Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 6/13/15

SPECIAL NITE CAP 

CORPORATE ED REFORM

Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement! | I AM AN EDUCATOR

Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement! | I AM AN EDUCATOR: Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement!Last week the Seattle School District told my kindergarten son to take the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test.Given my intense relationship with this specific standardized test–an exam that has forever altered the course of my life–this was a pa

by mike simpson / 30min 

When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either Way

When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either Way: When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either WayIf there was ever a scenario in which there were no winners, the student debt crisis may be it. Thousands upon thousands of graduates are being funneled out of American colleges and universities every year, packing with them, on average, around $30,000 in debt. Th

by mike simpson / 43min 

Wisconsin Teacher Training? | Christopher Brauchli

Wisconsin Teacher Training? | Christopher Brauchli: Wisconsin Teacher Training? "A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."--Henry Brooks Adams, The Education of Henry AdamsThe fact that Scott Walker is now running for president comes as no surprise to those who knew him in college. When a student, he told one of his dorm mates that he was going to be presi

by mike simpson / 46min 

L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses - Yahoo Finance

L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses - Yahoo Finance: L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site LicensesAccelerated rate of learning coupled with overall love for ScootPad by both students & teachers resulted in several L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools to extend their ScootPad Site License for

by mike simpson / 49min 

Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools | The Sacramento Bee

Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools | The Sacramento Bee: Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schoolsAsami Saito will be done with high school well before 2020, when Sacramento City Unified School District students will have to take ethnic studies to graduate.Even so, the West Campus High School junior, who serves as the student trustee on the ci

by mike simpson / 1h 

Alan J. Borsuk - Charter Schools 101: The basics behind a hot education topic

Alan J. Borsuk - Charter Schools 101: The basics behind a hot education topic: Charter Schools 101: The basics behind a hot education topicAmid the many education issues now in flux, the future of charter schools seems to attract a high degree of heat and, frequently, misunderstanding. So I thought it might be good to offer a Charter Schools 101 primer.Q.Just what is a charter school?A. Launched i

by mike simpson / 1h 

Heavy emphasis on “hard skills” leaves children unprepared for the real “tests” in life. | WagTheDog

Heavy emphasis on “hard skills” leaves children unprepared for the real “tests” in life. | WagTheDog: Heavy emphasis on “hard skills” leaves children unprepared for the real “tests” in life.The appropriate and skillful application of hard skills is soft skills dependent.~ Corporate Learning World BlogWorking with grade 7-12 students in a public school for more than a quarter century, and as a summ

by mike simpson / 1h 

Madeline Dietrich | Bullying: An Open Letter to the Superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools

Madeline Dietrich | Bullying: An Open Letter to the Superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools: Bullying: An Open Letter to the Superintendent of Milwaukee Public SchoolsI wrote the following letter to call attention to the tragic suicide of one of Milwaukee's brightest teachers. The incident went unnoticed by the public, occurring over the Thanksgiving holiday. While a large component underscores

by mike simpson / 1h 

Our Dirty Little Secret Education Lessons From A Sparkly District

Education Lessons From A Sparkly District: Our Dirty Little SecretI want to share with all of you an example of what parents of children with disabilities go through in New Jersey. Sadly, this is not new, nor is it likely to change anytime in the near future. There needs to be a fundamental shift in how NJDOE/OSEP view these students, how individual districts view them, and how communities value t

by mike simpson / 4h 

Is the Common Core killing kindergarten? - Ideas - The Boston Globe

Is the Common Core killing kindergarten? - Ideas - The Boston Globe: Is the Common Core killing kindergarten?LAST SPRING, Susan Sluyter quit teaching kindergarten in the Cambridge Public Schools. She’d spent nearly two decades in the classroom, and her departure wasn’t a happy one. In a resignation letter, Sluyter railed against a “disturbing era of testing and data” that had trickled down from th

by mike simpson / 4h 

CURMUDGUCATION: I'm Defending Teach for America

CURMUDGUCATION: I'm Defending Teach for America: I'm Defending Teach for AmericaI'm about a week behind on this, mostly because I don't usually pay any attention to conservative rantist Michelle Malkin. Yes, she often rants against Common Core and corporate commandeering of public education, but when I first started picking apart the odd alliances, congruence, and alignments of the education debat

by mike simpson / 7h 

When the School Becomes the Graduation Sheriff - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

