Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: May Day Warning: 'We're rapidly returning to the conditions of Ludlow days.'

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: May Day Warning: 'We're rapidly returning to the conditions of Ludlow days.':

May Day Warning: 'We're rapidly returning to the conditions of Ludlow days.'

Ludlow: The striking miners and their families, 1914

BILL MOYERS' blog has an excellent piece on the 100th anniversary of the Ludlow strike and massacre, by Erik Loomis, "US Workers Were Once Massacred Fighting for the Protections Being Rolled Back Today." The headline says it all.

A century later, the bloody incident might seem a relic of the distant past, but the Ludlow Massacre retains a powerful, disturbing and growing relevance to the present. After a century of struggling against powerful interests to make American workplaces safer and corporations responsive to their employees, the US is rapidly returning to the conditions of rampant exploitation that contributed to Ludlow.

The same theme is picked up by Thai Jones, writing in The Nation. He writes, "One hundred years on, the Ludlow Massacre is a starkly contemporary tragedy." Thai's book, "More Powerful Than Dynamite" is the best thing written yet on that period. Here's Rick Ayers' review at Huffington.

BROOKLYN TEACHERS aren't going for it -- Common Core that is. Prospect Heights International HS teachers in Brooklyn are refusing to administer an English Language Arts test Thursday because they believe it is useless to their non-native-English-speaking students. Twenty-six of the school’s 30 teachers sent a letter to Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: May Day Warning: 'We're rapidly returning to the conditions of Ludlow days.':

Paul Horton: A Teacher Writes to Arne Duncan - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

Paul Horton: A Teacher Writes to Arne Duncan - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

Paul Horton: A Teacher Writes to Arne Duncan

By Anthony Cody on May 1, 2014 12:23 PM

Guest post by Paul Horton.

Dear Mr. Duncan,

I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know what sane teachers are doing these days.

I attended a rally last night at Union Square Fieldhouse that brought together concerned teachers, parents, and students to discuss standardized testing in Illinois.

We went over sample PARCC reading questions from their website, and most of us guessed wrong on most of the questions. All 80 of us would have failed the test. My guess is that we had a normal curve in the audience, but statistical norms did not seem to measure the results in our somewhat random sample: we had people of all ages, colors, social classes, and grit levels.

My guess is that CPS kids will do much better than us adults, but I doubt that they will do any better than what our state superintendent of education proclaims is our "cut score."

I also shared some secrets I have learned as a teacher with thirty-two years experience: 

1)   Standardized tests do not measure anything important. In one of the questions we took last night, those kids who knew the arcane English use of "cross" would have answered the question correctly. In other words, the kids most likely to answer this question correctly were those who played with Thomas the Tank Engine and companion readers.

2)   Many of my students who score the highest on standardized tests simply have the ability to solve puzzles. Many lack other essential forms of intelligence, and, more importantly, never learn to work hard. Extremely high-test scores might correlate more closely to lack of success, except perhaps in your typical financial or legal grifting.

3)   Huge numbers of kids with huge potential simply do not test well. because standardized tests Paul Horton: A Teacher Writes to Arne Duncan - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

NSBA issues guide for schools on data privacy :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

NSBA issues guide for schools on data privacy :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:

MAY 01, 2014

NSBA issues guide for schools on data privacy

by Alisha Kirby

(Va.) Making consistent strides toward bringing modern technology to the classroom isn’t a simple task, and neither is adjusting to obstacles that come with it, such as protecting students’ online privacy.

But school districts considering data protection policies can look to guidance recently released by the National School Boards Association for a brief overview of existing laws, as well as information about online technologies and suggestions for merging student access with security.

“The advantages of Cloud-based platforms and learning tools are obvious – ease, convenience, 24/7 accessibility, less staff time maintaining on-site servers, individualized learning, and compliance with testing requirements,” reads the 10-page report, “Data in the Cloud: A Legal and Policy Guide for School Boards on Student Data Privacy in the Cloud Computing Era.”

“But along with these benefits come serious challenges, particularly the potential for loss of privacy that accompanies the transfer of personal student information to the Cloud,” authors note. “Concerns about data privacy are real and must be addressed by public school districts, which reflect the values and norms of their communities.”

