4-15-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

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

Ten minute drawing. Tax day.

by Fred Klonsky / 33min 

SB 1 Lawsuits (Updated April 14, 2014)

  SB 1 Lawsuits (Updated April 14, 2014) 1. We Are One Illinois Coalition (WAOI)   Filed: January 28, 2014   Location: Sangamon County   Plaintiffs: o WAOI o 5 TRS active teachers o 3 TRS annuitant teachers o 3 SURS active members o 3 SURS annuitant members o 9 SERS active members o 2 SERS annuitant members o Seek to represent class of actives and annuitants from TRS, SURS and SERS  Defe

by Fred Klonsky / 1min 

David Orr. Cut TIFs. Not pensions.

Cook County Clerk David Orr says we should place a moratorium on TIFS rather than cutting public employee pensions or raising working family’s property taxes. A recent report, by the Washington-based group Good Jobs First, said that TIF funds surpass Chicago’s pension liabilities. The amount of money the city’s TIFs diverted in 2012 ($457 million) was more than its pension costs ($385.8 million)

1 by Fred Klonsky / 20min 

Union Democracy. Part II.

The microphone is missing. A symbol of democracy in the IEA. Photo: Jerry Mulvihill. Jerry Mulvihill, a fifth grade teacher and IEA RA delegate tried to bring up the issue of the NEA and IEA’s support for the Common Core. But IEA President Cinda Klickna shut off the debate. There was no need for debate, she explained. The leadership had taken a private poll of 500 of the 130,000 IEA members and s

by Fred Klonsky / 6min hide  //  save

Ten minute drawing. Bob Fioretti.

2 by Fred Klonsky / 1h 

4-14-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: “Don’t compare me to the Almighty. Compare me to the alternative.” – Squeezyby Fred Klonsky / 23min 4-13-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacherFred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Sunday reads.On April 12, 1983 Ch

by mike simpson / 8h 

4-15-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"

Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement":

“More than 20% of [British] parents say they have been fined for unauthorised holidays”

More than 20% of parents say they have been fined for unauthorised holidays is the headline of an article in the British newspaper The Guardian. Here’s how it starts: More than 20% of parents say they have been fined for taking their children on unauthorised holidays during the school term, while a majority of parents have lied to avoid getting into trouble, a national survey has found. Wow. I’m n

2 by Larry Ferlazzo / 7h 

Parent Coordinators and Parent Engagement

I’ve written a lot about Elisa Gonzalez, our school’s extraordinary parent coordinator. Her work is invaluable to our school’s overall success. As part of New York City Chancellor Carmen Fariña’s often-stated goal to increase parent engagement there, a New York City parent coordinator has some suggestions for her: As part of her pledge to boost parent involvement, I hope Fariña considers reinforci

4 by Larry Ferlazzo / 7h 

“Parental Involvement Is Overrated” — Um, No It Isn’t

I’ve previously posted about a new book on parent involvement research that pretty much suggests most previous research on the topic is wrong (see New Book & Research On Parent Involvement, & It’s Potentially Very Unhelpful). The authors have a guest column in The New York Times with the decidedly unhelpful headline, Parental Involvement Is Overrated. I have obtained the book, and it’s on

7 by Larry Ferlazzo / 7h hide  //  save

Not Very Useful Report On Community Schools Released

Education Week reports on a paper just released from UCLA’s UCLA Center for Mental Health in Schools that’s fairly critical of how many community schools operate. I’ve got to say that I was less-than-impressed by the report. I certainly have been critical (see The Best Resources For Learning About Community Schools) of a number of community schools’ efforts, particularly what is often a lack of pa

2 by Larry Ferlazzo / 7h 

I Think This School Needs To Rethink How They Relate To Parents: “Parents reprimanded for taking children out of school for family funeral”

Parents reprimanded for taking children out of school for family funeral is the headline of an article in the British newspaper, The Telegraph. Here’s how it begins: Two parents have received a written warning after their children missed school to attend their grandfather’s funeral. Andrew and Danielle Overend-Hogg were told that their children, aged nine, five and three, had taken an unauthorised

2 by Larry Ferlazzo / 7h 

4-12-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"

Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement":Good Recommendations On Who To Follow On Twitter For Parent Engagement IssuesResourceful folks to follow on twitter: #Opp4All @Joe_Mazza @CommSchools pic.twitter.com/huaDTjC9Ph — L.A. Ed Partnership (@PartnerwithLAEP) April 9, 20142 by Larry Ferlazzo / 2d The “Tooth Fairy” Parent Engagement StrategyRT @Joe_Mazza: Edus who &q

by mike simpson / 8h

4-15-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:

Can BESE Save White from Jindal? I’m Thinking… No.

