Big Education Ape

Saturday, July 16, 2016

A Teacher in LAUSD Explains the Affair Rafe Esquith | Diane Ravitch's blog

A Teacher in LAUSD Explains the Affair Rafe Esquith | Diane Ravitch's blog:

A Teacher in LAUSD Explains the Affair Rafe Esquith

A 20-year veteran of the Los Angeles public school district, who is also NBCT, explains the Rafe Esquith situation here. The writer has the nom de plume of Geronimo. I know who he is; I have met him. But I am not telling.

ON RAFE ESQUITH’S SUIT AGAINST LAUSD

Education has been on trial for a long time in Los Angeles.

We have seen it in many forms, most notably in how business interests in education trump pedagogical interests on many fronts…corporate technology, standardized testing, Charter Schools and billionaire influence on public policy.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is misnamed. It is not a “unified” entity. It can be divided in two using hoary Edu-Marxism (apologies, but I beg your indulgence!). There is the 1% at the top of the District apparatus (or apparatchiks) who control and set policy and then there are the actual educators who are supposed to be the reason for the season–but have been demonized by the structure that ostensibly is supposed to support their efforts.

On Wednesday, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge Wednesday denied LAUSD request to dismiss a defamation lawsuit brought by the internationally renowned fifth-grade teacher Rafe Esquith, whom they fired last October.

A veteran of the district for over 30 years, Esquith filed the defamation lawsuit against the district in August after he was placed on paid leave and assigned to “teacher jail” pending an internal investigation after a fellow teacher complained that Esquith made a joke about nudity in front of his students in regards to the production of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” the students were performing.

Huck Finn began the entire sorry process that led to Esquith’s dismissal and the current class action suit against LAUSD; it is a top level farce that Twain would have ridiculed in his day but would not have been the least surprised about.

It is most helpful to think about the people who actually run LAUSD as proprietors of a brand that should be called LAUSD, Inc.

LAUSD, Inc. is not interested in good teaching. It is not interested in good pedagogy. It is not interested in what inspires students to want to learn.

LAUSD, Inc. is interested only in LAUSD, Inc. itself.

LAUSD Inc’s greatest concern is for its brand. The apparatus set up in LAUSD headquarters functions only to propagate a self-serving system. In Ken Kesey’s famous “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, Chief, the deaf-mute Indian narrator, calls this system “The Combine.” Not that many of the people who run LAUSD have actually read that novel, but their day-to-day priorities are very different from what Education SHOULD and COULD be; it is much more mundane–the business of Education is the Business of education.

Alas, I also can not say with any confidence that many of the District’s top brass have actually read America’s most famous novel, Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”–the literature that got him into trouble in the first place. They would insist that it wasn’t part of their job description and irrelevant to their duties.

Without going down the rabbit hole of all the anti-education, anti-teacher, anti-student policies that LAUSD, Inc. has championed over the years, let us examine this one emblematic case that sort of sums up all that is wrong with how education is viewed by the LAUSD Corporation.

Rafe Esquith’s case should give people who are interested AND vested in true, meaningful education great pause.

Depressing as this telling fact is, I will not go into how completely unsurprising that not any single District Big Shot ever could make it down to Hobart Elementary School to watch Esquith’s magic in action. The author of many acclaimed bestselling books on teaching and an A Teacher in LAUSD Explains the Affair Rafe Esquith | Diane Ravitch's blog:

Illinois high school PARCC testing violated federal law, Education Department says - Chicago Tribune

Illinois high school PARCC testing violated federal law, Education Department says - Chicago Tribune:

Illinois high school PARCC testing violated federal law, Education Department says

linois' move to get rid of a hodgepodge of high school PARCC exams and give a college entrance exam to 11th-graders was praised by educators who had pushed for change and felt their voices were heard.

But new details show there was more to the story: The testing decision announced Monday came after the U.S. Department of Education determined that Illinois had run afoul of federal law and threatened to withhold federal education dollars because of the controversial way the state tested high school students in 2015 and 2016, records show.

