UPDATE: Cruelty of the Annual Spring Testing Season +Head over to @guardianteach – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

Head over to @guardianteach and find out about an “education spring” via @debrakidd – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER:

The Overuse of “Overuse”

APRIL 23, 2013 BY ONTOGENYX LEAVE A COMMENT

Eight years when I started Schools Matter, Texas had four high stakes tests that high school students had to pass to get a diploma.  Most recently, they devised plans to add 11 more.  When parents and teachers gagged, the state Legislature began to waver, so that now it looks like they will only add one test, for a total of five instead of 15.

Obviously, some people believe that adding one test instead of 11 represents some kind of moral victory for the foes of high stakes testing.   Even a new phrase has appeared that now acknowledges “the overuse of high stakes testing.”  As if there were some use of high stakes testing that was not an overuse.

FairTest used the phrase in an op-ed recently, and when I asked Monty Neill what he thought would represent a high stakes test that was not overused, he accused me “nitpicking” and offered the drivers’ test as an example.  The email 

Benefits of Mayoral Control of Schools: Not So Much

by ontogenyx

Review from NEPC: BOULDER, CO (April 23, 2013) – A recent Center for American Progress report purports to find that school districts led by city mayors are raising student achievement while improving the districts’ fiscal health. A new review finds some useful information in the report, but says it is too flawed to rely on [...]

The Cruelty of the Annual Spring Testing Season

by johnt4853

The spring standardized testing season has begun, and learning has stopped.  Or, should I say that learning the skills and knowledge necessary to become a healthy citizen has stopped? Students will continue to learn about the seamy side of adult politics until the testing ordeal peters out in May. Especially for many students in low-income [...]

Head over to @guardianteach and find out about an “education spring” via @debrakidd

by Chalk Face, PhD

From the article:

It is time to come together – parents, teachers, curriculum and pedagogical experts, as well as children, to take control of this game. An advisory panel, consisting of cross party representation and grassroots stakeholder representatives needs to look at these suggestions seriously and with an open and positive mindset. Our children are not political footballs and we need to ensure that we innovate with integrity. Let’s not allow a political sandman to throw sand in our eyes. We are forming an education spring and we are asking for one simple thing. Let’s root our profession in evidence not politics. In short, let’s keep our eye on the ball.

U.S. News Releases 2013 Best High Schools Rankings - US News and World Report

U.S. News Releases 2013 Best High Schools Rankings - US News and World Report:

U.S. News Releases 2013 Best High Schools Rankings

Several public schools made significant gains, shaking up the top 10 in this year’s rankings.

By KELSEY SHEEHY

April 23, 2013 RSS Feed Print

The Best High Schools rankings factor in academic performance among black, Hispanic and low-income students.

The importance of a strong high school education cannot be overstated.

Good schools challenge students academically, while giving them ample opportunity to explore their interests. This combination can set teens up to succeed long after graduation. By contrast, subpar schools can leave students struggling to make the transition from high school to college or the workforce.

The 2013 Best High Schools rankings, released today, can help parents wade through the ever expanding options of public high schools. U.S. News collected data on more than 21,000 public high schools from 49 states and the District of Columbia. (Nebraska did not report enough data to be included in the rankings.)

[View the 2013 Best High Schools rankings.]

U.S. News joined forces with the American Institutes for Research, a D.C.-based organization, to evaluate schools on overall student performance on state-mandated assessments, as well as how effectively schools educated their black, Hispanic and economically disadvantaged students. Performance on Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams was then used to determine the degree to which schools prepare students for college-level work.

Schools were ranked within each state, as well as on a national stage, so families can see how their public high school stacked up against rivals within the community and across the country. In the national rankings, 500 schools earned gold medals, 1,790 were awarded silver and 2,515 took home bronze.

[See photos of the top 10 public high schools.]

The School for the Talented and Gifted in the Dallas 

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-23-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

Rally for Public Schools in Olympia, Washington, April 27

by dianerav

This just in:
Could you help to encourage educators, parents and community members to attend the rally for Public Education in Olympia, WA. On April 27 at 9:30 a.m., WEA Representative Assembly delegates will stand on the capitol steps in the final hours of the legislative session to make one last stand for our students, our professions and our schools. Please join us!
https://www.facebook.com/events/239545506170761/

The Logo for Common Core?

by dianerav

A reader offers this observation:
“Before teaching, I worked in software development. If our company released a major product revision with no quality assurance testing and no trial beta release, we would be out of business in a week as well as the laughing stock of the industry.
“Common Core is a corporate initiative written from ivory towers. Teachers had little say. The standards are poorly written and suppress innovation and learning. We have no idea if they are effective or relevant. The logo for Common Core should be a picture of lemmings going over a cliff.”

