2-5-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum Week

Seattle Schools Community Forum:

Seattle Schools Math Adoption

I am a bit late on this post but here is the latest.As noted by one reader (I believe Lynn), there is a hastily scheduled Board Work Session on Math Instructional Materials Adoption tomorrow, the 6th from 6-7 p.m.   The agenda has no presentation so I don't know what kind of update it will be.Meanwhile, the next meeting of the Math Adoption Committee is this Friday, the 7th, from 8:30 am to 3pm in

by Melissa Westbrook / 19min 

This and That

According to KIRO tv, 565 teachers and 13,523 students reported absent from SPS.  Wow.   (I had thought of attending but being short makes a parade challenging.  It started late and sounds like an absolute zoo (of the crazy, fun kind but really cold to wait for).The Police were asking the crowd to keep cell phone use to a minimum because they were not getting 911 calls.Ed Week reported on Seattle'

by Melissa Westbrook / 56min 

Seattle School Board Meeting Tonight

You can generally count on the January Seattle School Board meetings to be shorter and less well-attended.  Well, that may change with tonight's meeting.The Public Testimony list is has varying topics with the- Transportation Service Standards (5),-NW Center Kids program at Queen Anne Elementary School (10),-Policy #4260 - about the use of school buildings and-Racial discussions in the classroom (

by Melissa Westbrook / 0min

Advanced Learning: Where are going?

Some updates:- according to the AL webpage, as of yesterday, 1,637 eligibility letters were sent (out of a possible 4024).  So if you were looking for one, it may be in the mail.  They started mailing them out on Jan. 31st.  Scores and eligibility decisions are NOT available by phone or e-mail.  - testing is continuing thru early Feb.- all eligibility decisions, including appeals, will be done bef

by Melissa Westbrook / 26min 

2-4-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum Week

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Annual Report on Equitable Access to Programs and ServicesThe School Board should reject the Annual Report on Equitable Access toPrograms and Services because it fails to fulfill the requirements of the policy. Instead of holding the required information, the report contains a lot of general information that should not appear. Either the superintendent is confused

by mike simpson / 21h 

Substitute teachers accuse PPS of illegal threats | KATU.com - Portland

Substitute teachers accuse PPS of illegal threats | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News, Sports, Traffic Weather and Breaking News - Portland, Oregon:

Substitute teachers accuse PPS of illegal threats

By Dan Cassuto, KATU News Published: Feb 4, 2014 at 12:14 PM PST Last Updated: Feb 4, 2014 at 8:53 PM PST

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Ray Amling, chairman of the substitute teacher committee of Portland Association of Teachers, says the district is threatening to retaliate against subs who refuse to work if regular teachers go on strike.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- When your A-team threatens to strike, you realize how much you need your B-team.

Substitute teachers have nothing to do with the contract negotiations between Portland Public Schools and the Portland Association of Teachers.

But the subs have everything to do with the district's promise to keep schools open if teachers walk off the job.

On Tuesday, a day before the teachers vote on a strike, subs accused the school district of breaking state laws by threatening to retaliate against subs who won't cross potential picket lines, according to a grievance the Portland Association of Teachers says it filed with the Oregon Employment Relations Board.

"They're using tactics to scare the subs," said Ray Amling, chairman of the substitute teacher committee of Portland Association of Teachers. "They're threatening subs with taking away their livelihood and health insurance."

The subs are represented by the same union as regular teachers, but have separate contracts.

All two-dozen or so members of the substitute teacher committee voted unanimously on Monday evening to file grievances.

"The accusations are completely false," said Christine Miles, a spokeswoman for Portland Public 

The Gates Foundation's Imaginary World of School Reform Collides with Reality - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

The Gates Foundation's Imaginary World of School Reform Collides with Reality - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

The Gates Foundation's Imaginary World of School Reform Collides with Reality

By Anthony Cody on February 5, 2014 12:19 PM

Guest post by John Thompson.

The Gates Foundation's Director of Education, College Ready, Vicki Phillips, describes what she admits is the ideal implementation of Common Core and test-driven evaluations. In the "vast majority of cases," these changes would be implemented carefully. The key principle would be that teachers and students would be given "time to adjust to new expectations before they face serious consequences for not meeting them."

If implemented properly, Common Core "test scores shouldn't be used to make consequential decisions, such as whether students should graduate, until we are sure we understand how to interpret the results." Neither would schools or teachers be punished "until teachers have had a few years to get used to the new ways of working."

