12-12-13 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:

Tony Bennett Gets His Golden Parachute

StateImpact reporter John O’Connor links this story in Education Week: In the heated competition between ACT Inc., and the College Board for a bigger chunk of the common-core testing market, ACT has enlisted a new weapon: Tony Bennett, the former commissioner of education in Indiana and Florida. Bennett told me that he is serving as a consultant to ACT on its new Aspire testing system, working on

by Bob Sikes / 41min 

Desperately Seeking the New FCAT

In Anastasia Dawson’s Tampa Tribune story from one week ago: Leaders from the Florida Association of District School Superintendents and the Florida School Board Association voted Thursday to lobby state legislators for a three-year extension before the Common Core State Standards have to be fully implemented into every classroom. The new standards, which have been adopted by 45 states and the Dis

by Bob Sikes / 3h 

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 100Charter Schools USA’s Predicatable Rhetoric Over Hillsborough Board DecisionThe 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 lead

by mike simpson / 8h 

12-12-13 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University):

What Are Tests Really Measuring?: When Achievement Isn’t Achievement

High-stakes standardized testing must be the most resilient phenomenon ever to exist on the planet. Joining high-stakes standardized testing in that (dis)honor would be the persistent but misleading claim that test scores are primarily achievement (and a growing future candidate for this honor is the claim that test scores by students, labeled “achievement,” are also credible metrics for “teacher

by plthomasedd / 14min 

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Pedagogies of Kindness and Respect: On the Lives and Education of Children

CALL FOR PROPOSALS Pedagogies of Kindness and Respect: On the Lives and Education of Children Edited by P. L. Thomas, Paul C. Carr, Julie Gorlewski, and Brad Porfilio Peter Lang USA Rethinking Childhood Series, Gaile Cannella, series editor Call and Submission Requirements Submit a proposal of about 300 words by February 28, 2014, to paul.thomas@furman.edu. Chapter initial drafts due July 15, 201

by plthomasedd / 30min 

Thomas: Charter schools not a smart investment for S.C.

Charter schools not a smart investment for S.C. See full data tables and analysis HERE.

by plthomasedd / 3h  

12-11-13 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Schools Matter: Seeking Equity: Not “If,” But “How” and “Why”Schools Matter: 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 Middle...by P.

by mike simpson / 9h

The Crocodiles Are Circling… – redqueeninla

The Crocodiles Are Circling… – redqueeninla:

The Crocodiles Are Circling…

Written by redqueeninla in LAUSD

This past week saw the death of sitting LAUSD board member Marguerite LaMotte.  She was an icon of her predominantly black, South-Central district of nearly 2/3 of a million people.  She was partisan and plain-spoken and politically astute.  She was explicit about her unease with charter school proliferation in the district generally, and the “Reform” policies championing these interests, as led here in LA by superintendent John Deasy, in particular.

Ms LaMotte was the sole dissenter of the board’s recent decision to renew superintendent Deasy’s contract.  And she couldn’t have been clearer in her disgust for the politics of disruption as inflicted by Ben Austin, Parent Revolution, the parent trigger, the Parent Union, Steve Barr, Green Dot and even the much-bally-hooed LA Fund.  The “churn” of neoliberal reform hurts first and foremost, “her” babies, belying any vestige whatsoever of real concern for “the children” so regularly referenced by this crocodilian force.

To replace Ms LaMotte would mean explicitly selecting a representative similarly skeptical of the forces of Education Privatization as led by John Deasy’s band of privateers.

It is not, therefore, in the least bit surprising to learn that precisely those forces against which she stood so stalwartly, are arraying waves of assault upon our district, attacking from every conceivable angle in order to usurp her iconic role.

Some district parents were invited to a private event at which a prominent member of this circle shared “information” about replacing Ms LaMotte.  Ironically, any replacement acceptable to this clique would be utterly 

12-12-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School:

Pearson Fined $7.7 Million For Breaking Law - Why Isn't Former NYSED Commissioner Steiner Under Investigation For The Same Thing?

