Teacher Union is Real Winner in Chicago Mayoral Election

What did you think when President Obama came in earlier this month and, essentially, made a campaign commercial for Rahm?

Jesse Sharkey: I thought, “Oh, come on, really?” It’s such a desperate, last-minute campaign maneuver. The mayor has a zillion dollars, and a sitting president gives you a hug. Then you get Magic Johnson. It smacked of cheap celebrity endorsement. And it was ineffective....I’d like to see national labor come in a little more. One thing which I found sort of disgraceful is all the trade union people up on stage with Rahm. The fact is that the union rank and file didn’t vote for Rahm.

How do you compare these outcomes in Chicago to the awful outcomes the UFT has had in elections here in NYC? Remember how they couldn't even get their candidate, Bill Thompson, into a runoff with de Blasio a year and a half ago?

Hmmm. Maybe it's the difference between a social justice oriented union with real grass roots instead of the UFT's astroturf.

Let's face it: Chuy Garcia as a candidate barely exists if not for the CTU, which drafted him as an emergency replacement for Karen Lewis when she had to drop out due to illness. And I have no doubt if Karen had run she would have got as many of not more votes than Rahm and he would be running behind her in the runoff.

Now this doesn't mean Chuy is the next mayor -- all sorts of desparate dirty tricks will be played, if not out and out fraud and theft of the election. Remember, a major issue her is Rahm's ed deform policies. Obama stopped by recently to show his support. How big a blow is this vote for Obama in his own home town? I bet he wouldn't get elected mayor.

Here is an interview with Jesse Sharkey who ran the CTU at a crucial time when Karen was ill and the mayoral decisions and organizing had to be made.

I think Jesse's declaring Rahm being finished in Chicago goes beyond whether he holds on to win. A 2nd term will turn out to put him in Cuomo-like hell and hopefully end his political career.

CTU’s Jesse Sharkey Thinks Rahm Is Finished in Chicago

The interim head of the Chicago Teachers Union is one happy guy this morning

It’s the day after Election Day, and most of the analysis undoubtedly will center on what exactly happened that forced Rahm Emanuel into a runoff election against Jesus “Chuy” Garcia on April 7. And while that may be the biggest headline, one other shade to this year’s municipal elections is just how much the Chicago Teachers Union flexed its muscle. 
This morning I called Jesse Sharkey, the 45-year-old former high school teacher who took over as head of the CTU when Karen Lewis was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor last fall (she has since returned to work). For more on who Sharkey is and what drives him, read my interview with him from last November (part 1 here, part 2 here).

Sharkey was on his way to work and tired—out late at Garcia’s victory party—but exalting in Garcia’s victory, not to mention the slew of victories (or at least forced runoffs) of CT-backed aldermanic candidates. Garcia will be the next mayor, Sharkey says, adding that politics in Chicago has changed forever.

How important is it that Chuy has forced Rahm into a runoff?

Extremely important. Remember, Chuy got in late [he entered the race in late October]. He announced his candidacy with only three weeks to go before nominating petitions were due. We brought a lot of very committed people to this contest, especially in parts of the south and west sides. We had 100 percent committed volunteers working outdoors in brutally cold weather.



http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/Felsenthal-Files/February-2015/Jesse-Sharkey-Election/

MOREistas Posted on Diane Ravitch Blog Twice Today

Diane reprinted the letter from the co-chapter chairs at PS 321k to parents on why Cuomo is wrong

 

http://dianeravitch.net/2015/02/25/a-letter-from-the-teachers-at-ps-321-in-brooklyn/

 

and Ednotes calling for public school children to learn civics in Albany on lobby day.

 

http://dianeravitch.net/2015/02/25/norm-scott-time-for-a-real-civics-lesson/

 

Thanks for the shout-out Diane!

 

 

Public School Teacher Wants to Take Class on March 4 Field Trip to Albany for Civics Lesson on How Govt "Works"

Help this teacher sell this class trip. Send me lesson plans related to how to teach your kids what scum Eva and crew are.

Norm, just stumbled upon you.  I tried selling our BOE on the same idea that I just read on your blog (Time for Massive Civics Lesson on March 4).  Super didn't know if we could do that with our public school buses. I teach Elem.Spec.Ed.- do you know if there are any generic "field trip civics lesson plans" out there to expedite my push to make this legit?  People won't get off their asses and take action; all we get is "write your legislators".  Actions speak.

