Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 7/26/15

SPECIAL NITE CAP 

CORPORATE ED REFORM

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who to Vote For?

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who to Vote For?:Who to Vote For?In discussions with friends and neighbors, I find two kinds of voters.  The "I got my ballot, filled it out and mailed it already" and the "I'm waiting until the last minute" voter.  I'm somewhere in-between.I'm going to give you my picks for School Board but also throw out some picks for City Council as I think

by mike simpson / 0min 

Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) | The Jose Vilson

Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) | The Jose Vilson: Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) July is the month that teachers get to be teachers without students.I’ve now been to five cities over the course of the last month, and saw nothing but teachers working on developing themselves as professionals and people. What’s missing in the debate over extended time in schools and summers in Amer

by mike simpson / 3h 

BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show

BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show: Submitted by Rick Smith on July 25, 2015 - 9:33pm.BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show:

by mike simpson / 3h 

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education - The Washington Post

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education - The Washington Post: Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on educationPearson, the world’s largest education company, the one that testing critics love to hate, wants to get much, much bigger. It is selling other investments so that it can focus entirely on its education business.The sales come at a

by mike simpson / 5h 

CURMUDGUCATION: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast

CURMUDGUCATION: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to CoastTalk of teacher shortages has been popping up on a state-to-state basis, so I thought I'd engage in a rare act of actual data collection. I'm working from two basic sources here: 1) a report from USEDthat actually goes back to 1991, but we'll just focus on the present and 2) my research assistan

by mike simpson / 5h 

A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” | Get Schooled

A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” | Get Schooled: A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.”  A veteran teacher from a suburban Atlanta district sent me this note:There are many futile attempts to remedy the ills of our educational system when a core issue to be rectified is parents. Each year, I see the positive effects of strong parental involvement on th

by mike simpson / 7h 

Perdido Street School: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors

Perdido Street School: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their DonorsChris Bragg of the Times-Union with an illuminating piece about how education reform groups push their political agenda without revealing who's funding it:Three groups pushing education reforms tha

by mike simpson / 7h 

Geaux Teacher!: Helping Profits - Hurting Children

Geaux Teacher!: Helping Profits - Hurting Children: Helping Profits - Hurting ChildrenMedia gets an "A" for finding false negatives in U.S. Students winning math Olympiad.  Just 10 minutes of my research gives media an "F" for facts.  I suppose if I were a PAID journalist I could have saved 10 minutes. Here is the good news with the media touch - headline: They're No. 1: U.S. W

by mike simpson / 7h 

State of Michigan Failing Charter Schools: One Year Later Nothing Has Changed

State of charter schools: How Michigan spends $1 billion but fails to hold schools accountable | Detroit Free Press | freep.com: Big Education Ape: Incomplete: Michgan’s grade on charter school reform http://bit.ly/1eqT7Tf Jul. 16, 2014What the Free Press foundA year long Free Press investigation of Michigan's charter schools found wasteful spending, conflicts of interest, poor performing schools

by mike simpson / 8h 

The Multiple Teacher Evaluation System(s) in New Mexico, from a Concerned New Mexico Parent | VAMboozled!

The Multiple Teacher Evaluation System(s) in New Mexico, from a Concerned New Mexico Parent | VAMboozled!: The Multiple Teacher Evaluation System(s) in New Mexico, from a Concerned New Mexico ParentA “concerned New Mexico parent” who wrote a prior post for this blog here, wrote another for you all below, about the sheer numbers of different teacher evaluation systems, or variations, now in place i

by mike simpson / 8h 

Judging Success and Failure of Schools and Districts: Whose Criteria Count? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Judging Success and Failure of Schools and Districts: Whose Criteria Count? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice: Judging Success and Failure of Schools and Districts: Whose Criteria Count?The dominant standard used by most policymakers, media editors, and administrators to judge success is effectiveness: Have you done what you said you were going to do and can you prove it? In a

by mike simpson / 10h 

OPT OUT: Colorado State Board of Education at crossroads after contentious run - The Denver Post

Colorado State Board of Education at crossroads after contentious run - The Denver Post: Colorado State Board of Education at crossroads after contentious runThe item was not even on the agenda. The Colorado State Board of Education was supposed to spend the morning recognizing award-winning teachers and digesting a routine school-finance update.But sitting to the right of the board chairwoman, an

by mike simpson / 10h 

Incomplete: Michgan’s grade on charter school reform

Incomplete: Michgan’s grade on charter school reform: Incomplete: Michgan’s grade on charter school reform One of my favorite stories about the lunacy that Michigan indulges with regard to charter schools comes, of course, from Detroit. It’s where the spectacular lack of oversight and standards over the past 20 years has created a sprawling, scattered system of privately operated public schools th

by mike simpson / 10h 

YESTERDAY

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 7/25/15

SPECIAL NITE CAP CORPORATE ED REFORMMore Education “Reform” From Those Who Created “No Child Left Behind.” Corporations Win, Teachers LoseMore Education “Reform” From Those Who Created “No Child Left Behind.” Corporations Win, Teachers Lose: More Education “Reform” From Those Who Created “No Child Left Behind.” Corporations Win, Teachers LoseHere’s something to ponder: who is in a better position

by mike simpson / 23h 

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who to Vote For?

