Monday, May 21, 2012

Scholar critical of value added method speaking to LA teachers | 89.3 KPCC

Scholar critical of value added method speaking to LA teachers | 89.3 KPCC:


Scholar critical of value added method speaking to LA teachers

9:13 a.m. | By Adolfo Guzman-Lopez
scantron standardized test
State education officials are worried about the hundreds of photos of standardized tests – sometimes with answers – that have begun to appear on social networking sites. A talk on whether to factor student test scores into teachers’ performance evaluations is taking place on Monday afternoon.
L.A. Unified’s teachers union is sponsoring a talk Monday evening about one of public education’s most hotly debated issues: whether to factor student test scores into teachers’ performance evaluations.
Stanford University professor Linda Darling Hammond says her talk will focus on the student performance measure commonly known as Value Added Modeling.
The federal government has encouraged states to use those methods as part of the teacher evaluation process but researchers have found a lot of problems with this methodology. 
She says the complicated method generates wild variations in results and relies too much on standardized tests that don’t favor black and Latino working-class students. She says there are other ways to determine 

Schools Matter: Glen Ford: Corporate Assault on Public Education + Dr. Ravitch's Comments

Schools Matter: Glen Ford: Corporate Assault on Public Education + Dr. Ravitch's Comments:


Glen Ford: Corporate Assault on Public Education + Dr. Ravitch's Comments

Barack Obama has far exceeded George Bush in corporatization of education in the United States. — Glen Ford
Master dialectician Glen Ford's speech "Corporate Assault on Public Education" draws out all of the historical and material conditions that have created the current crop of African Americans who serve the most reactionary sectors of the corporate education cabal. His peerless voice matched with his uncanny ability to narrate compelling facts like Cory Booker's deep ties to the arch-reactionary The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation make for a powerful and informative speech. This is required viewing for every social justice advocate engaged in the desperate struggle to keep the remaining public commons out of the clutches of corporate coffers.
PopoutH/T to Big Education APE.
In the space of less than 20 years, the public school privatization movement has emerged from the 

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Real parental choice: new evidence from Arizona and Chicago

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Real parental choice: new evidence from Arizona and Chicago:


Real parental choice: new evidence from Arizona and Chicago

Last week, Parents Across America sent a letter to Congressional education leaders explaining to them (once again) that expanding charter schools and voucher programs is not the same as empowering parents. “Parent choice is not parent voice,” we wrote.
A couple of news items from the past few days make clear what parents really want in public education – and it’s not vouchers or promoting disrespect to teachers.

Eli Broad: I am unreasonable - CBS News Video

Eli Broad: I am unreasonable - CBS News Video:


Eli Broad: I am unreasonable

May 11, 2012 7:26 AM
Billionaire Eli Broad is known for using his money to make Los Angeles a cultural center. He's also using his money to help improve the U.S. education system, among other endeavors. He sat down with Charlie Rose and Gayle King to talk about his new book, "The Art of Being Unreasonable."





Schooling in the Ownership Society: Classic Eli Broad: "Never let a crisis go to waste"

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Classic Eli Broad: "Never let a crisis go to waste":


Classic Eli Broad: "Never let a crisis go to waste"

Katrina aftermath
"Never let a serious crisis go to waste." -- White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Nov. 2008.

In a recent Edweek piece by a similar title, billionaire power-philanthropist Eli Broad resurrects this quote made infamous by Chicago's now autocratic mayor. It's become an operational phrase for "getting things done" by skirting the public will and abandoning democratic decision-making. For Broad and other disaster capitalists, as Naomi Klein calls them, it's all about taking advantage of real disasters, like Hurricane Katrina. Or if a crisis doesn't exist -- manufacture it.

The manufactured "crisis" to which Broad refers is the fact that U.S. students, taken as a whole, don't test as high on the NAEP as students from several other countries. Writes Broad:
American students today rank 31st in the world in mathematics and 23rd in science. If the 

STATEWIDE STUDENT UNION STARTS AT SANTA MONICA COLLEGE - Perdaily.com

STATEWIDE STUDENT UNION STARTS AT SANTA MONICA COLLEGE - Perdaily.com:


STATEWIDE STUDENT UNION STARTS AT SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

Student Union.jpg
(Mensaje se repite en Español)

(For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post)

Up until last Saturday apathy had been the greatest threat to being able to reform and hold accountable the highly coordinated attack on public education at all levels that is ceaselessly degrading the public education system. Last Saturday at Santa Monica College (SMC) we struck a blow for the good guys and gals where the first step to proactive engagement of all those wanting great public education took its first steps. Through the inspired effort of SMC students and others, students gathered at SMC for an all day conference whose goal is to build a statewide student union movement to confront the privatization juggernaut that has up until now had those fighting it relegated to just responding to the latest outrage that those in power could come up with.

