Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Michelle Rhee - washingtonpost.com

"A DIFFERENT CHANCELLOR

Michelle Rhee was appointed to take over the troubled D.C. school system in June 2007. During her tenure Rhee has garnered both praise and criticism for her radical tactics."

At hearing, teachers assail Rhee over layoffs

Union members, parents and community activists packed the D.C Council chambers Thursday morning for Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee's first detailed account of the teacher layoffs and budget cuts that have placed her under the heaviest political fire of her 28-month tenure.

Making every child count: D.C. schools go all out for enrollment audit, in hopes long decline may end (Post, October 29, 2009)

Rhee has asked how to regain teachers' trust, principals say(Post, October 28, 2009)

Major changes at 2 troubled D.C. schools (Post, October 26, 2009)

Prayers over priorities in D.C. (By Colbert I. King, October 24, 2009)

D.C. teacher contract talks still stuck: Fallout from layoffs is cited, with no bargaining sessions set(Post, October 21, 2009)

D.C. SCHOOLS: Anger Over Layoffs Vented in 18-Hour Hearing(Post, October 18, 2009)

The Pain and the Gain for D.C. Schools (Post, October 18, 2009)

Unions Want Probe Of Layoffs by Rhee (Post, October 17, 2009)

EDUCATION: Charter School Enrollment In the District Is Up Again (Post, October 16, 2009)

Big Gains For District On National Math Test: Md. Change Small; Va. Scores Stagnant (Post, October 15, 2009)

Schools Pay When Rhee Snubs Donors (Post, October 15, 2009)

Why Michelle Rhee Has to Play Tough (By Richard Whitmire, October 14, 2009)

No Use In Studying For This Test(By Courtland Milloy, October 14, 2009)

For McKinley Students, a Lesson in Disappointment: Staff Layoffs Moved Them to Get Involved, but D.C. Politics Soured the Experience, Seniors Say (Post, October 14, 2009)

D.C. Teacher Honored in February, Sacked in October(washingtonpost.com, October 12, 2009; 5:04 PM)

VIDEO | Rhee talks to members of the D.C. Council about the system's problems with truancy.

Fixing D.C.'s Schools: Michelle Rhee Takes Charge over-view

Let me set the record straight… � EducationCEO's Blog

Let me set the record straight… EducationCEO's Blog:

"As I was checking the profiles of my new followers yesterday, I noticed that several of the people are affiliated with either KIPP or Teach for America. I figured that they found me due to my incessant use of #hastags. In previous posts I mentioned Michelle Rhee and the other above-referenced companies. I have never minced words about my feelings on Rhee’s leadership style, or lack thereof, because frankly, that’s my prerogative. Once I noticed who was following me, I tweeted the following random message:

A lot of #TFA people have started following me..hope they don’t get their hopes up b/c I ain’t drinkin the Kool-Aid!"

The Educated Guess � The challenge of STEM education

The Educated Guess � The challenge of STEM education:

"Sometimes nothing can kill children’s curiosity in science and technology more effectively than schools.

But that’s what many have done in California, first by starving the curriculum, then by dumbing it down with memorization.

That was the consensus of panelists at a forum last month on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education, sponsored by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation and Citizens Schools.

“We have killed the joy of discovery,” said Mohammad Qayoumi, president of California State University, East Bay, by making what goes on the classroom “boring and disengaging.”"

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence. - Schools Won't Race to the Top

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence. - Schools Won't Race to the Top:

"While more than half of the school districts, county education offices and charter schools in California have sent letters that could help the state in its bid for more school stimulus dollars, San Diego Unified has decided against signing on so far, with only a few days left before its deadline to join.

That means that unless San Diego Unified changes its mind, it will not get a slice of extra stimulus money if California wins more under the first round of Race to the Top, a stiff competition for federal money for schools. The school district could, however, have a shot at the dollars if California wins in the second round after losing out in the first -- but it would still have to sign on to the favored reforms.

Why is San Diego Unified sitting it out? Spokesman Bernie Rhinerson said there are too many unknowns about what California will require schools to do with the money and what, if anything, the changes would actually cost the school district. Some of the favored changes, such as tying test scores to teacher evaluation, are unpopular with the San Diego Unified board."

Local News | Provost Phyllis Wise's Nike ties draw fire at UW | Seattle Times Newspaper

Local News | Provost Phyllis Wise's Nike ties draw fire at UW | Seattle Times Newspaper:

"A University of Washington faculty group says the UW's integrity, image and academic freedom are threatened by Provost Phyllis Wise's decision to join the corporate board of Nike.

The executive board of the American Association of University Professors, UW chapter (AAUP-UW), issued a strongly worded statement Monday urging Wise to step down from the board position she accepted six weeks ago.

