Latest News and Comment from Education

Friday, June 8, 2012

Shop Til You Drop - Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee's June Shopping Spree #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2


Shop Til You Drop 
Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee's 
June Shopping Spree

What did Failed DC Chancellor Michelle Rhee's Corporate Millions buy? 
Our Public Schools. 
She plans to spend even more in November. 
Don't let Corporate Reformers Buy 


Our Public Schools!





 Beware of AstroTurf Ed Reformers 

Just Like Michelle Rhee's Students first only BETTER


Astroturf lobbying refers to political organizations or campaigns that appear to be made up of grassroots activists but are actually organized and run by corporate interests seeking to further their own agendas. Such groups are often typified by innocent-sounding names that have been chosen specifically to disguise the group's true backers

Just Like Michelle Rhee's
 Students first Astroturf lobbying (only Better) 
Other Astroturf lobbying groups


Just Like Michelle Rhee's
 Students first Astroturf lobbying (only Better) 

Big Education Ape Nite Cap 6-8-12 #SOSCHAT #EDCHAT #P2




James Baldwin said it best: 

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."

A Big Education Ape Nite Cap


Teachers union and L.A. school district reach pact to save jobs - latimes.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 9 minutes ago
Teachers union and L.A. school district reach pact to save jobs - latimes.com: Teachers union and L.A. school district reach pact to save jobs [image: Deasy] The Los Angeles Unified School District and the teachers union reached a tentative agreement Friday that would prevent thousands of layoffs in exchange for one year of pay reductions. Under the accord, teachers would lose 10 days of pay and students would lose five days of their school year. The pact mirrors agreements reached by other employee unions. The agreement must still by ratified by teachers and approved by the L.A. B... more »

tomhayden.com - Peace Exchange Bulletin - Woodward-Bernstein: Watergate was About Vietnam and the Anti-War Movement

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 minutes ago
tomhayden.com - Peace Exchange Bulletin - Woodward-Bernstein: Watergate was About Vietnam and the Anti-War Movement: WOODWARD-BERNSTEIN: WATERGATE WAS ABOUT VIETNAM AND THE ANTI-WAR MOVEMENT [image: Date]FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 2012 AT 3:28PM | [image: Print Article]PRINT ARTICLE | [image: Email Article]EMAIL ARTICLE | [image: Comment]POST A COMMENT President Richard M. Nixon tells a White House news conference in 1973 that he will not allow White House Counsel John Dean to testify on Capitol Hill in the Watergate investigation. (Photo: Charles Tasnadi/AP)In the permanent struggle over mem... more »

Robert Reich (Why the Public's Growing Disdain for the Supreme Court May Help Obamacare)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Robert Reich (Why the Public's Growing Disdain for the Supreme Court May Help Obamacare): Why the Public’s Growing Disdain for the Supreme Court May Help Obamacare FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 2012 The public’s growing disdain of the Supreme Court increases the odds that a majority will uphold the constitutionality of Obamacare. The latest New York Times CBS Poll shows just 44 percent of Americans approve the job the Supreme Court is doing. Fully three-quarters say justices’ decisions are sometimes influenced by their personal political views. The trend is clearly downward. Approval of the Cou... more »

tomhayden.com - Peace Exchange Bulletin - Loni Hancock: What to Do About Dirty Money?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
tomhayden.com - Peace Exchange Bulletin - Loni Hancock: What to Do About Dirty Money?: LONI HANCOCK: WHAT TO DO ABOUT DIRTY MONEY? [image: Date]FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 2012 AT 1:15PM | [image: Print Article]PRINT ARTICLE | [image: Email Article]EMAIL ARTICLE | [image: Comment]POST A COMMENT A correspondence between Tom Hayden and Senator Loni Hancock (D-CA9): An excellent and alarming analysis. We need to reopen the discussion about Public Financing and $$ in Politics. But how? Let's discuss. Loni Hancock Damned if I know. But here’s my thought: 1. Keep public shaming and discredit...more »

2012 Summer Meal Service Sites - Food Programs (CA Dept of Education)

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
2012 Summer Meal Service Sites - Food Programs (CA Dept of Education): 2012 Summer Meal Service Sites Provides parents and referral agencies with a list of locations where children may receive free nutritious meals during school vacation and off-track periods. Please call site contact to confirm participation. This data is current as of June 5, 2012; sites approved after this date may be posted at a later date. Entities wishing to serve meals under the Summer Food Service Program should contact the sponsor listed. Image Map Select a county to display a list of locations for that count... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: FREE MINDS, FREE PEOPLE

