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Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Morning Wink 4-30-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2


BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTS




LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-30-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Jersey Jazzman: Did NPR Sell Out to the Walton Family Foundation?Jersey Jazzman heard NPR describe the reason that Washington State refused to bow to Arne Duncan’s demand that the sate use test scores to evaluate teacher quality. It wasn’t because the methodology has no evidence behind it. It wasn’t because the method has been ques
4-30-14 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: Breaking: 26 Teachers and Staff of International High School at Prospect Heights Campus in Brooklyn refuse to give NYC ELA Performance Assessment TestOy! Can I get up that early tomorrow to cover this? Well, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden plant sale is still on tomorrow and it's right across the street. Maybe I'll have some sleepy video for you by Friday. Much irony in that so many P
The Green Berets of Excellence | EduShyster
The Green Berets of Excellence | EduShyster: The Green Berets of Excellence Teaching Alongside TFA Special ForcesBy Johnny BravoMy story starts some years back, on my first day on the job as a public school teacher. (After twenty years of private industry work and collegiate teaching experience, I shifted gears relatively recently and became a teacher). Having expected to encounter a balanced mix
Los Chistes: @ArneDuncan Explodes the Public Education “Struggle Bus” | Cloaking Inequity
Los Chistes: @ArneDuncan Explodes the Public Education “Struggle Bus” | Cloaking Inequity: Los Chistes: @ArneDuncan Explodes the Public Education “Struggle Bus”It has been awhile since Cloaking Inequity featured the humorous Breaking News comics. So today Cloaking Inequity adds a little bit of levity to the great debates about educational policy at the expense of Arne Duncan, US Secretary of Educa
4-30-14 Wait What?
Wait What?: Let Teachers TeachTeresa M. Pelham is the co-blogger for the Hartford Courant’s Mommy Minute blog and a well-known children’s book writer. In recent Courant column entitled, Let’s Ditch Those Tests And Let Teachers Teach, Pelham eloquently put into words what many of us are thinking. More Testing, Less Learning is not what prepares our children for the […] The post Let Teachers Teach a
4-30-14 The Answer Sheet
The Answer Sheet: America’s best teachers got a B on this quizThe 62-year-old National Teacher of the Year Program is the oldest national honors program that focuses on teaching excellence, and this week, the 2014 winners from each state, the District and U.S. territories are in the nation’s capital’s for the annual celebration. The teachers have been touring the capital and meeting with various d
4-30-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: Teachers at International HS at Prospect Heights Refuse to Give NYC ELA TestFrom Monty Neill: **Media Advisory**  26 Teachers and Staff of International High School at Prospect  Heights refuse to give NYC ELA Performance Assessment Test  WHEN: Thursday, May 1, 2014, 7:45-8:20am,  WHERE: International High School at Prospect Heights, 883 Classon  Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225  WHAT: Teach
4-30-14 Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida
Scathing Purple Musings | Color me purple in Florida, red in Washington, dark sky-blue in Israel and public school in Education: Today’s Voucher Expansion Vote Will Forever Define Senate RepublicansA 2013 report from Charity Navigator gives Step Up for Students high marks as administrator of Florida’s voucher system, the misleading named the Florida Tax Credit Program. The report in PR Web quotes
Income Inequality in Milwaukee Among Working Families Unacceptable | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!
