Monday, April 29, 2013

Parent/teacher Grassroots Rally, as 500 Oppose High Stakes Testing - Social Justice Unionism

High stakes testing - the civil rights issue of our time.


You don't get 500 people out to a rally without organizing or an organization to do the organizing. This is the face of social justice unionism, an event at which Unity and New Action were absent. Change the Stakes was the outgrowth of the work of GEM as has been MORE. Both groups work together. CTS joined with Parent Voices and Time Out From Testing to put this event together. More are coming and we expect the MORE caucus, now that elections are over, to be MORE involved in this movement.

The entire structure of ed deform and the assault on teachers and children emanate from the high stakes testing agenda. Note the vicious attacks on the editorial pages against parents who are opting out. They cannot blame the teachers for this one, so instead they attack the parents. So far this movement has come from the white middle class public school parents but people of color, especially in poor communities are taking note of the negative impact of HST on their children and are beginning to join in, the worst nightmare for the ed deformers.

Photos by Michael Solo (John Dewey HS) and Pat Dobosz (PS 157K).

Testing expert Fred Smith


Links to coverage so far:

Letters to the NY Times: 


Rally stories

Arthur Goldstein, CL Francis Lewis HS and John Liu








Sunday, April 28, 2013

500 Rally at Tweed to Protest Testing Policy Organized by Change the Stakes, Parent Voices and TOFT

A Young MORE
Friday many of us in MORE attended one of the best rallies we've been part of on the steps of Tweed which were packed with parents, teachers and children protesting high stakes tests with many MORE tee-shirts in the crowd. Change the Stakes has emerged out of a committee set up by GEM 2 years ago and has grown into a powerful parent advocacy group. The other teacher oriented arm of GEM inspired and helped organize MORE. Both CTS and MORE are more or less sister organizations but over the past year have not had the time to work as closely together as we should, though I and some other MOREs have been deeply involved in CTS. Below some pics with lots more later in a follow-up and maybe some video tonight.





The UFT had zero presence. When I was asked why I said, "Because the UFT supports high stakes testing." A really good time was had by all and afterwards over a dozen of us went to a local diner to chat about the UFT election results.

Here are some reactions and photos with video to follow in a few days.
Thank you fellow MORE comrades who showed up in numbers and in spirit today!
Police estimated that there were approximately 500 in attendance!
This was not just a parent movement, this is a parent/teacher movement!

I am prompted to write this because of a few questions that have come my way about how this all happened. It is my belief that no matter the conditions at our schools, if we build relationships, the very basic component of a community, we can build this movement across groups.

I have many ideas, but I'd love to have this discussion with anyone who's interested.
This has been a mantra that I've been posting- let's create our own stories and make
theirs obsolete.

"Our strategy should be not only to confront empire, but lay siege to it.

To deprive it of oxygen. To mock it. With our art, our music, our literature,

our stubbornness, our joy, our brilliance, our sheer relentlessness- and our ability to tell our own stories. Stories that are different from the ones we're being brainwashed to believe." - Arundhati Roy

In solidarity,
Jia


=======
Great wonderful time on the steps of Tweed.
I heard police estimated about 500 people. And they were 500 charged up people, really a beautiful day.

I didn't think I'd touch this computer for a week, but I have a message from TV station News12 the Bronx asking me for footage--believe it or not they are not allowed to leave the Bronx. ( I think it's an insurance matter.)

If anyone has images, moving or still, but preferably moving on their cameras or phones, please send to me or directly to news12bx@news12.com so they can put them in the 10 or 11 pm slot.

I think they are looking for a modest amount of footage --A few minutes should do it.

Please call or email me and I will let them know it's coming.
They already interviewed some parents (in the Bronx) this afternoon.

A beautiful day--and this is only a start! Near the end, seeing the kids on the nearly emptied steps, racing around, was such a sight, bringing some life into that stony building.

cheers,
Jane
ps attached is the press release. many thanks to all who contributed.

=========
I want to send out huzzahs! to everyone. What a wonderful, warm, passionate crowd!

