Thursday, March 3, 2011

Breakfast with Arne: On ESEA, RTT Losers & Union Fights - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Breakfast with Arne: On ESEA, RTT Losers & Union Fights

By Michele McNeil on March 3, 2011 2:00 PM | No comments |

This morning Arne Duncan held court with six education bloggers for an hour of Q&A. Joining in the dialogue, besides Politics K-12, were Mike Petrilli from Flypaper, "Straight Up" Rick Hess, new Education Sector executive director Richard Lee Colvin, who writes for the Quick & the Ed, Dropout Nation's RiShawn Biddle, and Dana Goldstein, formerly of the Daily Beast and American Prospect.

Highlights of the conversation:

First off, the Department released two guides for states: one on "smart ideas to increase productivity and student achievement" and another on flexibility states have in using existing federal dollars. Both are meant to help states navigate the persisting fiscal woes, which Duncan first told my colleague and fellow blogger Sean Cavanagh about. I'll post the links to the document

Think Progress: BREAKING: Wisconsin Voters Launch Recall Campaign Against Eight GOP State Senators | www.kochwatch.org #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Think Progress: BREAKING: Wisconsin Voters Launch Recall Campaign Against Eight GOP State Senators | www.kochwatch.org

Thom Hartmann: Fox News...Unfair and Completely Unbalanced? WATCH ON YOUTUBE:

The Nation: With State Budgets Withering, Get Ready for the 'Womancession' *March 2, 2011- *Attacks on public employees, in Wisconsin and other budget-crunched states, may not sound like they’re specifically targeting female workers—but they’ll end up doing just that. Governor Scott Walker wants to strip collective ...

Think Progress: BREAKING: Wisconsin Voters Launch Recall Campaign Against Eight GOP State Senators*March 3, 2011-* Last month, ThinkProgress reported that Wisconsin law allows any elected official who has served at least one year of their current term to be recalled from office. Today, a group of Wisconsin voters took the first step towards ...

Ed Schultz & Mike Papantonio: The Koch's - It's All About Privatizing Everything WATCH ON YOUTUBE:

Talking Points Memo: Poll: Democrats Poised To Keep Wisconsin Senate Seat In 2012 *March 3, 2011-* Sen. Herb Kohl (D) is in solid position to hold his seat if he runs for reelection in 2012, according to a new PPP poll. But if he retires, as some observers believe he will, Democrats could still hold the seat if they nominate a ...

Talking Points Memo: Polls Consistently Show Six In Ten Oppose Eliminating Collective Bargaining For State Unions *March 3, 2011-* For the third time in the past two weeks, a national poll has found that roughly 60% of all Americans oppose eliminating collective bargaining rights for public employee unions, the highly contentious proposal put forward by ...

This is a Marching in Lockstep, Run from Washington, GOP Battle Against the Very Core of Democratic Policies - Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com

This is a Marching in Lockstep, Run from Washington, GOP Battle Against the Very Core of Democratic Policies

The Democrats Can't Abandon the Working Man Ever, so the GOP Will Do Anything to Eradicate Them!

brian conners, Yahoo! Contributor Network
Mar 2, 2011 "Contribute content like this. Start Here."

It has all of the signs of a Karl Rove run blitzkrieg as the GOP are just attempting to steal from that bottom 99% again! Remember how Rove used the Katrina disaster to trot out GOP economic experiments while people were suffering and dying? The GOP is heartless.

The article "Boehner wades into Wisconsin labor battle, backing GOP governor" shows how the GOP is using this as a lab experience for its attempts to shaft the bottom 99%!

The article states "House Speaker John Boehner released a statement on Thursday afternoon backing Walker and his package of aggressive labor reforms that would force increased contributions by state workers to benefits and pension plans, and limit collective bargaining rights for some.

