Unrest in District 14 - Is Moskowitz the Catalyst?

My old district has been popping up in the news recently as the school wars heat up, a somewhat surprising development since things seemed fairly quiet. I wonder if the aggressive entrance of Eva Moskowitz with a massive advertising campaign that has inundated the area (but only certain selected areas ripe for creaming) for her new Brooklyn Success Academy was the catalyst.

I spent my entire career 35 year (and beyond with part-time work) in District 14 (Williamsburg, Greenpoint and northern Bed-Stuy) and I could write a book on the history and political and educational complexities of the area. I recently have been spending time in the area - we are editing our film at the home of Reel - or Real - reform Studios. And I went back to my old haunts when Cathie Black came to the CEC 14 meeting on Feb. 28. (Cathie Black District 14 Town Hall: No Sex, but Pl...)
where I taped principal Brian De Vale challenged Black by supporting LIFO while holding a Teddy Bear (Teddy Roosevelt founded the civil service system over a century ago - Brooklyn Principal Challenges Cathie Black).

I put up another video (Voices of Parents, Teachers and Principals at Feb....) of that meeting where people challenged Black and another principal challenged Santiago Taveras (whose desertion of the sinking ship helped precipitate Black's firing) on whether the he actually believed the PEP and DOE actually listen to parents - Taveras was lying through his teeth. It's a half hour long but if you scroll to the last few minutes you can see that confrontation.

Saturday's NY Times had some more references to District 14 activists. In one article PS 34 principal Alicja Winnicki is quoted:

 "there is also a sense of disappointment that principals who once relied on people outside the building to make them feel connected to a wider sense of mission now correspond with education bureaucrats primarily through data and documents. We attend to our everyday instructional life and communities, and we keep submitting the documents required of us,” said Alicja Winnicki, the principal of Public School 34, a successful school in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. “But I feel that with every reorganization we become more and more isolated. I hope that Mr. Walcott will make sure that he reaches out to us.”

 Good for her. I know Alicja since she was a teacher.

In another article, we hear from PS 132 parents Sarah Porter and Janine Sopp:

Sarah Porter and Janine Sopp, whose children go to Public School 132 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, signed up to speak at the hearing, but left after Mr. Walcott did; Ms. Porter said she had gone there for a chance to talk to him directly about the city’s need to control growing class sizes, so there was no point sticking around. “He says he listens to people and he talks very nicely, but he’s still implementing the same policies,” she said. Sounding equally disappointed, Ms. Sopp called Mr. Walcott “another mouthpiece for the mayor.”

Yes, Walcott may help delay things for a while, but the Bloomberg ship is still sinking.

The Wave Reports: Peninsula Prep Academy Charter Tosses 5-Year Old

The Wave of Rockaway reports on the actions of Peninsula Prep Academy Charter, a Rockaway school founded by State Senator Malcolm Smith - talk about scams -  in a front page article by Editor Howard Schwach, published April 8, 2011. (Just wait 'till you see the videos of the interviews I did with former charter school parents at a Brooklyn charter school on how kids are treated.) Howie is a retired teacher and this week alone The Wave has at least 4 articles on education - and it's not my week to publish my column - the most extensive education coverage of any weekly newspaper (other than Ed Week).

Expulsion At Five

Parent Charges School ‘Stigmatizes’ Son

By Howard Schwach

The Peninsula Preparatory Academy, a local charter school, is trying to expel a kindergarten student for bad behavior. The motto of the Peninsula Preparatory Academy charter school on Beach 111 Street is “The Future is Bright,” but for one little five-year-old kindergarten student, the future looks bleak.

The young boy, whose name is being withheld by The Wave because of his age, was suspended three times this school year by Principal Ericka Wala. His mother, Latesha Thompson is scheduled to face the school’s board of directors and an expulsion hearing later this month.

“They’ve provided my son with an unfair start to his school career,” Thompson told The Wave last week. “They have stigmatized him because the suspensions and the expulsion will be on his permanent school record forever. They have not given him a chance for a decent life.”

In a suspension letter dated March 2, Wala wrote, “We regret that we find it necessary to suspend your son for five days due to the following behavior: disrupting the educational process; being insubordinate; defying or disobeying the lawful authority of school personnel; using force against school personnel, hitting the teacher and engaging in an act of coercion or threatening violence, injury or harm to another.”