After initial discussion, it was decided to give ever person present irrespective of present student status an equal vote in determining the issues presented to the general assembly of all those present. Subsequently, those present were able to directly connect by Internet to the student union movement in Quebec, where members of that movement Micha Stettin and Rushdia Mehreen spoke as representatives of the members who are presently on strike. They talked about the demands that they 

Diane Ravitch on public school “national threat” Parents United for Responsible Education

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Diane Ravitch on public school “national threat”:


Diane Ravitch on public school “national threat”

If you take the time to read Diane Ravitch’s latest book review, “Do Our Public Schools Threaten National Security?” you will be rewarded with one of her best critical summaries of corporate reform propaganda.
She recaps several generations of alarm-raising about public education, concluding,
Somehow, despite the widely broadcast perception that educational achievement was declining, the United States continued to grow and thrive as an economic, military, and technological power….How is it possible that this nation became so successful if its public schools, which enroll 90 percent of its children, have been consistently failing for the past generation or more?
The current red-flag-waving book is a report by the Council on Foreign Relations headed by former NYC schools Chancellor Joel Klein and former Bush Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. According to Ravitch,
What marks this report as different from its predecessors, however, is its profound indifference to the role of public education in a democratic society, and its certainty that private organizations will 

Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Backed by Big Bucks, Vows Schools Overhaul

Rhee, Backed by Big Bucks, Vows Schools Overhaul:


Rhee, Backed by Big Bucks, Vows Schools Overhaul

May 20, 2012
During her tumultuous three years at the head of the Washington D.C. public schools, Michelle Rhee set off a lot of fireworks. She's still doing it – on a national stage. Rhee has emerged as the leader of an unlikely coalition of politicians, philanthropists, financiers and entrepreneurs who believe the nation's $500 billion-a-year public education system needs a massive overhaul. She has vowed to raise $1 billion for her national advocacy group, StudentsFirst, and forever break the hold of teachers unions on education policy.
StudentsFirst has its own political action committee (PAC), its own SuperPAC, and a staff of 75, including a cadre of seasoned lobbyists Rhee sends from state to state as political battles heat up. She has flooded the airwaves with TV and radio ads in a half dozen states weighing new policies on charter schools, teacher assessment and other hot-button issues.
To her supporters, Rhee is a once-in-a-generation leader who has the smarts and the star power to make a difference on one of the nation's most intractable public policy issues. But critics say Rhee risks destroying the very public schools she aims to save by forging 

Elaine Wynn: Take Holistic Approach to Curbing Dropouts - US News and World Report

Elaine Wynn: Take Holistic Approach to Curbing Dropouts - US News and World Report:


Elaine Wynn: Take Holistic Approach to Curbing Dropouts

Head of Communities In Schools, a nonprofit aiming to prevent high school dropouts, details its model.

May 21, 2012 RSS Feed Print
Elaine Wynn is chairman of Communities in Schools, which is dedicated to preventing high school dropouts nationwide.
Elaine Wynn is chairman of Communities in Schools, which is dedicated to preventing high school dropouts nationwide.
About 75 percent of high schoolstudents in the United States graduate on time, but those who never get a diploma often earn less, resulting in lost economic activity for the country at large.
How to boost the graduation rate? Take a holistic approach to engaging and empowering students, involving a range of community organizations and resources in addition to schools, says Elaine Wynn, chairman of Communities In Schools, a national nonprofit dedicated to preventing dropouts that operates in more than 3,400 schools.

