Secretary of State Rex Tillerson used a secondary email with an alias “Wayne Tracker.” He used it to communicate with Exxon board meters about sensitive matters like climate change. A year of emails has disappeared! “Exxon Mobil
Mercedes Schneider comments here o n the Senate GOP decision not to move forward with Hanna Skandera as Assistant Secretary of Education for Elementary and Secondary Education because of her Common Core love.
Politico reported this morning that Hanna Skandera, the Commissioner of Education in New Mexico, cannot be confirmed because of her advocacy for Common Core. Skandera is a protege of Jeb Bush. Although she has never been a
Peter Greene reports here on a sad tale of education policy in Florida, where stupidity grows faster than citrus fruit. As you may recall, Florida is one of the states with a third grader retention law, declaring that third graders cannot
Governor Scott Walker has been a champion of vouchers and charters. He has pushed hard to expand vouchers for religious schools. Some districts will not even lose students but will have to raise taxes to pay for voucher students. http://www.jsonline.com/story/news/education/2017/03/21/tensions-rise-vouchers-pick-up-traction-across-wisconsin/98177206/ “When Superintendent Sue Kaphingst moved to Ch
Nicholas Tampio is a professor of political science in New York, and a parent of children in public schools. He warns that the State Education Department has a campaign to stop opt out from testing, based on bullying and intimidation. He writes: “All across New York, superintendents and principals have sent versions of the following statements to parents whose children are in grades 3-8 and are s
The Republicans are set to expand the D.C. Voucher program, even though no evaluation has shown better test scores for D.C. voucher students and a high attrition rate. Students who get a voucher will check their constitutional rights at the door. The voucher schools may exclude students with disabilities and LGBT students. DeVos doesn’t care. Republicans have already started moving HR 1387, the S
John Merrow hears that the Department of Education in a state of confusion . “From one perspective, these are the worst of times for American public education. In his inaugural address, President Trump told the nation that we have an “education system flush with cash but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of all knowledge.” His proposed budget acts on his words, cutting federa
Charles Blow wrote an important article Day about the Trump campaign’s breath-taking lies. https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/03/23/opinion/birth-of-the-biggest-lie.html “A few things are clear after the congressional testimony of James Comey, the F.B.I. director, this week: “First, Donald Trump owes Barack Obama and the American people an apology for his vituperative lie that Obama committed a felo
Just when you thought we were done with discussing, debating, and dissecting grit, the New York Times publishes an article about those “character strengths” that affluent children seem to have more of. Thomas Edsall writes about the subject here. While there are substantial numbers of low-income children who have strength of character, the measures used continue to show that income and whatever i
The National Coucil for Teacher Quality issued a report calling for higher admission standards for entrants into teaching, specifically, higher SAT and ACT scores. This report was reviewed on behalf of the National Education Policy Center. It is interesting and strange that so many people think that scores on the SAT or ACT have remarkable predictive powers. The cardinal rule of psychometric is t
Betsy DeVos just reversed an Obama administration rule that limited the fees that student debt collectors can charge, and one of the beneficiaries has a direct connection to her. As we are learning, making money is a sign of virtue in DeVos’s world, and the more money, the more virtue. Americans who default on some of their federal student loans are likely to pay more after Education Secretary Be
The Los Angeles Times published an article exposing the bloated expenses and income of the CEO of the Celerity Charter chain. No shame or embarrassment. The charter chain defended the CEO’s salary and perks. http://www.latimes.com/local/education/la-me-edu-celerity-response-20170321-story.html
In Oklahoma, the public schools are under-funded, and teachers are buying their own supplies in many schools. Last fall, a number of teachers ran for legislative seats. Needless to say, none of them was lavishly funded. But their opponents had the backing of Betsy DeVos’ American Federation for Children. How AFC can be “for” children when they oppose funding their schools and paying their teacher
Bob Schaeffer of FairTest reports on testing news from across the nation. Responding to escalating grassroots pressure against standardized exam overkill, many state legislatures and education boards are advancing plans reduce testing overuse and misuse. Close monitoring by constituents is necessary to ensure that high-sounding proposals are actually implemented. National Tell Your State to Consu
Dana Goldstein, one of the best education writers, now reports for the New York Times. In this article , she describes the rush to expand vouchers for religious schools in Iowa. You don’t have to look far to find funding by Betsy DeVos and the Koch brothers. “Despite Republican control of the governor’s mansion and both houses of the State Legislature, proposals to significantly expand school cho
Here is a recap of the debate between Julian Vasquez Heilig and Christopher Stewart of the Walton-funded “Education Post.” The proposition debated was “Charters and Vouchers are the answer.”