This guidance comes as both federal and state officials seek regulations that allow districts to maintain control of private student information even as they expand the use of multi-media and open-source technologies in their classrooms.

School leaders, says the NSBA, must be proactive in efforts to guard the personal information of their pupils and able to articulate their district’s policies, practices and commitment to protecting student privacy.

“Teachers and administrators must understand the necessity of taking steps to ensure that cloud services deployed throughout a district’s offices and classrooms comply with all applicable laws and district policies,” the association’s white paper says. “And the school district community – including parents – should be consulted and educated about the district’s use of the Cloud.”

From districtwide email systems to educational applications accessed via classroom computer, every connection to the Internet is a potential source of student data, report writers said.

“More difficult student data privacy issues arise with the universe of applications available to individual staff and students through a simple Internet connection, often to a device that can fit in a pocket,” reads Data in the Cloud. “These applications create separate ‘doors’ to district data that it may not be able to control in every case.”

Despite all the concerns about student data privacy, however, the NSBA report urges districts not to avoid taking advantage of modern technology to educate students and makes recommendations for doing so safely.

Among the suggestions:

• Identify an individual district-wide Chief Privacy Officer (CPO), or a group of individuals with district-wide responsibility for privacy.

• Conduct a district-wide privacy assessment and online services audit, preferably by an independent third party. By determining what services are currently in use, and to what extent student data is used and protected within those services, your district will have the basis for determining what policy or practice changes are necessary.

• Establish a safety committee or data governance team that includes the school or district’s Chief Privacy Officer. This team engages with the school community regarding proposed and existing use of Internet-based educational services that may use student information, recommends policies and best practices, and serves as the liaison between the school district and the community on privacy issues. This team also could serve as the review board to approve adoption of specific apps and services.

• Regularly review and update relevant district policies and incident response plans, in consultation with your state school boards association and school attorney. Consider including the following in your district’s policy:

1. Clear guidelines or procedures for evaluation and adoption of Cloud services, which include requiring a written contract; and
2. Statements regarding whether or when the district may allow the use of student data for service-provider uses outside of the contracted service.

• Consistently, clearly, and regularly communicate with students, parents, and the community about privacy rights and district policies and practices with respect to student data privacy. Include in an annual notice to parents the types of information transferred to Cloud service providers.

There are a number of additional resources mentioned in the guidance to help local educational agencies identify best practices for protecting student privacy.

Senate panel moves bill to restore multilingual K-12 classrooms

(Calif.) A bill that would repeal the core tenets of a 15-year-old ban on the use of bilingual education in the state’s K-12 school system cleared its first legislative hurdle Wednesday – passing out of the Senate Education Committee, where it was lauded as being both necessary and overdue.

by Kimberly Beltran / 45min 

5-1-14 The Answer Sheet

The Answer Sheet:

What if we approached testing this way?

Arthur H. Camins writes about the unintended consequences of many education reform policies. Camins is the director of the Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J. The ideas expressed in this article are his alone and do not represent Stevens Institute. His other writing can be found at www.arthurcamins.com. A version […]

by Valerie Strauss / 18min

Is the $1 trillion student loan debt really a crisis?

When you read about the more than $1 trillion student loan debt in the United States, the word “crisis” invariably appears. But is it? Donald E. Heller, dean of the College of Education at Michigan State University, offers a different view of the common media portrayal of the issue. By Donald Heller For the last […]

by Valerie Strauss / 21min 

4-30-14 The Answer Sheet

The Answer Sheet: America’s best teachers got a B on this quizThe 62-year-old National Teacher of the Year Program is the oldest national honors program that focuses on teaching excellence, and this week, the 2014 winners from each state, the District and U.S. territories are in the nation’s capital’s for the annual celebration. The teachers have been touring the capital and meeting with various d

by mike simpson / 13min 

Becoming a 'Badass' Teacher - Education Week Teacher

Becoming a 'Badass' Teacher - Education Week Teacher:

Becoming a 'Badass' Teacher

By Laura Thomas

• 
  

“You are the only one in your school to speak up at faculty meetings (although many people who remained silent come up to you afterward to tell you how happy they are you did).”

“You tell administrators at your school what you really think, not what they want to hear.”