"Republicans in Congress — and reform-minded GOP governors like Scott Walker, John Kasich and

ThinkProgress » GRAPH: As Union Membership Has Declined, Income Inequality Has Skyrocketed I#WIunion #SolidarityWI

ThinkProgress » GRAPH: As Union Membership Has Declined, Income Inequality Has Skyrocketed In The United States

GRAPH: As Union Membership Has Declined, Income Inequality Has Skyrocketed In The United States

Across the country, right-wing legislators continue their attack on labor unions,claiming that they are saving their states money. Yet in waging these anti-labor campaigns, these politicians are ignoring one very simple fact: unions were a major force in building and sustaining the great American middle class, and as they declined, so has the middle class. As CAP’s Karla Waters and David Madland showed in a reportthey first published this past January, as union membership has steadily declined since 1967, so too has the middle class’s share of national income, as the super-rich have taken a larger share of national income than any time since the 1920s:

This is not to say that declining union membership is the only factor that led to the growth of income inequality over the past 35 years. Yet, the correlation does show

How Public School Budget Cuts Herald the End of an American Dream « Parents Across America

How Public School Budget Cuts Herald the End of an American Dream

Throughout the United States, the nation’s public school system is being savaged by budget cuts that will make a mockery of federal legislation designed to reduce the achievement gap between children in low income and high income districts.

In Detroit Michigan, the school district has been told by the state to close half of its schools to close a 347 million dollar deficit, leading to high school classes that could contain as many as 60 students. Providence Rhode Island just handed out pink slips to its nearly 2,000 teachers to reduce its deficit; and Austin Texas may do the same in a response to a ten percent reduction in state funding. And in thousands of school districts throughout the country, teachers are being fired, sports and arts programs are being shut down, AP classes are being cancelled, and class size is going through the roof while state and local governments radically cut education funding to balance their budgets.

Make no mistake about it, these budget cuts will have a disproportionate effect in the poorest school districts, where parents depend on schools to impart skills, which because

Arne Duncan: Bigger Classes OK for Good Teachers...but Not Too Big - Dana Goldstein

Arne Duncan: Bigger Classes OK for Good Teachers...but Not Too Big

by Dana Goldstein

On Mayor Bloomberg's threat to lay-off over 4,000 NYC public school teachers--which is really an attempt to scare the UFT into compromising on LIFO--Duncan said, "I don't know the specific numbers, what's real and what's just positioning on both sides. But class size has been a sacred cow and we need to take it on."

Echoing Bill Gates, Duncan suggested paying highly-effective teachers $20,000 to $25,000 more for teaching up to five additional students, and giving parents the choice as to whether their kids are placed in such classrooms. He acknowledged that small classes are currently very popular among parents. "These conversation's haven't been had," he said. "I don't think parents have been given the choice. It's provocative...but we're talking about

Before Ravitch’s ‘Daily Show’ gig, a request for a warm welcome | GothamSchools

Before Ravitch’s ‘Daily Show’ gig, a request for a warm welcome

by Philissa Cramer

Education historian Diane Ravitch is appearing on “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart tonight — and her supporters want to make sure she has company.

We just received an email from the New York City point person for the Save Our Schools March, meant to draw parents and teachers to Washington, D.C., this summer to assert their voices in education policy. She is asking Ravitch’s supporters to greet the outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s education agenda when Ravitch arrives at Stewart’s 11th Avenue studio at 4 p.m. today.

Ravitch will spend an hour and a half in online conversation with Save Our Schools supporters next week, according to the email.

If Stewart’s lampooning of those who criticize teachers for their job perks earlier this week is any indication, he could go easy on Ravitch tonight. The pair also found common ground when Ravitch appeared on “The Daily

Arne Duncan: Collective Bargaining "Will Be a Tool for Improving Student Achievement" - Dana Goldstein

Arne Duncan: Collective Bargaining "Will Be a Tool for Improving Student Achievement"

by Dana Goldstein

I had breakfast this morning at the Department of Education with Arne Duncan and a group of education writers: Michele McNeil, Rick Hess, Michael Petrilli, Richard Colvin, and Rishawn Biddle. (As you can see, I was the lefty in the room!) I'm going to do a series of posts on the Secretary of Education's comments on hot-button issues; this is the first.