Income Inequality in Milwaukee Among Working Families Unacceptable | Larry Miller's Blog: Educate All Students!: Income Inequality in Milwaukee Among Working Families UnacceptableFiled under: Inequality,Wisconsin Class Warfare — millerlf @ 9:08 am Report on income inequality among employed familiesThe annual ETI analysis of state income tax data showed 12 to 1 differences in family income by Milwa
4-30-13 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": Georgia School District Is Model On How Schools Should NOT Deal With Parents Who Want To “Opt-Out” Of TestsThanks to Bill Ferriter, I’ve learned about a Georgia school district who had a police officer tell parents who were opting out of state tests that they would and their children would be trespassing if they were on sch
4-30-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: Illinois State Representative Keith Farnham is a child pornographer and molester.“Keith Farnham? Didn’t he vote for pension theft?” I was asked yesterday. “Apparently that may be the best thing he did,” I responded. From the Chicago Tribune. When he resigned his seat on March 19, Farnham told the Trib
4-30-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: San Francisco Symphony Unveils Must-See Redesigned WebsiteThe San Francisco Symphony has just unveiled a newly redesigned website that’s pretty extraordinary. There’s so much there, and it’s so accessible — music, instruments, and you can even compose your own, play it, and share your creation with the world. The text is pr
4-30-14 With A Brooklyn Accent Go BATs All Week
With A Brooklyn Accent: As NY's Math Tests Begin- Let Us Honor the Test ResistorsToday, another awful round of testing begins in NY State, this time for Math. Our third graders face three days of testing that are more time consuming than the tests applicants take for Medical School, Business School, Law School or admission to college. How our education policy makers and elected officials signed of
4-30-13 Curmudgucation Week
CURMUDGUCATION: Is There No Common Ground? Well.....I sympathize with Peter DeWitt, the former K-5 principal who has morphed into a pundit/trainer. In his blog at EdWeek he can often be found trying to chart a course between the Scylla of the CCSS-based Reformsters and the Charybdis of rabid opposition to any changey things in school while sailing under the Pigpen's Black Cloud of corporate deceit
4-30-14 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Eva Moskowitz Full Of Crap As UsualEva Moskowitz raised $7.75 million dollars from her Wall Street and corporate backers at the second annual spring fundraiser for Success Academies.Think about that number for a minute - $7.75 million.Then, as she was thanking the governor and the legislature at her spring fundraiser for forcing New York City to either co-locate her schools
4-30-14 The Whole Child Blog — Food for Thought: What the SNAP Cuts Mean for Students and Schools — Whole Child Education
Food for Thought: What the SNAP Cuts Mean for Students and Schools — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGFood for Thought: What the SNAP Cuts Mean for Students and SchoolsApril 30, 2014 by Melanie OlmsteadResearch shows that students with access to good nutrition have higher school attendance records, are better able to focus, and are consistently more engaged than students with poor nutrit
Trouble ahead for local school bonds and parcel taxes? | EdSource Today
Trouble ahead for local school bonds and parcel taxes? | EdSource Today: Trouble ahead for local school bonds and parcel taxes?April 29th, 2014 | Add a Comment | By Mark Baldassare / commentary11Mark BaldassareThe elections this year offer the first statewide look at Californians’ willingness to raise revenue for their local schools since passage of Proposition 30, the tax initiative to benefit ed
NYC Educator: Arwen Receives a Common-Core Aligned Letter
NYC Educator: Arwen Receives a Common-Core Aligned Letter: Arwen Receives a Common-Core Aligned LetterI arrived home from work the other evening to find the following letter awaiting me in my mailbox.  I had heard about the cancellation of the Kindergarten play in Elwood, Long Island, but all that had seemed so far away.  As you might well imagine, as you read below, I was somewhat startled by the
Cry for Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger
Cry for Newark | Bob Braun's Ledger: Cry for NewarkGrace Sergio: “What more do we need to do?”Sad. There’s a word rarely heard in the context of the state’s war on Newark’s neighborhood public schools. Sad. Yet the story of how a cruelly tone-deaf state bureaucrat named Cami Anderson is singlehandedly destroying a community’s neighborhood schools is just that. Sad.  And nothing more illustrates th
SBAC Offers Answers to My Queries About the Common Core Tests :: Frederick M. Hess
SBAC Offers Answers to My Queries About the Common Core Tests :: Frederick M. Hess: SBAC Offers Answers to My Queries About the Common Core Testsby Frederick M. Hess  •  Apr 30, 2014 at 8:47 amCross-posted from Education WeekA few weeks ago, I asked three questions about how confident we should be that the results of the new, quasi-national, computer-assisted Common Core tests will be valid and re
Shanker Blog » We Can't Just Raise Expectations
Shanker Blog » We Can't Just Raise Expectations: We Can’t Just Raise ExpectationsPosted by Esther Quintero on April 30, 2014What exactly is “a culture of high expectations” and how is it created? In fact, what are expectations? I ask these questions because I hear this catchphrase a lot, but it doesn’t seem like the real barriers to developing such a culture are well understood. If we are serious

YESTERDAY

The Liberal Education Reform Revolt | Jacobin
The Liberal Education Reform Revolt | Jacobin: The Liberal Education Reform Revolt7.31.13by Lois WeinerAre liberals finally ready to oppose neoliberal education reform?(Katrina Ohstrom / Jacobin)An eloquent call to “reclaim the conversation” challenges leading liberal educators to repudiate their involvement in what’s being called “corporate school reform.” We finally see liberal activists opposin
4-29-14 Ed Notes Online: LA Dreamin: Alex Caputo-Pearl Wins Run-Off for Presidency with 80% Over Incumbent Warren Fletcher
Ed Notes Online: LA Dreamin: Alex Caputo-Pearl Wins Run-Off for Presidency with 80% Over Incumbent Warren Fletcher: LA Dreamin: Alex Caputo-Pearl Wins Run-Off for Presidency with 80% Over Incumbent Warren FletcherBreaking: Alex Caputo-Pearl, the Union Power candidate for UTLA President, just defeated Warren Fletcher, the incumbent UTLA President, in the run-off election, winning 80% of the vote, c
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: 20,000 homeless CPS students. Not an 'excuse' but a reality.