Not all high school students were given the same state exams in reading and math, and the Tribune reported earlier this year that some students were left off the testing rosters, including kids in special education, limited English and even gifted and honors classes.

In April, the USDE placed Illinois in what the agency calls "high-risk status" for not complying with federal testing requirements, according to correspondence provided to the Tribune Friday by the Illinois State Board of Education. That status jeopardizes student poverty-related funds that states receive from the federal government.

"My decision to place Illinois on 'high-risk' status was based on the fact that Illinois did not administer the same assessment to all high school students," said USDE official Ann Whalen in a June 14 letter.

"This ... resulted in districts throughout Illinois holding high school students to different academic content and achievement standards in reading/language arts and mathematics ... based solely on their zip code, and afforded inconsistent information to parents and the public about student achievement among districts in Illinois."

The testing problem is not related to the PARCC test given to students in grades 3-8.

Federal law requires that states give reading and math exams at least once in high school, and beginning in 2014-15, Illinois launched PARCC, short for the Partnership for Assessment in Readiness for College and Careers.

PARCC is a Common Core based exam that focuses on critical thinking and problem-solving and is designed to prepare students for college and work. Test scores have been dismal and the state tests have drawn opposition from families who questioned the amount of testing at school — part of a national movement Illinois high school PARCC testing violated federal law, Education Department says - Chicago Tribune:

What California Kids Will Learn About LGBT History | TakePart

What California Kids Will Learn About LGBT History | TakePart:

What California Kids Will Learn About LGBT History

The Golden State is the first in the nation to include prominent LGBT facts and figures in its public school curriculum.

Along with learning how to add two-digit numbers and construct intelligible sentences, second graders in the state of California will soon learn about all kinds of family structures—including those with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender parents.

This week, the California Board of Education unanimously approved a history and social studies curriculum that includes prominent LGBT figures and milestones—from the Stonewall riots of 1969 to the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2015—for public school students.

“An LGBT-inclusive curriculum helps create an environment where all students can thrive,” Rick Zbur, the executive director of Equality California, said Thursday in a press release. Zbur noted that LGBT students face higher rates of bullying and depressionthan do other kids. “By seeing themselves reflected in lessons and materials, students’ experiences are validated and their sense of self-worth reinforced, creating the opportunity for students to be able to achieve academically,” he said.

In the new curriculum, LGBT milestones will pop up in history and social studies lessons multiple times throughout elementary, middle, and high school. After the initial introduction about diverse families, fourth-grade students will learn about the emergence of gay rights advocacy groups in the 1950s and one of the nation’s first openly gay public officials, Harvey Milk. In eighth grade, students will learn about traditional gender norms and groups that rebelled against them when settling out West in the first half of the 20th century.

A more in-depth analysis comes junior year of high school, with a history curriculum that looks at attempts to weed out gay and lesbian service members from the military; surveillance of suspected gay and lesbian government officials in the 1950s; and police raids on gay bars in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City in the 1960s. Students will also learn about the U.S. Supreme Court decision to legalize same-sex marriage in 2015.

The changes to the state syllabi have been a long time coming. Equality California cosponsored the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act, which was signed into law in 2012. Its implementation lagged as conservatives argued that it should be each family’s choice if and how they teach their children about the LGBT rights movement.

Those complaints appear to have fallen silent. During an hours-long public forum this week, several families and educators objected to the ways religious groups were presented in the proposed educational plans, The Associated Press reports. No one protested the inclusion of the history of LGBT rights.What California Kids Will Learn About LGBT History | TakePart:

Education board in California include richer content on ancient India and Hinduism for the first time | India Live Today

Education board in California include richer content on ancient India and Hinduism for the first time | India Live Today:

Education board in California include richer content on ancient India and Hinduism for the first time

Washington, July 16: Education board in California in the US has approved a new school curriculum framework which will include richer content on ancient India and Hinduism for the first time and remove text inaccurately depicting Islam.

