Monday, April 2, 2012

High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education | Get Schooled: High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education3:47 amApril 2, 2012,byMaureen DowneyThe folks at FairTesthave been raising the alarm about excessive testing and its impact on education long before most people.Here is a response tothe AJC investigation into nationwide disparities in test resultsfrom Robert Schaeffer, public education director of FairTest: the National Center for Fair Open TestingBy Robert SchaefferAcross the U.S., the politically mandated misuse of standardized ... more »

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools | The Columbus Dispatch

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools | The Columbus Dispatch: Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schoolsByJennifer Smith RichardsThe Columbus DispatchMonday April 2, 2012 6:56 AMComments: 1ShareThisSpend first, ask permission later, and don’t bother with receipts.The loose financial systems at some of Ohio’s charter schools have led to questionable spending in recent years. Some schools hired treasurers with spotty track records; others hired qualified treasurers but disregarded their advice when they insisted on better checks and balances.The recent case ... more »

U.S. in and out of step with top ed systems | Thoughts on Public Education

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

U.S. in and out of step with top ed systems | Thoughts on Public Education: U.S. in and out of step with top ed systems - by Kathryn BaronbyKathryn BaronAndreas Schleicher looks the part of a diplomat. Tall and slim, with thick gray hair, and impeccable English spoken with a European accent. He is also the consummate diplomat when it comes to assessing the United State’s standing in education. In most countries, low results on the Programme for International Student ... more »

School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings | Seattle Times Newspaper

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Local News | School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings | Seattle Times Newspaper: School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findingsSchool officials stand by test scores despite paper's findingsAn investigation by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has identified about 200 school districts, including four in Washington state, that recently reported test-score gains the article describes as extremely improbable.ByBrian M. RosenthalSeattle Times education reporterRELATEDThe Atlanta-Journal Constitution investigationWashington state scoresThe Atlanta Jour... more »

Austin Independent School District Battles On for Charter IDEA In-District against the Will of Parents and the Community « Parents Across America

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Austin Independent School District Battles On for Charter IDEA In-District against the Will of Parents and the Community « Parents Across America: Austin Independent School District Battles On for Charter IDEA In-District against the Will of Parents and the CommunitybyLorie BarzanoBy Lorie BarzanoCo-Chair of CoalitionSAUS (Strengthen Austin Urban Schools)A parent led group representing inner-city public schools working to ensure accessible, quality Public Education for all children and healthy, thriving Public Schools in Austin’s urban coreIn a special meeting on December ... more »

Rockford teachers end strike and overwhelmingly approve settlement. « Fred Klonsky

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Rockford teachers end strike and overwhelmingly approve settlement. « Fred Klonsky: Rockford teachers end strike and overwhelmingly approve settlement.byFred KlonskyWhile I was visiting back east with my family in Brooklyn there camethe newsof a settlement in nearby Rockford.“Teachers were thrilled to be going back to the classroom, but I’ll tell you, they

Bloomberg and Tweed: “Our Standards Mean Nothing” | Edwize

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Bloomberg and Tweed: “Our Standards Mean Nothing” | Edwize: Bloomberg and Tweed: “Our Standards Mean Nothing”byLeo CaseyLast Wednesday, the New York City Department of Education (DoE) began holding public meetings for the 33 Transformation and Restart Schools that Mayor Bloomberg announced he would close in his State of the City speech. At the start of each meeting, a Deputy Chancellor reads out a prepared script which purportedly makes the case for closure. For 19 of those 33 schools, nearly 3 ... more »

Report: New schools outperform redesigns | EdNewsColorado

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

Report: New schools outperform redesigns | EdNewsColorado: Report: New schools outperform redesignsbyNancy MitchellDenver Public Schools has opened 36 new schools in the past five years in the quest to improve student achievement, but a new report says not all types of new schools are performing equally well.Students from Gilpin Elementary, a redesigned school, pose in this EdNews file photo.In “Great Expectations, Mixed Results,” released today by the Donnell-Kay Foundation, report author Alex Ooms focused on student academic growth to compare ... more »

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: BREAKING NEWS!!! PREVIEW OF 2012 NYS MATH AND ELA TESTS!!!