Janine was great both as organizer, speaker, and mop.
Jane H was great as organizer, of course, & on the scene about changing the chants (to good ones too) just as the current one lost steam.
Jane M - ditto about organizing, getting calls out to press (even if not enough showed up - but they'll start coming more & more, right?), & cheering people on, with & without the new press release.
Parents whose names I don't know (at least I don't remember 'em) were great for showing up, for standing up for what they believe - smiling yet - & some of them for telling their powerful powerful stories.
Teachers like Gia & Lauren who would rather put their jobs on the line than shoot down their own principles: kudos!
AND THOSE KIDS: hallelujah to them all!

You are all so strong! & even though it's a cliche, I'm gonna say it: so beautiful too.

I asked one boy how his test week had gone, & he said he hadn't taken the tests. And how was that? I asked. He shrugged & said, Well the whole blending in thing was a bit hard, but ... Was he the only one? I asked. Yes, he answered, that's what I meant about the blending in thing.

And now to tackle the rest of it, right? including perhaps stirring up a ruckus about the portfolios if they're not really portfolios? And the principals who need to be challenged for harassing the kids as well as their parents? And then, oh bliss: the field tests....

In awe,
Chris O
---------
Thank you everyone for this wonderful experience! We didn't know what was going to happen and look what our passion and love for our children has brought us. I posted this quote by Arundhati Roy on FB. It's one that I've been using as a mantra almost.

Our strategy should be not only to confront empire, but lay siege to it. To deprive it of oxygen. To mock it. With our art, our music, our literature, our stubbornness, our joy, our brilliance, our sheer relentlessness- and our ability to tell our own stories. Stories that are different from the ones we're being brainwashed to believe. - Arundhati Roy

Looking forward to our work together!

Enjoy the weekend!
xo
Jia
======

Lisa S.
Apr 26 (2 days ago)

to CTS
CTS & TOFT, et al, 

Congratulations on the fantastic Rally!   You created an exciting event that helped join many groups against the DOE. I look forward to more unique opportunities to show our solidarity.  It was wonderful to see so many familiar and new faces in the crowd.  The best part was the 'kid friendly' atmosphere.  Special thanks to the tireless rally leaders!


Apr 27 (1 day ago)

to cts-internal
The rally was great!!  Everyone was marvelous. It was well organized.  Lots of people, old & young.  Lots of energy; the band was a good touch.  A dramatic conclusion to weeks of intensive effort on dealing with the tests.  I was happy to be part of it.


Apr 27 (1 day ago)

to cts-internal
Thanks to all who worked to put the rally together.  I have been to many rally rallies in front of Tweed, but this one was one of the biggest and certainly the best with so many children.  The children are really who it is about after all and the kinds of lives and knowledge they will grow up to have (partly based on the learning they experience).  When I rounded the cornor of Chambers street and saw the steps of Tweed filling up, it was such a great feeling.  When is the next CTS meeting? 

Victoria 
9:31 AM (22 hours ago)

to cts-internal
Let me add my gratitude and appreciation to ALL the CTS and others who organized and ran the rally.  It was super!  So many children and GREAT chants and the band - AWESOME!  Thank you all; I have some good shots on fbk and some footage, which I can send tonight to anyone who needs it.
Thanks again!
-Tory
Victoria

Pdobosz5@aol.com
9:45 AM (22 hours ago)

to cts-internal
Congratulations to all the organizers. I have been to more rallies than I can count and this was one of the best. The diversity of children, parents teachers, educators and others interested in education but not necessarily working in schools was amazing. This was democracy at work, speaking out freely and loudly. I will be sending out pictures of the large group, the signs and those wonderful mops.
 
 ========

One parent commented that Gotham Schools
Estimated the crowd at 200 when police said 500 -- thanks for correcting them Fred!
http://gothamschools.org/2013/04/26/on-the-last-day-of-state-testing-a-sigh-of-relief-and-a-protest-rally/


On the last day of state testing, a sigh of relief and a protest rally

I know that some people will accuse Gotham Schools, in service of ed deform, of purposely underestimating the crowd at less than half of police estimates of 500 and for giving more coverage to ed deform supported astroturf organizations but.... well, let me mull this over. I left this comment:
This was one of the biggest outpouring of genuine grassroots parents I've seen and it will only grow. How much more coverage did Gotham give to that phony parent astroturf
"excellence for something" with their claims of 5000 people attending their events? Change the Stakes need to add some version of "excellence" to its name and get money from Walmart.


