Thursday, December 5, 2013

12-4-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum:





City to Ease Pot Buffer Near Schools?
Publicola has been covering the issue of where pot stores will be springing up now that Washington State has a law to make them legal.  There are more than 80 stores with applications to be in Seattle.In this thread, they show a map of where stores are proposed to be.  However: If you overlay Baker's map with the city's own map of the areas where pot stores are likely to be allowed—under Seattle r
by Melissa Westbrook / 1min hide  //  save

Nelson Mandela - A Giant of a Man
I had thought for a long while that it was futile to wish for Mandela to live for much longer.  He was very old and had been through so much.  And so he has passed. But he gave so much to this world and if it was only one thing (and I come back to this again and again as a topic) - it is not hope or fighting the good fight.  It is resiliency.  The ability to believe that you can and will overcome
by Melissa Westbrook / 1h

Katie Dolan; Activist
 Katie Dolan, a long-time activist for the rights of disabled people in Washington state, died last Saturday, the Seattle Times reports.  I had never heard of Ms. Dolan but I'm glad to have read about her important contributions.  Her family was among the first to participate in Northwest Center, which provided developmentally disabled students with teaching and jobs. In 1971, under what he once c
by Melissa Westbrook / 35min hide  //  save
Religion Comes to School
There was an interesting story from Inside Bainbridge about Bainbridge Island School district about some volunteers who were youth pastors.  An investigation was launched and the district has promised to improve its volunteer screening.  The story was about a middle school where three evangelical youth pastors had been volunteering over the last year, mostly in the lunchroom and at registration. 
by Melissa Westbrook / 46min 
12-4-13 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: We Have a New Seattle School BoardI attended the Oath of Office ceremony this afternoon for our two new and one returning Board members.  It had all the usual trappings; family, supporters and a fair number of staff.  There were speeches (mercifully brief) but, from talking to others, there is one person who stood out to many of us.I think I'll write this thread as
by mike simpson / 23h 



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#ReclaimPublicEd: Join the 12/9 Nat. Day of Action! | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity

#ReclaimPublicEd: Join the 12/9 Nat. Day of Action! | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity:

#ReclaimPublicEd: Join the 12/9 Nat. Day of Action!

Posted on: Thursday December 5th, 2013
National Day of Action
Are You Ready for the 12/9 National Day of Action?Send us event details & tweet to #ReclaimPublicEd
The Dec. 9 National Day of Action to Reclaim the Promise of Public Education is just a few days away, and we hope you're as excited as we are!
On Monday, you will be joining thousands of advocates and organizers in more than 60 cities nationwide to call for a new kind of education reform, one that ends inequities, closes opportunity gaps and reclaims the promise of our public schools.
LIST OF EVENTS: An updated list of actions is available here. If you don't see your action listed, please send details to edjusticedayofaction@gmail.com.
ONLINE ACTION: Don't live near any of the events but still want to participate? Sign on to the Principles That Unite Us and tell your friends and colleagues to add their names, too. On the Day of Action, we'll launch a petition to ask your state legislators to endorse the Principles. Stay tuned for that link!
SOCIAL MEDIA: For all you Twitter and Facebook users, join the conversation with the hashtag #ReclaimPublicEd and check out (and share!) this social media cheat sheet.
PICTURES & VIDEO: If you take any pictures or short videos on the Day of Action, we'd love to help you share them. Please email them to edjusticedayofaction@gmail.com or use the above hashtag on Twitter and Facebook.
BONUS: Blogger Jeff Bryant from the Education Opportunity Network featured the Day of Action in a recent column. He says some pretty nice things about all your hard work, so take a moment to read it over and pass it along.
We'll see you next week. Good luck!
Visit www.ReclaimPublicEdNow.org for more details. 
Don't forget to share this event with your friends and colleagues on Facebook and Twitter!

12/4/2013 – Ensuring Quality Teachers
12/4/2013 – Ensuring Quality Teachers: Time To Change The Way We Ensure Quality TeachersBy Jeff Bryant“The agenda [Arne] Duncan ‘began to advance in 2009 has now hit serious roadblocks’ … Particularly anger-inducing has been the way the Duncan/reform agenda has faltered on the need to expand access that poor and language-minority kids have to the best teachers … The idea of getting more successful
by mike simpson / 21h 
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Ravitch wins Grawemeyer education award — University of Louisville

Ravitch wins Grawemeyer education award — University of Louisville:



The Grawemeyer Awards are five annual prizes given in the fields of music, political science, psychology, education and religion. They were founded by H. Charles Grawemeyer to help make the world a better place. 
More about the Grawemeyer Awards >>


