Tuesday, November 20, 2012

by alkleen

What next ? Now high school health centers are all the rage. More high schools are installing full-time health centers to make sure all the wonderful boys and girls have all their possible needs met. You know, needs like birth control pills, abortion advice and all manner of healthful tips. I can’t believe some community leaders and parents are worried about this new trend. What’s not to like ?
Now that our students have every possible advantage in their school life, let’s review all the services and gifts they currently might receive. Remember, virtually none of these were available when I and most of my generation attended school. They weren’t available during the time of the “greatest generation” and or at any time previous to that. It makes one wonder, how in the world did children back then manage to grow up and build the greatest nation the world has ever known ? No extra school services, a classroom full of 40 or more students, one teacher and a chalkboard. It’s a miracle any kid survived.
To honor the upcoming holiday season, and to highlight many of the services students now receive, I have composed some lyrics set to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas”
On the first day of class my school gave to me, a complete nutritious breakfast.
On the second day of class my school gave to me, a wonderful hot lunch, and a complete nutritious breakfast.

A distorted reality | Philadelphia Public School Notebook

A distorted reality | Philadelphia Public School Notebook:

A distorted reality

An ex-principal says inflated test scores skewed decision-making and hurt students. The problem isn’t fixed.

by Benjamin Herold for NewsWorks, a Notebook news Partner

COMMENTS (2)EMAIL PRINT

Photo: Kimberly Paynter for NewsWorks

In 2010, math scores at Communications Technology High in Southwest Philadelphia jumped an astonishing 40 points and reading scores rose 22 points. Adult cheating is suspected. While a state-led investigation goes on, the questionable test results continue to have an impact.

In July 2010, when Saliyah Cruz was named principal of Communications Technology High, state test scores said the small citywide admission school in Southwest Philadelphia was one of the best in the city.

Everything else said something different.

SAT scores were poor. Summer enrichment programs were empty. Loads of kids tested into remedial reading and math. According to Cruz, even the police

NYC Public School Parents: Sandra Stotsky critiques the Common Core in NYC on Monday night

NYC Public School Parents: Sandra Stotsky critiques the Common Core in NYC on Monday night:

Sandra Stotsky critiques the Common Core in NYC on Monday night

by Leonie Haimson

Professor Sandra Stotsky, an eminent critic of the Common Core standards being implemented in 46 states including New York, will be speaking in NYC on Monday night, November 26, from 5-7 PM at Azure, 333 E. 91 St., along with Shael Suransky of DOE, who is a strong defender of the standards. It should be an interesting evening. For more information seeGothamSchools .

Stotsky is the main author of the Massachusetts ELA standards, widely considered to be among the best in the nation. Though the Common Core’s ELA standards demand that students provide evidence in their

NYC Educator: Daily News Inspired by the Merit Pay Fairy

NYC Educator: Daily News Inspired by the Merit Pay Fairy:

Daily News Inspired by the Merit Pay Fairy

by NYC Educator

Since Newark teachers ratified a contract full of unspecified bonuses for evaluations that don't exist, the Daily News editorial board thinks we ought to do the same thing. You know, we should be paid like professional athletes. This is not a new argument. I've been hearing it for years. Except, of course, that no one, ever, has remotely suggested we be paid on any such scale.

Blogger Jersey Jazzman has been consistently brilliant on this issue, and wrote a fairly definitive history describing its various incarnations and failures. Regrettably, the Daily News editorial board either hasn't heard, or more likely doesn't wish to hear about them. They'd prefer to interview some ex-union chief who no longer believes seniority ought to mean anything for working people.

PSAT for 11-20-12: Tell your state reps to vote NO on waiving the Dec. 1 school closure announcement deadline

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » PSAT for 11-20-12: Tell your state reps to vote NO on waiving the Dec. 1 school closure announcement deadline:

PSAT for 11-20-12: Tell your state reps to vote NO on waiving the Dec. 1 school closure announcement deadline

by admin

For Public Schools Action Tuesday today, send a strong message to your state legislators. Contact for Illinois state senators here, and state representatives here. Most are in their home offices this week. The fall veto session, when action on the Chicago school closing deadline waiver will most likely be considered, begins this coming Monday, November 27.
Research and common sense say NO to waiving the Chicago Schools Facilities Act December 1 school closing announcement deadline.
Chicago’s children should not be used as guinea pigs for experiments that are not working.
Chicago’s children deserve solutions that are research-based and that make sense.
Over 100 Chicago area university researchers have concluded that “reforms” such as school closings, charter school expansion, and mayoral control of schools – which are promoted by corporate interests and astroturf lobbying organizations – have not led to any significant improvements in achievement or savings, and have

An Open Letter to Boaz Kantor « Student Activism

An Open Letter to Boaz Kantor « Student Activism:

An Open Letter to Boaz Kantor

by Angus Johnston

Earlier today I read your “Open Letter to Khalil from Gaza,” the one in which you imagined a Palestinian like yourself — a loving husband and father, trying to do right by his family — and informed him that tonight his seven-year-old daughter would die.
“You’ll wake up in the middle of the night,” you wrote, “to a deafening explosion. Your whole house will tremble. Parts of the ceiling will fall on you. You’ll run to your daughter’s bedroom, and find the northern wall gone, your daughter lying on the broken floor, a charred husk.”
Your piece went on to explain how although it will be your government, the Israeli government, that fires the missile that perpetrates the atrocity you describe with such delectation, he can’t be mad at them, or you.

