Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Are Teach for America, Inc. and Bill Gates Dumbing Down Our Educational System? | Seattle Education

Are Teach for America, Inc. and Bill Gates Dumbing Down Our Educational System?

by seattleducation2011

Teach for America, Inc. was the brain child of Wendy Kopp while she was in graduate school at Princeton that has turned into a billion dollar business.

It started out innocently enough, or so it would seem, as an effort based on the Peace Corps model to provide schools with temporary teaching staff. Teach for America recruited graduates fresh out of college and with five weeks of training placed them in schools in small southern towns and rural areas for two year stints where teachers were hard to come by. Something was better than nothing as far as those school communities were concerned. Since then, because the labor is cheap, TFA became the darling of the charter school industry. No unions had to be involved and the recruits would gladly do what they needed to do to fulfill their two year stints and get their loans waived. Who wouldn’t? It was perfect for the charter schools because these schools are

Bill Gates: Selling Bad Advice to the Public Schools - The Daily Beast

Everyone agrees that American schools need help. But as Diane Ravitch argues, the fixes proposed by billionaire savior Bill Gates will only makes things worse.

Over the weekend, The New York Times published a startling expose of Bill Gates' successful efforts to shape education policy in the United States.

Article - Ravitch Bill Gates Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates poses on April 4, 2011 in Paris. (Photo: Miguel Medina, AFP / Getty Images)

As I showed in my recent book, The Death and Life of the Great American School System, Gates is one of a small group of billionaires that is promoting privatization, de-professionalization, and high-stakes testing as fixes for American public schools. I called this group "the billionaire boys club," which includes Gates, the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation.

The Times article documents how Gates has put almost everyone concerned with education policy in his debt: advocacy groups and think tanks of left and right, education journals, public television programs, leaders in academia, local school districts, and state education groups. In addition to what is reported in the Times,

Demystifying today’s Abbott Decision « School Finance 101

Demystifying today’s Abbott Decision

by schoolfinance101

First, let’s identify the players:

New Jersey Legislature & Governor, or THE STATE
Children attending Abbott school districts and their legal representation, or THE PLAINTIFFS
THE COURT (NJ Supreme Court)
Other school districts and the children they serve

Now, let’s not go too far back in history, and instead account for the last few years which really define where we are at today, and how this decision makes sense:http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/opinions/supreme/M129309AbbottvBurke.pdf

Until a few years ago, the State of New Jersey was operating its school funding formula under a series of court orders specifically intended to ensure that children attending school districts known as Abbott districts received sufficient resources to provide them with a constitutionally adequate education (history here:http://edlawcenter.org/ELCPublic/AbbottvBurke/AbbottHistory.htm) . The original Abbott v. Burke lawsuit was

Save Seattle Schools Community Blog: The Gates Foundation and Their Never-Ending Reach

The Gates Foundation and Their Never-Ending Reach

by Melissa Westbrook

First off, bless Melinda and Bill Gates for being willing to give away money for world health and public education in the U.S. I applaud anyone who steps up to help. They are likely helping many people.

However, we all know, as citizens in a city where we have more than one billionaire, that while philanthropy is a great thing, these people giveth...and they taketh. The new mantra is "venture philanthropy" - they expect a return on their investment.
And why not? It's their money, right? Okay, sure, I get that. No one wants to throw their charitable dollars into a black hole. But, when you are talking about people who not only have a HUGE foundation as well as owning a HUGE corporation, then you are talking about a different kind of philanthropist. You are talking about people who are using their money and their power to bend and shape public policy.

At that point, it becomes troubling.

The New York Times ran a front page article on the Gates Foundation's educational wing this past Sunday.

Parents rally at State Capitol for public schools | news10.net

Parents rally at State Capitol for public schools

8:38 AM, May 24, 2011 | comments

Empty desks, AP photo

Written by

Kate Larsen

SACRAMENTO, CA - Teachers first protested the possibility of more K through 12 education cuts two weeks ago and now parents are heading to the capitol to show support for public education.

