Latest News and Comment from Education

Saturday, July 5, 2014

Morning Wink 7-5-14 AM Posts #edchat #edreform


BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS




Technology Use in Special Education Classrooms (Gail Robinson) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
Technology Use in Special Education Classrooms (Gail Robinson) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Technology Use in Special Education Classrooms (Gail Robinson)Journalist  Gail Robinson wrote this piece for the Hechinger Reporton June 5, 2014  Eleven-year-old Matthew Votto sits at an iPad, his teacher at his elbow. She holds up a small laminated picture of a $20 bill.“What mone
Check out my new Common Core Video. I think this will add some clarity to the situation in Louisiana. . .or at least make fun of the people behind the “muddying of the narrative” | Crazy Crawfish's Blog
Check out my new Common Core Video. I think this will add some clarity to the situation in Louisiana. . .or at least make fun of the people behind the “muddying of the narrative” | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Jason France for BESE District 6 http://bit.ly/TJUT7HCrazy Crawfish's BlogZesty Louisiana Education PoliticsCheck out my new Common Core Video. I think this will add some clarity to the situation
Despite a Handshake and a Promise, Still NO Gates Foundation REPLY to #EducatingGatesRally Demands | Teachers' Letters to Bill Gates
Despite a Handshake and a Promise, Still NO Gates Foundation REPLY to #EducatingGatesRally Demands | Teachers' Letters to Bill Gates: Despite a Handshake and a Promise, Still NO Gates Foundation REPLY to #EducatingGatesRally DemandsPosted on July 5, 2014by Teachers'LettersToBillGatesPhoto Courtesy of Alex Garland Photography, used with permission.Dear Bill and Melinda,In the summer of 2011 the see
Stephen Krashen Blog 7-5-14
SKrashen:Invest in libraries, not intensive phonics.Sent to the Australian, July 3, 2014Those supporting a "direct instruction" heavy phonics-based approach to teaching reading ("Pyne eyes national Direct Instruction rollout," July 2), might be interested in what the research says about this method: Direct instruction children do very well on tests of "decoding" (pron
7-5-14 With A Brooklyn Accent: Love Letters to the BATS
With A Brooklyn Accent:National Pattern of Decline in Percentage of Black TeachersNational Pattern of Decline in Percentage of Black TeachersJune 29, 2014 at 1:20pm From the late 1990's to todayChicago44% to 19%Oakland30% to 18%Berkeley 12.3%  to 6.5%Los Angeles14.5% to  10%San Francisco8.3% to 4.6%Please continue to gather this informationFor New Orleans, NY, Detroit, DC, Newark, Philadelphiaby M
7-5-14 Jersey Jazzman NJ Ed News Round-up Jammin' All Week
Jersey Jazzman:Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All WeekHey Professor: There IS a War On TeachersSpeaking for myself, one of the most frustrating things about being a teacher is when non-teachers in positions of influence tell me that my profession isn't really being targeted -- it's all just in my head, silly!Take the intellectual godfather of reforminess, Eric Hanushek, speaking here of the Vergara decisi
7-5-14 Curmudgucation Week
CURMUDGUCATION:Curmudgucation WeekMeet the New NEA PresidentsIn election results that surprised nobody anywhere, NEA delegates crowned heir apparent Lily Eskelson Garcia the new presidents of NEA.Liana Heitin reported on the election for EdWeek, and... well... I'm excited? Bemused? Worried about Garcia's susceptibility to cognitive dissonance."I believe Secretary Duncan is sincere..."&qu
7-5-14 NPE News Briefs ← from The Network for Public Education
NPE News Briefs ← from The Network for Public Education:NPE News Briefsfrom The Network for Public EducationSerial School Privatizer ‘Chainsaw Paul’ Vallas Eyes Illinois Lt. Governor Gig | AlternetThere are  many things upon which elite corporate Democrats are in complete agreement with elite corporate Republicans. Often enough they are far more important to the way we live our lives than the cult
7-5-14 THE WHOLE WEEK @ The Whole Child Blog — Whole Child Education
The Whole Child Blog — Whole Child Education:THE WHOLE WEEK @ The Whole Child Blog Encourage Student Passions with Genius HourFounded on an innovation championed by businesses like FedEx and Google, "the genius hour" sets aside school time (at least an hour, every week) for students to work on something they are passionate about. This video outlines some basic tenets of implementing &quo
7-5-14 This Week in LA - School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):To our readers: Happy 4th of July3 by Jamie Alter Lynto... / 20h MORNING READ: Tuck throws a punch at TorlacksonChallenger to CA schools chief  blasts handling of Inglewood Unified takeover Marshall Tuck, the man who hopes to unseat Tom Torlakson as state superintendent of public instruction on Wednesday d
Why many Democrats have turned against teachers unions - The Washington Post
Why many Democrats have turned against teachers unions - The Washington Post: Why many Democrats have turned against teachers unionsBY VALERIE STRAUSS July 5 at 4:00 AM  Randi Weingarten (AFT)For years now it’s been clear that Democrats have splintered over the issue of corporate school reform. President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan have been leaders of the movement to transform publi
All Week @ The Answer Sheet 7-5-14
The Answer Sheet:All Week @ The Answer SheetWhy many Democrats have turned against teachers unionsFor years now it’s been clear that Democrats have splintered over the issue of corporate school reform. President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan have been leaders of the movement to transform public schools through standardized-test-based “accountability” and the expansion of charter school
7-5-14 Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Schooling in the Ownership Society All Week
