Tuesday, January 5, 2021

THE TOP BANANA: TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES #REDFORED #tbats #COVIDVACCINE #newyear

THE TOP BANANA
TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES

Education Research Report: Addressing COVID-19’s Disruption of Student Assessment - http://educationresearchreport.blogspot.com/

Trump administration rejects expert advice on nutrition, maintaining guidelines for sugar & alcohol https://www.salon.com/2021/01/04/trump-administration-rejects-expert-advice-on-nutrition-maintaining-guidelines-for-sugar-and-alcohol_partner/

74 Interview: AFT’s Randi Weingarten Talks Tying School Reopening to Teacher Vaccine Rollout, Biden’s Ed Secretary Pick and $900B Relief Bill @The74 https://www.the74million.org/?p=566585

Deaf author Ann Clare LeZotte shows kids a sign https://nondoc.com/2021/01/05/deaf-author-ann-clare-lezotte-shows-kids-a-sign/ via @nondocmedia

Texas hires two companies to run STAAR, moving toward statewide online testing https://www.texastribune.org/2021/01/04/texas-staar-tests/

All NOLA Public Schools must move to virtual learning by Thursday https://thelensnola.org/2021/01/04/all-nola-public-schools-must-move-to-virtual-learning-by-thursday/

At least one New Orleans school shuts in-person classes down due to rising COVID-19 numbers, staff exposures https://thelensnola.org/2021/01/04/at-least-one-new-orleans-school-shuts-in-person-classes-down-due-to-rising-covid-19-numbers-staff-exposures/

NYC schools can stay open if COVID positivity rate exceeds 9% threshold: Cuomo https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-covid-nyc-schools-cuomo-20210104-ouk4qav66rhgfoql7hef7mnnka-story.html#ed=rss_www.nydailynews.com/arcio/rss/category/new-york/education/

'She Was Fearless': Teacher Whose Video Touched Millions Dies https://patch.com/us/across-america/teacher-who-had-heartwarming-classroom-video-dies-coronavirus

Minnesota Is Changing The Way It Teaches Social Studies https://popularresistance.org/minnesota-is-changing-the-way-it-teaches-social-studies/

Tuesday’s Must-Read Articles On School Reopenings | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/?p=114559 on @Larryferlazzo

Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses? | Diane Ravitch's blog - https://wp.me/p2odLa-sYg via @dianeravitch

Diane Ravitch's Blog: Carol Burris: How Charter Schools Cashed in on the Paycheck Protection Program | National Education Policy Center - https://nepc.colorado.edu/node/10683 on @NEPCtweet

'I’m Grateful for All You Young Leaders': Kyrie Irving Pays Tuition for Students at HBCU Lincoln University https://www.theroot.com/i-m-grateful-for-all-you-young-leaders-kyrie-irving-pa-1845991173

San Francisco’s Top Art School Says Fate Hinges on a Diego Rivera Mural https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/05/arts/design/san-francisco-art-institute-diego-rivera-mural.html

Defying CPS, Some Chicago Teachers Union Members Won’t Return To Schools https://popularresistance.org/defying-cps-some-chicago-teachers-union-members-wont-return-to-schools/

During the pandemic, teachers’ mental health is suffering - https://19thnews.org/2020/12/during-the-pandemic-teachers-mental-health-is-suffering-in-ways-theyve-never-experienced/#new_tab via @19thnews

‘Hard pill to swallow’: Preschool institutions face eviction from HISD as district expands pre-K - HoustonChronicle.com - https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/education/article/Preschool-eviction-HISD-district-expands-pre-K-15836916.php on @houstonchron

Parent groups in six counties ask Maryland leaders to prioritize reopening public schools - Baltimore Sun - https://www.baltimoresun.com/education/bs-md-parent-calls-for-reopening-20210105-rxmq2hu57fhqnd7lifpmrl4eja-story.html#new_tab via @baltimoresun

Arizona public schools bracing for ‘sickouts’ from teachers weary of in-person classes | Arizona | thecentersquare.com - https://www.thecentersquare.com/arizona/arizona-public-schools-bracing-for-sickouts-from-teachers-weary-of-in-person-classes/article_1d1d295c-4ed2-11eb-9c10-9391438d8d12.html#new_tab on @thecentersquare

