We’re Not the Enemy « Cooperative Catalyst

We’re Not the Enemy « Cooperative Catalyst:

We’re Not the Enemy

by John T. Spencer

I’ve heard the arguments and I get it. The industrial model isn’t working. The system needs to change. We need authentic learning. I get it. Really, I do. What’s funny with the whole outdated industrial model is that teachers often agree with the point and in many cases, we’re the ones trying to fight against the system.

I fight against the system in small ways (that I’m sure are not “big enough” for many who want to go with a fuck-the-system-altogether mentality): refusal to use punishments and rewards, project-based and problem-based learning, student choice in assignments, painting murals, filming documentaries, abolishing grades and moving toward independent projects.

Despite this reality, there is a purist mentality (bordering on being puritanical) that states that anyone working within the system is corrupt. On one popular blog, teachers have been compared to child abusers, prison guards, slave drivers and thieves.

We’re fighting the same fight. However, I continue to watch both sides attacking one another. Unschoolers and

Obama’s Ed Dept puts Hawaii’s Race to Top grant on high-risk status - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Obama’s Ed Dept puts Hawaii’s Race to Top grant on high-risk status - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

Obama’s Ed Dept puts Hawaii’s Race to Top grant on high-risk status

by Valerie Strauss

Hawaii may be delighted that President Obama and his family are spending the holidays in his home state, but it is perhaps not so enamored with his Education Department at the moment.

Department officials have written a letter to Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) saying that the state’s $75 million Race to the Top grant is now on “high-risk status.”

Read full article >>

Poking the Sacred Cow « The Core Knowledge Blog

Poking the Sacred Cow « The Core Knowledge Blog:

Poking the Sacred Cow

by Jessica Lahey

It’s day six of my holiday break and I have finally acknowledged the large stack of paper on the floor next to my desk. I had been ignoring it, hoping it would magically grade itself, but alas, this has not been the case. It’s still there, still huge, still daunting. In the meantime, I have cleaned the entire house, gone to the dump twice, moved our furniture around, stacked another cord of wood, winterized the chicken tractor, and killed seven mice in the attic, but now, it’s time. Time to grade the mid-year writing assessments.

While I was completing all of these other acts of procrastination, I was mentally composing another essay for an upcoming deadline, a piece has been freaking me out, both as a writer and a teacher. In order to be successful in this piece, I must come clean about my homework practices. For non-teachers, that may sound like an easy task, but it’s not. Homework is a time-honored tradition among teachers, a sacred cow best left undisturbed to chew its cud in the median. We go about our daily business in its shadow, so used to its presence right there in the middle of things that we don’t even see it

Frank Biden: “We’re Not Profiting From Our Schools” | Scathing Purple Musings

Frank Biden: “We’re Not Profiting From Our Schools” | Scathing Purple Musings:

Frank Biden: “We’re Not Profiting From Our Schools”

by Bob Sikes

Frank Biden’s quickly becoming Florida charter schools’ Baghdad Bob. From New Times’ Lisa Rab :

Responding to this week’s cover story about the charter school chain he runs, Frank Biden continues to insist Mavericks in Education Florida is not profiting from its schools. He says it’s just the school buildings that bring in the dough.

“We’re not profiting from our schools. Anybody with half a brain can figure that out,” he says. “We

Last Stand for Children First: As We Approach 2012 - Scrappy Reformers are Turning the Tide

Last Stand for Children First: As We Approach 2012 - Scrappy Reformers are Turning the Tide:

As We Approach 2012 - Scrappy Reformers are Turning the Tide

by Last Stand for Children

In the battle between the Goliaths of the status quo and the scrappy Davids of education reform, the tide may be slowly turning. It was Arthur Reynolds Award winner Anthony Russo, whose This Week in Education articlebrought new attention to the battle for the hearts and minds of the American public, but the battle lines could not be more sharply drawn.

On the one hand, you have the Evil Empire. If there is a person in public life who more closely resembles Darth

Board of Governors Rebuke of USF President “Shameless Political Boot Licking” | Scathing Purple Musings

Board of Governors Rebuke of USF President “Shameless Political Boot Licking” | Scathing Purple Musings:

Board of Governors Rebuke of USF President “Shameless Political Boot Licking”

by Bob Sikes

Yowza.