“Your colleagues come to you constantly with problems with the administration that they are afraid to raise themselves.”

Mark Nason, founder of the Badass Teachers Association, wrote these words to describe the teacher many of us want to teach with, want to be, want our children to have. They describe a teacher who is courageous, connected, creative … and so much more. I’m not personally a member of the BTA, and in fact I disagree with many of the group’s initiatives. But I appreciate Nason’s description of an outspoken, driven educator. As I read it, I remember admired colleagues, friends, and teachers of my own that perfectly fit the bill.

But is ‘badass’ something one just is as a teacher? Is it an inherent quality that one either has or doesn’t have, like being tall, musically talented, or athletic? Is badass a binary proposition—on or off, no in-between? Can one become badass, learn to be what Nason describes, and build conditions in which these qualities can develop naturally?

Personally, I think so. I think badass isn’t something one is by virtue of membership in a group or by ascribing to a certain set of specific beliefs or behaviors. I think it’s something one becomes. I think that teachers and educational allies who are described by their peers as badass tend to develop, both through personal initiative and experience, the following qualities:

1. Creativity: Badass teachers know that the best way to solve a problem is often the unexpected path. They cultivate a creative spirit both personally and professionally. They also have a sense of humor and they apply it liberally in all kinds of situations because they know that we can take the work seriously without taking ourselves too seriously.

2. Courage: Badass teachers know that being brave and being stupid aren’t the same thing. They know when and how to take action in ways that will help students—and teachers—to be successful. They’re brave enough to connect, to be vulnerable, to take instructional and professional risks. They know that courage is doing what needs to be done because the action that needs to be taken is more important than the fear—but sometimes the bravest thing one can do is wait, watch, and go back to school each day.

3. Personal Identity: Badass teachers know who they are when they aren’t being Becoming a 'Badass' Teacher - Education Week Teacher:

Teachers Union President Paid Less than Most Charter School Bosses

Teachers Union Boss Randi Weingarten: My Salary's Only $360K:

American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten, who was paid $543,150 last year, defended her compensation by claiming her pay is $360,000 and other reported expenses simply prove the union’s “transparency.”

As part of a series of April 28 Twitter posts demanding Congress hike the federal minimum wage to $10.10, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) District 1199 quoted from a January column Weingarten wrote for The Huffington Post.

“Justice means that hardworking people must have access to a living wage,” Weingarten wrote. AFT paid Weingarten $556,981 in 2012 and $543,150 in 2013.

When her 2013 pay was pointed out on Twitter, Weingarten made an awkward attempt to defend the gold-plated compensation she takes from AFT members and forced “fair share” fee payers in districts represented by AFT:

Note that SEIU District 1199, far from reacting with shock that a leading spokeswoman for government redistribution of wealth took over $360,000 from workers last year, replied to Weingarten, “you do amazing work for working people, children and their families.”

For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013, AFT reported Weingarten’s gross salary as $401,578. In addition to her salary, the union reported disbursing $51,440 in “allowances,” $62,632 “for official business,” and $27,500 in “other disbursements” to Weingarten.

An excerpt from AFT’s fiscal year 2013 LM-2 report to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) follows. Click the image for more information.

Generously calculating from Weingarten’s gross salary reported by AFT and assuming 52 work weeks of 50 hours each, Weingarten’s 2013 pay would equate to an hourly wage of $154.45.

By AFT’s own estimation, Weingarten spent less than one third of her time on “representational activities” from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013.

Weingarten further attempted to justify the more than half a million dollars the union disbursed to Teachers Union Boss Randi Weingarten: My Salary's Only $360K:

5-1-14 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):

Candidates for board seat, CA education chief at USC forum

Yet another education-related candidate forum has been scheduled for Los Angeles, this one on Saturday at USC, and it’s unusual in that it will include back-to-back conversations with candidates for the open board seat for LA Unified’s District 1, then another with those running for State Superintendent of Public Instruction. The co-sponsors — Parent Revolution, the Los Angeles Urban League and St

48min hide  //  save

De Blasio announces contract deal with teachers’ union

Via The New York Times | By Michael M. Grynbaum and Nikita Stewart Mayor Bill de Blasio, confronting a key challenge of his first year in office, announced what he called a “landmark” labor deal on Thursday with New York City’s largest teachers’ union that officials said would provide a framework for dozens of other outstanding contracts with the municipal work force. The deal, hammered out in mar