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog:Schooling in the Ownership SocietyMike Klonsky's SmallTalk Schooling in the Ownership SocietyCharter hustlers banned in N.J., welcomed with open arms in FloridaGallon, Kemp and Kelly in 2010 court hearing where they are banned from operating charters in N.J.Former Plainfield superintendent and current charter school hustler Steve Gallon III's company, Tri-Star Leaders
7-5-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy
Wait What?:  Wait What? All WeekIs the Charter Movement Imploding? (by Diane Ravitch)Using Connecticut as an example and featuring a recent Hartford Courant column written by Colin McEnroe, Diane Ravitch, the nation’s leading public education advocate, has entitled her latest blog Is the Charter Movement Imploding? Ravitch writes, In state after state, charter schools are proving that it is downri
7-5-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum Week
Seattle Schools Community Forum:Seattle Schools Community ForumSeattle School Board Meeting UpdatesShockingly, I neither attended nor watched the School Board meeting.  But I did hear about it from other sources so here is some of what went on (plus some input from a careful reading of agenda items on the docket).   Apparently it was a love fest for Banda and some tension on the Board.  Here's the
7-5-14 Ed Notes Online Week
Ed Notes Online: Ed Notes OnlineMoaning Mona Vergara Copycat Suit Is Also An Attack on Parents and Students Facing Bully PrincipalsParent activists are rightfully outraged at Mona Davids' claims that  "the NYCPU, is the leading independent voice of New York City public school students and their parents."In fact the very idea of an attack on tenure is an attack on parents and students as
7-5-14 Fred All Week Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Fred All Week Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacherNEA RA. Delegates to Arne: Leave.A New Business Item critical of Arne Duncan has been brought to the RA for a number of years. In 2010 we passed a New Business Item, 13 Things We Hate About Arne Duncan. At the 2011 and 2012 no con
6-28-14 Perdido Street School Week
Perdido Street School: Perdido Street School WeekWhy Teacher Tenure Is NOT The Problem In EducationFrom Dale Hansen:By concluding that the due process protections afforded to educators under tenure denied students "equal opportunity to achieve a quality education," Judge Treu seems to ignore that correlation does not prove causation.If tenure unfairly protects teachers, there should be a
7-5-14 the becoming radical EMPATHYEDUCATES! | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness by P. L. Thomas, EdD
THE BECOMING RADICALEMPATHYEDUCATES!the becoming radical  A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness by What You Need To Know About Charter SchoolsParents, pundits and politicians, did you get what you expected? If you thought you would get the biggest bang for the buck by pouring taxpayer dollars into charter schools and devoting yourself to public school disinvestment might it be time for a reassessment
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 7-5-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:4LAKIDS - SOME OF THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT  From the tempestuous teapot: GALATZAN RAISES NEW CONCERNS ABOUT LAUSD UNIFIED BOND COMMITTEE + smf’s 0¢by Vanessa Romo, LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1lXDyDT Posted on July 3, 2014 10:55 am  ::   For the second time in recent weeks, Tamar Galatzan has turned a critical eye toward LA Unified’s Bond Oversight
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Week… 7-5-14 …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EF
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFLLARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE DAYQuote Of The Day: “The Secret of Effective Motivation”The Secret of Effective Motivation is a column in today’s New York Times that’s written by Amy Wrzesniewski and Barry Schwartz. They focus on recent research they’ve done on the difference between “internal” and “instrumental” motives. I
This Week's Education Research Report 7-5-14 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2
Education Research ReportTHIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORTAlternative Pathways to Careers and CollegeTo address persistent high levels of youth unemployment and prepare students for good jobs in growth industries, a number of states have, in a few short years, initiated ambitious system-level reforms designed to enable many more young people to gain traction toward careers and postsecondary de
7-5-14 Schools Matter All Week
Schools Matter:  Schools Matter All WeekDavid Brooks: In Praise of SegregationIt's not often that NYTimes conservative columnist, David Brooks, finds any way to use science try to justify the lifestyles of the rich and separate, but someone sent him news of a study that he obviously felt he could manipulate to rationalize the continuing resegregation of America and its schools. Good fences make go
All Week 7-5-14 @ THE CHALK FACE
@ THE CHALK FACE : All Week @ THE CHALK FACE Is the Tea Party a new Know Nothing Party?Is the Tea Party a new Know Nothing Party?.Filed under: SHAUN JOHNSON, PHD: Musings from the Chalk Face5 by David Greene / 21h My Independence Day Post Featuring Kate Smith and God Bless AmericaFor my July Fourth post, I would like to feature what is now a well-known American anthem as performed by the iconic Ka
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 7-5-14 #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2
Diane Ravitch's blogLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONGDIANE RAVITCH'S BLOGJohn Stocks Gets Angry at the NEA conventionJohn Stocks, the executive director of the NEA, voiced the anger and frustration that so many of the members are feeling. He gave a rip-roaring speech. But, sadly, he did not mention the perfidy of the Obama administration or the duplicitous role of the Gates Foundation in under

YESTERDAY

The Same Principal, The Same Middle School, A Different Teacher southbronxschool.