Des Moines Education Association: Measure What Matters

Des Moines Education Association: Measure What Matters:

Measure What Matters

by Andrew Rasmussen

I frequently speak out against the overuse and abuse of standardized testing in our schools. In fact, our local union recently signed on to the National Resolution on High-Stakes Testing to express our concern about the proliferation of standardized tests and how they are narrowing the educational experiences our students get in school. Almost every time I speak up against this testing I get a response from someone asking, “Well how else are you going to tell that your kids are learning?” The answer is

Jersey Jazzman: Statement of Newark Teachers Against the New Contract

Jersey Jazzman: Statement of Newark Teachers Against the New Contract:

Statement of Newark Teachers Against the New Contract

by Duke

I'm reposting the entire statement of the NEWCaucus - a group of teachers who were against the Newark teachers contract - here, mostly because I don't think they've been treated fairly in the press and they deserve to have their voices heard. (It's also probably easier to read it here, as they put out their statement in a GoogleDoc.)

I will save my comments for another post.

Now that we have a contract, do you have questions like:
What do I do if I feel I have been unfairly evaluated under the new evaluation system?
Under the new tenure law, what happens to me if I am or have been EWP’ed?
What do we do when Cami Anderson announces new school closings and “turnaround” schools in the spring?
If you have questions like these, won’t you join us - the Newark Education Workers (NEW) Caucus – to improve public education for all, and continue reading the below.

The Newark Education Workers (NEW) Caucus acknowledges the passing of the contract by

In Greenwich, Malloy throws “heavy support behind the charter school movement” - Wait, What?

In Greenwich, Malloy throws “heavy support behind the charter school movement” - Wait, What?:

In Greenwich, Malloy throws “heavy support behind the charter school movement”

by jonpelto

Charter Schools - Dividing Communities since 1991

At last week’s ConnCAN Block Party (it took place in Greenwich – go figure), Governor Malloy “spoke about the dismal graduation rate in urban districts. He told the crowd that on average, four in 10 students never receive a diploma. ”We cannot compete as a state with the other 49 states, or the rest of the world, when we’re willing to throw away year after year after year, 40 percent of our students in the urban environment,” Malloy said.

Surrounded by charter school supporters, owners and operators, Malloy explained that Connecticut has 31 low-performing school districts that educate 41 percent of the state’s students.

Malloy’s solution, according to a story in the Stamford Advocate, is to “replicate” what the

The Tony Bennett Ouster Debate Continues | Truth in American Education

The Tony Bennett Ouster Debate Continues | Truth in American Education:

The Tony Bennett Ouster Debate Continues

by Shane Vander Hart

The debate continues. You may remember Matthew Laudner called anti-common core activists in Indiana a bunch of yahoos since they helped defeat incumbent Republican Tony Bennett in the Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction race. Erin Tuttle, who for a “yahoo” writes quite well

, wrote in the Ft. Wayne Journal-Gazette:

The Bennett fiasco brought an exceptionally nasty rebuke from Matthew Ladner, policy adviser to Jeb Bush’s Foundation for Excellence in Education. Opponents of Common Core, Ladner wrote at a popular blog, “have revealed themselves to be unsophisticated ya-hoos (sic).” A little further on, Ladner repeats the thought if not his own spelling by referring to “right-wing Hoosier yayhoos (sic).” In explaining Bennett’s loss, Rick Hess at the American Enterprise Institute was more civil in his disdain for Indiana voters. He advocates for this “reform agenda” but recognizes the truth that it does “not appeal to middle-class and suburban voters.”
Elitists just don’t believe in the American Experiment. Ladner, like Bennett, doesn’t want to listen

High-quality Preschool Ed a Research-Based Policy Winner | The Forum for Education and Democracy

High-quality Preschool Ed a Research-Based Policy Winner | The Forum for Education and Democracy:

High-quality Preschool Ed a Research-Based Policy Winner

by William J. Mathis,

National Education Policy Center, University of Colorado Boulder, November 2012
Publicly supported, high-quality preschool education is among the most successful and well-documented of education reforms. Four out of every five states provide preschool in some format or for some students, and nearly 75% of four-year-olds and just over half of three-year-olds have some form of preschool experience, ranging from day-care to high quality educational programs. However, in inflation-adjusted dollares, overall funding per child served is lower than a decade ago.
There is near-universal agreement that high-quality preschool programs more than pay for themselves in economic and social benefits. In reviewing the various cost-benefit studies, the RANS Corporation found that preschool education returns as much as $17.07 for each dollar invested, although the size of the return varies based on the nature of the program and how costs and benefits are calculated.
read more

PS 90. Coney Island. « Fred Klonsky

PS 90. Coney Island. « Fred Klonsky:

PS 90. Coney Island.

by Fred Klonsky

Dear Sue,
I just got back from delivering the 7 boxes of school supplies that the teachers at Carpenter School donated to PS 90, Edna Cohen School, in Coney Island.
Everyone was very appreciative. Please extend thanks to all the Carpenter Staff.
Here’s a first: The principal, Greta Hawkins, gave me a big kiss on the cheek. As you might guess, I have never been kissed by a principal before. Not in thirty years!
After spending the last week following Sandy in another school doubled up in classroom, the kids and staff got back into the school yesterday. But all the school’s supplies and records were in the basement. The school is only a block from the ocean. The basement was totally flooded and all their school supplies were ruined.
While we were there someone was delivering brand new school uniforms that had been donated.