From the NY Times:The Pearson Foundation, the charitable arm of one of the nation’s largest educational publishers, will pay $7.7 million to settle accusations that it repeatedly broke New York State law by assisting in for-profit ventures. An inquiry by Eric T. Schneiderman, the New York State attorney general, found that the foundation had helped develop products for its corporate parent, includ

by reality-based edu... / 6min hide  //  save

UFT/Unity Shill Comes By To Say "Take What The Union Gets And Like It!"

Here's a response from some anonymous Unity/UFT shill to my post this morning entitled "Message To UFT Leadership - Raises, Not Bonuses" that has to be seen to be believed:Isn't funny that the very people that call the UFT a dues collecting agency, are the very purple that reap the benefits from the UFT negotiations team when it comes to our prescriptions, dental, hearing, and vision. Ou

by reality-based edu... / 1h 

Message To UFT Leadership - Raises, Not Bonuses

Reuters reported that the UFT is arguing retro raises for teachers can come in the form of bonuses that can be "booked" multiple years so as not to break the city's budget:Dec 10 (Reuters) - The administration of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is lining up for one last showdown in its $3.5 billion dispute over retroactive pay raises with the city's public school teachers. With just thr

by reality-based edu... / 20min 

KIPP Plans To Keep Padded Cell To Punish Students

Yesterday the Daily News reported a KIPP school in NYC uses a padded cell for "time outs" for children who act out in school.One child was so distraught by the experience that an ambulance was called.There has been much outrage about the KIPP padded cell story, but the DN reports today that KIPP plans to keep the practice going: The tot cell stays. Officials at an uptown New York charter

by reality-based edu... / 2h 

12-11-13 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School: Contract Negotiations Between UFT and City In State HearingVia James Eterno and Jeff Kaufman at ICEUFT, there is a must read Reuters piece about the contract negotiations between the city and the UFT:With just three weeks remaining before his team cedes power to Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg's administration will cite accounting rules at a closed-door state hearing o

by mike simpson / 9h 

It's Beginning to Sound (Depressingly) Like Christmas: Four Tips for Educators - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

It's Beginning to Sound (Depressingly) Like Christmas: Four Tips for Educators - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:

It's Beginning to Sound (Depressingly) Like Christmas: Four Tips for Educators

By Nancy Flanagan on December 12, 2013 6:56 AM

No, I'm not referring to the abundant winter/holiday programs happening in schools everywhere this month. I embrace seasonal performances. Having organized and directed--at a minimum--hundreds of candlelit concerts, rowdy assemblies, Jingle Bell parades and cocoa-fueled trips to nursing homes, I'm down with whatever musical merriment happens in schools in December.

What I find disheartening is the gearing up of the Faux War on Christmas, using public schools as staging ground for stirring up unnecessary and phony conflict.  From where I stand, as a 30-year music educator who dealt with the Christmas Conundrum annually, there has never been a genuine, organized assault on the commercial spectacle that revs up in early November and dominates the media and public spaces for weeks. In fact, getting all huffy about greetings, menorahs and nativity scenes feels like uncivil, bullying behavior, something we shouldn't be gleefully modeling for students. 

Also--in all those years, through all those performances, I had a small handful complaints about inappropriate music selection, images, performances or even stage decorations. The holiday season is so all-encompassing in America that you really have to be scraping to come up with something to be unhappy about. 

Several years ago, I was the assigned mentor for a first-year music teacher in my district. She was pretty wonderful--well-trained, personable and bursting with new ideas about putting on a 

My need for Family Leave #FAMILYAct « MomsRising Blog

My need for Family Leave #FAMILYAct « MomsRising Blog:

mark as read

How the FAMILY Act Will Help Direct Care Workers, Their Clients, and Our Economy

Next Tuesday, December 12, will be an important day in the fight to help direct care workers and their families and other hard-working people in the U.S. On that day, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) will introduce the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act (FAMILY Act), [link to http://www.nationalpartnership.org/research-library/work-family/paid-leave/family-act-fact-sheet.pdf] a national paid family and medical leave program, into Congress. Under the bill, nearly all U.S. workers would be able to take a limited period of time off from work w