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 6 minutes ago

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: BREAKING NEWS!!! PREVIEW OF 2012 NYS MATH AND ELA TESTS!!!: BREAKING NEWS!!! PREVIEW OF 2012 NYS MATH AND ELA TESTS!!!bynoreply@blogger.com (Bronx Teacher)Yes, today being the first day of April that can only mean that testing season is just around the corner. The crack team has been hard at work through intermediaries to get a preview of the upcoming standardized tests for grades 3-8 and just several hours ago all Math and ELA tests have fallen in the ... more »

The Gulen Movement’s connection to the largest US charter network « Parents Across America

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

The Gulen Movement’s connection to the largest US charter network « Parents Across America: The Gulen Movement’s connection to the largest US charter networkbyleoniehaimsonBy Sharon Higgins, founding member ofParents Across AmericaNote: This is an expanded version of aguest postpublished in The Washington Post under Valerie Strauss’s column, The Answer Sheet, on March 27, 2012.The largest charter school network in the United States is operated by people in and associated with the Gulen Movement (GM), a secretive and controversial Turkish religious ... more »

Coping with asthma leaves schools gasping | EdNewsColorado

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

Coping with asthma leaves schools gasping | EdNewsColorado: Coping with asthma leaves schools gaspingbyRebecca JonesCastle Rock mom Heather Clark was so concerned that her 13-year-old daughter, Sami, would have an asthma attack at school and that no one would know what to do, she took to sneaking an inhaler into her daughter’s backpack, just in case. She calls it her “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.She didn’t realize that there was no need to treat the inhaler as if it were ... more »

Education’s Hungry Hearts - NYTimes.com

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

Education’s Hungry Hearts - NYTimes.com: Education’s Hungry HeartsBy MARK EDMUNDSONPublished: March 31, 2012RECOMMENDTWITTERLINKEDINCOMMENTS(67)SIGN IN TO E-MAILPRINTREPRINTSSHAREBatesville, Va.Readers’ CommentsShare your thoughts.Post a Comment »Read All Comments (67) »“EVERYBODY’S got a hungry heart,” Bruce Springsteen sings. Really? Is that so? At the risk of offending the Boss, I want to register some doubts.Granted my human sample is not large — but it’s not so small either. I’ve been teaching now for 35 years and in that time have had about 4,000 students ... more »

TRS’s Dick Ingram scares the shit out of people. « Fred Klonsky

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

TRS’s Dick Ingram scares the shit out of people. « Fred Klonsky: TRS’s Dick Ingram scares the shit out of people.byFred KlonskyA leaked memo by TRS Executive Director Richard Ingram has caused a flood of concerned emails into my inbox this weekend.Ingram is predicting insolvency for the teacher pension by 2009.And what is scaring retirees ishis threatthat reduced benefits to retirees was a likely solution.First of all, Ingram seems to view things a little too much as a benefit problem ... more »

A Dictator Unwilling to Step Down « Cooperative Catalyst

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

A Dictator Unwilling to Step Down « Cooperative Catalyst: A Dictator Unwilling to Step DownbylinedalileI speak about education from an unflattering point of view, maybe because it is destroying our fascinating, curious minds.I don’t claim to be an expert in education, I am still a student and I speak for myself. I believe that students should have a voice in the education system today, because mainly they are the ones who are being educated. The control of education should be ...more »

Sen. Sanders' open letter: Charter Schools - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 5 hours ago

Sen. Sanders' open letter: Charter Schools - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.: Sen. Sanders' open letter: Charter SchoolsPosted:Mar 30, 2012 5:21 PM PDTUpdated:Mar 31, 2012 10:14 AM PDTFile Photo: Senator Hank SandersDECISION 2012MOREKeith Olbermann ousted by Current TVEtch A Sketch launches ad campaignRomney gets Bush backing, but no sign of George W.Obama outspends Republican campaigns by millionsGeorge H.W. Bush to formally back RomneyAlabama State Senator Hank Sanders (D-Selma) penned the following open letter to Alabama Governor Robert ... more »

NYC Public School Parents: DOE to spend millions of dollars on new local assessments, starting in preK?

