LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-19-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

Reader: The Public Doesn’t Understand the Flaws of High-Stakes Testing

A reader whose nom de plume is “labor lawyer” responds to the AP survey–claiming that parents approve of high-stakes testing–with these observations:   Anecdotal evidence (my own conversations over several years with well-educated middle/upper-middle-class parents), the overwhelming majority of parents approve relying, at least in part, on student test scores to evaluate teachers, including to dis

by dianerav / 16min 

From a “Nobody Teacher” in Philadelphia

Received as a comment on an earlier post about the collapse of public education in Philadelphia due to lack of state funding:   “As a nobody teacher in Philadelphia, born and raised here, I am truly stunned by this event at the Union League, the priciest, most snobbish, insulated institution in our city. There is nothing “public” about the place, and, in fact, they barred Catholics from being club

1 by dianerav / 8min 

How the AP Turned a Survey into Propaganda

A widely distributed AP story claimed that parents favor high-stakes standardized testing and think that their children are taking the right number of tests. The obvious intent of the story was to deflate the anti-testing movement, which has been surging in recent years (consider that almost every local school board in the state of Texas passed a resolution opposing high-stakes testing and the leg

by dianerav / 5min 

Kevin Welner Critiques Cunningham Attack on Me

Peter Cunningham launched a harsh attack on me and my forthcoming book, “Reign of Error.” I assume he has not read it as it won’t be available for a few more weeks. Some 200 comments were posted on his article, almost none supporting his intemperate accusations. One of them was a silly claim that I don’t want minorities to go to college, refuted here and in the book and many other places. Kevin We

by dianerav / 11min 

Paul Thomas: Common Core and the Gravy Train

Paul Thomas points out that standardized test scores correlate closely with family income. He notes the lack of any evidence that more testing makes students smarter. The driving force behind the demand for Common Core and more testing is profit.

2 by dianerav / 31min 

TFA About to Take Control of Atlanta School Board

Teach for America has always said that its long-term goal was to train future leaders who would take a significant role in shaping education policy. That is happening. Such alumni as Michelle Rhee, Kevin Huffman (state commissioner in Tennessee), John White (state commissioner in Louisiana), and Eric Guckian (education advisor to the extremist Governor of North Carolina) are using their power to p

3 by dianerav / 14min 

Anti-Testing Movement Grows in NY Suburbs and Towns

The collapse of test scores in New York following the first tests of the Common Core standards is fueling the growth of the anti-testing movement. A huge protest took place in Port Jefferson Station on Long Island on Saturday. Fifteen hundred people turned out to denounce the Common Core and the tests that labeled most children as “failures.” To get a turnout of this size on a Saturday in August in a small town signals big trouble for Common Core and its cheerleaders in the State Education Department. Hero educator Dr. Joseph Rella was one of the speakers. Newsday, the most widely read newsp

34 1h 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 8-18-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: The Attacks BeginBecause of my new book, which won’t be available until September 18, I fully expect the corporate reform attack machine to come after me. They have invested a lot of energy in charters, vouchers, merit pay, stripping teachers of tenure, collective bargaining rights, pensions, etc. despite the lack of any evidence t

by mike simpson / 9h

School crisis drives families from city - Philly.com

School crisis drives families from city - Philly.com:

School crisis drives families from city

Realtor Christopher Plant, drying dishes with his son Mason, tells perspective buyers "they can't rely on any of the public schools." TOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer

By Melissa Dribben, Inquirer Staff Writer

POSTED: August 18, 2013

Brian Hackford is divorcing Philadelphia, citing irreconcilable differences over public education.

For most of his adult life, Hackford has loved this city - its energy, its grit, its humor, its culture, its diversity, restaurants, parks, museums, and a host of other ineffable qualities that have made this place home.

But try as he might, he no longer believes the Philadelphia School District can be trusted to provide his three children with a good education.

"I've lived in the city since 1995. I've planted roots. Every single one of my friends except one lives in the city. But at 41, I'm having to start all over again."

Hackford, a co-owner of the Keswick Cycle stores, and his wife have put their home in Roxborough up for sale.

"We have an offer," he said glumly, "and if it works out, we're going."

