Thursday, October 10, 2013

Morning Wink 10-10-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2


BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS

TODAY

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Sports section.  Andy Pafko, Don Newcomb and Jackie Robinson, 1951. Andy Pafko is dead. And so are the World Series chances for the Pirates. My Dodgers are still in it. My Pittsburgh Pirates story: In 2008 Anne and I had rented house on the other side of the Lake. I was a delegate to the National Educ
10-10-13 Wait What?
Wait What?: Capital Prep’s Steve Perry: A Connecticut taxpayer funded voice for the education reform industryWednesday morning, October 9, 2013: The school day began and Hartford Board of Education employee Steve Perry is busy using his personal twitter account to attack his opponents.  His target on this day, Diane Ravitch, the nation’s leading public education advocate. Perry is the principal of
Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groups | Parents Across America
Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groups | Parents Across America: Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groupsNew statewide coalition calls on state board and Chicago schools for more information on inBloom program Chicago, IL: A new coalition of local and national parent and advocacy organizations today raised questions about how private student information is p
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The message is on the meter
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The message is on the meter: The message is on the meterI'm starting to see these stickers on parking meters around the city. They are to remind us of the need to tell our Aldermen to support the Privatization Transparency and Accountability Ordinance. Check it out on Twitter #PTAO. ClosingsChicago school closings have crippled parent participation in their children'
10-10-13 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radicalCommon Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical.by plthomasedd / 58min 10-8-13 @ The Chalk Face@ THE CHALK FACE: Ali: “You must listen to me” | the becoming radicalAli: “You must listen to me” | the becoming radical.by
Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important Beginning | janresseger
Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important Beginning | janresseger: Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important BeginningPosted on October 10, 2013 by janressegerWhat makes the tide of public opinion turn against the conventional wisdom?  It can happen.  I remember the nation slowly turning against the war in Vietnam.  The struggle involved rancor and violence. One reason opinion shifted on V
Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis | Philadelphia Public School Notebook
Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis | Philadelphia Public School Notebook: Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisisby thenotebook on Oct 10 2013 Posted in Latest news="" style="color: rgb(76, 153, 72); cursor: pointer; float: left; padding: 0px 2px;">Share on emailMore Sharing ServicesCOMMENT
The Especially Deserving Poor - Bridging Differences - Education Week
The Especially Deserving Poor - Bridging Differences - Education Week: The Especially Deserving PoorBy Mike Petrilli on October 10, 2013 9:59 AMDear Deborah,A healthy debate we've started! I'm not sure we've bridged many differences, though; maybe we should change the blog's name to Bigging Differences.In that spirit, let me float another provocative but commonsensical idea: We need to do everythi
Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical
Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical: COMMON CORE IN THE REAL WORLD: DESTROYING LITERACY THROUGH STANDARDIZATION (AGAIN)I have a brief comedy routine I use with my students, typically early in each course I teach—in part to introduce them to me, and in part to make a point about literacy.* The joke goes like this:“When I graduate
21st Century Career-Technical Education
Albert Shanker Institute » 21st Century Career-Technical Education: 21st Century Career-Technical Education UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS & THE ALBERT SHANKER INSTITUTEFulfilling The Promise Of a Quality Education for All:21st Century Career & Technical EducationOctober 10-11, 2013United Federation of Teachers52 Broadway, New York, NYWatch live video from 52bway on www.justin.tvFor the age
Video: NEA Joins Thousands in Rally for Immigration Reform | NEA Today
Video: NEA Joins Thousands in Rally for Immigration Reform | NEA Today: Video: NEA Joins Thousands in Rally for Immigration ReformOctober 10, 2013 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Tim WalkerThousands of people gathered on the National Mall on Tuesday to urge Congress to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill. The March and Rally for Immigrant Dignity and Re
Chicago School Closings a Blow to Parental Involvement? | Lorraine Forte
Chicago School Closings a Blow to Parental Involvement? | Lorraine Forte: Chicago School Closings a Blow to Parental Involvement?Posted: 10/09/2013 9:17 pmAny adult who was successful in school will likely remember that their parents played a defining role in that success. What happens during the roughly six-hour school day is only part of the learning equation. Who else but a parent or guardian w