The editors of the Tampa Tribune really let two Board of Governors have it for assailing USF president Judy Genshaft after she dismissed an “insubordinate administrator.” Genshaft sacked USF Polytechnic – Lakeland chancellor Marshall Goodman last week.

So the attack on Genshaft was an exercise in shameless political boot licking. As Pasco’s Sen. Mike Fasano pointed out, the governors have no authority over such management decisions.

Expect more of the same at the Board of Governors meeting in January. Hosseini even echoed

The odd case of the Mark Kirk IEA endorsement. « Fred Klonsky

The odd case of the Mark Kirk IEA endorsement. « Fred Klonsky:

The odd case of the Mark Kirk IEA endorsement.

by Fred Klonsky

The other day I wrote a post about the congressional race in the 10th District of Illinois.

Ilya Sheyman is running in the Democratic Party primary. Although this suburban Chicago north shore district has generally elected Republicans, the new reconfigured borders make it even more competitive than it already was. And it already was competitive. Sheyman is the progressive choice in the new 10th CD, and the political arm of the IEA should endorse him and teachers should vote for him.

The problem with IPACE endorsements is that the IEA likes to promote itself as non-partisan, meaning they endorse Republicans.

I don’t find this to be a problem since these days you can hardly tell the difference between most Democrats and most Republicans. Rahm is a Democrat and he’s trying to bust the teachers union. Madigan is the state’s

Unusual effort aims to “reconnect” McDowell County AFT President Randi Weingarten

News | WVSBA Publications:

Unusual effort aims to “reconnect” McDowell County

McDowell County is the focus of what is called “an unprecedented public-private partnership” to improve the education system as well as to address the county’s economic decline and poverty.

The American Federation of Teachers is leading the effort, called Reconnecting McDowell, which involves more than 40 partners, including businesses, foundations, government, nonprofit agencies and labor organizations.

“McDowell County is an American story that deserves a new chapter.” – AFT President Randi Weingarten

“McDowell County is an American story that deserves a new chapter,” AFT President Randi Weingarten said in a written statement. “Given the challenges, being conventional won’t be good enough. We will be flexible, creative and entrepreneurial, and will take risks.”

The partners have signed a covenant that commits them to seek solutions to such complex problems as poverty, underperforming schools, substance abuse, housing shortages, limited medical services,

Democurmudgeon: Finland's Success, and Why Conservatives will never improve Education in America.

Democurmudgeon: Finland's Success, and Why Conservatives will never improve Education in America.:

Finland's Success, and Why Conservatives will never improve Education in America.

by Democurmudgeon

Finland is tops in education because it strived for equity, and not excellence. Equity is the enemy of conservative politics, and is in opposition to their fictionalized vision of a society filled with rugged individuals and unfettered capitalism. School reform in America ignores Finland efforts listed below:

The Atlantic: One of the hottest trends in education reform lately is looking at the stunning success of the West's reigning education superpower, Finland. Trouble is, when it comes to the lessons that Finnish schools have to offer, most of the discussion seems to be missing the point. Finland's success is especially intriguing because Finnish schools assign less homework and engage children in more creative play. one of the leading Finnish authorities on education reform is Pasi Sahlberg, director of the Finnish Ministry of Education's Center for International Mobility and author of the new book Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland?

During the afternoon that Sahlberg spent at the Dwight School, in a roundtable chat with students. one of the most

Utter Failure of Original Intent « Cooperative Catalyst

Utter Failure of Original Intent « Cooperative Catalyst:

Utter Failure of Original Intent

by @DrJackKing

Please don’t think this unfair, but our schools do not know how to adapt to the ever-changing needs of learners. Sure, some teachers are exceptionally dedicated. And, yes, schools continue, in a round about way, to meet their basic intent. Basic intent? What is that? Ask Catherine the Great. Science, English, math, social studies, and foreign languages form the basis of a national system designed expressly to produce — are you tired of hearing it yet? — good soldiers who follow orders, good factory assembly-line workers who gladly perform repetitive, mundane tasks, and good citizens who compliantly pay their taxes and never (ok, almost never) question authority. The implication, of course, is that anyone not living within these boundaries is somehow bad.

To what end? We have morphed into a one-size-fits-all world of schooling, strongly focused on teaching rather

Scott Olsen returns. « Fred Klonsky #OWS

Scott Olsen returns. « Fred Klonsky:

Scott Olsen returns.

by Fred Klonsky

In October we showed you the video of Iraq War veteran Scott Olsen. He was wounded, shot in the face by Oakland police during an Occupy Oakland protest.