Doe$ Everyone Need Algebra 2?

by dianerav

Jason Stanford wonders why Texas Instruments wants every student to pass Algebra 2 as a graduation requirement. That is the current requirement. And why Texas Instruments feels so keenly about it that it hired high-powered lobbyist Sandy Kress to work the Legislature. Stanford explains why TI is so passionate about this particular subject.
Kress was the architect of No Child Left Behind. He also lobbies for Pearson. He is an outstanding lobbyist. Pearson won a $500 million contract to test kids in Texas even as the state cut funding by more than $5 billion for public schools.
Once you start following the money, it’s hard to stop.

Major Rally in Louisiana Today at 3 PM

by dianerav

Educators in Louisiana will rally today against Bobby Jindal’s radical privatization “reforms.”
******************************
Media writers, reporters, editors, webmasters, bloggers:
TODAY at the Capitol — Unified Education Organizations to Address Jindal Agenda
WHO: Major State Education Organizations representing Louisiana public schools
WHAT: Press conference to announce unified opposition to re-enacting elements of Acts 1 and 2 of the 2012 Session
WHEN: TODAY — Tuesday, April 23, 2013 at 3 p.m.
WHERE: Steps of the Louisiana State Capitol — located at 900 N. 3rd Street in Baton Rouge
WHICH Organizations:
Coalition for Louisiana Public Education
Louisiana School Boards Association (LSBA)
Louisiana Association of School Superintendents (LASS)
Louisiana Association of School Executives (LASE)
Louisiana Association of Educators (LAE)
Louisiana Federation of Teachers (LFT)
An unprecedented alliance of education organizations will hold a joint press conference at 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, to announce their opposition to the re-enactment of elements of Governor Bobby Jindal’s education agenda.
Act 1 and Act 2 of the 2012 Legislative Session have both been declared unconstitutional by district courts.
Instead of working with stakeholders on meaningful, research-based education reform, the governor and his allies seem intent on rehashing the same failed policies that have frustrated educators and school boards around the state.
Leaders of organizations including the Louisiana Association of Educators (LAE), Louisiana Association of School Executives (LASE), Louisiana Association of School Superintendents (LASS), Louisiana Federation of Teachers (LFT), and Louisiana School Boards Association (LSBA) will announce their unity plans at the press conference.
Look for these contacts today at the Capitol, or call them for more details:
CONTACT: LSBA — Executive Director Scott Richard – (225)769-3191
LASS — President Mike Faulk – (225) 791-0365
LAE — Communications Specialist Ashley Davies – (225) 343-9243 ext. 119.
LFT — Director of Public Relations Les Landon – (225) 923-1037
Coalition for Louisiana Public Education — Founder/Chairman Jack Loup — 985-373-1781
— jackloup@wildblue.net
Thank you for your coverage,
Mary K. Bellisario
Member, Coalition for Louisiana Public Education
bayouduo@bellsouth.net
Check us out on Facebook!

A Great News Source for The Struggle to Save Public Education

by dianerav

The Network for Public Education has developed an excellent news source of stories from across the nation.
Follow it to stay informed.
And please consider joining the Network. It is only $20 for membership. Join with your friends and allies as we push back against those who are imposing failed ideas on our children and our schools.

Louisianans to Jindal: Enough Is Enough

by dianerav

Many people in Louisiana are fed up with a Bobby Jindal’s war on the public sector.
A rally is planned for April 30.
For Immediate Release
For more information contact:
Mike Stagg, Forward Louisiana
Phone: 337-962-1680
eMail: mstagg@forwardla.org
Enough Is Enough!
Louisianans to Rally For the Common Good on April 30th
BATON ROUGE — Thousands of Louisianans will gather on the steps of the state Capitol April 30th calling on 

Billionaires vs. Unions: Who Is David? Who Is Goliath?

by dianerav

Leo Casey, a long-time union activist, here reviews a recent report by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute decrying the immense power of teachers’ unions. Michael Petrilli of TBF described the unions as “Goliaths” battling the weak, underfunded “Davids” of the corporate reform movement.
Casey challenges the report and the characterization, pointing out that corporate reformers have deployed vast amounts of money–far greater than the teachers’ unions could ever muster–to destroy the last vestige of teacher 

Children: Get High Scores or Your Teacher Will Be Fired

by dianerav

This is such a powerful post that I hope you will read it in full. It was written by a parent in California.
The testing mania is spinning out of control. It is turning into child abuse. It demoralizes teachers. It offers the fodder to kill schools. It must be reined in. What kind of person would claim credit for such madness?
Start here:
A parent’s vignette of the CST from child-level:
Two minutes late for the appointed retrieval time, I receive a frantic phone call from the middle-schooler. By the 

Cody: Teachers Had No Role in Writing the Common Core Standards

by dianerav

While David Coleman insists that the Common Core standards were written by primarily by teachers, Anthony Cody wrote in 2009 that the standards were drafted by “the secret 60,” only one of whom was a classroom teacher.
The drafting process was done in secret sessions, said Cody, with no input by teachers