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who to Vote For?:

Who to Vote For?

In discussions with friends and neighbors, I find two kinds of voters.  The "I got my ballot, filled it out and mailed it already" and the "I'm waiting until the last minute" voter.  I'm somewhere in-between.

I'm going to give you my picks for School Board but also throw out some picks for City Council as I think the make-up of the City Council could have a large affect on Seattle Schools (given the aggressive nature of Mayor Murray on this issue).

Note: in the primary you only vote for a School Board candidate if your district is up for election this year. However, after the primary, in the General election, you WILL be voting for four candidates.

Seattle School Board

District 1: I am truly disappointed in this race but both candidates, Michael Christophersen and Scott Pinkham, are moving onto the General election as they are the only two candidates.  Neither has a webpage or Facebook page and I certainly hope we get to know more about them because one will be elected.  (That is, unless there is a write-in candidate to be found.  Stranger things have happened.)

District 3: Jill Geary.  Both Lauren McGuire and Geary are bright, capable women.  But I believe Jill Geary has the outlook and critical thinking skill set that this district needs right now.   The Times endorsed McGuire and The Stranger endorsed Geary.  (I want to note that somehow Geary's endorsements did not make it into the primary literature so I want to note that she is endorsed by: 

• Washington State Democrats Progressive Caucus
• Martin Luther King County Labor Council
• King County Democrats
• King County Young Democrats
• 46th District Democrats
• Metropolitan Democratic Club of Seattle
• IUOE Local 609
• Seattle School Board Director Sue Peters
• State Representative Jessyn Ferrell
• King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski
• Seattle City Councilmember Mike O'Brien
• Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell
• Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn (fmr)
• Shoreline City Councilmember Janet Way (fmr)

District 4: Rick Burke and Laura Gramer are advancing onto the General as they are the only two in their race.  I support Burke in this race.

District 6: Leslie Harris.  I supported Marty McLaren (and indeed worked on her campaign last time) but while she is a kind, gentle soul, she has been a disappointment.  Just like Geary over McGuire, Harris over McLaren because Leslie Harris has the keen eye and skills to ask critical questions and get real answers to support students/parents/educators AND taxpayers. Her election motto says it all: Transparency, Trust, Equity.

She has been endorsed by both the Times and The Stranger.  I invite you to check her endorsements page at her website; it's long and pretty amazing.

City Council

District 1 -  Lisa Herbold (Shannon Braddock is the corporate-supported Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who to Vote For?:

Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) | The Jose Vilson

Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) | The Jose Vilson:

Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) 

July is the month that teachers get to be teachers without students.

I’ve now been to five cities over the course of the last month, and saw nothing but teachers working on developing themselves as professionals and people. What’s missing in the debate over extended time in schools and summers in American schools is the lack of time teachers get to spend not worrying about the students in their care. Building time into the school week is one thing, having independent time a whole nother. During the school year, meeting with teachers helps because we can address immediate needs and concerns, make adjustments, and decompress for a second before we have to get back on the train that is the school year.

Summer, by sharp contrast, allows us to take a time out from bells, alarms, phone calls, and the hundreds of other internal and external interruptions we face as teachers and get down to business as adults. This summer, I’ve seen teachers still keep students in mind, but talk about long-term curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, teacher leadership, and all the great stuff that gets piled on our shoulders while we’re still trying to manage our class load.

Maybe we need to rethink the idea of “summers off” as a summer to unpack and refuel.

The United States already eclipses the rest of the world in time in front of students. We ought to Get Up Offa That Thing (Summer-Shaming) | The Jose Vilson:

BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show

BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show:

Submitted by Rick Smith on July 25, 2015 - 9:33pm.

BAT Congress in Washington DC | The Rick Smith Show:

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education - The Washington Post

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education - The Washington Post:

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education

Pearson, the world’s largest education company, the one that testing critics love to hate, wants to get much, much bigger. It is selling other investments so that it can focus entirely on its education business.

The sales come at a time when the company has lost some big testing contracts in the United States and when its outlook from Moody’s, the credit-rating service, is negative. Still, Pearson is dominant in the education field. HBO’s John Oliver noted in a piece earlier this year that it is possible for American students to take Pearson-designed tests from kindergarten through at least eighth grade, use Pearson-designed curriculum and textbooks, and have teachers certified by a Pearson test. And that’s only part of its education reach.

The company is selling its stake in the Financial Times to Nikkei Inc., a leading Japanese media organization, for $1.3 billion, a move that Pearson chief executive John Fallon said was precipitated by the changing journalism business model and by Pearson’s desire to focus entirely on education,according to Financial Times. It is also in talks to sell its 50 percent stake in the Economist Group, which publishes the Economist magazine as well as the Economist Intelligence Unit and CQ Roll Call. The Financial Times said:

Selling the FT Group and the Economist Group stake would leave Pearson with nearly £1bn  [nearly $1.5 billion] in net proceeds — strengthening its balance sheet at a time when its credit rating has a negative outlook from Moody’s, due to uncertainty in the education sector.

Fallon told reporters a few days ago, according to Nieman Labs: “In terms of the businesses that we actively manage and lead on a daily basis, everything in that category will now be 100 percent related to education.”

Fallon wrote an article in the Financial Times that said in part:

The world of education is now changing profoundly, through globalisation, the emerging middle class in countries including India, China and Brazil, and the revolution of digital technology. The number of students going to university around the world is expected to triple over the next 20 years.

And that is what the future of Pearson is about: the ever-growing global demand for better education — whether that means learning real skills that lead to a career, access to better teachers and learning resources, or more affordable and effective higher education. It is a big and fragmented sector — annual global 

Pearson selling some investments to be ‘100 percent’ focused on education - The Washington Post:

CURMUDGUCATION: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast

CURMUDGUCATION: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast:

Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast

Talk of teacher shortages has been popping up on a state-to-state basis, so I thought I'd engage in a rare act of actual data collection. I'm working from two basic sources here: 1) a report from USEDthat actually goes back to 1991, but we'll just focus on the present and 2) my research assistant, Dr. Google, with which I'll check for "OMGZ! We haz got no teechurz!" stories for each state. Let's see how we're all doing, shall we?

ALABAMA

The USED shows Alabama hurting in many instructional areas, and they've been talking about a teacher staffing crisis almost a decade ago. They've recently blamed a substitute shortage on Obamacare, because reasons. Since the Great Teacher Crisis of 2007, they've been trying to offer incentives like bonuses for working in districts or subject areas that are suffering a shortage. Alabama is not known for its great teaching conditions or spending on education, but nobody is hollering about a teacher shortage at the moment.


ALASKA

One of the least shortagey states on the USED's list. Alaska has also been plagued by periodic bouts of teacher shortage, and that seems linked mostly to the general issue of enticing teachers to work in Extremely Rural Areas. Average salaries push $70K, but if you know Alaska, you know living there is not exactly cheap. However, there seems to be no major panic at the moment.

ARIZONA

USED says that Arizona is short everywhere in everything, and that's reflected in media reports throwing the word "crisis" around as recently as yesterday. Arizona is dead-last in per pupil spending and fighting to get to the bottom on teacher pay, but the charter operators rate them highly. Things are so bad that a study on recruitment and retention offered suggestions along the lines of "treat CURMUDGUCATION: Teacher "Shortage" Coast to Coast:

ICYMI: Top Edublogging of the Week (7/26)

As always, this is neither all-inclusive nor based on any criteria other than my own. But here are some things you should read from last week.


When candidates talk education, media rarely go beyond buzzwords

Well, in all fairness, the media don't do any better with other issues, but here's a great look at the side tracks that keep appearing in coverage of candidate edubloviation.

Dumbing down kids

If you want to get angry over EngageNY and canned teaching programs all over again, here's the piece. Detailed, specific, and incisive. 

Who's actually running America's charter schools

You actually need a double dose of School Finance 101 this week. Start with this look at which groups are actually getting most of the charter business. Then move onto this explanation of just one of the crazy twists in charter financing. It's a little wonky, but clear and thorough. 

ALEC now says school vouchers are for kids in suburbia

This one's important, and charts the shift in the voucher sales pitch. We knew this was coming-- now it's here. Vouchers are no longer pitched as a way to rescue those poor kids in failing urban schools. Now some folks would like to expand the market.

ICYMI: Top Edublogging of the Week (7/26)

A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” | Get Schooled

A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” | Get Schooled:

A letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” 

 A veteran teacher from a suburban Atlanta district sent me this note:

There are many futile attempts to remedy the ills of our educational system when a core issue to be rectified is parents. Each year, I see the positive effects of strong parental involvement on the educational outcomes of children. Conversely, I see the negative effects of parents who do not make education a priority.