http://www.southbronxschool.com: The Same Principal, The Same Middle School, A Different TeacherThe hits just coming in about this principal at that middle school in Brooklyn.This is now the third "manifesto" The Crack Team has received from staff members. This principal reminds me of Bobby Pellit, Jason Sudekis' boss in "Horrible Bosses." This stuff just can't be made up.Next
NEA RA. Delegates to Arne: Make Like A Tree and Leave
NEA RA. Delegates to Arne: Make Like A Tree and Leave
A Close Look At Close Reading | WagTheDog
A Close Look At Close Reading | WagTheDog: A Close Look At Close Reading Learning is not done to you, it is something you choose to do.~ Seth Godin , “Stop Stealing Dreams” David Coleman and other proponents of close reading clearly don’t have respect for students or the learning process.Common Core’s emphasis on deep analysis of text and close reading is an inappropriate and misguided approach to
SOCIAL PROMOTION- LAUSD'S PRIME MOVER FOR CONTINUED AND PREDICTABLE STUDENT FAILURE- DID THEY EVER REALLY WANT THESE KIDS TO LEARN? - Perdaily.com
SOCIAL PROMOTION- LAUSD'S PRIME MOVER FOR CONTINUED AND PREDICTABLE STUDENT FAILURE- DID THEY EVER REALLY WANT THESE KIDS TO LEARN? - Perdaily.com: SOCIAL PROMOTION- LAUSD'S PRIME MOVER FOR CONTINUED AND PREDICTABLE STUDENT FAILURE- DID THEY EVER REALLY WANT THESE KIDS TO LEARN? (Mensaje se repite en Español)I know teachers didn't create social promotion. They, like the students, are just victims
Nite Cap 7-4-14 #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 CAPHAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!7-4-14 Ed Notes OnlineEd Notes Online: Dissecting Moaning Mona DavidsMoaning Mona Davids has switched sides more times than a tennis ball.... and burned more bridges than the retreating German army..... Ed Notes Local 372 Presi
7-4-14 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Dissecting Moaning Mona DavidsMoaning Mona Davids has switched sides more times than a tennis ball.... and burned more bridges than the retreating German army..... Ed Notes Local 372 President Santos Crespo Jr. fired [Mona] Davids in December, then sued her in January, claiming she failed to turn over passwords to databases containing confidential information about the union’s mem
About that StudentsFirst tweet… | teacherbiz
About that StudentsFirst tweet… | teacherbiz: About that StudentsFirst tweet…https://twitter.com/StudentsFirst/status/484839932007964672It never shocks me when StudentsFirst says something ridiculous, but this tweet I came across yesterday is particularly laughable.  The tweet itself is a quote from an Alexander Russo blurb (which is in direct response to a Politico article) that compares Students
7-4-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “How to end homework for moms”How to end homework for moms is a very helpful article that appeared recently in The Washington Post. In it, former National Principal of The Year Mel Riddile provides some good advice to teachers about the kind of homework to give that will be helpful to students and promote a positive feeling
Update: American Class Schedule 2014
AMERICAN CLASS SCHEDULE 2014 Upper ClassMiddle ClassMY PLACE Proudly Sponsored by
Emergency! Please Send an Email Protesting Injustice to Children | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!