David Coleman: Teachers Wrote the Common Core Standards

by dianerav

This is a very interesting story on NPR that pits one education expert against another.
On one side, David Coleman, the acknowledged architect of the Common Core standards. He thinks the standards will make all students ready for college or careers.
On the other, Karl Krawitz, the principal of Shawnee Mission East High School in Kansas. His school sends 98% of its graduates to college. He says his school doesn’t need Common Core.
Coleman: “The most important thing to know is that it was actually teachers who had the most important voice in 

Diane in the Evening 4-22-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

mike simpson at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: What Michelle Rhee Told the LA Times About Teacher Evaluation by dianerav Michelle Rhee was recently invited to meet with the Los Angeles Times editorial board. The interview occurred after John Merrow published his bombshellpost about the mysterious memo, the one showing that Rhee was informed about the likelihood of widespread cheating and did nothing about it. Rhee forgot about the cheating memo or didn’t think it important. In the same post on his blog, Merrow said that the public schools were worse off af... more »

Florida Republican Senators Giveth Then Taketh Away Local Control in Parent Trigger Bill | Scathing Purple Musings

Florida Republican Senators Giveth Then Taketh Away Local Control in Parent Trigger Bill | Scathing Purple Musings:

Florida Republican Senators Giveth Then Taketh Away Local Control in Parent Trigger Bill

by Bob Sikes

Mush was celebrated in Sen. David Simmons amendment to Parent Trigger which carved out final say on the final choice to local school boards. It was somehow because Commissioner Tony Bennett suggested in a letter that local boards “shouldn’t be left off the hook.” Governor Rick Scott even mentioned Bennett’s involvement this weekend.
All that’s been torpedoed by Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto’s amendment that she quietly inserted yesterday just it time for today’s Senate Appropriations meeting. Here’s the wording.

Delete lines 255 – 263
4 and insert:
5 board. Pursuant to s. 1008.33, an implementation plan for the
6 adopted turnaround option must be submitted

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Kenyon College

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Kenyon College:

Kenyon College

by Mike Klonsky

I'm at Kenyon College in Ohio, working with Prof. Peter Rutkoff's American Students students and reviewing some student final projects. Super-prof Peter's new novel, "Irish Eyes" just came out. It's set in in 60's  N.Y. and tells the story of an Irish family living through those wild and radical times. Be sure and pick up a copy.

Even out here in beautiful, wooded Gambier, I still am battered by the news of another 15-year-old Chicago student, Cornelius German, shot dead blocks from President Obama home. As usual, the Sun-Times simply repeats police description of German as a "gang banger" and for most readers, it's on to the sports section.

Tell me again, CEO Byrd-Bennett and Chief McCarthy, how you're going to "guarantee the safe passage" of every child walking to their receiving school after you close 54 schools in the black community. I really want to know the plan.

Parent trigger: Who’s for it and who’s against it tells the story:

Parent trigger: Who’s for it and who’s against it tells the story

Posted by Valerie Strauss on April 23, 2013 at 5:00 am

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You can learn pretty much everything you need to know about the controversial  “parent trigger” legislation now before the Florida Legislature by looking at who is for it and who is against it.

Parent trigger legislation is intended to give parents with children at low-performing schools the legal right to petition the state or district for a change in school structure, with the parents getting to pick from a list of options. Those options include turning the school over to a private management company.

Proponents say it gives parents more options and power in their children’s education. Opponents say it is a stealth way of turning traditional public schools into charter schools and that it will lead to more privately run schools and contentious battles in school communities (such as the one that ripped up the California town of Adelanto).

The Florida Senate’s Democratic leader, Nan Rich of Weston, who is running for governor in 2014, said at a recent press conference that  the bill is really about “laying the 

2013 National Teacher of Year: Public education not in crisis

by Valerie Strauss

The newly named 2013 National Teacher of the Year, who is visiting with President Obama at the White House on Tuesday with other award-winning teachers, is not a big fan of all of Obama’s education policy initiatives and believes that … Continue reading →

Standardized test questions kids have to answer that don’t even count

by Valerie Strauss

Parents and students may not know this, but all of the questions kids have to answer on standardized tests don’t actually count. Why? Here to explain is Fred Smith, a testing specialist and consultant, retired as an administrative analyst for … Continue reading →

UPDATE: 30 days to go Daily Kos: Guns and terrorism, a double-barreled standard

Daily Kos: Guns and terrorism, a double-barreled standard:

30 days to go

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

As today comes to a close, I enter upon the final month of this my 67th year on earth.
I always try to find time to reflect.
I spent a good deal of the year leading up to my 60th birthday reflecting upon my life, and that led to my writing

Photos from Andrew Kitzenberg of early Friday Watertown shootout

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

Many saw Kitzenberg on TV during the early morning hours.
He has posted and explained the photos he took with his I-Phone as the shootout was occurring on the street just outside the house in which he leaves early Friday morning.
If you are interested, you can take a look  at Boston Bombing Suspect Shootout Pictures.