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 10-10-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Andrea Gabor: inBloom, Student Data: Follow the MoneyIn this brilliant and frightening post, Andrea Gabor connects the dots that lead from your child’s personal, confidential information to a data cloud where marketers can hack into everything they want to know about your child. Whose money is behind it? One guess. Who is making mo
10-10-13 Ed Notes Online: Citizens of the World Charter Run By Eva's Husband May Close Due to Low Enrollment
Ed Notes Online: Citizens of the World Charter Run By Eva's Husband May Close Due to Low Enrollment: Citizens of the World Charter Run By Eva's Husband May Close Due to Low EnrollmentGoodbye Eric (Grannis), good bye EricWe're happy to see you go (even though we don't believe the State Ed Charter Suck-Up Center (CSUC) would ever close a charter even if it had 1 kid left.)We have always said that so
10-10-13 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Ed Deformer Says If You're A Critic Of Charters, You're A Segregationist@DianeRavitch @rweingarten YOU, the 'historian', are on the same side of history as the segregationists who fought to keep ppl in the hood.— Dr. Steve Perry (@DrStevePerry) October 9, 2013Ravitch responds:@DrStevePerry @rweingarten George Wallace and Strom Thurmond fought for school choice. Dr. ML King f
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: "Building a Community of Self-Motivated Learners: Strategies for Teaching Resilience, Respect, and Responsibility" is the tentative title of my next book. It will be the third in my student motivation "trilogy."The Best Resources For Understanding The Debt CeilingWe don’t have much time until the United
Daily Kos: Charles M. Blow opines on "Big Money Manipulators" and I react
Daily Kos: Charles M. Blow opines on "Big Money Manipulators" and I react: Charles M. Blow opines on "Big Money Manipulators" and I reactbyteacherkenFollowHis column is occasioned by the arguments before the Supreme Court which could lift the limits on total contributions per federal cycle, so that the wealthy could give the max per candidate to as many candidates as they might
With A Brooklyn Accent: Test Related Stress in the Schools of New York State- Reed it and Weep
With A Brooklyn Accent: Test Related Stress in the Schools of New York State- Reed it and Weep: Test Related Stress in the Schools of New York State- Reed it and WeepTest Related Stress in the Schools of New York State- Reed it and WeepDanielle Brooksabout an hour ago near Oceanside · Statement for New York State Assembly Education ForumOctober 7, 2013 at 10:14pmStatement for New York State Assemb
Make student loans less interest-ing, says Sen. Elizabeth Warren | EdSource Today
Make student loans less interest-ing, says Sen. Elizabeth Warren | EdSource Today: Make student loans less interest-ing, says Sen. Elizabeth WarrenOctober 9th, 2013 | Add a Comment | By Kathryn BaronSen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., spoke last month at the Education Writers Association conference in Boston.  Credit: Mikhail Zinshteyn, National Education Writers AssociationThe federal government shou
Ben Mardell on Early Childhood Education |
Ben Mardell on Early Childhood Education |: Ben Mardell on Early Childhood EducationOctober 10, 2013 by Alyssa HaywoodePhoto: Caroline Silber for Strategies for Children“Four year olds are citizens, not potential citizens, not citizens in training, but citizens, with rights and obligations like all citizens,” Ben Mardell and his co-authors write in a 2010 paper called, – “The Rights of Children: P
Final Draft of C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards Released | Truth in American Education
Final Draft of C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards Released | Truth in American Education: Final Draft of C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards ReleasedFiled in C3 State Social Studies Standards by Shane Vander Hart on October 10, 2013 • 0 CommentsThe National Council for Social Studies just released the final draft of theCollege, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Soc
Teachers, Like the Rest of Us, Must Be Salesmen Now | toteachornototeach
Teachers, Like the Rest of Us, Must Be Salesmen Now | toteachornototeach: Teachers, Like the Rest of Us, Must Be Salesmen Nowby Gabriel Sanchez ZinnyDaniel H. Pink’s latest book, To Sell is Human, provides an excellent overview of how the internet revolution has impacted nearly all types of jobs across all manner of industries — and in particular, sales. Contrary to the predictions of many other a
Why the ‘GREAT Teachers and Principals Act’ is not great
Why the ‘GREAT Teachers and Principals Act’ is not great: Why the ‘GREAT Teachers and Principals Act’ is not greatBy Valerie Strauss, Published: October 10 at 6:00 amE-mail the writer1CommentsMore(Reuters)Legislation in Congress called the GREAT Teachers and Principals Act sounds good but is anything but great in its proposal for new educator preparation programs, according to this post by Kenneth
Oregon Save Our Schools: Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? Save the Date for Oct. 17th!
Oregon Save Our Schools: Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? Save the Date for Oct. 17th!: Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? Save the Date for Oct. 17th!Consecration of the Emperor Napoleon I and Coronation of the Empress Josephine in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris on 2 December 1804, by Jacques-Louis DavidLike brazen Napoleon crowning himself in the above art piece, the Oregon Business Association wi