A Common Core legal mess in — where else? — Florida

A Common Core legal mess in — where else? — Florida:

A Common Core legal mess in — where else? — Florida

Posted by Valerie Strauss on November 20, 2012 at 1:30 pm

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This isn’t the way it was supposed to work, but…. there’s a legal battle in the state of Florida over part of the implementation of the Common Core State Standards.

Education Week chronicles in this article why Tallahassee-based Infinity Software Development filed a lawsuit against the Florida Department of Education over a Web site it was hired to build to help students and teachers prepare for the new standards and related curriculum and assessments, and why, a week after the lawsuit was filed, the department terminated its $20 million contract with the firm.

“Common Core” refers to a set of new standards in math and English/Language Arts that have been accepted by most states — at the urging of the Obama administration. New standardized tests are being designed to go along with the standards. Supporters say they elevate and standardize academic standards across the country; critics attack the standards for a number of reasons, which you can see here.

The Web site that the state of Florida contracted for — which was to feature lessons and

Between the Rap Sheets | Edwize

Between the Rap Sheets | Edwize:

Between the Rap Sheets

by Ron Isaac

The best thing to happen to democracy in recent years may be the popularity of blogs. They’re especially influential in politics and education. Anyone can access everyone these days. The marketplace of ideas is wide open. Edwize is, of course, the UFT’s blog. But the views contained in the following piece are solely those of the author and are independent of the UFT’s positions and policies.
Remember Rick Perry, the governor of Texas and unflappable former front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination until he blew his chances during a debate by plumb forgetting the name of the federal agency that he had sworn a thousand times to destroy? It was a helluva “aw shucks” moment for the supporter of state-sponsored murder.
But last year he showed leadership, for better or worse, in a way that is both highly uncharacteristic and typical

How do You Defeat an Army of Determined Educators? You Don't! - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

How do You Defeat an Army of Determined Educators? You Don't! - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

How do You Defeat an Army of Determined Educators? You Don't!

by Anthony Cody

The election of 2012 was a tough one for some who consider themselves "reformers" of education. Michael Petrilli, of the Hoover and Fordham Institutes wrote yesterday, in an op-ed that appeared in the Charlotte Observer, that "Teachers unions remain the Goliath to the school reformers' David."
This framing is, in itself, remarkable. That a "movement" generously financed from the deep pockets of our nation's billionaires would have the chutzpah to claim for itself the mantle of underdog should be laughable. Mr. Petrilli bemoans the defeat of such insurgents as Tom Luna in Idaho, whose ALEC-inspired efforts to expand online learning were defeated, and Tony Bennett, the pro-voucher "chief for change" from Indiana. (Bennett spent four times as much as his "Goliath" opponent, by the way.) But what lessons does Mr. Petrilli actually draw from their setbacks?

First, it's time to stop angering suburban parents and teachers by subjecting their schools to changes they don't want or need. It's not that suburban schools are perfect - their performance lags behind that of our international competitors, too. But the policies required for these schools to go

What is ED’s Stance on Using Testing Data in Teacher Evaluation? | ED.gov Blog

What is ED’s Stance on Using Testing Data in Teacher Evaluation? | ED.gov Blog:

What is ED’s Stance on Using Testing Data in Teacher Evaluation?

Posted on November 20, 2012 by Guest Blogger

A recent letter to the Department of Education from a teacher in Cincinnati contained a quote that really struck me: “It is not at all that I am afraid of what my test scores might reveal. I am more concerned about what my student’s test scores will not reveal.”

The quote rings true of so many classrooms across the country, including my own. I teach students who have been removed from other institutions due to behavior, chronic absences or other issues that have prevented them from being successful in the traditional school setting. Each of my students has been identified as a potential dropout and each has a profound set of challenges that manifest in the classroom.

Marciano Gutierrez is a 2012 Teaching Ambassador Fellow, on loan from Alta Vista High School in Mountain View, CA.

As a U.S. Department of Education Teaching Ambassador Fellow I have been able to engage with Secretary Duncan’s senior staff and have learned more about the Department’s stance on teacher evaluation. Like most teachers in the United States, Secretary Duncan strongly believes that a single test result does not adequately reflect the quality or complexity of excellent teaching.

At a speech to the National Council for Social Studies, Mr. Duncan stated, “Just to be 100 percent clear—evaluation should never be based only on test scores. That would be ridiculous. It should also include factors like principal observation or peer review, student work, parent feedback. It should be designed locally—and teachers should be at the table to help design it.” The Department’s work on educator evaluations has thus been to promote multiple measures to elicit a well-rounded perspective on one’s craft and to encourage districts and schools to primarily use these tools as a means for quality professional development. This thinking was also captured in a speechthat the Secretary made to Baltimore County teachers this past fall.