There is no way to know how many parents have lost faith in the city's ability to adequately fund education, and whether they outnumber those who like their kids' schools and won't bail out because of "yet another funding crisis," as one father put it. Countless others can't afford private schools or a move to the suburbs.

But even as officials were promising last week that schools will open on time, several real estate brokers, parents, and public 

UPDATE: Parents, denied a voice at BESE, speak out here | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

Parents, denied a voice at BESE, speak out here | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:


Another parent, denied a voice at BESE, speaks out here

Another parent speaks out against Common Core, Data Sharing, and biased studies, such as those contracted from CREDO, supporting charters. Debbie has supplied a number of links supporting and documenting her positions. Teachers and parents who are denied a voice in our public institutions are free to scream as loudly as they wish here. J Much of what we all see on the news, at BESE meetings and le

by crazycrawfish / 18min 

Parents, denied a voice at BESE, speak out here

Posted on August 19, 2013

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At BESE’s august meeting parents were denied an opportunity to speak about Common Core and inBloom.  Because the feedback given so far has been overwhelmingly negative, I can understand why Chas Roemer, John White and their allies would go that route.  Routinely BESE sends out invites to charter organizers, TFA supporters, and other folks that are paid to adore their positions to speak only things that reinforce their opinions and goals.  At the last BESE meeting in June they tried shifting the schedule around to make parents and students who had come to speak students wait all day, and then when that didn’t work, they tried to postpone the agenda items they had come to speak on.  Outbursts from the crowd changed their plans.

This time, however, BESE was able to completely silence their critics, denying them a chance to speak.  When they did this, not only did they succeed in silencing their critics in a public, taxpayer funded forum, they made a mockery of Democracy; and rule of the people, by the people, for the people.  Our board was purchased with millions of corporate dollars, not to serve us, but to serve those who would make money off of our children.  Our BESE board and our Department of Education are cruel, farcical charades that pat themselves on the back for their own destructive behavior whilst squandering our hard earned tax dollars on their cronies and selling our children into a data zoo where they can be gawked at, poked and prodded for the amusement of others.

While corrupt politicians have succeeded in barring parents and students from speaking in a public forum, they cannot (yet) prevent them from speaking in private ones that are made available to the public.  Here is Nikki Gaspard’s letter.  A concerned public school parent who was denied an 

Thom Hartmann: Kochtopus Tentacles are Coming for Public Schools | www.kochwatch.org

Thom Hartmann: Kochtopus Tentacles are Coming for Public Schools | www.kochwatch.org:

Thom Hartmann: Kochtopus Tentacles are Coming for Public Schools

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The Educated Reporter: Word on the Beat: Proficiency

The Educated Reporter: Word on the Beat: Proficiency:

Word on the Beat: Proficiency

As a regular feature, The Educated Reporter features a buzzword or phrase that You Need To Know (yes, this designation is highly subjective, but we're giving it a shot). Send your Word on the Beat suggestions to erichmond@ewa.org.

Word on the beat: Proficiency

What it means: In education circles, proficiency typically refers to whether a student’s academic achievement is on par with grade-level expectations. However, statistics can vary widely among schools, districts, and states because of the wide range of tests and benchmarks that are currently in place. Proficiency can also refer to whether a teacher is meeting expectations of on-the-job performance.

Why it matters: When students in the United States are compared to their peers in other countries, it is often based on the percentage of them who are meeting or exceeding the standards for proficiency on international exams in core subjects like reading, writing, math and science. Having a national concept of “proficiency” is a key element of the new Common Core State Standards, which were initially approved by 46 states and the District of Columbia. With a common set of expectations, it would theoretically make it easier to compare student performance from state to state.

Who’s talking about it: Mike Petrilli, a vice president at the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute in Washington, D.C., is wondering whether it’s time to retire proficiency as a measurement of a school’s achievement and replace it instead with a more flexible model that recognizes growth – that is, how far students progress over the course of an academic year compared with where they started. (It’s worth 

What’s the ‘most pernicious cliché of our time’?:

What’s the ‘most pernicious cliché of our time’?

