Monday, August 29, 2011

Big Education Ape: 8-29-11 PM Empty Test Chair by Empty Test Chair EDition

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now:

Published by Coopmike48 – 5 news spotters today

All A-Twitter about Education : Education Next

educationnext.org - Improving our schools in 140 characters or less By Michael Petrilli | Print | NO PDF | Share Fall 2011 / Vol. 11, No. 4 Once upon a time, the education “war of ideas” was fought on the battleground...

DianeRavitch

Krueger to Be Chosen to Lead Economic Council

nytimes.com - Alan B. Krueger, a Princeton University professor who recently served as chief economist in the United States Treasury, is being tapped to head the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, a White...

leoniehaimson

Class Warfare: Fact checking pages 1 through 100

garyrubinstein.teachforus.org - When the new book ‘Class Warfare’ came out, the story of the current ed reform movement featuring TFA and KIPP, I refused to buy it, since I didn’t want anyone to profit from passing fiction and fa...

DianeRavitch

Empty Test Chair by Empty Test Chair

dailykos.com - Ryan’s was correct in identifying public policy and discrimination as factors, but he failed to include the negative impact of K -12 public school education policy that is beginning to and will cau...

DianeRavitch

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coopmike48 The AFT's Triangulation Strategy Falls Apart | Dropout Nation: by RiShawn Biddle - http://t.co/5Irxb0F2 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 587 Applicants Vie for Smaller Round of i3 Grants - Politics K-12 - Education Week - http://t.co/jcsbLmwabout 1 minute ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 Read Damn Good Education Daily on http://t.co/gpb4k5P #SOSMARCH· reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Aw shucks, Rhee First. T'wern't nothin'...http://t.co/7j9uiW9 #Edu7 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

EducationSee all

The Graduates | Education | Urbanite Baltimore Magazine

urbanitebaltimore.com - "The model determines the question, the question determines the answer, and the answer determines what the policy is going to be ... right?"Dayvon Love, 24, is given to punctuating his answers to i...

DianeRavitch

Smoking Rhee-Fer « The Recovering Politician

therecoveringpolitician.com - When Waiting for Superman was released in 2010, it was largely hailed as a documentary that depicted the human costs of children trapped in failing schools. The film helped escalate Michelle Rhee’...

mikeklonsky

SocietySee all

We too came as immigrants…

areachicago.org - The following essay is adapted from a chapter of the forthcoming memoir, Sacred Ground: The Chicago Streets of Timuel Black, by Timuel Black with Susan Klonsky. I was under a year old when my par...

mikeklonsky

PoliticsSee all

The Wonkster » Blog Archive » DiNapoli vs. Murdoch

gothamgazette.com - You might have missed this as you were taping your windows yesterday: The Daily News reports that State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has rejected the state Department of Education contracts with Wir...

DianeRavitch

WLS 890AM

wlsam.com - Mayor Rahm Emanuel (Chuck Brueckmann/WLS) Posted 8/26/11 12:32 p.m.WLS Radio's Bill Cameron ReportsCHICAGO (WLS) - Mayor Rahm Emanuel sat down for a one-on-one interview with WLS Radio’s Bill Cam...

fklonsky

StoriesSee all

Illinois Teachers Hit The Bricks For A Principle

schooltechconnect.com - I don't know where I've been on this one, but it's long past time for people to chime in here. Here in the Prairie State, literally out on the prairie, there's a local that's been out on strike for...

fklonsky

EnvironmentSee all

President Obama, Look Out Your Window!

huffingtonpost.com - I run a mobile telephone company, and expect to be arrested in Washington today just outside your window representing my customers' view on global warming. Seriously!Your administration is soon to ...

fklonsky

(NRC) Virginia quake may have exceeded nuclear plant design

democraticunderground.com - Source: Reuters WASHINGTON, Aug 29 (Reuters) - The historic earthquake thatshut Dominion Resources Inc's (D.N) North Anna nuclear plant inVirginia last week may have shaken the facility more than i...

coopmike48

Blog posts on this issue

whitehouse.gov - The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release August 29, 2011 Six years ago today, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, upending families and ravaging communities – and no...