PRESS RELEASE

TODAY April 26, 2013
NYC PARENTS, STUDENTS and TEACHERS RALLY
IN FRONT OF TWEED COURTHOUSE

Media Contacts:     Jane Hirschmann, 917 679 8343            Jane Maisel, 917 678 1913

DETERMINED TO END HIGH STAKES TESTS

Parents, teachers and students gathered today to demand an end to the policy of high-stakes testing (HST), which they claim interferes with the teaching of subjects in depth and deprives the city’s children of a high-quality education, inflicting damage on them and their communities.

Parents and teachers, sharing the fears caused by threats of school closure and grade retention, said they are fed up and determined to put an end to HST. In fact, the closure and retention policies are what make the tests “high stakes.” Parent Jeff Nichols objects, “I find myself thinking, ‘Duh!’ Get the bureaucrats out of the picture! NO to the state tests because of the whole panoply of abuses they facilitate, but also NO to the whole concept that children are to be judged by paper-pushers who have never met them!” Loretta Prisco, a retired teacher states, “I am totally opposed to holding kids back. It doesn’t work. Think about the kid who is reading on level but has not mastered the math of his grade.”

Martha Foote, a parent of a 5th grader at PS 321 in Brooklyn, says: “High-stakes testing is corrupting and ruining our children’s education. It’s turning our schools into test-prep factories and turning our children away from learning. . . . Parents—from Buffalo to Rockville Centre—are saying enough of this insanity. It’s time to bring real learning back into the classroom.”

Researchers acknowledge an education crisis but say that it is not caused by the public schools. The real cause is our country’s increasing poverty and the growing gap between rich and poor—and the segregation that results. Children who are not living in poverty score as high or higher than students in Finland and other countries with strong school systems. However, a UNICEF study of the well-being of children in wealthy countries issued this month, the Innocenti Report Card, states that the US ranks near the bottom and in some categories second to last, just above Romania; in all large US cities public schools are so segregated that there is no evidence of the former impact of Brown v. Board of Education.

Teachers have been gagged by the DOE, warned that they must not speak out. Some have been threatened with loss of jobs and even of their licenses if they share their concerns about the pressure to do test prep rather than teach and the required use of the “Core Content State Standards,” which they find to be shoddy and age inappropriate.

Corruption of the purpose of education is paired with undue corporate influence on policy. One teacher said, “Boss Tweed’s legacy of corruption has rubbed off on the present occupant of the Tweed Courthouse, the NYC DOE, whose policies are most responsive to rich and powerful corporations that are rewarded with no-bid contracts for billions of dollars.”

Meanwhile, most public officials’ children are in private schools, getting the meaningful education that public school students are deprived of. An elementary teacher says, “The children deserve schools just as good as the private schools political leaders choose for their children. . . . It’s hypocritical for politicians like NY State Education Commissioner John King and President Obama to send their children to private schools where there are no high-stakes tests, and then impose them on our kids.”
A sixth grader recently wrote about her view of the limitations of HST: “The test doesn’t let you learn much about the students or their teachers. A project could show more because . . .  the students can express what they can do and have the time to show what they know. . . . If the DOE wants to know anything on how smart we are, this test is not the correct answer.”
The DOE claims it has no choice but to use HST. When DOE Deputy Chancellor Polakow-Suransky stated last December that “the federal government has a rule that you have to do this testing,” parent Patricia Padilla responded: “I don’t think that we have to wait for federal law to change for there to be a change in high-stakes testing—because if that were the case I would still be picking cotton or drinking from the colored water fountain."


###

Saturday, April 27, 2013

MORE's Jonathan Lessuck to Speak at Ethical Culture Sunday at 11 am



The privatization of education
On Sunday, April 28, the Riverdale-Yonkers Society for Ethical Culture will discuss how public polices have allowed businesses to profit from education.
 
Jonathan Lessuck, an E.L.L.I.S. Preparatory Academy science teacher and MORE caucus union member, will discuss how the “education reform” movement has led to businesses competing for contracts and to diminished control by local communities. 
 