1h 

How Congress Can Deliver for Working Families #FAMILYAct

This post originally appeared on Human Rights Watch. When Samantha learned she was pregnant, she hoped for a healthy delivery, a happy baby, and a smooth return to work. Life did not go according to plan. Samantha had a C-section, and the wound got infected. She took eight weeks of leave from work, much of it unpaid. Samantha went into debt, deferred student loans, and dipped into savings. She was in pain when she returned to work, barely able to walk. Her employer then laid her off, saying they wanted someone who could work late shifts with little notice. This week a bill will be introduced

1h 

Paid Family Leave: We Shouldn’t Have to Choose Between Our Families and our Jobs #FAMILYAct

This post was originally published on the AFL-CIO website. Only 12% of the workforce has paid family leave. While the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)—the nation’s only federal law designed to help working people meet the dual demands of job and family—has kept millions of people from losing their jobs when serious medical needs arise, it doesn’t cover 40% of people on the job. In addition, the FMLA only guarantees unpaid leave, which is unaffordable for many working women and families. The issue of access to paid family leave was one of the serious problems raised earlier this week, when I

1h 

TODAY

The FAMILY Act: A Long Overdue Investment in Our Families

This blog post was originally published on A Better Balance Blog. When a family member is confronted with a serious illness, or when a new child is born or adopted, many American workers are forced to choose between their jobs and the well-being of their families. Even though most workers will experience the need to provide care to a loved one at some point in their lives, no federal law guarantee

by Jared Make / 1h 

Breastfeeding, Health and Work: Why We Need the FAMILY Act Now

Breastfeeding has significant health benefits for babies – from protecting them from illness to reducing the incidence of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Children who were breastfed are less likely to develop asthma or become obese.  Breastfeeding is also associated with health benefits for women, including decreasing the risk of certain cancers.  Families that breastfeed can save hundreds or

by Julia Parish / 1h 

Paid Leave Keeps Women in Their Jobs and That’s Good for the Economy #FAMILYAct

August marked the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA); a groundbreaking law that has been used more than 100 million times, helping workers keep their jobs while they care for a family health crisis or a new baby.  Unfortunately, because FMLA leave is generally unpaid and has eligibility restrictions, millions who qualify for it can’t afford to take it, an

by Linda Meric / 1h 

Bridging the Gap: Bringing the Benefits of Paid Family Leave to American Workers #FAMILYAct

This blog post was crossposted from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research FemChat blog. In its founding year, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) analyzed the costs to workers of not having unpaid leave for childbirth, personal health needs, or family caregiving in its inaugural publication, Unnecessary Losses: Costs to Americans of the Lack of Family and Medical Leave. IWPR’s res

by Lindsey Reichlin / 1h 

The Ripple Effects of the FAMILY Act

This blog was crossposted from Family Values @ Work “Unintended consequences” – this is the term we hear all the time from lobbyists for mega corporations when they try to block new policies that would allow people to care for their loved ones and provide for them. “You’re well-intentioned,” they drone, “but you’ll bring about unintended consequences that will hurt the very people you want to help

by Ellen Bravo / 1h 

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 Must be Expanded to Provide Paid Leave #FAMILYAct

Will the US join the rest of the modern world – and California, New Jersey and Rhode Island – by supporting, with real policies, family values?  That’s the question that the proposed expansion of family and medical leave raises. The extension to the act, to be introduced into the US Congress in early October, proposes paid leave for mothers at the birth of a child and also provides for paid leave

by Bill Barclay / 1h 

My need for Family Leave #FAMILYAct

I blog to help share my story so others who have been through it know they aren’t alone and to educate those who haven’t been through it.  This is a topic that not only affects caregivers but parents, children and entire families.  I think it’s important for everyone to understand how interconnected all of these issues are and how we need to work together to accomplish change. I have been asked to

by Erin Hayes / 1h 

YESTERDAY

Women Who Code – Why Including Motherhood in STEM Discussions Matters

With millions of students taking part in “Hour of Code,” a campaign supported by technology companies as part of National Computer Science Week, there is a lot of internet chatter about the importance of high-tech skills in an innovation economy. By late Tuesday, more than 60 percent of the students who had taken one of the intro coding tutorials were girls.  This came as a surprise to the organiz

by Shay Chan Hodges / 6h