Archives for May 2012

“So now we have schools being closed and people getting bonuses all around the student test scores,” said Ravitch. “It’s made testing, somehow, the central activity of American public schools today, which is just so wrong.CNN: Schools of Though…

MUST READ: Florida's testing mania is out of control — 62 tests in a year? The state pays $250 million+ to Pearson, & incurs additional costs at the school level to proctor, grade, and safeguard the tests — all money stolen from instruction …

Why are the so-called "Democrats For Education Reform" violating state law by misrepresenting themselves as chartered by the official state Democratic Party when DFER is not? Why the trickery? Is it because the Republican brand is too tarnish…

What astroturf "ed reform" groups cannot achieve by dismantling teachers' unions using the ballot initiative system, they will instead attempt through a lawsuit. "The advisory committee of Students Matter includes Students First, a…

"Raymond said the district has made $100 million in budget cuts over four years because of state cuts to education funding. That does not include the $43 million that will be cut this year if tax proposals don't pass, he said." Michelle…

"The biggest challenge now facing public education is our fiscal crisis. But it is hard to imagine how you, as educators, can urge the public to provide more money to schools if you fail to challenge, as vociferously as you can, the false charge t…

Agreed that Gov Brown needs positive messaging as well as threat of cuts to pass his K-12 initiative this November. Explain how re-alignment works, why this is a benefit, how CalWORKS and other programs must be funded in order to support education. For…

500 people listened in on the FL BOE conference call held to address botched FCAT standardized test questions & scoring. How much is the state of Florida spending on these poorly-written high-stakes tests that are being used to fail students, fire …

Irony of ironies — brilliant math teacher Carolyn Abbott was driven from the classroom where she excels teaching G&T middle schoolers advanced algebra by a rating as the "worst 8th grade math teacher in NYC." She's now pursuing a Ph…

It's terrible to think of teachers themselves being bullied, but it happens too. Principals, administrators, colleagues & parents can all be sources of distress. We forget the classroom is a workplace and lately it's become even more tens…