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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Big Education Ape: 3-7-12 AM Scholarships, Internships, Programs for Latino Students EDition #SOSCHAT

Big Education Ape: PARENTS CAN!:
Big Education Ape: PARENTS CAN!

Published by Coopmike48 – 8 news spotters today




Answering Questions of Fundamental Fairness

ed.gov - Earlier today, Secretary Duncan released new data from the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights that reveal unfortunate truths about our nation’s schools. The Civil Rights Data Collect...
arneduncan

Tribal Education Agency Pilot | ED.gov Blog

ed.gov - Thank you for your interest in the grant competition tentatively called the State-Tribal Education Partnership (STEP) Pilot, the Department’s pilot to provide an opportunity for tribes to meaningfu...
arneduncan

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coopmike48 Teacher job satisfaction plummets — Survey - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post t.co/nTCjOhiX4 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite
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coopmike48 What GOP candidates said about education in Tuesday night speeches - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post t.co/LUzeUcTg4 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite
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coopmike48 Teamster Nation: Today's Teamster News 03.07.12 t.co/YJAZlH6z3 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite
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coopmike48 4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: In Memoriam: RUSH KIDDER t.co/p5zKsbXP2 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

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Wendy Kopp: The Trouble With Humiliating Teachers

online.wsj.com - When I dropped my kids off at school last week, I had a hard time looking their teachers in the eye. The New York City government had just posted their performance assessments online, and though I'...
DianeRavitch

States Loosening 'Seat Time' Requirements

edweek.org - States have established an array of policies in recent years to free schools from having to award academic credits based on "seat time," with the goal of making it easier for struggling students to...
leoniehaimson

No Public Education, No Democracy

citywatchla.com - EDUCATION - I teach English at Montgomery High School in Santa Rosa, California. I love my school, my amazing colleagues, and the kids who enter my classroom each year. But I hate what is happening...
DianeRavitch

SocietySee all


Kadner: Lawmakers too silent on teacher pension shift

southtownstar.suntimes.com - Phil Kadner pkadner@southtownstar.com | (708) 633-6787 March 5, 2012 9:36PM Updated: March 6, 2012 4:05PM I’ve been waiting for an outcry from Southland legislators about a plan being discussed in ...
fklonsky

Black Students Face More Discipline, Data Suggests

nytimes.com - Black students, especially boys, face much harsher discipline in public schools than other students, according to new data from the Department of Education. Although black students made...
fklonsky

PoliticsSee all


Exclusive: Russ Feingold Endorses Sheyman In IL-10

livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com - Former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) has made his first endorsement in a Democratic primary since leaving the Senate. He's putting his weight and the strength of his PAC, Progressives United, behind Il...
mikeklonsky

Iranian Teacher faces Imminent Execution

teachersolidarity.com - Abdolreza Ghanbari Iranian teacher, Abdolreza Ghanbari, has had his sentence of execution confirmed by the Iranian courts Abdolreza Ghanbari was sentenced to death for ‘waging war against God’. Rep...
tbfurman

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Partners in ‘slime’ - WWW.THEDAILY.COM

thedaily.com - The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s continued purchase of so-called pink slime for school lunches makes no sense, according to two former microbiologists at the Food Safety Inspection Service. “I ...
K12NN

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Teachers, stay safe. - The Educator's PLN

edupln.ning.com - There has been an awful lot posted online about how to keep students safe on the Internet. However, I haven't run into very much focusing on teacher safety. Perhaps we tend to think that, as adults...
coopmike48

How to use Twitter Help

edupln.ning.com - Dear Educator's PLN,As someone who has been using Twitter for a while now I still find it somewhat confusing. Recently a bunch of friends who don't use Twitter have been asking me how to use the so...
coopmike48

casting call: "high-achieving" asian teen on supernatural

blog.angryasianman.com - Got another casting call passed along to me, this time for the CW show Supernatural... They're looking for Asian teen to guest star on an upcoming three-episode arc as "K. Tran," a "brilliant, high...
coopmike48

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Santa Ana disbands fire department to save money

latimesblogs.latimes.com - The firehouse on Walnut Street in Santa Ana is dotted with reminders of the department's proud 128-year history. A fire alarm telegraph system from 1924 takes up the back wall of the upstairs livin...
coopmike48

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team

fcmat.org - Tuesday, March 6, 2012 The Carlsbad school board just voted to eliminate 20 percent of its teaching positions. San Diego Unified is poised to issue more than 1,600 pink slips to teachers. Sweetwate...
coopmike48