The Movement of Rank and File Educators (MORE) Caucus of the United Federation of Teachers believes the dominant Unity caucus hasn’t sufficiently advocated for educators seeking to stop school closures, halt the expansion of charter schools and co-locations, decrease class sizes and to craft a more equitable evaluation system.
The Society will meet at 11 a.m. at 4450 Fieldston Road.
#1 Train to the last stop

Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman at AERA Conf Sunday in San Francisco

We were asked to make our real reform film available as a counterpoint to the ed deform WFS. Note they are showing another ed deform film after ours, followed by a panel discussion. NOT FAIR - 2-1.

Unfortunately, Brian Jones and Diana Zavala will be heading to AERA on Tuesday for a panel and will miss this. Would have been great to have them rep us in the context of the bookend ed deform films.

By the way -- if see it if you haven't seen the film, the best defense of teacher unions yet, something that puts the UFT to shame ...


"The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman" Online

I know she will kill me for saying this --- was inspired and managed and written and produced and narrated and organized (including getting space for the premiere, recruiting Diane Ravitch to speak, etc) by Julie Cavanagh. Not to underestimate the amazing work Darren did as Julie's partner in the project ( I had to drop out for 6 weeks due to the play I was appearing in) and then Mollie's work in reorganizing the film after the first showing. And of course the amazing parent voice of Lisa Donlan who helped shaped the editing. And once Brian was recruited to co-narrate with Julie he jumped all the way in and did a lot of the writing.


Sunday, April 28
8:15 am – 10:15 am: Waiting for Superman
Co-Sponsor: Division L
 Waiting for Superman follows a handful of promising kids through a system that the film suggests inhibits, rather than encourages, academic growth while embracing the belief that good teachers make good schools. This film explores innovative approaches taken by education reformers and charter schools.
Trailer: http://www.takepart.com/waiting-for-superman/film


10:35 am – 12:05 pm: The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman
Co-Sponsor: Division L
In response to Waiting for Superman, grassroots activists highlight the real-life experiences of public school parents, students and educators to show how so-called reforms are actually hurting public education.
12:25 pm – 1:55 pm: The Lottery
Co-Sponsor: Division L
Follow the story of four African American families from Harlem and the Bronx who have entered their children in a charter school lottery. Out of thousands of hopefuls, only a small minority will win the chance of a better future.
2:15 pm – 3:45 pm: Panel: How Media and Film Portray Teachers and School Reform
Co-Sponsor: Division L
Chair: Jessica Lester, Washington State University
Panelists: Audrey Amrein-Beardsley, University of Arizona; Mary Dalton, Wake Forest University;  Rachel Gabriel, University of Connecticut; Claudio Sanchez, NPR

Friday, April 26, 2013

UFT Election Results, Late edition: Total Votes and Retiree Breakdown

MORE increased the vote over the ICE/TJC totals of 2010 in every single division and outpolled New Action in every division except retirees.

I had to miss an hour and a half of victory partying while waiting for the retiree vote to come in. Oh, what fun. Here are some interesting figures. I am putting it all in a spreadsheet with info from other years - -once I figure out the percentages.

Let's start with ballots sent out and returned (slate plus non-slate)

Total: 173,407  / 43,138

HS: 19,040       / 3808
MS: 10,807      / 1879
Elem: 34, 163   / 7331
Funct: 51,040    / 7704
Retirees: 58,357  / 22,462

Lots of info packed into these numbers. Look at the low rate of return in every area - except retirees who I believe will always vote for the safe party in power because they want to protect what they have and feel no pressure from deteriorating conditions. But even this total return dropped by almost 2500 votes. So here is the breakdown in retiree votes.

Read previous  reports from earlier in the day:


MORE: 1490 (good jump from the 746 ICE/TJC  had in 2010) -- actually, a doubling and the highest total by far amongst retirees. Why? I think the latest retirees under Bloomklein were pissed and some at the union. While MORE will never out poll Unity with retirees watch the gap close as time goes by. Ellen pointed out today MORE should have raised the issue over the reduction of the interest rate for us from 8.25 to 7% while others still get the higher rate, all in exchange for 2 August days.

New Action:  1880 -- the only division where NA outpolled MORE but a significant closing of the gap -- many anti-Unity retirees who always voted New Action may not be aware of their sellout. This was a drop from over 2200 that NA got in 2010.