Virtual learning a ‘nightmare’ for special education students amid pandemic, parents say - mlive.com - https://www.mlive.com/news/2021/01/virtual-learning-a-nightmare-for-special-education-students-amid-pandemic-parents-say.html#new_tab on @mlive

COVID vaccines won't guarantee Ohio schools can reopen by March 1 - https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/education/2021/01/04/covid-19-coronavirus-vaccines-ohio-schools-reopen-march-1/4060260001/#new_tab via @DispatchAlerts

Tennessee unveils $100 million plan to help its youngest students read better - Chalkbeat Tennessee - https://tn.chalkbeat.org/2021/1/4/22213875/tennessee-unveils-100-million-plan-to-help-its-youngest-students-read-better#new_tab on chalkbeat

As Chicago Teachers Union members refuse to return to classrooms, CPS mum on possible consequences for those who decline to give lessons in person - Chicago Tribune - https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-coronavirus-chicago-teachers-union-action-20210104-rcggvec3qfgx3c26xiahokr

The Dark History of School Choice | by Diane Ravitch | The New York Review of Books - https://www.nybooks.com/?p=1004399 by @DianeRavitch on @nybooks

Opinion | The Wreckage Betsy DeVos Leaves Behind - The New York Times - https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/02/opinion/sunday/education-department-cardona-biden.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage#new_tab

Americans’ Secular Faith in Schooling (Part 2) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Big Education Ape / 6min

Americans’ Secular Faith in Schooling (Part 2) It would be a grave mistake to think that American reformers only looked at schools as targets for change. Reforming individual Americans to be better persons has been in the American blood stream since the Mayflower arrived. Ditto for reforming community institutions to be better places within which to live and work. Perfecting individuals and comm

St. Louis: Privatizers and Assorted Billionaires Pick Over Bones of Public School System | Diane Ravitch's blog

Big Education Ape / 6min

St. Louis: Privatizers and Assorted Billionaires Pick Over Bones of Public School System Tracee Miller, a member of the St. Louis Board of Education, writes that she was shocked and dismayed to discover that a proposal to raise taxes for early childhood education was actually a disguised effort to divert more public money to charter schools. The truth leaked out: Emails exposed via public record

Students Set to Return to School as COVID Cases Spike – Tennessee Education Report

Big Education Ape / 6min

STUDENTS SET TO RETURN TO SCHOOL AS COVID CASES SPIKE The head of the Knox County Education Association (KCEA) is calling on that district to begin school this semester in a hybrid or virtual model as COVID-19 cases spike in Knox County and across the state. WBIR has more : The Knox County Education Association called for the county’s schools to start the semester in the “red zone” with no in-pe

Delay, dismantle, resist: DeVos leaves a legacy like no other Education secretary - POLITICO

Big Education Ape / 6min

Delay, dismantle, resist: DeVos leaves a legacy like no other Education secretary Betsy DeVos relentlessly promoted school choice and ended many Obama-era rules. She shares few similarities with her likely successor, Connecticut state education chief Miguel Cardona. Betsy DeVos will soon step down from her perch as Education secretary, ending her four-year run as the most polarizing person to ha

Teacher Tom: We're Here on this Earth to Saunter

Big Education Ape / 6min

We're Here on this Earth to Saunter The last item on my "to do" list yesterday involved running an errand to a place a couple miles from my home so despite the damp day I decided to make it into a leisurely afternoon walk. We live in downtown Seattle and the sidewalks have been relatively empty since March, but yesterday they were even more bereft of people than normal. Those who were out were h

Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses? | Diane Ravitch's blog

Big Education Ape / 6min

Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses? Last spring, when the pandemic began crippling the economy, Congress passed the $2.2 trillion CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act). It was a rare moment of bipartisan action. Included in the act was the Paycheck Protection Program, which offered $660 billion to help small businesses

NYC Educator: UFT Executive Board January 4, 2021--Vaccines, Openings, Closings and Food Banks

Big Education Ape / 6min

UFT Executive Board January 4, 2021--Vaccines, Openings, Closings and Food Banks UFT Secretary LeRoy Barr --Welcomes us. DA Next week, Jan. 13th. Karen Alford --Thanks members for toy drive donations. Says many children got toys, and over 20K in monetary donations, not to mention toys. Al Shanker scholarship deadline extended to February 1. Anthony Harmon --Food drive to help communities--partne

