12-11-13 Wait What?

Wait What?:

State Department of Education continues to flaunt Connecticut’s Freedom of Information laws

The Malloy administration, in general, and Commissioner Stefan Pryor and his State Department of Education, in particular, may very well go down as the least open and least transparent government entity since the adoption of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act nearly forty years ago. By constantly and consistently violating the spirit and letter of […]The post State Department of Education

by jonpelto / 52min hide  //  save

Malloy’s Campaign donation controversies continue to grow

Governor Malloy’s fundraising operation continues to raise serious legal and ethical issues that harken back to the “pay to play” tactics of disgraced Governor John Rowland. In addition to a number of reports that state contracts have side-stepped Connecticut law and donated to Malloy’s re-election plans via the Democratic State Central Committee’s “federal account,” comes […]The post Malloy’s Cam

by jonpelto / 2h 

 

12-10-13 Wait What?

Wait What?: Jepsen, Malloy and playing politics with the law…Call it naïve, but some would claim that while politics is political, America’s legal system is supposed to be above or separate from the day-to-day world of politics. But as we Americans we are learning, our legal system is, in fact, extremely political and appears to becoming more political by the day. At the federal […]The post Jepsen

by mike simpson / 8h 

12-11-13 Schools Matter

Schools Matter:

KIPP Using Padded Isolation Room for Disruptive Kindergarten Students

The latest example of why children call it the Kids in Prison Program. Click below to begin CBS News video coverage.  Text is below the video.NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — A Manhattan mother says her 5-year-old son was locked in a padded room at school, leaving the kindergartner so traumatized he had to go to the hospital.Taneka Hall said the “safe-calm room” at KIPP Star Elementary School in Washington

by Jim Horn / 17min 

Colonizing Measures

by Doug Storm:Colonizing MeasuresThe UCR [Uniform Crime Reports which originated in 1929] reveals more about police behavior that it does about criminality. Some law enforcement agencies falsify the reports they submit to the FBI. Once a citizen reports a crime, police must make an official record for the crime to be counted in the UCR. Sometimes, however, law enforcement officers do not complete

by Jim Horn / 13min 

MSNBC Leaning Forward into Teenage Prison Programming

This past weekend while channel surfing I found that Microsoft-NBC has reached new lows in its weekend prison programming.  It has now moved beyond desensitizing and voyeuristic window-peeping into staged adult prison life to now focusing on a cleansed view of incarcerated teenagers.  Below is the a post from almost five years ago, which seems as relevant now as it was then:MSNBC, The Prison Chann

by Jim Horn / 54min 

Mark Naison Tells It Like It Should Be: Get Lost, Tisch

To Mark, thank you.From Mark:Bronx Common Core Forum where I call for the resignation of Regents Chair Merryl Tisch

by Jim Horn / 1h 

New York City Council Declares Opposition to the Majority of Murders

FromEd Week, followed by my comment:The New York City Council has passed a resolution asking state officials to replace high-stakes standardized tests with multiple measures that collectively gauge student achievement.The city council's education committee approved Resolution 1394 on Monday, and the full council approved it Tuesday by a vote of 49-0, according to a staff member in Councilmember Ro

by Jim Horn / 2min 

Seeking Equity: Not “If,” But “How” and “Why”

Fiction offers avenues to Truth, often hard Truths, that remain closed or less often traveled otherwise. While many people associate Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides, with themes addressing sexuality and gender, this novel also confronts readers with a vivid and insightful consideration of class, race, and cultural heritage.* Toward the middle of the novel, the life of the main character, Calliope/

by P. L. Thomas / 3h 

12-10-13 Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?

