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Sunday, March 12, 2017

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 3/12/17


Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 3/12/17
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Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube




Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools : Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools (Editor's note: you are welcome to chime in with ideas, feedback, whatever. You are welcome to disagree with my viewpoint. You are not welcome to personally attack me. I should not have to say that but there are a few people who have made it their mission to deny my own ethnic background for the
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One)
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One) : Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One) Where are we with charter schools in Washington State? - the latest lawsuit against the current charter law was turned down by the King County Superior Court (who also left the door open for it to be revisited). The plaintiffs have no
Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin
Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin : NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin Here are all the parts of this series so far: - Prelude I was in Franklin, NJ a few weeks ago for a panel on charter school expansion . The town already has two charters, and a third is in the works (founded by, of all people, a winner on The Apprentice) . One of the schools curre
An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education | Seattle Education
An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education | Seattle Education : An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education The reason that I use Lisa Delpit’s term “other people’s children” here is to underline the point that few if any Relay staff and advocates for the program in the policy community would accept a Relay teacher for their own children. Ke
Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice | BustED Pencils
Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice | BustED Pencils : Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice Feature Interview: Rivera Sun joins us to talk about the Norwegian Teacher Resistance to the Nazi Occupation of 1942. Matt Damon’s Mom surprise visit. BustED Pencils VIP : Denisha Jones of DEY talks about what Early Childhood Centers in American can tell us about the future
John Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention - This Week In Education
This Week In Education: Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention - Linkis.com : Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention This is a fascinating time for Oklahoma schools. As school funding was cut by more than 20% over the last five years, and in the face of a $610 million state budget shortfall, out-of-state corporate reformers , ranging f
Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube
Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube : Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube :
The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment
The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment : The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment Please join Internet radio host Dr. James Avington Miller Jr. for a special three year anniversary show. The show will assess the War Report in 2016 and 2017. D r. Miller will be discussing the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY. We will assess what did and did not happen, the state of the war
Spring Forward with Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all : Spring Forward with Diane Ravitch's blog A site to discuss better education for all What Funding Cuts to the Arts and Humanities Can Buy for the Military by dianeravitch / 12min Trump has promised to add more than $50 billion to the military budget, which will be paid for by budget cuts. Among the federal agencies on the chopping
GOP lawmakers refuse to protect LGBT students and those with disabilities in school voucher bill - The Washington Post
GOP lawmakers refuse to protect LGBT students and those with disabilities in school voucher bill - The Washington Post : GOP lawmakers refuse to protect LGBT students and those with disabilities in school voucher bill There was something buried in the news that a U.S. House committee had just advanced a bill renewing federally funded school vouchers in Washington — the only such program in the co
“Trapped in a History They Do Not Understand” | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
“Trapped in a History They Do Not Understand” | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice : “Trapped in a History They Do Not Understand” They are in effect still trapped in a history which they do not understand and until they understand it, they cannot be released from it. James Baldwin referred to white people when he said “they.” Examples that he cited then and since along with a la
CURMUDGUCATION: Frontline: Your Large Brotherly Data Service + Can You Afford To Become a Teacher?
CURMUDGUCATION: Frontline: Your Large Brotherly Data Service : Frontline: Your Large Brotherly Data Service I recently covered the launching of The Line , a new website helmed by Disgraced LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy and dedicated to the proposition that Chiefs for Change should have an avenue to keep pumping out warmed-over education reform baloney. As soon as I started digging, I realized I