The framework, which will update and upgrade history and social science instruction in California, was developed over a period of last two years went through several rounds of public hearings and saw many controversies including the push by a group of top academics to rename ancient India with South Asia.
Much to the disappointment of a section of academicians, theboard decided in favour of India.

“While much needs to be done to bring content on Hinduism and Indian civilisation on par with other religions and civilisations, we believe that great progress has been made in the last two years,” said Sandeep Dedage, director, Hindu Education Foundation USA, expressing satisfaction over the completion of the process.

The framework now has mention of Vedic sages, Hindu teachings and philosophy, bhakti saints, music, dance, art and scientific contributions of India.

Ahead of the final hearing, Congressman Tulsi Gabbard and California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom batted for their causes.

The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson in a separate statement said the new framework will improve the teaching and learning of history and social science.

“It will give our students access to the latest historical research and help them learn about the diversity of our state and the contributions of people and groups who may not have received the appropriate recognition in the past,” he said.

In addition, information was added about financial literacy; voter education; genocide; and the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Americans and people with disabilities to the history of California and the United States, the California Department of Education said.

Many topics in the Framework sparked spirited debates, including “comfort women” in World War II, the Bataan Death March and the Battle of Manila, the roles of LGBT Americans in US and California history, the Armenian Genocide and discrimination faced by Sikh Americans, it said.

The move by a group academician to replace India with South Asia generated heated discussion among various sections and was vehemently opposed by Hindu Americans.

“We have a long way to go. But we are on our way to a bright future for a more equitable representation of Hinduism in California textbooks,” Barbara McGraw, convener of the Social Sciences and Religion Faculty Group.

While Hindu-Americans can rightly claim victory on many fronts, Hindu American Foundation senior director Samir Kalra voiced disappointment that the board was not swayed to make even a few more changes requested by Hindus.

“The board showed much sensitivity to activists representing Islam and Muslims, by adjusting the frameworks slightly to show the religion in a more positive light.”

Kalra went on to note, however, “We only wish they had shown the same empathy when discussing further changes on the presentation of Hinduism.
On the other hand, the South Asian Histories for All

(SAHFA), a multi-faith and inter-caste coalition of 8 religions and 25 organisations across California and the US, celebrated significant improvements to California’s new history and social science textbook curriculum.

The group said that despite some opposition from Hindutva groups, it managed to convince the board on several key issues.

These include the word “Dalit” is used to describe communities formerly known as “Untouchable”, caste is depicted as both a religious and social/cultural practice, caste is described as being based on birth, rather than professional ability and the Indus Valley Civilization will not be renamed “Saraswati”.

“In retaining the term ancient India, the text now defines at the start that ancient India is shorthand for the full list of nations in modern South Asia,” SAHFA said.

Muslim community groups appreciated that the B]board corrected three of the five major errors.

For example, the board decided to remove text inaccurately depicting Islam as an inherently war-mongering religion.Education board in California include richer content on ancient India and Hinduism for the first time | India Live Today:

State lawmakers suspend charter school law reform - The Philadelphia Tribune

State lawmakers suspend charter school law reform - The Philadelphia Tribune: News:

State lawmakers suspend charter school law reform

Charter school advocates will wait out the summer before renewing efforts to add new layers of transparency and accountability for the privately run, publicly funded schools.

Charter school alliances across the commonwealth blamed hard-ball politics and stalling tactics for delays in reforming how charter schools operate, including new mechanisms for oversight, monitoring, appeals process and criteria for public education dollars. The charter school bill was intended as a part of an approved state budget before both sides agreed to postpone talks on charter school reform until after the summer recess.

Pennsylvania’s Republicans wanted more avenues for charter school expansions, especially in the Philadelphia public school system, which is slowly recovering from a major budget crisis. Legislation stalled when Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf and Democratic state Sen. Vincent Hughes, who represents Philadelphia County and part of Montgomery County, opposed it.

