Sunday, October 27, 2013

What's In a Name? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

What's In a Name? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:

What's In a Name?

By Nancy Flanagan on October 27, 2013 7:53 AM

A guest post from Okaikor Aryee-Price, a fellow IDEA (Institute for Democratic Education in America) organizer:

I know for many the naming of a child is a deeply personal and spiritual experience that reflects some symbolism of one's cultural, traditional, and familial background. For my children, it was all of the

above. And because I put so much thought, research and energy into naming them, I expect people to respect that.

I get a little miffed when people ask me for a nickname or something short. Because of this, I am sensitive to how our names are more than just letters in a random word our parents chose to give us. When I posted a short story about a recent classroom experience on my Facebook page, it did not surprise me that many related to the story, or found themselves moved by my student's story.

This story is a story about dignity, love, acceptance, and compassion. It is about identity and the small things we can do that go a long way. It is not a story about how well I aligned my classroom pedagogy to the Common Core Standards, or how well I prepared my students for some standardized test that will be used to evaluate my effectiveness in the classroom. As we explore the purpose of education, this story presents the importance of what it means to develop compassionate individuals who understand the dignity that exists in every human

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Do We Invest in Preschools or Prisons? - NYTimes.com

Do We Invest in Preschools or Prisons? - NYTimes.com:

Do We Invest in Preschools or Prisons?

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

Published: October 26, 2013

CONGRESS is often compared to pre-K, which seems defamatory of small children. But the similarities also offer hope, because an initiative that should be on the top of the national agenda has less to do with the sequester than with the A.B.C.’s and Big Bird.

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Damon Winter/The New York Times

Nicholas D. Kristof

On the Ground

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Nicholas Kristof addresses reader feedback and posts short takes from his travels.

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Growing mountains of research suggest that the best way to address American economic inequality, poverty and crime is — you guessed it! — early education programs, including coaching of parents who want help. It’s not a magic wand, but it’s the best tool we have to break cycles of poverty.

President Obama called in his State of the Union address for such a national initiative, but it hasn’t gained traction. Obama himself hasn’t campaigned enough for it, yet there’s still a reed of hope.

One reason is that this is one of those rare initiatives that polls well across the spectrum, with support from 84

A Veteran Teachers Reflects on Reform (Patrick Welsh) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

A Veteran Teachers Reflects on Reform (Patrick Welsh) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice:

A Veteran Teachers Reflects on Reform (Patrick Welsh)

Patrick Welsh retired in June after 43 years teaching English at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria.This article appeared in the Washington Post “Outlook” section on September 27, 2013.

Erika Dietz was overwhelmed when she started teaching English at T.C. Williams High School two years ago. Not because the 24-year-old struggled to connect with students or to handle the workload. Relentless, yet also patient and charming, she quickly became one of the most popular teachers at the Alexandria school, and in June 2012 she received a state-funded Titan Transformer Award for “outstanding work toward the goal of transformation” of T.C.

What bothered her was everything that went along with that goal: the consultants, the jargon, the endless stream of new reform initiatives. “It felt like every buzzword or trend in education was being thrown at us at once,” she told me over the summer, shortly after moving to Texas. “When something didn’t work right away, it was discarded the next year or even midyear.”

Gov. Rick Scott (R) announced that his state would no longer take a leading role

K-12 News Network | LAUSD: The Voters Have Spoken and Publicly-Elected School Boards Choose Superintendents

K-12 News Network | LAUSD: The Voters Have Spoken and Publicly-Elected School Boards Choose Superintendents:

LAUSD: The Voters Have Spoken and Publicly-Elected School Boards Choose Superintendents

admin October 26, 2013 Educators, Elections, Los Angeles, School Boards, School Districts 0

Guest post by Karen Wolfe, a parent and public education advocate who lives in Los Angeles.
Parents and public school advocates are very concerned following the LA Times article about Mayor Garcetti weighing in on Superintendent Deasy’s waning support.

I hope the mayor will keep in mind that voters value their right to elect an independent school board, a right to which the Los Angeles City Charter entitles them and which has been reaffirmed in the courts. This power struggle is inevitable with a superintendent who very publicly opposed the election of several board members. The voters have spoken. They do not support Deasy’s policies–nor his abuse of power in usurping the board’s role in setting policies at all. As LA Times columnist Steve Lopez wrote earlier this month, “So, yeah, do some micromanaging. Hold people accountable. Ask questions.” The board is doing its job.

The only thing new about this dynamic is Deasy’s precipitous decline in support. The superintendent has declared that board policies are unfunded mandates. That’s absurd. The board has passed several resolutions in the last year that have not been implemented. Examples include a resolution to establish a core arts program, a resolution to help neighborhood schools boost enrollment rather than accept as an operating assumption that enrollment will continue to decline, a resolution to revamp Prop 39 implementation to balance support for neighborhood schools, and a campus greening initiative.

Slicing Up LAUSD’s “Apple” iPad Pie

Guest post by Understanding Equity, a Los Angeles resident and teacher. Even Costco most likely could provide a break down of the cost of every ingredient needed to make one of their famous apple pies. But, when it comes to LAUSD’s Apple iPad purchase, no one seems or admits to have any idea how the deal was sliced up. What we do know is the total cost of the iPad which included software from

by admin / 6h

Daily Kos: Leaves on the Current - a brief update

Daily Kos: Leaves on the Current - a brief update:

she should be coming home on Monday. We had hoped for tomorrow, but she is having some tummy problems and they want to get that under control before she returns.