Sunday in Brooklyn. | Fred Klonsky
Sunday in Brooklyn. | Fred Klonsky : Sunday in Brooklyn. The footage shows Mr. Brown entering the store, Ferguson Market and Liquor, shortly after 1 a.m. on the day he died. He approaches the counter, hands over an item that appears to be a small bag and takes a shopping sack filled with cigarillos. Mr. Brown is shown walking toward the door with the sack, then turning around and handing the ciga
Ed Notes Online: Shaun King: Using 'working-class voters' as shorthand for white people is insulting and rooted in racism
Ed Notes Online: Shaun King: Using 'working-class voters' as shorthand for white people is insulting and rooted in racism : Shaun King: Using 'working-class voters' as shorthand for white people is insulting and rooted in racism Something ugly happens when "working class" becomes shorthand for white. It projects the very distinct impression that working people are white. ... Please stop saying th
Teacher Quality: A Reader in 2017 | radical eyes for equity
Teacher Quality: A Reader in 2017 | radical eyes for equity : Teacher Quality: A Reader in 2017 Let me start with a full disclosure: Lawrence Baines is a colleague and friend with whom I have collaborated on several book projects and presentations. So I want to offer some friendly concerns about his thoughtful When ‘Highly Qualified’ Teachers Aren’t in Education Week . Baines open with: “Recent r
Right-wing billionaires want to rewrite our Constitution — and they’re frighteningly close to pulling it off
Right-wing billionaires want to rewrite our Constitution — and they’re frighteningly close to pulling it off : Right-wing billionaires want to rewrite our Constitution — and they’re frighteningly close to pulling it off Imagine if the U.S. Constitution barred the EPA and Department of Education from existing. All union protections are dead, there are no more federal workplace safety standards, an
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Endless Winter Edition + Catch up with CURMUDGUCATION
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Endless Winter Edition (3/12) : ICYMI: Endless Winter Edition As always, I encourage you to share and boost the signal of anything you read here. It's Testing Season. Ethics, Anyone? Sarah Lahm highlights just two of the jaw-dropping abuses done in the name of the Big Standardized Test this year (so far). Out There Annie Tan with a short, simple, powerful meditation on putt
Massachusetts Paraeducator Named 2017 NEA ESP of the Year - NEA Today
Massachusetts Paraeducator Named 2017 NEA ESP of the Year - NEA Today : Massachusetts Paraeducator Named 2017 NEA ESP of the Year 2017 NEA ESP of the Year Saul Ramos Like many multi-skilled people with a wide range of interests, Saul Ramos is hard to peg. While Ramos has demonstrated his ability as a paraeducator and union leader within Worcester Public Schools in Massachusetts and nationally thr
NYC Educator: Can You Teach an Old Democrat New Tricks?
NYC Educator: Can You Teach an Old Democrat New Tricks? : Can You Teach an Old Democrat New Tricks? Shaun King has a lucid and chilling column on the future of the Democratic Party--or lack thereof. At a time when Donald Trump is the least popular starting President, the Democrats and Hillary Clinton have managed to make themselves even less popular. That's a remarkable achievement. King explains
Congress Frees Public Schools From Federal Test & Punish – Where’s the Catch? | gadflyonthewallblog
Congress Frees Public Schools From Federal Test & Punish – Where’s the Catch? | gadflyonthewallblog : Congress Frees Public Schools From Federal Test & Punish – Where’s the Catch? Let’s say you were kidnapped and kept in a small basement room where you were routinely beaten and starved. Then after years of this treatment, your captors brought in a massage table and offered you a filet mignon afte
Is Louisiana’s NAEP Miracle ‘Significant’? | Gary Rubinstein's Blog
Is Louisiana’s NAEP Miracle ‘Significant’? | Gary Rubinstein's Blog : Is Louisiana’s NAEP Miracle ‘Significant’? In a recent Washington Post editorial, Mitchell Chester and John White, wrote about their successes in turning around low performing schools. Chester and White are both members of the organization Jeb Bush founded called Chiefs For Change . Most of the members are actually former chief
Texas Ed Commissioner Abruptly Suspends Operations of SASIC Charter Schools Due to Apparent Criminal Background Check and Health Violations | deutsch29
Texas Ed Commissioner Abruptly Suspends Operations of SASIC Charter Schools Due to Apparent Criminal Background Check and Health Violations | deutsch29 : Texas Ed Commissioner Abruptly Suspends Operations of SASIC Charter Schools Due to Apparent Criminal Background Check and Health Violations On March 08, 2017, Texas Commissioner of Education Mike Morath suspended the operations of San Antonio-ba
Badass Teachers Association: The Blinders of Partisanship: How Republicans and Democrats Miss the Point – We’re All Being Screwed by Steven Singer
Badass Teachers Association: The Blinders of Partisanship: How Republicans and Democrats Miss the Point – We’re All Being Screwed by Steven Singer : The Blinders of Partisanship: How Republicans and Democrats Miss the Point – We’re All Being Screwed by Steven Singer Originally posted at: https://gadflyonthewallblog.wordpress.com/2017/03/11/the-blinders-of-partisanship-how-republicans-and-democrat