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: FREE MINDS, FREE PEOPLE: FREE MINDS, FREE PEOPLE by [image: My Photo] Mike KlonskyChicago, IL, United StatesEducator, author, school reform activist. The next national Free Minds, Free People 2013 Conference is planned for June 27-30, 2013 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to attend a great gathering in Chicago to talk about how to connect Chicago educators, activists and youth to Free Minds, Free People 2013. It is the first of several meetings we hope to have across the country as we build toward this amazing event. ... more »

K12 Inc.; Leading the Corporatization of American Education (with thanks to Paul Vallas) - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
K12 Inc.; Leading the Corporatization of American Education (with thanks to Paul Vallas) - Wait, What?: K12 Inc.; Leading the Corporatization of American Education (with thanks to Paul Vallas) by jonpelto And now K12 Inc., has ads running in Connecticut even though they aren’t licensed here. *Lets face it, E-Learning is big business, pulling in $5.4 billion a year.* And a primary leader in the “e-learning” industry is the for-profit company K12 Inc., a company formed in 1999. William Bennett, the right-wing ideologue and Reagan’s former secretary of education, was the company’s f... more »

The Power of Open Education Data | ED.gov Blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
The Power of Open Education Data | ED.gov Blog: The Power of Open Education Data Posted on June 8, 2012 by Guest Blogger *Cross-posted from the White House Open Government Initiative.* On Tuesday, Vice President Biden, U.S. Education Department Secretary Arne Duncan, and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray hosted a roundtable with college presidents who pledged to provide clear, useful information to all incoming college students and their families, as part of their financial aid package, so that they can “know before they owe.” [image: Open Gov Logo]The Pre... more »

Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charters: "Pretty Ugly"

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 5 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman: NJ Charters: "Pretty Ugly": NJ Charters: "Pretty Ugly" by Duke I'm sure the hive-mind of Broadies down at the NJ DOE is buzzing today; Bruce Baker posted something they aren't going to like: *Statewide schools over and under predicted performance* First of all: you owe it to yourself to read the entire post. Bruce is one of those academics, like Paul Krugman, who can actually explain wonky stuff in terms you and I can understand. What does all this mean? Well, Dr. Baker ran a "regression analysis" - a statistical tool for seeing how varying factors can change an o... more »

On class size, will the federal government listen to parents, as did NZ? « Parents Across America

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
On class size, will the federal government listen to parents, as did NZ? « Parents Across America: On class size, will the federal government listen to parents, as did NZ? by leoniehaimson The Obama administration has proposed that in next year’s education budget, 25 percent of the funds available to school districts to reduce class size or keep teachers on staff be diverted to a competitive grant program to create and expand “new pathways” to teaching – e.g. to help fund organizations like Teach For America. That would mean a cut of more than $600 million, and if approved, would ... more »

RheeFirst! » Idaho Superintendent who emulated Rhee’s failed policies about to be thrown out of office

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
RheeFirst! » Idaho Superintendent who emulated Rhee’s failed policies about to be thrown out of office: Idaho Superintendent who emulated Rhee’s failed policies about to be thrown out of office by admin Written by Jerry Nelson for OpEdNews. Read the entire post here. “*According to the Center on Education Policy in Washington D.C., Idaho, under Luna’s direction, has made some of the most comprehensive changes.* *While Luna’s truck was spray-painted in his driveway and his tires slashed, hundreds of angry teachers, parents, and students crammed into the halls of the state house, in ... more »

Rally for an elected school board; meet with the CTU Support PURE!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 7 hours ago
Parents United for Responsible Education » Blog Archive » Rally for an elected school board; meet with the CTU: Rally for an elected school board; meet with the CTU by admin *From Parents 4 Teachers: * *Help push for an elected school board* Join us for a rally and press conference to kick off a campaign for an elected school board on Saturday, June 9, 10 a.m., at Luther Memorial Church, 2500 W. Wilson. A city-wide coalition of parents, teachers and community residents has come together to demand accountability in our schools! Join the campaign. *Also:* *A Conversation with the Chic... more »

