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Tuesday, March 9, 2021

Jamaal Leads the Charge - Democrats split over Biden plan for academic testing during pandemic - Politico

A group of progressive Democrats is pushing the Biden administration to reverse its decision to require states to hold standardized testing in K-12 schools this year, reflecting a growing divide in the party over how to handle academic assessments during the pandemic. The effort is being led by Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), vice chair of the House education committee and a former middle school principal. Before coming to Congress, Bowman was a vocal supporter of the testing opt-out movement in New York. .... Politico

Rep. Jamaal Bowman is leading a group of Democrats to pressure Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to scrap federal testing requirements for all states this year. | Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images

The other day I wrote about Jamaal Bowman's connecting charter schools to the anti-labor union attacks. I see Bowman as the most advanced political rep those battling ed deform have had in congress, which makes him a very dangerous man for the educational/industrial complex and corporate Democrats.

Back in July I wrote Bowman Stood Up to NYCDOE Goons, Farina on Opt Out Etc.

I feel the Bowman victory is in some ways will have more impact than AOC.

I had a front row seat to the attacks on public education and teacher unions --- Jamaal Bowman.
Bowman called for a national moratorium on charter schools and pushing back against the overuse of standardized testing which has been used as a weapon to close schools and call teachers and schools failing in order to open up charters.

Bowman makes the connections between the attack on education and the general neo-liberal assault on society that you won't hear in congress very often. This makes him a very dangerous man to the corporate dems now in control...

He is the one person elected ever - even more than Bernie or AOC - who I trust on education. Bowman ran middle school classrooms - which are like mini corporations and then took a leap and started a public school - running a middle school in the Bronx may be more difficult than running the country. So he has executive skills.

One of the things the press doesn't ever mention about Bowman is how he stood up for true ed reform against the DOE goons. He worked under the Bloomberg and DiB admins and very few principals stood against high stakes testing, favored opt out, stood with teachers -- his first supporters came from the NYC ed activists who had been battling the DOE since Bloomberg came into control. With so many issues on the table I still have hope Jamaal will find time to keep some of the core ed issues front and center (word is he is asking to be on the ed committee). ... Bowman stood up to his bosses which is a very heavy lift. There are some thoughts that the Black Caucus which went in for Engel was nervous about having a voice like Bowman win and push his way into the caucus where he might challenge the hot young thing in the Dem Party, major charter school supporter Hakim Jeffries who has taken ed deform positions. I'm looking forward to that.

The UFT did not back the progressive educator in the Bowman/Engel battle who is not in favor of all the ed deform stuff that hit teachers right in the face. The unions will make some noise about this issue this year but there is no as much heart in it as Bowman has since the UFT has not supported opt out while Bowman has.

No matter what they say, always watch what they do - fundamentally the AFT/UFT supports testing.

Friday, April 25, 2014

Rosie Rocks: Explaining Teacher Opposition to High Stakes Testing

I'm so glad I leaned in and taped this fantastic interview MORE/NYCORE member Rosie Frascella did with a PIX reporter -- you won't see this on the air --except for a few words from Rosie on Channel 11. As Rosie spoke I kept saying (to myself) - "wow, wow, wow" as she heated up and her passion about teaching came through so clear. Rosie's interview is the best commercial teachers could have - and if the UFT had any brains they would turn this into a commercial....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1a9Gg37nC3A&feature=share&list=UU9iVb99ewF1omA6LbPUWEOg

And a few pics.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

@AFT: NYC/Chicago Showdown Over Moratorium on Charters, School Closings, Turnarounds

UFT/Unity Caucus AFT delegates stood small and showed their true colors in opposing a reso calling for:

a moratorium on new charter schools, school closings, turnarounds and for a return of charter schools to their original purpose

proposed by the Chicago Alliance if Charter Teachers and Staff.

WTF you must be saying. How can the UFT be opposed to this reso? Well, they didn't openly oppose it but instead tried to table it by referring it back to the AFT Exec council for the next 2 years. Hell, in 2 years there may no longer be a public school system.