2 23min 

USC ‘masters’ to hear grad speech from LAUSD’s Melendez

Thelma Melendez Commencement season is upon us and with it, the rush to find moving speakers to lead graduating students through the expensive right of passage. Sometimes schools get lucky, such as UC Irvine, which this year reeled in President Barak Obama by sending 10,000 postcards from students, staff and alumni, inviting him to be the guest of honor. Other times, schools look to their own past

by Vanessa Romo / 2min hide  //  save

JUST IN: Plan to use ‘Need Index’ to go before LAUSD board

In a surprise move, LA Unified school board will consider a resolution that supports the use of an alternative formula, known as the “Student Need Index,” in deciding how to distribute school funds throughout the district. LA School Report has learned that Monica Garcia and Board President Richard Vladovic have agreed to co-sponsor a resolution to put before the board at its next meeting, on May 1

2 32min 

Kayser sniffing out problems with scented soap in LAUSD schools

LA Unified Board member Bennett Kayser is not only thinking about the LCAP, arts education, and transitioning to Common Core standards, he’s also thinking about soap. Specifically, unscented soap. According to Kayser, who has championed a variety of health issues since joining the board, the almond-scented, goopy, pink soap found in nearly every restroom, classroom or kitchen on an LA Unified camp

by Vanessa Romo / 51min 

Morning Read: LAUSD budget aims at helping foster children

LAUSD foster kids to get more help from school social workers Los Angeles Unified’s plan to help some of its most troubled students — foster kids — calls for creating a corps of social workers and manning 17 centers in poverty-stricken neighborhoods. If approved, the $32.7 million effort would hire 95 social workers to manage California’s largest classroom population of foster children, 11,604. LA

2min 

4-30-14 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): Decathlon title in hand, El Camino Real gets ready to celebrateThe winning teamPhoto: LA Daily News And now for the celebration. In honor of its seventh national Academic Decathlon championship, El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills is holding a rally tomorrow morning for a team that won th

by mike simpson / 21h 

California Distinguished Schools for 2014 - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)

California Distinguished Schools for 2014 - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education):

State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces California Distinguished Schools for 2014

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today named 424 public elementary schools California Distinguished Schools for their strong commitment and innovative approaches to improving student academic achievement. For the complete list, visit the 2014 Distinguished Elementary Schools Web page.

"I applaud these strong, thriving schools that are making such impressive strides in preparing their students for continued success," Torlakson said. "This award is well-deserved by these school communities for their enduring dedication to high standards, hard work, and unwavering support."

The 2014 California Distinguished Schools Program focuses on California's students' right to an equitable and rigorous education, and recognizes those schools that have made progress in narrowing the academic achievement gap.

To apply for Distinguished School honors, schools must meet a variety of eligibility criteria, including accountability measures. Once schools are deemed eligible, the California Department of Education (CDE) invites them to apply to be recognized as a California Distinguished School. The process consists of a written application, which includes a comprehensive description of two of the school's signature practices, and a county-led site validation review process focused on the implementation of those signature practices.

Schools earning the Distinguished School title agree to share their signature practices with other schools and become a mentor to those seeking to replicate their work. An updated searchable database of these Signature Practices will be available later this spring from the CDE. To view the current Signature Practices Web portal, please visit the Distinguished Schools Signature Practices Web page.

Elementary and secondary schools are recognized in alternate years. For more information, please go to the California Distinguished Schools Program Web page. Schools selected as California Distinguished Schools will be honored in early June during regional award ceremonies.

Also being honored during the ceremonies are the Title I Academic Achievement Awardees, which will be announced next week; Green Ribbon Schools; Civic Learning Award schools; and schools recognized last fall by the federal National Blue Ribbon Schools Program.

In addition to being chosen as Distinguished Schools, 30 schools were given an additional honor of being selected as having an Exemplary Program in either Arts Education or Physical Activity and Nutrition after undergoing a separate application process. These schools will be denoted on the attached list by asterisks—one asterisk for an Exemplary Arts Education Program and two asterisks for an Exemplary Physical Activity and Nutrition Program. The awards, introduced in 2013, reflect Torlakson's goals outlined in his A Blueprint for Great Schools report, which provides vision and direction for California's education system. 