I cannot effectively educate students if parents do not prioritize education in the home. It is akin to a parent bringing a child to the physician for an ailment. The parent must support the physician’s recommendations, along with prioritizing health in the home, for the child to successfully heal. Parents must prioritize their roles and responsibilities in the education of their children to assist teachers in their quest to provide a quality education to students. Teachers simply cannot do it alone.

A teacher says parents are critical to student success.

The teacher shared a letter she wishes she could send parents. Here it is:

Dear Parent,

I am an educator. I can create a safe, stimulating learning environment for your child. I can encourage and support your child through the learning process. I can teach your child how to think logically and creatively. I can effectively teach your child the required curriculum. I can challenge your child’s intellect.

I can identify your child’s academic strengths and weaknesses. I can strengthen the weaknesses and build upon the strengths. I can develop a trusting, respectful relationship with your child. I can attempt to build a productive parent/teacher relationship. I can create a positive educational experience for your child. Your child will leave my classroom with the necessary knowledge to be well prepared for the educational road ahead.

But I can’t do it alone.

I am not the parent. I can’t guarantee your child gets an adequate night’s rest and a healthy diet. I can’t make sure your child is on time to school and only misses classes when absolutely necessary. I can’t prioritize education in the home.

I can’t provide your child with a literature-rich home environment. I can’t limit the time your child spends playing with electronics or surfing through social media. I can’t instill the value of an education on your child like you can.

I can’t follow through with consequences when you are contacted about discipline issues that are impacting your child’s learning. I can’t force you to attend conferences to discuss how we can work together to maximize your child’s potential. I can’t best demonstrate to your child that you and I are a team, operating together in the child’s best interests.

Frankly, without your cooperation, I am fighting an uphill battle in my fervent attempt to educate your child. Please understand and appreciate the enormous role that you play in creating a successful educational outcome for your child.

Respectfully,

Your Child’s TeacherA letter from a teacher to parents: ‘I can’t do it alone.” | Get Schooled:

Perdido Street School: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors

Perdido Street School: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors:

How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors

Chris Bragg of the Times-Union with an illuminating piece about how education reform groups push their political agenda without revealing who's funding it:

Three groups pushing education reforms that spent heavily lobbying state government this year funded at least a portion of their efforts though donations whose original sources are essentially untraceable.



StudentsFirstNY Advocacy, the Coalition for Opportunity in Education and Families for Excellent Schools spent more than $8.3 million during the 2015 legislative session lobbying state government to promote charter schools and other issues, according to recent lobbying disclosure filings.

Here is one of the games the education reformers play to hide where the money's coming from:

Manhattan-based group StudentsFirstNY Advocacy, which pushes for charter schools and other causes, spent $2 million this year, but the sources behind roughly half that spending are unclear..



One million dollars were donated to StudentsFirst NY Advocacy by another nonprofit, StudentsFirst NY Inc., that heavily overlaps with it: The two groups share an office suite and staff.



Both StudentsFirst NY Advocacy and StudentsFirst NY Inc.

Perdido Street School: How Education Reformers Fund Their Reform Lobbying Efforts Without Revealing Their Donors:

Geaux Teacher!: Helping Profits - Hurting Children

Geaux Teacher!: Helping Profits - Hurting Children:

Helping Profits - Hurting Children

Media gets an "A" for finding false negatives in U.S. Students winning math Olympiad.  Just 10 minutes of my research gives media an "F" for facts.  I suppose if I were a PAID journalist I could have saved 10 minutes. 

Here is the good news with the media touch - headline: 

They're No. 1: U.S. Wins Math Olympiad For First Time In 21 Years

http://n.pr/1I2Ks20

Here is just one of many examples of how comparisons of standardized test scores skew reality: 

China and PISA 2012 scores report by Brookings Institute Oct. 9, 2013: 

http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2013/10/09-pisa-china-problem-loveless

And yet, just two months later NPR spins the 2012 PISA scores: 

NPR's  PISA report Dec. 3, 2013:   Media can't or won't get it right? 

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/12/03/248329823/u-s-high-school-students-slide-in-math-reading-science

Even more interesting is the further distortion when comparing PISA, TIMSS and NAEP: 

PEW Research Feb., 2015 including PISA, TIMSS and NAEP commentary: As always, read the comments (from educators in the classroom for God's sake). 

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/02/02/u-s-students-improving-slowly-in-math-and-science-but-still-lagging-internationally/

BOTTOM LINE - a stand-alone standardized test score is worse than useless for analysis and reflection if the purpose is to improve educational outcomes.  It is VERY useful for the political and corporate agenda to capitalize for profit on the backs of children. Geaux Teacher!: Helping Profits - Hurting Children:

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