These, the mother points out, are the charges against a tiny five-year-old in his first year in a public school setting.”

“The allegations are outrageous,” Thompson said. “My son is a strong-minded little boy who is learning new things every day and he is never aggressive or threatening.”

She says that the teacher asked her son to get out of his seat and he refused.

The teacher then grabbed him hard by both his collar and his arm to get him out of the seat, his mother alleges. He swung at her to get her to let go and hit her hand.

The principal told Thompson that her son had “verbally abused” an assistant principal after the incident.

The principal also said that her son headbutted two other children, but refused to supply any details to the parent.

Thompson believes that the school gave up on her son after he was suspended for the first time in early October. He was suspended again in early March and then again on March 18.

“The school says he can’t stay because he has behavioral problems because they don’t want to deal with a kid who gives them more work than they want to do,” Thompson says. “I came forward because I don’t want any other parents at PPA to have to go through what I am going through. Schools shouldn’t treat either young children or their parents this way. I hope they get away from the harsh punishments they give out such as what they did to my son. I hope they learn to deal with children who may present a problem.”

Thompson says that she may not attend the board meeting in which she expects her son to be expelled.
I am looking for a new school for my son,” she said. “I don’t want him to have to go back there.”
The Wave’s calls to the school were referred to the Department of Education, which sponsors the school.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education declined to comment.

A reader left this comment blaming the parent which exposes the farce of the charter schools which are touted as part of the "no excuses" ed deform movement.

The child was not expelled

Submitted by thomaskerr@mind... on Fri, 04/08/2011 - 18:57.

The child was not expelled arbitrarily. It is in the interest of the school and the folks running it to keep the students there. When I child, even one of 5 years--becomes a problem, he takes educational opportunity and valuable time away from other students having to deal with unwanted behavior.

The school's mandate is not have to deal with poor parenting, but rather educating the boy. By the looks of the story, the school made a principled and correct decision in expelling this boy. It will benefit the others in his class and the boy himself, if allowed to learn from it by the parent. Looks like this is not the case.

Using the euphemism "strong minded" to frame, unruly, poorly disciplined and violent, is laughable. Instead of pointing an index finger at the school, perhaps this parent should take note of the other three pointing back at her. The trouble this boy had started at home and can only be solved there, but by the tone of her response, that does not seem likely. Poor kid, the biggest hurdle to his educational growth is his own parent. 

This kid will end up in a local public school which cannot expel him and if he needs services, he will get them. And if he has issues, some teachers will go mad trying to deal with them. If he disrupts his class other parents will rail about how bad public education is and will consider moving their kid to a charter school. Thus the creaming process that over a decade will result in a desecrated public school system.
Charters claim to be public schools but act like private entities all the while using public tax dollars as part of a dual and dueling school systems.

GEM Statement on Cathleen Black, David Steiner, and the Appointment of Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott

Posted at the GEM blog.
(Last modified, Friday, April 8, 11PM)

It is Time to Break the Cycle

Since 2003, public school parents, children, educators, and community members have endured a dictatorial public education reform agenda that has ignored and marginalized their voices and has undermined and destabilized the schools they depend on, love, and serve. The departure of Cathleen Black highlights the incompetence, arrogance, and political nature of Bloomberg’s educational agenda; this is not about children first, but rather a blind belief in the corporate reform movement propelled by a centralized, top down system that has been destructive for our schools and our children.


It is time for a break in the power structure that has a strangle hold on our public education system; it is time for parents, children, educators and communities to have a say in the education of their 1.2 million school children.

The departure of four Deputy Chancellors in the last 100 days along with the admission by Mayor Bloomberg that the appointment of Black as Chancellor was a mistake, followed by the announced departure of the State Commissioner of Education on Thursday, makes it clear that the almost decade long mayoral control and corporate reform experiment that has ignored the voices of parents, teachers and community has been a failure for the entire educational community. The growing movements against school closings and the privatization of education have helped to expose these failures.

In the coming months our schools face severe cuts, testing is raging out of control, charter schools will attempt to expand by invading more schools, a campaign to close schools continues, dedicated educators are under attack, and our children’s education is at stake. Decisions about the lives of children, like the choice of leaders of the school system, should not be made without their parents, their communities and their teachers. We have little confidence that newly appointed Chancellor Dennis Walcott will be any more than the extension of the same policies with a different face. It is time for Mr. Bloomberg and the Department of Education to engage with parents, treat them as partners and provide the leadership and policies that truly do put children first.