#eduRead this paperSee all


Arne Duncan's Genie, Part 2

schooltechconnect.com - I'm sure this all sounds very appealing to people who don't understand test scores. Check out the article title: I once blogged about this woman I met--- ages ago at a mall in Phoenix. She was work...
tbfurman

#soschatSee all


First, Kill All the School Boards - Magazine

theatlantic.com - It wasn’t just the slate and pencil on every desk, or the absence of daily beatings. As Horace Mann sat in a Leipzig classroom in the summer of 1843, it was the entire Prussian system of schools th...
leoniehaimson

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ASCD Inservice: School Choice, A Fix That Fails

ASCD Inservice: School Choice, A Fix That Fails:

School Choice, A Fix That Fails

Harvey_JamesGary Houchens ignores the research I presented, glosses over the distinction between funding of schools and other public services, and misses the point of the Mao Zedong analogy.

With respect to the research on charters, it is not a case of "some will succeed and some will fail." It is a case of only 17 percent being better than public schools. As I explain in the article ("Privatization: A Drain on Public Schools"), a landmark study from a pro-charter think tank concluded that 83 percent of charters are either worse than or no better than public schools. Meanwhile, in case after case, vouchers have not delivered on their promise of improved achievement.

Contrary to Houchens's claim, financing K–12 education is not akin to financing health care or higher education. States compel attendance at public schools for students up to the age of 16; no government compels anyone to get medical

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Florida Judge Rules in Favor of Public Employees « Tangerine, Florida

Florida Judge Rules in Favor of Public Employees « Tangerine, Florida:

Florida Judge Rules in Favor of Public Employees

by 5redherrings

Via a press release from the Florida Education Association:

March 6, 2012

TALLAHASSEE – Circuit Court Judge Jackie Fulford ruled today in favor of the Florida Education Association in its lawsuit on public employees’ mandatory pension “contribution” and reminded Gov. Rick Scott and the extremists in charge of the Legislature that a promise is a promise.

Last year, the Florida Education Association filed a lawsuit seeking to stop the 3 percent tax on teachers, school employees and other workers imposed by the Florida Legislature and signed by Scott.

FEA President Andy Ford hailed the decision as a significant victory for public employees, but as importantly, for the rule of law in our society.

“The judge’s ruling confirms that the Florida Constitution requires the state to live up to its promises,

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NYC Educator: Mr. Educator and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

NYC Educator: Mr. Educator and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day:

Mr. Educator and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

by NYC Educator
Yesterday morning I was very lucky. While I was waiting to grab a parking spot, a much better one opened up around the corner. So I zipped around to grab it, but went a little too quickly. I went right over the curb and destroyed a very new tire. Nothing like changing a tire before your first class to get the old adrenaline going. And on what appears to be the last freezing cold morning for a while to boot.

My school has a Quality Review coming up. Everyone is nervous. What do they want? Will they hate us and everything we stand for, like everyone at Tweed does? Do they want to know about Life, the Universe, and Everything? How long will they want us to discuss it?

There's a big poster up. Apparently, they wish to consult
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Hechinger Report | Fewer than half of U.S. teachers report satisfaction with their jobs, annual survey finds

Hechinger Report | Fewer than half of U.S. teachers report satisfaction with their jobs, annual survey finds:

Fewer than half of U.S. teachers report satisfaction with their jobs, annual survey finds

by Sarah Carr

Public-school teacher satisfaction has dropped significantly over the last two years, according to a national survey of hundreds of teachers released today by the insurance giant MetLife.

In 2009, nearly 60 percent of teachers polled said they were very satisfied with their jobs, but only 44 percent reported high satisfaction levels in a similar survey conducted last year.

The survey’s authors link the increased frustration to the downturn in the economy and related budget cuts in many districts. They note that hundreds of teachers reported increased class sizes; cuts to school-based social services or health programs; and schoolchildren who are more likely to come to school hungry than they were a

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Grass roots effort goes viral. UPDATED. « Fred Klonsky

Grass roots effort goes viral. UPDATED. « Fred Klonsky:

Grass roots effort goes viral. UPDATED.

by Fred Klonsky

The state’s public employee union leadership won’t mention it. The IEA leadership let almost two weeks go by before they noticed the issue. The media has ignored it.

But the petition to Governor Quinn to restore state funding to retiree education employee health insurance is now heading for the 20,000 signature mark.

For a comparison, the IEA reported that they could only mobilize 4,000 emails to the legislature during the pension debate last May.