John White’s job is on the line, and the primarily-purchased Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) is standing behind its Common Core State Standards (CCSS)- and Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)-promoting talking head. For White’s annual evaluation, BESE gave him a 3 out of 4. I’m thinking White’s BESE […]

by deutsch29 / 1h 

South Carolina Withdraws from Smarter Balanced Assessments

In a letter to the Chair of the South Carolina State Board of Education, State Superintendent Mick Zais has exercised his authority to pull South Carolina out of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC): SC State Superintendent Letter SBAC This does not release South Carolina from the use of the Common Core State Standards; although it […]

15 by Kris Nielsen / 28min

“There’s a Muslim in America Named Muhammad Ali”

“There’s a Muslim in America Named Muhammad Ali”. via “There’s a Muslim in America Named Muhammad Ali”.

by plthomasedd / 9min 

Pat Tillman (11/6/76 – 4/22/04): A Decade of Forgetting

Pat Tillman (11/6/76 – 4/22/04): A Decade of Forgetting. via Pat Tillman (11/6/76 – 4/22/04): A Decade of Forgetting.Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical

1 by plthomasedd / 1h 

4-14-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE: The Paradox of Race in the U.S.The Paradox of Race in the U.S.. via The Paradox of Race in the U.S..1 by plthomasedd / 5min  4-13-14 @ The Chalk Face@ THE CHALK FACE: Devaluing Teachers in the Age of Value-AddedDevaluing Teachers in the Age of Value-Added. via Devaluing Teachers in the Age of Value-Added.1 by plthomasedd / 57min  All Week 4-12-14 @ THE CHALK FACE@ THE CHALK FACE 

by mike simpson / 7h 

4-15-14 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):

“There’s a Muslim in America Named Muhammad Ali”

There’s a Muslim in America named Muhammad Ali. Louis Farrakhan, The Trials of Muhammad Ali The Trials of Muhammad Ali opens with contrasting responses to Muhammad Ali, highlighted by the awkward ceremony in which George W. Bush awarded Ali the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Trials of Muhammad Ali The documentary follows footage of that ceremony with Louis Farrakan struggling with Ali’s pron

1 by plthomasedd / 11min 

AlterNet: What We Lose When We Rip the Heart Out of Arts Education

What We Lose When We Rip the Heart Out of Arts Education

1 by plthomasedd / 3min hide  //  save

Pat Tillman (11/6/76 – 4/22/04): A Decade of Forgetting

On the first anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing, David Zirin highlights a nearly concurrent anniversary: Two wrenching anniversaries loom in the world of sports. Both are in many respects conjoined by the dominant narratives of the twenty-first century. Both show how the military adventures of the last decade have even breeched the escapist sanctity of the sports page. Both contain element

4 by plthomasedd / 1h 

4-14-14 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): The Paradox of Race in the U.S.The paradox of race in the U.S.: In order to become a culture in which race does not matter, race must always matter. Due this coming June, my first granddaughter will be born into this world a bi-racial child during the second term of the

by mike simpson / 7h 

4-15-14 Perdido Street School Week

Perdido Street School:

Why Is Andrew Cuomo Being Paid So Much Money For His Memoir?

This is an awful lot of money for a book that nobody is going to read, let alone buy: Gov. Cuomo’s memoir doesn’t hit bookstores until August but he’s already reaping the fiscal rewards. Cuomo’s 2013 tax return – which was made available to reporters Tuesday afternoon - shows he received $188,333 from the first installment of his book advance. The advance boosted his adjusted gross income to $358,

by reality-based edu... / 59min 

Cuomo On The Run From Reporters

Gov. Andrew Cuomo avoided reporters after a speech in Syracuse, wouldn't take questions, @TeriKWeaver reports. They chased him to car.— Jimmy Vielkind (@JimmyVielkind) April 14, 2014Syracuse.com also reported that Cuomo refused to take questions from the press after the  speech he gave to business people at the CenterState CEO annual luncheon:After the speech, Cuomo didn't take questions from the

by reality-based edu... / 13min 

Andrew Cuomo Took More Than Double The Koch Money That Scott Walker Took

Buried in this National Journal piece on why progressives are starting to revolt against Tea Party Governor Cuomo is this doozy:Several Democrats who spoke privately to National Journal lamented that Cuomo accepted $87,000 in campaign contributions from David Koch and his wife during the 2010 cycle—more than double the $34,000 that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker took. Cuomo has also accepted donation

1 by reality-based edu... / 41min 

How Cuomo Meddled Into The Moreland Commission Report

Another story about just how much meddling the governor's office did into the Moreland Commission work:An assistant counsel to Governor Andrew Cuomo, who professed himself to be the author of the NY SAFE Act, was ultimately selected as the lead writer of the Moreland Commission on Public Corruption’s December 2013 report after several independent candidates for the position were nixed, according t