Education Matters: Testing, testing and more testing

Big Education Ape / 6min

Testing, testing and more testing If it’s not for graduation, I would urge all parents to opt-out of whatever test the district has planned. There is a raging out of control pandemic going on, and it would be nice if our superintendent and school board acknowledged that and tried to take as much off plates as possible. Though if we are making wishes having a unicorn would be cool too. From the A

Matt Barnum: Do schools spread COVID? It depends on the community, new studies suggest - Chalkbeat

Big Education Ape / 6min

Do schools spread COVID? It depends on the community, new studies suggest - Chalkbeat Do schools spread COVID? It may depend on how bad things already are around them Opening school buildings doesn’t increase the spread of COVID-19 in places where cases or hospitalizations from the virus are rare, according to two new studies . Reopening schools in areas with higher caseloads, though, does spread

BRUCE BAKER, ROB COTTO AND PRESTON GREEN: Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now

Big Education Ape / 6min

Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now The COVID pandemic has laid bare the extent of inequalities across Connecticut’s cities, towns and school districts and the children and families they serve. Connecticut has long been one of our nation’s most racially and economically segregated states, while also one of the wealthiest. In the pa

EDUCATION MYTHS OF 2021 – Dad Gone Wild

Big Education Ape / 6min

EDUCATION MYTHS OF 2021 “The music we play has to be tomorrow’s, the things we say have to be today, and the reason for bothering is yesterday.” ― Pete Townshend, Who I Am 2021 is now officially underway, and unsurprisingly, it’s coming in as noisily as 2020 went out. Increasing cases of COVID-19, an increasingly unhinged president, along with fights over whether school buildings should be open

NewBlackMan (in Exile) TODAY #BLM #BLACKLIVESMATTER

Big Education Ape / 6min

NewBlackMan (in Exile) NewBlackMan (in Exile) TODAY Big Education Ape: THIS WEEK WITH NEWBLACKMAN (IN EXILE) - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/01/this-week-with-newblackman-in-exile-blm.html Regé-Jean Page On Redefining Regency-Era Masculinity In 'Bridgerton' by Mark Anthony Neal / 18h 'All Things Considered 's Ailsa Chang talks with actor Regé-Jean Page about the new Netflix series Brid

A VERY BUSY DAY Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007

Big Education Ape / 6min

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007 Big Education Ape: THIS WEEK IN EDUCATION Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007 - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/01/this-week-in-education-larry-ferlazzos.html Are You Using Remote Teaching Strategies, Tools Or Routines That Are Working

YESTERDAY

THE TOP BANANA: TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES #REDFORED #tbats #COVIDVACCINE #newyear #BestOf2020

Big Education Ape / 23h

Big Education Ape THE TOP BANANA TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES Teachers start getting coronavirus vaccines — but only in some places - The Washington Post -

Big Education Ape

Americans’ Secular Faith in Schooling (Part 2) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Americans’ Secular Faith in Schooling (Part 2)

It would be a grave mistake to think that American reformers only looked at schools as targets for change.

Reforming individual Americans to be better persons has been in the American blood stream since the Mayflower arrived. Ditto for reforming community institutions to be better places within which to live and work. Perfecting individuals and community institutions while solving problems of urban slums, corrupt city governments, poverty, racial segregation, corporate over-reach, and anemic economic growth has been steady work for reformers. Time and again these reform movements reached far beyond schools. [i]

As predictable as climbing up a ladder to clean leaves from roof gutters every season, reforms have regularly swept across the nation. Since the early 1900s, three overlapping social, political, and economic movements have churned across the U.S. and left marks on government, business, and community institutions, including public schools: The Progressive movement (1900s-1950s), the Civil Rights Struggle (1950s-1970s), and Binding Schools to the Economy (1980s-present). [ii]

Reform movements

Each of these political and social movements sought multiple goals one of which included school reform. Early 20th century Progressives sought to remedy CONTINUE READING: Americans’ Secular Faith in Schooling (Part 2) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

St. Louis: Privatizers and Assorted Billionaires Pick Over Bones of Public School System | Diane Ravitch's blog

St. Louis: Privatizers and Assorted Billionaires Pick Over Bones of Public School System

Tracee Miller, a member of the St. Louis Board of Education, writes that she was shocked and dismayed to discover that a proposal to raise taxes for early childhood education was actually a disguised effort to divert more public money to charter schools. The truth leaked out:

Emails exposed via public records requests revealed that not only did the proposal lack specificity around fund distribution, but also that the funds could be redirected to economic projects unrelated to ECE. These articles also named local individuals and organizations affiliated with the deceit, illustrating the depth and breadth of political corruption connected with one ballot measure. Only it isn’t just one ballot measure.

