LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-3-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

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

NEA Endorses National Campaign Against “Toxic Testing”

NEA delegates approve creation of national campaign for equity and against “Toxic Testing” Campaign to focus on assessments and developing real accountability systems DENVER—The National Education Association (NEA) will launch a national campaign to put the focus of assessments and accountability back on ensuring equity and supporting student learning and end the “test blame and punish” system tha

by dianeravitch / 19min 

New Mexico Okays Pearson Contract for PARCC

New Mexico’s purchasing agent approved the award of a contract to Pearson to develop the Common Core PARCC tests, despite the absence of competitive bidding. AIR had lodged a complaint against the process since Pearson was the only bidder. The New Mexico contract covers testing of 6-10 million students in 14 states. It is worth about $1 billion to Pearson. “Last December, the Washington DC-based

6 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Green Party Supports Teacher Tenure in New York

Green Party Defends Teacher Tenure Against Legal Challenge The Green Party candidates for Governor and Lt. Governor today spoke out strongly against a lawsuit to be filed by a former CNN anchor seeking to overturn tenure in New York State. “The attack on teacher tenure is about scapegoating teachers for the conditions of our schools,” remarked Brian Jones, a former NYC school teacher running for

2 by dianeravitch / 17min 

NYC Public Schools: Less Money, More Homeless Students, More Crowded

A report by the nonpartisan Independent Budget Office in New York City has found that the New York City public schools are experiencing extensive overcrowding, even as federal and state funding has diminished.   Nearly 450,000 students were enrolled in overcrowded buildings, defined as those at greater than 102.5 percent capacity, in the 2012-13 school year, the most recent covered by the report f

by dianeravitch / 14min 

A Partial Look at Michelle Rhee’s Finances

Politico.com reports on some of the finances of Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst and StudentsFirst Institute, based on the 990 tax form that her group is required to file. During the fiscal year from August 2012 to July 2013, her organizations raised $28.6 million, down slightly from the previous year. She does not disclose the names of her donors (we can all guess: the Koch brothers? Rupert Murdoch?

1 by dianeravitch / 12min

Texas Commissioner Ignores State Board to Approve Great Hearts Charter

Michael Williams, Texas State Commissioner, gave Great Hearts Academy permission to open another charter in Dallas even though the state board of education tuned it down. Williams is not an educator. He is a favorite of the Bush family who previously served as head of the Texas Railroad Commission, which “regulates” the oil and gas industry (not?). Great Hearts is controversial because it has cam

by dianeravitch / 5min 

Good Riddance to the Common Core Tests!

A few years ago, Arne Duncan, Bill Gates, David Coleman, and a merry band of policy wonks had a grand plan. The non-governmental groups like Achieve, the National Governors Association, the Council of Chief State School Officers, and Coleman’s own Student Achievement Partners would write the Common Core standards (paid for by the Gates Foundation); Duncan would require states to agree to adopt the

by dianeravitch / 4min 

Rocketship Charter Chain’s Big Plans in Texas

A note from a reader in Texas, where Rocketship charter schools have big expansion plans: Rocketship has re-applied for charters in Texas, 8 each in San Antonio and Dallas. Last cycle, in spite of support from San Antonio group, Choose to Succeed (along with the promise of million(s) in start-up funds), Rocketship failed to meet TEA external reviewers standards and was not eligible for considerat

8 by dianeravitch / 57min hide  //  save

Rocketship Charter Chain Sputters

Rocketship charter chain had an audacious plan to enroll one million students nationwide, drawing students from poor and immigrant communities, putting them in front of a computer in large classes, and relying on low-wage (mainly Teach for America) “teachers.” The chain got high scores and began opening charters outside San Jose, California, where it originated, but then something happened that wa

10 by dianeravitch / 1h 

Anthony Cody: These Tests are Designed to Fail Students

Anthony Cody points out the contradiction between claims that the Common Core will prepare students for college and careers and the reality that the Common Core tests are designed to fail most students. He also notes what happened to the GED graduation rate after Pearson took control of the program. The pass rate on the GED plummeted. What is going on? Cody has two hypotheses: “Hypothesis #1:

