Thursday, January 27, 2011

The political education of Michelle Rhee - Ben Smith and Byron Tau - POLITICO.com

The political education of Michelle Rhee

Michelle Rhee stands off to the side as Washington Mayor Vince Gray speaks to the media. | AP Photo

Michelle Rhee was probably the only person in Washington surprised by Fenty’s defeat. | AP PhotoClose

By BEN SMITH & BYRON TAU | 1/27/11 3:40 AM EST

Michelle Rhee turned up at work last September 13 utterly stunned.

“I really did think he was going to win,” she told her staff of her boss, Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty.

VIDEO: Rhee on Students First

VIDEO: Rhee steps down

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POLITICO 44

“Yes, we know you did,” came the reply.

Rhee was probably the only person in Washington surprised by Fenty’s defeat. Even her fiance, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, told POLITICO he saw it coming.

Rhee had already amply demonstrated that she was terrible at politics. The toast of the Washington Post editorial board for shaking up the city’s troubled school system, she now

Duncan's school of wisdom

GEORGE F. WILL

Thursday, January 27, 2011

"Since 1995 the average mathematics score for fourth-graders jumped 11 points. At this rate we catch up with Singapore in a little over 80 years . . . assuming they don't improve."

- Norman R. Augustine,

retired CEO of Lockheed Martin

What America needs, says one American parent, is more parents who resemble South Korean parents. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, 46, a father of a third-grader and a first-grader, recalls the answer Barack Obama got when he asked South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, "What is the biggest education challenge you have?" Lee answered: "Parents are too demanding." They want their children to start learning English in first rather than second grade. Only 25 percent of U.S. elementary schools offer any foreign-language instruction.

Too many American parents, Duncan says, have "cognitive dissonance" concerning primary and secondary schools: They think their children's schools are fine, and that schools that

The Associated Press: AP Exclusive: Teach For America gets $100M

AP Exclusive: Teach For America gets $100M

(AP) – 3 hours ago

ATLANTA (AP) — Teach For America, the education organization that has placed recent college graduates in low-income public schools, is getting $100 million to launch its first-ever endowment in hopes of making the grass-roots organization a permanent fixture in education.

The program — which is now in communities from Atlanta to rural New Mexico to Los Angeles — announced Thursday that four philanthropists are joining to create a stable, long-term source of money. It's welcome news for an organization that had more than 46,000 applications for just 4,400 teaching slots this academic year.

"A few years ago we embraced the priority of making Teach For America an enduring American institution that can thrive as long as the problem we're working to address persists," said founde

NJ Spotlight | When Presidents Focus on Education, States Focus on Implementation

When Presidents Focus on Education, States Focus on Implementation
Now that President Obama has outlined his education policy, New Jersey and other states await the details

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By John Mooney, January 27 in Education |Post a Comment

The day after President Obama made education a central theme of his State of the Union address, lawmakers started talking the details of what federal rules will affect states like New Jersey in the coming years.

Topic A is the controversial No Child Left Behind Act, the federal law that in the last decade virtually remade testing and accountability in schools nationwide.

And in an unusual press call, top federal officials and legislators from both parties yesterday made clear their focus was more on "fixing" the law rather than starting over.

The testing that was a hallmark of the federal law is not going away, for instance, but instead they said changes would be coming in how the required exams would be administered and utilized, and

“You Snooze, You Lose: More Weekend Sleep Cuts Kids’ Obesity Risk” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

“You Snooze, You Lose: More Weekend Sleep Cuts Kids’ Obesity Risk” “You Snooze, You Lose: More Weekend Sleep Cuts Kids’ Obesity Risk” is an article from TIME Magazine. It analyzes a study that finds that “sleeping-in” during the weekends can mitigate some of the problems lack of sleep during the week can cause ...

“Speaking tips for teaching English with TED” Speaking tips for teaching English with TED is a very useful post by Karenne Joy Sylvester. I’m adding it to The Best Teacher Resources For “TED Talks” (& Similar Presentations).