If the Governor and the legislature do not restore funding to the budget, health insurance costs of presently retired teachers in the TRIP and CIP (higher ed) insurance programs will double. This is a cruel hit to the many

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State faces teacher shortage as more retire, fewer enter profession | California Watch

State faces teacher shortage as more retire, fewer enter profession | California Watch:

State faces teacher shortage as more retire, fewer enter profession

skynesher/istockphoto.com

The percentage of California educators reaching retirement age is rising rapidly, while the number of newly credentialed teachers has decreased for the seventh year in a row, new reports show.

The findings have important implications for school budgets and staffing, as older educators typically command higher salaries and will need a new workforce to take their place at retirement.

More than 23 percent of educators – including teachers, school nurses, speech therapists and administrators – were ages 56 to 65 in 2009-10, up from 14.2 percent in 1995-96, according to research released last month by

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“MetLife Survey of the American Teacher” Released Today | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…

“MetLife Survey of the American Teacher” Released Today | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…:

“MetLife Survey of the American Teacher” Released Today

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 7 hours ago
The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher: Teachers, Parents and the Economy, the 28th in an annual series commissioned by MetLife and conducted by Harris Interactive, was released today. You can read the press release summarizing its findings here, and … Continue reading →

ZooWhiz Looks Like A Good Site For Math & English

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 7 hours ago
ZooWhiz is a good — and free — Australian site with tons of interactive games and exercises for pre-school, elementary, and middle school (and for English Language Learners who are even older). Users have to register for the site, and … Continue reading →

The Best Resources For World Read Aloud Day

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 7 hours ago
March 7th is World Read Aloud Day this year, and here are a number of useful resources: World Read Aloud Day Activities World Read Aloud Day Blog Tools and Tips for World Read-Aloud Day is from The New York Times … Continue reading →

How To Find The Most Popular Smithsonian Magazine Articles

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 7 hours ago
I periodically post “most popular” lists of websites (and books) that I think educators might find useful. Of course, there are a number of ways to gauge “popularity.” I just view these lists as opportunities to check-out some new sites, … Continue reading →

My New Ed Week Post “Thoughts On The Meaning Of ‘Rigor’”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 8 hours ago
My new Education Week Teacher column is titled “Thoughts On The Meaning of ‘Rigor’” and includes responses from Barbara Blackburn, Cris Tovani, Ira Socol, Nancy Flanagan and Paul Thomas. And I’ve including a “bonus” chart created by me! I think … Continue reading →

Looking For A Folktale Showing A Person Trying To Help, But Only Makes Things Worse

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 10 hours ago
I’m looking for a folktale or fable that gives an example of someone trying to help, but their help only ends up making things worse for the person they’re trying to help (that sentence seems a little weird, but does … Continue reading →

Focusing On Neighborhood Assets — One Of My Favorite Lessons!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 11 hours ago
We’re in the middle of one of my favorite units — where we focus on our neighborhood’s assets instead of its deficits. I explain it more in detail at A Lesson Highlighting Community Assets — Not Deficits, and have a … Continue reading →

Thinking “Inside Out” — How Could I Use This In A Lesson?

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 19 hours ago
Robert Krulwich had another thought-provoking column at NPR yesterday — Inside-Out Your Mind. He shares a number of excellent examples, including the video I’ve embedded below, that encourage people to be creative by thinking the opposite — “inside-out.” I always … Continue reading →

What The “MetLife Survey of the American Teacher” Learned About Parent Engagement

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 7 hours ago
The annual “MetLife Survey of the American Teacher” was released today. You can read all about it at my main blog, but I thought I’d share an excerpt from their summary that relates to parent involvement/engagement: And levels of parent engagement have increased: Levels of engagement between parents and schools have seen marked improvement over [...]

“Title 1 And Parent Involvement”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 12 hours ago
Title 1 And Parent Involvement: Lessons From The Past, Recommendations For The Future is a new report from The Center For American Progress, and is written by Karen Mapp. If it’s written by Karen Mapp, then you know it’s worth reading! She, along with Anne Henderson, are the two top researchers in the field.

“Parent trigger: School tests California law that allows takeover via petition”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 18 hours ago
Parent trigger: School tests California law that allows takeover via petition is an article in today’s Washington Post. You might also be interested in The Best Resources For Learning Why The Parent Trigger Isn’t Good For Parents, Kids Or Schools.
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Such a big cost, so little benefit: Why, Governor, persist with Common Core? | Thoughts on Public Education

Such a big cost, so little benefit: Why, Governor, persist with Common Core? | Thoughts on Public Education:

Such a big cost, so little benefit: Why, Governor, persist with Common Core? - by Doug Lasken

by Doug Lasken
Somehow in preparing to run against Republican Meg Whitman, California Gov. Jerry Brown managed to shed his old persona of Shaman/Management Theorist, an easy target of ridicule and one that Whitman would surely have relished had she been able to resurrect it. This showed impressive image control, but I’m looking for the [...]