Such a distinction between idealized implementation and reality would seem to be progress. Just when it seemed like the Gates Foundation was conceding that it is important to acknowledge the facts about their theories, however, Phillips showed she was just spouting rhetoric. Phillips claimed that the ideal state she described "with the exception of a few outliers," is what is "actually happening across the country."

OK, everyone participates in political spin, but this bait and switch is especially brazen.  The Gates Foundation and other reformers claim that output-driven accountability is necessary because the 

2-5-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):

Another witness in Vergara says tenure in CA comes too soon

Mark Douglas of the Fullerton School District The Vergara v California trial and its testimony from educators and administrators from around the state continued its geographic journey today, when the focus turned to Fullerton. Assistant Superintendent of the Fullerton School District, Mark Douglas, a 37-year veteran of state public education systems, took the witness stand in state superior court

2 by Mark Harris / 41min hide  //  save

Aspire charters planning to expand ‘blended learning’ model

Aspire Public Schools, a nonprofit charter school operator with 12 schools chartered through LAUSD, announced this morning that it will expand its blending learning curriculum to all of its elementary schools in the Los Angeles region by the end of the 2015-16 school year. The expansion is supported by the Eli & Edyth Broad Foundation, and comes after the organization’s blended learning model

2 by Chase Niesner / 1h 

Holy cow! LA Unified does not condone this behavior

  Never say LA Unified doesn’t look out for the kids. This press release arrived from the district yesterday, so everyone can relax:       L.A. UNIFIED’S STATEMENT ON GRAPHIC IMAGES OF COWS DISTRIBUTED TO STUDENTS DURING ANIMAL ACTIVIST PROTEST A cow and a calf, part of a mobile classroom provided by the Dairy Council of California, were bought on the campus of Calabash Charter Academy in Woodla

4 1h 

Zimmer gets the message, interim cannot have binding vote

Only two LA Unified school board members hold law degrees: Tamar Galatzan and Monica Ratliff. But Steve Zimmer, a college professor, did a pretty good impression of a lawyer last night. Zimmer presided over an ad hoc “committee of one” — no other board members attended — that was charged with defining the role and scope of a temporary representative for the vacant District 1 seat while the city aw

3 by Vanessa Romo / 1h 

Morning Read: State Controller wants to post public school salaries

Controller seeks pay data from all California public schools State Controller John Chiang has asked every public school district in the state to provide salary and benefit information for all employees and elected officials so that it can be posted on the Web and shared with the public.  LA Times Earthquake safety: LA school district to spend $41M to rebuild 2 Sylmar structures The Los Angeles Un

1min 

2-3-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Christmas returns to the stand as the Vergara trial resumesTroy Christmas, of Oakland Unified Testimony resumes this morning in Vergara v California, with Troy Christmas of the Oakland Unified School District returning to the stand to face cross examination by lawyers for the defendants — the state and it

by mike simpson / 20h 

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, February 5, 2014

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Anonymous LA school employees turn to Facebook to spotlight needed repairs

Education Headlines

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

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.

San Joaquin suspension up; question is, by how much?

School discipline statistics released by the California Department of Education last week show that San Joaquin County suspensions increased by 0.5 percent from 2011-12 to 2012-13, and that expulsions decreased significantly.

EdSource: Q&A - The uncommon challenge of Common Core

If you’re like most people, you probably still have some questions: If you’re a teacher, what will the Common Core Standards do to your lesson plans? If you’re a parent, how will this affect your kid? And if you’re a student: Like, what tests are you going to have to take?

Police send evidence in Corona del Mar cheating case to lab

Police have not located the tutor accused of being a central figure in the Corona del Mar High hacking scheme, but detectives have submitted evidence gathered during a search of the man’s Irvine home to an FBI crime lab for analysis, officials said.

LBUSD looks to cut Jordan's international baccalaureate program

Carlos Montes was among about a dozen students, teachers and alumni who addressed the Long Beach Unified School Board Tuesday night asking that they not eliminate the International Baccalaureate program, which has been at the school for decades.

Cortez Quinn ends self-imposed leave, attends Twin Rivers board meeting

Cortez Quinn walked into the Twin Rivers Unified School District board room Tuesday night, camera crews chasing behind him, before joining the rest of the school board last night. Quinn had been on a self-imposed 90-day leave from his board seat since shortly after his arrest Nov. 6 for allegedly accepting illegal loans from a school employee, falsifying a paternity test and using it in court to deny paternity.

Lawsuit targets Rocketship schools in Santa Clara County

In another blow to the flagging fortunes of Rocketship charter schools, four Santa Clara County school districts on Tuesday filed a lawsuit seeking to rescind the approval of 20 Rocketship schools and prevent the county school board from granting similar requests.