FunnelBrain Adds Ability to Create Online Tests FunnelBrain is primarily know as a site where you can create flashcards. It does an okay job at it, but I don’t think it warrants being on The Best Tools To Make Online Flashcards list. However, they just added a tool that allows you to create online ...

“Four Seasons In Yosemite” Four Seasons In Yosemite is an incredible slideshow from the Los Angeles Times. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Learning About Yosemite & Other U.S. National Parks.

Boy, There Are So Many Problems With This Times’ Article, Or The Study It’s About, Or Both… A few days ago, The New York Times published an article with this headline: To Really Learn, Quit Studying and Take a Test. It was about a new study which, the article claimed, showed that science students learned more when they took “tests” on what ...

ASCD Inservice: Chip Heath: Mrs. Deats' Science Lesson Was Made to Stick

Chip Heath: Mrs. Deats' Science Lesson Was Made to Stick

What makes certain ideas "sticky"?

The Heath brothers, Chip a psychologist and Dan an education consultant, say an idea is likely to stay with you when it's presented as a Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional Story.

Chip will draw from Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die and Switch: How to Change When Change is Hard for his keynote at ASCD's 2011 Annual Conference.

We asked Chip Heath, What's a school lesson that's stuck with you into adulthood? Heath told us:

In Mrs. Deats' third grade class we did some science lessons about gases. That's a pretty

Education Forward Summit Jan 26, 2011 Diane Ravitch & Florida Senator Sachs « Continuing Change

Education Forward Summit Jan 26, 2011 Diane Ravitch & Florida Senator Sachs

by gatorbonbc

Today’s Education Forward Summit in Boca Raton, Florida.

“What would you tell Gov. Rick Scott if you wanted to give him advice for education policy?“

I had the pleasure and honor of attending:

“The three-hour summit, held at Lynn University, was organized by Sen. Maria Sachs, D-Delray Beach, to open a dialogue about the critical needs of Florida education and discuss how change is coming to the state under new Gov. Rick Scott and a Republican-dominated legislature” ((Palm Beach Post News)

Diane Ravitch gave an amazing, concise, research supported overview of the current education

#Educon Anticipation | Connected Principals

#Educon Anticipation

by Lyn Hilt

Educon has finally arrived, and I know many attendees are eagerly anticipating the learning experiences that await, whether making the trip to theScience Leadership Academy in Philadelphia to attend in person, or through attending virtually.

So, just what is Educon? “Educon 2.3 is both a conversation and a conference.” While the infusion of technology will of course be discussed, Educon is not a technology conference, but rather an event where those who are interested in discussing the future of learning and educational innovation can come together to share ideas.

This is the first year I will be attending Educon, so I honestly can’t speak from experience about what to expect. Liz Davis wrote a great post detailing how to get the most out of the weekend’s experiences. Bud Hunt has

Modern School: State of the Union: Sacrifice by the Many to Create Prosperity for the Rich

State of the Union: Sacrifice by the Many to Create Prosperity for the Rich *Clichés and Bogus Budgeting* I Want You to Sacrifice for Capitalism (Image by Beverly & Pack) “Every day, families sacrifice to live within their means,” said Obama in his state of the union address, tossing out a cliché in lieu of empathy for the ...

Who Do You Think You’re Fooling, Jerry—K12 Ed Won’t Be Spared I Like Children. They're Delicious (Scott Clarkson) Jerry Brown has assured us that K-12 education funding will be spared in this round of budget cuts, so long as voters approve tax hikes on themselves in June. As I described in a previous post, this ...

Radical restructuring for 18 chronically failing Phila. schools - Philly.com

Radical restructuring for 18 chronically failing Phila. schools The Philadelphia School District will radically restructure 18 chronically failing schools in September, with changes in how each runs and who works there.