I proposed this weeks ago right after Eva announced she was closing schools on UFT lobby day, March 4, to take them up to Albany. Why not get hundreds of NYC classes to take a field trip to Albany for a civics lesson on how public money can be misused to get away with just about anything. Note how the teacher gets it about the business as usual without imagination UFT plan. Even though March 4 is the day after my 70th birthday I would go along just to get video of a lone teacher making a stand.

My response included a plea to the UFT for funding a bus.

It would be great to give this a shot.
Why not try uft for help and maybe funding?
Even do a press release - lone nyc teacher stands up to Moskowitz juggernaut.
As for a lesson plan I'd be glad to brainstorm some ideas.
Teach children about the issue.
Public fundraiser?
You would set an example. Exciting idea if you can pull it off.

Related: NYC Educator is not going to lobby day:

NYC Educator To Lobby or Not to Lobby? -

I had exactly the same experiences on my 2 or 3 trips to Albany in the mid-90s before I stopped going-- really, they have done the same exact thing year after year - which is why Eva can run rings around them.

Harvard Student Writing Paper on '68 Strike Looking to Interview People

Hi Norm,

I'm from Rockaway, and I used to write a column for The Wave, and I know that you still do! Anyway, I am a junior at Harvard now, and am writing a paper on the teachers' strike of 1968 and the Ocean Hill Brownsville controversy. I would like to interview several teachers who were involved in the strike, and maybe even those who taught in district. I know that you were in the system for a long time, so I figured you might have some contacts. Would love to pick your brain as well.

I hope he doesn't pick too much of my brain -- not a lot left. I have an interesting POV on that strike -- not in line with the automatic left analysis which comes down to: Community GOOD, UFT BAD. I did not cross the picket line -- but I was also not politically conscious. When I became so 2 years later, all the people I met and who influenced me had crossed the picket line. I think over time they began to rethink some of their views -- my crew places blame on the then version of the Gates Foundation, the Ford Foundation, which played a very anti-union role. My position has been that even if you thought the strike was wrong, if you wanted to organize inside the UFT in opposition to the Shanker machine you could not cross that line and hope to have much credibility. Fight that battle internally.

Thus, Teachers Action Caucus (TAC), the major opposition party to Unity in the 70s was banded as scabs and made little headway. It took a generation and a merger with another opposition group (New Directions which was more to the right - or more opportunistic in hiding their politics) in 1995 to form the current New Action, which purged itself of left politics and made itself tenable for the sellout deal with Unity in 2003 -- though old-time red-baiting Unity people never forgot the New Action TAC roots and used to grouse  about how Randi never should have done it and how Shanker, if alive, would never have allowed it because he had such disdain.

Email me if interested in being interviewed.

Beware of E4E Geeks Bearing Gifts for Chapter Leaders

Will Cullen - Don't drink the coffee

Educators for Excellence, the group funded by anti-teacher union pro ed deformer, is attempting to appear to be pro-union as it works to undermine tenure rules, promote high stakes testing, and charter schools. It is making a concerted attempt to reach out directly to chapter leaders and burrow beneath the UFT structure.

Will Cullen, Outreach Director of E4E in New York, sent the following to a chapter leader associated with MORE. E4E vets people to keep out spies but I suggest people go to these events and report back. E4E is as closed and undemocratic an organization as you can find - no outside their box thinking allowed - but this attempt to go right at the heart of the UFT in schools where Unity Caucus is weak is an escalation of their program. It seems E4E is pushing its people to run for chapter leader in the upcoming UFT chapter elections. MORE's March 14 CL training might even attract some E4Eers ---- they should come and see how a democratic organization operates -- they won't see that in E4E or the UFT/Unity operation.

E4E has reshaped its message to try to appeal to teachers and obviously because, despite its large budget and multi-full-time employees, it hasn't been getting very far in NYC or even LA - now their effort is in Minnesota. The "output" of their educational policy teams is pathetic.

And what has happened to the E4E budget -- only offering coffee? Hey Will, how about offering a sandwich? I'd meet you for something decent to eat.

Here is Will's linked-in profile:
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/william-cullen/17/4a7/16

Leadership Opportunity for [CL Name]

Hi xxxxxx,

I hope this email finds you well! My name is Will and I am an Outreach Director with Educators for Excellence, a non-profit that works to get teachers involved in the policy conversations that affect their classrooms. More specifically we have opportunities for teachers to write policy as well as advocate for those policies to elected officials and other stakeholders.