YESTERDAY

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 10-9-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
Nite Cap UPDATEUPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATECORPORATE ED REFORMUFT calls for moratorium on high-stakes for Common Core testsMichael Mulgrew speaking at UFT headquarters in January after evaluations talks broke down between the union and the city. City schools are just a few months into implementing new teacher evaluations, but the teachers union is already hoping to slow things down. Citing the many
From the WTF Charter School File: Nonclassroom-Based Webinar Script - Administration & Support
Nonclassroom-Based Webinar Script - Administration & Support (CA Dept of Education): Nonclassroom-Based Webinar ScriptNonclassroom−Based Instruction Request for Funding Determination, Fiscal year 2013-14 October 4, 2013 Webinar ScriptNonclassroom-Based Instruction Request for Funding Determination, Fiscal Year 2013-14 Webinar Script October 4, 2013This page is the Accessible Alternative Versio
Nite Cap 10-9-13 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
James Baldwin said it best: "For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAPTODAYTeachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really? | Reclaim ReformTeachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really? | Reclaim Reform: Teachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really?Posted on Octobe
Teachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really? | Reclaim Reform
Teachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really? | Reclaim Reform: Teachers and public schools are under attack worldwide. Really?Posted on October 9, 2013by Ken PrevitiTeachers in every American city, county and state tell of being in the front lines of the attacks on public schools and public school teachers.They are correct, and they are wrong. Unlike the bubble tests teachers ar
Does Wisconsin Want Out-of-State Companies Running Schools with Public Dollars? | Uppity Wisconsin
Does Wisconsin Want Out-of-State Companies Running Schools with Public Dollars? | Uppity Wisconsin: Does Wisconsin Want Out-of-State Companies Running Schools with Public Dollars?Submitted by Sen. K. Vinehout on Wed, 10/09/2013 - 3:44pmDo we want to encourage out-of-state companies to run local schools with tax dollars? This is the objective of a bill before the Senate Education Committee.Katy Ven
The Network For Public Education | NPE Endorses Josรฉ Lara for El Rancho School Board
The Network For Public Education | NPE Endorses Josรฉ Lara for El Rancho School Board: NPE Endorses Josรฉ Lara for El Rancho School Boardadmin October 9, 2013 NPE EndorsementsThe Network for Public Education, a national group fighting to preserve and strengthen public schools, has endorsed an educator and father of public school students, Josรฉ Lara, for El Rancho School Board. The general election w
The Flipped Class: Myths vs. Reality - THE DAILY RIFF - Be Smarter. About Education.
The Flipped Class: Myths vs. Reality - THE DAILY RIFF - Be Smarter. About Education.: The Flipped Class: Myths vs. RealityEditor's Note:  On the heels of our viral posts in over 100 countries about the flipped classroom earlier this year (links below), we asked Jon Bergmann if he could share some of the feedback he was receiving in light of the notable interest about this topic.  The timing couldn
NYC Educator: Should We Change Our Name?
NYC Educator: Should We Change Our Name?: Should We Change Our Name?Here at GothamCharterSchools we're in a quandary. Since our Rise and Shine is all about Moskowitz, and since every day we write multiple stories about the Moskowitz Charter Schools, should we change our name to MoskowitzCharterSchools? After all, we've covered not only planning the rally, thinking about the rally, and the rally it
Mass School Closures Are "Shock Doctrine" for Education | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity
Mass School Closures Are "Shock Doctrine" for Education | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity: Mass School Closures Are "Shock Doctrine" for EducationPosted on: Wednesday October 9th, 2013When 9-year-old Asean Johnson gave his now-famous, fiery speech last spring at a rally to protest the mass closure of 49 Chicago public schools
Stotsky Calls For Abolishment of Florida DOE | Truth in American Education
Stotsky Calls For Abolishment of Florida DOE | Truth in American Education: Stotsky Calls For Abolishment of Florida DOEFiled in Common Core State Standards, Education at State Level by Shane Vander Hart on October 9, 2013• 0 Comments584Sandra Stotsky, former Senior Associate Commissioner of Education in Massachusetts and Professor Emerita at the University of Arkansas, released a statement concer