On Tuesday, May 24, parents in 23 cities across California will be holding rallies to support the state's schools. In Sacramento, the "Wake Up California" rally is from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the South steps of the Capitol.

Catherine Goddard, one of the founders of Educate Our State, says California's public schools are in crisis. "We are afraid our children will not have the right to a good, quality education, that's a huge fear, parents are very frustrated about that."

Goddard says she and other California parents are attending the rally to encourage Republican lawmakers to support Governor Brown's proposal to extend temporary tax hikes. An 'all-cuts' budget means public schools could see more layoffs, more kids in each classroom, and a shorter school year. "We're not going to be competitive with other states for scholarships and continued education," Goddard adds.

News10/KXTV

Dairy Industry Misleads Public on Chocolate Milk in Schools

by Source

By Ed Bruske aka The Slow Cook / La Vida LocavoreAn Associated Press report last week on the controversy surrounding flavored milk in schools was widely reprinted in media outlets across the country, from the Washington Post to Huffington Post to Yahoo! In it, the AP declared that a number of professional and medical groups--including the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics--had issued a "joint statement" in favor of flavored milk, arguing that "the nutritional value of flavored low-fat or skim milk outweighs the harm of added sugar."

ThinkProgress » REPORT: Meet The Billionaires Who Are Trying To Privatize Our Schools And Kill Public Education

REPORT: Meet The Billionaires Who Are Trying To Privatize Our Schools And Kill Public Education

Voucher advocate Betsy DeVos

Two weeks ago, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) marked “a new era for education in Indiana” when he signed into law one of the most expansive school voucher laws in the country, opening up a huge fund of tax dollars for private schools. A few days later, the Wisconsin state Assembly vastly expanded school vouchers, freeing up tax dollarseven for private religious schools. GOP legislators in the Pennsylvania Senate say they have the votes to pass a sweeping voucher bill of their own. And on Capitol Hill, House Republicanssuccessfully revived Washington, D.C.’s voucher system after it was killed off two years ago.

This rapid expansion of voucher programs — whichundermine and undercut public education by funnelling taxpayer money to private schools — is remarkable. After all, vouchers have been unpopular with the American public. Between 1966 and 2000, vouchers were put up for a vote in states 25 times, andvoters rejected the program 24 of those times.

Yet if one looks behind the curtain — at the foundations, non-profits, Political Action Committees (PAC) — into the workings of the voucher movement, it’s apparent why it has gained strength in recent years. A tight-knit group of right-wing millionaires and billionaires, bankers, industrialists, lobby shops, and hardcore ideologues has been plotting this war on public education, quietly setting up front group after front group to promote the idea that the only way to save public education is to destroy it — disguising their movement with the innocent-sounding moniker of “school choice.”

ThinkProgress has prepared this report to expose this network and give Americans the knowledge they need to fight back against this assault on the nation’s public schools. Here are some of the top millionaires and their organizations waging war on our education system:

– Dick DeVos: The DeVos family has been active on education issues since the 1990′s. The son of billionaire Amway co-founder Richard DeVos,

Invest in US | First Focus

Invest in US

By Jared Solomon

May 18, 2011

Want to see some compelling reasons why we should continue to invest in early learning?

The First Five Years Fund is working to promote investments in quality early education through their Invest in US campaign. Their engaging web video, illustrates how investing in early learning is the first step towards building a better US.

Check out their video below, and then visit the First Five Years website to learn more about their campaign.

Categories: Early Childhood Education, Early Childhood

Happy Birthday Bob Dylan !

Education Research Report: Violence Prevention Program for Middle Schools

Violence Prevention Program for Middle Schools

from Education Research Report by Jonathan Kantrowitz

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This report presents findings from an IES-sponsored study of a violence prevention strategy designed to improve school safety in middle schools. The strategy combines a classroom curriculum-based approach (Responding in Peaceful and Positive Ways, RiPP) and a whole-school approach (BEST Behavior). The curriculum-based approach aims to improve students’ social and problem solving skills for dealing with conflict and managing aggression. The whole-school approach seeks to influence the school environment through strategies such as increasing supervision of the school grounds, clarifying rules and consequences for student behavior, establishing reward systems to encourage positive behaviors, and training staff in classroom management.

