1-21-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:

A Teacher’s Many Hats

It’s often said, teachers wear many hats throughout the school day. As a teacher, I can certainly attest to this statement. In fact, I believe a teacher wears more hats than any other professional. To prove my point, I’ve decided to compile a list of frequently used “teacher hats” to help support my claim. The […]

3 by Angel Cintron Jr. / 16min

Cuomo on the Common Core: Another Committee

New York Governor Cuomo has finally started to address the Common Core elephant in the room after months of parent and educator complaints.  Vague as usual, Cuomo has called for a committee to “fix the problems”.  (another story here) We have been through this before.  When a politician hears cries of protest, particularly in an […]

by Chris Cerrone / 7min

Getting drunk on #edtech: To hell with #poverty.

“Maryland schools need $100 million dollars!” For what? Maybe to, Reduce the rate of low birth weight children among African Americans, Reduce drug and alcohol abuse, Reduce pollutants in our cites and move people away from toxic sites, Provide universal and free medical care for all citizens, Insure that no one suffers from food insecurity, […]

19 by Timothy D. Slekar / 13min 

Wow! They were suspended for this video? #ShameonCami

I’ve watched this video a few times, trying desperately to find any reason for suspension. It’s scary to think that Newark officials suspended these dedicated school leaders for speaking out and defending their school, staff, and students. What is going on in Newark? This is highly un-American. So much for freedom of speech!

1 by Angel Cintron Jr. / 7min hide  //  save

Student: We’re Messing Up My Generation

The following speech was written by one of my former students in North Carolina, who also read my resignation letter from October 2012 and told me it brought her to tears.  She wrote this before she saw my letter in the Washington Post.  This speech shows that our kids are feeling the realities more strongly […]

13 by Kris Nielsen / 14min

Raising the (Dun)Bar?

Since August 2013, Dunbar Senior High School has received a great deal of public attention, and rightfully so. A historic DC high school with an important national legacy, Dunbar has long been a unique American institution. But, now that the new paint has dried, Dunbar is bracing for a new round of publicity. This time, […]

1 by Angel Cintron Jr. / 37min hide  //  save

Special episode of @thechalkface radio: What’s happening in Newark?

@the chalkface radio special episode-Thursday January 23rd 7:00 pm Eastern. Special Guest: Dr. Leonard Pugliese, Executive Director of the City Association of Supervisors and Administrators (CASA), the union that represents principals and vice principals in the Newark public schools. Shaun and Tim will spend time on Thursday speaking to Dr. Pugliese about the “suspension” of five […]

18 by Timothy D. Slekar / 54min 

My second thoughts on DCPS #IMPACT and #teachereval @thewashteacher @rweingarten

I’ve been obsessing just a bit over my first official encounter with one of the crown jewels of the inner city education reform movement: the DCPS IMPACT evaluation scheme. Student growth, or VAM scores, account for a significant portion of any teacher’s overall evaluation. And despite AFT President Randi Weingarten’s recent come to Jesus moment […]

by Shaun Johnson / 1min

Pulling a Greene: Why Advocacy and Market Forces Fail Education Reform [Redux]

Pulling a Greene: Why Advocacy and Market Forces Fail Education Reform [Redux]. via Pulling a Greene: Why Advocacy and Market Forces Fail Education Reform [Redux].

1 by plthomasedd / 9min 

ALEC and Its (Reluctantly) Newly-created Jeffersonian Project

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been in existence for over forty years– since 1973. In 1975, ALEC registered as a nonprofit organization. By the late 1980s, ALEC had begun to “actively solicit more input from private sector members” as the ALEC “task forces” became “model bill movers.” Thus, by 1990, the current ALEC practice of involving corporate […]

3 by deutsch29 / 9h hide  //  save

1-20-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE: Dream Deferred, MLK Day 2014: “This rigid refusal to look at ourselves”Dream Deferred, MLK Day 2014: \”This rigid refusal to look at ourselves\”. via Dream Deferred, MLK Day 2014: “This rigid refusal to look at ourselves”.1 by plthomasedd / 20min My MLK Post: An Assignment for Test-Driven ReformersOn this day dedicated to the memory of a remarkable man who gave his life (literall

by mike simpson / 8h 

1-21-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness by P. L. Thomas, EdD

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

Language Teaching in a Changing World (1943)

Language Teaching in a Changing World (1943).