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

NYC Public School Parents: DOE to spend millions of dollars on new local assessments, starting in preK?: DOE to spend millions of dollars on new local assessments, starting in preK?byLeonie HaimsonThe DOE released a new set of RFP’s totesting companies to develop yet another set of “local assessments” to be given starting next year. [Apparentlythe408assessmentsbid out in July did not result in any contracts.] The bids aredue April 23.The announcement says that24 contracts could result, for God knows how many ... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Note to SPS: Ask Amazon And Vulcan to be Good Civic Partners

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Note to SPS: Ask Amazon And Vulcan to be Good Civic Partners: Note to SPS: Ask Amazon And Vulcan to be Good Civic PartnersbyMelissa WestbrookToday's front page headlinestoryin the Times is about Amazon, "a virtual no-show in hometown philanthropy."The story points out that while it even took the Gates Foundation awhile to start opening its vast pockets, Amazon still hasn't. Their model?"Our core business activities are probably the most important thing we do to contribute, as ... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Let's Make a Common Core Video featuring Herrings and Doves! The Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.01.12

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Missouri Education Watchdog: Let's Make a Common Core Video featuring Herrings and Doves! The Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.01.12: Let's Make a Common Core Video featuring Herrings and Doves! The Sunday Education Weekly Reader 04.01.12bystlgretchenWelcome to the Sunday Education Weekly Reader for April Fool's Day 2012! We're really not doing a video for Common Core standards as so many teachers have, but if we did do a video, we'd probably sing about how they are:unprovenuntestedunderfundedunconstitutionalToday is April Fool's Day andtwo ... more »

Daily Kos: "Us" versus "Them"

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Daily Kos: "Us" versus "Them": "Us" versus "Them"byrss@dailykos.com (teacherken)Perhaps it is my age, or perhaps it is my experience, but I have a visceral and negative reaction towards anyone who seeks to divide us up. I see such framings as that I used for the title of this post as seeking to designate some as "other" and thus not worthy of respect nor or recognition of rights. On the one hand, in some ways I might qualify for many examples ... more »

Voters favor limited city role in schools | UTSanDiego.com

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Voters favor limited city role in schools | UTSanDiego.com: Voters favor limited city role in schoolsPoll shows little support for mayor taking control of districtGrading public schoolsGrade public schools in SD…A/BCD/FTotal34%3622Party RegistrationDemocrat393814Republican283432DTS/Other333622RegionWest (1, 2)364216North Central (5, 6, 7)343226South Central (3, 4, 8, 9)323623EducationHS or less412723Some College284318College grad323426Post grad373820School-Age ChildrenYes482723No303822Top IssueEconomy and Jobs344016Reforming city pensions283032Education423418Mayoral BallotDeMaio233... more »

Shanker Blog » Measuring Journalist Quality

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Shanker Blog » Measuring Journalist Quality: Measuring Journalist QualitybyMatthew Di CarloJournalists play an essential role in our society. They are charged with informing the public, a vital function in a representative democracy. Yet, year after year, large pockets of the electorate remain poorly-informed on both foreign and domestic affairs. For a long time, commentators have blamed any number of different culprits for this problem, including poverty, education, increasing work hours and the rapid proliferation of entertainment media.There is no doubt ... more »

Evolution of Classroom Technology (Jeff Dunn) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Evolution of Classroom Technology (Jeff Dunn) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Evolution of Classroom Technology (Jeff Dunn)bylarrycubanJeff Dunnis Executive Editor of Edumedia. He posted his version of technological devices that influenced classroom teaching and learning on April 18, 2011. Because of space, I have dropped some of the artifacts he included. There are, of course, many definitions of instructional technology; this one relies on devices and machines. Dunn’s evolution of technology, then, tracks the different devices ... more »

"What's Going On "

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr.(April 2, 1939– April 1, 1984)What's Going OnLyricsMother, motherThere's too many of you cryingBrother, brother, brotherThere's far too many of you dyingYou know we've got to find a wayTo bring some lovin' here today - YaFather, fatherWe don't need to escalateYou see, war is not the answerFor only love can conquer hateYou know we've got to find a wayTo bring some lovin' here todayPicket lines and picket signsDon't punish me with brutalityTalk to me, so you can ... more »

A new approach to school turnarounds (or ‘old dogs CAN learn new tricks’) - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

A new approach to school turnarounds (or ‘old dogs CAN learn new tricks’) - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: A new approach to school turnarounds (or ‘old dogs CAN learn new tricks’)byValerie StraussThiswas written by educator Anthony Cody, who worked for 24 years in the Oakland schools, 18 years teaching science at a high-needs school and six years as a mentor and coach of teachers. He is a National Board-certified teacher. A version ofthis postappeared on hisEducation Week ... more »