Ravitch wins Grawemeyer education award

Education historian Diane Ravitch once supported education reform, but now she sees it as a series of “mistaken policies” that have corrupted public schools.
Ravitch wins Grawemeyer education award
Diane Ravitch
Ravitch, a New York University research professor of education, has won the 2014 University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award in Education for her 2010 book, "The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education."
The work chronicles her decades-long journey from reform advocate to critic and encourages a return to school curriculums that value art, literature, creativity and problem solving.
Ravitch, who served in the U.S. Department of Education in both the George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations, formerly was a strong advocate for reforms such as standardized testing, teacher accountability and school choice. In 2010, however, she concluded that those policies were flawed and did something rarely seen in public life—she admitted she was wrong.
Her change of heart came about gradually as she saw more American students fall behind their international peers and fail to grasp a big picture understanding of historical events, political issues and scientific phenomena.
"This book gives us an important historical perspective," said award administrator Melissa Andris. "Ravitch marshals an impressive body of evidence to show how, on the whole, these reforms are not working as promised and are leaving many schools in the same or even worse shape than before."
UofL presents four Grawemeyer Awards each year for outstanding works in music, composition, world order, psychology and education. The university and Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary jointly give a fifth award in religion. This year's awards are $100,000 each.

About Diane Ravitch

For decades, U.S. public school education has been marked with controversy, and Diane Ravitch has been a part of it all.
In the 1990s, Ravitch, a professor at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development, was an outspoken supporter of charter schools, testing and standards. In 2010, however, she reversed herself, saying she had become convinced that those policies would never lead to a good education for all children.
Ravitch was assistant education secretary under George H. W. Bush and was appointed by Bill Clinton to the National Assessment Governing Board. Between those posts, she held the Brown chair in education studies at the Brookings Institution. Before that, she was an adjunct history and education professor at Teachers College, Columbia University
She has written nine books besides her Grawemeyer Award-winning book, including "The Great School Wars: New York City, 1905-1973," "The Troubled Crusade" and "Left Back: A Century of Battles Over School Reform."
Her most recent book, "Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools," became a best seller soon after it was published in September.
Among Ravitch's honors are awards from the National Education Association, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the American Association of School Administrators and the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences.
She also has received honorary degrees from Williams College, Reed College, Amherst College, State University of New York, Ramapo College, St. Joseph's College of New York, Middlebury College Language Schools and Union College.
A Houston, Texas, public school graduate, she has a bachelor's degree from Wellesley College and a doctor of philosophy degree from Columbia University.
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NY Ed Commissioner King Tone Deaf to Common Core Concerns | Truth in American Education

NY Ed Commissioner King Tone Deaf to Common Core Concerns | Truth in American Education:

Truth in American Education



NY Ed Commissioner King Tone Deaf to Common Core Concerns

Filed in Common Core State Standards, Education at State Level by  on December 5, 2013 • 0 Comments
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New York Education Commissioner John B. King, Jr. admitted to those attending a public forum in Jamestown, NY that the public forums he is holding is just for show.
King assured the audience that he is listening to their concerns but said state education officials are “unwavering” in their commitment to implementing Common Core. Earlier in the evening, while speaking to reporters, King said he feared that the state’s approach has actually been too slow. He pointed to the number of students entering the state’s university system who need remedial course work.
“We may not always agree on every issue as a community, but I hope that we will have a constructive discourse,” King told the audience. “And I want you to know that we are listening.”
A local principal noticed this as well.
But Andrew Ludwig, a parent and principal who spoke at the event Wednesday, questioned 
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12-5-13 With A Brooklyn Accent: BATS and the Pedagogy of Joy

With A Brooklyn Accent: BATS and the Pedagogy of Joy:







BATS and the Pedagogy of Joy
One of the reasons that BATS continue to grow and thrive is that we expound a Pedagogy of Joy that stands in sharp contrast to the Pegagogy of Fear and Pain which dominates current education policy. The Arne Duncans and Michelle Rhees and John Kings of the world advocate using schools to "whip students in shape" to meet the demands of global competition. Their vision turns teachers into
by Mark Naison / 1min  
12-4-13 With A Brooklyn Accent - My Personal Stake in Defending Teachers
With A Brooklyn Accent: My Personal Stake in Defending TeachersMy parents, children of immigrants who became public school teachers, were harder working and more capable than any wealthy and prominent people I met in my journey from Brooklyn streets and schoolyards to an Ivy League college and a Professorship at Fordham. And so is my wife Liz, a public school principal. Attacking the dignity and i
by mike simpson / 8h 
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FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Thursday, December 5, 2013

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:






Education Headlines

Thursday, December 5, 2013
FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.

Simi Valley neighbors can see school solar panels all too clearly now

In its continuing effort to cut expenses, the Simi Valley Unified School District is installing solar energy panels at all but one campus.

Rancho Mirage High finds teens taking responsibility for getting to class on time

Rancho Mirage High School, a new school in the Palm Springs Unified School District, is one of a small number of U.S. schools that have abandoned the traditional strategy of using bells to move students from one class to another.

Santa Ana students critique lunch menu options

Josias Lopez stood next to one of 14 food sample tables set up on the Godinez Fundamental High School campus Wednesday afternoon, eying a small plastic plate of pork and salsa verde that his classmate was eating. “How is it? Is it good? Spicy good?” he asked skeptically, before accepting a forkful of the saucy cafeteria food from his friend. The 15-year-old chewed for a minute and then smiled. “Hmmm. My mom makes that!”

