Ed Notes Extended

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Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Leonie Haimson on GEM: "It's a very effective, powerful organization that's growing every day"

I was amused at Beth Fertig's report (see below) on Parents Across America and Educators 4 Excellence (of course, no senior teachers meet the criteria) as if an organization of parents fighting ed deform and a group of teachers paid to be organizers by ed deformers are equivalentl in some way.

Now there is a group called the Grassroots Education Movement (GEM) which I helped found two years ago that is unfunded and consisting of almost all classroom teachers. A group that has held forums and rallies and built alliances with parents and community groups that gets no press. 

At the inaugural Parents Across America event featuring Diane Ravitch, a teacher asked how teachers in NYC can get involved in the movement. Leonie Haimson recommended they get involved in GEM.



Here are some reports on the PAA conference last Monday, which was basically uncovered by the press. See my sidebar for links to videos I made.

Building connections at Parents Across America forum


PAA is compared to E4E below.

http://www.wnyc.org/blogs/wnyc-news-blog/2011/feb/14/two_new_groups_step_into_debate_over_teachers/

Two New Groups Step into Debate Over Teachers

Monday, February 14, 2011 - 04:54 PM

By Beth Fertig
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How much should seniority matter if the city has to layoff thousands of teachers this fall? Two new groups are trying to influence the debate.
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1 comment:

  1. Dr Bob in the BronxWednesday, February 16, 2011 at 12:12:00 AM EST

    Interesting that Klein is behind Education Reform Now and based on their website not a single person listed has any education whatsoever, just like Ms. Black. And "Contributions to Education Reform Now are tax-deductible." Ain't that just ducky!

    The guy who wrote to the Times saying that putting teachers in such a bad light could lead to shortages has it right. Half the new teachers, good or bad, leave the profession after five years. How do you know that a "good" young teacher will stay? As it is, tenure requires three
    years of scrutiny (four in CT). What more proof of competency do you need? Student performance on tests? Doesn't student performance depend on student aptitude and dedication, parental involvement, class size, and many other variables outside teacher control?

    A young woman calling in to WNYC who had been bumped six times by LI,FO in three states still supported it because she appreciated the help and support she received from senior teachers. At one school in NC, she stated, all teachers were inexperienced and it was a disaster. Is that what students have to look forward to? Education Reform Now claims that they are fighting for students. When did Klein EVER do anything for students?

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