100+ by dianeravitch / 2h 

Detroit Free Press on Its Probe of Michigan Charter Schools

The Detroit Free Press published a series of deeply researched articles about the charter schools in the state, most of which operate for profit. The state spends $1 billion on charters but does not hold them accountable for financial practices or academic outcomes. Charter schools do NOT get better results educating students in poverty. Will legislators or the governor care? Not as long as the c

21 by dianeravitch / 3h 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-2-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Microsoft Cashes in on Common Core and Online TestingAre you ready for the new standards? Check out how Microsoft can help your school.5 by dianeravitch / 32min hide  //  saveMichigan: A One-Woman Truth Squad for Charter AccountabilityThis article tells the story of Mary T. Wood, a woman in Michigan who has devoted nine years to tr

by mike simpson / 8h 

Teaching as a Profession?: Heading for the Exits, Fellows, and North Carolina | Cloaking Inequity

Teaching as a Profession?: Heading for the Exits, Fellows, and North Carolina | Cloaking Inequity:

Teaching as a Profession?: Heading for the Exits, Fellows, and North Carolina

Teacher attrition is an issue across the United States. Amongst traditionally trained teachers, about 50% leave after 5 years. The infamous Teach For America program has an attrition rate of about 80% after five years (this is why Teach For America wants to focus the public on a 50% in “education” field number). As seen on TV, North Carolina teachers are heading for the exits in droves due to the recent draconian and out-dated policy approachesimplemented by the politicians in that state. Its quite amazing that a few determined politicians can wreck a functioning system in just a few years. One solution to teacher attrition has been early identification of teacher candidates. One such program has been the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. What is the program?

[The North Carolina Teaching Fellows] was adopted and funded by the 1986 North Carolina General Assembly as part of a ten-point teacher recruitment plan proposed by the Public School Forum of North Carolina. The first recipients were named in 1987.

Applicants must be North Carolina residents currently enrolled as high school seniors and qualifying high school juniors. Selection is made on the basis of high school grades, class standing, SAT scores, writing samples, community service, extracurricular activities, and references from teachers and members of the community. Interviews at the local and regional levels are required. Recipients must be accepted for admission to one of the following postsecondary institutions in North Carolina… Subject to continuing legislative appropriations, up to 500 Teaching Fellows are selected annually from area high schools. The maximum award is $6,500 per year and is renewable for a total of four years of college.

Over the past several years, the program has been axed and un-axed by North Carolina legislators. In this post Dr. Francesca Lopez, Associate Professor at the University of Arizona and Sarah Taylor, a former North Carolina Teaching Fellow and current University of Texas at Austin Educational Policy and Planning masters student, consider the merits of North Carolina’s early identification approach.

by Dr. Francesca Lopez

The authors of an Education Policy Initiative at Carolina (EPIC) policy brief entitled The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program: A Comprehensive Evaluation focused on “the human capital of the teacher workforce” and “expanded access to highly qualified teachers for at-risk students” assert that North Carolina Teaching Fellows program, which attracts “individuals with significantly higher academic credentials into North Carolina public schools” (p.5), has “positively affected North Carolina’s schools and students” (p. 6).

The Fellows Program’s approach to address the issue of attrition and access is incentivizing teacher preparation for “academically competitive students” (p. 1). Certainly, treating teaching as a rigorous profession that requires Teaching as a Profession?: Heading for the Exits, Fellows, and North Carolina | Cloaking Inequity:

Shanker Blog » Summer Slide: Denial Is Dangerous

Shanker Blog » Summer Slide: Denial Is Dangerous:

Summer Slide: Denial Is Dangerous

Posted by Lisa Hansel on July 3, 2014

Our guest author today is Lisa Hansel, communications director for the Core Knowledge Foundation. Previously, she was the editor of American Educator, the magazine published by the American Federation of Teachers. This postoriginally appeared on The Core Knowledge Blog.

I’ll guess that pretty much all educators are aware of the “summer slide” or “summer learning loss.” Even if there is a teacher who hasn’t heard those terms, all teachers have to deal with the consequences—wasting 2 to 5 weeks each fall reteaching content and skills. Naively, I thought the reteaching ritual was so widely lamented that parents, too, were aware of the summer slide. So I was shocked to see that 61% of parents do not believe that their children decline in reading ability over the summer.