You can learn more about us by visiting our website: educators4excellence.org.

I am reaching out to you because of your leadership at xxxxxx High School. We strongly believe in the power of union participation and currently have a series of events, trainings, and networking opportunities for existing chapter leaders across all five boroughs and for other teachers considering stepping up to become more involved in their chapter.

I would love to grab coffee to discuss further! I can meet wherever is most convenient for you.

Looking forward to touching base!

Will

Will Cullen | Outreach Director
Educators 4 Excellence-New York
Tel (212) 279-8510 ext. 19 | Cell (732) 266-9158
wcullen@educators4excellence.org | @willpcullen
333 West 39th Street, Suite 703, New York, NY 10018
E4E.org

Danny Dromm Goes After Charter Scammers, Charter Slug Merriman Trots Out Usual Suspect - UFT

Message from earth to James Merriman: the UFT favors charters and even co-locations since they run one themselves. Why won't Merriman call for charters, which claim to be public, to turn over their paperwork like every other group feeding at the trough of public money.

Moreover, note in the photo below, next to Dromm, one Patrick Walsh, recently a member of the MORE steering committee, a group CHALLENGING the UFT/Unity leadership.

Councilman Daniel Dromm noted that charter schools 'receive over a billion dollars in taxpayer funds and we don’t know what’s going on.'

A lawmaker is asking the city’s charter schools to hand over paperwork showing how they use millions of dollars in tax money. And they have five days to do it.
City Councilman Daniel Dromm, who chairs the Education Committee, said he is troubled by the “lack of transparency and accountability” of charter schools.
“They receive over a billion dollars in taxpayer funds and we don’t know what’s going on,” Dromm, a Queens Democrat, told the Daily News on Monday.
Dromm sent a letter to all 197 charter schools in the city asking them for copies of their committee board minutes and fraud prevention policies. He also asked if they would voluntarily submit to the city Conflict of Interest Board to examine relationships between school board members and developers.
Dromm’s action comes after The News reported in November that an analysis by the Center for Popular Democracy found more than $28 million in questionable spending and probable financial mismanagement in 95% of the charter schools examined by state auditors since 2002.
James Merriman, CEO of the New York Charter School Center, dismissed Dromm as an “attack dog” for the United Federation of Teachers, which is opposed to charter schools.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/city-lawmaker-charters-show-tax-money-article-1.2127054

 

Principal Brian DeVale on WNYC Opposed Cuomo Plan

We've had our issues with out of control, incompetent, ego-driven, blame the teachers administrators and feel their unbridled power should be controlled-- but not the way Cuomo wants to do it by taking evaluations of teachers out of the hands of people being paid 150K a year.

Among several education reforms tied to an increase in school funding, Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed a plan that he thought would make teacher evaluations more objective. Many New York City principals told WNYC they were not convinced. Cuomo said in his budget address last month that too many students were performing poorly on state standardized tests, while only a tiny fraction of teachers received low performance ratings. The disconnect was a problem, he argued, and the solution must be found in the ratings given by school principals to their teaching staff....WNYC

On the other hand, so many people have been driven into misery by so many principals I have mixed feelings. The UFT argument in favor of using student outcomes on tests was the claim that principal evaluation is subjective. Now they argue that we need that subjective evaluation -- their heads must be spinning off.

I am ambivalent myself. Not every principal can be like Brian DeVale.

I'm proud to call NYC Principal Brian DeVale, an ed notes reader, a friend and a leading fighter in the war against ed deform. Brian heads the CSA in District 14 and has more fight in him than just about anyone connected to the UFT. I never thought I would say this, but if given a choice between MulGarten and Brian DeVale for UFT leader, we'd be better off with the principal.

Brian DeVale, principal of PS 257 in Brooklyn, isn't shy about criticizing Cuomo's plan. He says the governor sounds like he's "out to fire teachers, plain and simple." (Yasmeen Khan)

http://www.wnyc.org/story/cuomo-plan-cuts-principal-authority-evaluating-teachers/




Brian spoke out against Walcott and Klein and Cathy Black in the past, so this is not new.
Cathie Black at CEC14 - Brian De Vale - YouTube



When Brian was up for principal of PS 257 in the earliest days of the BloomKlein administration, Farina was the Region 8 Supt in charge of District 15 (her old district) and District 14 (my old district) and was very prejudiced against D. 14 and favored her people in D. 15. And it looked like anyone from the old D. 14 admin might be shut out of being appointed principal. After all -- he actually came out of the schools and was not some kid with 3 months of teaching who was heading to the Leadership Academy to be Jack Welshed. According to my sources Farina backed Brian at that time. So I'll chalk one up for her. I'm not a Farina defender but I also want to be fair. She, like Brian, took a stand against the Cuomo plan, something we would not see from her predecessors who would have jumped on it.