The individuals peddling their agenda under the guise of education equity will continue to steer public dollars toward private programs and gain political capital unless we decide that public education is too important to jeopardize for the sake of private gain. We will all be complicit in the perpetuation of inequity if we choose to let this continue when we know the reality. I feel compelled to ensure, to the extent that I am capable, that CONTINUE READING: St. Louis: Privatizers and Assorted Billionaires Pick Over Bones of Public School System | Diane Ravitch's blog

Students Set to Return to School as COVID Cases Spike – Tennessee Education Report

STUDENTS SET TO RETURN TO SCHOOL AS COVID CASES SPIKE

The head of the Knox County Education Association (KCEA) is calling on that district to begin school this semester in a hybrid or virtual model as COVID-19 cases spike in Knox County and across the state.

WBIR has more:

The Knox County Education Association called for the county’s schools to start the semester in the “red zone” with no in-person learning, or with an alternating hybrid schedule where students alternate in-person days, the group’s president said Monday.

“We can’t sacrifice lives over politics and we need to do what’s right and what’s best for everyone,” Tanya Coats told 10News. “Educating kids is a priority for us, but we just need to do it remotely from home.”

The push in Knox County to move to remote learning comes at time when new cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee and in Knox County are increasing.

As WBIR notes, since December 11th:

. . . the county’s health department has reported in excess of 10 thousand more positive tests and more than 100 new deaths tied to the virus. The number of active cases has increased by 62 percent.

In fact, Tennessee achieved “best in the world” status for COVID transmission rate (the highest rate) in December and the entire state is currently identified as CONTINUE READING: Students Set to Return to School as COVID Cases Spike – Tennessee Education Report

Delay, dismantle, resist: DeVos leaves a legacy like no other Education secretary - POLITICO

Delay, dismantle, resist: DeVos leaves a legacy like no other Education secretary

Betsy DeVos relentlessly promoted school choice and ended many Obama-era rules. She shares few similarities with her likely successor, Connecticut state education chief Miguel Cardona.

Betsy DeVos will soon step down from her perch as Education secretary, ending her four-year run as the most polarizing person to have led the department.

The Michigan billionaire, education philanthropist and staunch supporter of school choice will be remembered as a Cabinet secretary who successfully delayed and dismantled Obama-era rules at all levels of education. Her nomination to the Education Department’s top office in 2016 attracted more opposition than almost any other nominee and confrontations with public education advocates persisted throughout her term, especially during the coronavirus crisis, when she aggressively pushed for schools to reopen.

If confirmed, the next Education Secretary will be a departure from DeVos. Connecticut Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona is a longtime educator who won unions' support to be the nation's next top education official, even though they have at times sparred with their state chief.

Like DeVos, Cardona pressed for schools to remain open for in-person lessons during the pandemic, but ultimately left the decision up to local decision-makers and issued statewide rules about masks and other precautions for schools.

DeVos has won favor on the right with swipes at teachers unions as anti-student and by speaking out against federal bureaucracy and overreach.

"Be the resistance," DeVos told her agency's career staff on how they should approach the incoming Biden administration, urging them to put students first as she said she always has, according to a recording of her remarks obtained by POLITICO. In a letter to Congress on Monday, DeVos noted her time in her post is finite and encouraged urged lawmakers to reject much of Biden’s CONTINUE READING: Delay, dismantle, resist: DeVos leaves a legacy like no other Education secretary - POLITICO

Teacher Tom: We're Here on this Earth to Saunter

We're Here on this Earth to Saunter

The last item on my "to do" list yesterday involved running an errand to a place a couple miles from my home so despite the damp day I decided to make it into a leisurely afternoon walk. We live in downtown Seattle and the sidewalks have been relatively empty since March, but yesterday they were even more bereft of people than normal. Those who were out were hunched against the drizzle, hands pocketed, moving briskly with their masked faces bent toward the ground. I was prepared with my best rain gear, however, so with all that extra room, nothing I had to be doing, and plenty of time to do it in, I was sauntering.