coopmike48

Art & EntertainmentSee all

Burning Man founder's new stage

sfgate.com - Lacy Atkins / The Chronicle Larry Harvey, Burning Man founder. Few people recognize Larry Harvey without his trademark wide-brimmed hat. But the Burning Man founder hasn't been wearing the cream-co...

coopmike48

Home - Inside Higher Ed

insidehighered.com - February 24, 2011 The return of ROTC to some campuses -- seemingly assured by the end of the military's policy against gay service members -- may be hitting a few bumps.More February 24, 2011 City ...

coopmike48

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    Schools Matter: Guest Post: The Facts Not Included in Steve Brill's Tell All

    Schools Matter: Guest Post: The Facts Not Included in Steve Brill's Tell All:

    Guest Post: The Facts Not Included in Steve Brill's Tell All

    by Robert D. Skeels * rdsathene
    By John Thompson

    Steve Brill’s Class Warfare is full of breathless accounts of the rich and powerful that are reminiscent of the biographies of Kitty Kelly. Ironically, the most valuable part of his Class Warfare may be his accounts of dramatic decisions to undertake risky and revolutionary "reforms" based on minimal evidence and some strange assumptions.

    According to Brill, "Identifying Effective Teaching Using Performance on the Job" by Tom Kane, Robert Gordon, and Douglas Staiger was used to convince Bill Gates and President Obama that "teacher quality," measured by standardized tests, must be the focus of reform. According to Brill, they argued that tests showed, "remarkable consistency among teachers," and that "obviously" this suggested that the person in front of the classroom was the key to closing the achievement gap. Gates was supposedly told that the "surprising" lack of volatility in the test scores of one district meant we could trust algorithms to drive the firing of teachers. If we believe Brill,
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    Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Aw shucks, Rhee First. T'wern't nothin'...

    Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Aw shucks, Rhee First. T'wern't nothin'...:

    Aw shucks, Rhee First. T'wern't nothin'...

    I got credit today for coining the term RheeFirstby the authors of the blog by the same name.
    Turns out Mike Klonsky thought of the name RheeFirst way before anyone else. So kudos to him. Read the entire article here.
    “[Rhee has] named her new group, Students First, but a look at her websitewill tell you that it should have been calledRhee First. The kick-off is largely the work of her clout-
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    SBAC Mathematics Content Feedback Opportunity - Letters (CA Dept of Education)


    SBAC Mathematics Content Feedback Opportunity - Letters (CA Dept of Education):


    Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:
    SMARTER BALANCED ASSESSMENT CONSORTIUM
    MATHEMATICS CONTENT SPECIFICATIONS FEEDBACK OPPORTUNITY
    I would like to extend another invitation for you to provide feedback on the draft specifications that will be used to inform test development for the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC).
    In June 2011, Governor Jerry Brown, State Board President Michael Kirst, and I signed a Memorandum of Understanding for California to become a governing state for the SBAC, which brings states together to create an innovative assessment system for mathematics and English-language arts (ELA). Based on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), SBAC released draft content specifications in mathematics for public comment and review from August 22–September 12, 2011.
    Your voice matters in the development of our new state assessments. Please take advantage of this opportunity to provide feedback on the Mathematics Content Specifications. I also strongly encourage you to share this opportunity with other educators.
    The press release, content specifications, user guide, and survey can be found on the SMARTER Balanced Web page athttp://www.k12.wa.us/SMARTER/Resources.aspx (Outside Source).
    This is an exciting time for education in California and we look forward to working with you on this request and future opportunities that will arise for your involvement in the implementation of the SBAC assessments as well as the CCSS. If you have any questions regarding this subject, please contact Dr. Kristen Brown, Education Research and Evaluation Consultant, Assessment and Accountability Division, by phone at 916-319-0334 or by e-mail at kbrown@cde.ca.gov.
    Sincerely,
    Tom Torlakson
    TT:kb
    cc: High School Principals
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    Pension Call Tuesday: Representative Elaine Nekritz. « Fred Klonsky's blog

    Pension Call Tuesday: Representative Elaine Nekritz. « Fred Klonsky's blog:

    Pension Call Tuesday: Representative Elaine Nekritz.

    by Fred Klonsky

    Northbrook Democrat Elaine Nekritz.