Letter from PS 321K teachers regarding Governor Cuomo's education proposals

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I'm sure many of you have heard about Governor Cuomo's (very alarming) education policy proposals. 

The staff at 321 is extremely concerned about these proposals. We have put together a letter we are sending out today to the school's families about these concerns. I wanted to reach out and share this with you, as well as a primer we have created which illustrates some of the proposals in further detail.

Please feel free to pass on, share, adapt or use in any way that might best help us all as we work together to hopefully protect our profession from the deleterious effects some of these proposals would have were they to become law.

Best,

Alex (Co-Chapter Leader)
Lauren Cohen, co-chapter leader


http://ps321.org/letter-from-ps-321-teachers/

On Morality and Charters: Do Former DOE Officials Michael Duffy and Sonia Park Violate Ethics in Running NYC Based Charters?

I say they should not be allowed to have used their positioning as public employees to profit. If they want to open charters let them go to another city.

ANOTHER CHARTER MOVES FROM D2 to D1?

Great Oaks Charter MS, run by Michael Duffy (former head of DoE's charter school office), wants to move to D1 [in permanent (?) space}, following the lead of Innovate Manhattan Charter School that moved form D2 to D1 a few years back,  and as SACS/Eva  just tried to do recently.

Michael Duffy looks to join his colleague Sonia Park (also a former head of the DoE's charter office and now the Executive Director of two Manhattan Charter Schools,- one DoE authorized, the other replicated by SUNY CSI) running a middle school charter in D1.

MCS is up for a renewal and has proposed expand ing to middle school grades.

This charter feeding frenzy is fueled by the media and the Governor, both heavily subsidized by the hedge fund-run charter lobby.

NEWS FLASH:

 D1 just received word of yet another charter middle school proposal: City Arts Charter.

The arts charter proposal  for a new middle school was heavily critiqued at a CEC meeting last year as uninformed and not needed.

 The request for a charter was rejected by the authorizers, but the charter is back, with a new proposal for a MS in D1.

Increasing middle school seats, of which there is currently an overcapacity according to the DoE student assignment planners, will have disastrous impact in our all-choice district.

The small DoE-created MSs that currently serve very high proportions of high needs students  (ELLS and students with IEPs, the students these charter schools do not take in proportion to our community schools) will lose student enrollment,  thus increasing the proportions of high needs student and decreasing the resources available to them.

Running separate and unequal parallel education systems in an uncontrolled market place does not work for students, families and communities.

That charter schools are not held to the laws passed 5 years ago mandating that they serve proportionate numbers of high needs students is a travesty.  The charter authorizers have refused to regulate themselves and the schools they spawn, dragging out the implementation of the law over 10-15 years.

Meanwhile our students with disabilities and our English language learners are largely concentrated in high needs schools, while the charters  cream and then preen over their superior  test scores.

National Alliance for Public Charter Schools Bogus Pro-Charter "Study" Exposed

 Separating fact and fiction.....the reviewers found that the report's main purpose appears to be the "repetition or 'spinning' of claims voiced by advocacy groups and think tanks that promote privatization and school choice." Furthermore, the reviewers found that it relied almost exclusively on advocacy documents rather than more careful and balanced empirical research, and provides only a superficial examination of any "criticisms" regarding charter schools.... Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.

I give them credit - but I didn't need no stinkin' study to tell me what they find.

National Charter School Report Misleading and Superficial, Review Finds

Contact: 
Gary Miron, (269) 599-7965, gary.miron@wmich.edu
Daniel Quinn, (517) 203-2940, dquinn@greatlakescenter.org