Texas legislators became suspicious when the letters began pouring advocating for vouchers. Some investigation revealed that they were fraudulent. “Several members of the House have received hundreds of fraudulent letters addressed from constituents asking them to vote for education savings accounts. “State Rep. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, was suspicious when his office fielded 520 letters between
The first Earth Day occurred in 1970, and it raised awareness of the importance of protecting the environment. Now, more than ever, we must all stand together to support the environment, to defend science, to denounce fake theories, and to protect the earth. The Trump administration thinks that climate change is a hoax. Trump’s budget makes deep cuts in the budget of the Environmental Protection
I have often criticized economist Raj Chetty for his study claiming that teachers in elementary school who “produce” test score gains affect the lifetime earnings of their students. This study, which he conducted with two other economists, supported Arne Duncan’s obsession with measuring teacher effectiveness by test scores of their student, a practice that was repeatedly debunked by scholarly or
Teachers organizations from across the state of California have formed an alliance to fight for genuine School reform. CALIFORNIA: 8 Teacher Union Locals Unite Against the Trump/DeVos Agenda, Fight for Public Schools through Collective Bargaining, Community Power United around common struggles and a shared vision, The California Alliance for Community Schools is a groundbreaking coalition of educ
Audrey Amrein-Beardsley has devoted a large portion of her professional life to criticizing the work of William Sanders, creator of the value-added model for measuring teacher effectiveness. She reports in this post that he passed away at his Tennessee home at the age of 74. Sanders’ model was tried out first in Tennessee in the late 1980s and then widely disseminated to other states. Many teache
On Wednesday night, there will be a debate about school choice at the Notre Dame Law School. South Bend, Indiana. Robin Potter, a lawyer,will support the importance of public schools. John Schoenig of Notre Dame will defend school choice. Wednesday night March 22 at 5:30 pm. If you can attend, contact Robin
Parents strongly object to report calling for local funding of special education
State Board of Education President Michael Kirst called a report urging California officials to dismantle the current special education funding system “provocative and bold.” After listening to two hours of the public’s reactions at a hearing in Redwood City last week, Kirst could add the phrase “and feared.”
Parents of children with disabilities and special education teachers and administrators said they oppose the recommendation, which would eliminate direct funding of regional agencies that currently allocate special education money, coordinate services and monitor complaints. Under the proposal, the money would be sent directly to school districts to administer, as recommended in a report by the Public Policy Institute of California.
The institute, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization, concluded that adding special education to the Local Control Funding Formula would be consistent with the principle of holding school districts accountable for the progress of all students. Students with disabilities would become another category of students receiving extra dollars, along with English learners, low-income children and foster youths. The amount of special education dollars wouldn’t change, but districts, which already fill in large gaps in federal and state special education funding, would have more latitude in deciding how to spend some of the money.
That prospect made parents nervous. As they had in two raucous hearings in Sacramento and Los Angeles, parents of special education students were emphatic that districts shouldn’t be trusted to do right for children who require expensive services for disabilities. Some exceeded their three-minute testimony limit to detail their anguishing battles with districts over services for their children. They said they were angry that researchers didn’t ask them for their perspectives. Only then, parents said, would the researchers understand why parents are worried about the proposal that would give districts more control over dollars.
How much less are Baltimore traditional schools getting next year?