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: 20,000 homeless CPS students. Not an 'excuse' but a reality.: 20,000 homeless CPS students. Not an 'excuse' but a reality.Homeless Jesus statue unveiled in Chicago. But 20,000 homeless students remain invisible. I and many others have been trying to make the case for years, that children's lived experiences outside of school have as great, or even greater impact on m
The Table of Contents to My Book | deutsch29
The Table of Contents to My Book | deutsch29: The Table of Contents to My BookApril 29, 2014On April 27, 2014, I announced publication of my book, A Chronicle of Echoes: Who’s Who in the Implosion of American Public Education.I realize that the Amazon.com listing of my book currently lacks the interactive component allowing shoppers the opportunity to “look inside” the book.So, I have decided to o
Gerald Bracey: The Hatchet Job On Linda Darling-Hammond
Gerald Bracey: The Hatchet Job On Linda Darling-Hammond: The Hatchet Job On Linda Darling-HammondWhen Senator Clinton was still a candidate for president, both she and Senator Obama sought counsel from an educator friend of mine. He told them both not to say anything about education. No matter what you say, he told me that he told them, you're going to make a lot of people mad (he made his point i
Nite Cap 4-29-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #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 CAP4-29-13 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “Parental Advice To Education Policy Makers”Parental Advice To Education Policy Makers is
4-29-13 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “Parental Advice To Education Policy Makers”Parental Advice To Education Policy Makers is a good article by Jeff Bryant. Here’s an excerpt: Instead of empowering parents to feel they are part of their children’s education and engaging them in school governance, we are making parents feel that their input doesn’t matter and
John Kline Takes Arne Duncan To Task Over Special Education Funding
John Kline Takes Arne Duncan To Task Over Special Education Funding: John Kline Takes Arne Duncan To Task Over Special Education FundingPosted: 04/29/2014 4:10 pm EDT Updated: 04/29/2014 4:59 pm EDT Educational funding for students with disabilities became the subject of yet another heated partisan argument with no resolution at a budget hearing Tuesday, after Rep. John Kline (R-Minn.) attacked Se
Assembly Public Safety Committee Testimony - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)
Assembly Public Safety Committee Testimony - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education): Assembly Public Safety Committee TestimonyState Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson's testifies on Assembly Bill 1432 at the State Capitol in Sacramento on April 29, 2014.Good morning, Assembly Member Ammiano (chair) and Assembly Member Melendez (vice chair). Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you
Do Androids Dream of Computer-Graded Essay Tests? | Gatsby In L.A.
Do Androids Dream of Computer-Graded Essay Tests? | Gatsby In L.A.: Do Androids Dream of Computer-Graded Essay Tests? In a recent opinion piece in The New York Times, “When the Circus Descends,” David Brooks derided opponents of Common Core Standards, implying that they were clownish ideologues on the far left and far right making “hysterical claims and fevered accusations.” But as I visit classro
Russ on Reading: Arne Duncan to Washington State, "No Waiver for You!"