The finding comes from a new survey of 1,014 parents with children ages 5–11. Conducted by Harris Interactive, it kicks off the summer campaign by Reading Is Fundamental and Macy’s to provide books to needy children.

Sadly, that 61% foreshadows all of the findings.

For example, playing outside is the top priority: “By a wide margin, parents of 5-11 year olds identify playing outside (49%) as the most important activity they want their child to do this summer. Reading books (17%) takes second place, followed by: relax and take it easy (13%), improve athletic skills (10%), travel (4%), work at a summer job (1%), and other activities (6%).” If forced to choose, I would also rank playing outside #1 and reading #2; I was lucky enough to do both pretty much every day as a kid. But reality settles in when we look at how kids are actually spending their time: “Parents of 5-11 year olds report that their child spent an average of 5.9 hours per week reading books last summer. This is lower than the time spent playing outdoors (16.7 hours), watching TV (10.8 hours), or playing video games (6.6 hours).” There’s a curmudgeonly voice in my head wondering how many of those outdoor hours were spent like this:

Six hours a week is definitely not enough time reading. Sadly, I think it shows how few children are finding books they love and having that magical experience of being absorbed in another world. With the right book, six hours a daydoesn’t feel like enough. But according to the survey, I’m in the minority here: “Nearly six in ten parents of children age 5-11 say their child does just the right amount of reading during the summer (59%).”

But wait; it gets worse. There’s a 7% gap in what parents most want their sons and daughters to do over theShanker Blog » Summer Slide: Denial Is Dangerous: 

A Question for Bill Gates: How Can We Motivate Students When Their Futures Are Bleak? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

A Question for Bill Gates: How Can We Motivate Students When Their Futures Are Bleak? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

A Question for Bill Gates: How Can We Motivate Students When Their Futures Are Bleak?

By Anthony Cody on July 3, 2014 9:58 AM

I am trying to make sense of the education reform project, which seems a mass of contradictions. On the one hand, we have a seemingly utopian project with bold pronouncements about the boundless capacity of all students - even those with serious learning disabilities - to succeed on ever more difficult tests. On the other hand, we have tests that are apparently intentionally designed to fail in the realm of two thirds of our students. I am focusing on the thinking of one of the chief architects and financial sponsors of corporate reform, Bill Gates. His vision guides one of the largest philanthropies in the world, which has made education reform its number one priority within the US, so his thinking has huge consequences for our schools. 

As I wrote yesterday, Gates seems to be awakening to the role "student motivation" plays in the capacity for students to learn - at least when technology is involved. This is a huge and important insight, because it is the clue that tells us there are limits to the degree to which we can manipulate others. Human agency is ultimately a determining factor. And once we begin to explore the motivation of our students - or lack thereof, we can learn some very important things.

I think one of the key pieces that Gates has missed with his approach to education is the connection between students' motivation and their life prospects. This goes beyond the material conditions of poverty that directly impinge on students' capacity to learn - neighborhood violence, hunger, unstable housing and so on. This has to do with what students perceive are their own opportunities in life. These perceptions are influenced by what students see around them. How are older relatives and friends in the neighborhood doing after graduating from high school?  Is the promised path of high school diploma, followed by four-year degree, actually working out? Or are they seeing older peers forced to drop out, or graduating saddled with debt, without the high-paying jobs that A Question for Bill Gates: How Can We Motivate Students When Their Futures Are Bleak? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

Our National Anthem’s Two Questions | Taking Note

Our National Anthem’s Two Questions | Taking Note:

Our National Anthem’s Two Questions

by JOHN MERROW on 03. JUL, 2014 in 2014 BLOGS

As we celebrate our nation’s independence, it might be worth recalling that the first stanza [1] of our National Anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” poses two questions but answers only the first, leaving the second for each generation to wrestle with.

Some of you may now be singing the song to yourselves, figuring out just what the anthem poses. Let me save you the trouble. The first question is presented in the song’s opening lines:

O, say can you see by the dawn’s early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?”