It represents the first official reaction to the Nike controversy by a faculty group — but perhaps not the last. The UW Faculty Senate is to meet later this month, and Nike is on the agenda. Senate chair Bruce Balick said emotions among some faculty are running high, although opinions vary."

Dellums ducks out of coalition seeking ed funds

California's Big 10, a coalition of mayors from the state's biggest cities, sent a letter calling on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and lawmakers to move swiftly to complete a proposal for the state's portion of $4.3 billion in federal education funds

"The Race to the Top competition offers an unprecedented opportunity to provide resources for California's next generation," wrote Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, the letter's author. "As city leaders, we feel an obligation to ensure California's application is as competitive as possible. This letter shows our commitment."

Unfortunately, when it was delivered last week the letter carried the signatures of only the Big Nine mayors because one big-city mayor refused to sign on. I'll give you two guesses, but Oakland residents are only going to need one.

Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums respectfully declined, citing language and policy elements he and his education advisers wanted included in Race to the Top legislation being considered in Sacramento.

Specifically, Dellums wanted a section that pushed for a diverse teaching corps drawn from the community and a federal solution that considered the broad wealth gap in U.S. cities.
Dellums' education advisers, including senior education adviser Kitty Kelly Epstein, believe President Obama's Race to the Top education program does not provide the same flexibility to low-performing public schools that are afforded to charter schools, said Paul Rose, Dellums' press secretary. Dellums also consulted with advisers from the Oakland Unified School District and a group of interested community organizations, Rose added. Both Dellums and Kelly Epstein declined requests for interviews.

Apparently, Dellums has a better plan. Oakland's Quiet Mayor is talking with philanthropic organizations and national corporations to secure education funds for Oakland's public schools, Rose said. Of course, announcing those partnerships would be premature, he added.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/05/BAAB1BDGC4.DTL#ixzz0bkdUhdWN

Shop class to be replaced with job-training programs :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Education

Shop class to be replaced with job-training programs :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Education:

Shop class to be replaced with job-training programs

CPS | Students will compete for vocational spots, focus on job training

"Shop and auto classes that kids meandered into as electives are being replaced with 21st century job-training programs that students will vie for citywide -- with higher-scoring kids getting first dibs -- under a vocational education shake-up announced Monday.

And starting next school year, central office officials, rather than principals, would select kids for new 'College and Career Academy' programs -- ranging from agriculture to transportation --based on applications listing each student's top five picks."

Class Time Substitute = Waste? - The Learning Network Blog - NYTimes.com

Class Time + Substitute = Waste?

By HOLLY EPSTEIN OJALVO

Questions about issues in the news for students 13 and older.

See all Student Opinion »

According to a recent Op-Ed, more than 5% of teachers are absent on any given day, which means that by the time you finish high school, you have had substitutes for nearly a year of your schooling. And few substitutes are trained in either teaching or the curriculum they have to cover. What experiences have you had with substitutes?

In the Op-Ed “The Replacements,” Carolyn Bucior shares the experiences and insights she gained in her two years of substitute teaching:

“Maggie,” a teacher in a Milwaukee public school, was talking about the difficulty of her job, which is something the teachers I know do quite a lot. Then she complained that her sub hadn’t completed the lesson plan she’d been given.

The Answer Sheet - Are American students lazy?

The Answer Sheet- Are American students lazy?:

"In late December a teacher wrote a piece in the Boston Globe complaining about how lazy her American students are. Kara Miller, 31, who teaches rhetoric and history at Babson College in Boston, wrote, in part,

“Teaching in college, especially one with a large international student population, has given me a stark - and unwelcome - illustration of how Americans’ work ethic often pales in comparison with their peers from overseas.

“My “C,’’ “D,’’ and “F’’ students this semester are almost exclusively American, while my students from India, China, and Latin America have - despite language barriers - generally written solid papers, excelled on exams, and become valuable class participants.”"

Data shows racial gaps in Colorado public-school suspensions - The Denver Post

Data shows racial gaps in Colorado public-school suspensions - The Denver Post:

"Black public-school students in Colorado are nearly three times as likely to face serious discipline as their white peers, a disparity that is persistently growing despite efforts to curb it.

In the 2008-09 school year, about 70,000, or 8.5 percent, of the state's 818,000 students were suspended, expelled or disciplined for being disruptive, according to a Denver Post analysis of newly released data. Reasons ranged from drug, weapon and alcohol infractions to disobedient and detrimental behavior, the most common — and subjective — reasons.

But while black students make up just 5.9 percent of the student population, they were the subject of 12.7 percent of the discipline cases, up from 11.7 percent five years ago. White students, who were about 61 percent of the population, were the subject of 46.8 percent of discipline cases.

Latino students make up 28.4 percent of the population and were involved in 37 percent of discipline cases, another persistent gap."