By Valerie Strauss, Published: August 19 at 4:00 amE-mail the writer

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(Source: Bloomberg)

According to a new piece in The New Republicby the magazine’s science editor, Judith Shulevitz, the term “disruption” is, as the headline says, “the most pernicious cliché of our time.” That’s almost right.

Shulevitz makes important points about the dangerous errors that “disruptor” advocates make with their “almost utopian faith in technology” and insistence that “disruption” (which is always transformational, not to mention innovative) is equally useful for private and public enterprises. That includes America’s public education system. She writes that Harvard business professor Clayton Christensen, the man who coined the phrase “disruptive innovation” in 1997, has advocated that “fundamental school reform” can happen only if political and education leaders force such change on the masses because they won’t agree to it otherwise. (In other words, democracy only goes so far.)

She writes further:

Many well-meaning philanthropic disruptors have taken that advice to heart, and the results reveal something George Orwell pointed out, which is that stale phrases mechanically repeated have dangerous political effects. It is too soon to see how 

Why teachers need free coffee at school

By Valerie Strauss, Published: August 19 at 8:00 amE-mail the writer

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freepik.com

Intended or not, school reform has left many teachers feeling isolated and alone. Here’s a post on this by Hillary Greene, who has taught middle school for three years in independent, public, and public charter settings in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. She graduated from Brown University and completed the Shady Hill School Teacher Training at Tufts University. She is interested in teaching and teacher-education research. This first appeared in Education Week Teacher. Connect @hillarylgreene on Twitter.

By Hillary Greene

Everybody knows that a good house party, no matter how enticing the dining room, ends up in the kitchen. Surrounded by the comfort of food and drink, we relax and bond. We say things we wouldn’t say in the dining room.

Yet, in this nation that “runs on Dunkin’,” some schools appear to be cutting back on staff-room provisions as a budgetary precaution. So while Google generously—and shrewdly—provides copious amounts of first-class nourishment to its employees, teachers often can’t get a free cup of coffee.

And while a cut like this may seem relatively insignificant, I’m convinced it harms 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: WEEKEND QUOTABLES:

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

CPS teacher Ed Hershey, arrested trying to save La Casita 

"We couldn't just let them sweep it away without at least doing what we could. The school doesn't have a library and they bulldozed it. There's 160 schools that don't have a library." -- ABC News

Lisa Angonese, community activist

“He’s [Ald. Solis] been giving us so many different stories. We want him to come out of hiding to face us and to listen to the demands of the community.” -- WGN

Glenn Greenwald

At the time the "security official" called me, David had been detained for 3 hours. The security official told me that they had the right to detain him for up to 9 

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda | Alternet #CHEATS4Change

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda | Alternet:

A Scandal That's Exposing Ugly Truths About the School Privatization Agenda

The recent scandal ousting Florida's top education official shows the privatization movement is about profits.

August 16, 2013  |  

 

Paradoxes come in all different forms, but here’s one that perfectly fits this Gilded Age: The most significant lesson from the ongoing debate about American education has little to do with schools and everything to do with money. This lesson comes from a series of recent scandals that expose the financial motives of the leaders of the so-called education “reform” movement — the one that is trying to privatize public schools.

The first set of scandals engulfed Tony Bennett, the former Indiana school superintendent and much-vaunted poster boy for the privatization push. After voters in that state responded to his radical agenda by throwing him out of office, he was quickly hired to lead Florida’s education system. At the same time, his wife not-so-coincidentally landed a gig with the Florida-based Charter Schools USA, a for-profit company that not only has an obvious interest in Bennett 

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows | deutsch29

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows | deutsch29:

Associated Press Propaganda: What the AP Survey Really Shows

August 18, 2013

On August 17, 2013, the Associated Press (AP) announced that a survey they conducted in June and July 2013 found that not only do parents really like standardized tests– they approve of the high-stakes usage of such tests and believe that the number of standardized tests administered is “about right”:

Often criticized as too prescriptive and all-consuming, standardized tests have support among parents, who view them as a useful way to measure both students’ and schools’ performances, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll. Most parents also say their own children are given about the right number of standardized tests, according to the AP-NORC poll.