When the School Becomes the Graduation Sheriff - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: When the School Becomes the Graduation Sheriff Several years ago, I was traveling across the state with then-President of the MI Education Association, Julius Maddox, and our conversation wandered into territory where I had some strong opinions: the overuse of praise, awards and celebrations in sch

by mike simpson / 7h 

A gifted Newark teacher asks: Why are we not good enough to educate our children? | Bob Braun's Ledger

A gifted Newark teacher asks: Why are we not good enough to educate our children? | Bob Braun's Ledger: A gifted Newark teacher asks: Why are we not good enough to educate our children?Jonathan AlstonEDITOR’S NOTE: I am proud to present this guest blog by Jonathan Alston, an English teacher and debate coach at Newark’s Science Park High School. Alston, born and raised in Newark and educated at Sci

by mike simpson / 7h 

Oregon passes Student Assessment Bill of Rights | Seattle Education

Oregon passes Student Assessment Bill of Rights | Seattle Education: Oregon passes Student Assessment Bill of RightsFrom the Oregon Education Association:On June 11, the Oregon Senate passed HB 2655, the Student Assessment Bill of Rights. The Bill recognizes students and their parents as important stakeholders in the assessment process and improves transparency around the assessment process for st

by mike simpson / 7h 

Jersey Jazzman: America, Meet @GovChristie: Teacher Bashing Hypocrite

Jersey Jazzman: America, Meet @GovChristie: Teacher Bashing Hypocrite: America, Meet @GovChristie: Teacher Bashing Hypocrite  The Reading Zone points us to a video of Chris Christie out on the campaign trail doing what he does best: bashing teachers.Q: Which do you regard as a bigger threat to the nation: ISIS, or our K-12 education system. CHRISTIE: (Laughs) Both.America, meet Chris Christie: a m

by mike simpson / 7h 

The Only Teaching Evaluation That Matters | gadflyonthewallblog

The Only Teaching Evaluation That Matters | gadflyonthewallblog: The Only Teaching Evaluation That Matters“Yes, my writing got a lot better than what I was, and I love writing now. And you pushed me to do better. Not a lot of teachers push their students, some teachers don’t care about their students.”One of my 8th graders wrote that to me on the last day of school.I had asked her class to fill ou

by mike simpson / 7h 

Civil Rights and Testing: Response to Haycock and Edelman | Deborah Meier on Education

Civil Rights and Testing: Response to Haycock and Edelman | Deborah Meier on Education: Civil Rights and Testing: Response to Haycock and EdelmanBy Marc TuckerJune 10, 2015 11:00 AMFrom EdWeek blog Top PerformersTwo weeks ago, I published a blog post suggesting that some leaders of the civil rights community might want to reassess their support for annual testing in the reauthorization of the Elem

by mike simpson / 7h 

No Child Left Behind Rewrite To Face Another Showdown in House - Breitbart

No Child Left Behind Rewrite To Face Another Showdown in House - Breitbart: NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND REWRITE TO FACE ANOTHER SHOWDOWN IN HOUSEAnother fight may be on the horizon in the House of Representatives, as Republican leaders seem poised to again try to replace the controversial No Child Left Behind law with the Student Success Act, a measure that has proven to be just as unpopular with conserv

by mike simpson / 8h 

Rally supports laid-off teachers at charter school - Redding

Rally supports laid-off teachers at charter school - Redding: Rally supports laid-off teachers at charter schoolREDDING, California - For the second time in five months, the California Teachers Association is fighting layoffs at the Academy of Personalized Learning, a charter school in Redding.Teachers, parents, students and CTA representatives stood in front of the school on Larkspur Avenue on Fr

by mike simpson / 8h 

Legislature passes standardized testing opt-out bill - East Oregonian

Legislature passes standardized testing opt-out bill - East Oregonian: Legislature passes standardized testing opt-out billA bill heading to Governor Kate Brown's desk would make it easier for parents to opt their students out of state testing.A bill headed to Governor Kate Brown’s desk could decrease the number of students taking state tests next year.House Bill 2655 would allow parents to opt th