Democracy Now!:

Scott Olsen, former Marine who served two tours in the Iraq War and was critically wounded after being shot in the head by a police projectile at Occupy Oakland. He was hospitalized in critical condition with a fractured skull, a broken neck vertebrae, and brain swelling. He was released from the hospital last

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Summing up 2011: David Sirota did it for me

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Summing up 2011: David Sirota did it for me:

Summing up 2011: David Sirota did it for me

by Mike Klonsky

SOS March & Rally, July 30, 2011

I was going to write one of those end-of-the-year blog posts. But lucky for me, Salon.com's David Sirota ("In education, it’s all about dollars and cents") did it for me. Now I can concentrate on getting ready for classes next week. Thanks David for getting it right.

As the revelations of 2011 prove, students aren’t helped by billionaire-executives-turned-education-dilettantes who leverage their riches to force their

2011 InterACT in Retrospect « InterACT

2011 InterACT in Retrospect « InterACT:

2011 InterACT in Retrospect

by David B. Cohen

In the past week I’ve reviewed some of the best blog posts here at InterACT, organizing them by author (prior installments include best guest posts, and best posts by Martha Infante and Kelly Kovacic). For the final post of 2011, I’ve picked out some of my posts that I hope are worth another look, and provided either a quick explanation of why I selected that post, or a short quotation to pique your interest.

photo by the author

• The most exciting part of my edublogging year was probably the Save Our Students March and Call to Action in Washington, D.C. I was able to be in Washington that week because of the 2011 conference for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, but I managed to divide my time a little bit. I composed this blog more quickly than anything I’ve ever written of similar length, and posted it within minutes of leaving my hotel room to take in the rally. I concluded that post as follows:

President Obama and Secretary Duncan have failed as educational leaders. I’ll offer credit

Eight and a Half Things I Know Are True - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

Eight and a Half Things I Know Are True - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:

Eight and a Half Things I Know Are True

by Nancy Flanagan

The usual end-of-year Janusian posts are springing up everywhere in Ed Blog world this week--the best and worst of 2011, bold predictions for the upcoming year. List-making draws readers. But I don't really have the heart to revisit the terrible and wonderful year just past--nor do I want to be embarrassed by my own starry-eyed prognostications, come December 2012.

I do like the idea of "Ten Things I Know to be True"--ideas that represent genuine reality, in my world, a roundup of verities. Try as I might, I couldn't come up with ten.

#1) Real school reformers do not spend their days perusing blogs, obsessing over their tweet numbers, engaging in online catfights or handicapping states' chances to win your tax dollars by being more compliant than other states. Real school reformers are mediating squabbles on the playground, revising an unsatisfactory lesson plan

Education: Obfuscation, Metonym or Comparison Device? « Cooperative Catalyst

Education: Obfuscation, Metonym or Comparison Device? « Cooperative Catalyst:

Education: Obfuscation, Metonym or Comparison Device?

by Brent Snavely

During my 52-year trek to Utopia where I uncomfortably practice law, I fed cattle, pitched –it, picked rocks, baled hay and mended fences. I worked at fast-food places and apprehended shoplifters. I was a shop-rat, played cops and robbers, and was a Paramedic and a Paramedic Instructor. After 22 years of school and miscellaneous seminars, I note only the practice of law has involved much more than basic reading, writing and mathematical abilities.

Twenty-five years ago, several others and I started a business to train EMTs and Paramedics. EMS work was exciting (people got injured and died in amazing ways) and one working in the field could earn enough to survive. The training and learning were easy, involving skills and didactic components along with some clinical rotation

NYC Public School Parents: Are we winning the online debate over education reform? and an invitation to join the twitter party

NYC Public School Parents: Are we winning the online debate over education reform? and an invitation to join the twitter party:

Are we winning the online debate over education reform? and an invitation to join the twitter party

by Leonie Haimson

There's been a lots of intense tweeting and blogging over last two days about Alexander Russo's post in which he called the good guys, including those of us on the NYC Education list serv and PAA (Parents Across America) "reform critics" and described us as "Goliaths" beating the billionaire "Davids" in the online debate over education reform. Here’s an excerpt from the post, entitled: "Media: Reform Opponents Are Winning Online (For Now).":