As a teacher of students who historically struggle on standardized tests, I understand the concern about tying testing data- which is often influenced by factors outside of my control- to my performance. I am also sometimes frustrated by the quality of the multiple-choice assessments used to assess my students’ learning which are ultimately a reflection upon my practice. Despite these challenges, I do believe that there does need to be some measurement of student performance and growth. This information should be collected and analyzed so that we can continuously improve the learning experience for all students and to ensure that we hold ourselves to high standards and continuous improvement.

While the Department’s policy has been that measures of student growth and gain should be a ‘significant’ factor in teacher evaluations, the Secretary has said that, “we intentionally leave that undefined—because different states will have different approaches—and different confidence levels in their assessments.”

As a previous Teacher Fellow with the Hope Street Group, and in my current work with Race to the Top states, I have seen a variety of state-developed approaches and strategies that aim to meet this vision. I have come to realize that the strongest evaluation systems have been developed with robust teacher input at every stage of the process. These evaluation systems, which are designed and improved with the practical insight of teachers, use test scores as only one of multiple measures of effectiveness, therefore allowing teachers of students like mine, to demonstrate quality teaching in ways that transcend test scores alone.

Marciano Gutierrez is a 2012 Teaching Ambassador Fellow, on loan from Alta Vista High School in Mountain View, Calif.

Big Education Ape - Morning Wink 11-20-12 AM Posts #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK AM POSTS

Diane in the Evening 11-20-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 minutes ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: America’s Favorite Parlour Game? by dianerav What is America’s favorite parlour game? If you are talking about the average American, I don’t know though I would guess that parlour games have been replaced by watching TV. However, if you are talking about the wonks in conservative think tanks, a rare breed to be sure, I will share their secret: they are obsessed with trying to understand how their idol, Tony Bennett, got beat at the polls. He had everything going for him: the nation’s leading advocate of privatization. Chair of Jeb Bush’s Chiefs fo MORNI... more »

What’s the Matter With Kids Today? | toteachornototeach

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 48 minutes ago

What’s the Matter With Kids Today? | toteachornototeach: What’s the Matter With Kids Today? by aristotlethewise What’s the Matter With Kids Today? by Evan Shapiro There is a perception among many in my cohort and among my elders that the generation currently coming of age — aka Millennials — are an entitled bunch of slacker know-it-alls who expect to get medals for just showing up. For numerous GenXers and Boomers, this disdain goes beyond stereotype and into specific, vehement bias against the entire generation. Many of my friends in the media industry, whose staff and customer base... more »

Needed: STEM education for Marco Rubio

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

Needed: STEM education for Marco Rubio: Needed: STEM education for Marco Rubio Posted by Valerie Strauss on November 20, 2012 at 11:36 am - [image: Smaller Text] [image: Larger Text] Text Size - Print - Reprints - Share: - - - More » A few years ago Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican from Florida, put out a 12-point plan that he posited would improve public education. (One item, to give you a sense of the list, was a federal corporate income tax credit to boost “school choice.”) This was Idea No. 7: *Overcome The Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathemati... more »

Academic Performance Not Top Reason for High Dropout Rates | NewsTaco

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

Academic Performance Not Top Reason for High Dropout Rates | NewsTaco: ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE NOT TOP REASON FOR HIGH DROPOUT RATES By Hope Gillette, Voxxi Poor academic performance ranked fourth on decisive reasons for high school student drop out , states the *2012 High School Drop Outs in America* study. The data indicates the number one reason (23 percent) for high school student drop out rates is lack of parental encouragement, followed closely by teenage pregnancy (21 percent) and poor attendance (17 percent). Tied for fourth place at 15 percent were reasons relating to academic... more »

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: New policy allows dagger-like objects on campusThe Jurupa Unified School District board of education on Nov. 19 approved a new district policy that will allow Sikh students to wear a kirpan to school but with strict restrictions. Under the new policy, parents agree to sign a statement that requires the kirpan — a daggerlike object that is a sacred article of faith — to be worn under clothing, to have the blade dulled, to be soldered or sewn into its sheath so it cannot be removed and to have a blade that is 2 1/2 inches or less.... more »

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: LAO Report: The 2013-14 Budget - CALIFORNIA’S FISCAL OUTLOOK

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 hour ago

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: LAO Report: The 2013-14 Budget - CALIFORNIA’S FISCAL OUTLOOK: LAO Report: The 2013-14 Budget - CALIFORNIA’S FISCAL OUTLOOK ** *…your rose-colored-glasses are located in a compartment under the center armrest.* *FROM THE 11/20 CCSA EMAIL TO THEIR MEMBERS:*** * ***The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) released its annual Fiscal Outlook last week, updating its projections on the state’s fiscal situation. With the passage of Propositions 30 and 39, the LAO reports that *“the budget situation has improved sharply” and that we can expect ... more »

ALEC Votes Down Anti-Common-Core Resolution - State EdWatch - Education Week

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 2 hours ago

ALEC Votes Down Anti-Common-Core Resolution - State EdWatch - Education Week: ALEC Votes Down Anti-Common-Core Resolution by Andrew Ujifusa The way the American Legislative Exchange Council, the controversial conservative think tank in Washington, has handled the Common Core State Standards has generated an interesting conflict in the education community. Some who have dealings with ALEC believe the common standards could mean progress for K-12 schools, but others involved in the group believe the standards represent the camel's nose in the tent and a prelude to greater federal ... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Gov. "Squeezy" and autocrat Rahm