YESTERDAY

Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 3/11/17
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 3/11/17 Featured Post Suspending California students costs the state billions, report finds | EdSource Ms. Katie's Ramblings: The Case for Striking by mike simpson / 5min Ms. Katie's Ramblings: 


Top Posts This Week




Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools:

 Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools



(Editor's note: you are welcome to chime in with ideas, feedback, whatever.  You are welcome to disagree with my viewpoint.  You are not welcome to personally attack me.  I should not have to say that but there are a few people who have made it their mission to deny my own ethnic background for their own purposes.  This thread is about this subject, not me.)

You may have seen the article on KUOW that the district is considering a proposal from the NAACP for ethnic studies throughout Seattle schools and that it be a graduation requirement.  


"In Washington state, it’s mandatory that you have to teach Native American history, but it’s not mandatory that you have to teach ethnic studies for other cultures," said Rita Green, the NAACP Education Chair. (Tribal history became mandatory in 2015.)
Given that Native Americans were here for a much longer time than anyone else, that 2015 date is not all that impressive.  


The NAACP proposal does not strictly define ethnic studies, but the subject is often described as an interdisciplinary study of power, race, ethnicity and national origin, often including gender and sexual orientation, from the perspectives of marginalized groups.

Last year, Portland Public Schools made ethnic studies part of the required high school curriculum. And there’s a bill in the Washington state legislature to create a model ethnic studies curriculum for middle and high school students. That’s something California will soon do for its high schools.

The NAACP’s model would go further, and make ethnic studies part of required courses at every school in Seattle, and a graduation requirement. The roll-out would begin in 2017, and be in full effect in 2019. 
Director Rick Burke, Chair of the Curriculum and Instruction Committee, has Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ethnic Studies in Seattle Schools:



Ethnic Studies Now Coalition http://bit.ly/24vIwvP

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One)

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One):

Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One)


Where are we with charter schools in Washington State?

- the latest lawsuit against the current charter law was turned down by the King County Superior Court (who also left the door open for it to be revisited).  The plaintiffs have not yet announced whether they will continue on at this time or wait for a time of "ripeness."

- There are currently eight charter schools operating in Washington State, two in Seattle.

- There are currently three charter schools scheduled to open in 2017. 

Via the Charter Commission:
Willow Public School in Walla Walla (the first that the Commission has opened in Eastern Washington)
 Summit's Atlas 6-12 School in West Seattle (Summit has two high schools; Sierra in Seattle and Olympus in Tacoma.)
Green Dot's 6-12 School, somewhere in Seattle, tbd. (GD has a middle school in Tacoma.)

Submitted Notices of Intent to apply for new charter schools submitted to the Charter Commission (applications due March 31).
Impact: Seattle -  I note that the filer is Jen Wickens, a former TFAer, who works for Summit.  Impact seems to be a school group created for low-income students of color.

Christine Wright heads this group and was a former teacher at a KIPP charter school for a year, then in SPS for a year and then Issaquah for two years.  Previous to that she taught at Lakeside.


Launching K-5 public charter micro schools in the Seattle area via Cascade Micro Schools.

Incubating our first public charter elementary school to open Fall 2018. The school's mission is to prepare students of diverse backgrounds to lead communities as empowered creators who invent the world in which they want to live.
New Horizons Academy.  The filer is Dr. Wanda Billingsly and it appears this K-5 school will operate in the south Puget Sound Region.  Dr. Billingsly is currently the CEO/Executive Director at First Place School ( a private school which had been the first charter school opened in the state but left the charter world). 

(Partial) New Horizons Academy strives to address the opportunity gap for marginalized student populations (under-performing and under-identified gifted).  

Washington College Prep.  A 6-12 school to open in Everett.  This would be the first charter to open in northern Puget Sound.  It has a fairly bland statement on their mission.

Whole Elephant Chinese Charter School.  A K-12 school, it says it will be affiliated with UW and Benaroya Research Institute.  The filer is Dr. Lotus King Weiss with a New York state phone number.  