1 by plthomasedd / 14min 

Pulling a Greene: Why Advocacy and Market Forces Fail Education Reform [Redux]

Jay P. Greene, Ph.D., is Endowed Chair and Head of the Department of Education Reform at the University of Arkansas. The Department of Education Reform is heavily funded by Walton money, and it is important to understand that the Walton family (of Walmart) are strong school choice advocates. In 2011, not long after I published a book challenging school choice through a critical perspective, I warn

7 by plthomasedd / 18min

1-20-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness by P. L. Thomas, EdD

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Dream Deferred, MLK Day 2014: “This rigid refusal to look at ourselves”“What happens to a dream deferred?” asks Langston Hughes in “Harlem.” As a poem of social consciousness, “Harlem” may often be reduced to literary analysis or an artifact of the Harlem Renaissance; as

by mike simpson / 9h 

1-21-14 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School:

Snow Call

Many on the weather board say the snow is stating to wind down in their areas.Looks like all but the heaviest snow will end about midnight.Temperatures will be in the single digits tomorrow, there will be near a foot of snow in Central Park.But I am betting there will be school.Heading off to bed for an earlier trip in.Goodnight all.

by reality-based edu... / 2h

Cuomo Says Committee Of Educators And Legislators Will Do Common Core Roll-Out Review

From Syracuse.com:Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today that he will assemble a panel of educators and legislators to fix what he said was a "flawed" rollout of the Common Core learning standards in New York's schools. "The way the Common Core has been managed by the Board of Regents is flawed," he said during his budget presentation in Albany. "There's too much uncertainty, c

by reality-based edu... / 1h 

Go Away, Snow God

National Weather Service has 8-12 inches total accumulation, plunging temperatures, with a Winter Storm Advisory in effect until 6 AM tomorrow.Mayor says school is open tomorrow unless something changes to make it otherwise.Snowing hard now, but the early start to the storm probably means it's out of here earlier too.Students are all talking like it is a snow day tomorrow, but it doesn't look like

by reality-based edu... / 4min 

Governor Cuomo Will Fund After School Programs Through Gambling Losses

Come on seven, mamma needs junior to get that after school SAT prep class!Buried in the Daily News article reporting that Governor Cuomo is funding universal full-day pre-K across the state for the year, attempting to cut off Bill de Blasio's campaign pledge that NYC will fund its own universal full-day pre-K by raising taxes on individuals who make more than $500,000, is this:In addition, officia

by reality-based edu... / 25min 

They Keep Raising The Snow Totals

Latest National Weather Service forecast is now calling for 8-12 inches of snow between noon today and early morning tomorrow.The potential is for some areas in and around the city to get as much as 14 inches of snow.Because of the timing of the storm, I would expect school to be in session tomorrow, as the snow is expected to end in the early morning hours, giving enough time for major roads to b

by reality-based edu... / 3h 

Cuomo Fears Loss Of Progressive Votes

Sheriff Andy's got some fear that his re-election numbers won't be all that impressive:Democratic insiders say a key reason Cuomo is seeking Republican “moderate’’ support is the erosion of support from his own Democratic Party’s “progressive’’ or left wing, with his estrangement from Mayor Bill de Blasio being the best example. Cuomo has also been clashing for months with Attorney General Eric Sc

by reality-based edu... / 5h 

1-20-14 Perdido Street School

Perdido Street School: Hey Governor Cuomo, Where's The Merit Pay Money Coming From?The Jamestown Post-Journal wants to know:Danielle O'Connor, superintendent of Frewsburg Central School, said the logic of promising bonus pay to teachers while her district is still struggling with a $1.2 million gap elimination adjustment is less than sound. "We would certainly be able to strengthen our distri

by mike simpson / 9h 

Study Concludes Many Teachers Would Improve With Less Control Of Content:

Study Concludes Many Teachers Would Improve With Less Control Of Content

As sweeping reforms dramatically change what it means to be an American teacher, a steady stream of headlines, studies and op-eds assert that teachers are more dissatisfied than ever, that they are seeking to leave the profession, and feel theirhands are tied by bureaucracy and policies that stress standardized testing above all.

But a new set of two pieces by the Center for American Progress, a Democratic Washington, D.C.-based think tank often aligned with the Obama administration, argues that those gripes might not be representative of the state of the profession.

"The data suggest something much different than the conventional wisdom. In fact, teachers are far more autonomous -- and far more satisfied -- than most people believe," the authors write.

