Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Big Education Ape: 9-20-11 PM California Helps Write New Science Standards EDition

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now:

Published by Coopmike48 – 5 news spotters today

An odd way to honor teachers - The Answer Sheet

washingtonpost.com - It would be somewhat churlish to criticize any attempt to honor public school teachers just when they feel under assault by the modern school reform movement — including Monday night’s glitzy celeb...

mikeklonsky

Tribune's Zorn calls for union surrender

michaelklonsky.blogspot.com - Bad advice from Eric The Trib's Eric Zorn is way off base in calling on the CTU to surrender and withdraw it's complaint to the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board regarding Rahm's fraudulen...

mikeklonsky

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coopmike48 SACRAMENTO PROGRESSIVE ALLIANCE: Wall Street Protests -http://t.co/CXauzt2n12 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… - Google Plus Is Now Open To Everyone - http://t.co/K6XFswRS12 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: PSC 3.0: FAMILY & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN – The PowerPoint http://t.co/Lb57kFjZ #Edu13 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 This Week In Education: Five Best Blogs: Rick Perry Needs A Paddlin' -http://t.co/aZiE61Qk16 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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coopmike48 Dan Choi Re-Enlisting: Officer Who Fought To Repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Aims To Rejoin Army - Democratic Under http://t.co/fyCmuFtk16 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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EducationSee all

CMS named country's top urban district

charlotteobserver.com - Posted: Tuesday, Sep. 20, 2011 In a time of bruising turmoil, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools today claimed a national prize honoring what its 17,750 employees have done to boost student learning. CM...

leoniehaimson

NBC's Education Nation: Corporate reform's star-studded agenda

schoolingintheownershipsociety.blogspot.com - NBC's ed extravaganza is essentially a bought and paid-for showcase for ownership society school reform. Leading off on Monday morning, the Buffett family -- Warren (Birkshire Hathaway), Susie, and...

mikeklonsky

Arizona Public Media | AZPM Home

azpm.org - In School, Smaller is Better Story By Tony Paniagua September 19, 2011Robin Hiller, executive director of Voices for Education in Tucson, advocates for smaller classroom size to enhance learning.Je...

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SocietySee all

Class war. « Fred Klonsky's blog

preaprez.wordpress.com - Was this some kind of king’s X thing? Promises were made. But promises don’t seem to count for much anymore. While desperate Democrats are hailing Obama’s alleged tough Rose Garden talk yesterday, ...

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Schools Chancellor Walcott is on a losing streak here

silive.com - During each of two recent visits to Staten Island, Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott made misleading statements about New York State law and his own department’s disciplinary regulations. In an app...

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CrimeSee all

The Killing of Troy Davis

forbes.com - Dave Zirin writes: It’s with shock that I report that the George Board of Pardons and Paroles on Tuesday denied clemency for Troy Anthony Davis. [sic] The 42-year-old Davis is now due to be execute...

coopmike48

Parole board denies clemency to Troy Davis

ajc.com - By Bill RankinThe Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionThe state Board of Pardons and Paroles on Tuesday denied clemency for Troy Anthony Davis after hearing pleas for mercy from Davis' family and calls for...

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Art & EntertainmentSee all

Why Jon Stewart is a Force for Evil « Student Activism

studentactivism.net - Sunday night I tweeted, as Jon Stewart won his I’m-not-even-making-this-up ninth consecutive Emmy for Best Variety Show or whatever, that “Jon Stewart is like 63% of the way to being the guy he sta...

coopmike48

Mayor Bloomberg Really Digs the Leopard Print - National

theatlanticwire.com - The New York Times calls it "baronial" but to us, it's just flat-out gaudy. In the real estate porn scoop of the month, The Times has discovered that the interior of New York Mayor Michael Bloomber...

coopmike48

WorldSee all

Kansas City school district loses accreditation

sfgate.com - (09-20) 15:21 PDT Jefferson City, Mo. (AP) -- Missouri education officials are revoking the accreditation of the Kansas City School District. The decision Tuesday by the Missouri State Board of Edu...

coopmike48

Wall Street Protests Continue, With at Least 5 Arrested

cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com - In a continuation of the demonstrations that began on Saturday, nearly 200 protesters marched along Wall Street and other parts of the financial district Monday morning, brandishing American flags ...

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BusinessSee all

White House Pledges to Expedite FoIA Requests

democraticunderground.com - Source: Broadcasting and Cable NewsThe White House said Tuesday it will leverage technology to try to expedite Freedom of Information Act requests.That came in the announcement of the latest open g...

coopmike48

#eduRead this paperSee all

#signonSee all

SignOn.org Beta

signon.org - Flag petition as inappropriateBy Susan DuFresne (Contact)To be delivered to: The United States SenateDear Senators: The recent passage of H.R. 2218, the Empowering Parents Through the Quality Chart...

leoniehaimson

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      Everyone was at the table. Are our pensions gone now? « Fred Klonsky's blog

      Everyone was at the table. Are our pensions gone now? « Fred Klonsky's blog:

      Everyone was at the table. Are our pensions gone now?

      by Fred Klonsky

      The IEA leadership has this thing about sitting at tables.