THE PERIMETER PRIMATE: Lying like a rug: Concept Schools
THE PERIMETER PRIMATE: Lying like a rug: Concept Schools: Lying like a rug: Concept SchoolsSince Concept Schools is willing to lie to Americans about its very fundamental connection to the Gulen Movement’s (GM) larger school network, then what else is it lying about and why should Americans trust anything it claims?Despite the GM’s best efforts to stay under the radar, each day a few more American
10-9-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle School Board Executive CommitteeNo time to do a complete write-up to several major items of note:It appears that some changing are coming to EOCs for algebra and geometry.  It looks like there will be some sort of comprehensive exam coming in the next four years.  Michael Tolley reported this as coming from OSPI and that he had had a meeting with high schoo
Jesse Hagopian nails it on Education Nation | Seattle Education
Jesse Hagopian nails it on Education Nation | Seattle Education: Jesse Hagopian nails it on Education NationBrian Williams, the host of Education Nation, the ed reform infomercial brought to you by Gates & Co., asked Jesse Hagopian during the Teacher Town Hall, “You’re not against testing are you?” Jesse responded in a kick *** way that had the audience cheering.As Jesse stated on his blog, “I
The bottom line on SAT scores in one chart
The bottom line on SAT scores in one chart: The bottom line on SAT scores in one chartBy Valerie Strauss, Published: October 9 at 1:52 pmE-mail the writerHere, in one chart, is pretty much everything you need to know about who does and doesn’t perform well on the SAT. Kids from the wealthiest families do the best, and the kids from the poorest families do the worst. This pattern applies to virtual
Community School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program Success — Whole Child Education
Community School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program Success — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGCommunity School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program SuccessOctober 9, 2013 by ASCD Whole Child BloggersPost written by Janet Brown, Senior Early Childhood Program Specialist, and Kwesi Rollins, Director of Leadership Programs at the Institute for Educationa
A Force for Real Education Reform Emerges | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity
A Force for Real Education Reform Emerges | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity: A Force for Real Education Reform EmergesPosted on: Wednesday October 9th, 2013By Jeff Bryant, Education Opportunity NetworkEducation “reform” wasn’t supposed to turn out like this.In an ironic coda to the No Child Left Behind era last week, Texas officially turned its
10-9-13 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: A New Review of “The Global Achievement Gap”During my first year teaching, I downloaded Tony Wagner’s breakthrough book, The Global Achievement Gap: Why Even Our Best Schools Don’t Teach the New Survival Skills Our Children Need—and What We Can Do About It.  I will henceforth refer to this book as G.A.G., which is simply an unintended coincidence, not a pun.  I promise. At […]by
Paul Horton: Students and Educators Suffer PTSD in the Chicago School Wars: The Road to Gatopia IV - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher
Paul Horton: Students and Educators Suffer PTSD in the Chicago School Wars: The Road to Gatopia IV - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher: Paul Horton: Students and Educators Suffer PTSD in the Chicago School Wars: The Road to Gatopia IVBy Anthony Cody on October 9, 2013 12:01 PMGuest post by Paul Horton.Depression, anxiety disorders, and PTSD are reaching "epidemic proportions" a
Creating Time for Teachers to Meet and Tinker With Ideas #RSCON4 | Connected Principals
Creating Time for Teachers to Meet and Tinker With Ideas #RSCON4 | Connected Principals: Creating Time for Teachers to Meet and Tinker With Ideas #RSCON4October 9, 2013By Chris WejrFinding out what we are curious about.Cross-posted at The Wejr Board Blog.We often hear criticisms about the lack of innovation and creativity from administrators and staff in schools.  I understand these concerns; howe
Bully Free Doesn’t Just Happen: All of Us Are Needed | Lily's Blackboard
Bully Free Doesn’t Just Happen: All of Us Are Needed | Lily's Blackboard: Bully Free Doesn’t Just Happen: All of Us Are NeededOct 9th, 2013 by Lily.Please don’t tell my mom, but…My mom was wrong.  Your mom was probably wrong, too.  And maybe your dad and your grandfather, if they told you what my mom told me. “Oh he’s just a little bully.  He just wants attention.  Just ignore him, and he’ll just