Unity: 18,155 - believe it or not but his is s drop for Unity of almost 3000 votes from 2010. 

Thursday, April 25, 2013

UFT Elections, 4:30PM: Elementary Schools and Functionals

Only division left is Retirees in about half an hour but I'm leaving for the victory party while Ellen, Joan and James hold the fort.

This may be the only division we lose to New Action. We were running last on some quick looks in this category -- we estimate New Action with about 10+% of the retiree vote and MORE with about 6-7%. Actually, this may be the beginning of some minor erosion of Unity but we have to check the finals vs past elections.

Elem total slate 6870  Non slate 297 to be counted.

MORE - 1140
NA 534
Unity 5111

In 2010:
Total: 7761
ICE/TJC - 703
NA - 978

2013 Functionals (non teachers)   Ballots Returned: 7704   Ballots Counted: 7113
MORE: 951                   NEW ACTION: 754                UNITY: 5167



Keys are in comparing results for ICE/TJC and MORE over past few elections.
Unity dropped in functionals by over 2000 votes while MORE gained 200 but still did not top ICE/TJC 2004/07 totals. NA dropped by over 300.
This is slate votes only with 500 split ballots.

Only elem and retirees to go.
We're aiming to come in with more total votes than New Action and then use their 10 seats on the bd while we have none as a democratic battering ram.

Here is James' report on the ICE blog before we had the elem results.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

FIRST ELECTION RESULTS SHOW MORE MAKES SUBSTANTIAL GAINS OVER ICE-TJC NUMBERS FROM 2010

We have initial slate only numbers for the high schools and the middle schools in the UFT election and although Unity and New Action will hold onto their monopoly on power, the new Movement of Rank and File Educators (MORE) established itself as the main opposition group in the secondary schools by a wide margin.

Here are the slate numbers for the 2013 and 2010 elections in the secondary schools.

2013  Hi;gh Schools   Ballots Returned: 3808   Votes Counted: 3595    
MORE: 1430 (40%)   NEW ACTION: 452 (13%)       UNITY: 1592 (45%)

The remainder are people who split their ballot. 

2010 High Schools    Votes Counted: 5203
MORE: 1369                 NEW ACTION: 774               UNITY: 2595

2013 Middle Schools   Ballots Returned: 1879      Votes Counted: 17886
ICE-TJC: 398                NEW ACTION: 161                   UNITY:1185

The remainder are people who split their ballot.

2010 Middle Schools: Slate Votes Counted: 2881
ICE-TJC: 248                NEW ACTION: 421                UNITY: 1981   

2013 Functionals (non teachers)   Ballots Returned: 7704   Ballots Counted: 7113
MORE: 951                   NEW ACTION: 754                UNITY: 5167

The remainder are people who split their ballot.    


We still have not heard from the traditional Unity strongholds of the Elementary Schools and the retirees so Unity will easily win but with much lower totals than in 2010.

Something is wrong with the UFT electoral system when New Action gets only 13% of the high school votes but wins half of the UFT Executive Board seats for the high schools while MORE's 40% will get MORE no representation on the Executive Board.

It is obvious that a clear majority of the high school teachers who vote do not want a Unity monopoly on power.  Had this been a traditional two party UFT election, there would be truly independent opposition representation (no Unity cross endorsement needed).

Two other stories emerge at first glance.  First, the turnout was pitiful as only 43,138 ballots are being counted.  More significantly, 22,462 of those votes are from retirees.  That constitutes 52% of the voters. I would question if having retirees as the majority of the electorate is healthy for the union.

In addition, Mulgrew's vote will more than likely drop in a major way compared to 2010 among active UFT members.  It appears many members did not vote for the opposition but they certainly didn't vote for the incumbent.  For the next election, those members need to be persuaded to vote.

UFT Elections, 3PM: Middle and HS - MORE 160 votes behind Unity with 40% of HS Vote

Really pathetic totals for all but MORE did better in HS than ICE/TJC last time. Major drop for Unity from 2010. If New Action hadn't made the dirty deal with Unity the opposition

HS - Totals 3595 returned - 155 non slate still to be counted
MORE: 1430 - 40%
Unity: 1592 - 45%
New Action: 452 -- 13% [WHICH STILL GIVES THEM 3 HS EX BD SEATS]

In other words, New Action gets 3 HS EX BD with 452 votes.