Schools Matter: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?: Did AFT Offset Costs of Anti-Corporate Crusade with Corporate Cash?The following is from AFT in 2009, when the future for corporate ed reform seemed ascendant, and Randi was on a wave.  AFT has scrubbed the video from their site, but I plugged it in to where it had been previously deleted from the Press Release.  

by mike simpson / 15h 

12-11-13 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education

Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education:

Florida Council of 100

Time for Rick Scott and Florida’s Republican Legislators to Admit SB736 Was a Bad Idea

From this morning’s Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida teachers got high marks for the 2012-13 school year, but the grades were so good — compared to student performance — that some skepticism and concern on the part of taxpayers and parents are warranted. For example, evaluations of instructional staff in the 2012-13 school year found that 97.9 percent of Florida teachers and instructional sta

by Bob Sikes / 1h 

Charter Schools USA’s Predicatable Rhetoric Over Hillsborough Board Decision

The editors of the Tampa Bay Times write: …the board was right to follow the staff’s recommendation to reject the plan, because the sponsors were inconsistent about the leadership structure. In its application, the foundation said a local governing council of base leaders, parents and others would have “direct oversight” of the school, including “authority to oversee the school’s finances” with th

by Bob Sikes / 3h 

mark as read

Charter Schools USA’s Predicatable Rhetoric Over Hillsborough Board Decision

The editors of the Tampa Bay Times write: …the board was right to follow the staff’s recommendation to reject the plan, because the sponsors were inconsistent about the leadership structure. In its application, the foundation said a local governing council of base leaders, parents and others would have “direct oversight” of the school, including “authority to oversee the school’s finances” with the foundation providing “broader strategic direction.” But the application blurred the lines of authority. In recent days, sponsors made matters worse by insisting the local council was — contrary to t

3h 

Top Bennett Aide Implicted in Grade Scandal Resigns Florida Post

From Jeffrey S. Solochek from the Tampa Bay Times Gradebook: Dale Chu, chief of staff to former Florida education commissioner Tony Bennett, resigned his post one day after his boss quit the department. Chu came to the Florida Department of Education with Bennett from Indiana, where he had been assistant state superintendent, overseeing Indiana’s education reform initiatives. He came as part of a team of Indiana transplants whom Bennett relied upon as some of his core advisers. Chu’s name also appeared on several of the emails that became the crux of an Associated Press report indicating that

200+ 127d 

What Do Jeb Bush’s Breathtaking Denials Mean?

In a stunning defense of disgraced education commissioner Tony Bennett,  Jeb Bush picked up his pen today in an attempt to save Bennett’s legacy – and perhaps his own. He wrote from his perch with Foundation for Florida’s Future. Lets take a look at a few of Bush’s stunning positions as they are published in the Miami Herald:  A man accused of trying to undermine public education, in fact, had dramatically improved it. He took on both the political left and the political right, and that cost him his job. Nobody who objectively assesses the job Tony has done in Florida can conclude he should be

200+ 127d 

DEC 09

Sick of ObamaCare? Consider JebSchools

Last year’s abrupt departure of Florida’s education commissioner, Tony Bennett, put the brakes on the ideological insanity that drove the state’s education policy-making. After three straight commissioners who were tools of Jeb Bush’ s foundations, it was time to have someone different. Pam Stewart has brought much-needed deliberate, thoughtful process back to the table. The Orlando Sentinel’s exc

by Bob Sikes / 2d 

DEC 08

Florida Council of 100 Uses Sketchy “Skills” Data to Justify Common Core

Tampa Bay Times reporter Danny Valentine sought out Florida leaders for quotes in the aftermath of the state’s poor PISA outcomes. Among them were the Florida Council of 100. Susan Pareigis, president and CEO of the Florida Council of 100, said in an email that the PISA results translate directly into a larger talent gap in the economy. She cited recent numbers showing that roughly 70 percent of f

by Bob Sikes / 2d 

Shaky Grant From For-Profit Charter School Ensnares Miami Republican Sen. Anitere Flores