Drama From the Mailbag: 286 and a Broad Alum’s Track Record | Cloaking Inequity
Drama From the Mailbag: 286 and a Broad Alum’s Track Record | Cloaking Inequity: Drama From the Mailbag: 286 and a Broad Alum’s Track RecordEvery so often I get notes in my email from folks that have “skin in the game.” I received an email from Jim Schutze, an self-described “investigative columnist” who was annoyed by a report that I wrote for the Foundation for Community Empowerment (FCE).Wikipe
Breaking silence, former North Atlanta High official urges APS... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com
Breaking silence, former North Atlanta High official urges APS... | Get Schooled | www.ajc.com: Breaking silence, former North Atlanta High official urges APS voters to change a flawed system COMMENT(6) 1 17 7 43View Larger A former North Atlanta High administrator who was removed in what has become known as Bloody Friday urges parents to pay attention to this November election and to who leads th
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New report shows how school closings, charters lead to more racial segregation
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: New report shows how school closings, charters lead to more racial segregation: New report shows how school closings, charters lead to more racial segregationChicago school closings and the district’s expansion of “school choice” further aggravate the city’s problems with neighborhood and school racial segregation. This according to a new report from The Chicago Area
Community School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program Success — Whole Child Education
Community School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program Success — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGCommunity School Collaborations: A Lifeline for Early Learning Program SuccessOctober 9, 2013 by ASCD Whole Child BloggersPost written by Janet Brown, Senior Early Childhood Program Specialist, and Kwesi Rollins, Director of Leadership Programs at the Institute for Educationa
The amazing Malala Yousafzai talks about education with Jon Stewart
The amazing Malala Yousafzai talks about education with Jon Stewart: The amazing Malala Yousafzai talks about education with Jon StewartBy Valerie Strauss, Published: October 9 at 10:58 amE-mail the writerMalala Yousafzai was on a bus returning home from school exactly one year ago,  Oct. 9, 2012, when she was shot in the head by a gunman from the Taliban, which had earlier banned girls from going
Why Do So Many Workers Have Bad Jobs?
Shanker Blog » Why Do So Many Workers Have Bad Jobs?: Why Do So Many Workers Have Bad Jobs?Posted by Esther Quintero on October 9, 2013About one in five American workers today have jobs that offer low wages, poor benefits and few opportunities for advancement. But what can you do, right? After all, don’t we know that what’s good for business is often not good for people?Not really, argues Zeynep T
Cyber Schools Flunk, But Tax Money Keeps Flowing | NEA Today
Cyber Schools Flunk, But Tax Money Keeps Flowing | NEA Today: Cyber Schools Flunk, But Tax Money Keeps FlowingOctober 8, 2013 by twalker  Filed under Must ReadsLeave a CommentTaxpayers send nearly $2 billion a year to cyber schools that let students from kindergarten through 12th grade receive a free public education entirely online. The schools, many managed by for-profit companies, are great at
Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, October 9, 2013
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Discipline reform advocates rally at Long Beach USD board meetingFixSchoolDiscipline is a project of Public Counsel. Education HeadlinesWednesday, October 9, 2013Riverside school board doesn’t fund adult programRiverside Unified School District won’t fund or reopen the Life School special education class for adults, despite requests to recons
Jesse Hagopian “Reframes the Purpose of Education” and Testing at NBC’s Nationally Broadcast “Education Nation” Program | I AM AN EDUCATOR
Jesse Hagopian “Reframes the Purpose of Education” and Testing at NBC’s Nationally Broadcast “Education Nation” Program | I AM AN EDUCATOR: Jesse Hagopian “Reframes the Purpose of Education” and Testing at NBC’s Nationally Broadcast “Education Nation” ProgramBy I AM AN EDUCATOR on October 9, 2013Asked by NBC nightly news host, Brian Williams, “You’re not against testing are you?”, I responded in t
Morning Wink 10-9-13 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSTODAYFred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Chicago BOT chief, Patrick Arbor. “My word is my bond.”Thirty-year tax cheat and former head of the Chicago Board of Trade, Patrick Arbor (2:49 on the video).