Parents outraged by graphic PETA flier given to children at Calabash Charter Academy

As children rushed into class at Calabash Charter Academy Thursday morning, many were handed a colorful comic book with a cute cartoon cow on the front from a small group of people gathered near the flagpole.

How budget cuts and PTA fundraising undermined equity in San Francisco public schools

Parent fundraising for elementary education in San Francisco skyrocketed 800 percent in 10 years. The largesse saved some classroom programs, but widened the gap between rich and poor.

Anonymous LA school employees turn to Facebook to spotlight needed repairs

Los Angeles Unified School District staff have taken to Facebook to put a spotlight on crumbling school infrastructure and neglected repairs - and shame officials.

Sacramento area school districts resist push for smaller class sizes

Gov. Jerry Brown’s new school funding plan promises smaller class sizes, but that is more dream than reality at some California districts.

Walton group funds more charter schools in L.A. than elsewhere

Los Angeles charter schools have been the largest recipients of funding from the foundation associated with the family that started Wal-Mart, according to figures released Wednesday.

State asks all public K-12 schools to make salaries public

State Controller John Chiang has asked every public school district in the state to provide salary and benefit information for all employees and elected officials so that it can be posted on the Internet and shared with the public.

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Speakers call on Kern HSD to expand superintendent search

At a Monday hearing held to gather input on the qualities the public would like to see in the Kern High School District's next superintendent, speakers called on the board of trustees to cast a wider net in its search for a successor to retiring superintendent Don Carter.

S.J. school suspensions up; question is, by how much?

School discipline statistics released by the California Department of Education last week show that San Joaquin County suspensions increased by 0.5 percent from 2011-12 to 2012-13, and that expulsions decreased significantly.

Fresno Unified teachers wear black to protest contract proposal

Dozens of Fresno Unified teachers wore black Monday, protesting an employee contract pitched by administrators that lengthens school days and ties student test scores to teacher evaluations.

Top administrator criticizes school district response to cheating case

Calling Newport-Mesa Unified’s handling of a student cheating scandal a “farce,” a top district administrator claimed that the Corona del Mar High principal failed for months to warn parents about a private tutor and his suspected involvement in the hacking scheme.

Twin Rivers school community awaits trustee’s next move

Twin Rivers Unified parents, teachers and administrators are waiting to see if Cortez Quinn will take his seat as Area 5 trustee at today’s school board meeting. Quinn took a self-imposed 90-day leave shortly after his arrest Nov. 6 on three felony and five misdemeanor charges, which include allegedly 

Lawsuit: Rocketship under fire from four school boards in its home base, Santa Clara County, California | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!

Lawsuit: Rocketship under fire from four school boards in its home base, Santa Clara County, California | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!:

Lawsuit: Rocketship under fire from four school boards in its home base, Santa Clara County, California

Filed under: Rocketship — millerlf @ 10:28 am 

The “miracle” English language-only charter management model (Rocketship), originating from San Jose California, was recruited to Milwaukee by the MMAC,  Schools That Can, the Mayor, the Common Council President,  Howard Fuller and Deborah McGriff. Their goal is to establish 8 Rocketships in Milwaukee communities to directly compete with Milwaukee Public Schools. In the Spring last year, Rocketship staff and teachers went to the doors of MPS schools, on the southside, as parents were picking up their children at the end of the school day. They attempted to convince families to pull their children from MPS while berating MPS programs. Rocketship schools in California consistently have lower numbers of special education students than their surrounding public schools. They do not offer art and music. They are opposed to bi-lingual programming.  And they have been exposed for having a fundamental flaw in their “original” design. Rocketship schools are founded on use of “learning labs.” Learning labs are staffed by hourly employees who lack teaching credentials. Rocketship says that the “learning labs” save enough money for each school to hire 6 fewer teachers yearly, saving up to half a million dollars a year. The problem admitted in a PBS report is that the “learning labs” don’t work, even though students spend 25% of their day in the lab, sitting in front of computers. Lawsuit targets Rocketship schools in Santa Clara County Posted:   02/05/2014 San Jose Mercury News By Sharon Noguchi SAN JOSE — In another blow to the flagging fortunes of Rocketship charter schools, four Santa Clara County school districts on Tuesday filed a lawsuit seeking to rescind the approval of 20 Rocketship schools and prevent the county school board from granting similar requests. The suit claims that the Santa Clara County Board of Education overstepped its authority in approving petitions for the 20 charter schools in December 2011, and argues that only local school districts can

Ravitch unloads on school ‘deform’ - The Washington Post

Ravitch unloads on school ‘deform’ - The Washington Post:

Ravitch unloads on school ‘deform’

By Lyndsey Layton, Wednesday, February 5, 8:36 AM E-mail the writer

Diane Ravitch, the education historian who has led a de facto national movement against current education policies — including standardized testing, charter schools, vouchers and teacher evaluations tied to student test scores — said Tuesday evening that “the White House’s obsession with data is sick.”