The release of this propaganda is certainly strategic timing given the recent New York debacle of Mayor Bloomberg’s aligning Common Core assessments to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and flunking most New York schoolchildren by design.

It is also interesting to note that at the same time the AP was conducting its survey, 

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

inBloom’s actual Dear John Letter to John White: (It’s not me, it’s you)

Posted on August 18, 2013

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Sometimes life hands you stories that are simply better than any cheap fiction you can pick up from a newsstand or checkout line. Take for example this on-again-off-again “data sharing” relationship between Iwan Streicheicenberger, CEO of inBloom, (a data piracy and reselling outfit masquerading as a non-profit student-centric organization) and John White, student data pimp, (masquerading as a state Superintendent of Education.)

At first, Iwan and inBloom were avidly pursuing a relationship with John White and John White didn’t even know they existed when he first rolled into town. Before long though, over a few leisurely dinners, John was being wooed by Peter Gorman, Iwan’s Cyrano d’ Bergerac over at Wireless Generation (the authors of the inBloom database run by Iwan) the air beneath his wings, and his recharger.

If you are available for dinner on Wednesday night, I would love to take you and discuss Broad school reform and other issues but no pressure on that either. I know how precious 

Peg with Pen: My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014

Peg with Pen: My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014:

My Opt Out/Refusal Letter for 2013-2014

Sam - who has never taken a standardized test

Dear ---,

My name is Peggy Robertson and my son, Sam, will be attending --- High School tomorrow as a freshman. He is beyond excited! We are equally as thrilled to have Sam become a part of the --- HS family. I was so impressed at orientation with the focus on community as well as academics. I feel very lucky to have Sam at a school which allows him to express himself in so many ways. He will be in the orchestra and is gearing up for his first cross country meeting tomorrow.

I wanted to let you know that I am one of the founders of United Opt Out National, the movement to end corporate education reform. We focus intensely on supporting parents in opting out/refusing any high stakes and low stakes tests that are used to privatize public education. Sam will not be participating in any of these tests. I know that --- has the TCAP this year as well as MAP. I wasn't sure if there were any other tests being used, any test prep, and/or any surveys. I also wasn't sure if --- HS has a program similar to Reading Counts, which Sam opted out of at --- last year and completed book reports for his teacher instead. Sam will have a copy of this letter in his backpack to share with teachers if needed. Are there any other tests that Sam and I need to be aware of?

I refuse to allow Sam to participate in these tests for many reasons. Foremost, I refuse because they are using these tests to fail children, teachers, schools and communities all over the country, and ultimately, they are being used to dismantle the public school system. I also refuse these tests because I believe Sam's teachers are professionals who are able to determine Sam's strengths, attempts and next steps. These tests are unnecessary.  I trust --- High School teachers and know that they will be able to support Sam every step of the way. I do ask that Sam be allowed to read or engage in other learning activities during testing times.

I am also a public school teacher and I have a deep appreciation for all that you do for --- High School students. Have a wonderful school year.

Best,
Peggy Robertson
www.pegwithpen.com
www.unitedoptout.com 

Sacramento Press / Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance

Sacramento Press / Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance:

Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and City Council - Do Not Repeal the Superstore Ordinance

by Michael Murphy, published on August 18, 2013 at 4:21 PM

I have lived in Central City for over 25 years. I have had the pleasure of watching my neighborhood grow organically throughout the years. Small businesses have blossomed. We calmed the traffic. We created Second Saturday, which promotes local artists and artisans, and made many other positive changes during those years. Midtown was not the celebrated neighborhood that it is today.

This ordinance was a reaction to an ill-conceived plan by Westfield Mall to bring a Wal-Mart at the Downtown Plaza. Westfield’s Roseville Galleria gets Tiffany’s and Downtown Sacramento gets Wal-Mart. Residents reacted and the City Council listened and enacted the big box ordinance.

I believe that an Economic Impact Analysis (EIA) with a wage benefit analysis component is critical for a community. It protects our local business community. It allows small businesses the opportunity to weigh in and allows the community a chance to make sure a big box store compliment our community. It also studies a host of other issues such as wage and benefit analysis, environmental issues, traffic, an exit strategy, and a host of other issues.