It's been awhile since I've properly sauntered. Being an urban dog owner, I'm out walking every day, but even when I don't have any particular cause to rush, I rarely saunter. It's the habit of hurry, I suppose, based on Puritanical notions of efficiency or productivity or whatever. It takes a conscious effort to saunter.

Henry David Thoreau, one of America's historically great walkers, in an essay published in The Atlantic wrote: CONTINUE READING: Teacher Tom: We're Here on this Earth to Saunter

Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses? | Diane Ravitch's blog

Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses?

Last spring, when the pandemic began crippling the economy, Congress passed the $2.2 trillion CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act). It was a rare moment of bipartisan action. Included in the act was the Paycheck Protection Program, which offered $660 billion to help small businesses weather an economic catastrophe in which many would be forced to close their doors and lay off their employees. The PPP would enable these businesses to pay their employees and survive the pandemic.

However, in the inevitable lobbying, someone added nonprofits to the list of organizations eligible to receive government aid under the PPP.

The PPP grants are called loans, but they are forgivable if used for payroll, rent, heating, and other expenses. It’s unlikely that any will be repaid.

Public schools were not eligible to apply for PPP, because they received a fund of $13.2 billion, which they were required to share with charter schools. Charter schools, however, were eligible to apply for PPP as “nonprofits,” meaning they could double dip into both funds. Over 1,200 charter schools got very generous CONTINUE READING: Should Private and Religious Schools Receive COVID Funds Meant to Save Small Businesses? | Diane Ravitch's blog

NYC Educator: UFT Executive Board January 4, 2021--Vaccines, Openings, Closings and Food Banks

UFT Executive Board January 4, 2021--Vaccines, Openings, Closings and Food Banks

UFT Secretary LeRoy Barr--Welcomes us. DA Next week, Jan. 13th.

Karen Alford--Thanks members for toy drive donations. Says many children got toys, and over 20K in monetary donations, not to mention toys.

Al Shanker scholarship deadline extended to February 1.

Anthony Harmon--Food drive to help communities--partnered with restaurants to get 1K meals per week per borough, over 20K done so far.

UFT President Michael Mulgrew--Moment of silence for Jerry Rainer, teacher at MS 216, who passed last week.

We will continue helping communities with food.

City and state have different numbers. Currently state numbers take precedence. Discrepancy is large, but COVID definitely rising. Number for state is 6.2 while city number is over 9, yet mayor says he's following the state. Testing is continuing to work. Since 12/7 closed 390 schools, over 45%. Just today, we had 121 schools shut down due to pre-break tests.

We need everyone to continue to report testing issues. They have made changes, but we need quick turnaround and real random testing. In order to get it all done, they can't just test a whole school. They will test 20% and leave, and they can't test only adults. Governor said if school district reaches 9% it's up to them to close. UFT says we have to close at 9%. This could be a fight if we get there.

My focus has been moving teachers up in terms of vaccine access. There are tens of thousands of doses sitting in freezers, and worst offender is NYC, having distributed only CONTINUE READING: NYC Educator: UFT Executive Board January 4, 2021--Vaccines, Openings, Closings and Food Banks

Education Matters: Testing, testing and more testing

Testing, testing and more testing

If it’s not for graduation, I would urge all parents to opt-out of whatever test the district has planned. There is a raging out of control pandemic going on, and it would be nice if our superintendent and school board acknowledged that and tried to take as much off plates as possible. Though if we are making wishes having a unicorn would be cool too.

From the Asheville Times,

With COVID-19 intensifying across North Carolina, many parents are upset their children must soon return to classrooms for testing.

https://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2020/12/12/nc-school-tests-required-during-covid-19-pandemic-angers-parents/3894002001/

From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,

Teachers protested the ongoing mandate to administer the Georgia Milestones tests this school year, gathering outside the state Capitol Tuesday to say the pandemic has made it unsafe for teachers and students to linger indoors together during the hours long tests.

https://www.ajc.com/education/teachers-rally-for-stop-to-georgia-school-testing-plans-during-pandemic/TB5SXWY2PVADVBHHJ37BQWY3IU/

From the Seattle times,

As Gov. Jay Inslee and state officials look ahead to reopen schools, the Washington Office of Superintendent for Public Instruction (OSPI) has yet to make a determination about how statewide testing will take place CONTINUE READING: Education Matters: Testing, testing and more testing

Matt Barnum: Do schools spread COVID? It depends on the community, new studies suggest - Chalkbeat

Do schools spread COVID? It depends on the community, new studies suggest - Chalkbeat

Do schools spread COVID? It may depend on how bad things already are around them

Opening school buildings doesn’t increase the spread of COVID-19 in places where cases or hospitalizations from the virus are rare, according to two new studies.