Sen. Anitere Flores (R-Miami) never met a piece of legislation that benefited the for-profit charter school industry she didn’t like. Just pay no attention to the little matter that she works for one. This week’s revelations that the one she works for  received a tax-payer funded grant marks the beginning of another episode in the shady relationships between Florida legislators and the for-profit

by Bob Sikes / 2d 

The Week’s Florida Test Data Spin From Jeb Bush and Michelle Rhee

From Sunshine State News: Bad news for Florida’s education system: Students in the Sunshine State who took international tests in math, reading and science last year did worse than other teens in the country and performed far worse than teenagers in the world’s top-performing education systems in Asia, according to Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores released Tuesday mornin

by Bob Sikes / 2d 

Common Core’s Chickens Are Coming Home to Roost in Florida

There’s a nifty little site I can  calculate the number of days it has been since my last post – 116 to be exact. More on my sabbatical later. But it seems ironic now that my last post on August 15th was  It’s Begun: Florida County’s Republican Assembly Officially Demands Explanations on Common Core. While some Washington republicans like Sen. Marco Rubio and the Republican National Committee have

by Bob Sikes / 2d 

12-11-13 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL:

“How Can We Close The Gap Between New Ideas & Implementation?”

How Can We Close The Gap Between New Ideas & Implementation? is the new “question of the week” at my Education Week Teacher column. You might want to read the entire question over at that post. Then feel free to leave your responses here or there…

by Larry Ferlazzo / 17min 

Video: Wild Cycling!

Show English Language Learners this video and have them describe what they see — but be sure to warn them to try this at home!

by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h hide  //  save

YESTERDAY

The Best Year In Review Features — 2013

I’ve usually done two different types of “year in review” annual posts — one focusing on photo collections and the other on non-photo galleries. This year, though, I’ve decided to just do one list combining both, and will continue to add them as new ones become available. You might be interested in these previous posts: NON-PHOTO COLLECTIONS: The Best “Year In Review” Features That Aren’t Photo C

by Larry Ferlazzo / 9h 

12-10-13 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: “Male Teachers ‘Walking A Tight Rope’”Male Teachers ‘Walking A Tight Rope’ is Part Two in my series at Education Week Teacher on the challenges of being a male teacher. It features guest responses from New York City teacher José Vilson and Sacramento educator Alice Mercer.by Larry Ferlazzo / 2h Nelson Mandela’s Memorial Ser

by mike simpson / 8h 

12-11-13 Fred Klonsky | Running for our pensions. | VOTE 4 Fred Klonsky

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

Glen Brown. The preamble to SB1. Madigan tries to justify the breaking of a contract.

- Glen Brown is a teacher and writes a wonderful blog. Preamble to Senate Bill 1: “At the time of passage of this amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly, Illinois has both atypically large debts and structural budgetary imbalances that will, unless addressed by the General Assembly, lead to even greater and rapidly growing debts and deficits. Already, Illinois has the lowest credit rating of

by Fred Klonsky / 2min 

Pension Thieves.

  Greg Harris is a Democratic State Representative from the 13th District on Chicago’s north side. He targets older people, retired police, fire fighters, public service workers, public school teachers and state university employees. Approach with care. He should be considered a Republican and dangerous.

by Fred Klonsky / 3h 

Rauner. Rahm. And Juan Rangel.

Last week Juan Rangel resigned as head of the United Neighborhood Organization, the largest charter school operator in Illinois. Dan Mihalopoulos of the Sun-Times reported: Juan Rangel, longtime leader of the clout-heavy United Neighborhood Organization, is out as UNO’s $250,000-a-year chief executive in the wake of a scandal that cost the group millions in state funding and led to a federal inve

by Fred Klonsky / 4h 

Bev Johns. Maximize our 2014 options.

is a Special Education advocate and contributes to this blog frequently. We have been engaged in a conversation about the coming elections. Readers are welcome to join in. Tuesday on national TV, Governor Pat Quinn said what we call the pension gutting bill was ”a good model for the whole country.” (Morning Joe, MSNBC) There are two things that are worse than Pat Quinn as Governor of Illinois. On

by Fred Klonsky / 5h 

12-10-13 Fred Klonsky | Running for our pensions. | VOTE 4 Fred Klonsky

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Pension thieves.  Robyn Gabel is a Democratic State Representative from the 18th District of Evanston. She targets older people, retired police, fire fighters, public service workers, public school teachers and state university employees. Approach with care. She should be considered a Republican and d

by mike simpson / 8h