MS Total 1786 returned with 83 non slate to be counted
MORE 398
NA 161
Unity 1185

MORE to come. I'm turning the computer over to James who will put up something on the ICE blog.

UFT Election Returns, 11AM: Retirees 52% of Returns

Lowest Returns in Memory from Working, Highest Returns in History for Retirees as "Don't Give a Crap" is winning. Given retirees expected vote for Unity that reaches 90%, the outcome is clear as Mulgrew should get at least 20,000 out of the 22,454 votes.

As Jeff from the AAA gave us these numbers everyone from all the caucuses had a look of shock at the numbers. Could some of the drop of 10,000 people voting be due to a reduction in the amount of UFT teachers due to charter school and budget cut erosion?

These are serious questions for all caucuses. One quickie - as the high school votes fly by, the MOREs seem to be coming up much bigger than last time. Same with middle school, though still lower than the high schools compared to Unity.

2013                           2010
Elem: 7331                10,292
MS: 1879                    2881
Hs: 3808                     5203
Funct: 7704                10,629
Retirees: 22,454         24,978

Total returns: 43,138. In 2010 it was around 53,000 (someone check my math).

Retirees were approx 52% of the electorate this time. But even amongst retirees there was a small drop in returns though due to the election rigging by Unity raising their threshold vote rises from 18,000 to 23,000 this time each of their votes count as a full instead of a partial vote. So the return didn't even equal the new threshold.

We see the good and bad. Absolutelly allows open question on the influence of retirees. Even unity people seemed embarrassed.

Here's a question for Unity and New Action: How much good did it do to race around the city stuffing lit in the mail boxes? Especially Unity which hit glossy flyer after glossy flyer? Sure they will win but what was the cost per vote? Reminds me of Eva's charter school ad campaigns where she spends thousands of dollars for each recruit.

Pizza comes at noon.

UFT Election 10AM Update: Ballots Being Opened, Middle Schools Counted First

We expect to have middle school results fairly early as they count the smallest returns. High schools will be next.

I will update this post when results are in and repost. As a reference, let's look back to the last election. (And further back if you want -- https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B8qnFCTQLOqoRDdUcmxRdnFQYms/preview?pli=1

Middle school slate results in 2010:
Mailed: 11,697
Returned: 2,881
Unity: 1,981
New Action: 441
ICE/TJC: 248

ICE/TJC was so weak in the middle schools in that election, they could not even run a middle school slate and basically ended up ignoring that division. But really, all caucuses did poorly. Even Unity with all its control of chapter leaders, and with flooding the boxes gets less than 3000 votes out of almost 12000 sent out. Don't Give a Crap won once again.

Middle School 2013 results will be published below when available.

Today is UFT Election Vote Count, Will "Don't Give a Crap" be the Winner?

DGAC has been the winner in the past. The UFT did make phone calls and send out email reminders to try to avoid the embarrassingly low returns from the past. If they can get out 35% of working members that will be a victory of sorts. Expect higher numbers of retirees to return their ballots.

I'm heading off as an observer to the AAA vote headquarters at the Holiday Inn at 440 W. 57th St. Ellen Fox and Joan Seedorf are joining me, as is James Eterno --- the UFT pays the DOE for one person from each caucus to be an official observer.

Votes are counted by divisions -- remember there were 4 different color ballots -- HS, MS, Elem, Functional -- the largest due to retirees, but all the non-teaching divisions are lumped in. Unity gets its highest percentages from here.

Mulgrew and the 10 New Action/Unity EB candidates will get the combined vote totals of Unity and New Action. Thus, whatever New Action gets is subtracted from the Unity totals. Thus last time Mulgrew got 92% while Unity got in the low 80s.

Why would someone vote against Unity but for Mulgrew? NA loyalists, people who don't really notice they endorsed Mulgrew -- ie the people who remember NA as the opposition and still think they are. NA always does better than the real opposition parties due to the old-time anti-Unity vote that hasn't been in touch with the New Action decade-old sellout.