10-10-13 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.:







The IEA Representative Assembly retired delegate vote is coming. I’m running as a delegate. #5 on the ballot.
Last year they forgot to move my membership from active to retired. That meant I couldn’t run as a delegate to the IEA’s state convention, the Representative Assembly. Then they wouldn’t let me on the floor as a representative of the press. This year I couldn’t say I was an “activist” on my candidate statement. They changed it to “advocate.” Recently I received a request from IEA for help on the

Veto session pension deal?
  Is the Gang of Ten striving for cooperation. I don’t think so. The Illinois General Assembly veto session is a little more than a week away. The Gang of Ten legislative committee that was charged with coming up with something hasn’t had a full committee meeting since July, although sub-committees have been said to have been meeting. Senate President John Cullerton has abandoned SB2404 which he


Sports section.
  Andy Pafko, Don Newcomb and Jackie Robinson, 1951. Andy Pafko is dead. And so are the World Series chances for the Pirates. My Dodgers are still in it. My Pittsburgh Pirates story: In 2008 Anne and I had rented house on the other side of the Lake. I was a delegate to the National Education Association Representative Assembly, our yearly national convention. It was held in Philadelphia. I decide




Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Chicago BOT chief, Patrick Arbor. “My word is my bond.”Thirty-year tax cheat and former head of the Chicago Board of Trade, Patrick Arbor (2:49 on the video). “My word is my bond,” says former Chicago Board of Trade President Patrick Arbor. We will get back to Patrick Arbor and his words in just a few

10-10-13 Wait What?

Wait What?:



Playing politics with his religion and religion with his politics – The Kenneth Moales Jr. story
In a recent Connecticut Post article entitled, “Kenneth Moales Jr., a man of wide influence,” the newspaper presented a fairly detailed profile of the man who serves as Mayor Bill Finch’s campaign treasurer, Chairman of the Bridgeport Board of Education and Paul Vallas’ biggest cheerleader. The story paints the portrait of a man who has […]The post Playing politics with his religion and religion w

Capital Prep’s Steve Perry: A Connecticut taxpayer funded voice for the education reform industry
Wednesday morning, October 9, 2013: The school day began and Hartford Board of Education employee Steve Perry is busy using his personal twitter account to attack his opponents.  His target on this day, Diane Ravitch, the nation’s leading public education advocate. Perry is the principal of Capital Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, Connecticut. His six […]The post Capital Prep’s Steve Perry:

10-9-13 Wait What?
Wait What?: The State Department of Education’s NetStat to the rescue!When in doubt, purchase a new data management system, give it a name that has nothing to do with education, hire more consultants and then hold as many meetings and “training sessions” as possible. All paid for, or course, by the generous taxpayers of Connecticut (while school districts across the state go without adequate fundi

Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groups | Parents Across America

Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groups | Parents Across America:

Threats to student privacy unite parent and advocacy groups


New statewide coalition calls on state board and Chicago schools for more information on inBloom program
 Chicago, IL: A new coalition of local and national parent and advocacy organizations today raised questions about how private student information is protected by school districts, after new revelations concerning a database vendor moving into Illinois. The groups sent letters to Illinois State Schools Superintendent Christopher Koch and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Chief Executive Officer Barbara Byrd-Bennett expressing serious concerns about plans for CPS to join a state database of private student information as soon as January 2014.
The program in question, the Illinois Shared Learning Environment (ISLE), may collect up to 400 “data points” about each student, information that may potentially be shared with for-profit companies. The state school board already has contracted with inBloom to facilitate ISLE across Illinois.
“InBloom refuses to guarantee the security of this data, said Julie Woestehoff, of Parents United for Responsible Education. “Once that information is uploaded electronically, no one can be sure where it will end up, whether it is with colleges, potential employers, or other entities critical to students’ futures.”
In the letters made public today (attached), the groups expressed opposition to the overall concept of sharing confidential student and teacher information with third parties without permission of parents or teachers,
- See more at: http://parentsacrossamerica.org/threats-student-privacy-unite-parent-advocacy-groups/?utm_source=feedly#sthash.2NWmE66T.dpuf

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The message is on the meter

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The message is on the meter:

The message is on the meter

I'm starting to see these stickers on parking meters around the city. They are to remind us of the need to tell our Aldermen to support the Privatization Transparency and Accountability Ordinance. Check it out on Twitter #PTAO. 