Race To The Top Innovates Backwards, Education Venture Nonprofit Says

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Race To The Top Innovates Backwards, Education Venture Nonprofit Says: Race To The Top Innovates Backwards, Education Venture Capitalists Argue by Joy Resmovits When U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan opened the Race to the Top competition to individual school districts two weeks ago, he said he wanted to spur innovation "at the classroom level and the all-important relationship among teachers and students." Now, a coalition of 16 education startups and policy organizations, herded by the nonprofit NewSchools Venture Fund, are saying the competition gets innovation wrong. They... more »

Ninth Circuit Affirms Trial Court Decision in Waldorf Methods Case | Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard - JDSupra

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Ninth Circuit Affirms Trial Court Decision in Waldorf Methods Case | Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard - JDSupra: Today the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the trial court in favor of Sacramento City Unified School District in the longstanding litigation over the use of Waldorf methods in public schools. This case began in 1998 when a taxpayer group named PLANS (People for Legal Non Sectarian Schools) filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the use of Waldorf methods in public schools violated the First Amendment of the United States Constitution because it ... more »

Okaloosa County School Board to Consider Resolution Against High Stakes Testing on Monday | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Okaloosa County School Board to Consider Resolution Against High Stakes Testing on Monday | Scathing Purple Musings: Okaloosa County School Board to Consider Resolution Against High Stakes Testing on Monday by Bob Sikes Writes reporter Katie Tammen in the *Northwest Florida Daily News*: FORT WALTON BEACH — The Okaloosa County School Board is preparing to take a stand on high-stakes testing. The board will vote next week whether to support a resolution asking state officials to rethink standardized tests that currently affect everything from students’ grades and retention to teache... more »

Missouri Education Watchdog: Republican Education Policy Coming From Florida?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 8 hours ago
Missouri Education Watchdog: Republican Education Policy Coming From Florida?: Republican Education Policy Coming From Florida? by Anngie If you want to know where Missouri's republican platform for education came from, you may not have to look any further than the Foundation for Florida's Future. FFF was started by Jeb Bush in 1994 as an education think tank. Here is their education formula for student achievement, The Florida Formula encompasses a combination of reforms – rigorous academic standards, standardized measurement, data-based accountability, effective teaching, outcom...more »

Californians’ $8 trillion in tax surpluses: What to ask your state and local representatives | Dailycensored.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
Californians’ $8 trillion in tax surpluses: What to ask your state and local representatives | Dailycensored.com: Californians’ $8 trillion in tax surpluses: What to ask your state and local representatives Posted by: Carl_Herman Posted date: *June 08, 2012* In: *Business, Politics* | comment : 0 Comments Trillions in tax surpluses are revealed in government Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFRs). This applies to every state; California’s various government CAFRs reveal $8 trillion in a sampled study, and the state CAFR alone shows $600 billion (explore here to see how to d... more »

What Progressives Can Do to Stop the War on Public Education - Lily's Blackboard | Lily's Blackboard

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
What Progressives Can Do to Stop the War on Public Education - Lily's Blackboard | Lily's Blackboard: [image: Lily's Blackboard Rotating Header Image] What Progressives Can Do to Stop the War on Public Education Jun 8th, 2012 by LilysBlackboard. 39 minutes ago ******** What Progressives Can Do to Stop the War on Public Education American public education is under concerted attack: Americans are told we are failing in international comparisons, urged to blame teachers and break their unions, turn more of our public education system over to private interests and rely ever more upon te... more »

RheeFirst! » Corporate reform candidates in CA primaries backed by big money show Democratic divide on education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 10 hours ago
RheeFirst! » Corporate reform candidates in CA primaries backed by big money show Democratic divide on education: Corporate reform candidates in CA primaries backed by big money show Democratic divide on education by admin [image: DFER Fake Democrats for Education Privatization (click on Picture)] IT IS A RULE: YOU CAN'T BE AGAINST PEOPLE AND FOR CORPORATIONS AND CALL YOURSELF A DEMOCRAT...EVER! Written by Stephanie Simon for Reuters. Read the entire article here. “*Democratic candidates backed by teachers unions narrowly lost on Tuesday in two California state assembly primary r...more »

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Friday, June 8, 2012

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team: Education Headlines *Friday, June 8, 2012* Charter school Somis Academy closing doorsSomis Academy, a home study charter school, will close after the Somis Union School District board this week unanimously denied the school's petition for renewal. New superintendent coming from Santa MariaDouglas Kimberly, superintendent of the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District, has been selected to be the new leader of the Lake Elsinore Unified School District, it was announced Thursday. Tiburon elementary school to build outdoor classro... more »