by mike simpson / 8h 

Where “All About the Kids” Must Lead | Raginghorseblog

Where “All About the Kids” Must Lead | Raginghorseblog: Where “All About the Kids” Must LeadAllow someone who is trying to hurt you to define the argument and you will be hurt. Allow the same to someone who is trying to trap you and you will be trapped.This unwitting allowance, as much as the limitless funding of billionaires and the spinelessness of the corporate media, has been one of the reason

by mike simpson / 9h 

From University Sit-Ins to Highway Blockades, the Spring Rages On | The Nation

From University Sit-Ins to Highway Blockades, the Spring Rages On | The Nation: From University Sit-Ins to Highway Blockades, the Spring Rages OnThis post is part of The Nation’s biweekly student movement dispatch. As part of the StudentNation blog, each dispatch hosts first-person updates on youth organizing. For recent dispatches, check out May 1 and May 18. Contact studentmovement@thenation.com

by mike simpson / 9h 

FOM: Post Secondary Ed: The CCSS Trojan | commoncorediva

FOM: Post Secondary Ed: The CCSS Trojan | commoncorediva: FOM: Post Secondary Ed: The CCSS TrojanAs the push for the re-authorization of the HEA heats up, more evidence has surfaced showing how post-secondary education is an ideal set-up for the CCSS Machine.Over the past months, we anti CCSS warriors, have learned so much in fighting Common Core. We’ve learned that Common Core has a wide array of

by mike simpson / 9h 

YESTERDAY

MPS teachers protest against failing school takeover proposal | FOX6Now.com

MPS teachers protest against failing school takeover proposal | FOX6Now.com: MPS teachers protest against failing school takeover proposalMILWAUKEE — Teachers gathered Friday morning, June 12th to protest against a state proposal that could convert struggling Milwaukee Public Schools into charter or private schools. It’s happening at 82nd and Grantosa.They’re against a republican-led proposal that

by mike simpson / 18h 

La. Education Legislation: Final Update of 2015 | deutsch29 #flipbese

La. Education Legislation: Final Update of 2015 | deutsch29: La. Education Legislation: Final Update of 2015On May 29, 2015, I wrote a post that was a Louisiana legislative update.During the Louisiana legislative session, the Louisiana Federation of Teachers (LFT) issues a weekly legislative digest of education-related legislation. (Archived digests can be found here.)In this post, I would like to

by mike simpson / 19h 

CCSA, California Charter Schools Association Board of Directors

CCSA, California Charter Schools Association Board of Directors: CCSA, California Charter Schools Association Board of DirectorsMade up of charter school and charter management organization leaders, as well as education advocates and representatives of charitable foundations, the Board of Directors broadly formulates CCSA's policy and activities.Diane Tavenner Board Chair (term ending 6/30/2016)Ca

by mike simpson / 23h 

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 6/12/15

SPECIAL NITE CAP CORPORATE ED REFORMUnion-backed group calls for pause in federal money for charter schools - The Washington PostUnion-backed group calls for pause in federal money for charter schools - The Washington Post: Union-backed group calls for pause in federal money for charter schoolsA labor-backed group is objecting to an U.S. Education Department proposal to expand federal funding for

by mike simpson / 23h 

Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement! | I AM AN EDUCATOR

Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement! | I AM AN EDUCATOR:

Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartner Joins the Opt Out Movement!

Last week the Seattle School District told my kindergarten son to take the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test.

Given my intense relationship with this specific standardized test–an exam that has forever altered the course of my life–this was a particularly unsettling moment for me. As an authentic assessment activist, I had helped organize a boycott of this test at Seattle’s Garfield High School, I edited the book More Than a Score to tell the story of this movement against the MAP and the subsequent uprising against high-stakes testing, and I speak regularly around the country to share the lessons of the movement to “Scrap the MAP.”

I had long been committed to a fight for public education, but now it just got personal. Now they were trying confine my own boundlessly vibrant son into a test score bubble.

