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Friday, July 30, 2010

Accountabilty. � Fred Klonsky's blog

Accountabilty. � Fred Klonsky's blog

Accountabilty.

by preaprez

As I read President Obama’s speech to the Urban League yesterday I just kept thinking: Huh?
It reminded me of staff development meetings at work. Every couple of years the administration brings in some consultant and inevitably we do the “which color are you?” thing. Or the “which direction are you?”
“Green” = individualist. “East” = Good at collaboration.
A good 90 minutes of staff development time wasted. 90 minutes of your life you won’t get back. And when it’s
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Standards decision time for state board | EdNewsColorado

Standards decision time for state board | EdNewsColorado

Standards decision time for state board

by Todd Engdahl
The strength of Colorado’s Race to the Top bid will be in the hands of the State Board of Education Monday when it decides whether to adopt the Common Core Standards in language arts and math.
One board member, Peggy Littleton, R-5th District, has been campaigning for rejection of the standards, and at her request a public hearing will be held at 7:30 a.m. Monday before the board formally convenes to hear a recommendation from education Commissioner Dwight Jones, discuss the issue and vote.
Rejection of the standards could trim points from Colorado’s R2T application.
While several state boards around the country have adopted the standards without controversy, Colorado’s vote
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Board seeks to shutter failing charter schools

Board seeks to shutter failing charter schools

Board seeks to shutter failing charter schools

Jill Tucker, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle 2005
Oakland's American Indian Public Charter School is cited as one that took a few years to find traction.
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(07-29) 19:26 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Failing charter schools across California could be shut down by the state Board of Education under a major policy shift aimed at ensuring that the alternative public schools fulfill their role as models of academic innovation.
Dozens of the state's 850 or so charter schools, which have significant freedom outside the state Education Code, fall among the lowest-performing schools on standardized tests.
That's unacceptable, state Board of Education members say.
"I don't have a lot of tolerance for these schools," said Board of Education member Ben Austin. "We need to be holding charter schools to at least the same standard as regular schools, if not higher."
The Board of Education is expected to finalize the new rules in September after a period of public comment this month. The regulations would require the board to vote on the fate of struggling charters each spring, deciding which underachieving schools should be closed at the end of the academic year and which ones should be forced to jump through hoops


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/07/30/MN6E1EL9GL.DTL&type=education#ixzz0vB4mAyWE
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Quinn Brag Sheet Sent To CPS Employees - District 299: Chicago Public Schools Blog #edu #education

Quinn Brag Sheet Sent To CPS Employees - District 299: Chicago Public Schools Blog

Quinn Brag Sheet Sent To CPS Employees

by Alexander Russo

Picture 25.png
Is this illegal? Or is it just annoying?

A CPS employee passed along this Pat Quinn email which she says was sent to her at her CPS address without her having signed up.

She worries about being noticed if she unsubscribes -- even if she knew how to do such a thing.



Hello!

This electronic newsletter is an opportunity for you to learn more about what we've accomplished in Illinois

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Notes from the news, July 30 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Notes from the news, July 30 | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

Notes from the news, July 30

by Erika Owens
More fun with school district #s It's Our Money
Superintendent Ackerman and her administration continue to receive scrutiny of high salaries.
See also: Ackerman Gives Big Money To New Hires Fox 29
Rumblings: Who’s Afraid of Arlene Ackerman? Philebrity
Because She’s Worth It? Superintendent Ackerman’s Ridiculous Salary PhillyNow
For what it's worth, the Boston Superintendent turned down a pay raise earlier this month It's Our Money
Penny Wise and Pound Foolish? A Good Day Teaching blog
Early-learning center, 40 jobs are budget casualties Daily News
The District will close half of its early-learning centers and demote or lay off support staff in order to make up for a budget shortfall.
Calling student activists: A leadership training opportunity The Notebook blog
PSU grad Candace Carter writes about Building a Youth Movement, PSU's annual summer leadership institute.
New Work Flow with Tech Practical Theory blog
Please email us if we missed anything today or if you have any suggestions of publications, email lists, or other places for us to check for news.
Click here to get Notes from the news in your inbox every day.
Notes from the news
read more
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Weingarten Weighs In on Obama Speech - Teacher Beat - Education Week

Weingarten Weighs In on Obama Speech - Teacher Beat - Education Week

Weingarten Weighs In on Obama Speech

by Stephen Sawchuk
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten had a quick briefing with reporters yesterday on all the edu-action this week.
Asked about President Obama's defense of the Race to the Top program to the National Urban League, Weingarten said it's only natural that the president would focus on the $4.35 billion initiative. She also acknowledged that, despite her union's qualms about certain aspects of the program, Race to the Top demonstrates the power of federal education spending.
"This is one of the president's signature initiatives," she said. "The Race to the Top has proven something really important: that the federal government knows how to be a lever for change."
Of course, in the AFT's view, the Race to the Top is not the be-all-end-all of education reform. The president has
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Better Benefits � The Quick and the Ed