Robert Fayfich, executive director of the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools, believes there was strong push-back from the leadership in Philadelphia public schools, which serves in the role of authorizing quality charter schools.

“There was some language regarding enrollment caps,” Fayfich said. “The school district wanted unilateral control and charter schools say no, it’s inconsistent with state law.”

In a statement released by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers union, union President Jerry Jordan called the legislation, “a very problematic piece of pro-charter school legislation” because it would essentially compromise the school district’s authority to limit charter school growth and weaken its ability to manage its budget.”

“Passage of HB 530 would have given charter school companies even more freedom to expand,” Jordan said. “PFT members have first-hand knowledge of how charter school growth has resulted in fewer resources for their students. That’s why, when HB 530 was introduced, thousands of educators wrote or called their state legislators and urged them to vote no.”

The legislation includes auditing and accountability provisions advocates have wanted for years and it would clear the way for a 10-year charter school renewal and allow multiple campuses to merge under governance of a single board, according to PennCAN, which advocates for research-based reform and school choice.

A statement released last week by the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter School laid blame on politics in Harrisburg.

“The contentions that HB 530 would allow any charter to unilaterally expand or make changes to its charter or that the legislation would loosen enrollment cap limits are simply not true, and have been created as a distraction State lawmakers suspend charter school law reform - The Philadelphia Tribune: News:

Big Education Ape: 20 reasons to vote no on Pa. HB 530 charter school reform STOP #hb1606! #phled #pabudget #hb530 - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/20-reasons-to-vote-no-on-pa-hb-530.html

Fethullah Gulen: The Islamic scholar Turkey blames for the failed coup - The Washington Post

Fethullah Gulen: The Islamic scholar Turkey blames for the failed coup - The Washington Post:

Fethullah Gulen: The Islamic scholar Turkey blames for the failed coup

The man that Turkey’s leaders have blamed for a failed coup attempt by a group of army officers is an Islamic scholar named Fethullah Gulen, who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania and who has inspired a network said to include more than 160 charter schools in the United States.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says that the coup attempt on Friday was the work of army officers who are followers of Gulen, who had once been an ally but whose movement has become critical of the increasingly authoritarian regime.

The Gulen movement denied involvement in the coup, but Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Saturday was quoted as saying the United States would support investigations to determine who instigated the attempted coup and where its support originates. He said he anticipates questions will be raised about Gulen.

[Turkey foils bloody coup attempt, closes in on remnants of renegade forces]

Although Gulen lives on a secluded compound in Pennsylvania, he has maintained influence in Turkey through followers in the judiciary and police. Turkish media reported Saturday that 2,745 judges had been removed because of suspicions they have links to the Gulen movement.

His followers have also opened many private schools around the globe, including more than 160 science, math and technology-focused public charter schools with different names in numerous states around this country.

The publicly funded charter schools — unofficially known as the Gulen charter — are believed to be operated by people, usually Turks, in or associated with the Gulen movement. Among the leading schools in the network are the Harmony schools in Texas, which have won millions of dollars in grants from the U.S. government and are among the highest-achieving in their communities. (There is also a Harmony charter school in Washington D.C.)

These schools deny any relationship to Gulen — who is said to adhere to a moderate form of Islam — and the movement denies any relationship to the schools. But Sharon Higgins, an independent researcher on the Gulen movement who has written extensively about it, has said that it is common for officials at the charter schools to deny any connection. She said there are more than 160 Gulen-inspired charters in the country now, making it one of the biggest U.S. charter school networks.