Sunday links « Fred Klonsky

Big Education Ape - PostRank (PostRank: All) - 10 hours ago

Sunday links « Fred Klonsky: Sunday linksbyFred KlonskyChicago Teachers Take Mock Strike Vote.Just one link this Sunday morning.It is to an MSNBC story about couple of votes taken at two Chicago high schools.CTU members voted on whether they would approve a strike next Fall.The answer was overwhelmingly “yes.”Talk to any CPS teacher and you will know the reasons.And each individual teacher has their own grievances.The proverbial straw came last week when the CPS board moved unilaterally and with haste to ... more »

LAUSD Superintendent of Schools John Deasy Must Go

LAUSD Superintendent of Schools John Deasy Must Go:

LAUSD Superintendent of Schools John Deasy Must Go

by admin

Joseph K. is a 24-year veteran of LAUSD, a former mentor teacher twice named a Johns Hopkins University Teaching Fellow, who now teaches poor, inner-city children who wake up every morning in their gang-ridden, drug-infested neighborhoods at five a.m. to catch the bus by six. He teaches the old-fashioned way – by ignoring standardized test scores. Instead of teaching bubbling, he tries to instill a love of knowledge and learning in his students and for this reason will probably be allowed to continue teaching for fifteen more minutes.
by Joseph K.

It is time for Deasy to go.
After robbing poor, minority children of recess in the name of test prep in Prince George’s County years ago, he left nothing but wreckage and enmity as a district superintendent in Maryland. Deasy said, “Lessons at schools missing testing goals have to be very targeted, and there often isn’t time for electives and free play like at other schools.” Tough break for poor, primarily black children.
Ditto Santa Monica, where ex-Superintendent Deasy is now universally despised. Deasy has a knack for being universally despised.

He was awarded a fraudulent PhD from University of Louisville after only six months attendance and just nine

One Teacher's Perspective: From MLK's Playbook: Stand Against Anti-Public Educatorism

One Teacher's Perspective: From MLK's Playbook: Stand Against Anti-Public Educatorism:

From MLK's Playbook: Stand Against Anti-Public Educatorism

by Imagine Wisconsin

Pulled from the playbook of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and in thespirit of Joe McCarthy, some anonymous bigots disseminated an anti-publiceducation propaganda pamphlet throughout Janesville, Wisconsin a week ago.

This fanatical flyer is layered with hatemongering. Accordingto the pernicious pamphleteers, Rock County public educators are responsiblefor the “sexualization of minor children, anti-morality and anti-God messaging,false indoctrination, stripping of parents’ rights, and holding childrenhostage.”

In addition, the discriminatory document is laced with overtlyanti-gay and anti-union messages as well as covertlyanti-women messages. In true KKK-fashion, the flyer’s authors didnot sign their names and have not shown their faces. Thankfully, this klan did notburn a cross, but the klueless krew

Jersey Jazzman: Prejudice Alive & Well in Louisiana Charters?

Jersey Jazzman: Prejudice Alive & Well in Louisiana Charters?:

Prejudice Alive & Well in Louisiana Charters?

by Duke

Could this possibly be a late, bad April Fools joke?

A state Senate committee approved legislation Thursday that would allow charter schools to refuse to admit students on the basis of their ability to speak English, their sexual orientation or other factors.
State Sen. A.G. Crowe, R-Slidell, said his bill is designed to ensure that executive branch agencies and local governments stop including bans on discrimination against characteristics not listed in state law as a condition for private companies to do business with their agencies.
The state Department of Education contracts with those seeking charter schools were the chief examples cited during testimony for Senate Bill 217. Gov. Bobby Jindal did not respond to requests for comment about calls to unilaterally strip the anti-

» 12 Red States Responsible for Over 70% of U.S. Public Sector Job Losses in 2011

» 12 Red States Responsible for Over 70% of U.S. Public Sector Job Losses in 2011:

12 Red States Responsible for Over 70% of U.S. Public Sector Job Losses in 2011

This may not exactly be breaking news, but numbers suggest that the ultraconservative state legislators pushing backwards legislation such as voter suppression are the same folks cutting public sector jobs at an alarming rate. The states that succumbed to the Tea Party takeover of 2010 have seen drastic job losses in the public sector and it does not appear to be coincidental.