Ravitch was being feted at the American Federation of Teachers headquarters by the union’s president, Randi Weingarten.

(Michael Buckner/Getty Images) - Diane Ravitch

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Ravitch unloads on school ‘deform’

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The university says the “difficult but necessary actions” will help make operations more efficient.

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Meeting at National Harbor, the board hopes to build “effective working relationships.”

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The two spent some time on Capitol Hill Tuesday, meeting with lawmakers,including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “She was walking the halls of Congress, not to lobby a bill, but to lobby an ideology on behalf of children,” Weingarten told the gathering.

Asked about the latest reform trend — ideas around the importance of developing character traits like ‘grit’ and ‘determination’ in students to help them succeed academically — Ravitch said she didn’t think those traits in children could or should be measured.

“It makes me want to throw up,” said Ravitch, who is promoting a new book, “The Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America’s Public Schools.” “The White House’s obsession with data is sick.”

Constant measurement and reducing children to numerical scores are wrong, she told the adoring crowd of union activists and progressives. “My grandchildren are not global competitors — they’re children,” she said.

“I don’t know whether this is a period of 

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 2-5-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:

L.A. Unified Meets Over How To Fill School Board Vacancy

By Howard Blume, LA Times | http://lat.ms/LQaDTh February 5, 2014, 6:00 a.m.  ::  A Los Angeles Board of Education committee charged with developing a process to appoint a caretaker for the vacant District 1 seat will be unable to fill the post with a voting member. The  meeting at district headquarters downtown Tuesday evening was chaired by board member Steve Zimmer, who asserted that he

by smf / 6min 

Anonymous L.A. School Employees Turn To Facebook To Spotlight Needed Repairs

Annie Gilbertson| Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC http://bit.ly/1cQSzTk   Repairs Not iPads/Facebook | A photo posted on a Facebook group called "repairs not iPads." February 4th, 2014, 6:30am  ::  Los Angeles Unified School District staff have taken to Facebook to put a spotlight on crumbling school infrastructure and neglected repairs - and shame officials. Photos posted on a group page called

1 by smf / 19min

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 2-4-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Lcff: California’S School Money Fight Heads To A New VenuePosted by Dan Walters  to Sacramento Bee Capitol Alert | http://bit.ly/1fXilEh Monday, February 3, 2014  2:16 PM |  ::  The Office of Administrative Law is an obscure branch of the governor's office that was created more than three decades ago, during Jerry Brown's first governorship, to ensure t

by mike simpson / 13min 

The Student-Led Backlash Against New Orleans's Charter Schools - Meredith Simons - The Atlantic

The Student-Led Backlash Against New Orleans's Charter Schools - Meredith Simons - The Atlantic:

The Student-Led Backlash Against New Orleans's Charter Schools

Late last year, students at several of the city's high-performing charters staged large-scale protests. Why?

Bill Haber/AP Photo

Collegiate Academies is seen by many as the crown jewel of the New Orleans charter school system, which is itself believed to be a national model for urban education. The charter operator’s flagship school, Sci Academy, boasts the best test scores of any open-enrollment high school in the city’s Recovery School District. In 2010, Oprah cut the school a $1 million check.

But this past November, a chain of events started that calls into question whether Collegiate Academies—and other New Orleans charters with similar models—will be able to maintain their success long-term.

First, students at Joseph S. Clark Preparatory High School, another New Orleans school, staged a sit-in after a beloved teacher was abruptly fired. The protest shut down junior classes for a day and got the following school day canceled while administrators decided how to respond. Leaders at Clark's charter operator, Firstline Schools, met with angry students and parents, agreed to give students a voice in hiring decisions, and reassigned the school's principal to the network office.

Days later, almost 100 students at two Collegiate Academies schools walked out. The next day, about 20 of them walked out again and staged a protest in front of their schools. They said they wanted to draw attention to what they believe are unfair discipline policies. The following month, students rallied at a nearby park after school, then walked to a school board meeting where they attempted to present the board with a list of grievances that ranged from academics ("We