Better Benefits � The Quick and the Ed

Better Benefits

by Chad Aldeman
After one of the worst decades in stock market history, the Great Recession has left nearly every state pension plan in a precarious position. Recently, the Pew Center on the States reported that 47 states owe more in pension obligations for current and future teacher retirees than they have on hand. Collectively, the gap between what states have and what they will need totals almost $500 billion. And with Americans living longer and teachers more likely to retire at a younger age, the challenge of paying for teacher retirements will only increase.
But the problems with teacher pensions are not just financial. And they do not just affect individual teachers and retirees. The way the plans are structured can negatively influence the teaching work force as a whole. At a time
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Education Week: Ala anti-bullying policy omits sexual orientation

Education Week: Ala anti-bullying policy omits sexual orientation

Ala anti-bullying policy omits sexual orientation

Article Tools
ANNISTON, Ala. (AP) — Under an anti-harassment policy passed by the Anniston Board of Education, students are explicitly protected from bullying based on their race, gender, religion or disability.
Sexual orientation? Not so much.
With Wednesday's unanimous vote, Anniston joined school systems across the state in passing an official policy for dealing with bullying and harassment. The move is required by the Student Harassment Prevention Act, passed by the Alabama Legislature in the wake of a wave of bullying-related suicides across the country.
Shortly after the law was passed, the state released a model anti-harassment policy that has since been adopted almost word-for-word in many school districts. The model policy explicitly bans harassment based on race, disability and religion, but is silent on anti-gay bullying.
That's a big problem for anti-bullying advocates, who say that anti-gay slurs and violence make up a significant portion of the bullying most students — gay or straight — experience in school.
Reviews Find ELL Programs Lacking in Four Districts
In their defense, educators say more federal guidance is needed on how to apply civil rights laws to programs for English-language learners. (July 30, 2010)
Least-Disruptive Model for Turnaround Proving Popular
Educators in a number of states are opting for "transformation" in deciding how to use their federal School Improvement Grant money. (July 29, 2010) | Comments (4)
THE SCHOOL LAW BLOG
Appeals Court to Weigh Race in Admissions
(July 29, 2010)
Diversity Differences May Hobble 'Controlled Choice' in N.C.
(July 30, 2010)
Detroit Council Says No to Mayoral Control of Schools
(July 30, 2010)
SUBSCRIBE NOW FOR COMPLETE PREMIUM ACCESS.
President Barack Obama addresses the National Urban League 100th Anniversary Convention in Washington, D.C., on July 29.
—Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
Obama Defends Race to Top
The president told members of the National Urban League that his signature education initiative holds promise for poor and minority students in low-performing schools. (July 29, 2010)
TEACHER BEAT BLOG
NEA's Brand of School Improvement
(July 30, 2010)
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Thompson: Collective Instructional Leadership Is Better This Week In #Education

This Week In Education

Thompson: Collective Instructional Leadership Is Better

Post_full_127474001404_EducationTechnologyThe true beliefs of some principals around the issue of instructional leadership are eye-opening, as revealed in Kirsten Olson's recent EdWeek Commentary. One good example: "Being out in classes, I just don’t know what I’m supposed to be seeing. ... " Fortunately, EdWeek's Christina Samuels reports


Research: Whitehurst Addresses Criticism Of "Zone" Report

Screen-shot-2010-07-22-at-11.34.52-AMBrookings' Russ Whitehurst put out a followup to his report on the Harlem Children's Zone that includes some new data and revised calculations as well as an attempt to clarify the focus of the report and correct our (mis)interpretations of its findings:

Technology: Beware "Analog Nostalgie"

Quote-mark"The fact that you spent hours in the college library writing papers doesn't necessarily mean that a student who spends those hours in her room writing papers (or crafting multimedia presentations) has had an education less rich than yours."


AM News: Senate Dems Revive $10B Edujobs Bill [image: News2]Senate Moves EduJobs and FMAP Funding Washington Independent: This evening, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) attached an amendment with funding to preserve teachers’ jobs and to provide much-needed Medicaid funding to states to a Federal ...
Research: Whitehurst Addresses Criticism Of "Zone" Report [image: Screen-shot-2010-07-22-at-11.34.52-AM] Brookings' Russ Whitehurst put out a followup to his report on the Harlem Children's Zone that includes some new data and revised calculations as well as an attempt to clarify the focus of the report and ...
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It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's... Supersecretary! :: Frederick M. Hess

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's... Supersecretary! :: Frederick M. Hess

Frederick M. Hess's Blog

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's... Supersecretary!

by Frederick M. Hess • Jul 30, 2010 at 9:28 am
Cross-posted from Education Week

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Every time our earnest Secretary of Education speaks of late, he seems to unearth new things that Washington can and should do to schools. Earlier this month, he promised the NAACP that the administration would see that NCLB reauthorization required turnaround schools to obtain parent and community input as well as lead an "honest, open discussion." Of course, Duncan is ardently pushing "state-led" national standards and watching his Department of Education flag 19 (!) states as impressive enough to merit being Race to the Top finalists. Earlier in the year he promised Congress a billion dollar bonus if they reauthorized NCLB this year (though this one kind of ran afoul of the U.S. Constitution).

Yesterday, Duncan told the National Urban League, "We will ensure that all schools--public, private and charter-

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