Supporters rally in Capitol for school-choice Senate bill HARRISBURG - Borrowing the language and imagery of the civil rights movement, speaker after speaker told a crowd that filled the Capitol Rotunda Tuesday that the failing public schools of today are no different than the segregated schools of a ...

Chester Upland dispute over school deficit The board appointed by the Rendell administration to run the Chester Upland School District rang up a multimillion-dollar deficit, the district's new school board president charged Tuesday.

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: SUSPECT ADVISORY VOTE IS TARNISHING EFFORT TO REFORM LAUSD CAMPUSES

EL CAMINO REAL HIGH, HALE MIDDLE SCHOOL BRIEFLY ON LOCKDOWN (again), MAN WITH GUN REPORTEDLY SEEN ON CAMPUS Andrew Blankstein and Howard Blume | LA Times/LA Now | http://lat.ms/eyaZnG January 26, 2011 | 3:21 pm -- El Camino High Real High School and Hale Middle School in Woodland Hills were briefly placed on lockdown Wednesday after a man with a gun was ...

LAUSD OKs $531 MILLION CONSTRUCTION PLAN By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | LA Daily News | http://bit.ly/hAg48W 27 January 2011 - Thanks to a combination of sound fiscal management, construction cost savings and additional state funding, Los Angeles Unified officials announced Wednesday that ...

SUSPECT ADVISORY VOTE IS TARNISHING EFFORT TO REFORM LAUSD CAMPUSES LA Daily News Editorial | http://bit.ly/gX19M9 1/27/2011 - There are elections under way this week in many neighborhoods of Los Angeles. And while the campaigns are sophisticated and well-financed, using expensive glossy campaign mailers - even a ...

PARENTS CROSS LINES TO GET KIDS INTO GOOD SCHOOLS …and go to jail! NPR Talk of the Nation | January 26, 2011 | http://n.pr/gPqfxw Listen to the Story January 26, 2011 - Some families in poor school districts will go to great lengths to give their children a good education. M.L. Schultze, news director of WKSU in ...

A CLOSER LOOK AT DENVER SCHOOL PRAISED BY OBAMA IN STATE OF THE UNION by Larry Abramson | NPR All Things Considered | http://n.pr/hDxdkc Listen to the Story: [3 min 31 sec] January 26, 2011 - President Obama gave a shout-out in his State of the Union address to Bruce Randolph High School, a Denver public school in a ...

UPDATE: The California 2011-12 Budget Process Begins + Notice of Budget Hearing in Los Angeles on Governor’s Realignment Proposalfrom Assemblyperson Julia Brownley’s (D-41) January 2011E-Newsletter | Brownley is Chair of the Assembly Education Committee | http://bit.ly/h3loKd On Monday, January 10, Governor Jerry Brown submitted his proposed 2011-12 budget to the Legislature, ...

Mama's Alert: Budget Ax Could Swing at Child Care | Womens eNews

Mama's Alert: Budget Ax Could Swing at Child Care

by Allison Stevens

(WOMENSENEWS)--President Barack Obama emphasized in his State of the Union address on Tuesday that the fiscal belt is tightening, the budget ax is coming, the government is shrinking.

So mamas, watch out. The child care programs that many of us rely on to make ends meet and to help launch the next generation are at risk.

It's preposterous, really, that we have to worry about this when what the country needs is far more, and far better--not less--child care, especially if we want the kind of competitive, innovative society Obama called for in his State of the Union address.