Oklahoma Educrats Violate Student Privacy, Break Federal and State Law | Truth in American Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Oklahoma Educrats Violate Student Privacy, Break Federal and State Law | Truth in American Education: Oklahoma Educrats Violate Student Privacy, Break Federal and State Law by Shane Vander Hart [image: report-cards]Yes the students signed FERPA waivers, but did they really expect this? Also can students sign this for themselves? It would seem that the spirit, if not the letter, of state and federal privacy laws were violated by the State Board of Education and Oklahoma Department of Education. It’s one thing to have their information discussed as a board is in executive session,... more »

NEA @ Netroots Nation - Lily's Blackboard | Lily's Blackboard

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
NEA @ Netroots Nation - Lily's Blackboard | Lily's Blackboard: [image: Lily's Blackboard Rotating Header Image] NEA @ Netroots Nation Jun 8th, 2012 by LilysBlackboard.

From Time to Time A Hero Steps Forward: Bill Cibes is one of those Heroes - Wait, What?

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
From Time to Time A Hero Steps Forward: Bill Cibes is one of those Heroes - Wait, What?: From Time to Time A Hero Steps Forward: Bill Cibes is one of those Heroes by jonpelto Earlier this week Bill Cibes, a former state legislator, gubernatorial candidate, Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management and Chancellor of the Connecticut State University System, wrote a letter to ConnCAN resigning from ConnCAN’s Advisory Board and instructing them to remove his name from their website. (For background take a look at Tuesday’s Wait, What post) Mr. Riccards, ConnCAN’s CEO, must ha... more »

Opting out, push back, a red, white and blue charter school and Matt Farmer breaks it down | Seattle Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Opting out, push back, a red, white and blue charter school and Matt Farmer breaks it down | Seattle Education: Opting out, push back, a red, white and blue charter school and Matt Farmer breaks it down by seattleducation2011 “Opting out of standardized testing” is the phrase of the week and it’s happening around the country. In New York: Parents and Students Say ‘Enough’ to More Testing It resembled a street carnival. Excited children in bright colors, holding up scarecrows and blowing bubbles, were being serenaded by the raucous sounds of the Rude Mechanical Orchestra. But the sc... more »

Partisan Polarization Surges in Bush, Obama Years | Pew Research Center for the People and the Press

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Partisan Polarization Surges in Bush, Obama Years | Pew Research Center for the People and the Press: Partisan Polarization Surges in Bush, Obama YearsTrends in American Values: 1987-2012OVERVIEW As Americans head to the polls this November, their values and basic beliefs are more polarized along partisan lines than at any point in the past 25 years. Unlike in 1987, when this series of surveys began, the values gap between Republicans and Democrats is now greater than gender, age, race or class divides. Overall, there has been much more stability than change across the 48 politica... more »

Why Rick Scott Can’t Heed the Gaineville Sun’s Call to Seek Plan B on Education | Scathing Purple Musings

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Why Rick Scott Can’t Heed the Gaineville Sun’s Call to Seek Plan B on Education | Scathing Purple Musings: Why Rick Scott Can’t Heed the Gaineville Sun’s Call to Seek Plan B on Education by Bob Sikes In the aftermath of the Alachua school board adopting a resolution against high-stakes tests, the editors of the*Gainesville Sun *say its time for Rick Scott to lead the state away from its current hyper testing mandates. What should be Tallahassee’s response? Ignore the school districts and continue to require ever-tougher and ever more frequent testing? Give in and back away from u... more »

Geaux Teacher!: LFT LAWSUIT CHALLENGES CONSTITUTIONALITY OF LEGISLATION

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 12 hours ago
Geaux Teacher!: LFT LAWSUIT CHALLENGES CONSTITUTIONALITY OF LEGISLATION: LFT LAWSUIT CHALLENGES CONSTITUTIONALITY OF LEGISLATION by noreply@blogger.com (Lee Barrios, M.Ed., NBCT) Louisiana Federation of Teachers LFT lawsuits challenge Jindal’s education package (Baton Rouge - June 7, 2012) Challenging the legality of Governor Bobby Jindal’s signature education initiatives, the Louisiana Federation of Teachers today filed two lawsuits in Baton Rouge’s 19th Judicial District Court asking to have Acts 1 and 2 of the 2012 legislative session set aside. “In the haste to steamroll thes... more »