I had felt a great sense of accomplishment in our 2013 MAP test boycott, which resulted in adecisive victory when the superintendent ended the school year by announcing an end to the MAP test requirement for the high schools.  Now, however, the announcement that it was MAP test week for my son felt a cruel irony. It was hard to have to face the fact that, despite how powerful our movement had become, we hadn’t defeated the test altogether and elementary school students were still being subjected to it.

The idea that our school system implements standardized testing in the early grades to make students “career and college ready” (in the language of the Common Core standards) is an utter absurdity–especially when you consider that one of the most popular career choices for a 5-year-old is being Spider Man.  And yet high-stakes are attached to the the MAP test–already in kindergarten!–using it as an arbitrator of who will be placed on the advanced track.  In schools around the nation, there is an astonishing proliferation of the use of standardized testing in the early grades, which is having a frightening impact our our children. Children are increasingly experiencing severe stress from these tests, to the point where administrators now have a Scrap the MAP test: My Kindergartener Joins the Opt Out Movement! | I AM AN EDUCATOR:

When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either Way

When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either Way:

When it Comes to the Student Debt Crisis, Taxpayers Lose Either Way

If there was ever a scenario in which there were no winners, the student debt crisis may be it. Thousands upon thousands of graduates are being funneled out of American colleges and universities every year, packing with them, on average, around $30,000 in debt. That is hamstringing a lot of individuals before they’re even able to start their careers, which sometimes requires them to work for free in internships, or move back home with their folks.

Many analysts are calling the student debt crisis the next big economic bubble, and there isn’t any clear way out of it. In fact, no matter what we do, the taxpayers are going to be on the hook for the bill at the end of the day.

We’re up to $1.2 trillion in outstanding student loans, and as of 2014, 17% of borrowers are delinquent or in default on those loans, per a report from the New York Fed. Millions of graduates can’t pay their loans back, and some are even flat-out refusing to. Recent news that the government has decided to forgive the loans for students that were attending, or graduated from, the for-profit Corinthian Colleges, which was found to be little more than a diploma mill, has emboldened others to call for more loan forgiveness from the government.

And some officials have even put a plan together to do just that.

According to a report from The Miami Herald, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has set the wheels in motion on a plan that would forgive billions in student loans — at the taxpayer’s expense. The first step of Duncan’s plan is being seen with the current situation with Corinthian Colleges, which is just one of several big education companies that are essentially ripping off both students and taxpayers by profiting off of government-backed loans and grants, then handing out near-worthless degrees.

Duncan told reporters that students “deserve a college education free from rip-off scams,” and that “some of these schools have brought the ethics of payday lending into higher education.”

Read more: http://www.cheatsheet.com/business/when-it-comes-to-the-student-debt-crisis-taxpayers-lose-either-way.html/?a=viewall#ixzz3czJ3gXmW

Wisconsin Teacher Training? | Christopher Brauchli

Wisconsin Teacher Training? | Christopher Brauchli:

Wisconsin Teacher Training?

 "A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."

--Henry Brooks Adams, The Education of Henry Adams

The fact that Scott Walker is now running for president comes as no surprise to those who knew him in college. When a student, he told one of his dorm mates that he was going to be president of the United States someday. Because of that long-held ambition, his January proposal caused some to think his self-confidence had failed him. Those people thought he was trying to change the rules so that he would qualify for a job in teaching if, unexpectedly, and contrary to his expectations, he did not become the next president of the United States. A close reading of the January proposal, however, makes it obvious that he was acting selflessly when he made the proposal and was not trying to provide an opportunity for himself.

The suggestion that Mr. Walker made in January that will probably become law in June, though not, as it turns out, because of his efforts, was that anyone with a college degree would be qualified to become a teacher of students in grades 6 through 12 in the Wisconsin school system.

In Wisconsin as well as in many other states, in order to become a teacher in those grades, it is necessary to undergo courses in teacher training. Under Scott's proposal this notion was set on its head, since it provided that those hoping to become teachers did not need to take any college-level teacher-training courses. All that would be needed to become a teacher in Wisconsin public schools would be a bachelor's degree and a demonstrated proficiency in the course the prospective teacher wants to teach.