The pieces, released Tuesday and provided exclusively to The Huffington Post, provided a new analysis of federal teacher survey information from the 2011-12 school year and combined those responses with those of more recent teacher surveys. Authors Ulrich Boser, Robert Hanna and Kaitlin Pennington found that more than 90 percent of teachers say they have "a good or great deal of control" over choosing their teaching methods. And high percentages of teachers -- 89 percent on one survey, 82 percent on another -- say they're satisfied in the classroom. They also found that, despite the noise, 87 percent of first-year teachers remained in education for at least 

ALEC and Its (Reluctantly) Newly-created Jeffersonian Project | deutsch29

ALEC and Its (Reluctantly) Newly-created Jeffersonian Project | deutsch29:

ALEC and Its (Reluctantly) Newly-created Jeffersonian Project

January 20, 2014

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been in existence for over forty years– since 1973. In 1975, ALEC registered as a nonprofit organization. By the late 1980s, ALEC had begun to “actively solicit more input from private sector members” as the ALEC “task forces” became “model bill movers.”

Thus, by 1990, the current ALEC practice of involving corporate America in the drafting and promoting of legislation that suited corporate America– and having ALEC legislative members carry ALEC bills back to their respective statehouses– was in place.

In his December 2013 National Public Radio interview, reporter Ed Pilkington likens ALEC to a “dating service”:

ALEC is sort of almost a dating service between politicians at the state level, local elected politicians, and many of America’s biggest companies. It brings them together much as a dating service would do. It sits them in rooms behind closed doors where three times a year they come together to think about what should be the next wave of state-based legislation and they have presentations from the companies that say what they would like to see done legislatively in states right across America. Then they have a vote and the legislators begin. Hundreds of state legislators across America belong to ALEC and come to these meetings.

They begin to have a vote on what they’d like to do in the next state assembly session. And after the legislators have voted the companies get to vote and essentially they have a veto. If they don’t vote by at least 50 percent to approve a piece of legislation going forward, it doesn’t happen. If they think they do approve of it, it goes ahead and becomes a model bill, which is like a blueprint for a piece 

Preparing Kids for More Than College - Bridging Differences - Education Week

Preparing Kids for More Than College - Bridging Differences - Education Week:

Preparing Kids for More Than College

By Deborah Meier on January 21, 2014 8:57 AM

Deborah Meier continues her conversation with Robert Pondiscio of CitizenshipFirst today.

Dear Robert,

Yes, I'm fixated on who decides what. That's the fundamental dilemma of a democracy. Since we agree that schooling is about teaching kids respect for democracy and liberty, it can't be brushed aside.  But I see you're fixated on deciding what all students should know.  I've hardly "hidden" my answers! I've written prolifically on the subject. It isn't a mystery. You just don't agree with me! 

I hope the following helps you out.

The schools I "founded" agreed with studying history, mathematics, physical and natural science, literature, and the arts—although in a more interdisciplinary manner. We generally favored a "less is more" approach.  For example, we spent far more time than is usual studying light in year one of physics.  And we focused more on American rather than European history.  We encouraged curiosity, debate, skepticism, and a commitment to getting at the truth about the "essential questions" in each discipline.  But we also honored uncertainty—ours and theirs, and knowing "how" to get at and evaluate information.

Central Park East Secondary School (in East Harlem, NYC) had very clear graduation requirements for 12th graders, as did Mission Hill (in Roxbury, Boston) for 8th graders. For CPESS, the standards were developed on the basis of New York state's credit and course requirements.  They were 

The Shriver Report – How We Provide for Children: In Search of Gender Equality

The Shriver Report – How We Provide for Children: In Search of Gender Equality:

Tips for Co-parenting – Before Divorce

By Lisa Levey normalityrelief/Flickr In doing a Google search on the word co-parenting, I quickly found that co-parenting is a word we reserve for divorced families, not intact ones. Isn’t it strange that in 2012 we don’t have a word—a common vocabulary—to describe mothers and fathers fully sharing in the care of raising their children? Instead our collective norm has been to become co-parents onl

by Kathleen Fordyce / 6h hide  //  save

How We Provide for Children: In Search of Gender Equality

© Andres Rodriguez – Fotolia.com My son is with me three to four days a week. I am responsible for getting him to school and picking him up. I do his laundry. I pack his lunch. We do his homework together. I read to him as he falls off to sleep. My son and I have a wonderful and deeply rewarding relationship and I have fought hard to insure that he remains in my life on an almost daily basis. For

by Kathleen Fordyce / 6h 

Rebuilding After Divorce: From An Ocean View To So Much More

I was born independent. I had an unbelievable drive inside myself to make money even before it was legal for me to get a job. I sold cherry tomatoes that I grew, door to door in my neighborhood, when I was 12. I washed cars, pulled weeds in people’s yards, just waiting until I was 16 so I could get a ‘real’ job. When I was 18, I moved out of my family home just three days after graduating from hig

by Kathleen Fordyce / 6h 

The Times Really Seem to be A Changin in NYC | janresseger

The Times Really Seem to be A Changin in NYC | janresseger:

The Times Really Seem to be A Changin in NYC

Posted on January 21, 2014 by janresseger

It seems hard to believe, but 21 days into the term of a new mayor of New York City, the conversation has shifted away from “corporate” school reform—from efficiency and privatization to what children need and how the public can provide it.  New York’s new Mayor de Blasio has siezed the attention of the media.  And the focus is about children—about the need for pre-school for all NYC four-year-olds, after-school programs for students in middle school, and a tax on the super-rich to pay for it.