# # # #

Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

5-1-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum:

Math Adoption Update

Oddly, nothing from SPS.  But here's a post from committee member, Rick Burke.  Thanks, RickThe district has not yet announced the results from the K-5 Math Adoption Committee (MAC) meeting on last Friday, but it was a public meeting, so there is no reason I can't share the outcome of committee deliberations and some of my personal opinions about the process and final program selection.The MAC met

by Melissa Westbrook / 19min 

4-29-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Tuesday Open ThreadSIIF is having a Giant Monsters All-Out Attack week - Godzilla, Mothra, King Kong, and others.What's on your mind?by Melissa Westbrook / 1min 4-28-14 Seattle Schools Community ForumSeattle Schools Community Forum: Kindergarteners - Get with the SystemI come to this issue because of two recent stories about kindergarteners.One was from Oregon wher

by mike simpson / 22h 

The Cuomology of State Aid (or Tales from Lake Flaccid) | School Finance 101

The Cuomology of State Aid (or Tales from Lake Flaccid) | School Finance 101:

The Cuomology of State Aid (or Tales from Lake Flaccid)

Posted on May 1, 2014

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We’ve heard much bluster over time about school funding in New York State, and specifically how money certainly has no role in the policy debate over how to fix New York State schools, unless it has to do with providing more money to charter schools, or decrying the fact that district schools statewide are substantially over-funded.  See for example, this wonderfully absurd rant from DFER.

Here’s a recap of other posts I’ve written in recent years on NY school finance:

1. On how New York State crafted a low-ball estimate of what districts needed to achieve adequate outcomes and then still completely failed to fund it.
2. On how New York State maintains one of the least equitable state school finance systems in the nation.
3. On how New York State’s systemic, persistent underfunding of high need districts has led to significant increases of numbers of children attending school with excessively large class sizes.
4. On how New York State officials crafted a completely bogus, racially and economically disparate school classification scheme in order to justify intervening in the very schools they have most deprived over time.

I also recently wrote about this interesting trend in NY state school finance and NY state outcome standards- specifically that the state continues to raise the bar on outcomes while lowering the funding target intended to be sufficient for meeting those outcomes.

As I previously explained, regarding outcome standards:

Put simply, higher student outcome standards cost more to achieve, not less. As explained above, the New York State school finance formula is built on an underlying basic cost estimate of what it would take for a low need (no additional student needs) district to achieve adequate educational outcomes as measured on state assessments. The current formula is built on average spending estimates dating back several years now and based on prior outcome standards, tied to a goal of achieving 80% proficient or higher. More than once in the past several years, the state has substantively increased the measured outcome standards.

For 2010, the Regents adjusted the assessment cut scores to address the inflation issue, and as one might expect proficiency rates adjusted accordingly. The following figure shows the rates of The Cuomology of State Aid (or Tales from Lake Flaccid) | School Finance 101:

#ThankATeacher and Share on Teacher Appreciation Day | ED.gov Blog

#ThankATeacher and Share on Teacher Appreciation Day | ED.gov Blog:

#ThankATeacher and Share on Teacher Appreciation Day

Peter Markes (@PeterMarkes) the 2014 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, and Edmond North High School Orchestra Director, tweeted his #ThankATeacher sign during a visit to the U.S. Department of Education headquarters.

Tuesday, May 6, is National Teacher Appreciation Day, and we want your help in thanking a teacher that has inspired you. On Click below to download our “#ThankATeacher” sign, fill it out, and on Tuesday, May 6, post your picture on social media using the hashtag #ThankATeacher.

There’s no doubt that teachers deserve a special week and day, but our appreciation and support for teachers needs to be a year-round effort. At the U.S. Department of Education, one of our top priorities is to continue to strengthen the teaching profession. Read more about the Obama Administration’s plan to improve teacher preparation, leading from the classroom through Teach to Lead, and the RESPECT proposal to elevate teaching and leading so that all of our students are prepared to meet the demands of the 21st century.

Download your #ThankATeacher sign!

Cameron Brenchley is director of digital strategy at the U.S. Department of Education