As far as her bloodwork - and remember, she has a blood cancer - the only area of concern was her platelet count, which reached a level several days ago that led to a platelet transfusion, which has brought that back up.

The key issue after this procedure- an autologous (meaning, her own) stem cell transplant - is her white blood cell count. On that she is doing spectacular well, which is why she should return home on Monday

I am spending most of my time this weekend scrubbing the house to ensure no dust, mold, mildew, etc, and to make it acceptable not only for my beloved - for whom the disorder that has accrued over the past 10 months is at least annoying if not distressing - but for the woman who will move in with us during the week to care for her during the day. In the past two days I have spent 16 hours dusting, putting things in containers, throwing out things no longer necessary, vacuuming, scrubbing, cleaning carpets, etc.

Because one cat is elderly and having trouble moving,I have replaced all our cat pans with smaller ones, with a lower step-over.

Oh, and as of today, my wife is starting to lose her hair. They would have given her a buzz cut

New Orleans SPS score release reveals 69% of students now attend “failing schools” according to Bobby Jindal (compared to 62% in 2005) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog

New Orleans SPS score release reveals 69% of students now attend “failing schools” according to Bobby Jindal (compared to 62% in 2005) | Crazy Crawfish's Blog:

New Orleans SPS score release reveals 69% of students now attend “failing schools” according to Bobby Jindal (compared to 62% in 2005)

Posted on October 27, 2013

Some of you may have seen reports in the Picayune or from Leslie Jacob’s “Educate Now” organization touting an educational resurgence taking place in New Orleans. One of the claims is that only 5% of students are now in “failing” schools. I’ve had a little time to look at her stats and the reporting put out by the State and thought I’d make my own fancy graphs and charts and point out some glaring logic flaws. I will publish my data for you to critique. I don’t have access to all the data, but that Leslie Jacobs can get with her friendly relationship with John White and LDOE, but I can still deduce a few things, and I have been accumulating files from folks who had older reports, that LDOE removed from their website, archived on their local machines.

Let’s examine some of Leslie’s claims before showing you what I’ve found:

Claim 1: Only 5% of students now attend a failing school – down from 62% in

With A Brooklyn Accent: The BATS and the Teachers Unions

With A Brooklyn Accent: The BATS and the Teachers Unions:

The BATS and the Teachers Unions

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL BAT!

This organization has now been around for over 5 months, and has become an essential part of the Education Activism landscape. It has given hope to many teachers who thought they were alone in opposing the wave of Testing descending on our public schools, and solidarity to others engaged in brutal battles in their states and localities to protect their jobs, their students and their professional integrity.

As BATS has grown, one our of the most important roles has been to serve as a gadfly to and critic of the leadership of NEA and AFT who have sometimes been complicit with policies we are fighting. Some would even say we have become the conscience of those two organizations.

That is an important role, but it needs clarification. Many members of BATS are also members and leaders of NEA and AFT chapters at the state and local level. They are working to change policies they disagree with from within, not to form alternative organizations. BATS is not, and has never been,the nucleus of a dual union .We defend teachers unions in principle, think strong teachers unions are a necessarily correlate of a strong public school system, and will fight to protect the

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Moody's -- Charters are expanding at the expense of public schools

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Moody's -- Charters are expanding at the expense of public schools:

Moody's -- Charters are expanding at the expense of public schools

A new Moody's report finds that charter schools have expanded at the expense of urban public schools, especially on those districts confronted with a shrinking tax base and government funding cuts.

Municipal finance analysts at Moody’s recently took a look at the impact of charter school growth on public finances, finding “while the vast majority of traditional public districts are managing through the rise of charter schools without a negative credit impact, a small but growing number face financial stress due to the movement of students to charters.”

The report found that cutting costs to match declines in funding can be difficult, as decisions to close schools—even if they are half-empty—can result in fierce political fights. And decisions to cut academic programs can actually exacerbate

SacBee Tribute to the Heroic Raymond: He took on teachers union - Marcos Breton - The Sacramento Bee

Raymond took on teachers union - Marcos Breton - The Sacramento Bee:

Raymond took on teachers union

By MARCOS BRETON
mbreton@sacbee.com

Published: Sunday, Oct. 27, 2013 - 12:00 am

Before starting as the new superintendent of the Sacramento City Unified School District, Jonathan Raymond was told how he could escape unscathed from the no-win job he was taking on.

“Rudy Crew (a former Sacramento superintendent who later ran New York’s public schools) told me: ‘Stay three years, keep your head down, and whatever you do, don’t close any schools,’” Raymond said with a wistful smile the other day.

Of course, Raymond did close schools. He not only didn’t keep his head down, he took on the local teachers union repeatedly. He actually cared about the poorest kids in a poor district and showed it by making those schools a priority backed by his office.

In a state where the teachers unions control politicians, Raymond was ripe for being fired with an agenda that actually put kids first.

So Raymond is leaving after four years of success against long odds, but with few accolades and allies.

He was the ultimate solitary figure, doing good work that was praised by outsiders and ripped by

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/10/27/5855379/raymond-took-on-teachers-union.html#storylink=cpy

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Sunday, October 27, 2013

What's In a Name? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

What's In a Name?

Issue: Education programs funding - U.S. Congress - OpenCongress

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