As anyone who reads education sites or goes on Twitter knows, "reform critics" -- they're still working on a better term to describe their views -- have a slew of current teachers and veterans out there talking about their classroom experiences and opinions nearly every day. Nancy Flanagan, TeacherKen, Anthony Cody, and John Thompson to name just a few. It's not just that they're out there shouting randomly into the wind, either. At least some of them seem to be coordinated behind the scenes by SOS or

My Favorite Genuine Education Reform Stories of 2011 - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

My Favorite Genuine Education Reform Stories of 2011 - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

My Favorite Genuine Education Reform Stories of 2011

by Anthony Cody

A couple of weeks ago I posted a look back at 2011, with a list of all 170 of my posts to this blog. I am afraid I have spent a great deal of energy taking issue with what I see as very bad ideas being promoted in the name of reform. But I also have spent some time trying to support GOOD reform ideas, and I want to share some highlights from this year.

First, there is this report, TeamScience Tames Teacher Turnover, focused on the mentoring program I initiated four years ago. This project is a partnership with the New Teacher Center, and it pairs experienced Oakland science teachers with novices, and has helped create a supportive community of science teachers in Oakland. The project has made a real dent in the turnover rates of these teachers, and has also helped support growth in student achievement in science.

We have seen our mentors grow in their expertise, and they are true leaders in our District. And we have started to see some results in the level of turnover. In the year prior to TeamScience, 32% of

Forging ahead with nutty teacher evaluation plan - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Forging ahead with nutty teacher evaluation plan - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

Forging ahead with nutty teacher evaluation plan

by Valerie Strauss

This was written by Carol Corbett Burris, principal of South Side High School in New York. She was named the 2010 New York State Outstanding Educator by the School Administrators Association of New York State.

By Carol Corbett Burris New York State Commissioner John King is about to get tough with 10 school districts that have not finalized negotiations on their teacher evaluation plans. He threatened to take away their schools’ improvement grants if they do not comply. With little or no consideration of countervailing concerns, the commissioner’s approach illustrates the 'My way or the highway' mantra of Race to the Top reformers. The plan, of course, is to blame the unions that are wisely looking at evaluation mandates with a critical eye.
Race to the Top (RTTT) and its requirements have caused serious problems for states, such as New York, that are forging ahead with implementation. My own district wisely pulled out of this particular part of the ongoing

What is a charter school? | Seattle Education

What is a charter school? | Seattle Education:

What is a charter school?

by seattleducation2011

In 2009 when I began the original Seattle Education blog, the first words that I typed were “What is a Charter School?”. With those words I began to write an account of what I had learned from reading everything that I could find on the subject. And why an interest in charter schools? Because at the time, several of us had discovered that our Seattle Public School superintendent was a Broad graduate. We had learned that the Broad Foundation was all about charter schools and that was on the agenda for Seattle and the state of Washington as far as Eli Broad and other reformers were concerned.

Now it’s almost 2012 and the ed reform forces have begun to gather and descend upon our state in an attempt to privatize our public school system.

I have received many questions about charter schools recently and decided to do a series of posts on the subject. First I’ll start with the words that I began writing over two years ago:

What Is a Charter School?

The basic difference between a traditional public school and a privately run charter school is that

Coming Next Week: 2012 RHSU Edu-Scholar Rankings :: Frederick M. Hess

Coming Next Week: 2012 RHSU Edu-Scholar Rankings :: Frederick M. Hess:

Coming Next Week: 2012 RHSU Edu-Scholar Rankings

by Frederick M. Hess • Dec 30, 2011 at 9:19 am
Cross-posted from Education Week

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Just to give readers a head's up, next week we'll be running the 2012 RHSU Edu-Scholar Rankings. The exercise is intended to counter what I think is the academy's unfortunate tendency to discount scholarly contributions that impact public understanding and policy debate. The Edu-Scholar Rankings are intended to recognize university-based scholars, of any discipline or bent, for their contributions to the public square. Impact is understood as encompassing both the corpus of one's scholarly work (how many widely-cited works a scholar has penned, the number of books, etc.) and one's centrality to public discussion in 2011 (appearances in newspaper articles, online media, and so forth).

After all, a scholar's impact on schooling is a product of several factors, including their body of scholarship, the