Emergency! Please Send an Email Protesting Injustice to Children | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Emergency! Please Send an Email Protesting Injustice to ChildrenFiled under: American Injustice,Immigration — millerlf @ 2:35 pm Emergency!! Minutemen and other right-wing groups are mobilizing to stop more busses of children in Murrieta, California.Please send an emergency protest email
Frankly My Dear… | WagTheDog
Frankly My Dear… | WagTheDog: Frankly My Dear… Many people have commented on David Coleman’s infamous statement at a 4/28/11 Common Core conference in NY:“As you grow up in this world, you realize people really don’t give a sh#@ about what you feel or what you think.”Coleman’s dismissal and disapproval of personal reflections is also apparent in the Common Core teacher training video; “Preparing f
Fraud, embezzlement in charter schools nationally resonate with problems in Connecticut - Courant.com
Fraud, embezzlement in charter schools nationally resonate with problems in Connecticut - Courant.com: Hustlers Cash In On Charter School Craze Colin McEnroeTo Wit7:30 p.m. EDT, July 3, 2014If I showed you the headline "Weak Charter School Laws Enable Scams, Insider Dealing," you'd probably assume it's the latest shoe to drop in the unfurling scandal of FUSE, the punch-drunk charter scho
California's education leaders - AWOL again - SFGate
California's education leaders - AWOL again - SFGate: California's education leaders - AWOL againPeter SchragUpdated 11:41 am, Thursday, June 5, 2014Johanna Paraiso is an English teacher at Fremont High School in Oakland, one of three Bay Area schools named in the lawsuit over the time poor and immigrant students spend learning. Photo: Michael Short, The ChronicleThere's no way to know how many Ca
Good Riddance to Common Core Testing | Diane Ravitch
Good Riddance to Common Core Testing | Diane Ravitch: Good Riddance to Common Core TestingA few years ago, Arne Duncan, Bill Gates, David Coleman, and a merry band of policy wonks had a grand plan. The non-governmental groups like Achieve, the National Governors Association, the Council of Chief State School Officers, and Coleman's own Student Achievement Partners would write the Common Core stand
7-4-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): MORNING READ: Tuck throws a punch at TorlacksonChallenger to CA schools chief  blasts handling of Inglewood Unified takeover Marshall Tuck, the man who hopes to unseat Tom Torlakson as state superintendent of public instruction on Wednesday decried a legislative committee’s failure to authorize an audit o
Summer Lost: Episode 1 - The Slide | Philadelphia Public School Notebook
Summer Lost: Episode 1 - The Slide | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Summer Lost: Episode 1 - The SlideIt’s a sweltering summer afternoon in Philadelphia and Dion Jones is reading to his two sons, Jayven and Cameron, on a bench in Smith Memorial Playground.It’s July 1 — one of the first weeks of summer vacation — and Jones just received a handful of free children’s books from the Philadelphia
lol my common core | Missouri Education Watchdog
lol my common core | Missouri Education Watchdog: lol my common coreinShareWhat would Bill Gates write about his CCSSI investment? “I get to spend over $200 Million for standards adoption, implementation and PR campaigns and call it a performance about being the nation’s superintendent.”Imagine that you are a student studying for your doctorate.  You are in the midst of writing your thesis which d
Russ on Reading: Walter Dean Myers: An Appreciation
Russ on Reading: Walter Dean Myers: An Appreciation: Walter Dean Myers: An AppreciationI was saddened to learn of the passing of the great young adult author, Walter Dean Myers. Myers was an important presence on my classroom bookshelves. His books spoke to a segment of my students who found very few voices they could relate to in literature. He wrote of poor African American kids on the streets o
My Independence Day Post Featuring Kate Smith and God Bless America | deutsch29
My Independence Day Post Featuring Kate Smith and God Bless America | deutsch29: My Independence Day Post Featuring Kate Smith and God Bless AmericaJuly 4, 2014For my July Fourth post, I would like to feature what is now a well-known American anthem as performed by the iconic Kate Smith, God Bless America. Written by Irvin Berlin and made famous by Smith, the song premiered in 1938. As noted in Pa
The VergarGuments are Coming to New York State! | School Finance 101
The VergarGuments are Coming to New York State! | School Finance 101: The VergarGuments are Coming to New York State!Posted on July 4, 20140      Rate ThisAnd so it goes… The VergarGuments keep-a-comin… spreading their way from California to the Empire State, from Albany to Buffalo. And what are VergarGuments you say?Well, a VergarGument is a fallacious form of legal reasoning applied in the conte
FLASHBACK: 4th of July
FLASHBACK: 4th of JulyNite Cap 7-4-13 #neara13 #RYH4Ed #BATsACT #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2 #HEREPASTJUNEJames 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 CAPTODAYEducation is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world - Nelson Mandela - Wait, What?Education is the most powerful
Morning Wink 7-4-14 AM Posts #edchat #edreform
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-4-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: A Reading List on TestingBob Shepherd posted this reading list on testing. The list was compiled by Alfie Kohn. I have a few additions: Todd Farley, Making the Grades Banesh Hoffman, The Tyranny