In the meantime, check the MORE blog for some interesting posts:

UFT ELECTIONS: A VICTORY FOR MORE

MORE’s First 100 Days

 

 

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Join MORE at Election Victory Party, Thursday, April 25 and Rally With CTS at Tweed Friday Apr. 26

MORE Weekly Update



Movement of Rank & File Educators

Weekly Update #51 - April 24th, 2013

MORE - The Social Justice Caucus of the UFT

Upcoming:


Planning Committee
Tue., April 30, 6PM
Mon., May 6, 5PM
Karavas Place
164 W. 4th St.

General Meeting
Sat., May 11, 12-3PM
224 W. 29th St., 14th Fl.

Labor Notes Troublemakers School
Sat., May 18, 9AM-4PM
Health Opportunities HS
345 E. 15th St.


Join MORE for an Election
Victory Party!


Calls have been made.  Speeches have been heard.  Votes have been cast.

Now it's time to celebrate our caucus' efforts to improve education and to save our public schools.
Thurs., April 25, 5:00 - 8:00 PM

O'Reilly's Bar - Upstairs

21 W. 35th (between 5th and 6th Ave.)




HELP CHOOSE OUR STEERING COMMITTEE



The steering committee will vote on important caucus issues before bringing them to the general membership for further discussion and final voting. Reply to this email for more information on how to make nominations.

• Nominees should be UFT members. We want a strong majority of delegates and chapter leaders and active organizers and activists, most of whom are current educators.

• Nominees should also be committed to building MORE and agree with all or most of MORE's platform/mission/points of unity

Only MORE members may nominate and vote, so please join today.


Training for Activists

Register for the school
Read the flyer

Join MORE chapter leaders and activists at the Labor Notes Troublemakers School for important training on 
  • Beating Apathy
  • Running for Union Office
  • Assertive Grievance Handling
  • Roots of the Public Sector Budget Crisis
  • Community Alliance-Building Done Right
  • Contract Campaigns That Win
Saturday, May 18
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
The High School for Health Professions and Human Services
345 E 15th St., Manhattan
(between 1st and 2nd Ave.)

Change the Stakes Rally:
Cleaning Up the Mess of High Stakes Testing


Our children are NOT a test score!
WHEN:  Friday, April 26 at 4 PM
WHERE:  TWEED NYC Department of Education
52 Chambers Street
(4/5/6 to Brooklyn Bridge. N/R to City Hall. J to Chambers Street)
WHO:  Families, teachers, children, and supporters of educational justice
 
WHY: Because schools should foster a life-long love of learning.
Because our students deserve 180 days of real instruction.
Because students and teachers are more than a test score.
WHAT TO BRING:  Your vision for a more just and equitable education system, as well as mops, brooms, and other supplies to help "clean up the mess!"
Join Change the Stakes (www.changethestakes.org)
and Time Out from Testing (www.timeoutfromtesting.org)
*Rain Date:  Tuesday, April 30 @ 4 pm


May Day!

Join us on May Day for a Rally for Labor Rights, Immigrants Rights, and Jobs for All to spotlight the unprecedented attacks against working families and to push for passage of comprehensive immigration reform in Congress. The rally will begin at the south side of Union Square at 4:00 PM and end at City Hall.

See the flyer here.
Copyright © 2013 MORE Caucus, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you are excited about changing the UFT and signed up at a MORE meeting or our website, MORECaucusNYC.org.
Our mailing address is:
MORE Caucus
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Study Finds Mayoral Control a Bust, Someone Tell the UFT



Contact:
Katrina Bulkley, (973) 655-5189, bulkleyk@mail.montclair.edu
Dan Quinn, (517) 203-2940, dquinn@greatlakescenter.org

Mayor-Led Schools Report Problematic, Academic Review Finds
EAST LANSING, Mich. (Apr. 23, 2013) – Mayoral governance – where a city's mayor replaces an elected school board – is in use in several major American cities, including New York City and Chicago. A recent report from the Center for American Progress claims that "mayoral-led" districts improve school and student performance. A new review questions whether mayoral control is appropriately credited with the claimed improvements.

The report, Mayoral Governance and Student Achievement: How Mayor-Led Districts are Improving School and Student Performance, was authored by Kenneth K. Wong and Francis X. Shen.  Wong and Shen studied fiscal and student achievement data in an effort expand the discussion around mayoral control of schools.