The wage and benefit analysis is a true indicator as to whether a big box store will truly benefit the community. An EIA compares how many jobs a big box store will create vs. how many a big box store will destroy, it gauges whether there will be a net benefit for the community. The wage and benefit analysis takes the EIA a step further by comparing a net gain for the city as to revenue generated vs. revenue lost.

While there are hundreds of studies that show how big box stores negatively 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The case against Algebra II

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The case against Algebra II:

The case against Algebra II

I'm reposting in full, this excellent Harper's piece by Nicholson Baker who has lots to say about Arne Duncan, Common Core standards, corporate reform, Race to the Top, and cold-war type educational competition.  
To read it on-line at Harper's website, you will have to buy a year's subscription which I've alreay done on my Kindle. I am re-posting the whole piece here onSmallTalk, hoping that some others who dearly care about the future of public education, will read it and spread the word. Thanks to my friend Deb Meier for turning me on to Baker's provocative piece which she mentions quite favorablyon her own blog. 
ESSAY — From the September 2013 issue of Harper's
Wrong Answer
The case against Algebra II
by Nicholson Baker

In 1545, Girolamo Cardano, a doctor, a wearer of magical amulets, and a compulsive gambler, published a math book in Latin called Ars Magna. The "great art" of the title was algebra. When Cardano was done, he knew he had come up with something huge and powerful and timeless; on the last page was the declaration, written in five years, may it last as many thousands. The equations in Ars Magna looked very different from the ones we are familiar with -- here, for instance, is how Cardano wrote the solution to x3 + 6x = 20: 

Rv: cu. : R108 p : 10m : Rv :cu. R108m : 10 

But the algebraic rules Cardano described and codified are variants of the techniques that millions of students are taught, with varying degrees of success, today. That's what’s so amazing and mysterious about the mathematical universe. It doesn't go out of date. It's bigger than history. It offers seemingly superhuman powers of interlinkage. It's true. Mathematics, said a professor named James Byrnie Shaw in 1918, is a kind of ancient sequoia of knowledge, rooted in the labors and learning of the dead:

Its foliage is in the atmosphere of abstraction; its inflorescence is the outburst of the living imagination. From its dizzy summit genius takes its flight, and in its wealth of verdure its devotees find an everlasting holiday. 

Then why, if math is so great and timeless and beautiful, do millions of people hate it so much? In particular, why do so many high school students hate algebra? On an opinion-gathering website called Amplicate, 86 percent of recent respondents registered a hatred for algebra -- putting it near the top of Amplicate's list of disliked high school subjects, just below geometry. Grant Wiggins, an educational consultant and former teacher, told me it was a "nasty gatekeeper course": the compulsory Greek grammar of the modern era. Lots of students love math, of course. It comes easily to them, or it doesn't come easily but they are willing to put in the hours and they enjoy the 

Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids - NBC News.com

Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids - NBC News.com:

Teachers pay more out of pocket for their kids

File photo of school teacher Liza Gleason shopping for
back to school supplies at a Target store August 13, 2008 in Daly City, California.
Teachers are paying more of their own money for supplies and even clothes and food for schoolchildren.

A second-year pre-kindergarten teacher at Salem Elementary School in Apex, N.C., Hannah Martin makes about $34,000 a year and in her spare time takes as many babysitting jobs as she can get.

Martin, who rents a room in a house she shares with four other women, said the work outside her classroom is necessary if her students are to have the school supplies they need.

"I only have $100 from the school for the whole year to buy supplies, and it's not enough," 23-year-old Martin said.

"I do the babysitting to help get money to buy toys and books," she said. "I even had to buy shelves and a stool for the kids to stand on to wash their hands at the sink. I spent about $500 on supplies last year, and It definitely hurts my own pocketbook."

With school budgets across the country slashed, Martin is part of a growing number of teachers spending more of their own money for school supplies, according to a recent survey from insurance firm Horace Mann, which focuses on products for educators.

(Read more: Six college courses that help grads land jobs)

The problem has reached near-crisis levels, especially in states like North Carolina.

"We're letting our teachers know how rough the situation is," said Eric Moore, a fiscal accountant at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. "We've only got about 35 percent of our past