Pennsylvania is a prime example of this new, unimproved Tea Party economy. Under Governor Tom Corbett, Republicans successfully shrunk the state’s workforce by three percent despite his promise to be a “jobs Governor” on the campaign trail:

Before the cuts, “Pennsylvania [had] the second lowest number of state workers per capita, already,” said Rebecca McNichol, Pennsylvania state director of the CLEAR Coalition. Yet, she says, “this past year the

Jersey Jazzman: Funding, Schunding!

Jersey Jazzman: Funding, Schunding!:

Funding, Schunding!

by Duke

It's hard to think of an article that could get more stuff wrong than this one from the Connecticut Council for Education Reform:

Today, we are taking a look at an argument frequently made in opposition to education reform: namely, that Connecticut’s achievement gap - which is the largest in the nation - is due to poverty, and therefore, the education system, and the adults within it, cannot be held responsible for providing a high-quality education to all students.While poverty and a lack of parenting are used as convenient scapegoats to explain the achievement gap in Connecticut, Massachusetts has skipped the blame game, and worked on addressing the issue instead. In 2010, Massachusetts and Connecticut had almost exactly the same percentages of students who were low-income (34.2% in Massachusetts vs. 34.4% in Connecticut). Nonetheless, on national math assessments in 2011, Massachusetts’ low-income 4^th graders scored 2^nd in the nation – while Connecticut’s low-income students scored 48^th. This difference in performance between Massachusetts’ low-income students and Connecticut’s equates to about 1.5 grade levels.
In fact, the low-income students in all of our neighboring states outperform Connecticut’s low-income students. For instance,

Why opt out of standardized testing | Seattle Education

Why opt out of standardized testing | Seattle Education:

Why opt out of standardized testing

by seattleducation2011

As promised, this week the focus will be on standardized testing, opting out of these tests, why and how.
This morning I would like to start in Seattle and how the focus on testing has diminished the overall value of education for our children.
According to the article Seattle Schools’ goal: to create arts education for everyone that was posted in the Seattle Times on March 28, 2012:

Despite her popularity with students, Baker — like other art teachers across the city, state and country — fears her job may not exist next year. Amid budget cuts and an all-consuming focus on raising math and reading test scores, the arts have increasingly been pushed to the side despite their demonstrated academic and social benefits.
In Seattle, where a tradition of delegating decisions to individual schools holds sway, students’ access to the arts varies widely — and often depends on parent fundraising.
“If your school has money or if you have a principal who’s a real proponent of the arts, then you get

High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education | Get Schooled

High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education | Get Schooled:

High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education

3:47 am April 2, 2012, by Maureen Downey

The folks at FairTest have been raising the alarm about excessive testing and its impact on education long before most people.

Here is a response to the AJC investigation into nationwide disparities in test results from Robert Schaeffer, public education director of FairTest: the National Center for Fair & Open Testing

By Robert Schaeffer
Across the U.S., the politically mandated misuse of standardized tests is damaging public schools and the children they serve. The Atlanta Journal Constitution’s investigation of suspicious test scores around the nation is just the latest example. Experts may debate the methodology, but there is no question that cheating on standardized exams is widespread. In just the past three academic years, FairTest has documented confirmed cases of test score manipulation in 33 states plus the District of Columbia.
These scandals are the predictable result of over-reliance on test scores. As the renowned social scientist Donald Campbell concluded more than 30 years ago, “The more any

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools | The Columbus Dispatch

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools | The Columbus Dispatch:

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools

By Jennifer Smith Richards

The Columbus Dispatch Monday April 2, 2012 6:56 AM

Spend first, ask permission later, and don’t bother with receipts.

The loose financial systems at some of Ohio’s charter schools have led to questionable spending in recent years. Some schools hired treasurers with spotty track records; others hired qualified treasurers but disregarded their advice when they insisted on better checks and balances.

The recent case of a charter-school treasurer who misspent more than $600,000 in public money over a decade at several schools has highlighted how common fiscal missteps have been in charters. Fifteen of the 20 entities with the most charges of misspending by the state auditor are charter schools.

And the misspending wasn’t all at the hands of Carl W. Shye Jr., the treasurer from New Albany who lost his school treasurer’s license last

Latest News and Comment from Education

Monday, April 2, 2012

High-stakes testing cheats children out of a quality education

Mishandled finances not uncommon in charter schools