I was sitting next to an elderly delegate from Florida and she was astounded at the arguments being used by Unity Caucus "leading lights" Jackie Bennett and James Vaszuez as they led an assault on a reso sponsored by the Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff calling for a moratorium on new Charters, School Closings, Turnarounds.

How about Jackie saying "we already have a reso opposing school closings in NYC but that may not be appropriate for the AFT?"

Then James said it was too broad -- blah, blah, blah --- and we stopped Bloomberg's turn around with court action --- so this was not needed. Huh? Come back next time James and let us know where your 7 Queens schools you "saved" are at.

Unity trotted out a Brooklyn charter school Chapter leader who said this reso would make it hard to organize charter school teachers -- by calling for a moratorium? Remember this reso is sponsored by the Chicago charter school organizers and they were astounded at this argument.

(I have more notes on the debate and what they were saying and will post later if I have a chance, besides Vasquez calling the question when he could as did Jackie's husband, Tom Bennett, the SI/Bklyn Dist rep -- and possible replacement for Leo Casey as HSVEEP.)

Yes, hard to believe, but for those of you who might think the UFT is rigorously opposed to all of the above (closings, charters, turnarounds) you should attend an AFT convention to see Unity Caucus in action. (They also scuttled an agreement with the Chicago TU on an anti-testing compromise. More on that later as I flesh out all the facts.) I use their actions on a reso like this as my proof they are closet and not so closet supporters of much of ed deform policy no matter how it slaps the rank and file teacher in the face. But that is what collaboration brings.

The Chicago Teacher Union reps led the call for putting this motion on the convention floor today instead of burying it as Unity tried to do. Theirs and other arguments were so powerful that Unity list for one of the few times by a vote of 225-192 to the cheers of the crowd. My Florida neighbor jumped out of her seat in exultation. Unity slugs called for a roll call but were shouted down.

I left at that point but what followed was typical Unity skulduggery. Not being able to kill the reso for 2 years they resorted to using the committee procedure of bringing only 3 resos out of committee to the floor. All others are deferred to the end of the convention (I believe). And so Unity found another way by making this the 4th reso.

Not only did they do that but they shoved all other Chicago testing resos to the back of the line. I was told that Chicago and NY spent the morning working on language on a good CTU reso requesting a cost analysis of testing and test prep. Chicago amended the reso to make it more palatable to NYC and Jen Johnson from CTU and Janella Hines from UFT both got up and supported it and it passed overwhelmingly (sorry I don't have electronic versions of the resos now.)

Then Unity turned around and made the reso 5th on the list so it would not come to the main body today.

Last night, I spoke to some CTU delegates and they were livid. Interesting that at the top level of the CTU relations with Randi are very good and I do not believe these low ball dirty actions will have an affect as they can probably in their minds separate the actions coming out of NYC from Randi at the national level. Some talk at the press table with Chicago people is that if Randi were hands on this would not have been so crude. I'm not so sure.

You can't have a democracy in a capitalist society without strong unions as check and balance. Randi left out: you can't have strong unions without democratically run unions. --- Ed Notes

Chicago is now talking about floor strategy when the education committee reports to the convention. Right now it is after 11 and all sorts of presentations are going on. I will post a blow by blow account while also trying to video our Unity slugs at the mics trying to manipulate the debate. Lee Sustar says they use this mind-numbing stuff to lull people before the floor debates begin. I gotta get some coffee but am afraid to leave and miss something.

Afterburn
The basic work is always done in committees, which non-delegates are not allowed to attend. So I've never been able to attend a committee meeting at an AFT convention (see NYC Educator). But there was room in the education committee meeting and Lisa and Gloria got in while I was out looking for smoothies. I was not going to bother and head back to the hotel when it started to pour so I went on over and was I glad I did. I got to watch all my old friends from Unity pull the same old crap --- it was like being at a UFT delegate assembly. I was in the back behind Brooklyn High School District Rep skuzzball Charlie Turner who is not only a red neck but actually has a big red neck.