The study uses a randomized controlled trial and includes 36 schools in 11 districts across 6 states that remained in the study for the full 3 years. Findings from the 3-year study include:

* There were no statistically significant differences between intervention and control schools on self-reported student violence or victimization measures. On average, 8th-graders in the intervention and control schools reported engaging in 2.8 and 2.7 violent acts at school in the past 30 days, respectively; and, on average, 8th-

ASCD Inservice: What's Not Working in School Leadership

What's Not Working in School Leadership
by Chris Canter

Formerly a teacher, now an administrator-in-training, Chris Canter blogs about his yearlong assistant principal internship at Fulton County Public Schools in Atlanta, Ga. Canter was a 2010ASCD OYEA honoree.

I've spent a great deal of time discussing what works in school leadership. As I near the end of my internship, however, I find it helpful to talk about what DOESN'T work in school leadership.

For the sake of discussion, I have created a small list of things that can severely inhibit the roles of principals and assistant principals, per my experiences.

#1: Don't nurture power struggles within the building.

Too many times, a behavior referral comes across my desk that is really about a teacher wanting to show "who's boss." Some of the behaviors written up include things like sneezing too loudly and popping gum (I always wonder, why not just ask the student to spit out the gum?). And, when this particular student wasn't suspended, the teacher brought me another referral and said, "I'm bringing you another one because nothing was done to him and I want something done."

This is the ultimate power struggle. When teachers don't have a list of interventions they have tried, I am rare to intervene. The teacher must show at minimum that some phone calls have been made, e-mails sent, and detentions (even lunch

Announcing ASCD's Newest Online Membership Categories

by ASCD Bloggers

In today's fast-paced world, ASCD believes that educators increasingly value member benefits that can be received quickly, can be read in any location, and are environmentally friendly. As a result, ASCD is proud to announce two new membership categories designed...

This Week In Education: Thompson: Tests, Learning, & The Tulsa Race Riot Of 1921

Thompson: Tests, Learning, & The Tulsa Race Riot Of 1921

by john thompson

In Mother Jones, Kristina Rizga's What Standardized Tests Miss describes the tension between skin-deep instruction to cover tested material and engaging, in-depth learning that can change students' lives. In particular, Rizga describes a student's pride and the inspiration that grew out of researching the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921. That reminded me that I used to introduce Oklahoma History by explaining the textbook selection process to my students, and how a committee choose Danney Goble's book after he completed his sales pitch by reading an amazing passage about the riot

Over Two Thousand Six Hundred Activists Arrested in US Protests | Dissident Voice

Over Two Thousand Six Hundred Activists Arrested in US Protests

from Dissident Voice by Bill Quigley

Since President Obama was inaugurated, there have been over two thousand six hundred arrests of activists protesting in the US. Research shows over 670 people have been arrested in protests inside the US already in 2011, over 1290 were arrested in 2010, and 665 arrested in 2009. These figures are certainly underestimate the number actually arrested as arrests in US protests are rarely covered by the mainstream media outlets which focus so intently on arrests of protestors in other countries.

Arrests at protest have been increasing each year since 2009. Those arrested include people protesting US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Guantanamo, strip mining, home foreclosures, nuclear weapons, immigration policies, police brutality, mistreatment of hotel workers, budget cutbacks, Blackwater, the mistreatment of Bradley Manning, and right wing efforts to cut back collective bargaining.

These arrests illustrate that resistance to the injustices in and committed by the US is alive and well. Certainly there could and should be more, but it is important to recognize that people are fighting back against injustice.