Duncan emphasized that teachers' unions occupy an important seat at the education reform table, and that he considers Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's union busting counterproductive. "I think collective bargaining will be a tool for improving student achievement," Duncan said. He praised the Wisconsin Education Association's plan--released just a few days before the labor stand-off began--to embrace value-added teacher evaluation and reform some tenure protections, adding that the union's president had been willing to step out in

Congressman Obey Denied Access to Wisconsin Capitol #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Wisconsin Congressman Dave Obey could not enter the Wisconsin Capitol despite the claim by the Department of Administration that the building is open.

The Capitol has been a scene of on-going protests in response to legislation proposed by Governor Walker.

Following the lockdown of the building, the Circuit Court issued an injunction to reopen the building to the public.

Rep. Obey served Wisconsin in Congress from 1969 - 2011 and in the State Assembly from 1963 - 1969.

He was met at the doors by Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) and Assistant Minorirty Leader Donna Seidel (D-Wausau).

Cleaners unite - News from Inside the Wisconsin Capitol Building #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Cleaners unite - News from Inside the Wisconsin Capitol Building

Cleaners unite

9:37am: The zamboni just washed the rotunda floor as it does every morning at 9:30. Then we organized a cleaning party in which all of us walked around tidying up just in case we have company today. Following that, drum circle. No coffee, but pepsi is making for a fine replacem

The Answer Sheet - The Diane Ravitch myth

The Diane Ravitch myth

Anybody reading much of the commentary written on education policy could be forgiven for thinking that education historian Diane Ravitch is somehow the Wizardess of Ed, the woman behind the curtain secretly pulling the strings. So many commentators take verbal shots at her that you’d think she had the policy-making power of, say, President Obama, or Education Secretary Arne Duncan, or billionaire education philanthropist Bill Gates. (When Gates decides to fund a particular initiative, it immediately becomes the reform approach of the hour.) Gates has, in fact, mocked her. Billionaire Whitney Tilson has made a second career out of attacking her. Even my colleague Jay Mathews wrote a column on his Class Struggle blog that called “erudite” a Tilson piece in which Tilson personally attacked Ravitch, and then Jay took Ravitch to task for something she said about Teach for America about which I don't think she was wrong.

Educators Call to Armed Struggle? | Dissident Voice #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Educators Call to Armed Struggle? | Dissident Voice

Educators Call to Armed Struggle?

by Myles Hoenig

No less than Diane Ravitch is calling for rioting in the streets of Detroit by teachers and parents for school closures and increased size of classes up to 60 in order to balance the budget. Her outrage over the destruction of public schools throughout the US is justifiable. In Providence, Rhode Island they’ll be firing all of its teachers. Idaho is laying off teachers. My county, Prince George’s County, MD, is not only looking to decimate the school system with a thousand layoffs next year, but will increase the presence of ROTC in the schools. Arne Duncan must have taught Dr. Hite well in how to militarize a public school system that is one of the poorest in the state.

Just looking at my system for a moment we see that a major hit will go to the media science, in other words, the librarians. Maybe George Bush couldn’t stand up to them as he went after the librarians who campaigned to protect internet use at their sites, but apparently our ‘Democratic’ state has no qualms about victimizing these great public servants. Libraries?? Ever teach in a high school that didn’t have a functioning library? I taught in three in Baltimore that shared an invisible library. Interesting how these two municipalities rank the lowest in the state on the high stakes tests. Could there be some correlation?

The problem with rioting is that it is often too random and the victims of the system are often those affected by

How to boycott Koch Industries - Substance News #wiunion #wisolidarity #p2

How to boycott Koch Industries - Substance News

From Angel Soft to Brawny... How to boycott the billionaire Koch brothers

Lauren Kelley - March 03, 2011

[Editor's note: The following article came to Substance via Portside (http://portside.org) and is being shared with our readers following a large number of questions about how to take aim at some of the billionaires who have been trying to take away the remaining rights of working people, teachers, and unions. Koch Industries is doing everything from chicken (on Chicago's north side) to paper products and beyond, as the list below shows. Enjoy].