Oh, and there was a Progressive Caucus meeting yesterday right after but I went back to the hotel to get ready for the evening events by changing into my Tommy Bahama shirt which I wore for the first time -- (on sale at West Palm Beach Macys in Feb.) When I went back later, they were just breaking up and I was glad I didn't go. Some of these people who I see at every DA give me the creeps. I know I keep harping on it, but every single CTU/CORE person I meet is so awesome to talk to.

Previous reports

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The opinions expressed on EdNotesOnline are solely those of Norm Scott and are not to be taken as official positions (though Unity Caucus/New Action slugs will try to paint them that way) of any of the groups or organizations Norm works with: ICE, GEM, MORE, Change the Stakes, NYCORE, FIRST Lego League NYC, Rockaway Theatre Co., Active Aging, The Wave, Aliens on Earth, etc.

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"A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford

What media call "philanthropy" for the public schools are actually seed monies to establish a private "market" in publicly-financed education - an enterprise worth trillions if successfully penetrated by corporate America. Cory Booker, one of the "New Black Leaders" financed by the filthy rich, is key to creating a "nationwide corporate-managed schools network paid for by public funds but run by private managers.

"Ed Reformers" want to cash in on public education and to control its content and outcome, not improve it. Provide great education? Baby boomers had as close as this country has ever gotten to it when we were growing up. The Ed Reform Movement has no interest in seeing such a well-educated, democratically astute population ever again.

http://blackagendareport.com/content/cory-booker-clear-and-present-threat-public-education

History of the UFT Pre-Weingarten Years

This award-winning series of articles by Jack Schierenbeck originally appeared in the New York Teacher in 1996 and 1997.

Naturally, from a certain point of view. But, despite certain biases, Schierenbeck, a great guy, was one of the best NY Teacher reporters so this is worth reading. Jack suffered a debilitating stroke many years ago (I used to get secret donations to ed notes from him through a 3rd source.)

This chapter looks interesting:

Class struggles: The UFT story, part 3

“The schism in the union over radical politics [is] a major reason for stalling the growth of a teacher union for decades.” Revolutionary politics and ideology take center stage, as the original Teachers Union becomes a battlefield, pitting leftist against leftist and splitting the union.

Clarence Taylor's "Reds at the Blackboard" focused on the old Teachers Union which disbanded in 1964 after suffering from anti-left attacks.

Of course for another view, check out the review at New Politics of the Kahlenberg Bio on Shanker by Vera Pavone and me: Albert Shanker: Ruthless Neocon

Effective Union Organizing

A video series put together by Jason Mann from the British Columbia Federation of Teachers about social media and how to use it for effective union organizing.

The first series was called New Media For Union Activists Roadmap and it's still available on-line at:
http://www.newmediabootcamp.ca/welcome/
I watched some of them and need to rewatch as they are loaded with information.

The second series started last week and it's called "Online Campaigning for Union Activists"

You can sign up for this free series at :
http://act.bcfed.ca/online-campaigning-for-union-activists/

You Don't Have A Choice - Join the Revolt

Ex-Harlem Success Teacher Comments on Eva the Diva

Ex-HSA Teacher has left a new comment on your post "Fear and Loathing at Evil's Harlem Success Empire ...":

I am a former Harlem Success teacher. Not many people who work/worked for her like her very much. I once made the comment that she is very nice when I first was hired. Two of her closest colleague responded immediately almost in unison, "Eve is not nice!" Over time I realized that there was a lot of political games going on. Another colleague once said to me that he was tired of "being part of a political campaign." Sending out 15,000 applications for only 400 seats in a school is reprehensible. The money that paid for those mass mailings could have paid the yearly salary of another teacher not to mention the heartache of all those parents who applied but did not get a spot. She does good work trying to give disadvantaged students a quality public school education but at a great cost to staff AND the school's educational budget! school budget.