    Last year many teachers began wearing red on Tuesdays to show and win support for public education.

    It was a great idea. But after a while it seemed as if the only ones who noticed my red t-shirt were the kids I taught on Tuesdays.

    Last week we began Pension Call Tuesday.

    A reader suggested that I pick a member of the Illinois General Assembly and we would all call or email that member on Pension Call Tuesday.

    This week my choice is Representative Elaine Nekritz.

    Nekritz, a liberal Democrat from Northbrook, sits on the House pension committee.

    In the Spring session she was one of the Democrats who voted to support SB512, the three-tier pension reform bill, voting the bill out of her committee.

    You can contact Representative Nekritz here.

    Our message: No reduction in teacher pension benefits. Uphold the Illinois Constitution. We have always paid our share. The state has not. Promises to teachers must be promises kept. Vote no on any version of SB512.

    If you would like your representative to the Illinois General Assembly to be the recipient of a Pension Call Tuesday, just send the contact info to me. Phone number and email address.
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    Florida GOP Senator Files Legislation to Make Ed Commissioner an Elected Official | Scathing Purple Musings

    Florida GOP Senator Files Legislation to Make Ed Commissioner an Elected Official | Scathing Purple Musings:

    Florida GOP Senator Files Legislation to Make Ed Commissioner an Elected Official

    by Bob Sikes

    Hmmmmm.

    TALLAHASSEE — Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, has filed legislation that would make the education commissioner an elected official and a member of the Cabinet, essentially stripping future governors of any influence he or she may have over the commissioner.

    The bill, SB 96, asks voters to amend the state Constitution in the 2012 election and make the education commissioner an elected official. The job previously was an elected office, but a constitutional amendment passed by voters in 1998 made it an appointed position, along with the Secretary of State, and merged the treasurer’s and comptroller’s offices into the Office of the Chief Financial Officer.

    In the case of the education commissioner, proponents of the change said that it would ensure that an educator ran the state Department of Education, not a politician. Former Gov. Charlie Crist
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    Schools Matter: The cure for the summer reading slump: An increased investment in libraries

    Schools Matter: The cure for the summer reading slump: An increased investment in libraries:

    The cure for the summer reading slump: An increased investment in libraries

    by skrashen
    Sent to the Tri-City Herald, (Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash.)

    The decline in reading achievement over the summer ("Mid-Columbia schools try to beat student forgetfulness," Aug. 28) is actually an argument for increased funding for public libraries.

    Some of the research reports on the summer slump, including Barbara Heyns' original study of summer learning published in 1975, strongly suggest that reading scores go down during the summer because low-income

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    We too came as immigrants… | AREA Chicago

    We too came as immigrants… | AREA Chicago:

    We too came as immigrants…
    BY SUSAN KLONSKY, TIMUEL BLACK

    The following essay is adapted from a chapter of the forthcoming memoir, Sacred Ground: The Chicago Streets of Timuel Black, by Timuel Black with Susan Klonsky.

    I was under a year old when my parents came to Chicago from Alabama on the train, bringing my 10-year-old sister Charlotte, my 4-year-old brother Walter, and me, the baby. My folks arrived in Chicago with quite a handful; their possessions plus the three of us, and my mother expecting baby number four.

    We arrived in August, 1919, mere weeks after the infamous Chicago race riot. Uncounted dozens of Black Chicagoans had died at the hands of white mobs who raced through the few black neighborhoods of the city, setting

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    Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » The low-down on think tanks

    Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » The low-down on think tanks:

    The low-down on think tanks

    by admin

    Research or propaganda??

    Here’s a great primer on pro-privatization think tanks and their inter-connectedness by two of our west coast Parents Across America founders, Dora and Sue.

    Here’s how it starts out:

    “Think tanks are organizations that produce propaganda posing as legitimate research for the benefit of their funders – generally, corporations and billionaires. Some of them were founded decades ago by pro-corporate leaders in partnership with millionaires and corporations. They were created for a specific purpose, such as to

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