Book launch and panel discussion: Education and Capitalism | Seattle Education

Book launch and panel discussion: Education and Capitalism | Seattle Education:


Book launch and panel discussion: Education and Capitalism

Saturday, June 2, 4:00 PM
University of Washington, Room 211 Smith Hall
Featuring
Sarah Knopp: Editor of Education and Capitalism and Los Angeles public school teacher
Jesse Hagopian: Contributor to Education and Capitalism and Seattle public school teacher
RSVP for this event at the Education and Capitalism Facebook page.
“Education and Capitalism: Struggles for Learning and Liberation” has just been published by Haymarket Books. There will be a book launch and panel discussion in Seattle on June 2nd at 4:00 PM, in the UW Room, 211 Smith Hall.
A conservative consensus dominates the discussion about what’s wrong with our schools and how to fix them: scapegoat teachers, vilify our unions, and promise more private control and market solutions. In each case, 

Second Interim Status Report - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education)

Second Interim Status Report - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education):


State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Reports Record
Number of School Districts in Financial Jeopardy


SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson warned today that 2.6 million California children now attend schools in districts that are in financial jeopardy—the highest number of financially troubled districts in state history.
"This is the kind of record no one wants to set. Across California, parents, teachers, and administrators are increasingly wondering how to keep their schools' lights on, their bills paid, and their doors open," Torlakson said. "The deep cuts this budget crisis has forced—and the uncertainties about what lies ahead—are taking an unprecedented and unacceptable toll on our schools."
The state's Second Interim Status Report for 2011-12 also shows a record-high 188 local educational agencies (LEAs) are either in negative or qualified financial status. That's up 61 LEAs from the First Interim Status Report for 2011-12 issued in February, and up 45 from the Second Interim Report for 2010-11 issued a year ago.
The new report shows 12 LEAs received negative certifications and 176 received qualified certifications. Students in these 188 LEAs represent more than 2.6 million of California's 6.2 million students attending schools in districts with serious financial challenges, up from nearly two million students in February.
Twice a year, the California Department of Education receives Notice of Interim Certifications on the financial status of the state's 1,037 LEAs, comprised of school districts, county offices of education, and joint powers agencies. The certifications are classified as positive, qualified, or negative.
A positive certification is assigned when an LEA will meet its financial obligations for the current and two subsequent fiscal years.
A qualified certification is assigned when an LEA may not meet its financial obligations for the current or two subsequent fiscal years. This certification allows the LEA's county office of education to provide assistance to the district.
A negative certification—the most serious of the classifications—is assigned when an LEA will be unable to meet its financial obligations for the remainder of the current year or for the subsequent fiscal year. This certification means the LEA's county office of education may intervene in the district's finances.
The assistance or intervention by the county office may include assigning external consultants, requiring a district fiscal recovery plan, or even disallowing certain district expenditures.
This new list is a compilation of the certifications by LEAs that were due April 16, 2012, and cover the financial and budgetary status of the districts for the period ending January 31, 2012. The certifications reflect whether the LEAs are able to meet their financial obligations for the remainder of the current fiscal year and subsequent two fiscal years, based on projections at that point in time.
These certifications predate the Governor's May Revision to the proposed 2012-13 state budget. Because these Interim Status Reports are snapshots in time, the LEAs' financial status may have changed since these certifications were collected.
Related Content
  • Interim Status - Status of certifications of Interim Financial Reports for school districts and county offices of education.
# # # #
Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: UTLA Polemic: LINDA DARLING-HAMMOND AT THE COCOANUT GROVE TONIGHT - “The Fight for Equity and Justice in Public Education and the Urgent Need to Prevent VAM From Undermining It”

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: UTLA Polemic: LINDA DARLING-HAMMOND AT THE COCOANUT GROVE TONIGHT - “The Fight for Equity and Justice in Public Education and the Urgent Need to Prevent VAM From Undermining It”:


UTLA Polemic: LINDA DARLING-HAMMOND AT THE COCOANUT GROVE TONIGHT - “The Fight for Equity and Justice in Public Education and the Urgent Need to Prevent VAM From Undermining It”




image

MAY 21, 2012

5:30-7:30 p.m.

Robert F. Kennedy Community School

701 South Catalina Street

Los Angeles, CA 90005


Renowned educator and civil rights leader Linda Darling-Hammond
is one of the most well-respected voices on public education in the
world, serving as Stanford University faculty, as a board member of the
National Council on Educating Black Children, and as a key member of
a great number of national and international civil rights and education
organizations.