Information on these arrests has been taken primarily from the newsletter The Nuclear Resister, which has been

Schools Matter: Teacher Evaluations Based on Test Scores Will Requires Dozens of New Tests

Teacher Evaluations Based on Test Scores Will Requires Dozens of New Tests

by Jim Horn

The argument for longer school days and school years is getting a big boost in recent weeks, as states contemplate the dozens of new tests that will be needed for teacher evaluation plans based on test scores. Kindergarten or 12th grade,
P. E. or computer programming, history or home ec, everyone will have to be tested, and more than once a year. Remember, this is about added value. Remember?

When Broadie (rhymes with toady) Peter Gorman (Class of '04) rolled out the Oligarchs' year-round testing planin Charlotte recently, non-corporate ed reformers noted that it didn't make much sense to spend $2 million on 52 new, unnecesssary tests for kindergarten through grade 12 that parents do not want, especially when the school system is laying off teachers and aides to make payroll. But, then, we have come to learn from the Broadies that it is not the needs of adults that schools should consider--it is about the needs of corporations. How could anyone, even Bill Gates, make the case to parents that this year-round testing to evaluate teachers can be in

The new tracking — Joanne Jacobs

The new tracking

by Michael E. Lopez

The old tracking was racist, classist and hurtful.

The new “tracking” is basically a roll of the die, but just as hurtful, according to Barry Garelick. It’s a long essay; some may not want to read the whole thing, so I’ll summarize what I see his argument as in five points:

When we threw out tracking in the late 60′s and early 70′s, we accidentally threw out ability grouping, too. Not everywhere, but in significant quantity.
When we threw out tracking in the late 60′s and 70′s, we quite purposefully threw out explicit, teacher-centered instruction, too, because we wanted to make things relevant. Again, not everywhere, but in significant quantity.
Without these things — ability grouping and explicit instruction — it’s incredibly difficult to learn. As a

Nine Activists Arrested at OSU Sodexo Protest « Student Activism

Nine Activists Arrested at OSU Sodexo Protest

by Angus Johnston

Nine activists, seven of them students, were arrested at Ohio State University yesterday afternoon at the offices of university president Gordon Gee. The nine were part of a group of more than a hundred who had gathered to protest OSU’s relationship with campus contractor Sodexo.

The activists were affiliated with the OSU chapter of United Students Against Sweatshops, a national organization whose members have mounted nearly a dozen major campus protests across the country in recent weeks. USAS was spurred to action by reports of Sodexo worker rights abuses in at least five countries, as well

Scholastic’s Commercialization of Classrooms Runs Much Deeper than Coal | Change.org News

Scholastic’s Commercialization of Classrooms Runs Much Deeper than Coal

Editor's Note: This blog post is written by Josh Golin, associate director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. His organization is leading the effort end Scholastic's "InSchool Marketing" of corporate and industry materials. You can sign their petition to add your support, or leave a note on Scholastic's Facebook wall.

For years, Scholastic has exploited its privileged position in schools to serve as Trojan horse for all sorts of inappropriate marketing. But a couple of weeks ago, the company got caught red-handed when a campaign led by CCFC and Rethinking Schools exposed the fact that the self-proclaimed “most trusted name in learning” was distributing one-sided teaching materials in schools paid for by the coal industry. After extensive protests by

Update: Little Village Hunger Strike At 10 - District 299: Chicago Public Schools Blog

Update: Little Village Hunger Strike At 10

by Alexander Russo

For years, the Little Village hunger strike was thought of as a proud moment, a high point. More recently -- on this blog at least -- not so much. The 10-year anniversary of the strike is being celebrated on Thursday (details below). The shenanigans at MAS appear to continue right up to the moment. What's your take on the legacy of that event? Pro, con, or somewhere in between? Are the kids of Little Village better off, over all, than they were before? And what, for God's sakes, can be done to make things a little better at MAS in particular?

From a reader:

I wanted to keep you abreast of the troubles plaguing the administration at the Multicultural Arts High School (just in case you haven't heard...).