Davis Guggenheim Compared to Riefenstahl

“Waiting for Superman" is the second most intellectually dishonest piece of documentary work I have seen. It is surpassed only by Leni Riefenstahl's "Triumph of the Will," the pro-Hitler propaganda classic, in that regard. Uses personal narratives of adorable children to create narrative suspense that overrides public policy discussion with pure emotion in unscrupulous attack on teachers and their unions, among others

Timothy Tyson
Professor of African American Studies and History
Duke University

How Teaching Experience Makes a Difference

Even as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Michelle Rhee and others around the nation are arguing for experienced teachers to be laid off regardless of seniority, every single study shows teaching experience matters. In fact, the only two observable factors that have been found consistently to lead to higher student achievement are class size and teacher experience, so that it’s ironic that these same individuals are trying to undermine both.
- Leonie Haimson on Parents Across America web site

Full article with charts here.

Weingarten/Gates Foundation announce drone-driven teacher evaluation

According to a press release issued by the Gates Foundation, the AFT and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, these three have entered a ground-breaking partnership to evaluate teachers utilizing the drone technology that has revolutionized warfare in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. A bird-size device floats up to 400 feet above a classroom and instantly beams live video of teachers in action to agents at desks at Teacher Quality Inspection Stations established by the AFT and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.

When asked if the drones were authorized to drop bombs on teachers who exhibit inadequacy, Chester E. Finn, Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, replied, "Don't be ridiculous. Gates money puts other methods at our disposal."

Randi Weingarten, president of the 1.5-million-member American Federation of Teachers said the powerful union has signed on to the drone project...

More at Substance

The Real Reason Behind Push for Standardized Tests: It's All About the Adults

On standardized testing in our schools

A must read article about the standardized test industry.
Written by an insider who has worked as a test scorer, the article outlines a multinational industry based on an army of temporary workers paid by the piece at $0.30 to $0.70 per test, translated in the need to grade 40 tests per hour to make a $12 salary. The article goes on to show how the companies gauge the grading "results" based on the need to ensure new contracts to continue profiting off of our youth. The original article is from Monthly Review. Here it is on Schools Matter blog.

http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2010/12/on-growing-use-of-corporate-test.html

Parallels between America today and Germany in the 1920's and early 30's

"Resentment and obstruction are all the right wing in America have to peddle. Their policies are utterly discredited. Their ideology - even by its own standards - is a sham. They are so bereft of leaders, their de facto leader is a former drug addicted, thrice-divorced radio talk show host. That is literally the best they can muster. But they have built a national franchise inciting the downwardly mobile to blame the government, not the right, for their problems, exactly as Hitler did in the 1920s."

The US Is Facing a Weimar Moment

Published on Sunday, March 15, 2009 by CommonDreams.org

Chicago View of Unity/UFT on Charters

After many meetings and debates, the Chicago delegation succeeded in working with the New York United Federation of Teachers, Local 2 (UFT) to push the AFT to take stronger stands on charter school accountability and school closings — though many delegates from Chicago would have liked the language to have been even stronger.

Generally speaking, the New York delegation represented organizing charters as the best model for handling their role in reshaping unions, despite the fact that according to many reports few charter schools in New York have been organized as is the case in Chicago. This logic is the same touted by the Progressive Caucus of the AFT. The few that have been organized are a part of the UFT local though they have separate contracts negotiated with the help of UFT. The Chicago delegation reflection the mindset that allowing new charters to continue to proliferate while attempting to organize existing charters is an end game in which public schools and the union lose.

Jen Johnson, CTU, Local 1 in Substance

Ed Notes Greatest Hits: HSA Rally and Founding of GEM

SEE MY VIDEO ON HARLEM SUCCESS RALLY 2009:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEp7rg_L5JI

Angel Gonzalez and I attended that rally and used the footage to promote our conference on Mar. 28, 2009, which is where the concept of a group like GEM emerged. Until then we had basically been a committee of ICE working with the NYCORE high stakes testing group. The actions of Eva and crew helped spawn GEM. Mommie Dearest!!

I have more video somewhere. I was hoping to get Leni Riefenstahl to edit it but she died. We would have called it "Triumph of the Hedge Fund Operators."

Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Extended