The charter schools have sparked controversy over the years, with accusations that the Turkish Fethullah Gulen: The Islamic scholar Turkey blames for the failed coup - The Washington Post:

Big Education Ape: Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It? | Diane Ravitch's blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/coup-in-turkey-is-fetullah-gulen-behind.html

Big Education Ape: KILLING ED: 120 American Charter Schools and One Secretive Turkish Cleric -http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/01/killing-ed-120-american-charter-schools.html

Big Education Ape: Update: Gulen Harmony charter school network accused of bias and self-dealing Dallas Morning News - http://go.shr.lc/1qV85Hm

Big Education Ape: Turkey Links Texas Charter Schools to Dissident - WSJ - http://go.shr.lc/1OW1ZfV

Big Education Ape: Magnolia Science Academy - A Gulen Charter School: Gulen Magnolia Science Academy links discussed at LAUSD board meeting -http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/06/magnolia-science-academy-gulen-charter.html

Friday, July 15, 2016

Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It? | Diane Ravitch's blog

Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It? | Diane Ravitch's blog:

Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It?

The news channels report that there is a military coup underway in Turkey.

The prime minister accuses Fetullah Gulen of staging the coup “from Pennsylvania.

Gulen sponsors one of the biggest charter chains in the U.S. and is one of the biggest recipients of HB-1 visas for Turkish teachers to staff his charter schools.

One report:

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Friday evening that an attempted military coup was underway. In Istanbul, bridges were immediately blocked and jets were flying low above the capital city of Ankara. Reports indicated that Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube were shut down in the country. Turkish TV showed footage of military tanks at Istanbul’s Atatürk International Airport, where suicide bombers killed more than 40 people last month. Additionally, gunfire was reportedly heard in Ankara.The Turkish Army said in a statement that it had taken over the government, however that does not mean the entire military participated in the coup attempt. “Turkish Armed Forces have completely taken over the administration of the country to reinstate constitutional order, human rights and freedoms, the rule of law and general security that was damaged,” the army said. “All international agreements are still valid. We hope that all of our good relationships with with all countries will continue.”The Turkish government denies those claims. Turkey’s justice minister says followers of a U.S. imam, Fethullah Gulen, are staging the coup. U.S. military officials seemed as surprised by the actions of their NATO partners as everyone else. A defense official told The Daily Beast: “We are watching events on television just like you are.”

Another.

Erdogan believes that the Gulenists are behind the coup.

Who knew that “public schools” would be backers of a coup in Turkey, a key ally?Coup in Turkey: Is Fetullah Gulen Behind It? | Diane Ravitch's blog:

How Gov. Mike Pence worked to undermine the will of Indiana’s voters - The Washington Post

How Gov. Mike Pence worked to undermine the will of Indiana’s voters - The Washington Post:

How Gov. Mike Pence worked to undermine the will of Indiana’s voters

Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) points to Indiana Governor Mike Pence (L) during a campaign stop at the Grand Park Events Center in Westfield, Indiana, July 12, 2016. (REUTERS/John Sommers II)

In November 2012, the voters of Indiana chose Glenda Ritz, a veteran educator, to become the state’s Superintendent of Public Instruction. Ritz, a Democrat, upset the incumbent, a Republican named Tony Bennett who had become a darling of the corporate school reform. She had campaigned against many of Bennett’s key policies, including merit pay for teachers tied to student standardized test scores, vouchers and high-stakes standardized testing. She won more votes than the governor-elect, Mike Pence and wound up as the only Democrat holding statewide office in the conservative state.

Pence — who has just been chosen by the Republican presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump to be on his ticket as vice president — was upset with the voters’ choice. Pence quickly declared that he supports “the policies and the progress we’ve made on education,” and, the Evansville Courier & Press reported back then, that he and and the outgoing governor, Mitch Daniels, “began to outline strategies to keep Ritz from reversing policies she campaigned against.”

And Pence, as governor, did just that.

[Republicans hate Obamacare. But Mike Pence expanded it in Indiana.]

In 2013, Pence created a new education agency in Indiana to help further his own education agenda. It was called the Center for Innovation and Career Education, and, by executive order signed by the governor, had its own dedicated funding from state agencies and could apply federal funds as well. Ritz said she found out about its creation from news reports, not from the governor himself.