To establish an innovative education system which integrates the most frontier science of the West with the ancient science of mind-body-spirit from the East, with the goal to bring out the Master within each child whose unique passion and talent will be cultivated to blossom and whose mind will be cultivated to reach true maturity with great wisdom of human life and the universe.
Some interesting "applicant questions" submitted to the Charter Commission:


Are charters allowed to develop Private Placement Memoranda to gain private funds?
The short answer: no.

Can we issue Certificates of Participation? The short answer:
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Washington State Charter Schools Update (Plus a New Private One):


Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin:

NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin



Here are all the parts of this series so far:

Prelude


I was in Franklin, NJ a few weeks ago for a panel on charter school expansion. The town already has two charters, and a third is in the works (founded by, of all people, a winner on The Apprentice). One of the schools currently open, Central Jersey College Prep Charter School, has been granted a huge expansion by the NJDOE. This expansion is part of what appears to be a rush to swell charter enrollments across the state before Chris Christie leaves office next year.

What's so discouraging about the Franklin charter expansion is that the community has been split apart. The charter families feel they have been served well by their schools, and want to see them grow. The families of public district school students, on the other hand, rightly worry that the charters are harming their district's finances.

This tension is being played out across the state and across the nation: charter families' demand for "choice" inherently conflicts with public district school families' demand for adequately funded schools. There are also the interests of other taxpayers, who want efficient schools and worry that charters, because they are redundant andusually inefficiently small, waste funds that could be used to either expand programs or reduce taxes.

The conflict is so great that citizens in towns like Franklin are now bringing civil rights complaints against charters, alleging the charters enroll a fundamentally different student Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charter Schools - A Fool's Gold Rush: Franklin:




An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education | Seattle Education

An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education | Seattle Education:

An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education

Image result for big education ape Relay Graduate School of Education

 Image result for big education ape Relay Graduate School of Education
rejectrelayfinal-1
The reason that I use Lisa Delpit’s term “other people’s children” here is to underline the point that few if any Relay staff and advocates for the program in the policy community would accept a Relay teacher for their own children.
Ken Zeichner is the Boeing Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Washington. He is a member of the National Academy of Education and a Fellow at the National Education Policy Center at the University of Colorado.
A former elementary teacher and longtime teacher educator in NY, Wisconsin, and Seattle, his work has focused on creating and implementing more democratic models of teacher preparation that engage the expertise of local communities, K-12 educators and university academics in preparing high quality professional teachers for everyone’s children.
He has also challenged the privatization of K-12 schools and teacher education by exposing the ways in which venture philanthropy has sought to steer public policy in education, and the ways in which research has been misused to support the privatization process. His new book “The Struggle for the Soul of Teacher Education” will be published later this year by Routledge.
This interview took place via email between January and February of 2017. It’s presented in full, with only very slight editing for style.
Editor’s Note: On March 8th, the Senate  voted to roll back the Obama Administration teacher education regulations. Ken contacted me to say this regulatory change will NOT affect what he said in this interview about Relay and the teacher preparation academy provisions in ESSA.  -Carolyn Leith
As an introduction, could you explain for our readers: What is the Relay Graduate School of Education and why we should be concerned.
Relay Graduate School of Education is an independent institution not affiliated with a legitimate college or university that prepares new teachers and principals and provides 
An Interview with Kenneth Zeichner: Relay Graduate School of Education | Seattle Education:


Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice | BustED Pencils

Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice | BustED Pencils:

Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice 

Image result for Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice




Feature Interview: Rivera Sun joins us to talk about the Norwegian Teacher Resistance to the Nazi Occupation of 1942.
Matt Damon’s Mom surprise visit.
BustED Pencils VIP: Denisha Jones of DEY talks about what Early Childhood Centers in American can tell us about the future of school choice.
Two Trending News Stories and of course Moment of Zinn.
Let’s Bust Some Pencils!
Episode 29: Book Banning, Nazi Resistance and Choice | BustED Pencils:


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Recent Posts

Jewell Elementary Offers PARCC (CMAS) Incentives

On Friday, March 3rd, Jewell Elementary parents received a letter regarding PARCC incentives. Yes – it’s THAT time of year. Many Colorado schools refer to PARCC as CMAS. To catch new readers up to speed before I launch into the information about PARCC incentives, let me give you a quick recap. I taught at Jewell… Read more »

Fired For A Day. Guest post by Michelle Gunderson.