Closings
Chicago school closings have crippled parent participation in their children's education, writes Catalyst editor Lorraine Forte on Huffington. She says that parents interviewed for the latest issue of Catalyst
"...expressed dissatisfaction and dismay about the rocky transition to new schools. They cited bus schedules that don't accommodate after-school activities, crowded classrooms, students feeling anxious and unwelcome. The problems are magnified because many parents were already notoriously distrustful of the district and fought against the closings." 
Two Chicagos
To best understand the context for the mayor's school closings, in nearly all in the city's poorest, isolated African-American communities, you need only glance at Nickolay Lamm's two animated GIFs on Chicago Wealth Inequality Project, which show -- surprise! --"the city's Near North Side is where the rainbow ends and the city's South and West Sides 

10-10-13 @ THE CHALK FACE

@ THE CHALK FACE:






Impact of shutdown to be felt by DC charter schools, but…
… notice the list of priorities here. Is this in any particular order? Ramona Edelin, executive director of the D.C. Association of Chartered Public Schools, said the payment, totaling $101 million, is supposed to go toward preparation for SAT and other entrance tests as well as food services and teacher pay. “Some schools have something […]

EngageNY website – not so boring after all!
Several authors here at The Chalk Face have discussed the scripted curriculum modules that the New York State Department of Education has placed on it education reform propaganda website EngageNY.org. The modules are widely considered by teachers, and now and growing group of parents and children as being boring lessons killing student interest and creativity. […]

Professors Need to Stop Recommending TFA’ers to Be Teachers
TFA is Losing Its Luster There is still good, quality, genuine education going on around the country despite the anti-teacher, anti-intellectual and misogynistic meme of accountability and performance, test scores, and measuring every student every year, over and over and over again, on standardized fill in the bubble sheets. TFA, just like so much of […]


Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical
Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical.

10-8-13 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: Ali: “You must listen to me” | the becoming radicalAli: “You must listen to me” | the becoming radical.by plthomasedd / 1h 10-7-13 @ The Chalk Face@ THE CHALK FACE:Returning from a successful trip to Douglas County, CO.Tim and I, along with the Edushyster, visited Douglas County, CO as they gear up for a contentious school board election. All politics are indeed local. From the k

Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important Beginning | janresseger

Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important Beginning | janresseger:

Education-Labor Collaboration Marks Important Beginning

What makes the tide of public opinion turn against the conventional wisdom?  It can happen.  I remember the nation slowly turning against the war in Vietnam.  The struggle involved rancor and violence. One reason opinion shifted on Vietnam is that the military draft ensured that most families were personally touched by the war.  The media played an important role, and major political leaders took sides, which created a very public debate.
Turning the tide today against the test-based accountability movement in public education brings a different kind of challenge.  Less than a quarter of households have children in school with the rest less personally connected. The conversation is being driven by federal policy, and yet we know that education is low on list of issues that preoccupy the President.  Neither any member of Congress nor a governor of any of the states has made improving the public schools a signature issue.
Despite these challenges, there has been some shifting of opinion.  Although in 2002, the federal testing law No Child Left Behind passed with wide bipartisan support, today most people will at least quietly admit what data demonstrates: the law failed to improve student achievement overall or close achievement gaps.  Many of us who have worked hard to discredit the law can tell you about the succession of white papers, joint sign-on statements, studies, and resolutions prepared, presented, and passed that have pushed this change along.  Masses of articles and blog posts and books have helped, culminating perhaps in Diane 

Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:

Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis

by thenotebook on Oct 10 2013 Posted in Latest news
Photo: Kimberly Paynter/WHYY
Dismissal time at A.S. Jenks elementary in South Philly. Parents say their children are suffering as the district "levels" their school.
by Kevin McCorry for NewsWorks
It's gone from bad to worse.
Packed classrooms. Lack of a full-time guidance counselor. No education in arts or music.
Those were the complaints of parents at South Philadelphia's A.S. Jenks elementary school through the first month of school.
And now this.
On Monday, parents received word that that the District was removing another teacher from their school – this in addition to the teacher they lost to layoffs in June.  As a result, the K-4 school will now serve its 1st through 4th grades only with classes that combine multiple grade-levels in one classroom.
Every 1st-grader will be in a class with second-graders. Some third-graders will be combined with 4th-graders; others will be with 2nd-graders. Only the school's kindergarten students will not be affected.
"I'm so disgusted. When I got the letter, I just cried. I can't believe this is the education I need to give my children," said 