Billionaire David Koch (above) of Koch Industries has been funding the fascist attacks on unions through his Americans for Progress and his support for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. Koch recently edged out New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, according to Forbes magazine, as the wealthiest man in Manhattan.How You Can Boycott the Kochs... The backlash against the Kochs' influence in Wisconsin is gaining steam, with labor supporters starting to boycott Koch Industries' many products (listed here)

by Lauren Kelley, AlterNet, February 28, 2011, http://www. alternet.org/story/150078/ how_you_ can_boycott_the_kochs

Over the past few weeks, the billionaire Koch brothers and their front groups have steadily increased their involvement in Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's efforts to strip state workers of their collective bargaining rights. The Kochs' outsized wealth and influence are forces to be reckoned with; that's why we should all be grateful that a Koch backlash, including a boycott of Koch Industries' products, has started picking up steam.

AlterNet has been keeping a close eye on the Koch-financed support for Walker's anti-union campaign. As we reported last

Solidarity in Action: Check Out This New Video AFL-CIO NOW BLOG #wiunion #wisolidarity #p2

AFL-CIO NOW BLOG

Solidarity in Action: Check Out This New Video


66Share

by Tula Connell, Mar 3, 2011

Check out this great video from our team here that pulls together some of the many moments of people power in Wisconsin, Ohio and other states where governors and state legislatures are trying to take away the right of public employees to bargain for good middle-class jobs. It gives a glimpse of the huge outpouring of nationwide support and solidarity for workers under siege by lawmakers who are bought and paid for by billionaire CEOs like the Koch brothers.

As Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley says in the clip:

When you try to make unions the problem rather than the politically difficult decisions that we have to make as a people, then you’re not being very forthright and honest with the citizenry you’re representing.

IEA elections. This ain’t bean bag. « Fred Klonsky's blog

IEA elections. This ain’t bean bag.

by Fred Klonsky

Mr. Dooley

Mayor Harold Washington was fond of quoting Chicago journalist Peter Finley Dunne’s Mr. Dooley.

“Politics ain’t bean bag.”

When I got home yesterday afternoon, my phone rang. On the other end was a woman calling for Cinda Klickna. She’s one of the two candidates running for IEA president.

This wasn’t exactly a personal call. I didn’t know her. She didn’t know me. She was obviously a friend of Cinda’s,

March 2 Action At UC Santa Cruz Goes Clothing Optional « Student Activism

March 2 Action At UC Santa Cruz Goes Clothing Optional

by Angus Johnston

There’s a lot to report from yesterday’s national Day of Action, including arrests at two California campuses and building occupations in two states that appear to have continued into this morning, but I didn’t want to let this smaller story go.

About five hundred UCSC students gathered on an athletic field yesterday to spell out the words FREE EDUCATION with their bodies. Butcher paper was hung nearby to let participants voice their opinions on educational issues, snacks were provided, and someone even arranged for a plane to buzz the event and take pictures from the sky.

And then there’s

Protesters Confront Wisconsin Senator Who Called Them 'Slobs' (Mar 2, 20...

March 2, 2011. MSNBC. Lawrence O'Donnell reporting. Witness a shockingly rude and arrogant Wisconsin state senator named Glenn Grothman repeatedly call Wisconsin citizens "slobs" on air and then refuse to apologize. At one point, he even calls the protesters "a different breed of people." A woman responds, "What breed are we, Senator? The middle class?"

This guy really doesn't want to be re-elected, does he?

We Are One #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

We stand in solidarity with teachers, firefighters, nurses, construction workers and all who are under attack by governors and state legislatures.

To stay informed about issues important to working families and the American labor movement, please visit:

http://www.aflcio.org
http://blog.aflcio.org/
http;//www.facebook.com/werunited
http://www.facebook.com/aflcio
http://www.twitter.com/aflcio

This Week In Education: Events: Uncertainty About Ravitch's Upcoming "Daily Show" Appearance

Events: Uncertainty About Ravitch's Upcoming "Daily Show" Appearance

by Alexander Russo

Later on today, education historian Diane Ravitch is going to head out from her Brooklyn Heights home and make her way into the city to be a guest on tonight's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" for the first time since May 2003 (pictured). Perhaps they'll send a town car for her. There will be a green room of some sort, probably some water bottles and snacks. A makeup artist will offer to touch her up. If there's time between rehearsing bits and script rewrites, the host will come in and say hi and tell her how happy he is to have her on the show. Until the headsetted staffer comes to get her, Ravitch will likely sit quietly in her chair as she does before most of her speeches.The Comedy Central appearance will be a tremendous victory for Ravitch, who has been pushing to get on one of the two shows in the 11 pm time slot for almost a year now. It will be a happy moment, too, for all of the educators and parents who have welcomed Ravitch into their arms. For me, however, Ravitch’s