In 2014, however, Pence decided to dissolve the new agency he had created even as he made a move to have Ritz removed as chair of the State Board of Education. He successfully pushed a 2015 change in state law to make the chair of the state board not the democratically elected How Gov. Mike Pence worked to undermine the will of Indiana’s voters - The Washington Post:

Big Education Ape: Koch Brothers’ Friends Funding Mike Pence | Hoosier School Heist Blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2015/07/koch-brothers-friends-funding-mike.html

Big Education Ape: Schools Matter: The Real Story Behind Mike Pence’s Charter School Speech - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2015/07/schools-matter-real-story-behind-mike.html

Big Education Ape: The bigot Mike Pence and his neighbor Bruce Rauner. | Fred Klonsky - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-bigot-mike-pence-and-his-neighbor.html

Big Education Ape: BREAKING NEWS - Trump goes with anti-public education running mate - Wait What? - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/breaking-news-trump-goes-with-anti.html

Big Education Ape: The big trouble in Indiana public schools, as explained by a troubled educator - The Washington Post - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/02/the-big-trouble-in-indiana-public.html

Hoosier School Heist TV is Doug Martin's channel featuring videos of his book tour across Indiana speaking on the corporate takeover of public education. Order Hoosier School Heist at http://hoosierschoolheist.com/.

Follow Hoosier School Heist on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HoosierSchoolHeist

Tweet with Doug Martin at: https://twitter.com/DougMartinED

Destabilize & Replace - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

Destabilize & Replace - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:

Destabilize & Replace - Teacher in a Strange Land

A tweet from Randi Weingarten (@rweingarten), after the DFER vs. actual progressives dust-up over the education plank of the Democratic platform:

#DemPlatform on charters: oppose 4 profits, accountable, transparent, teach all kids & they neither destabilize nor --not replace--pub schls

Lots of folks have written cogent and thoughtful analyses on the issue of how both parties should be re-thinking federal education in their platform documents, instead of offering up sanctimonious blah-blah around "fixes" that end up lining someone's pocket. Here, here, here and here, for example--all worth perusing as we consider what it means for a political party to resist "destabilizing and replacing" public schools. (And yes, I do realize that political platforms are not policy, and often have hope-and-change value equivalent to toilet paper: flimsy and disposable.)

But the phrase keeps coming back to me. The rest of the tweet and platform language consists of weasel words that have lost their original meanings in intra-party ed reform debates.

The education community is thoroughly--depressingly-- familiar with the term "accountable." It's about being constrained to account for easily measured outcomes. It's evaluation of teachers by student test scores. It's shutdowns and turnarounds and pick a bale of cotton, because taxpayers are unhappy about funding the distasteful results of deep and ugly poverty.

So--we're encouraged to hold educators accountable--a different descriptor entirely from the one teachers and school leaders prefer: responsible. All schoolteachers know, intimately, what accountability means, in practice. Plus--the media consistently bungles the reporting.

We also know how easy it is for non-profit organizations, even those with good intentions, to take what they need to self-perpetuate, all while wearing white hats as a nominal do-gooders. For-profit charters are just a bit more...transparent about their bottom-line goals.

And speaking of transparency--does that mean we'll be getting more information on how charters are formed, funded and held accountable themselves? In Michigan, charter authorizers get 3% off the top, from taxpayer dollars, simply for saying they'll authorize, then monitor charters. That's a huge disincentive for universities, community colleges, intermediate and local districts to bring the hammer down on an obviously failing charter.

Not having democratically elected school boards? The antithesis of transparency. Does this mean there will be a push to tighten and delineate tougher charter policy, a state-by-state proposition? Doubtful.

Still--the obvious, flashing bit of cognitive dissonance here is the phrase "destabilize and replace." The very heart and soul of opening charter schools is the word school marketeers build their fortunes on: Disruption.