Reopening schools in areas with higher caseloads, though, does spread the virus, one found, while the other couldn’t rule out that possibility. It remains unclear exactly at what point school reopening becomes more risky.

The papers are the most rigorous efforts yet to understand the link between schools and COVID spread in the U.S. It’s research that could guide school officials and health officials grappling with whether to reopen or keep open school buildings. But there aren’t simple answers for places with higher numbers, at a moment when some counties are seeing COVID cases peak.

“It appears that, when hospitalizations rates are low, it is safe to reopen schools in person,” said Douglas Harris, a professor at Tulane University who co-authored one of the studies, which examined national data. “This is important given the side effects of closure for students, such as limiting access to essential services, social isolation, and learning loss.”

At the same time, his co-author Engy Zieden warned that these conclusions don’t apply everywhere. “Given the recent spike in hospitalizations in recent months, policymakers should be cautious,” she said. “It may not be safe to reopen schools where the virus is already widespread.”

The national study, released Monday, examined whether opening schools increased COVID hospitalization rates in surrounding communities. The answer was no, up to a CONTINUE READING: Do schools spread COVID? It depends on the community, new studies suggest - Chalkbeat

BRUCE BAKER, ROB COTTO AND PRESTON GREEN: Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now

Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now

Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now

The COVID pandemic has laid bare the extent of inequalities across Connecticut’s cities, towns and school districts and the children and families they serve. Connecticut has long been one of our nation’s most racially and economically segregated states, while also one of the wealthiest. In the past decade those inequities have worsened along both economic and racial lines. In 2021, Connecticut continues to face the interrelated challenges of segregation and school funding equity and adequacy. Connecticut must do better.

In two recent articles we showed that Connecticut school funding continues to systematically disadvantage students in schools and districts serving predominantly Latinx communities. This finding is not new, with districts like Bridgeport, Waterbury and New Britain recognized in numerous national reports as being among the most financially disadvantaged school districts in the nation. For a period, Connecticut appeared to do somewhat better on behalf of predominantly Black school districts, but this was largely a function of additional aid directed specifically at magnet school programs in Hartford and New Haven, and not by the design of the general aid formula. In a forthcoming article, we find that Black-white disparities in state and local revenues and in property taxation are among the largest in the nation and have worsened in recent years.

Inequities in property taxation, fueled by a long history of exclusionary zoning and racial discrimination, are major contributors to the state’s school finance problem, and cannot be ignored. Municipal fiscal dependence is also a problem. Having a system in which local public schools rely on city and town budgets, where those budgets are based on prior taxing and spending behavior rather than current needs exacerbates the unevenness of school funding, hitting especially hard, schools in cities like Bridgeport. Above all, however, the state’s general aid program for schools – The Education Cost Sharing Formula (ECS) – falls short of addressing these inequities, and has never been CONTINUE READING: Fixing Connecticut school finance: The time is now

EDUCATION MYTHS OF 2021 – Dad Gone Wild

EDUCATION MYTHS OF 2021

“The music we play has to be tomorrow’s, the things we say have to be today, and the reason for bothering is yesterday.”
― Pete Townshend, Who I Am

2021 is now officially underway, and unsurprisingly, it’s coming in as noisily as 2020 went out. Increasing cases of COVID-19, an increasingly unhinged president, along with fights over whether school buildings should be open or not, are quickly sucking the air out 2021 before it can even get a proper start. When it comes to education policy, buried amidst all the noise, are several myths that need exposing. This is especially important in Tennessee, where Governor Lee is convening a special session of the General Assembly specifically for education policy.

Normally that might be considered good news. But these certainly are not normal times, and I would argue that the focus isn’t borne out of concern for kids, as much as it is out adults protecting their revenue streams.

The ongoing pandemic has decimated several industries – restaurants, tourism, entertainment, among them. Education is equally vulnerable.

Districts risk losing state funding due to a loss of students. Luckily this is one area legislators can offer some protection. But equally at risk are those private entities that have taken root in the CONTINUE READING: EDUCATION MYTHS OF 2021 – Dad Gone Wild

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Tuesday, January 5, 2021