Protest WTMJ4 and Walker’s Budget This Friday « Larry Miller's Blog #WIunion

Protest WTMJ4 and Walker’s Budget This Friday « Larry Miller's Blog

Protest WTMJ4 and Walker’s Budget This Friday ** * [Educator’s Network for Social Justice]* *Time:* Friday, March 4 · 4:30pm – 6:00pm *Location:* TMJ4, 720 E. Capitol Drive (across from Piggly Wiggly), Milwaukee, WI

Must See Video of Wisconsin State Senator Glenn Grothman Speaking at Tea Party Event *This is the same Senator Glenn Grothman who said “We cannot continue to have all these slobs in the Capitol building…many are unemployed people looking for somewhere to hang out.”* *Senator Glenn Grothman* is Assistant Majority Leader (R) in the ...

Remembering Claudette Colvin « Student Activism

Remembering Claudette Colvin

by Angus Johnston

Yesterday was the fifty-sixth anniversary of the day that Claudette Colvin was asked to move to the back of a Montgomery, Alabama city bus, and refused. When Rosa Parks did the same thing nine months later, she sparked a movement that would change America.

But Claudette Colvin is worth remembering too.

In the spring of 1955, Claudette Colvin was a junior at Booker T. Washington High School in Montgomery. On March 2 of that year, on her way home from school, she was told to move to the back of the bus to allow a white person to take her seat.

Like Rosa Parks, she refused. Like Rosa Parks, she was arrested.

So why do we know Parks’ name

The Answer Sheet - Value-added assessment: Theory vs practice

Value-added assessment: Theory vs practice

The following was written by Matthew Di Carlo, senior fellow at the non-profit Albert Shanker Institute, located in Washington, D.C. This post originally appeared on the institute’s blog. By Matthew Di Carlo A few weeks ago, the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) released a review of last year’s Los Angeles Times (LAT) value-added analysis – with a specific focus on the technical report upon which the paper’s articles were based (done by RAND’s Richard Buddin). In line with prior research, the critique’s authors – Derek Briggs and Ben Domingue – redid the LAT analysis, and found that teachers’ scores vary widely, but that the LAT estimates would be different under different model specifications; are error-prone; and conceal systematic bias from non-random classroom assignments. They were also, for reasons yet unknown, unable to replicate the results. Since then, the Times has issued two responses. The first was a quickly published article,

Ohio: SB 5 Includes Anti-Gay Marriage Language | FDL News Desk

Ohio: SB 5 Includes Anti-Gay Marriage Language

by David Dayen

1 person liked this

Protests continue in Ohio. (photo: mmbooklover)

As I noted yesterday, the Ohio Senate passed SB 5, a bill that would strictly limit collective bargaining for all public employees, give local officials the final word in arbitration and ban strikes under penalty of law, by a single vote, despite having a 23-10 partisan advantage in the chamber. Six Republicans voted no, and two of them had to be yanked off committees in order to smooth the bill’s passage. Those who voted yes, along with Gov. John Kasich, claimed that the state of the economy demanded that they get more control over the collective bargaining system.

The economic benefits of SB 5 can be proven by the fact that it includes

Solidarity With Strangers - Bridging Differences - Education Week

Solidarity With Strangers

by Deborah Meier

Dear Diane,

Why this anti-teacher and now anti-public sentiment?

I scratch my head over that, too. Of course, it's a problematic fact itself, as many polls indicate the opposite. But there is certainly enough of it to stir trouble.

There ARE the rational self-interest reasons. The fewer unions, the better, and without unions public employees would not be worth bashing. For some, it's the political clout or ideological assumptions underlying unions that are the targets. For others, it an extension, perhaps, of being against all things public—period. For still others, it's a way to keep costs down in order to reduce taxes, make more profits, etc.

But for some it's uglier than these self-serving or ideological views. There are two reactions we can have to the

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