And don't tell me we can't get this done, even in a time of fiscal austerity

Obama Still Blaming It On the Teachers | Seattle Education 2010

Obama Still Blaming It On the Teachers

by seattleducation2010

Hogwash, Mr. President

From Robert Scheer’s column on Truthdig:

(By the way, in Washington State, thousands of homeowners each month are losing their homes back to the banks that are getting a big payoff from the government for their “losses.” Then the banks are turning the houses around and selling them again. Just learned that on a trip to Olympia today. Details to follow. — Dora)

What is the state of the union? You certainly couldn’t tell from that platitudinous hogwash that the president dished out Tuesday evening. I had expected Barack Obama to be his eloquent self, appealing to our better nature, but instead he was mealy-mouthed in avoiding the tough choices that a leader should delineate in a time of trouble. He embraced clean air and a faster Internet while ignoring the depth of our economic pain and the Wall Street scoundrels who were responsible—understandably so, since they so prominently populate the highest reaches of his administration. He had the effrontery to condemn “a parade of lobbyists” for rigging government

Report says special education and black students more likely to face suspension in school

Bonus bonanza for top principals Principals at eight city schools earned the highest bonuses ever given out under Mayor Bloomberg, the Education Department said Wednesday.

Black pupils far likelier to be suspended EXCLUSIVEAS SUSPENSIONS SERVED by city students have soared in the past decade, black and special education students were more likely to be kicked out of class, a new report says.

Easley recall petition approved | EdNewsColorado

Easley recall petition approved Denver school board president Nate Easley A petition to recall Denver Public Schools board president Nate Easley has been accepted by the city’s elections division, marking the second recall attempt against a Denver school board member in less than ...

Lawmakers zero in on testing Department of Education officials showed up for their annual oversight hearing with the House and Senate education committees Wednesday prepared to talk in detail about CDE’s five top priorities, but lawmakers were mostly interested in just one of ...

Notes from the Field « City School Stories

Notes from the Field

by fmurphy

Voucher Rally: The Wrong Kind of Civics Lesson

Submitted by Frank Murphy, Jan. 27, 2011

Pennsylvania school choice advocates staged a rally this past Tuesday in Harrisburg. They gathered in order to demonstrate their support for the passage Pennsylvania State Senate Bill 1. If enacted,this proposed legislation would establish a school voucher program for low-income children in the state of Pennsylvania.

The small crowd in attendance at this event was composed mainly of students and parents from Philadelphia charter schools. The children were outfitted in T-shirts that said, “Put Children First—Support School Choice.” Representatives of the Students First Political Action Committee distributed these shirts to the youthful

Imagine teachers as free agents before adopting pay for performance | Thoughts on Public Education

Bad incentives in community college cut - by John Fensterwald - Educated Guess Beware of unintended consequences of reforms promoted in haste. That was the word from chancellors and community college trustees at the Community College League of California’s Annual Legislative Conference in Sacramento. In strategy sessions before ...

Imagine teachers as free agents before adopting pay for performance - by Charles Taylor Kerchner U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and a raft of supporters in the foundation world fervently want to replace the tried-and-true teacher salary schedule with pay-for-performance schemes. They should be careful what they wish for. The idea seems ...

Public Policy Blogger: State of the Union: Standardized testing not enough to take our children "to the moon".

State of the Union: Standardized testing not enough to take our children "to the moon".

by Anne Geiger

The State of the Union speech. Encouraging....and discouraging.

First off....enormous disappointment that President Obama didn't mention gun violence when speaking of the chair left vacant in honor of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who's recovering from a gunshot wound nor when recognizing his guests, the family of the young girl who was killed in the same shooting rampage in Arizona. Are our political parties so controlled by the gun lobby that they can't even say the word, "gun?" (I'm married to someone who grew up hunting, but it was not part of my childhood nor has it been part of our life. No ideology, just no reason nor desire to have one. I support reasonable gun control for public safety. Why does my voice not matter?)

From the speech---Invest in education, R&D and infrastructure. A prosperous, sustainable economy. Healthcare

Internal report stokes questions about city’s closure strategy | GothamSchools

Rise & Shine: Snow day! All city schools are closed today - Schools are closed today, Chancellor Black just announced via email. - Principals took home $7 million in bonuses based on last year’s test scores. (Post, NY1, Daily News) - Chancellor Black attended the closure hearing for IS 195, ...

