RheeFirst! » Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mention

RheeFirst! » Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mention:

Massive Teacher’s Rally Held at CT State Capitol–Rhee gets a mention

by admin

This first hand account was sent by Terry Winters of CT,  who attended a massive teachers’ rally before the State Capitol yesterday.  The State Senate President Pro Tem and other legislators spoke at the rally.
“Connecticut teachers converged on the State Capitol to stand up for students and the teaching profession—emphasizing that lawmakers need a meaningful education reform bill—one that gets it right, one that promotes high-quality education for all students.
Connecticut has been taken over by special interest groups and lobbyists. Michelle Rhee started out here as Students First and attracted no more than 40 people at her rally. The Governor wouldn’t even appear with her.  

PAA Action News Parents Across America

Parents Across America:

Information and action for parents coming together to strengthen our public schools. Comments? Suggestions? Stories?  

E-mail us info@parentsacrossamerica.org. 

More at www.parentsacrossamerica.org.

Looking for regular updates on key education stories? Join the PAA News list. Email PAAnews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com 

PAA Action News

GO TO 

National Resolution on High-Stakes Testing

PAA Action Alert

Join the Pineapple Rebellion!     

Sign the National Resolution against High-Stakes Testing!

PAA and our allies raised a powerful challenge to the testing industry this week. First, our co-founder, Leonie Haimson, set off a national firestorm by exposing a nonsensical pineapple story with ridiculous multiple choice questions on her son's New York State language arts exam (more on that below in PAA News).  

Then two days ago we rolled out the National Resolution against High-Stakes Testing. PAA helped write the resolution along with FairTest, Diane Ravitch, and several other groups and individuals, modeled on a Texas resolution that has already been endorsed by 405 Texas school boards.   

The first day the National Resolution was posted, more than 100 organizations and 2000 individuals signed on.  

We encourage organizations and individuals to publicly endorse the National Resolution here, and please urge your school boards to do so as well. If you are a member of a local school council, an ESEA Parent Advisory Council, a school site council, a PTA, or any other school body, please put the National Resolution on the agenda of your next meeting for a vote! Feel free to modify or add to the resolution, as needed, to fit your community's needs and circumstances, but also please endorse this national version.   

PAA members have already reported success in Florida and Texas (see PAA Chapter/Affil i ate News below). 

If your school board or other school governance body does pass it, please let us know by emailing us at info@parentsacrossamerica.org with "National Resolution" in the subject line; thanks!

And spread the word to your networks! It's time to stop the testing madness! 

PAA News

Because pineapples don't have sleeves ?

If you spent this weekend chuckling or fuming about a nonsensical standardized test question involving a hare and a talking pineapple, you have PAA co-founder Leonie Haimson to thank. Leonie wrote the blog that started the media storm, highlighted th e absurdity of high-stakes standardized tests, and got the question pulled from the New York State language arts exam.

Don't miss the rest of PAA founding member (North Carolina) Pamela Grundy's great blog post about what's now being called "Pineapplegate."

PAA challenges ESEA at USDE
Six PAA members went to Washington for the US Department of Education's Parent Leaders forum last Thursday and Friday and raised a strong challenge to the negative policies that started under the No Child Left Behind Act and are continuing and even worsening under cur r ent US Education Secretary Arne Duncan and ESEA.

On Thursday, PAAers Karen Sprowal, Leonie Haimson and Julie Woestehoff delivered packets of PAA position papers on ESEA to the office of every member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. We also met with legislative aides to Senator Patty Murray of Washington and Senator Mark Kirk of Illinois, both education committee members.

At the forum on Friday, our PAA team took every opportunity to speak out against high-stakes testing, school privatization and "choice," and for real parent engagement in school policies.

You can read more about our visit in this press release. PAA founding member Karran Harper Royal (New Orleans) summed it up this way: "It is my hope that our concerns and feedback will lead to strengthening groups like ours and not to utilizing parent engagement money to fund groups that push privatizing public education. Many parents here want to help improve schools, not close them. We want to define what parent involvement looks like. It's time for the federal government to support policies that strengthen every neighborhood school so that every child gets a top quality education."

PAA-New Orleans founder Karran Harper Royal speaks out at USDE parent forum

PAA(ers) in the media

Don't miss this amazing, powerful blog by PAA founding member Helen Gym (Philadelphia PA) published in Philadelphia Public School Education Notebook: "You're not talking to me w hen you'll go out of your way to spend $1.4 million for six-week consultants with whom you'll boast of an 'intimate, hand-in-glove' relationship, yet exclude community and public voices till you're ready to drop the bomb. You're not speaking to me when you'll go to any extreme to radically transform 'education delivery,' yet the most basic things parents and staff and students have called for - more teachers in our schools, bilingual counselors, nurses, art and music, librarians, fresh food in the cafeteria, new buildings, and playgrounds - are completely and utterly absent from your 'plan.' "

The Post and Courier (Charleston SC) published an editorial on the problems of privatization and public  accountability by Peter Smyth, co-founder of PAA local affiliate Charleston Community Voice for Education.