That’s a question People for Public Schools put back on the table at the March 21 meeting of the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. Representing People for Public Schools, Edit Barry read the following statement:
Dear Dr. Santelises and Members of the Board of School Commissioners,
We would like to call attention to the funding disparity between projected cuts to per-pupil funding at charter and traditional schools. We know that under the $129M deficit scenario, the cut to the charter per pupil across the board was a 5% reduction over last year. Traditional schools were cut around 20%. In terms of per pupil dollars, we understand that to mean that before ELL, Special Education, and Fair Student Funding weights are added to school budgets, charter schools would receive $8,778 per student. Traditional schools would receive $4,585. Even allowing for the fact that the District plans to charge charter schools for more services than it has previously, these cuts, in all likelihood, push the funding for charters to a point where it is patently unfair. We therefore have two requests:
First, that the Board and CEO commit to making the actual disparity public. How? People for Public Schools asked Dr. Santelises at last week’s PCAB meeting, and she agreed, to direct staff to put the current per pupil figures through the same formula used in the AIR study. That study showed that the disparity in our school district was under $30 per pupil. That figure — less than $30 — makes our school district one of the more fair in Maryland, in terms of charter vs. traditional school funding. Under $30 is our benchmark. The AIR calculation is the best available tool to make a comparison. We would like to see what that disparity is under the $129M scenario and any new scenarios. We think it is fair to expect the CEO’s office to release those figures along with the new budget scenarios it has promised to share publicly by this Friday.
Second, we demand that the Board and the CEO commit to pursuing every avenue that may lead to a remedy to unfair school funding. In public forums, the CEO and staff have blamed the disparity on “state law.” Commissioners on this Board have acknowledged that the guidance is a burden on the District’s budget and its ability to fund schools fairly and equitably. The leadership of City Schools knows that following the law is responsible for what is arguably not “commensurate funding,” so we urge you to take any or all of the following courses of action: a) fight the charter lawsuit to the point at which MSBE revisits its prior guidance establishing the 2% formula; b) fight for the Kirwan Commission to change the law; c) propose or support new legislation for 2018. Until then, we ask that you do everything in your power to ensure charters pay their fair share of central office costs, debt burdens, and the fund balance.
Parents Protest US Education Secretary's School Visit
WASHINGTON —
Dozens of parents and neighbors on both sides of the U.S. debate about school-choice issues protested against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos as she visited a public school near the nation's capital Thursday.
DeVos, who was one of the more controversial choices President Donald Trump made for his Cabinet, entered the school despite the protest and visited with a group of 7- and 8-year-olds.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan accompanied DeVos at Carderock Springs Elementary School in Bethesda, just outside Washington. The education secretary read portions of a Dr. Seuss classic, Oh, the Places You'll Go, to the children.
DeVos' visit last month to a public school in Washington, just a short distance from her offices at the Department of Education, also was met with protesters, who briefly barred her from entering the building.
The billionaire philanthropist was considered an unconventional pick for education secretary. Although she has been involved in education policy for nearly three decades, she never attended, worked for or administered a public school system.
DeVos has long championed a policy of school choice, which allows parents to choose freely whether their children attend traditional public schools, private schools or “charter schools” — independent schools operating under contract with a public school network, supported by public funds.
Critics say DeVos' policies encourage further privatization of education in American cities and towns and undermine the public school system.
“I am very concerned about her approach to providing vouchers to people who are putting their kids in private schools or religious schools, or schools where there is little or no oversight,” said Heidi Bumper, who joined Thursday's demonstration.
If it’s Friday, it’s Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers.
This morning’s guests on our radio show/podcast, Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers are noted education historian and corporate education reform critic, Diane Ravitch, and poet founder of Louder than a Bomb, Kevin Coval.
Diane will be talking with my bro in a recorded conversation they had last week.
It was Ravitch’s awakening to the hoax and dangers of standardized testing that helped spark a national movement. Her standing as a respected academic provided ammunition to those of us in schools and communities, parents and teachers, who continue the fight against vouchers and charters and the threats to public education represented by the DeVos Department of Education and Trump.
I remember back in 2010 when Ravitch first published The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education. Our local union purchased a copy for each of our board of education members.
Singer, songwriter and activist Linda Boyle came by the studio a few weeks ago to record some of her songs. We will be sharing that with you over the next four shows, starting today.
Kevin Coval will be in the studio with us at Co-Prosperity Sphere live and in person in the beautiful downtown Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago.
Chicago Teachers Union President (a guest on our show a few weeks ago) calls Kevin’s latest collection of poems, A People’s History of Chicago, “a vibrant, dynamic collection of vignettes (that) exposes the naked truth of our fair city.”
A people’s artist, Kevin Coval is not only a poet. He is an activist, organizer and inspiration to young folks and many of us older ones too.
As we have said many times, our radio show/podcast is like a teacher’s lesson plan.