1 by reality-based edu... / 57min hide  //  save

Cuomo Is Honorary Chair Of Pro-Charter Education Reform Retreat Run By His Donors

Here's Cuomo's brand of realpolitik in action:ALBANY—Governor Andrew Cuomo will headline an education retreat next month in Lake Placid hosted by hedge-fund managers who support the Common Core standards, charter schools, mayoral control of schools, testing and student-data collection. Cuomo is the “honorary chairman” of Camp Philos, “a philosopher's camp on education reform” presented by Educatio

2 by reality-based edu... / 1h 

4-14-14 Perdido Street School Week

Perdido Street School: Cuomo Fears A Third Party Candidate Could Make Him Lose Re-ElectionAn extraordinary column from Fred Dicker in the NY Post:After his worst week in office since becoming governor, Andrew Cuomo is now viewed for the first time by important Democrats as potentially vulnerable to Republican challenger Rob Astorino, The Post has learned. The changing sentiment results from the ex

by mike simpson / 8h 

Public Schools Enrich Communities by Helping to Save Indigenous Language and Culture | janresseger

Public Schools Enrich Communities by Helping to Save Indigenous Language and Culture | janresseger:

Public Schools Enrich Communities by Helping to Save Indigenous Language and Culture

In graduate school over forty years ago I was fascinated when a Ph.D. candidate described his dissertation in the field of anthropological linguistics. His project was to live at the Northern Paiute Indian Reservation in Nevada, immerse himself in conversation with the last living native speakers of the language, write an alphabet, and create a systematic grammar.  The project’s purpose was to record important stories, create a written record, and ensure that the nation’s elders did not take the language with them to their graves.

Anthropological linguistics, which was historically driven primarily by the colonial zeal of Christian missionaries trained at the  Summer Institute of Linguistics to document the world’s languages for the purpose of biblical translation, has ironically in the past half century been transformed by its practitioners to document, record, and preserve indigenous languages.

Sunday’s NY Times records a fascinating, follow-up chapter in the story of the preservation of Native American languages: In California, Saving a Language That Predates Spanish and English.  Norimitsu Onishi reports that public schools in Eureka, California are teaching the Yurok language that nearly became extinct.  “Eureka began offering Yurok two years ago, bringing to four the number of public high schools in Northern California where the language is taught.  Two public elementary schools also offer it, including one as part of a new immersion program.  The Yurok Tribe’s extensive campaign to revive the language serves as a model to the many other tribes… that are undertaking similar efforts….”

Onishi describes the linguistic transformation occurring in the American Indian nations able to afford such research and educational efforts.  “The experience of the Yuroks and other tribes is also redefining what it means to have a living language… All of the current Yurok teachers came to the language as adults, by painstakingly acquiring it from the last living elders and sometimes comparing notes with outside linguists.” James Gensaw, now teaching Yurok at Eureka High School, remembers learning some vocabulary words from his grandfather, becoming fascinated by the language, and asking an elder to help him compose a song in Yurok.  Later he worked with a linguist from the University of California: “I learned grammar from him and was also working with six fluent speakers.”  Today he is teaching 

Calculator Directive for 8th-Graders Draws Concerns | The Texas Tribune

Calculator Directive for 8th-Graders Draws Concerns | The Texas Tribune:

Calculator Directive for 8th-Graders Draws Concerns

• by Aamena Ahmed
• April 15, 2014

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Enlargegraphic by: Todd Wiseman

As the state integrates a directive that requires eighth-graders in Texas public schools to have graphing calculators forSTAAR testing, some poorer Texas school districts say that such mandates ignore the financial crunch that many districts are already facing.

In February, Texas Education AgencyCommissioner Michael Williams wrote toTexas superintendents to instruct them that they must ensure that eighth-grade students have graphing calculators for STAAR assessments, starting in the 2014-15 school year. The directive comes after the State Board of Education increased the algebra content on the exam, said Debbie Ratcliffe, a TEA spokeswoman.

While districts have provided calculators for algebra classes, most eighth-grade math classes had previously not been supplied with the calculators, which cost more than $100 each. The state will not provide extra funding for the new calculator mandate, Ratcliffe said, adding that districts receive a specific allotment for spending on instructional materials.

To provide more flexibility for school districts, the requirements were amended to include the option of substituting calculators with math applications on tablet devices. But many property-poor districts and their advocates say that despite the options provided, resources are limited and they have other issues to consider.

“Most of the students in our school district live in poverty,” said Marcus Nelson, superintendent of the Laredo school district, where more than 90 percent of the student body is economically disadvantaged. "We don’t have big budgets to spend from. We are trying to