  

"With these laws Gov. Bobby Jindal has sold our kids out for his political aspirations," said Karran Royal Harper, a Louisiana parent activist and education advocate: quote from PAA founding member on colorlines.com via salon.com. < / a> 

On the National Resolution: "Rita Solnet, an education activist from west of Boca Raton, said various national groups and education leaders are waging war against an 'over-emphasis' on high-stakes testing. 'We're spending so much time on test prep and testing,' said the co-founder of a group called Parents Across America" (Southeast Florida Sun-Sentinel). Rita was also quoted in this radio interview.  

Multiple media hits on Pineapplegate and PAA co-founder Leonie Haimson recapped here.  

  < /o>

PAA's participation in crafting the National Resolution was mentioned on Diane Ravitch's Bridging Differences blog and Valerie Strauss's Washington Post Answer Sheet blog, which also quoted PAA's Pamela Grundy.   

Join Us!

Parents Across America invites existing local or statewide groups who share our overall goals of progressive, positive education reform and more parent input in education policymaking to affiliate with us. The more of us there are, the s tronger our voice will be at every level. We are also looking for parents who are interested in forming new chapters of PAA in their states and/or local communities. Check out what we believe, and if you agree, join with us! Read more here.

PAA Chapter/Affiliate News 

Early success with school board sign-on to National Resolution!

• We reported last week that CoalitionSAUS (Strengthen Austin Urban Schools) requested Austin ISD School Board to introduce and approve an anti-testing resolution; PAA member Lorie Barzano reports that they passed the resolution this week! Congrats, Lorie! 
• Great work by PAA-Florida founder Rita Solnet, too. She reports that the Palm Beach County Florida School Board votedunanimously to endorse the National Resolution. Rita reports: "Significant in that we have a brave and brand new Superintendent willing to make a statement and be the first District (in Florida). Significant in that we represent the 11th largest district in the nation and we are an A-Rated District -- consistently ranked "A" for seven
  years. Significant in that we are a finalist in the Broad Prize this year (one of four finalists.)"     
• PAA member Karen Miller worked with her school district,Cypress Fairbanks (Texas), 108,000 students, to support a modified Texas testing resolution; it is the largest Texas district to sign on to date. 

Watch PAA founding member an d Denver school board member Andrea Merida urge the board - forcefully - about why they should reject a Gates foundation grant:  "Why are the Denver Public Schools accepting money from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, especially when Gates also funds the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)? Gates is paying for ALEC to run anti-union, anti-immigrant, and anti-middle class legislation all over the country. Is this okay with you, Denver?"

PAA Indiana member Doug Martin wrote this in-depth expose of Gulen charter schools in his state.


PAA member Susan Barrett reports that Oregon Save Our Schools is planning a state wide Day of Action on May 31st to demand real revenue reform in the state.   

PAA Blog Highlights

In addition to th e blog posts mentioned above, new posts included "NSBA President's letter to Obama: please change direction!" 

Parents Across America (PAA) is a non-partisan, non-profit grassroots organization that connects parents and activists

from across the U.S. to share ideas and work together  

on improving our nation's public schools.    

PAA is committed to bringing the voice of public school par­ents - and common sense - to local, state, and national education debates.

FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award | FairTest

FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award | FairTest:

FairTest to Honor Diane Ravitch with the Deborah W. Meier Hero in Education Award

Submitted by fairtest on March 26, 2012 - 1:52pm 

• about us
 
• assessment
 
• FairTest in the News
 
• in house
 
• k-12
• national
 
• news
 
• whats new

Date and Time: Tuesday, 5 June, 5:30-830 p.m.

Place: Julia Richman Educational Complex, 317 East 67th St., New York City

Diane Ravitch is an internationally renowned and respected historian of education. Formerly a supporter of testing, test-based accountability, and school choice, she had the courage to publicly renounce her previous position after seeing the wreckage caused by No Child Left Behind. For the past two years, she has tirelessly toured the nation, encouraging educators, parents and other citizens to stand up against the relentless encroachment of high-stakes standardized testing on the minds of children and the lives of educators.