EAST LANSING, Mich. (Feb. 23, 2015) — A report from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) attempted to "separate fact from fiction" about charter schools. The report addressed 21 "myths" regarding charter schools, which were quickly rejected. However, an academic review of the report finds that it perpetuated its own myths and fictions about charter schools rather than adding to the discourse surrounding school choice.
The report, Separating Fact and Fiction: What You Need to Know about Charter Schools, was assembled by NAPCS with no author identified. Gary Miron, Western Michigan University, William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder, and Kevin G. Welner, University of Colorado Boulder, reviewed the report for the Think Twice think tank review project of the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) with funding from the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.
Succinctly, the original report addressed various claims about charter schools in such areas as financial equality of charter schools, lower teacher qualifications, student selection demographics, academic outcomes, segregation, and innovation.
Yet, the reviewers found that the report's main purpose appears to be the "repetition or 'spinning' of claims voiced by advocacy groups and think tanks that promote privatization and school choice." Furthermore, the reviewers found that it relied almost exclusively on advocacy documents rather than more careful and balanced empirical research, and provides only a superficial examination of any "criticisms" regarding charter schools.
The review is organized in a format that lists each of the criticisms identified, and then provides a short commentary based on the extant research literature. Where the original document overlooked research evidence, the reviewers provide readers with a valuable tool to examine charter school criticisms.
Additionally, the reviewers find that the report fails to redirect the sector toward its original ideals, "Charter schools were originally designed to be a new form of public school. They were supposed to be small, locally run, innovative and highly accountable. They were supposed to be open to all and were expected to provide new freedoms to teachers to creatively innovate and serve their communities."
Instead, the reviewers point out the most disappointing non-myth that comes out of the research: "In reality, the main outcomes of charter schools have been to promote privatization and accelerated the stratification and re-segregation of schools."
The reviewers conclude, this report is unlikely to be of any use to "the discerning policy-maker" and fails to engage the important underlying issues.

Read the full review at:
http://www.greatlakescenter.org
Find Separating Fact and Fiction on the web:
http://www.publiccharters.org/publications/separating-fact-fiction-public-charter-schools/
Think Twice, a project of the National Education Policy Center, provides the public, policymakers and the press with timely, academically sound reviews of selected publications. The project is made possible by funding from the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.
The review can also be found on the NEPC website:
http://nepc.colorado.edu

NY Post Uses Story of Double-Dipping Principal Linda Hill to Take Shot at Farina While Leaving Bloomberg perpetrators off hook

Imagine if a teacher did what Linda Hill, who persecuted Francesco Portelos mercilessly, did --- double dipped and was caught red-handed! But just as important is the game the Post is playing here.

Read on!

Linda Hill channels Captain Queeg
I was at the hearing to hear Hill's bizarre - paranoid testimony against Portelos in which she accused him of racism and anti-semitism (she is black and Jewish). My hearing notes (below) have a bunch of references to her Captain Queeg moments where I expected her to start rolling steel balls. (SEE BOGART VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-95QqBXLG2I#t=26)



If you read my unedited notes you will see some steel balls and Queeg references. She lied openly at times at the hearing -- which should have lead to her being brought up on charges on those issues alone. But none of the people who lie in their testimony against a teacher have anything to worry about when it comes to DOE legal. She claimed she had fear of Portelos -- his lawyer asked her if she did why didn't she ask for protection? Duh!

It's nice to see NY Post ed hitwoman Susan Edelman taking shots at principals instead of just teachers (http://nypost.com/2015/02/22/farina-principal-pal-gets-free-pass-after-ripping-off-taxpayers/). I remember Edelman doing a story on Portelos at the beginning of his troubles in March 2012 on the Sunday of our robotics tournament. Portelos was there as coach of his team and showed me the piece. I called Edelman up in outrage and told how come the Post wasn't taking a photo of him giving up his Sunday for the kids. She said she would send a photographer but never did.

New Newsletter -- NYC High School Voice - Download and Share

I've been assisting in a new venture - an independent newsletter aimed at NYC high school teachers. The idea behind it is to offer a unique point of view that may not being expressed in some organized groups in the UFT.  Some people from MORE, some from ICE and some non-affiliated people are involved while still working in their group structures.

Three issues are envisioned for this school year. Below is issue 1.

My job is to be the mule - lay it out, help organize the solicitation and editing of articles, get it to the printer and deliver batches to distributors in as many high schools as we can get into -- and yes, folks, volunteers to put it in the school mailboxes are needed. There are around 450 high schools so you can help make this a slam dunk. Just email nychighschools@gmail.com or email normsco@gmail.com. Or download below, make some copies and share. Or email a copy to your colleagues. If you do email us so we can check off your school.

Get it at:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8qnFCTQLOqoU2RUZGdBUjEzVEk/view?usp=sharing

MORE's Mindy Rosier - Why I am a Teacher Activist

THANK YOU EVA MOSKOWITZ FOR GIVING US MINDY!!!
Another MORE steering committee member tells about her personal journey to activism over the past year.