My brother and I have an idea of what today’s show is about. But it can take its own direction.
And we let it.
Hitting Left with the Klonsky Brothers can be heard at http://www.lumpenradio, 105.5 FM and streaming live all around the world at 11AM.
And you can download and subscribe to the podcast version of our show at Liberated Syndication and iTunes.
I have been told that if enough people click “loved” (it comes up if you click the little blue circle in the upper right), iTunes features the podcast.
I’m pleased that in the few weeks since we have turned Hitting Left into a podcast over 600 people have downloaded it and subscribed.
John White's Plan for the Implementation of the New ESSA law should be rejected
Notice: Special BESE meeting for consideration of the Louisiana plan for the implementation of ESSA, Wednesday, March 29, 1:00 P. M.
John White is a one trick pony. He still believes that the only reason our students don't perform at a level of average or above on state tests is that the teachers are not teaching properly. He apparently never heard the Mark Twain quote: "Tis sad but true that half the members of the american public are below average." White's education reform for Louisiana is based on somehow forcing most children to produce above average scores on state tests. Education has been reduced to test rehearsal and testing. And if our students don't produce the impossible, then it must be the teacher's fault, and the failing teachers and failing schools must be punished.
White has proposed that Louisiana must educate students to a level of "proficient" as measured by the National Assessment of Educational progress (NAEP). NAEP has been used for many years to measure the performance of students in all states in the subjects of reading and math. The problem is that experts such as Diane Ravitch who served on the board of directors for NAEP, have made it clear that the level of "proficient" was intentionally set at a level well above average performance. Only about a third of students nationwide score proficient or above on NAEP. Barring some type of brain transplant for american students, most students will not achieve the level of "proficient". But White like Donald Trump operates in his own version of reality. He has announced that if BESE sets a high standard, our teachers will magically teach to that standard and the students will produce the expected test results. That's the standard that White's plan for implementation of the new ESSA law which he wants BESE to adopt next week. White expects to keep blaming and punishing teachers and stigmatizing schools that don't measure up to his impossible goal.
The following is the testimony I plan to give to BESE next week opposing this ill conceived plan. The testimony is brief because BESE is expected to limit individual input to three minutes:
My name is Michael Deshotels, and I live in Zachary
I appear before you today to ask that BESE reject or at least delay action for the ESSA implementation in Louisiana.
The plan proposed by the Superintendent should be rejected because it is unrealistic, misleading, and represents a false promise very similar to the original promise made to the american public by the No Child Left Behind law. No Child Left Behind was a failure because the premise upon which it was based was wildly unrealistic. The exact same is true of this proposed ESSA plan.
No Child Left Behind promised the American people that within a ten year period every public school would educate each child to a standard that was known by any educator to be unattainable. As a result almost every public school in the the country was designated a failure.
We cannot educate children by decree from on high that ignores the major principles of learning theory and statistics. BESE can solemnly decree that by 2025, we will educate children to perform at a level which is above the statistical average for normal children, but that will not make it happen. Instead such a decree will end up labeling many educators and many schools as failures because of factors over which they have no control. Either that or it will cause educators to cheat to avoid being labeled as failures.
In my opinion, cheating is already occurring at the state level, I must point out that the very design of the state testing program is a form of cheating and manipulation of results to create the illusion of success in achieving unachievable goals.
About three weeks ago I mailed each of you my analysis demonstrating that the test score results in Louisiana have been inflated so that many students can achieve close to passing results by simply guessing on the multiple choice portion of state tests.
We have been assured that level 4 performance on our state test is equivalent to the level of "proficient" on the NAEP test. This assertion is entirely inaccurate. I believe this amounts to a violation of the state law upon which our testing program is based. Our level 4 grading standard on the LEAP test is claimed by the LDOE to be comparable to the proficient level on the NAEP, yet the chart you were given by the Department shows that there is a great disparity between the two and that the gap is widening rapidly with each year of testing. In one case, our testing is claiming that over twice as many students are proficient as measured by NAEP. All the other test results are also significantly inflated.
This entire scheme for the implementation of ESSA is an exercise in false advertising. We should not saddle our students and teachers with this bogus system.
Thank you
Please call or email your BESE member and ask that he/she vote to reject the ESSA plan.