Class Struggle - D.C. teacher evaluation program leader critiques my column

Class Struggle- D.C. teacher evaluation program leader critiques my column:

"Jason Kamras, director of teacher human capital strategy for the D.C. schools, is in charge of the IMPACT program for teacher evaluation in the city. He is trying to help me understand his complex system. Here is an e-mail he recently sent me giving his view on my column in today's Metro section. Since this subject is so complicated, I am going to continue to offer space on this blog to Kamras or any teachers who want to provide details of their evaluation experiences so we can all figure it out. This is one of the most interesting, and controversial, assessment efforts in the country. I long for as much useful information about it as possible."

In his e-mail, Kamras quoted parts of my column and then gave his responses. He is quoting from an earlier version of the column I sent him in advance. (I send everything I write to all relevant sources in advance to check for errors.) So the quotes here may be somewhat different than what you see in the column just below this item on the blog:

UFT charter chicanery - NYPOST.com

Why has the United Federation of Teachers placed itself squarely between New York taxpayers and $700 million in federal school aid?

Because it hates charter schools -- and it doesn't care about taxpayers, anyway.

Here's the deal:

By Jan. 19, New York must be in compliance with a variety of US Department of Education mandates, chief of which is lifting, if not eliminating, the state cap on the number of charter schools -- public schools generally run free of bureaucratic red tape and union work rules.

And failure to comply probably costs New York some $700 million in so-called "Race To The Top" DOE grants meant to encourage educational innovation.

The UFT's power in Albany, and that of its parent, New York State United Teachers, is prodigious. But the unions do understand the importance of appearances.

And the unions certainly don't want to look like the bad guys if New York misses out on the federal cash.

Instead, as charter-school advocate Tom Carroll noted on these pages yesterday, the unions are pushing "poison pill" amendments to legislation meant to lift the cap. That way, they can better the odds of getting the federal money while still undermining the charter schools.

UFT boss Michael Mulgrew & Co. would make it easier to "starve" charters of funds, force them to unionize and set a percentage for the special-education and English-as-a-second-language students they must accept, among other steps.

Police posted to D.C. charter schools to help avert violence - washingtonpost.com

Police posted to D.C. charter schools to help avert violence - washingtonpost.com:

"Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced Monday that the city had posted police at more than two dozen D.C. charter schools, further normalizing charters within city life and attempting to address a spate of violence that plagued some of the schools this fall.

But the plan -- which maintains the overall number of police dedicated to schools but spreads them among both charter and traditional public schools -- have some worried that all the schools will be shortchanged in the end.

Police haven't been posted to charters for several years, although they have a presence in other D.C. public schools. After after-school assaults and robberies near the Minnesota Avenue Metro station"

Cash in, and then what? -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY

Cash in, and then what? -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY:

"ALBANY -- How well can New York account for the billions of dollars in education stimulus funding coming to the state from Washington, D.C.?
�
Not very, according to a recent audit by the federal Department of Education's Inspector General, which turned up holes and shortfalls in the way the state Education Department had been set up to police the influx of money.
Unless they're corrected, the gaps in New York's oversight system could open the door to 'unallowed, unsupported, or fraudulent expenditures' of stimulus dollars, according to federal inspectors."

High-Tech Prank at Brooklyn Technical High School - NYTimes.com

High-Tech Prank at Brooklyn Technical High School - NYTimes.com:

"For one glorious hour Sunday night, it looked as though Brooklyn Technical High School’s 4,900 students would not have to drag themselves out of bed at 7 a.m. for the first day of school after the long winter break. An e-mail message, purportedly from a school administrator, was sent to student government leaders saying that a construction accident had forced the building to close.

The students, thinking the message was real, passed it along via the many online channels regularly used by this tech-savvy school, reaching thousands of students within minutes by e-mail, Facebook and Twitter. “This was like a godsend,” said senior Nazary Nebeluk, 17. “I was doing my homework and I just threw it down and said ‘Yes!’�”"

Engineering class shows girls male-dominated field - washingtonpost.com

Engineering class shows girls male-dominated field - washingtonpost.com:

"While students at an all-girls school in Montgomery County were laboring one day last month to build bridges out of popsicle sticks, their teachers were trying to build bridges for them into the male-dominated field of engineering.

The popsicle-stick bridges shattered under 60 pounds of pressure. Teachers at the Holton-Arms School in Bethesda hope their seemingly unique engineering course will make girls' interest in the field last longer."

T4CW: Is This the End of Public Education? Higher Education Panel Discussion : Indybay

T4CW: Is This the End of Public Education? Higher Education Panel Discussion : Indybay

T4CW: Is This the End of Public Education? Higher Education Panel Discussion

This week's Teachers 4 Class War asks: Is This the End of Public Education? A panel discussion featuring a speaker from each level of the California University system. In the studio we have Ramiro Medrano of the Educational Partnership Center at UCSC, as well as Stephanie Stainbach, President of the Cabrillo College Classified Employees Union. And on the phone we have Lillian Taiz, President of the California Faculty Association for the CSU system.