What is HJRCA 49? It is not what you may think. « Fred Klonsky

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago
What is HJRCA 49? It is not what you may think. « Fred Klonsky: What is HJRCA 49? It is not what you may think. by Fred Klonsky *Springfield skunk.* November 6th is election day. Most people’s attention will be on the Presidential race. But the Springfield skunks have voted to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot: HJRCA49, House Joint Resolution Constiutional Amendment. And if folks aren’t paying attention, which many won’t be, it will pass. It will do great harm to senior pensioners across Illinois. What the amendment would do is require a 60% vote of the Illinois House and Se... more »

This Week In Education: Morning Video: Duncan, Walcott, King Discuss Philanthropy

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago
This Week In Education: Morning Video: Duncan, Walcott, King Discuss Philanthropy: Morning Video: Duncan, Walcott, King Discuss Philanthropy Here's the video from Monday's Philanthropy NY event on education and nonprofit foundations. Twitterhere. Schoolbook here. AM News: Testing, Tenure, Student Tyranny by Victoria Pang New York Standardized Testing Protest Brings Parents, Students to Pearson's Steps HuffPostEdu: Dozens of elementary and middle school kids swarmed the steps of 1330 Sixth Ave. to protest the growth of high-stakes standardized testing. [image: AMNews] Stand for C... more »

Schools Matter: Chicago Teachers Voting Now to Authorize Strike If Negotiations Fail

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago
Schools Matter: Chicago Teachers Voting Now to Authorize Strike If Negotiations Fail: Chicago Teachers Voting Now to Authorize Strike If Negotiations Fail by Jim Horn What is going on in Chicago among teachers should be a lesson for the country, especially the cowardly and appeasing pack of lawyers and PR men who are running the NEA and AFT. CTU has a group of leaders who have not forgotten the democratic and social justice missions that unionism is built upon, and their goals are much deeper than preserving the half-million dollar salaries of the Weingartens and Van Roekels of th... more »

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Horse head in Quinn's bed??

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 13 hours ago
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Horse head in Quinn's bed??: Horse head in Quinn's bed?? by Mike Klonsky I always chuckle a little when the party hacks get their signals crossed and vote the wrong way. Then there's hell to pay.According to Sneed, *Gov. Quinn *was *"Rahmed"* yesterday by Chicago's foul-mouthed, *Little Napoleon* mayor. It seems the slow-witted guv got confused during the legislative session after Rahm and Boss *Madigan* threw in the towel on "pension reform." Quinn thought the great pension heist was still on and ended up siding with Republican boss, *Tom Cross* who ... more »

New Jersey Charter Data Roundup: A look at the 2010-11 Report Cards « School Finance 101

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
New Jersey Charter Data Roundup: A look at the 2010-11 Report Cards « School Finance 101: New Jersey Charter Data Roundup: A look at the 2010-11 Report Cards by schoolfinance101 Here’s a quick run-down on the 2010-11 New Jersey School Report Card data on charter schools. No-one else is putting out decent summaries of this stuff, so I feel obligated to revisit these data periodically. They don’t change much over time. But those older blog posts get buried over time. So, here we go. Let’s take a specific look at Newark because that’s where most of our attention has been paid regardin... more »

Charter school performances get a free pass - Worcester Telegram & Gazette - telegram.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
Charter school performances get a free pass - Worcester Telegram & Gazette - telegram.com: Charter school performances get a free pass [image: Charter Schools - Dividing Communities since 1991] *Clive McFarlane* cmcfarlane@telegram.com *2 comments* | Add a comment In 2010, when the state identified Union Hill and Chandler Street Elementary Community as being among the state’s lowest performing schools, residents and city officials launched an acrimonious public debate on how to cure the academic ills the schools were facing. There was a change in leadership at the two schools —bo... more »

Is Melinda Gates Right? « Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
Is Melinda Gates Right? « Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Is Melinda Gates Right? by dianerav When Melinda Gates was interviewed on the PBS Newshour on June 4, she said something that surprised me. I will give you the full quote, which I copied from the Newshour website. I was surprised because I never heard that claim, I don’t know whose research she was citing or if it even exists. I checked with Linda Darling-Hammond, who seems to have read every study of teacher effectiveness, and asked her if she knew the source; she said she had neve... more »

NYC Public School Parents: video of Pearson protest today!