Disruption is sexy and rebellious. Those old factory-model schools with their desks in rows and hidebound veteran teachers! Let's do something new! And digital! Something that will appeal to the Destabilize & Replace - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher:

Big Education Ape: Stop celebrating disruption | The Australian - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2013/08/stop-celebrating-disruption-australian.html

Big Education Ape: The Danger of Creative Disruption as a School Reform Theory | janresseger - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-danger-of-creative-disruption-as.html

Big Education Ape: The D-List Reformer Does Disruption | EduShyster - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-d-list-reformer-does-disruption.html

Big Education Ape: Keep Your 'Disruption' Out of Our Schools | Diane Ravitch - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2013/08/keep-your-disruption-out-of-our-schools.html

Big Education Ape: The Disruption Machine: What the gospel of innovation gets wrong - The New Yorker - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-disruption-machine-what-gospel-of.html

Big Education Ape: The Trouble with “Disruption” and its Effect on Children - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2015/10/the-trouble-with-disruption-and-its.html

Big Education Ape: A Handbook for Creative Disruption of the Public Sector — Yikes! | janresseger - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2014/08/a-handbook-for-creative-disruption-of.html

Big Education Ape: Just Released: My 3rd Book, School Choice: The End of Public Education? | deutsch29 - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/07/just-released-my-3rd-book-school-choice.html

Big Education Ape: The Disruption of America's (Broken) Education System - The Atlantic - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-disruption-of-americas-broken.html

How charter schools in Michigan have hurt traditional public schools, new research finds - The Washington Post

How charter schools in Michigan have hurt traditional public schools, new research finds - The Washington Post:

How charter schools in Michigan have hurt traditional public schools, new research finds

How do some charter schools affect the traditional school districts in which they are located? Disastrously in some cases, as a new study about Michigan schools shows.

The study, “Which Districts Get Into Financial Trouble and Why: Michigan’s Story,” finds that among Michigan districts, “80 percent of the explained variation in district fiscal stress is due to changes in districts’ state funding, to enrollment changes including those associated with school choice policies, and to the enrollment of high-cost special education students.” A working paper was released last November and the study will be published in the fall edition of the Journal of Education Finance.

In the following post, Jennifer Berkshire, author of the EduShyster website, interviews the lead author of the study, David Arsen, a professor in the Department of Educational Administration College of Education at Michigan State University about the research and its implications for charter school expansion in other places. He notes in the interview that “overwhelmingly, the biggest financial impact on school districts was the result of declining enrollment and revenue loss, especially where school choice and charters are How charter schools in Michigan have hurt traditional public schools, new research finds - The Washington Post:

School corporal punishment legislation gridlocked on Capitol Hill

School corporal punishment legislation gridlocked on Capitol Hill:

School corporal punishment legislation gridlocked on Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) It’s a bill that remains held up in Congress, having a daily effect on children.

For almost a year, legislation that would end corporal punishment in schools remains on the back burner. Right now, only democratic lawmakers have signed onto a bill that would stop it.

Congressman Dave Loebsack (D-IA) is a cosponsor of H.R. 2268, a bill that would end corporal punishment in schools. It was sent to the House subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education last year, and hasn’t budged.

"To me it’s an absolute no-brainer,” said Loebsack. "We know that corporal punishment is not effective. It doesn’t do the job that they claim that it does.”

Congressman Buddy Carter (R-GA) sits on that subcommittee.

"Certainly corporal punishment is something we need to look at and we need to weigh in on, and we will certainly do that as time goes on,” said Carter.

How much time will that take?

"That’s up to the subcommittee Chairman and whether they want to act on it or not,” said Carter. "It has not come before us yet, and whether it does or not will be up to the Chairman.”

Off Capitol Hill, there’s been support from education organizations like the American Federation of Teachers.

“Our students cannot learn unless they feel physically and emotionally safe,” said AFT in a statement. "Physical discipline does nothing to help students solve conflicts or address problems, and it teaches students that violence is acceptable.”

Loebsack says lawmakers need to act now.

"So long as that kind of activity is occurring in the schools, we’re seeing children harmed,” said Loebsack.

As of now, there’s still no timeline as to when the subcommittee will take up Loebsack’s bill.

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