Author of 10 books, editor of 14 others, and the recipient of numerous honors and awards for her work, Diane is a graduate of the Houston (TX) public schools and earned a BA from Wellesley College and a Ph.D. in American Education History at Columbia University. She was on the faculty of Teachers College from 1975-1991. She then was Assistant Secretary for the Office of Education Research and Improvement in the administration of President George H.W. Bush. She was appointed to the National Assessment Governing Board by the Clinton administration, serving from 1997-2004. She shares a weekly blog with Deborah W. Meier on Education Week’s website column, “Bridging Differences.” Diane lives in Brooklyn with her partner Mary Butz.

Order your tickets or place an ad in the Celebration Program using this downloadable form.

If you are unable to attend, we hope you will place an ad in the program or make a donation in honor of Diane here.
 

Attachment	Size
2012_Ravitch_event_invitation_response_card_for_website.pdf	76.42 KB

The Corporate Tax Loophole...or "The Hole".

The Corporate Tax Loophole...or "The Hole"...uses animation to highlight the importance of getting corporations to pay their fair share and the negative impact corporate tax loopholes have on students, public education, and the middle class. Make you voice heard. Sign the petition at: EdVotes.org/loopholes

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Another Black Eye for the District

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Another Black Eye for the District:

Another Black Eye for the District

by Melissa Westbrook

I knew about this investigation and the results.  I had being holding off on raising the issue until next week out of courtesy to the superintendent search.  The Times got the info anyway.   (I don't have a total for the amount of money that is likely gone/missing but I think it is around $20-30K which is a great deal of money for Van Asselt.)

From the Times:

Seattle police are investigating the possible misuse of school funds by a former principal and a parent coordinator at Van Asselt Elementary School.


Former Principal ElDoris Turner retired March 16, two days after being placed on administrative leave following the release of an ethics investigation that found a "gross waste of public funds."


The parent coordinator, Ramona Fuentes, was fired Tuesday, according to the school district.


The investigation, conducted by the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, found $30,000 in unexplained 

Missouri Education Watchdog: Tough Choices or Wrong Choices

Missouri Education Watchdog: Tough Choices or Wrong Choices:

Tough Choices or Wrong Choices

by Anngie

"The education system is merely a support for the political system we choose." - Vicky Davis

In 2007 the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE) produced a report entitled Tough Choices or Tough Times. In it, they outlined a view for the American education system as the supplier of workers for the 21st century in a global economy.  From her blog Channeling Reality, Davis summarizes the the findings of the report below:

Problems in the Current System

• Teachers are recruited from the lower strata of the intellectual talent pool

• Waste in the system, allowing students to fail in lower grades and paying for remediation in later years when costs are higher

• System is inherently inefficient.  “Standards have helped but only moderately relative to cost” over 30 years

• Growing inequality in family income as a contributing factor in growing disparities in student achievement

• Failure to motivate students to achieve

• Teacher compensation rewards longevity rather than performance

• Testing system measures rote learning and does not

Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post:

Principal says many questions flawed on state standardized tests

By Valerie Strauss

This is a letter that P.S. 321 Principal Elizabeth Phillips sent to John B. King Jr., the New York State education commissioner, about questions she has seen on this year’s standardized tests recently administered to students in various grades.

Late last week King decided to invalidate one set of questions on a reading test just given to New York eighth graders that involves a passage about a talking pineapple. After newspapers reported on the questions, King conceded they were “ambiguous.”

In her letter, Phillips raises concerns about other questions on the recently administed standardized tests. Given that the test scores are now used not only to evaluate students but teachers, principals and 

GO TO 

National Resolution on High-Stakes Testing

New testing system could mean more time for instruction | The Salt Lake Tribune

New testing system could mean more time for instruction | The Salt Lake Tribune:

New testing system could mean more time for instruction

Schools » Program tests literacy in early grades.

By Lisa Schencker

| The Salt Lake Tribune

First Published Apr 24 2012 06:22 pm • Last Updated Apr 25 2012 11:07 am

Teacher Heather Musser sat directly across from first-grader Benjamin Blake as he read a story about hats Tuesday.

But she wasn’t just listening.

     

Photos

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

	Join the Discussion
	Post a Comment

She followed along on an iPad as he read, marking mistakes. When he finished, she asked him to describe what he had read, and again, marked his responses on the device. Instantly, scores describing Benjamin’s fluency, accuracy and comprehension popped up on her screen.

"It’s just a much better way to test," said the teacher at Roosevelt Elementary in Salt Lake City. "It would take three times as long to do it the old way as it does the new way. ... We can now spend a lot more time teaching rather than testing."

The new testing technology is now being used by more than half the state’s school districts and 22 charter schools thanks to a $3 million bill passed by lawmakers in 2011. Some criticized HB302 at the time, partly for putting money toward a new program in a time of budget woes. But 

GO TO 

National Resolution on High-Stakes Testing