For way too long I was a complacent special ed teacher in Harlem who did what everyone else did. I complained with co-workers which really got nothing done other than cause more complaining.

I only know Mindy for less than a year -- more like 8 months - she is one of the most responsible and supportive people I've met -- what a bonus to have her put so much energy and time into MORE.
I've maintained that you don't need thousands to change the union and defend public education -- you need a few dozen Mindys.

morecaucusnyc

Why I am a Teacher Activist -

Malcolm X at Brooklyn College

There was a buzz around the campus of Brooklyn College. I can't remember if it was 1963 or 1964. Malcolm X was coming to speak. Brooklyn College had the largest Jewish student body in the world - some say 90% - thus one would expect his reception would be good. There was a buzz about his record of militant inflammatory speeches - and some concerns about anti-semitism.

The standing room only crowd in the largest venue on campus was wary, expecting an angry, militant laden speech. But from his first words he was full of charm and humor and logic and made so much sense. He won over the crowd in an instant. I was not a political being but seeing him speak in person was an unforgettable experience.

I became a fan and his message resonated.
His assassination probably affected me more than that of Martin Luther King.

Here is a link to speeches.
http://malcolmxfiles.blogspot.com/p/malcolm-x-speeches_9918.html

MORE/CTS Katie Lapham at Anthony Cody's Living in Dialogue - Excessive Standardized Testing in First Grade is No Fairy Tale

We're proud of MORE's fearless, outspoken teachers like MORE former steering committee member Katie Lapham joining current MORE steering committee member Jia Lee in making a national splash. 

A Tale of Two Public Education Systems 
.....the excessive testing of students in grades K-2 is not happening at every NYC school. My daughter was not given mid-year benchmark assessments at her public school, which is committed to teaching the whole child. I suspect that schools with the lowest test scores – and therefore the biggest “achievement gap” to close – as well as weak parent involvement and a high poverty rate are the ones most susceptible to over-testing. Fearing potential school closure, administrators likely want to show the NYC Department of Education that they took all the “right” steps in preparing students – beginning in kindergarten- for the high-stakes Common Core state tests administered in grades 3-8. .... While some state and city mandates are uniform – such as the administration of April’s Common Core state tests – schools with highly educated and relatively affluent parents tend to offer more of a project-based, arts-rich education. Test prep exists but not to the same extent as in Title I schools like mine, and resources are available for enrichment programs.

Katie Laphan writes of the incessant testing in 1st grade at Anthony Cody's Living in Dialogue blog. Anthony introduces her piece:

In 2013, I shared a post written by a New York City elementary teacher, entitled “Data Shows Not Enough Teaching.” She is back today with an update, and although there has been a change in administration in New York City, testing at her school is excessive as ever. Katie Lapham teaches first grade in New York City. You can read more of her work at her blog, Critical Classrooms, Critical Kids.
http://www.livingindialogue.com/excessive-standardized-testing-first-grade-fairy-tale/

Katie's article elicited this response from another MORE member:

I experienced this same kind of testing with my 2nd graders last year. We had to also give mid-terms as well as all the Go math tests and running records (students actually enjoy reading with the teacher 1 on 1). We had to mostly create them and then get approval from the principal. The writing mid-term was a practice MOSL with a read aloud and copied book for students to read individually. Besides the running records that often take 30-40 minutes per child in second grade, we had to find passages from sample test prep books for a multiple choice test. I think we also used an old EPAL test that had a reading passage and questions that students had to write in sentences. Of course there was also a midterm test for science and social studies. We tested everyday for a long time. These tests were required K-5. Unfortunately too many teachers don't have a problem with this. No one else in my school spoke up besides me. Upper grade teachers think that lower grade teachers are "slacking off" so they think all the testing in the lower grades it great.

With no leadership from the UFT and NYSUT towards educating the members and the public on the evils of testing (witness the New Jersey Teacher union's ads that do just that) it is no wonder that so many teachers are unconscious about the dangers of testing to their kids and ultimately to their own careers.

Saturday with Susan O

Susan compiles some good weekend reading to snuggle up with.
=======

There are several new cartoons in each category. I'm tired and invite you to go to the cartoon index and click on links.
http://www.susanohanian.org/cartoons_index.html

Then you can do the same thing in NCLB cartoons:
http://www.susanohanian.org/show_nclb_cartoons.php

There are also new quotes, some of which offer excerpts from Bob Herbert's new book, a book well worth reading.