Scott did not, as noted above, suggest this to benefit himself, since he is a college dropout. He does not have the qualifications to become a teacher even in the unlikely event that he fails to become the 45th president of the United States. He could, of course, return to school to complete the work he failed to complete before becoming a dropout and then a governor, in which case his proposal would benefit him. That seems a bit far-fetched and unlikely to have been the reason for his suggestion.

Although Scott's proposal went nowhere when first introduced, thanks to Mary Czaja, a Wisconsin legislator, his proposal has reappeared in greatly enhanced form and in a few days may become law. It made its appearance, appropriately enough, in the Wisconsin state biennial budget for 2015 through 2017 and was part of a bill reducing funding for higher education and K-12 education.

At a late-night meeting of the Wisconsin Legislative Joint Finance Committee during the week of May 24, 2015, and thanks to the quick thinking of Representative Mary Czaja, a provision was inserted into the state biennial budget for 2015 through 2017 that went even further than the provision proposed by Scott earlier in the year. The provision she inserted would not only eliminate the need for those who would teach to have any teacher training but provides that anyone can teach non-core subjects, even high school dropouts. The only requirement imposed on a high school dropout wanting to become a teacher is that the school wishing to hire such a person makes a determination that the person being hired is proficient and has relevant experience in the subject he or she wants to teach.

Mary's provision was adopted as part of the budget without a hearing. Mary admitted that if her provision becomes law, it will be easier for individuals in Wisconsin to enter the teaching profession than it is in any other state. However, she is confident that teachers meeting the new standards will be just as qualified as those meeting today's requirements. In an interview she explained, "The districts are going to be the ones that hire these people, and I firmly believe that they're not going to throw somebody in there that isn't doing a good job. This is just flexibilities. They don't have to use it."

Mary's proposal is not met with enthusiasm by professional educators. Tony Evers, the State Superintendent observed, "We are sliding toward the bottom in standards Wisconsin Teacher Training? | Christopher Brauchli:

L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses - Yahoo Finance

L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses - Yahoo Finance:

L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses

Accelerated rate of learning coupled with overall love for ScootPad by both students & teachers resulted in several L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools to extend their ScootPad Site License for multiple years

SAN JOSE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 12, 2015 / ScootPad, a leading adaptive learning platform for grades K-8, announced today that several L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools extended their ScootPad Site Licenses for multiple years as a result of their early success with accelerated rate of learning and overall love for ScootPad by both students & teachers.

Allesandro Elementary School was an early-adopter school from L.A. Unified which implemented ScootPad school-wide starting with the 2013-2014 school year when ScootPad's flagship Ultra-Premium Site License was first released. Bandini Street Elementary School, Gardena Elementary School, Humphreys Avenue Elementary School and Canterbury Avenue Elementary School followed suit with school-wide implementations of ScootPad and subsequently renewed their site licenses for multiple years. Allesandro Elementary School has been recognized by ScootPad as the first school to reach the "5-Year Milestone", having purchased ScootPad for a total of 5 school years!

"With all the recent changes in education our school has been lucky to have found a program like ScootPad. It continues to hit the mark on providing students with much needed Math and Reading practice while acquiring computer knowledge.

Teachers have the ability to assign and modify student assignments for both class and homework. Parents also have access at home so they can work with their kids. ScootPad has become an important tool in the success of our students." said Lynn Andrews, Principal, Allesandro Elementary School. "What has probably been the most surprising part is the willingness of the ScootPad team to take our feedback and make improvements swiftly. On behalf of the entire Allesandro team, here's a big Thank You to ScootPad and the team behind it."

"We are very excited and encouraged to see schools & districts adding ScootPad to their strategic plans with multi-year commitments. We look forward to working very closely with them to make ScootPad even more valuable and easy to use in the coming months and years." said Bharat Kumar, Co-Founder & CEO of ScootPad. "Together, we are offering an invaluable learning tool for students at a fraction of the cost compared to similar products in the market."