Russ on Reading: Arne Duncan to Washington State, "No Waiver for You!": Arne Duncan to Washington State, "No Waiver for You!"Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's decision to rescind the NCLB waiver from Washington state is an act of such monumental stupidity that it would be laughable, if it did not have the potential for such a negative impact on children, parents and teachers
Public School Supporters: Attack via Restraining Order for Freedom of Information Request? | Reclaim Reform
Public School Supporters: Attack via Restraining Order for Freedom of Information Request? | Reclaim Reform: Public School Supporters: Attack via Restraining Order for Freedom of Information Request?Posted on April 29, 2014by Ken PrevitiHere is a stark and scary reminder of just how the corporate education reform industry’s tentacles reach into the public policy making process. In this case, a sen
4-29-14 The Whole Child Blog — IED Pulse Poll Results: Which "Future of Schooling" Prediction Is Coming True? — Whole Child Education
ED Pulse Poll Results: Which "Future of Schooling" Prediction Is Coming True? — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGED Pulse Poll Results: Which “Future of Schooling” Prediction Is Coming True?April 28, 2014 by Whole Child SymposiumPost written by Kit Harris, ASCD ResearchASCD continually seeks to provide solutions to the challenges that face educators of all levels. A recentASCD
4-29-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Morning Read: News on graduation rates and fidgety boysCalifornia graduation rate rises, but achievement gap remains Commentary: Let’s assume, at least for discussion, that maximizing high school graduation rates is – or should be – the primary goal of any public school system. A corollary assumption, of
4-29-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: Defending the Indefensible in the Late Days of the Testing OrgyThe testing madness is underway this week in Tennessee, where a week of TCAP counts 15-25 percent of a student's grade and 35-50 percent of a teacher's evaluation for the other 195 days of the school year.  Is that reason enough for 3rd graders to be vomiting and having nosebleeds on their test booklets this week? But t
Education a new defining issue for 2016 GOP class - US News
Education a new defining issue for 2016 GOP class - US News: Education rising as issue among 2016 GOP class; standards now a metaphor for government reachFILE - This March 19, 2014 file photo shows former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush speaking at an education forum in Nashville, Tenn. Battling “the soft bigotry of low expectations” with national education goals was former Republican President George W. Bu
The Intersection of Standards and their Assessments: From an AZ Teacher |
The Intersection of Standards and their Assessments: From an AZ Teacher |: The Intersection of Standards and their Assessments: From an AZ Teacher In January, I wrote a post about “An AZ Teacher’s Perspective on Her “Value-Added.” Valerie Strauss covered the same story in her The Answer Sheet blog for The Washington Post, validating for me that readers appreciate stories from the field that explai
4-29-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Tuesday Open ThreadSIIF is having a Giant Monsters All-Out Attack week - Godzilla, Mothra, King Kong, and others.What's on your mind?by Melissa Westbrook / 1min 4-28-14 Seattle Schools Community ForumSeattle Schools Community Forum: Kindergarteners - Get with the SystemI come to this issue because of two recent stories about kindergarteners.One was from Oregon wher
“The Common Core may actually fail”: Union chief sounds off on Christie, Rhee, and for-profit testing “gag order” - Salon.com
“The Common Core may actually fail”: Union chief sounds off on Christie, Rhee, and for-profit testing “gag order” - Salon.com: “The Common Core may actually fail”: Union chief sounds off on Christie, Rhee, and for-profit testing “gag order”Randi Weingarten warns of "huge backlash," and tells Salon why she still believes in Common Core's potentialJOSH EIDELSON   Follow Share 44   58    0 
BBC News - The rise and rise of global school rankings
BBC News - The rise and rise of global school rankings: The rise and rise of global school rankingsInternational tests have become an important driving force in setting education policy and their influence seems to be growing.For the first time, England's exams are going to be linked to an international benchmark, with the new grading system for GCSEs being pegged to the Pisa tests run every three
Morning Wink 4-29-14 AM Posts #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT #P2
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 4-29-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Who Wrote the Common Core Standards. part 2Mercedes Schneider continues in her task to determine who wrote the Common Core State Standards. The first work group had 24 members; the second had 51