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Gov. "Squeezy" and autocrat Rahm: Gov. "Squeezy" and autocrat Rahm by Mike Klonsky It would be hilarious if it wasn't so tragic. It's not only the low point of this once-progressive governor's career, it is characteristic of the buffoonery that marks state Democrats' attack on public employees' pensions and on their own political base. Of course I'm referring to Gov. "Squeezy's" pet python and his "grass-roots" campaign to "reform" the pension fund. It all makes me wonder, first why are we taxpayers footing the bill for this crap? And second, what i... more »

UPDATE: Students Clash at UC Davis Gaza Protest « Student Activism

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Students Clash at UC Davis Gaza Protest « Student Activism: Gaza Demonstrations at More Than a Dozen US Campuses by Angus Johnston Students have held demonstrations in connection with the Israeli assault on Gaza at more than a dozen campuses — some in support of the Palestinians, some in support of Israel. What follows is a list of the demonstrations I’ve been able to learn of through the media. Presumably many more have occurred that haven’t received press coverage. *Monday* - Cornell - Florida State - Purdue - University of California Davis - University of Massachus... more »

Modern School: Charter School Enrollment Rising Rapidly

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Modern School: Charter School Enrollment Rising Rapidly: Charter School Enrollment Rising Rapidly by Michael Dunn Huck/Konopacki Labor Cartoons Between the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years, the number of students enrolled in charter schools rose by nearly 13%, to just over two million students nationwide, according to a new report from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. 110 school districts across the nation have at least 10% of their students enrolled in charter schools, 16 more than last year. New Orleans leads the nation with 70% of its students enrolled in charte... more »

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: The privatization of the University of California: THE FIGHT TO SAVE EDUCATION MUST CONTINUE

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: The privatization of the University of California: THE FIGHT TO SAVE EDUCATION MUST CONTINUE: The privatization of the University of California: THE FIGHT TO SAVE EDUCATION MUST CONTINUE OP-ED BY ELANA EDEN AND MARGARET HARDY IN THE DAILY CALIFORNIAN - THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER OF U.C. BERKELEY |HTTP://BIT.LY/S8BYEMTuesday, November 20, 2012 :: Lately, my friends have been asking me: “Proposition 30 just passed… so why mobilize?” In the relief following a narrow escape from a 20.3 percent fee hike, it seems like a reasonable question... more »

Teacher evaluation architect warns of lawsuits against Louisiana’s new system | Hechinger Report

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Teacher evaluation architect warns of lawsuits against Louisiana’s new system | Hechinger Report: Teacher evaluation architect warns of lawsuits against Louisiana’s new system by Sarah Garland The new teacher evaluation system Louisiana launched this fall may be too simplistic, according to the architect of one of the most widely used evaluation systems in the country – and the one on which Louisiana’s new system is based. 4th grader Noah Nafziger finds a quiet place to read during breakout groups in Lora Johnson’s class at George Cox Elementary School in Gretna, La. Thursday, Oct... more »

President Obama, Congress face ticking education time bombs: Fiscal cliff, college costs and student loan deadline | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

President Obama, Congress face ticking education time bombs: Fiscal cliff, college costs and student loan deadline | Get Schooled: President Obama, Congress face ticking education time bombs: Fiscal cliff, college costs and student loan deadline by Maureen Downey John Konop steered me to this *article from MSN.com on the compelling education policy challenges facing President Obama and Congress.* Seems like a lot to get done, some of which has to be done in a matter of weeks. Here is an excerpt but try to read the full piece before commenting:** …First up is sequestration, the auto... more »

Racing, Striving, Accelerating, Winning, Yada, Yada. And Reading. - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago

Racing, Striving, Accelerating, Winning, Yada, Yada. And Reading. - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: Racing, Striving, Accelerating, Winning, Yada, Yada. And Reading. by Nancy Flanagan When my kids--now young adults--were in elementary grades, their school participated in Pizza Hut's *Book It*program. The idea was to promote reading by giving kids coupons for free individual pizzas if they read a specific number of books, or were the "top" readers in their classes. Whole classes got pizza parties for reading the greatest number of books. Teachers and principal ... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Now Common Core is not only "State Led" it's Also "Teacher Designed"

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Missouri Education Watchdog: Now Common Core is not only "State Led" it's Also "Teacher Designed": Now Common Core is not only "State Led" it's Also "Teacher Designed" by stlgretchen Common Core explained: Common Sense not allowed. Comments today are reprinted with permission from Barry Garelick. *Garelick has written extensively about math education in various publications including Education Next, Educational Leadership, and Education News. He is currently doing student teaching at a junior high school in the central coast area of California, and plans to teach math as his s... more »

Schools Matter: The Cucumber Austerity of Teaching: Merit Pay and Grapes

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Schools Matter: The Cucumber Austerity of Teaching: Merit Pay and Grapes: The Cucumber Austerity of Teaching: Merit Pay and Grapes by P. L. Thomas This isn't dystopian fiction, but it certainly could be. Nancy Flanagan led (by way of Twitter) me and Jersey Jazzman to this wonderful and chilling video of monkeys confronting the concept of fairness: 2 Monkeys Were Paid Unequally; See What Happens Next I agree with Jersey Jazzman that this video makes me think of how teachers are being treated under the Arne Duncan era of austerity in education, how Duncan/Obama have been pulled int... more »