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
NYC Public School Parents: video of Pearson protest today!: video of Pearson protest today! by Leonie Haimson *Go to Parents Across America.* *Lindsey Christ of NY1 did a great story on today's protest at Pearson, the largest education conglomerate in the world and the author of our sadly flawed state tests. Please also see my post in NYT/Schoolbook on theLessons of Pineapplegate. -- Leonie Haimson* Popout

Business warns state is millions of degrees short | Thoughts on Public Education

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 14 hours ago
Business warns state is millions of degrees short | Thoughts on Public Education: Business warns state is millions of degrees short - by Kathryn Baron by Kathryn Baron [image: (Source: California Competes and U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 American Community Survey). Click to enlarge.] Business and civic leaders weighed in on the condition of California’s university and college systems with an urgent warning that without a significant increase in graduation rates, the state will lose its prominence as an economic contender. A new report released Thursday by the California Competes Cou... more »

The most useless standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
The most useless standardized tests - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post: [image: Answer Sheet] Commencement speaker blasts students Valerie Strauss at The Answer Sheet - 1 hour ago Here’s a new one in the annals of commencement speakers: A teacher at Wellesley High School in Massachusetts gave his address to the Class of 2012 and blasted the students, telling them over and over, “You’re not special.” Read full article >> [image: Add to Facebook] [image: Add to Twitter] [image: Add to Reddit] [image: Add to StumbleUpon] ‘Turning and turning in the widening gyre’ Valerie Strauss... more »

Schools Matter: Legal Recourse for Parents Who Have Been Threatened For Opting Out

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
Schools Matter: Legal Recourse for Parents Who Have Been Threatened For Opting Out: Legal Recourse for Parents Who Have Been Threatened For Opting Out by Jim Horn Thanks, Pana: Yvonne Siu-Runyan ‎******ACLU Multi Family Complaint****** Please send your letter of parental rights violations regarding high stakes standardized testing to: Nina Bishop 3065 Windward Way Colorado Springs, CO 80917 719-233-1508 Mountain Standard Time Please send copies of threatening school/district mail, denials to school activities, grade advancement or diploma, your contact information and your request ... more »

NYC Educator: If It Quacks Like a Charter School

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
NYC Educator: If It Quacks Like a Charter School: If It Quacks Like a Charter School by NYC Educator NY charter school supporters are getting just a little antsy over the prospect that Mayor4Life may decide not to purchase a fourth term. It's even possible, though not highly likely, that someone not insane could become mayor, thus scuttling the drive to privatize all schools in the city. Thus, the charters are busing the parents all over the city and buying ad time to try to persuade people that charter schools are public schools. *The argument that they are, in fact, public schoo... more »

District board members urge investigation of Oakland school | California Watch

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
District board members urge investigation of Oakland school | California Watch: District board members urge investigation of Oakland school Michael Short/California Watch St. Andrew Missionary Baptist Church in West Oakland Will Evans Oakland school board members are calling for the district to investigate whether a private school accused of abuse is inflating enrollment numbers to get more than its share of taxpayer funding. The board members were responding to a California Watch investigation into a West Oakland K-12 school run by St. Andrew Missionary Baptist Church, which send... more »

Is Education a Girl Thing? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
Is Education a Girl Thing? - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher: Is Education a Girl Thing? by Nancy Flanagan [image: It's a girl thing! Decal | Vinyl Stencil-decal, sticker, it's a girl thing, stencil, one time use vinyl stencil] I'm chatting with a well-known, prolific (male) education blogger, whose work I greatly admire--and whose name I'm not going to reveal. I love what he writes, because it's deep--reaching past media flip-offs and who's winning the policy wars and whether they're Gates-funded. He writes about things like how children think, deconstructing... more »

LAUSD'S IMPERIAL NOTION OF LAW- WHOSE RIGHTS ARE THEY ANYWAY? - Perdaily.com

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 15 hours ago
LAUSD'S IMPERIAL NOTION OF LAW- WHOSE RIGHTS ARE THEY ANYWAY? - Perdaily.com: LAUSD'S IMPERIAL NOTION OF LAW- WHOSE RIGHTS ARE THEY ANYWAY? by Leonard Isenberg [image: Divine right of kings.jpg] *(Mensaje se repite en Español) (For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post)* *As I have tried to point out in recent perdaily posts, the major way in which the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has successfully gotten rid of thousand of teachers is by getting them to buy into allowing LAUSD to define what is going on and who has what rights. I ca... more »