Katrina Bulkley, Professor of Education Leadership at Montclair State University, reviewed the report for the Think Twice think tank review project. The review was produced by the National Education Policy Center (NEPC), with funding from the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.

Professor Bulkley's review finds that the fiscal analysis of mayoral-led cities is "problematic due to inappropriate comparisons and a lack of reliable and valid evidence." Specifically, mayoral-led districts are claimed to have more resources as a result of the governance change but no evidence is provided that shows this is true. Regarding student achievement claims, she found the report highlights selected positive findings in a few districts, but does not address mayor-led cities where such gains were not found nor cities in the country that saw strong gains without mayoral control.

The report's use of research literature is also called into question, as no peer-reviewed journals appear in the endnotes and there is a lack of citations to research that examines finances or student achievement.

Furthermore, the review finds that the report "surprisingly" includes Philadelphia and Baltimore in the sections on student achievement but not the section on finances.  This is surprising because these two cities are cited in the report as "mixed" models – with a combination of state and mayoral control. "Without their inclusion, only three out of the nine analyzed districts would have shown improvement [in student achievement] by the report's own definitions."

On a positive note, Bulkley states, "This report offers useful information about the context for shifts to mayoral control in different cities and the challenges that may arise in such governance changes."
However, Bulkley concludes that the limitations presented in the review prevent the report from being used for serious policy decisions.

Find Katrina Bulkley's review on the Great Lakes Center website:
http://www.greatlakescenter.org

Find Mayoral Governance and Student Achievement: How Mayor-Led Districts are Improving School and Student Performance on the web:
http://www.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MayoralControl-6.pdf

Think Twice, a project of the National Education Policy Center, provides the public, policymakers and the press timely, academically sound reviews of selected publications. The project is made possible by the support of the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.

The review is also available on the NEPC website:
http://nepc.colorado.edu

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The mission of the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice is to support and disseminate high quality research and reviews of research for the purpose of informing education policy and to develop research-based resources for use by those who advocate for education reform.
Visit the Great Lakes Center Web Site at: http://www.greatlakescenter.org.

Chicago Students Boycotting Need Your Solidarity WEDNESDAY, April 24

Dear Students United for Public Education (SUPE) Supporter,

Chicago Students are boycotting their standardized tests & school closings TOMORROW, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24th, 2013. One of our SUPE High School leaders, Israel Munoz, is also helping lead this action with another organization: Chicago Students Organizing to Save Our Schools (CSOSOS)



Action Against Standardized Testing and School Closings
As you all know, this Wednesday is the second day of the PSAE Test. This second standardized test is used to evaluate our school, our teachers, our principle. Aside from this, the test scores are also used to determine how much funding our school gets. 

These tests put a number on our school, and on us. Standardized testing is NOT right! No student is standard!

Instead, on that day, we will have a city-wide action. Students from high schools all across the city will board up buses and head to CPS Headquarters in downtown to have a press conference with the media to speak out against high stakes testing.

After this, we will head on the buses to Benjamin Banneker Elementary School and form a human chain around the school to symbolize student protection of our schools and communities. This is one of the 54 schools that Mayor Wrong Emanuel and Barbara Byrd Bennett want to close down! We will go there to show that the students of Chicago will stand up for younger students that are being held subject to injustice.

We all want better schools! This is EXTREMELY important. Let your voice be heard! Show the world that the youth will fight for what is right! Empower yourselves! This is OUR education, this is OUR fight!

For all the students who are taking the test, I encourage you guys to not take it. You cannot get in trouble as there is a state mandated retake test that you can take on May 8. Of course, all of you should take the retake, but refusing to take the first one sends a clear message that these tests are unfair.

For all other students: Freshmen, Sophomores, and Seniors. Join us! We will have a bus waiting for us at by Kelly Park. This is off of school property, and therefore we cannot get in trouble. We will have lawyers there as well to assure that no students there are subject to injustices.

If you ever wanted to make a change and help our communities, NOW IS THE TIME! I hope to see you all there. Bring signs and bring a friend! SHARE THIS POST!

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." —Margaret Mead

Solidarity!


Please show them your support and share their Facebook Event & Page. These are powerful students, and they will be heard!


In Struggle,

Students United for Public Education