Notes from the news, Oct. 10
​Robbing Peter to pay Paul: 'Leveling' Philly schools in the time of budget crisis. NewsWorks At symposium, a call for state education funding formula. Inquirer He says his daughter might be alive if not for school-nurse cuts. City Paper Head Start student brings eight baggies and $173 to school. Inquirer Fired administrator can assert free speech violations in termination suit, judge rules. Penns

The Especially Deserving Poor - Bridging Differences - Education Week

The Especially Deserving Poor - Bridging Differences - Education Week:

The Especially Deserving Poor

Dear Deborah,
A healthy debate we've started! I'm not sure we've bridged many differences, though; maybe we should change the blog's name to Bigging Differences.
In that spirit, let me float another provocative but commonsensical idea: We need to do everything we can--in our schools and in our larger social policies--to empower individuals who are working hard to climb the ladder to success. In other words, we need to spur on the strivers.
Let me explain some of my assumptions.
  1. As we've been discussing, I still believe in the promise of upward mobility. I don't buy into the dystopia of some on the left that pictures a future with an eviscerated middle class, opportunities only for the elite, and a vast dependent population. Times are tough now, but economic growth and jobs will return; the American Dream will be back.
  2. But I'm no utopian. Not all children born into poverty are going to make it out by adulthood. Most face powerful disadvantages--dysfunctional families, substance abuse, crime, segregation, broken economies, bad schools, etc.--and not everyone will be able 

Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical

Common Core in the Real World: Destroying Literacy through Standardization (Again) | the becoming radical:

COMMON CORE IN THE REAL WORLD: DESTROYING LITERACY THROUGH STANDARDIZATION (AGAIN)


I have a brief comedy routine I use with my students, typically early in each course I teach—in part to introduce them to me, and in part to make a point about literacy.* The joke goes like this:
“When I graduated high school,” I say, ” I had 7,000 comic books,” slight pause, “and no girl friend.”
The students typically laugh, and then I deadpan, “That’s not funny. That’s sad.”
When they suddenly stop laughing, I smile widely, and we all laugh together.**
I began collecting comic books—primarily to draw from them—in the summer before my ninth grade, the summer I learned I had scoliosis and would have to wear a huge back brace throughout my high school years (23 hours a day at first and throughout school hours into my junior year of high school). That situation provided me with yet another joke for my students; when I tell that part of my life story, I say that I called my back brace “the chick magnet.” More laughter.
By my sophomore year of high school, I was collecting, drawing from, and reading dozens of comics each month. I also 

Albert Shanker Institute » 21st Century Career-Technical Education

Albert Shanker Institute » 21st Century Career-Technical Education:



21st Century Career-Technical Education


UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS & THE ALBERT SHANKER INSTITUTE
Fulfilling The Promise Of a Quality Education for All:
21st Century Career & Technical Education
October 10-11, 2013
United Federation of Teachers
52 Broadway, New York, NY

Watch live video from 52bway on www.justin.tv
For the agenda, go here.
For the bios, go here.
The conference will focus on:
• Creating and Sustaining Quality Career & Technical Education – the best new research on current developments in CTE;
• High Academic Standards and Career & Technical Education – an update on the work of aligning CTE standards with Common Core standards;
• Developing New Economic Opportunities through Career & Technical Education – the role of CTE in new thinking about the need for multiple pathways to academic and career success.
New York City is the home of many innovative CTE programs, and the conference will feature school visits that will allow participants to discuss the work of those programs with educators and students, and to see for themselves how CTE is renewing the promise of education for young people engaged in these rigorous programs.
Our goal is for conference participants to share their expertise and experience in CTE policy, practice and research, and to deepen their understanding of how quality CTE can expand educational and career horizons for all students. The conference is also designed to raise awareness among educators and policymakers at large of the vital role that rigorous, applied learning is playing in opening career and education doors to students. Finally, it will stress the vital importance of the community: how collaboration among community groups — business, labor, educators, and government – is the critical element in making quality CTE work for students and the broader society.
The conference will consider a draft statement of recommendations which will describe what needs to be done to develop and support quality CTE program and call upon key stakeholders to support and expand the role of CTE in U.S. education.
Space is limited. If you are able to attend, register here today.
If you have any questions, please contact Randy Garton at rgarton@ashankerinst.org or Vicki Thomas at vthomas@ashankerinst.org.