      For IEA President Cinda Klickna, like Ken Swanson before her, sitting at the table is very important.

      You can give it all away, but it’s okay. As long as we were at the table.

      Just look at their stuff on the iea website on Senate Bill 7. It’s all about the fact that we were at the table. The fact that we lost our tenure and seniority rights, that principals are now running amok in anticipation of one

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      4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: PSC 3.0: FAMILY & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN – The PowerPoint

      4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: PSC 3.0: FAMILY & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN – The PowerPoint:

      PSC 3.0: FAMILY & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN – The PowerPoint

      BY SMF FOR 4LAKIDSNEWS

      This is the PowerPoint presented to the applicant teams on Monday 19 Sept under Public School Choice 3.o (as it’s been modified itshould be PSC 3.1 …but let’s not go there) reflecting the most recent changes from The Board of Ed, the Superintendent, The Innovation and Charter Schools Division and the powers that be – no doubt including the Mayor’s Office, The Charter School Association, Families in Schools, The Broad Academy and the Walton and Gates Foundations (collectively “Beaudry”).

      The presentation will be repeated on Thursday Sept 22nd. Sordid details (though not the time or location)follow.

      Persons who attended the presentation say the piece was well presented and well thought out …although occasionally the presenters*

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      Families and Schools Get Engaged: A Long Road to a Great Marriage?« Whole Child Education

      The Whole Child Blog « Whole Child Education:

      THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG

      Families and Schools Get Engaged: A Long Road to a Great Marriage?

      September 20th, 2011 by

      OK, maybe you’ve been burned once. Maybe it’s even happened twice. But are you prepared to let those isolated incidents get in the way of all the great things that can come from a committed partnership?

      No, we’re not talking about your love life; we’re talking about building a different kind of partnership—a school–family partnership. These partnerships can sometimes feel as complicated and dramatic as our past or present love lives. Some of us—teachers, principals, parents, guardians, and students—have been burned in the past and are hesitant to give it another try. And when we do take that leap of faith, we bring forth our fears, which can interfere with developing meaningful relationships. But just as research has suggested that people in committed life partnerships enjoy many benefits, such as longer lives and better mental and physical health,

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      'Irvine 11' defense attorneys call the students patriots - latimes.com

      'Irvine 11' defense attorneys call the students patriots - latimes.com:

      'Irvine 11' defense attorneys call the students patriots

      Irvine 11 defendants2

      As the so-called Irvine 11 trial in Santa Ana wound down Tuesday, defense attorneys said the 10 students accused of illegally protesting an Israeli diplomat's speech were patriotic defenders of the Constitution.

      In closing arguments, the lawyers likened their clients to Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Cesar Chavez for what the defense described as a legal form of civil disobedience at UC Irvine last year.

      The Muslim students "are serving our society with their conscience," said Jacqueline Goodman, one of six defense attorneys.

      She said the students left plenty of time for Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren to finish his speech after they were escorted out of the ballroom. Oren did complete his address -- on U.S.-Israeli relations -- but cut out a planned question-and-answer session.

      Lisa Holder, another defense lawyer, said the students' shouted comments at Oren were certainly not

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      All Education Matters: Despondent Mother: "We are about to face a two-generation indentured educated class"

      All Education Matters: Despondent Mother: "We are about to face a two-generation indentured educated class":

      Despondent Mother: "We are about to face a two-generation indentured educated class"

      by Cryn Johannsen
      Sensationally smart. Wicked sense of humor. Loving. Deeply religious and caring. These are a few words that come to mind when describing my friend who is a devoted mother and an indentured educated citizen. We have exchanged emails for years, and I have now been invited to her home. She lives far north, where the weather still seems normal. When Texas was on its god-knows-what-day of endless 107+ degree temperatures this past summer, this kind woman told me I was more than welcome to escape and come stay with her. She sends me deeply moving and profound notes all the time, and one recently hit me quite hard. Someone who uses words that can make you cry one moment and then laugh the next . . . that person's words must be shared - I'd be selfish to keep these powerful comments to myself.

      Who is she exactly? She is you. She is me. She is all of us.

      She is fearful. She is indebted. She is well-educated. She is worried about her children's futures. She is angry.
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      Don’t do it. « Fred Klonsky's blog

      Don’t do it. « Fred Klonsky's blog:

      Don’t do it.

      by Fred Klonsky

      Call: 912-652-7308. Be prepared to hold.
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      No Defending Illiterate Educators « My Island View

      No Defending Illiterate Educators « My Island View:

      No Defending Illiterate Educators

      by tomwhitby

      I was always intrigued by the saying, “I taught him everything he knows, but not everything that I know!” I always thought that was a pretty clever saying. It was also true of educators in years gone by. They were the content experts. If you wanted knowledge, these experts had it. People paid good money to travel to the places where these content experts delivered their wares, universities, colleges and monasteries. Knowledge was a commodity and, if the expert held anything back, a student’s only recourse for more, was to search the libraries. Ah, the simplicity of the bygone days. As public education came about we had many more content experts and many more libraries. That was the model, listen to experts and read content in books housed in academic or public libraries. Since all of education was based on print media every teacher was media literate, if they could read and understand.