Racial disparity in CA school discipline - by Kathryn Baron

by Kathryn Baron
In nine out of California’s ten largest school districts African American and Hispanic students are suspended and expelled at rates far exceeding their numbers, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. In San Francisco, where African American students compose 11.9 percent of the total enrollment, they accounted for [...]
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Jack Hassard: Are Science Standards Taught as if they were Bricks? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

Jack Hassard: Are Science Standards Taught as if they were Bricks? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

Jack Hassard: Are Science Standards Taught as if they were Bricks?

by Anthony Cody

Guest Post by Jack Hassard.

In the last post we used science education research to show how accountability standards in science education today pose barriers to meaningful learning in science. Today, we extend this theme, and show that the theory of learning underlying the accountability standards movement is in conflict with contemporary theories used to explain how students learn.bricks.jpg

Ideas as Bricks.
John Dewey believed that learning is embedded in experiences when the student interacts with the environment, which is when humans work to deal with the tensions between themselves and their surroundings. Dewey believed that learning is natural, not process limited. He would say that humans are

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Louisiana Educator: Governor Jindal's war on Public Education and Teachers

Louisiana Educator: Governor Jindal's war on Public Education and Teachers:

Governor Jindal's war on Public Education and Teachers

by Michael Deshotels
Part I Changes in Accountability and School Performance Scores: The ESEA No Child Left Behindproposal sent to the US DOE last week is really a major revision of the Louisiana Accountability System. In my opinion, when combined with the new legislation nullifying tenure, making all professional educators' careers dependent on student test scores, and adding unlimited vouchers and charters, it amounts to accountability on steroids. And just like athletes who misuse steroids to get bigger and stronger, this "miracle" reform plan is likely to produce grotesque and damaging results and side effects.

In addition to setting unscientific and unattainable student achievement goals in a two year period, the ESEA waiver proposal drastically changes the mechanism for calculating school performance scores. (see pages 49 - 61 of the ESEA waiver application). To put it briefly the rating system is changed from a 200 point system to a 150 point system yet the points needed for various letter grades are not reset proportionately. Proportionally the minimum "A" should go from 120 to 90, but the lowest A is set at 100. The new B is 85 to 99.9, the new C is 70
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Today in Annapolis: Last Stand for Baltimore City Schools Renovations | Re:education in Baltimore

Today in Annapolis: Last Stand for Baltimore City Schools Renovations | Re:education in Baltimore:

Today in Annapolis: Last Stand for Baltimore City Schools Renovations

by Edit Barry

This is an email from Frank Patinella, tireless leader of the Transform Baltimore movement. Get on the bus. And if you can’t get on the bus, spread it:
Transform Baltimore
Build Schools. Build Neighborhoods.
Last hearing to support the renovation of city school buildings – We need a big turnout! Join us!

Goal: Pass Senate Bill 533 (House Bill 304)

This bill would lay the foundation to fund more than $1 billion in school construction and renovation needs for Baltimore City, and the upcoming hearing in Annapolis is our highest priority!

We had a great presence in the House Appropriations committee on Tuesday afternoon. The room was packed! Mayor Rawlings-Blake and Dr. Alonso sat together and gave testimony in support of the bill. We also heard powerful statements from over a dozen
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The Educated Reporter: Teacher Job Satisfaction Takes Huge Drop, According to Survey

The Educated Reporter: Teacher Job Satisfaction Takes Huge Drop, According to Survey:

Teacher Job Satisfaction Takes Huge Drop, According to Survey

by Emily Richmond
The fact that there’s been a record decline in the percentage of teachers who say they are satisfied with their jobs is worrisome -- but perhaps not surprising.

The new MetLife Survey of the American Teacher – the result of telephone interviews with over a thousand teachers across the country – found just 44 percent of them were satisfied with their jobs, compared with 59 percent in 2009. That 15-percentage slide represents a record drop and takes teacher satisfaction to its lowest level in 20 years.

At the same time, the percentage of teachers who said they were likely to leave their jobs in the next five years jumped to 29 percent from 17 percent just two years ago.

The survey offers a profile of the American public school teacher, as well as how parents and students feel about
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