Dr. Darling-Hammond has conducted cutting-edge research that raises
the severe problems with VAM and has helped in many states and cities
where teacher evaluation debates have been boiling.
As someone who has supported community organizing and unions for
decades, Dr. Darling-Hammond is strategically positioned to
play a key role—being a voice that is respected by district and
state administrations, union members, and community
organizations alike.
co-sponsored by UTLA 
Be informed. Be empowered.
Come join us for what promises
to be an inspiring evening!
Parking structure is north of 8th St and west of Catalina St.
Follow the signs to the Cocoanut Grove Auditorium

2012 Challenge Index rankings--why small schools rule - Class Struggle - The Washington Post

2012 Challenge Index rankings--why small schools rule - Class Struggle - The Washington Post:


2012 Challenge Index rankings--why small schools rule

The little schools that dominate the top of The Washington Post’s 2012 high school rankings confirm an accelerating trend in American education: We are moving away from the something-for-everyone shopping mall campuses that were once a national model.
Instead of big schools that offer football, auto shop and a wide choice of easy courses, the schools that lead the new national list are small magnets and charters that focus on college-level courses and tests.
There are hints of the same change in The Post’s local high school rankings, led by small schools seeking rigor for average students. They include St. Anselm’s Abbey and Washington International, among the first private schools to appear on The Post’s list. These small, intense schools reflect a movement to apply international standards to American education, using programs like Advanced Placement, International 

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Monday, May 21, 2012

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Education Headlines

Monday, May 21, 2012

Sierra Unified bond measure focus of heated debate

A battle is brewing in eastern Fresno County over Sierra Unified School District's $5.2 million bond measure on the June 5 ballot that would be used to pay off debt on the district's newest school. The measure, which would have a 10-year term, will require 55% voter approval to pass. It's the district's fourth bond measure attempt in as many years.

Office of Ed manager was fined, suspended

The official in charge of a $270 million public investment fund for 6,400 educators in the region was fined $7,000 last year and had his broker’s license suspended for three months. He retained his official post.

El Monte school district moving to dismiss employees who have been on paid leave for months

After 10 months of investigation, the local high school district is winding down its inquiries into a dozen employees accused of stealing.

Schools credit counselors with reducing behavior problems

Having counselors at four elementary schools in Oceanside has helped reduce the amount of truancy and discipline issues there, school officials said.

Teacher pay in the Lodi area is a crazy quilt

At $58,052, a 10-year teacher in one of San Joaquin County’s smallest school districts, Oak View, earns more than a 10-year teacher in Elk Grove, which is among the state’s largest districts. That current annual salary is $57,878.

ACLU questions Poway school's iPad program

A Poway elementary school’s drive to equip fourth and fifth graders with iPads — mostly at their expense — is being called into question by the American Civil Liberties Union. The state Constitution guarantees a free public education, and the ACLU says in a letter to the district that the effort at Tierra Bonita Elementary School runs afoul of that requirement

Banks: Can Jordan High's experiment work?

Big changes at the Watts campus aim to increase students' academic success. But then there's their larger environment.

Claremont Unified names Elsasser as its superintendent

James Elsasser was appointed as superintendent of schools Thursday night by the Board of Education of the Claremont Unified School District. Elsasser has been the assistant superintendent for human resources for the Anaheim City School District.

Westside charter school teacher gone after allegations of cheating

The teacher at an Ocean Charter campus was found to have given fourth-graders a chance to correct their mistakes on a state test, risking the school's API rating.

Up to 13 LAUSD continuation schools may be closed as part of cost-cutting move

More than one-fourth of Los Angeles Unified's continuation high schools may be shuttered next year as a cost-cutting move, shrinking a program seen as a last resort for students at risk of dropping out.

Hurley: Watching California public schools sink — a preventable Titanic

Our schools need adequate funding to open their doors before the tax initiative-funded lifeboat can arrive. And the truth is that even if it passes, the initiative provides little more than current funding levels.

May Revise puts transportation money into flex, some LEAs still need more

Following a groundswell of opposition from school districts to his January proposal to eliminate future state transportation aid, Gov. Jerry Brown included the funding in the May revision of his 2012-13 budget.

L.A. Unified a rare haven for health teachers

The Los Angeles Unified School District still has dedicated health classes while many others have ended theirs, largely for fiscal reasons.