Quotes
http://www.susanohanian.org/quotes.php

My husband and I don't talk much about education outrage. By the time I do research for what I post, I'm tired of it all. But tonight, we talked about Philip Kovacs' son's kindergarten experience. I brought it up because my husband failed the kindergarten DIBELS test. You can read more about it below.
One of the posts below provoked a fight on Twitter.

So it goes.

Susan

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Partners for Corporatiziing Schools: Naming Names
compiled by Susan Ohanian
blog
2015-02-19
http://susanohanian.org/data.php?id=580

The corporate mantra: Assess, assess, assess.

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Uncovering Security Flaws in Digital Education Products for Schoolchildren
Natasha Singer with Ohanian Comment
New York Times
2015-02-09
http://susanohanian.org/data.php?id=578

The companies that profited from Reading First are finding new money in digital learning--and still putting students at risk.

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To the editor
Stephen Krashen, USC Professor Emeritus
Los Angeles Times
2015-02-17
http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1745

This is one terrific letter.

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To the editor
Stephen Krashen
Atlanta Journal Constitution
2015-02-09
http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1744

Krashen points out that there's no special merit in finishing high school or college in a pre-determined time frame and I tell a personal story.

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To the editor
Don Perl
Greeley Tribune
2015-02-04
http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1743

Speaking from a position of knowledge, Don Perl rebuts policy analyst at the Independence Institute.

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Is There School Today?
Philip Kovacs
Huffington Post
2015-02-19
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1926

Strategy is a good word. Read this post to find out why.

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US Department of Education Funds  Jazzed-Up Worksheets as Innovation
Susan Ohanian
blog
2015-02-19
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1925

The piece under discussion, traveling as education reporting from Hechinger, reads like a PR statement from the company selling the product under discussion.

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Broad Foundation suspends $1-million prize for urban public school districts, claiming real public schools are a complete failure and all-charter districts are the answer
George Schmidt  & Ohanian &  Howard Blume
Substance News and Los Angeles Times
2015-02-08
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1924

We could wish that axing of the Broad Prize might reduce the use of nomenclature of 'providers' and 'stakeholders' and other corporate
nomenclature such as calling children 'clients.


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Which Washington Think Tank Do Billionaires Love the Most? And Why?
David Callahan
Inside Philanthropy
2015-02-05
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1923

A summary of who backs American Enterprise Institute.

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Racing to College
Susan Ohanian
blog
2015-02-06
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1922

Poor six-year-olds are directed to forgo childhood and fill out college applications. Rich kids have makeovers at spa parties and go home to their $200,000 princess bedrooms. And Bob Herbert offers a call to arms.

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The Heavy Hitters Behind a Fund Focused on K-12 Blended Learning
L.S. Hall
Inside Philanthropy
2015-02-05
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1921

Look at who's pushing blended learning, the latest strategy to dump teachers.

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Why Inside Higher Ed Faces a Dubious Future
blog
Academe
2015-01-25
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1920

Some folk are figuring out it's more cost effective to buy up publications than to advertise in them.

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 Department of Good Stuff
Sam Smith
Undernews
0000-00-00
http://susanohanian.org/show_yahoo.php?id=875

Veteran political analyst chooses 'good stuff' in journalism and education.

Bob Braun: Why the Newark student sit-in really matters

From Bob Braun's Ledger

High School principal of the year Carol Burris calls for civil disobedience (Principal: ‘There comes a time when rules must be broken…. That time is now’) over testing and Newark students actually engage in civil disobedience and slam Cami Anderson in her own office. The fed-up factor with ed deform grows.

Bob Braun tells the Newark story:

Stories about the sit-in were published in France and by Al-Jazeera. Even The Star-Ledger, which often ignores what’s happening  to the children attending Newark schools, was forced to provide daily coverage—because, well, a sit-in is a sit-in and the DNA of a mainstream newspaper doesn’t allow a sit-in to be ignored just in case the authorities go crazy and heads are busted.

Newark: Why the student sit-in really matters

The Howler Takes Randi to the Woodshed Over Her Comment on the number of children in poverty

Simply put, Weingarten’s claim is dumb....What we the liberals turned out to be like! -- Daily Howler

The Daily Howler taught way longer than Randi. Here is his take on the recent comment by Randi.

Starting in the 1980s, talk radio became a way for conservatives to show the world that they may not always be exceptionally sharp.