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 11-20-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Credit-Rating Agency: Charter Schools Are Risky Investment by dianerav Well, we are into big-time business talk about education. For-profit colleges are losing market share. K12 Inc.’s stock price drops after Wells Fargo downgraded its rating in response to the poor performance of K12′s Colorado Virtual Academy, where the graduation rate is 22 percent. Now a rating agency finds that despite the passage of an ALEC-style amendment in Georgia, allowing a Democracy for Sale? by dianerav Somebody is dumping a lo... more »

Iowa’s Plan for Education Success–Assess, Assess, Assess | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Iowa’s Plan for Education Success–Assess, Assess, Assess | Truth in American Education: Iowa’s Plan for Education Success–Assess, Assess, Assess by Shane Vander Hart [image: image]There is nothing earth shattering in the Iowa Department of Education’s latest report entitled “Overcoming the Achievement Divide: Key Challenges and Solutions for Iowa Schools.” It’s main goal is to address the news that Iowa is stagnant in seeing growth in math and reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). They are using the following qualifiers for the selection of programs... more »

Walker Implicated « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Walker Implicated « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Walker Implicated by millerlf *Prosecutors: Walker county staff, guv campaign met regularly to ensure ‘good coordination’* 11/19/2012 Wispolitics.comMILWAUKEE — Prosecutors today said Scott Walker had regular meetings with his Milwaukee County staffers and his 2010 guv campaign to ensure there was “good coordination” between the two. Milwaukee County prosecutors made the disclosure during the sentencing of Kelly Rindfleisch, a former Walker county aide who reached a plea deal to settle charges against her stemming fro... more »

Beyond Bloomberg: On The 2013 Mayoral Candidate Forum on Education | The Jose Vilson

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Beyond Bloomberg: On The 2013 Mayoral Candidate Forum on Education | The Jose Vilson: Beyond Bloomberg: On The 2013 Mayoral Candidate Forum on Education by Jose Blackboard Awards on the 2013 Mayoral Candidate Forum on Education Tonight, I had the distinct pleasure of attending the Blackboard Awards’ 2013 Mayoral Candidate Forum on Education at the Fordham Law School, moderated by Philissa Cramer of GothamSchools and Lindsey Christ of NY1, Time Warner Cable’s main New York City news station. Five out of the six main mayoral candidates (City Council Speaker of the House Christine Qu... more »

Fiscal cliff, with federal cuts, not imminent for school districts | EdSource Today

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago

Fiscal cliff, with federal cuts, not imminent for school districts | EdSource Today: Fiscal cliff, with federal cuts, not imminent for school districts ** November 20th, 2012 | Add a Comment | By John Fensterwald Share on twitterShare on facebookShare on emailShare on google_plusone More Sharing Services For California’s K-12 districts and federally funded preschools, the “fiscal cliff” that is now consuming politics in Washington is more like a distant canyon. [image: (Photo by Juan Pablo Garnham)] (Photo by Juan Pablo Garnham) The abyss refers to an across-the-board 8.2 percent cut... more »

Special Late Nite Cap UPDATE 11-19-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago

*Nite Cap UPDATE**UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE* The first mayoral debate on education! by Leonie Haimson This afternoon, the first debate on education among the mayoral candidates took place, hosted by Manhattan Media. The candidates included two Bills, one Tom, one John and one Christine, absent Scott Stringer, given his announcement today that he will run for City Comptroller instead. The consensus among most of the observers I talked to afterwards is that the candidates did not distinguish themselves much from one another on the hot-button issues. Also, despite the best eff... more »

School Exclusion Policies Stigmatize Arrested Teens and Contribute to Educational Failure, - Jonathan Kantrowitz - Connecticut News

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

School Exclusion Policies Stigmatize Arrested Teens and Contribute to Educational Failure, - Jonathan Kantrowitz - Connecticut News: School Exclusion Policies Stigmatize Arrested Teens and Contribute to Educational Failure, November 19, 2012 at 5:04 pm by Jonathan Kantrowitz [image: Comment] Comments | [image: Email] E-mail | [image: Print] Print [image: Jonathan Kantrowitz]“Zero- tolerance” policies that rely heavily on suspensions and expulsions hinder teens who have been arrested from completing high school or pursuing a college degree, according to a new study from The Universit... more »

“SQUEEZY – THE PENSION PYTHON” « Teachers Fight Back

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

“SQUEEZY – THE PENSION PYTHON” « Teachers Fight Back: “SQUEEZY – THE PENSION PYTHON” by alkleen *Squeezy and Wheezie (Gov. Quinn?)* Oh my ! Governor of Illinois, Pat Quinn, you are a hoot. All of you must go to the Governor’s new pension publicity website, www.thisismyillinois.com. Did you see the governor when he announced the new site ? There he was surrounded on stage by over a dozen children. There were the posters of the children, saying, ” thanks in advance”. Why the children, you might ask ? Didn’t you know this pension issue is about saving the future of our children her... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ed News from Around the Country

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Ed News from Around the Country: Ed News from Around the Country by Melissa Westbrook I'm finally catching up on some backreading on education issues. Arne Duncan. According to this article in Ed Week on the first speech Secretary Duncan has made since the re-election of President Obama, it appears he will stay on if asked. His priorities? *In his first major postelection remarks, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that he will use his second term to continue to leverage education improvement at the state and local levels, with a new ... more »