Fensterwald: LAO says no need to cut schools $5.5 billion

The Legislative Analyst’s Office is suggesting an alternative to the massive cut to K-12 schools and community colleges that Gov. Jerry Brown is proposing if his tax initiative fails in November. Instead of a real spending cut of $2.8 billion or $415 per K-12 student, districts and community colleges would be cut $1 billion or only $162 per K-12 student, under the LAO plan.
Friday, May 18, 2012

Labor negotiations in Rio School District move to fact-finding

A yearlong labor dispute in the Rio School District remains unresolved, as officials move into the next stage of impasse, called fact-finding. The Rio teachers' contract expired June 30, 2011. Negotiations began in February 2011, but the district declared impasse soon after.

Schools revamp menus ahead of new lunch mandates

Under new standards by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, schools will have to serve more than twice as many vegetables and fruits and limit the meat and calorie requirement.

Education Research Report: School district inequities are barrier to quality education for New York City's poor, Black and Hispanic student

Education Research Report: School district inequities are barrier to quality education for New York City's poor, Black and Hispanic student:


School district inequities are barrier to quality education for New York City's poor, Black and Hispanic student


In New York City public schools, a student’s educational outcomes and opportunity to learn are statistically more determined by where he or she lives than their abilities, according to a new report, A Rotting Apple: Education Redlining in New York City, released by the Schott Foundation for Public Education.

Primarily because of New York City policies and practices that result in an inequitable distribution of educational resources and intensify the impact of poverty, children who are poor, Black and Hispanic have far less of an opportunity to learn the skills needed to succeed on state and federal assessments. They are also much less likely to have an opportunity to be identified for Gifted and Talented programs, to attend selective high schools or 

Houghton Mifflin files for bankruptcy protection | Books | The Seattle Times

Houghton Mifflin files for bankruptcy protection | Books | The Seattle Times:


Houghton Mifflin files for bankruptcy protection


Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishers Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after reaching an agreement to eliminate $3.1 billion of its debt.
The Associated Press
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BOSTON —
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishers Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after reaching an agreement to eliminate $3.1 billion of its debt.
The textbook publisher's move Monday came as little surprise as it announced earlier in the month that it was planning to reorganize under a prepackaged bankruptcy plan. Such plans are made with creditors and shareholders ahead of the filing for bankruptcy to speed the process.
Houghton Mifflin said Monday that its plan is supported by the vast majority of its stakeholders and will help strengthen its financial position so it is better positioned for the future. It made the filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District

Hitting the Data Wall: Measurement-Centered Instruction takes hold in High Poverty Schools - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

Hitting the Data Wall: Measurement-Centered Instruction takes hold in High Poverty Schools - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:


Hitting the Data Wall: Measurement-Centered Instruction takes hold in High Poverty Schools

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody
A newspaper report from Mobile, Alabama, describes the system clearly.
Color-coded sticky notes on a wall in the "data room" at Mobile's Gilliard Elementary School bear the names of every pupil who is struggling in reading or math, has been absent too often, or has gotten into trouble for misbehaving.
A yellow note, for example, shows a kindergartner who failed a reading test.
A lime-green note shows a second-grader who made a D on his report card.
A light-blue note shows a fifth-grader who fared poorly on the state's standardized math test.
In all, there are 125 names on a dry-erase board that takes up one long wall in a conference room 

Statistically Speaking, Florida.. I Don't Believe in Them! - MyEdNext

Statistically Speaking, Florida.. I Don't Believe in Them! - MyEdNext:


Statistically Speaking, Florida.. I Don't Believe in Them!



Florida's education statistics were front and center all week.  As I prepare for my son's college graduation, I can't help but wonder how different his future would be had we lived by statistics.  

A '08 graduate of an outstanding public high school in Boca Raton, Jeff attended twelve years of Florida's public schools. He gained admission to some of the finest universities in our nation thanks to a village of supportive teachers, staff, guidance counselors and a host of interesting AP and college courses at his disposal.

Today Florida's education reform decisions are based on failed reforms touted by third parties with vested interests.  Worse still -- those decisions are then supported with illogically skewed or fatally flawed statistics  vs. real-world, in-the-trenches input.

Last week we learned that children could not write any better than martians arriving on planet earth yet later in the week the news trumpeted that Florida's reading scores improved across the state. Both tests crafted and scored from the same company. They can't write but they can read and comprehend very