Guns and terrorism, a double-barreled standard

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

The nation demonstrated again last week how resolute it can be when threatened by murderous terrorists — and how helpless when ordered to heel by smug lobbyists for the gun industry.

That is how Eugene Robinson, Pulitzer-Prize winning columnist of the Washington Post, begins this column this morning, whose title i have borrowed for this post.He goes through some of the background of reactions to the Boston Marathon attacks, including the unanswered questions about motivations of the attackers, and how some, like Senator Lindsay Graham, would like to see them treated.
He acknowledges that we are likely to "move heaven and earth" to try to get to any information that will explain the motivations and explore any possible foreign connections to their actions.
Then, in two sentences in adjacent paragraphs, he frames what for many of us is the real issue:

Since the 9/11 attacks, we have demonstrated that when alienated young men who are foreign-born and Muslim kill innocents, we will do anything in our power to keep such atrocities from happening again.Shamefully, however, we have also shown that when alienated young men who are not foreign-born 

UPDATE: Pensions: Hearts and minds. + The in box. Rally for pensions | Fred Klonsky

The in box. Rally for pensions at Harper College. | Fred Klonsky:

Ten minute drawing. Arne. You’re fired.

by Fred Klonsky

Click on drawing to enlarge.

Pensions: Hearts and minds.

by Fred Klonsky

Public support for the Cullerton pension bill is collapsing.
For many teachers that I talk to, the fight over pension rights can be dispiriting.
Readers of this blog who are not teachers can understand that for both active and retired teachers the attempt to take away what was promised on top of what appears to be a general atmosphere of teacher-bashing seems to be a case of piling on.
Which brings me to yesterday’s Greg Hinz column in Crain’s.
Remember that Crain’s is a business publication and Hinz, although informative, is not exactly pro-union.

The in box. Rally for pensions at Harper College.

by Fred Klonsky

From Northern Illinois Jobs with Justice:

The Daily Herald and a billionaire funded, for-profit media site (called Reboot Illinois) are holding a Pension Forum at Harper’s Wojcik Conference Center next Wednesday on April 24th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. John Dillon did some “worth the read” researchon the connected corporate-media influence that created this event.  Even though IEA President Cinda Klickna is on the panel, everything else about this event seems to be part of a coordinated push to strip teachers of their retirement, reduce funding for education, and further privatize our schools.Prior to the pension forum, the Harper College Chapter of Local 1600 is working with Northern Illinois Jobs with Justice to hold a rally outside the Wojcik center from 5:00-6:45 pm on Wednesday April 24th.  The address for both events is the Harper College campus, 1200 West Algonquin rd. in Palatine, 60067. Please RSVP for the rally so we can communicate a crowd estimate to campus police. There is ample parking for the rally and forum. (please see attached map)  If you want to attend the actual forum, you have to RSVP to the Daily Herald by writingdhevents@dailyherald.com.  Seating within Wojcik is limited to 250 people and seats are disappearing fast.  There will be plenty of room at the rally for everyone involved. Retired teacher and blogger, Fred Klonsky and other outspoken educators will share their views and alternative solutions on the pension issue.  The primary purpose of the rally is to give you and other educators a voice in the pension discussion before Springfield lawmakers vote on HB 3411, or other dramatic pension cuts.  After a few slated speakers, we will have an open microphone for anyone who wishes to share his or her opinion before going into the event and sharing that opinion with Nekritz.  Bring your opinion.  We will bring the microphone.  We do intend to give preference to educators.  The purpose of this event is to give those affected by the pension cuts a stronger voice. Show your support for fair pensions!  Wear Red Attire on April 24th and RSVP to attend the Rally at 5pm in Front of Wojcik Conference Cente.  The event will probably start around 5:15.  Bring your signs! (title unknown) by Fred Klonsky My last year’s 4th grade art class. Raising Test Scores by teacher poet Taylor Mali Praise be to the music teachers!  And the teachers of art and dance though chances are there is only one  poor fool in the entire school,  one brave and tired soul, splattered  paint on her smock and hands,  one scarfed sylph waltzing the halls,  one sunglass-wearing cool cat  spending every lunch at his piano  because the kid with the gin mother has discovered he loves the upright bass,  that he can somehow face the world— be more upright and with a stronger bass— if he can play for an hour or two every day.  Praise be the to canvas and the palette that transforms the black mascara back  into a girl, or the sheer grace that clings  to the boy like tears. Praise be to every art  that jolts the soul’s skeleton and makes  the bones rattle. If you cut the funding  for the arts, you’ve already lost the battle.