Internal report stokes questions about city’s closure strategy [image: picture-4] A high school’s size and its concentration of low-achieving and overage students strongly predicts its graduation rate, according to an internal Department of Education study obtained by GothamSchools today. The 20-page report, ...

The Four Negotiables of Student Centered Learning - Copy / Paste by Peter Pappas

The Four Negotiables of Student Centered Learning

by Peter Pappas

I spent most of last week guiding teachers on classroom walkthroughs. It's an effective approach to professional development - one that focuses on the students, not the teacher. Think of it as a roving Socratic seminar that provokes reflections on teaching and learning. One of the subjects that often comes up during walk throughs is how to recognize student-centered approach. I think the answer to that question is found in the four elements of any lesson - content, process, product and assessment. Any or all can be decided by the teacher, by the students, or some of both.

The Answer Sheet - School district turns snow days into ‘e-days’

School district turns snow days into ‘e-days’

A small rural Ohio school district is experimenting with a new version of the traditional snow day -- one that some kids are not likely to enjoy much. When snow makes it took difficult to keep schools in operation, classes are cancelled and kids sleep in and goof off the rest of the day. But this year the Mississinawa Valley School District, on the Ohio-Indiana border, has lessons ready for students on their computers at home that they are expected to do.

Medical and Educational Research: What To Believe? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Medical and Educational Research: What To Believe?

by larrycuban

PET scan of a human brain with Alzheimer's disease

Image via Wikipedia

After all those clinical trials in medicine to conquer depression, Alzheimers, and cancer, we are told now that Prozac and other anti-depressants work no better than placebos and doing crossword puzzles, exercising, and taking fish oil does not prevent Alzheimer’s disease. Moreover, studies have found that mammograms, colonoscopies, and PSA tests are far less useful to detect cancer than we had been told. The truth is that even with the toughest standards used by medical researchers to demonstrate one drug, one therapy, one test is

Queens Teacher: It's the Public Sector's Fault!

It's the Public Sector's Fault!

by Queens Teacher

Great video describing how public sector workers and unions are being blamed to draw attention away from the true culprits of our economic downturn - Wall Street and corporate America.

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: IN THE MAILBOX

Charter battle at Chicago board meeting Little Village Alderman, Rick Munoz *"If the Board of Education wants to continue on this track of privatizing our public schools, that's the wrong track," said Ald. Ricardo Munoz, 22nd, speaking during a teachers union news conference shortly before ...

Quotable Blaming the schools [Obama's]* references to education provided a convenient scapegoat for the failure of the economy, rather than to blame the actions of the Wall Street hustlers to whom Obama is now sucking up. Yes, it is an obvious good to have ...

IN THE MAILBOX Report from Bonnie Cunard in Florida Mike, *Today's Education Forward Summit in Boca Raton, Florida:* *"What would you tell Gov. Rick Scott if you wanted to give him advice for education policy?*" *I had the pleasure and honor of attending:* *"The ...

News; Laugh to keep from crying "WTF?" says Palin "[Obama's] theme last night in the State of the Union was the WTF -- winning the future," continued Palin. "I thought, 'OK.' That acronym? Spot on. There were a lot of WTF moments throughout that speech." --*Sarah please. You're ...

Latest News and Comment from Education

Thursday, January 27, 2011

The political education of Michelle Rhee

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VIDEO: Rhee on Students First

VIDEO: Rhee steps down

Latest on POLITICO

POLITICO 44

Duncan's school of wisdom

When Presidents Focus on Education, States Focus on ImplementationNow that President Obama has outlined his education policy, New Jersey and other states await the details

Chip Heath: Mrs. Deats' Science Lesson Was Made to Stick

Hogwash, Mr. President

When Presidents Focus on Education, States Focus on Implementation
Now that President Obama has outlined his education policy, New Jersey and other states await the details