Our school system is falling apart, and what solution do Rahm Emanuel and his appointed school CEO, Forrest Claypool have? Firing us for four days. It might seem as an extreme statement, but that is essentially what we are experiencing. Chicago teachers have been furloughed for four days, and today is one of them. Our… Read more »



John Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention - This Week In Education

This Week In Education: Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention - Linkis.com:

Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention

Image result for Oklahoma Education Battles

This is a fascinating time for Oklahoma schools. As school funding was cut by more than 20% over the last five years, and in the face of a $610 million state budget shortfall, out-of-state corporate reformers, ranging from the American Federation for Children and ALEC to the Parent Revolution, have stepped up their attacks on traditional public schools. The most noteworthy assaults include the secretive local effort to cut funding for Oklahoma City Public Schools to pay for tax breaks for the downtown corporate elites, and the now-defeated state voucher bill.
On the other hand, a grass roots rebellion by parents against high-stakes testing swept out the former Chief for Change Janet Baressi. Now, State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister has rebuilt the partnerships with professional educators, started a public dialogue, and taken the first steps towards ending the test, sort, and punish policies that have been wrecking our schools.
A growing body of education bloggers along with innovative media outlets like the Red Dirt Report and Oklahoma Watch, as well as more Old School progressive institutions such as the Oklahoma Observer, the Oklahoma Gazette, and the Oklahoma Policy Institute, are publicizing the facts that, previously, the conservative press never deemed fit to print.
This week, the venerable Oklahoma Observer, under its masthead which promises to “Comfort the Afflicted and Afflict the Comfortable,” published an email informing Oklahoma City staff about SB 68 which had quietly passed the state Senate. (Scroll to the bottom of the post to read the memo.) It would allow Oklahoma City and Tulsa to unilaterally authorize charters. Republican Sen. David Holt emailed, “I wanted to give you a brief heads-up on a bill that passed the Senate today that has flown a bit under the radar, and that’s partly by design. But, the progress it is making might eventually be noticed, and I want you to hear from me what is intended. If it becomes law, it is a game changer for our city.”
Holt then explained, “Here at the Capitol, I have not portrayed the bill as a request bill, which of course it is not. I have told my colleagues it is important that OKC not publicly ask for the bill, as that may cause tension in the relationship with OKCPS.”


The rationale for this secretive effort to allow the city to compete with the school system is, “You meet with OKCPS, and they promise to do better, but you have a different perspective than OKCPS. They want their current school sites to succeed, and that’s a worthy goal, but that is the extent of their ambition.”
But, the Red Dirt Report’s Brett Dickerson reports that City Councilman Dr. Ed Shadid broke with This Week In Education: Thompson: Oklahoma Education Battles Are Worthy of National Attention - Linkis.com:


 Image result for Oklahoma Education

Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube

Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube:

Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. 





Patti The Parent Teacher Conference Helper Doll.. - YouTube:

The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment

The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment:

The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment

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Please join Internet radio host Dr. James Avington Miller Jr. for a special three year anniversary show. The show will assess the War Report in 2016 and 2017. Dr. Miller will be discussing the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY.

We will assess what did and did not happen, the state of the war (winning, losing ground ), what we did and didn't do to fight a good fight, were we all talk and no real action, and what was the best and worst of Dr. Miller and The War Repot. This will be a deep inspection of the work The War Report completed, attempted to complete, and failed to complete.

Finally, Dr. Miller will offer a tribute TO THE LADIES WHO ARE THE WAR REPORT.

Please join us and listen and call in. You are what makes our show live and breathe week after week.

Knowledge is power!

RESISTANCE MATTERS
RESISTANCE IS NOT FUTILE
RESISTANCE IS THE HIGHEST FORM OF EXPRESSION OF DEMOCRACY
RESISTANCE IS SURVIVAL



Please click on the website below to listen live:
http://bbsradio.com/thewarreport



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 The War Report on Education 2016- 2017 - An Assessment: