destroy, it gauges whether there will be a net benefit for the community. The wage and benefit analysis takes the EIA a step further by comparing a net gain for the city as to revenue generated vs. revenue lost.
While there are hundreds of studies that show how big box stores negatively 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The case against Algebra II

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The case against Algebra II:

The case against Algebra II

    I'm reposting in full, this excellent Harper's piece by Nicholson Baker who has lots to say about Arne Duncan, Common Core standards, corporate reform, Race to the Top, and cold-war type educational competition.  
    To read it on-line at Harper's website, you will have to buy a year's subscription which I've alreay done on my Kindle. I am re-posting the whole piece here onSmallTalk, hoping that some others who dearly care about the future of public education, will read it and spread the word. Thanks to my friend Deb Meier for turning me on to Baker's provocative piece which she mentions quite favorablyon her own blog
    ESSAY — From the September 2013 issue of Harper's

    Wrong Answer

    The case against Algebra II

    by Nicholson Baker
    In 1545, Girolamo Cardano, a doctor, a wearer of magical amulets, and a compulsive gambler, published a math book in Latin called Ars Magna. The "great art" of the title was algebra. When Cardano was done, he knew he had come up with something huge and powerful and timeless; on the last page was the declaration, written in five years, may it last as many thousands. The equations in Ars Magna looked very different from the ones we are familiar with -- here, for instance, is how Cardano wrote the solution to x3 + 6x = 20: 
    Rv: cu. : R108 p : 10m : Rv :cu. R108m : 10 
    But the algebraic rules Cardano described and codified are variants of the techniques that millions of students are taught, with varying degrees of success, today. That's what’s so amazing and mysterious about the mathematical universe. It doesn't go out of date. It's bigger than history. It offers seemingly superhuman powers of interlinkage. It's true. Mathematics, said a professor named James Byrnie Shaw in 1918, is a kind of ancient sequoia of knowledge, rooted in the labors and learning of the dead:
    Its foliage is in the atmosphere of abstraction; its inflorescence is the outburst of the living imagination. From its dizzy summit genius takes its flight, and in its wealth of verdure its devotees find an everlasting holiday. 
    Then why, if math is so great and timeless and beautiful, do millions of people hate it so much? In particular, why do so many high school students hate algebra? On an opinion-gathering website called Amplicate, 86 percent of recent respondents registered a hatred for algebra -- putting it near the top of Amplicate's list of disliked high school subjects, just below geometry. Grant Wiggins, an educational consultant and former teacher, told me it was a "nasty gatekeeper course": the compulsory Greek grammar of the modern era. Lots of students love math, of course. It comes easily to them, or it doesn't come easily but they are willing to put in the hours and they enjoy the 

Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids - NBC News.com

Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids - NBC News.com:



Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids

DALY CITY, CA - AUGUST 13:  School teacher Liza Gleason shops for back to school supplies at a Target store August 13, 2008 in Daly City, California. ...
File photo of school teacher Liza Gleason shopping for
back to school supplies at a Target store August 13, 2008 in Daly City, California.
Teachers are paying more of their own money for supplies and even clothes and food for schoolchildren.
A second-year pre-kindergarten teacher at Salem Elementary School in Apex, N.C., Hannah Martin makes about $34,000 a year and in her spare time takes as many babysitting jobs as she can get.
Martin, who rents a room in a house she shares with four other women, said the work outside her classroom is necessary if her students are to have the school supplies they need.
"I only have $100 from the school for the whole year to buy supplies, and it's not enough," 23-year-old Martin said.
"I do the babysitting to help get money to buy toys and books," she said. "I even had to buy shelves and a stool for the kids to stand on to wash their hands at the sink. I spent about $500 on supplies last year, and It definitely hurts my own pocketbook."
With school budgets across the country slashed, Martin is part of a growing number of teachers spending more of their own money for school supplies, according to a recent survey from insurance firm Horace Mann, which focuses on products for educators.
The problem has reached near-crisis levels, especially in states like North Carolina.
"We're letting our teachers know how rough the situation is," said Eric Moore, a fiscal accountant at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. "We've only got about 35 percent of our past 

Nite Cap 8-18-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change


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


TODAY

8-18-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum:Arson at Madrona Elementary SchoolThe Times reports an arson-based fire at Madrona sometime Sunday morning.  It was reported by someone who drove by the school and reported seeing fire.  (Good thing or there might have been more damage.)  According to the report, the damage was about $1,000 to the exterior of the building, $1,000 to a shed and $500 for the contents
NYC Educator: Arne Duncan Sics His Flying Monkeys on Diane Ravitch
NYC Educator: Arne Duncan Sics His Flying Monkeys on Diane Ravitch: Arne Duncan Sics His Flying Monkeys on Diane RavitchI'm often shocked by what passes for argument nowadays. I don't suppose it's big news that Diane Ravitch has an impending book release. While I can't wait to read it, I follow her blog, and am well aware of her point of view. So, too, is the White House, as represented by Educati
Prisons, Post Offices and Public Schools: Some Things Should Not Be For Profit - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher
Prisons, Post Offices and Public Schools: Some Things Should Not Be For Profit - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Prisons, Post Offices and Public Schools: Some Things Should Not Be For ProfitBy Anthony Cody on August 18, 2013 3:30 PMHere are some things that should not be turned over to profit-seeking corporations.Prisons. Postal services. Public Schools.Here are the problems with pri
Why are smart kids more likely to do drugs? | toteachornototeach
Why are smart kids more likely to do drugs? | toteachornototeach: Why are smart kids more likely to do drugs? By Monica Nickelsburg“Taking LSD was a profound experience, oneof the most important things in my life.” — Steve JobsStudies show a correlation between high childhood IQs and getting highThere is plenty of anecdotal evidence that a relationship exists between intelligence and drug use. Som
Hispanic Parents Protest Demolition of Public School's Fieldhouse in Pilsen | HispanicallySpeakingNews.com
Hispanic Parents Protest Demolition of Public School's Fieldhouse in Pilsen | HispanicallySpeakingNews.com: Hispanic Parents Protest Demolition of Public School’s Fieldhouse in PilsenA gathering of Hispanic parents demonstrated Saturday in protest against the demolition of the fieldhouse of a public school in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, which for three years they tried to make into a library.“T
Big Education Ape: MLK 1-21-13 RETRO #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2
Big Education Ape: Big Education Ape Nite Cap 1-21-13 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2: Martin Luther King's Address at March on Washington August 28, 1963. Washington, D.C.▶ Martin Luther King - I Have A Dream Speech - August 28, 1963 - YouTube:  I Have a Dream SpeechMartin Luther King's Address at March on WashingtonAugust 28, 1963. Washington, D.C. When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every v
What Right Does the US Department of Education Have to “Monitor” Diane Ravitch ? | Raginghorseblog
What Right Does the US Department of Education Have to “Monitor” Diane Ravitch ? | Raginghorseblog: What Right Does the US Department of Education Have to “Monitor” Diane Ravitch ?August 18, 2013Dr. Diane Ravitch: a dangerous womanI usually avoid the Huffington Post at all costs and will continue to do so until they begin to actually pay the writers whose labor is making its owners very rich, but
Pepper-Spraying UC Cop Likely to Get Financial Settlement - Police & Fire - Davis, CA Patch
Pepper-Spraying UC Cop Likely to Get Financial Settlement - Police & Fire - Davis, CA Patch: Pepper-Spraying UC Cop Likely to Get Financial SettlementFormer-Lt. John Pike filed for worker's compensation based on a claim of psychiatric injury.Posted by Drew Himmelstein (Editor) , August 18, 2013 at 09:12 AM  Comment   Recommend  Former UC Davis police officer John Pike will likely get a financi
Short Notes: David Foster Wallace On Hip-Hop? - The Jose Vilson
Short Notes: David Foster Wallace On Hip-Hop? - The Jose Vilson: Short Notes: David Foster Wallace On Hip-Hop?Posted by Jose VilsonDwight Schrute on My Facebook PageA few notes:First, thanks to everyone who liked my Facebook page. Please do give it a “like” when you get a chance. We have awesome discussions and cool co-conspirators. [Facebook]David Foster Wallace had an opinion on hip-hop that I a
Martin Luther King's Address at March on Washington August 28, 1963. Washington, D.C.
▶ Martin Luther King - I Have A Dream Speech - August 28, 1963 - YouTube:  I Have a Dream SpeechMartin Luther King's Address at March on WashingtonAugust 28, 1963. Washington, D.C. When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gent
8-18-13 Jersey Jazzman
Jersey Jazzman: Jersey Jazzman@jerseyjazzmanNY Tests Show Cerf's Plan For Camden Is ALREADY a FailureNothing gives New Jersey's education chief, Chris Cerf, more joy than bringing in national charter management organizations (CMOs) to run New Jersey's schools. He loves bringing K12 Inc. into Newark (so does Cory Booker). He loves bringing Vahan Gureghian's outfit across the Delaware from Chester,
Trayvon Martin Foundation | The Official Website
Trayvon Martin Foundation | The Official Website:
Morning Wink 8-17-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSTODAY8-18-13 Wait, What? - Working to educate, persuade and mobilize through "perceptive and acerbic" observations about Connecticut Government and PoliticsWait, What? - Working to educate, persuade and mobilize through "perceptive and acerbic" observations about Connecticut Government and Politics: Promoting good test taking? No I call it child abuse!Cate
8-18-13 Wait, What? - Working to educate, persuade and mobilize through "perceptive and acerbic" observations about Connecticut Government and Politics
Wait, What? - Working to educate, persuade and mobilize through "perceptive and acerbic" observations about Connecticut Government and Politics: Promoting good test taking? No I call it child abuse!Categories: Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) Education Reform Malloy Standardized Testing Stefan PryorTags: CMTEducation ReformMalloyStandardized TestingStefan PryorConnecticut Governor Malloy and his Com
8-18-13 teacherken at Daily Kos
teacherken at Daily Kos: interesting insights on how Brits react to uscan be read as a part of Ta-Ta, London. Hello, Awesome., written by Sarah Lyall, who spent 18 years in the UK as a correspondent of sorts for the New York Times. Several paragraphs jumped out at me: And so a country where even Conservatives are proud of the nationalized health service cannot comprehend a system that leaves tens
Progressive Talking Heads Not Talking About California School Success And Opportunity Act | Justice For All
Progressive Talking Heads Not Talking About California School Success And Opportunity Act | Justice For All: Progressive Talking Heads Not Talking About California School Success And Opportunity ActBy: Autumn Sandeen Friday August 16, 2013 9:20 am Tweet   It’s kind of sad, really. Progressive talking heads on cable television aren’t talking about Gov. Jerry Brown (D-CA) signing AB 1266, the School
8-18-13 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Howler Howls at Krugman and Press CorpsThis column comes quite close to being deceptive. As a matter of fact... it goes over that line....The breakdown of the mainstream press corps has been a giant problem for decades. Another huge problem: the way the guild will airbrush this problem away.  Daily Howler on Krugman column.I'm a Paul Krugman fan. It is the first thing I read in th
8-18-13 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Fran Lebowitz Nails Bloomberg's "Legacy"She says we are all paying for Bloomberg's height and how badly he was treated on the playground when he was a kid - the bullied boy grew up to be a bully who makes everyone pay for his past slights and humiliations.Here are some more of her remarks on Bloomberg: One of the worst things about Michael Bloomberg being the mayor is that b
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-18-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: The Attacks BeginBecause of my new book, which won’t be available until September 18, I fully expect the corporate reform attack machine to come after me. They have invested a lot of energy in charters, vouchers, merit pay, stripping teachers of tenure, collective bargaining rights, pensions, etc. despite the lack of any evidence t
8-18-13 Radical Scholarship
Radical Scholarship: The Attacks Begin | Diane Ravitch's blogThe Attacks Begin | Diane Ravitch's blogby P. L. Thomas / 40min Paul Thomas: The Power of Social Media to Give Voice | Diane Ravitch's blogPaul Thomas: The Power of Social Media to Give Voice | Diane Ravitch's blogby P. L. Thomas / 43min Just When You Think It’s Safe to Go Back into the Media – SCHOOLS MATTER @ THE CHALK FACEJust When Yo
Paperless Office, Paperless Toilet | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
Paperless Office, Paperless Toilet | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Paperless Office, Paperless ToiletIn 1975, a Business Week article predicted that office of the future would be paperless. Hasn’t happened. According to the Environmental ProtectionAgency, each office worker produces about two pounds of paper waste every day. Even with ebooks, paperbacks and hardbound books a
8-18-13 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Logan Square Rally Today to Support Our Public Schools.Logan Square Rally to Support Our Public Schools Sunday, August 18 4:00 PM Logan Square Monument Milwaukee & Logan Join parents, students, educators, community organizations, activists, and local elected officials as we rally and call on Mayor
8-18-13 Schools Matter @ The Chalk Face
SCHOOLS MATTER @ THE CHALK FACE: Just When You Think It’s Safe to Go Back into the MediaYesterday, I shared an excellent collection of investigative journalism confronting the accountability machine in Florida (HERE and HERE), work from as far back as 1999 in the St. Petersburg Times and a recent article in the Miami Herald. Overnight, however, I was prompted to look at Peter Cunningham’s “Ravitch

YESTERDAY

Beware of “Everyday Mathematics” | deutsch29
Beware of “Everyday Mathematics” | deutsch29: Beware of “Everyday Mathematics”August 17, 2013A week ago, I was contacted by a Louisiana parent whose child was subjected to a K – 6 math “curriculum” developed by the University of Chicago Mathematics project and published by McGraw Hill, Everyday Mathematics. Three editions of Everyday Mathematics have been released, the most recent in 2007.A major
8-17-13 teacherken at Daily Kos
teacherken at Daily Kos: short diaryJames Madison Barbara Mikulski Eddie Gaedel and Randy Newman was NOT being serious Peace. and Bermuda2 by rss@dailykos.com ... / 1h   teacherken at Daily Kosteacherken at Daily Kos: Jets versus Sharksmost of us of a certain age will immediately recognize those three words as a reference to West Side Story, a mid-20th century retelling of the Romeo and Juliet sag
What Is and Is Not Fair | Connected Principals
What Is and Is Not Fair | Connected Principals: What Is and Is Not FairAugust 18, 2013By sblankenshipThroughout my many conversations with teachers, I have heard time and time again how they feel bad for the rest of the class because they spend much time and energy on just a few disruptive students. These teachers are correct, it’s not fair.According to Michael Linsin, “When you attend to poorly b
8-17-13 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Failed Florida/Indiana state superintendent Tony Bennett recommends United Opt Out NationalChicago: Rahm sends police to protect crew sent to destroy historic community center... Rahm, Barbara Byrd Bennett order destruction of 'La Casita'Reports all day coming in from Substance on this open warfare by the ed deformer/neo-liberals on the community. You can follow events on the Subs
Nite Cap 8-17-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2 #Cheats4Change
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 CAPTODAYThe Mismeasure of Education – SCHOOLS MATTER @ THE CHALK FACEThe Mismeasure of Education – SCHOOLS MATTER @ THE CHALK FACE: The Mismeasure of EducationJULY 16, 2013 BY JIM HORN 9 COMMENTSLast updated July 27, 2013.  The book is now available at online