In other words, did our flag survive the bombardment of Fort McHenry in what is known as the Battle of Baltimore in 1814? It was still flying, the lyrics assure us:

And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

However, Francis Scott Key poses a second question–which he does not answer–in the last two lines of the first stanza:

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

I suspect that most of us do not think of it as a question. We sing it, loudly and proudly, telling the world that we are the land of the free and the home of the brave. But Key wrote it as a question, not an Our National Anthem’s Two Questions | Taking Note:

7-3-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University):

Attack on “Balanced Literacy” Is Attack on Professional Teachers, Research

The allusion in Robert Pondiscio’s Why Johnny won’t learn to read accomplishes something different than intended. Pondiscio’s uninformed swipe at balanced literacy actually reveals that, once again, ideology trumps teacher professionalism and literacy research. The reading wars are about almost everything except reading, but the most important lesson from this newest version of the same old thing

1 by plthomasedd / 1min 

7-2-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Schneider’s Ten Reform Claims: A ReaderJack Schneider’s Ten Reform Claims That Teachers Should Know How to Challenge provides a powerful framework for educators to mobilize our much needed roles as teachers for the wider public. I want here to use his ten claims as a bas

by mike simpson / 8h 

7-3-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy

Wait What?:

Wait What? 

How much did you or your UConn student contribute to Hillary Clinton’s $251,000 speaking fee

Here is the latest on UConn’s payment of $251,000 to Hillary Clinton for speaking on the Storrs Campus earlier this year Pat Eaton-Rob of the Associated Press writes, HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The University of Connecticut on Thursday defended its decision to have former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speak on campus in April […] The post How much did you or your UConn student contribute t

1 by jonpelto / 7min 

Malloy and Pryor:  The Connecticut Charter School Debacle Expands

Thanks to Governor Dannel “Dan” Malloy and his Commissioner of Education, Stefan Pryor, Connecticut’s charter school industry has been sucking up tens of millions of dollars in public funds that could have been going to help Connecticut’s real public schools. Malloy’s unlimited commitment to charter schools runs so deep that when he brags that he […] The post Malloy and Pryor:  The Connecticut Cha

by jonpelto / 57min 

7-2-14 Wait What? - Jonathan Pelto: Gubernatorial Candidate and A Really Nice Guy

Wait What?: Wait What? CT Post Editorial: A long-overdue step on chartersThe Connecticut Post has published a powerful editorial about the Jumoke/FUSE charter school debacle and the Malloy Administration’s failure to properly oversee the growing charter school industry in Connecticut. Governor Dannel “Dan” Malloy, his Commissioner of Education, Stefan Pryor, and Pryor’s minions of charter school a

by mike simpson / 8h 

7-3-14 Answer Sheet

Answer Sheet:

The July 4th quiz

How much do you really know about the history of the Declaration of Independence and events surrounding the famous date of July 4th, 1776? When, for example, was independence actually declared by the second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia? Who was the first signer of the declaration? Who wrote it? You can take our quiz […]

by Valerie Strauss / 7min 

Why we still need affirmative action for African Americans in college admissions

Affirmative action in college admissions for African Americans has been losing support in the United States for some time, with new “colorblind” methods of ending gaining ground in the courts. In this powerful defense of affirmative action, Richard Rothstein explains why pretending color doesn’t matter doesn’t actually work and why it is unfair. Rothstein is […]

8 by Valerie Strauss / 6h 

7-2-14 Answer Sheet

Answer Sheet: What you know about July 4th is wrongYou learned in school about what happened in July 1776, and think you have a good handle on events surrounding American independence from Great Britain. Right? Well, if you think that was the day that America’s independence was declared by the Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, you are wrong. And if you think that that […]by Valerie Str

by mike simpson / 8h 

7-3-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL:

Can You Help? Looking For Stories Of People Learning Self-Control Or Grit From Challenging Circumstances

© 2011 marc falardeau, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Regular readers know I’m a big believer in teaching Social Emotional Learning (see The Best Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resources) and that I also have a healthy skepticism of how it’s sometimes used (see The manipulation of Social Emotional Learning). Readers also know that I have a particular interest in focusing on the assets students bring