It seems teachers are continuing to be abruptly laid off (mid-school year) in violation of fair labor practices and at the peril of student learning. Students have been reaching out to me, inspired by other local student protests, wanting to know what they can do to voice their concern in a way that will be taken seriously. Many of my former students have contacted me to express how sad and caught off guard they felt when they showed up to school last year with most of their teachers gone. (Not to mention confused and deceived when they were told by the

Site News: New Blog Setup On Its Way

by Alexander Russo

This is just a heads-up that there's a new version of this site heading our way -- I'm not exactly sure when -- and that there's likely to be a settling in period where things are not as ideal as I'd like them to be. Apologies in advance. But you've been through that before and I'm sure you'll power through it. (Remember the first version of the site, way back when, when it was just me on my own? Then there was the short-lived Catalyst version.) Here's what I know so far: (1) Nothing's going to change in terms of my control over the site and my comment

Schools Matter: AP History Exams Help Students (a) understand history, (b) memorize history facts, (c) pay Caperton's $872,061 salary, (d) both b and c?

AP History Exams Help Students (a) understand history, (b) memorize history facts, (c) pay Caperton's $872,061 salary, (d) both b and c?

by Jim Horn

The "non-profit" College Board rakes in almost 10 percent profit each year on the millions of tests that American students choke down every year in an institutionalized trivial pursuit game that substitutes for big chunks of the curriculum in American high schools. Meanwhile, the College Board's CEO is paid nearly a million bucks a year and the CB has almost a billion dollars of "non-profit" in the bank. The biggest insult, however, is how the College Board's AP tests determine what our brightest kids get taught or not taught about history, literature, and science.

Michael Winerip reports this week on a Connecticut high school teacher, Chris Doyle, who won't settle for the sanitized, memorized factoids that are demanded by the AP exam:

. . . .When Mr. Doyle began his career 25 years ago, schools taught current events. But standardized testing and canned curriculums have squeezed most of that out of public education.

What I Learned at Siena - Bridging Differences - Education Week

What I Learned at Siena

by Diane Ravitch

Dear Deborah,

Last week, I had the great pleasure of visiting Siena College, a liberal arts college founded by the Franciscan order near Albany, New York. I was there to receive an honorary degree, but I soon realized that I was there to learn about the remarkable culture of this close-knit community. When I asked students why they chose to attend Siena, each one immediately responded, "because of the sense of community." Faculty members echoed the same sentiment.

The more I learned about Siena, the more I understood its commitment to service, especially to those who are most vulnerable. My fellow honorees were Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health, whose research has been so important in battling AIDS, malaria, and other diseases, and Ralph Perez of CREATE, an agency that assists people in dire need of food, shelter, and medical support in West Harlem. I felt humbled and

This Week In Education: People: New Face At USDOE Press Office

People: New Face At USDOE Press Office

Meet Daren Briscoe, the USDE's new Deputy Press Secretary, who comes to the job from another spot within the Obama administration and before that a stint covering Obama for Newsweek during the campaign -- a move made by several journalists that was upsetting to some media watchers and conservatives. Me, I don't care. I just love the 'stache and the cool Wild West last name and if he calls me back when I blow up his cell phone with some stupid question about what Duncan's wearing. Via Edweek. Image via.

The Forgotten Promise of Democratic Schools | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

The Forgotten Promise of Democratic Schools

by larrycuban

Laura Runyon described a small school to which she sent her children and in which she taught English and history. In one section of her unpublished notes, she wrote as if she were a parent visiting the school for the first time.

“Everywhere the children were busy, but the morning was half gone and I had heard nothing that reminded me of a school except a class taking Latin as I passed. I had heard a class discussing whether John Smith or George Washington were the greater man, and another group, with a relief map, trying to decide where it would be best to erect forts to protect English colonies from the French aggression from the north and west…. I wondered why the teacher did not tell them [the answers], if she thought it worthwhile, and then have them … name the capitals and principal cities [of the states]. In all of the classes the children talked—sometimes two at once, but with a freedom of expression and an ability to stick to the point which surprised me.”

The perplexed parent asked a teacher to describe what kind of a school this was. The teacher took Runyon to a class of 6 and 7 year olds where the children had spent a few weeks with the help of the teacher figuring out

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