Here is how the gorgeous website (with a moving video) proclaims the new mayor’s agenda: “UPKNYC is a grassroots campaign to enact Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to raise taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers to fund universal pre-k for every four year old and after school for every middle school student in New York City.”

An organizing campaign has volunteers on the streets seeking signatures on petitions and motivating citizens to press their representatives in Albany to pass enabling legislation for the tax increase.  Last Friday I received tweets all day long from Zakiyah Ansari, the New York City community organizer for the Alliance for Quality Education.  “We’re proud to support@UPKNYC’s campaign for universal pre-K and after-school in NYC. Then add your name: http://upknyc.org .”  A picture posted with the caption: “This mom knows the importance of pre-K firsthand. RT if all NYC kids deserve a seat. pic.twitter.com/yeFwqZJRcd.”

That the new mayor and his people are also working with the press is clear in an editorial in this morning’s NY Times trumpeting Mayor de Blasio’s talking points.  The newspaper that followed and usually supported Mayor Bloomberg’s efforts to promote choice and charters is suddenly explaining: “Full-day prekindergarten is a smart investment in growing minds, 

Suspension of Dissident School Principals Revs Up Newark Opposition - NJ Spotlight

Suspension of Dissident School Principals Revs Up Newark Opposition - NJ Spotlight:

SUSPENSION OF DISSIDENT SCHOOL PRINCIPALS REVS UP NEWARK OPPOSITION

JOHN MOONEY | JANUARY 21, 2014

State-appointed superintendent under fire for reprimand of four who spoke out at rally

Credit: Howard Best/NPS

Newark Superintendent of Schools Cami Anderson

Cami Anderson faces a new imbroglio over her reforms for Newark public schools – and new political discord.

The latest brouhaha is over the Newark superintendent’s suspension late last week of four principals who spoke out at a community rally against her plans to close or consolidate more than a half-dozen schools.

The exact reasons for the suspensions were unclear, with critics claiming it was purely because of their dissent, while others wondered if there had been outright defiance. The district itself is describing it as a personnel matter.

Whatever the reasons and the aftermath, the incident has sparked a new level of reaction from the political players within the city – and charges centered on how the developments in the state-run school district fit into the broader political turmoil that is taking place around Gov. Chris Christie.

City Councilman and mayoral candidate Ras Baraka has called for Anderson’s ouster in the aftermath of the suspensions.

Baraka has gradually become the locus of the opposition to the Anderson reforms, with both popular support by way of his mayoral campaign but also because of his 

UPDATE Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: More from the 'bottom of the barrel' + Prosser community resists charter invasion

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: More from the 'bottom of the barrel':

Prosser community resists charter invasion

Protest at the site of new Noble Charter school across the street from Prosser High School. The community knows the game may be rigged against them. The pro-forma community meetings are a sham with the process being run and controlled by a corporate-funded pro-charter groups, Stand For Children. But in the face of all this, school communities and parent groups are determined to roll back the chart

2 by Mike Klonsky / 17min 

More from the 'bottom of the barrel'

While teachers in America often come from the bottom of the academic barrel and are disproportionately teaching students from disadvantaged backgrounds, Duncan said, teachers in South Korea are selected from the top of the class and are rewarded for working with low-income students. -- U.S. News

In fairness to Duncan, he didn't actually use the words "bottom of the barrel". He said that a significant proportion of new teachers come from "the from the bottom third of their college class." Same difference as far as I can tell.

Duncan's shares his outlook on teaching with those at the Council on Foreign Relations or at the World Bank, who view public education primarily in the context of global economic and military competition. For Duncan, the role of schools is to provide the "human capital" for American corporations and the military industrial complex. He lays it all out in his 2011 remarks to the World Bank ("Improving Human Capital in a Competitive World—Education Reform in the United States”).

In many respects, our vision of reform has a great deal in common with the World Bank’s forthcoming Education Strategy for 2020. We share your commitment to results—to accelerating the acquisition of skills and