Alas! We liberals now make the same demonstration through our comment threads. And at our fiery liberal sites—and through the pronouncements of our liberal leaders.

Yesterday, the New York Times printed several letters about the merits and demerits of standardized testing. In her letter, Randi Weingarten, head of the AFT, actually offered this:

WEINGARTEN (2/17/15): Half of public school students live in poverty. More than 30 states fund public education below pre-recession levels. We need to level the playing field and ensure that all kids have equal access to things like computers, smaller class sizes, nurses and counselors—even when their communities can’t afford them.

“Half of public school students live in poverty?” According to the Census Bureau, the official number of children in poverty is more like twenty percent. Simply put, Weingarten’s claim is dumb. You can’t get there from here.

(Although we liberals are increasingly willing to try.)

At one time, the ginning up of silly statistics was a hallmark of the pseudo-right. In recent years, we the liberals have found ourselves walking that same silly road.

We’re building a set of silly statistics which 1) our intellectual leaders know to be bogus and 2) average people won’t be inclined to believe. But we seem to love to throw them around. Our sad songs make us feel good!

It’s depressing to see someone like Weingarten playing a game as foolish as this. For years, we liberals were asleep in the woods. More and more, it’s come to seem like those were the good old days.

Providing a second opinion: For an overview from The National Center for Children in Poverty (Columbia University), just click here.

Children and public school students are two different groups, or course. But here's their statement as of 2013:

“More than 16 million children in the United States—22% of all children—live in families with incomes below the federal poverty level.”

Twenty-two percent seems like a daunting number to us! What’s wrong with our pseudo-liberal souls that has us longing for the chance to say it’s fifty percent?

NEW Caucus Reports: Newark Students to End Occupation of Newark Public Schools Headquarters

Friday, February 20, 2015 3:42 PM

From Bob Braun blog

For Immediate Release
Paul Karr, NJ Communities United,  paul@unitednj.org

Newark Students to End Occupation of Newark Public Schools Headquarters
Press Conference at 2 Cedar Street at 5:30 pm
Newark, NJ – After nearly four days occupying the offices of Cami Anderson, the Chris Christie-appointed Superintendent of Newark Public Schools, Newark students are claiming victory. Students and community organizers will exit 2 Cedar Street at 5:30 pm and speak to the press about their efforts.

Students successfully managed to secure a meeting with Cami Anderson this morning and issued the following statement:

“After 65 hours of occupation, we, the Newark Students Union, met with the state-appointed Superintendent of the Newark Public Schools, Cami Anderson, in regards to her lack of communication with the students, parents, and the broader community of Newark, NJ. Due to her continued inability to have an open and constructive dialogue with us, she has inevitably created a deep mistrust against the administration and its policies. At this point, the students remain committed to the demand that she resign immediately and return to the monthly public school board meetings beginning Tuesday, Feb. 24th.  We must continue the dialogue and develop a process for selecting her replacement.”

Students occupied the NPS offices for four days, finally securing a meeting with Ms. Anderson. By the end of the meeting it was clear to students that Ms. Anderson demonstrated no greater commitment to the Newark community or a democratic process for selecting her replacement. Students and the Newark community will continue to escalate demands for Cami Anderson to resign and to restore local control to the Newark Public School System. What became most clear during the week is that the escalation to demand local control moving forward will directly target “the Decider”, Governor Chris Christie.

MORE in The Amsterdam News on Unity rejection of Anti-Testing Resolution

The governor’s plan also has New York City teachers angry. A caucus of United Federation of Teachers members, calling themselves the Movement of Rank and File Educators, said that public education is in danger and even labeled Cuomo “anti-public education.” In an emailed statement, the group also asked Cuomo to visit their schools and speak with the children, parents and teachers about the issues that matter to them the most. They also talked about what they feel is an overemphasis on standardized testing.
“Unfortunately, our UFT leadership does not feel the same,” read the statement. “Our caucus, the Movement of Rank and File Educators, raised the ‘I Refuse’ resolution at the February 11 UFT Delegate Assembly. It calls for union opposition to standardized high stakes testing that is currently pushed by the federal and state governments, because this testing is not being used to further instruction for children, to help children or to support the educational needs of children. The UFT leadership voted against this resolution.”
The statement concluded, “Our working conditions are students’ learning conditions!”.... http://m.amsterdamnews.com/news/2015/feb/19/teachers-fire-back-cuomo-over-testing/