San Jose charter school helps salvage lives

After they veer off course, many of California's hundreds of thousands of dropouts end up unemployed, on the streets, in jail and worse. For those young people who are lucky and determined enough, the San Jose Conservation Corps Charter School has helped them get back on track.

Frey: Parents know little about funding law but want to get involved, EdSource survey find

A new statewide survey by EdSource suggests that parents are eager to get involved in school district spending decisions, but underscores the need for districts to actively engage parents if they are to fulfill their new role under the state’s Local Control Funding Formula.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Family of boy left on bus files legal claim

The family of an 8-year-old autistic boy who was inadvertently left behind on a school bus three months ago has filed a legal claim naming the Kern County Superintendent of Schools office and the county of Kern as defendants.

School merger petition on

Volunteers throughout the Tuolumne County are gathering signatures from voters to put a measure on the November 2014 ballot that would consolidate the county's 11 school districts into one.

Sonora Elementary classes resume; arrest made

As Sonora Elementary School students returned to class this morning, law enforcement officials continued investigating the apparent arson fire that damaged 15 classrooms on Nov. 23. A 17-year-old former student has already been arrested on suspicion of starting the fire, and authorities have interviewed a second youth.

U.S. educators hope to learn from world test results

Educators and pundits all over the country are abuzz over the latest results of an international test that shows students in the United States have made little progress in the past three years.

National group asks Bellflower Unified school board to stop prayers at meetings

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is asking the Bellflower school board to stop its longtime practice of praying before meetings.
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12-5-13 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online:





Pssst! Want to Go to a Party? Friday, Dec. 6, 5-9 PM
Party MORE. No meeting, just eating - and drinking.  O'Reilly's Bar + Kitchen21 West 35th St. (between 5th – 6th Aves.) View this email in your browser Weekly Update #78 December 3, 2013 MORE Holiday Party Check out the awesome video here We have a lot to celebrate! All year we’ve been fighting for better teaching and learning conditions and a more democratic union. Join us fo
by ed notes online / 2min 



Coming to NYC Next Week: Fear and Loathing
NYSED officials continue to add insult to injury giving NYC parents so little warning and holding both forums the same night. What are they afraid of? ... Leonie Haimson I'm surprised they aren't holding these events on Dec. 25 and Jan. 1.More from Leonie:Just learned that the first NYC NYSED/Regents forums on Common Core, testing and privacy – of which 16 others have already been scheduled and mo
by ed notes online / 11min 



12-4-13 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Principal Uphappy at Cashin Support for Despised Networks as Backlash Against De Blasio Ed Moves Begins...let's hope this is not another case of come meet the new boss, same as the old boss... NYC Principal Photo from Gotham SchoolsA very concerned principal expresses concern that networks may be staying around given Cashin's statement (State policymaker with a city stake wants to
by mike simpson / 8h 
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12-5-13 @ THE CHALK FACE

@ THE CHALK FACE:





Hunger, Health, and Access to Books: Just an excuse
Three days ago I was interviewed on our local news channel.  I was contacted by a journalist because he wanted some comment on a report that claimed the Common Core would save American 15 year olds by increasing their scores on the PISA exams.  According to the report, • Students in the United States have […]
by Timothy D. Slekar / 2h 


Is @alexanderrusso crushing just a little bit?
It’s rare to see sympathetic voices on any of the mainstream networks. One usually sees reform hacks and carpetbaggers”. “Some guy” Alexander Russo, who comments hither and thither on education, seems obsessed with an education activist’s recent appearance on MSNBC. And I say “some guy” because, to me at least, Mr. Russo could be classified […]
by Shaun Johnson / 36min hide  //  save
Innovative Common Core teaching?
EngageNY, the propaganda website of the New York State Education Department, has a series of videos promoting “innovative” teaching to the Common Core standards. The video library is an innovative and differentiated resource that brings the Common Core instructional shifts, teacher and leadership evaluation, and data driven instruction to life. I was recently sent the […]
by Chris Cerrone / 43min 

GUEST POST: Let’s Nurture Inner-Directed Students and Ignore the “No Excuses” Crowd, John Thompson
GUEST POST: Let\’s Nurture Inner-Directed Students and Ignore the \”No Excuses\” Crowd, John Thompson. via GUEST POST: Let’s Nurture Inner-Directed Students and Ignore the “No Excuses” Crowd, John Thompson.
by plthomasedd / 10min hide  //  save
Setting Free the Books: On Stepping Aside as Teaching
Setting Free the Books: On Stepping Aside as Teaching. via Setting Free the Books: On Stepping Aside as Teaching.
by plthomasedd / 15min 


12-4-13 @ The Chalk Face
@ THE CHALK FACE: A Common MisCOREception?I’m having a difficult time understanding the argument against the actual CCSS. I’m not referring to HOW they were developed, or ARE financed, but the case against using the anchor standards as a guide for lesson planning. Basically, there are four anchor standards, each provided in length below. As a social studies teacher, I cannot […]by Angel Cintron Jr
by mike simpson / 8h 

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