      Media began to change first with TV, and then with computers offering other means of content delivery. Television

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      This Week In Education: Thompson: Using Federal Education Funds To Bash Teachers

      This Week In Education: Thompson: Using Federal Education Funds To Bash Teachers:

      Thompson: Using Federal Education Funds To Bash Teachers

      by john thompson

      WhistleArne Duncan has remained silent as states like Tennessee, Florida, and Rhode Island promised collaboration with teachers and then launched assaults on the rights of teachers. Then Duncan supported Rahm Emanuel's use of taxpayers' money for the ultimate divide and conquer tactic of bribing "inviting" individual schools to break with the union there. Now, theCharlotte Observer reports that the Charlotte Mecklenburg schools have used


      Quotes: Maybe It's Reformers Who Need Resilience Most

      by Alexander Russo

      Quotes2Something] I’ve realized about recruiting really smart people [is] they've never truly struggled with anything... They’re used to working hard, and getting fairly immediate results and teaching doesn’t work like that. So it’s breaking them down mentally. - Max Bean


      Video: PBS / POV Premiers "The Learning" Tonight

      by Alexander Russo

      image from www.pov.orgIn addition to the Dan Rather Reports show on the testing industry tonight there's also going to be a PBS POV premier of a documentary called "The Learning" about four

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      California Helps Write New Science Standards - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education)

      California Helps Write New Science Standards - Year 2011 (CA Dept of Education):


      State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces California
      Will Lead Effort in Writing New National Science Standards

      SACRAMENTO—Demonstrating the state's leadership in science, technology, and its commitment to 21st century learning, California has been chosen as one of 20 states to lead a nationwide effort to develop the next generation of science standards for public schools, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today.
      "From our universities to our laboratories, California has always led the way in science and technology, so it's only fitting that we help craft the next generation of science lessons for students," Torlakson said. "Having a hand in shaping these standards will give other states the benefit of our success as a technology leader, and give California's education system and our own students a leg up in preparing for their futures in a science and tech-savvy world."
      A recent U.S. Department of Commerce study found that over the past 10 years, growth in jobs involving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (known as the STEM fields) was three times greater than that of non-STEM occupations. The report also forecast that STEM jobs are expected to continue to grow at a faster rate than others in the coming decade. STEM-related industries continue to be a major factor in California's economy.
      The 20 lead state partners selected to develop the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are Arizona, California, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. NGSS will clearly articulate the science standards that are defined as the educational content and practices students will need to learn from kindergarten through high school.
      "The lead state partners will provide important leadership and guidance throughout the development of the Next Generation Science Standards and are to be congratulated for making a strong commitment to improving science education," said Michael Cohen, president of Achieve, a nonprofit organization heading up the effort. "This will be a collaborative process that will lead to a set of standards that provides America's students a strong foundation in science and supports college and career readiness for all."
      The development of NGSS is a two-step process. The first step was the building of a framework that identified the core ideas and practices in natural sciences and engineering that all students should be familiar with by the time they graduate. In July, the National Research Council released A Framework for K-12 Science Education, developed by a committee representing expertise in science, teaching and learning, curriculum, assessment, and education policy. For more information on theFramework, please visit The National Academies Web site at National-Academies.org | Newsroom (Outside Source).
      The second step is the development of science standards based on the Framework. As a lead state partner, California will help guide the standard writing process, gather and deliver feedback from state-level committees, and come together to address common issues and challenges. The lead state partners also agree to commit staff time to the initiative and, upon completion, give serious consideration to adopting the NGSS. In order to be considered, states had to submit a letter with the signature of the Chief State School Officer and the chair of the State Board of Education.
      For more information on NGSS, please visit the Achieve Web site at Achieve, Inc. (Outside Source).
      # # # #
      Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
      Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100
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      Duncan on Parent Involvement and Fixing NCLB | ED.gov Blog

      Duncan on Parent Involvement and Fixing NCLB | ED.gov Blog:

      Duncan on Parent Involvement and Fixing NCLB

      Posted on September 20, 2011 by Cameron Brenchley

      Secretary Duncan recently sat down to respond to a few comments he received on hisFacebook page. Duncan describes the importance of parents in a student’s education, and he says that it’s important we do “everything we can do to get parents more engaged, to have them be full and equal partners with teachers, to be part of the solution.”

      Secretary Duncan also responded to comments about the No Child Left Behind Law (NCLB), by noting that “the current law, as I’ve said repeatedly, is far too punitive, far too prescriptive, [and] has led to a “dumbing down” of standards, [and] to a narrowing of the curriculum.”

      Since the beginning of the Obama Administration, Secretary Duncan has been working with Congress to obtain a bipartisan fix to NCLB, but Congress hasn’t acted yet. Later this week, President Obama will announce additional details on the Administration’s plan to give great teachers and great schools the flexibility they need to improve education outcomes.

      Read the Top 5 Questions About NCLB Flexibility, and sign up to receive email updates on reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).


      Click here for an alternate version of the video with an accessible player.
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