OCCUPY EDUCATION - Be part of Documentary of Student Loan Debt

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

OCCUPY EDUCATION - Be part of Documentary of Student Loan Debt: Be part of Documentary of Student Loan Debt Be part of Documentary of Student Loan Debt

Walker Announces Voucher Expansion at California Speech « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

Walker Announces Voucher Expansion at California Speech « Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Walker Announces Voucher Expansion at California Speech by millerlf Scott Walker is ready to take another step on his mission to privatize public education in the state of Wisconsin. He announced his plans to expand the voucher program for private schools while limiting funding for public schools, including technical colleges and the University of Wisconsin System. Walker recently exposed his plans while speaking at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. Following... more »

Jersey Jazzman: Charterism Consumes Camden

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 18 hours ago

Jersey Jazzman: Charterism Consumes Camden: Charterism Consumes Camden by Duke The perks keep flowing to charter schools in Camden: As part of the $175 million state takeover fund given to Camden in 2002, $7 million was set aside for business lease grants to stimulate business growth throughout the city. So far, less than $3 million of the business grants has been spent, *the most recent and largest chunk to date being $495,990 to the nonprofit support group for the Knowledge A to Z (KATZ) Academy Charter School. * [...] At least one Camden board member has questioned her peers... more »

All Education Matters: SpareChange: Are There Viable Possibilities Now for Student Loan Reform

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago

All Education Matters: SpareChange: Are There Viable Possibilities Now for Student Loan Reform: SpareChange: Are There Viable Possibilities Now for Student Loan Reform by Cryn Johannsen Thanks to* Spare Change News* for inviting me to write an op-ed after the election results. This piece offers 9 solutions to solving the student lending crisis (mind you, that's the short list). Here's the piece in its *entirety*, and below is a snippet: It’s hard to avoid the clichéd statement—and every pundit has been saying it over and over again—this was truly an historic election. Not only wa... more »

Voters have spoken: No corporate school reform in Bridgeport! | Parents Across America

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago

Voters have spoken: No corporate school reform in Bridgeport! | Parents Across America: Voters have spoken: No corporate school reform in Bridgeport! by pureparents By Wendy Lecker Originally published on November 18, 2012 in the Stamford Advocate In this age of instantaneous global communication, it is incredible that a simple message sent by voters in Bridgeport has not reached leaders in Hartford, just 50 miles away. On Nov. 6, a rare event in modern politics occurred: democracy prevailed over money. Average citizens defeated a Bridgeport charter revision proposal backed by a... more »

Schooled by experts Parents United for Responsible Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago

Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Schooled by experts: Schooled by experts by admin This morning I attended an excellent symposium on a variety of education issues presented by CReATE (Chicagoland Researchers and Advocates for Transformative Education), the nearly two-year-old group of 100 Chicago-area academic experts who have already created some excellent resources to help parents, community groups, students and others to better understand the truth about corporate school reform. CReATE’s first effort was a paper called “Chicago School Reform: Myths, R... more »

Open Letter to PWCS About CIP and Enrollment « PWC Education Reform Blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 19 hours ago

Open Letter to PWCS About CIP and Enrollment « PWC Education Reform Blog: Open Letter to PWCS About CIP and EnrollmentNovember 19, 2012 — pwceducationreform Tomorrow night the PWC School Board will participate in a work session on student enrollment and new school construction / expansion / renovation. The public is allowed to attend the meetings. The meeting will not be televised, and, as far as I can tell, there is no plan for minutes to be made available to the public. Below are the issues I’d like to see addressed and questions I’d like to have answered. If there are additi... more »

UPDATE: ConnCAN, StudentsFirst and Corporate Education Reformers roll out new Connecticut “pro-reform” blog? - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

ConnCAN, StudentsFirst and Corporate Education Reformers roll out new Connecticut “pro-reform” blog? - Wait, What?: In Greenwich, Malloy throws “heavy support behind the charter school movement” by jonpelto Categories: - Achievement First/ConnCAN - Charter Schools - Education - Malloy Tags: Achievement FirstCharter SchoolsConnCANMalloy At last week’s ConnCAN Block Party, in Greenwich (go figure), Governor Malloy “spoke about the dismal graduation rate in urban districts where he purportedly told the crowd that on average, four in 10 students never receive a diploma…”... more »

On the Rise of Pearson Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública: On the Rise of Pearson *(oh, and following the money)* *A long post that is worth a read here on the rise and influence of Pearson and corporate influence in education reform. Take pause, friends. Take pause but feel free to share and post comments here. Thoughts?* *The Pearson Monopoly * Jennifer Job, *UNC Chapel Hill* If you haven’t heard of Pearson, perhaps you have heard of one of the publishers they own, like Adobe, Scott Foresman, Penguin, Longman, Wharton, Harcourt, Puffin, Prentice Hall, or Allyn & Bacon... more »

If you want better schools, rural or otherwise, improve motivation and discipline of students | Get Schooled