Through partnerships with schools and districts like this, ScootPad's adaptive learning platform continues to extend its capabilities while becoming a "go-to" tool for thousands of U.S. schools, L.A. Unified (LAUSD) Schools add ScootPad to Their Strategic Plans With Multi-year Site Licenses - Yahoo Finance:

https://www.scootpad.com/pricing/compare

Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools | The Sacramento Bee

Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools | The Sacramento Bee:

Ethnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools

Asami Saito will be done with high school well before 2020, when Sacramento City Unified School District students will have to take ethnic studies to graduate.

Even so, the West Campus High School junior, who serves as the student trustee on the city school board, said she’s hoping future students will benefit from the greater cultural insight that she believes comes with ethnic studies.

For years, she said, history has been taught largely through a European-American lens. “You rarely get to hear about an African American, Latino or Asian American perspective,” said Saito, 16. “I’ve never heard of any textbook focused on the Japanese American perspective.”

Sacramento City Unified this month became the fifth – and largest – school district in the state to add ethnic studies as a future graduation requirement, joining a handful of districts across California that will ask students to study U.S. minority cultures, including Woodland Joint Unified.

The Sacramento district is one of the most diverse in the region, with no one ethnic group forming a majority. According to state data, 37 percent are Latino, 19 percent white, 18 percent African American, 17 percent Asian American and more than 5 percent reporting themselves as biracial.

13Sacramento City Unified high schools will be on board in 2019

The district will phase in ethnic studies as an elective at a pilot group of high schools starting in fall 2016. The course would expand to all 13 district high schools by fall 2019 and become a graduation requirement a year later, starting with the freshman class entering high school.

Districts in San Diego and the Bay Area are creating or expanding existing ethnic studies courses, said Jose Lara, coordinator of the statewide advocacy group Ethnic Studies Now. Locally, trustees for San Juan Unified in Carmichael recently added a course for one high school, although they have not made it a graduation requirement.

San Juan Unified trustees approved that course in April. The outlined course, which freshmen will take this fall at San Juan High School, calls for a “comparative and historical perspective to examine languages, values and voices of diverse groups in the United States” with emphasis on African Americans, Asian/Pacific Islanders, Latinos, Native Americans and other groups relevant to students.

The suburban district in northeast Sacramento County has grown increasingly diverse over the past two decades, according to state data. In 1995-96, 78 percent of the district’s students were white. This school year, 58 percent were.

Gloria Ervin, principal at San Juan High School in Citrus Heights, said teachers and administrators began to see the possibilities for their students when they attended an ethnic studies training session in San Francisco in January. Administrators and teachers from San Francisco, Santa Monica and Los Angeles explained how the courses enhanced students’ perceptions of their own place in the world, she said.

“We thought, ‘What an opportunity to engage students as they transition into high school,’” Ervin said.

In California, Assembly Bill 101 by Assemblyman Luis Alejo, D-Watsonville, would require school districts serving students in grades seven to 12 to offer ethnic studies as an elective. The Assembly passed the bill earlier this month and moved it to the Senate.

In Arizona, a 2010 law banned ethnic studies in public schools, a move championed by critics who said such courses were divisive, specifically those that promoted ethnic solidarity or were tailored to individual ethnic groups. Teachers and students mounted a legal challenge that has reached the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Lara said he listened to Arizona teachers opposed to the law discuss the issue in Los Angeles and took up the cause when he ran successfully for the El Rancho Unified school board two years ago. He also formed Ethnic Studies Now, a coalition of educators, civil rights groups and educators that has worked with school districts throughout the state.

This year, he said, increased state education funding is helping the effort along. His school district this fall will become the first in California to implement an ethnic studies graduation requirement, starting with the incoming freshman class.

WHEN YOU SEE ACROSS THE COUNTRY PEOPLE SHOUTING OUT, ‘BLACK LIVES MATTER,’ THE QUESTION IS WHAT ARE OUR SCHOOLS DOING TO ADDRESS THOSE ISSUES? AN ANSWER IS ETHNIC STUDIES.

Jose Lara, coordinator of Ethnic Studies Now

“This is a long time coming,” Lara said. “It’s an issue of civil rights. All students are robbed when the voices of students of color are not in our curriculum. When you see across theEthnic studies gaining traction in Sacramento-area public schools | The Sacramento Bee:

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/education/article24025114.html#storylink=cpy