I must first mention that another teacher has been murdered in Oaxaca, where teachers have been at the forefront of struggles for survival and autonomy. On December 14th Eleazar Martinez Almaraz was shot and killed in Loxicha a Zapotec Area of Oaxaca. For more information in English & Spanish: http://elenemigocomun.net/3142/x/en

We started the discussion with Lillian Taiz, because some of what we'll talk about centers around the "White Paper" and what it means for the CSU system and of course by extension the Community College and UC systems as well.
http://restructuringcsu.wordpress.com/2009/12/01/cfa-white-paper-on-restructuring-the-csu/

Stephanie begins by talking about Cabrillo, our local J.C., and how cuts have affected Cabrillo's place as the most accessible start to a college education. I don't exactly like the ladder analogy for its unavoidable hierarchy, but these cuts are making the 'bottom rung' harder to reach.

Ramiro talks about the EPC and it's work, reaching out to local youth and their families.

The conversation goes from there: Other points we touch on include transfers between the three systems, and how budget cuts affect the mobility between campuses and systems;

Who stands to gain or profit and who loses out. It's clear that the entire system is in danger, under attack if you agree with what we've heard from CalFAC and Professor Meister. The reality is that we're seeing the privitization of a valuable institution, and the result will be a whiter University system as programs for outreach and retention are dismantled. The gains we've made over decades of organizing for Ethnic Studies Departments, Affirmative Action, financial aid, and student involvement in University decisions are in danger of being rolled back in the name of financial crisis.

Foundation helps county teachers grow as education cuts also grow - Santa Cruz Sentinel

Foundation helps county teachers grow as education cuts also grow - Santa Cruz Sentinel:

"SANTA CRUZ -- Whenever school districts eye new budget cuts -- as they likely will after the governor reveals his budget plan Friday -- professional development funding is often among the first things placed on the chopping block.

But for several years now, a private foundation has been underwriting a two-year mentoring program in local schools that fosters collaboration between experienced teachers across districts.

Through its Art of Teaching program, the Cotsen Family Foundation fully funds the salary and benefits of one elementary teacher per participating school to serve as a mentor to five or six colleagues, who are called fellows. The program also provides an annual $1,000 stipend for fellows to attend conferences."

In America's next decade, change and challenges - USATODAY.com

In America's next decade, change and challenges - USATODAY.com

In America's next decade, change and challenges

A new decade finds Americans in an uncomfortable and yet familiar position: running scared.

Almost three-fourths of them, according to a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, don't like the way things are going in the country.

Given economic deprivation and political division, plus war, terrorism and a warming world, who would?

But during the next 10 years, our fright may be our salvation. Americans often suspect they face the worst of times and, as a result, try harder to make the best of them.

Whether it's the launch of Sputnik in 1957, the fall of Saigon in 1975 or the economic challenge from Japan in the 1980s, "there's this persistent conviction that our best days are behind us," says George Friedman, founder of STRATFOR, a private intelligence service. "We always think that the U.S. is finished."

DECADE IN REVIEW: Looking back at the past 10 years

Yet Americans' assumption that they're at the brink is what saves them from going over it. Instead of underestimating challenges, we overreact. In a competitive world, Friedman says, "it's a key to our success."

Schwarzenegger Girds for Deficit Fight as Borrowing Costs Soar - BusinessWeek

Jan. 5 (Bloomberg) -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is entering his last year in office the way he began: presiding over a government in financial turmoil.

Schwarzenegger, 62, tomorrow is set to give his final State of the State speech, setting the stage for one more fight with the Legislature over a budget that will total $89 billion this year. With a $21 billion deficit forecast over the next 18 months, the governor of the most populous U.S. state has said he won’t boost taxes again, leaving him reliant on spending cuts and federal help to balance the books next fiscal year, which starts July 1.

The financial strains facing California show how local governments are still dealing with the recession that began in 2007 even as the national economy recovers from the worst slump since the 1930s. The latest struggle comes after legislators already erased $60 billion in gaps in the past two years by raising taxes, slashing school spending and borrowing, in a political battle that pushed the state close to insolvency.

“This is much worse than anyone thinks,” said Marilyn Cohen, president of Los Angeles-based Envision Capital Management Inc., which manages $250 million on behalf of wealthy individuals. She is moving clients out of California debt. “I have no confidence in the state Legislature.”

U.S. states and Puerto Rico expect to have $83 billion less than they will need to pay for their programs in the current and coming fiscal year, the National Conference of State Legislatures estimates. Illinois is borrowing $3.5 billion to make required pension payments. New Jersey

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