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 21 hours ago

If you want better schools, rural or otherwise, improve motivation and discipline of students | Get Schooled: If you want better schools, rural or otherwise, improve motivation and discipline of students by Maureen Downey *My blog entry on rural schools,* prompted by an *AJC Sunday story on rural education in Georgia*, spurred a lot of comments, including this email from retired educator and school head Dennis Brown of Villa Rica. (I have shared other *responses by Brown on teacher quality*.) Here is his latest: There is always a need for more great teachers in the classroom. But... more »

Diane in the Evening 11-19-12 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

Diane Ravitch's blog: Help This Small Community By Signing Its Petition by dianerav The town of Scottsburg, Indiana, has fewer than 10,000 residents. There is a proposal before the City Council to open a charter school. This will split the town. Some public school parents have started a petition to ask the City Council and the Mayor not to open a charter Why Local School Boards Are Targeted for Destruction by dianerav A local school board in Florida rejected the application of a for-profit charter operator. The board said they had had a bad experience with the last charter scho... more »

Critical Scholars Project @ Critical Theories in the 21st Century: "The Dictatorship of the Marketplace," and Academia

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 23 hours ago

Critical Scholars Project @ Critical Theories in the 21st Century: "The Dictatorship of the Marketplace," and Academia: "The Dictatorship of the Marketplace," and Academia by P. L. Thomas The second annual Critical Theories in the 21st Century conference did not unfold like the scripted plot arc traditional literature instruction teaches students about Shakespearean plays. If it had, the day would have peaked during the lunchtime performance of Hip Hop Psychology, and from there, the ideas would have worked themselves out into a nice and tidy denouement. Instead, the day ended ... more »

U.S. Department of Education Releases Early Snapshot of School Improvement Grants Data | U.S. Department of Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

U.S. Department of Education Releases Early Snapshot of School Improvement Grants Data | U.S. Department of Education: U.S. Department of Education Releases Early Snapshot of School Improvement Grants Data NOVEMBER 19, 2012 *Contact: * Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov The U.S. Department of Education today released an early snapshot of student performance data at schools that have received federal School Improvement Grants (SIG) program funds, a key component of the Department’s blueprint for helping states and districts turn around the nation’s lowest-performing sch... more »

INSPIRE 2013: The First NISCE Conference on Student-Centered Education — National Institute for Student-Centered Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

INSPIRE 2013: The First NISCE Conference on Student-Centered Education — National Institute for Student-Centered Education: [image: National Institute for Student-Centered Education] INSPIRE 2013: The First NISCE Conference on Student-Centered Education SAVE THE DATEINSPIRE 2013 *The First NISCE Conference on Student-Centered Education* Friday, April 5, 2013 • Boston, MA Hilton Boston (Logan Airport) Student-centered education is both broad and deep in theory and in practice. From the many challenges of teaching students as individuals, to the neurological milestones of human develo... more »

From Michigan, Rephorm Turducken | EduShyster

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

From Michigan, Rephorm Turducken | EduShyster: From Michigan, Rephorm Turducken by edushyster2012 Reader: an idea for how to rescue our union-stifled public schools is generated roughly every 3.5 seconds. Most of these edu-ideas are almost nonsensically bad. Still, there is a special category of edu-idea so catastrophically ill-informed, so stuffed with rephorminess and drenched with what the French call *sauce privatisation* that deserves our attention today. I give you rephorm turducken. Lest you think that such a creature exists only in edu-mythology, I present to you exhibit A:... more »

Why some conservatives oppose vouchers

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Why some conservatives oppose vouchers: Why some conservatives oppose vouchers Posted by Valerie Strauss on November 19, 2012 at 11:59 am - [image: Smaller Text] [image: Larger Text] Text Size - Print - Reprints - Share: - - - More » [image: Andrew J. Coulson] I had an interesting e-mail conversation with Andrew Coulson, director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom. The Cato Institute is a Washington D.C.-based public policy research organization dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peac... more »

Part 4: High Stakes Testing and Opting Out:The Consequences | Seattle Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Part 4: High Stakes Testing and Opting Out:The Consequences | Seattle Education: Part 4: High Stakes Testing and Opting Out:The Consequences Posted on November 19, 2012 by seattleducation2011 | Leave a comment *The Consequences* As long as policy and funding are determined by test results, we will be dealing with the consequences. There is the narrowing of focus to math and reading and less focus on history, social studies, the arts, foreign languages, writing, physical education, or developing research and critical thinking skills. The emphasis on test scores precludes looking more ... more »

Louisiana Educator: School Closings Not the Answer

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Louisiana Educator: School Closings Not the Answer: School Closings Not the Answer by Michael Deshotels Another elementary school (Delmont Elementary School) in East Baton Rouge Parish is being recommended for closing due to lack of academic improvement. The school had been reconstituted with a new principal and faculty just before the beginning of the last school session and has already been demonstrating several indications that it was well on its way to improving. Such indications included enthusiastic support from parents and children. But the LEAP scores (in less than one ye... more »

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who is Paying in Washington State?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 1 day ago

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Who is Paying in Washington State?: Who is Paying in Washington State? by Melissa Westbrook Following up on Charlie's post about Crosscut's article on how business says it cares about public education, here's more input from The Stranger Slog. David Goldstein has been laying out the case against the levy swap for our school districts and the supplied graphic says it all. *King County, with roughly 29 percent of the state population, produced 42 percent of state tax revenues, yet it received back less than 26 percent of state benefits. That's a ret... more »

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