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1h

More Ramadan Resources

© 2009 yeowatzup, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Here are new additions to The Best Sites To Teach & Learn About Ramadan: Here’s a short video explainer from The Associated Press. Ramadan: A centuries-old American tradition is from Al Jazeera. 9 Questions You Were Too Embarrassed To Ask About Ramadan is from BuzzFeed. Ramadan: Five things you may not know is from The BBC. Ramadan Chant is from The

by Larry Ferlazzo / 47min 

Several More Useful Resources On Race

© 2010 Viktor Nagornyy, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Here are new additions to A Collection Of Useful Posts, Articles & Videos On Race & Racism: Why we still need affirmative action for African Americans in college admissions is from The Washington Post. The Major Disadvantage Facing Black Students, Even In Kindergarten is from The Huffington Post. Everyone does drugs, but only minorities ar

by Larry Ferlazzo / 21min 

The Best Posts & Articles About OECD’s Survey Of Teacher Working Conditions

#155562776 / gettyimages.com The OECD’s 2013 Teaching and Learning International Survey was recently released, and I thought I’d bring together a few good commentaries on it. You might also be interested in The Best Posts & Articles About The Importance Of Teacher (& Student) Working Conditions, since those working conditions are the focus of the OECD survey. Let me know if you have sug

by Larry Ferlazzo / 37min 

TED-Ed Video: “What you might not know about the Declaration of Independence”

Here’s a nice TED-Ed video and lesson I’m adding to The Best Websites For Learning About The Fourth Of July:

by Larry Ferlazzo / 8h 

7-2-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: Five Good Resources For Project-Based Learning© 2010 hackNY.org, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio Here are some useful additions to The Best Sites For Cooperative Learning Ideas: Personalized PBL: Student-Designed Learning is by Andrew Miller. Five Keys to Rigorous Project-Based Learning is from Edutopia. What Project-Based Le

by mike simpson / 6h 

7-3-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.:

NEA RA. A 45 minute break.

It was a long morning of speeches. There were speeches from candidates for a bunch of NEA executive offices, including President. And Dennis Van Roekel gave his farewell address as he enters the relatively large club of former NEA Presidents. He gave pretty much the same speech – although a lot longer – that he gave to the Retired conference that was – it seems like – a month ago. Although it was

1 by Fred Klonsky / 24min hide  //  save

Pension news while I was in the convention hall…

  While I am participating and covering the NEA RA, Glen, John and Ken are posting about today’s Illinois Supreme Court decision upholding the pension protection clause and ruling against the imposition of state police powers to grab our pensions. Glen Brown: “The Illinois Supreme Court ruled [6 - 1] today that subsidized health care premiums for retired state employees are protected under the Il

1 by Fred Klonsky / 51min 

Bob Lyons. Pension theft in Illinois almost certainly doomed.

- Bob Lyons represents retirees on the TRS board of trustees. THURSDAY, July 3, 2014 PENSION REFORM LAWS ALMOST CERTAINLY DOOMED HEALTH INSURANCE RULING IS CRYSTAL CLEAR In a sweeping 6-1 decision, the Illinois Supreme Court today struck down an attempt to force government retirees to pay more for their subsidized state health insurance, and in the process made it abundantly clear that the new pen

by Fred Klonsky / 17min 

Denver Thursday forecast. Sunny with intermittent blogging.

In a break between the morning Illinois caucus and the opening of the RA in an hour. Good news from back home today. The Illinois Supremes ruled 6-1 in a case involving public employee health care. They rejected the two key arguments that the state is making in the Senate Bill 1 case. They ruled against the state on both the pension protection clause of the Illinois Constitution and the state’s

by Fred Klonsky / 1min 

NEA RA. NBI on Common Core.

This NBI from the NEA Board of Directors will be voted on at the RA later this week. NEW BUSINESS ITEM C In recognition of supporting quality teaching, as well as learning over testing, NEA will work with state affiliates in states that have adopted the Common Core State Standards or other state standards to ensure that the standards are properly implemented and that educators are empowered to lea

by Fred Klonsky / 49min 

7-2-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher

Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: The view from the IEA Retired section in the back of the hall at the first Illinois caucus session yesterday.NEA RA. NBI A. Toxic testing.New Business A will be presented to the RA Thursday.   NEW BUSINESS ITEM A NEA CAMPAIGN AGAINST TOXIC TESTING NEA will conduct a comprehensive campaign to end the h

by mike simpson / 8h