The Grassroots Education Movement supports the Deny Waiver Coalition in their preference for a transparent and nationwide search process for a qualified Chancellor to run our school system. We believe that Mr. Bloomberg and our future Chancellor should fight for real reforms that will transform our public education system. They could begin with a moratorium on school closings, turnarounds, and charter co-locations. Reforms should include parent and teacher empowerment, more teaching, less testing, and the equitable funding needed to make sure our schools are responsive to, and the centers of, the communities they serve.

The Bloomberg ship is sinking. The last nine years under Mayor Bloomberg has been a sea of destructive and misguided educational policies. It is time for our children to be thrown a life raft. It is time for Bloomberg to be held accountable. It is time for a sea change.

______________
See Leonie Haimson on Walcott  posted on Norms Notes where she says:

unless Walcott (and the Mayor) change course, show that they are willing to follow the law, listen to parents and other stakeholders, and alter the policies that are damaging our kids, I do not  believe that the mayor’s abysmal approval ratings will increase substantially.  I hope that this appointment means a real shift in direction, rather than simply a PR move, but we will have to see.

AfterBurn
While I agree with the tone of both Leonie's and GEM's statement, I have a different slant and won't wait and see if it's not simply a PR move because no one changes teams in the middle of the game and Walcott is on the wrong side and will not change. I don't want Bloomberg to have a final say in choosing a Chancellor or if possible, any say at all. We need separation of politics and education. Mayoral control must end ASAP. Better no chancellor than one appointed by Bloomberg. Our old friends at the UFT, which took no stand opposing Black - as outrageous as the appointment itself from my point of view – support and will continue to support mayoral control forever - with just some tweaks added. We are fighting a 2-front war. Ed deformers on one side and the UFT/AFT at our backs. Really, a 3-front war - corporate, government and our own union. We need more air support than the Libyan rebels.

Oh, and good ridence to that Meryl Tisch suck-up David Steiner. The day he was appointed I attacked him and people chastised me for not giving him a chance. They don't get that the person doing the appointing is the key, not the appointee themselves. No one appoints someone who will change the direction they want to go in. Tisch is Bloomberg's next door neighbor and had Joel Klein ask the 4 Questions at her Passover sedars. Guess which side she is on?

Ravitch debates Canada on NY1 - Oh, what a bullshitter he is.

Andy Wolfe nails them in a piece at the Daily News.
"Bloomberg seems to believe that those who toil at the hard business of educating children are the problem. He is wrong."

____________
Check out Norms Notes for a variety of articles of interest: http://normsnotes2.blogspot.com/. And make sure to check out the side panel on right for news bits.

If Bloomberg Appointed the Ghost of John Dewey I Would Still Be Opposed

LAST REVISION: Friday, April 8, 12:30PM

What a shabby start for the Walcott administration. Pulling a bunch of kids out of school for blatant political use. But as we've been saying all along, ed deform is not about education. 

At about 8 a.m. Thursday, an aide to Mr. Walcott called Laura Scott, the principal of Public School 10 in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and asked her to arrange for a group of fifth graders to attend a press conference at City Hall, where they would serve as the backdrop for an announcement. The aide did not tell Ms. Scott the topic of the event — Ms. Black’s resignation.

"Dennis Walcott has been a 'Yes' man for the mayor."- Pamella Wheaton on Brian Lehrer.

Where's Opra and Whoopie who praised the Black appointment, now? 

Any assessment of the move by Bloomberg to replace Black has to be weighed against the question: Does it increase the democratization of schools?

The answer so far is “no”. The culprit is mayoral control. Our only hope is that Walcott can convince the mayor to put his ego aside and accept the fact that his educational policies are a failure. We want more stakeholder control, we want smaller class sizes, real curricular choices, assessments that are multifaceted and fair, and fixing schools to strengthen communities rather than breaking them up.

However, with mayoral control all we can do is hope our actions can convince an arrogant ego, who bought a third term, to change his mind.

Therefore, Walcott is probably only a change in style, but not substance.

John Elfrank-Dana, CL of Murry Bergtraum HS

People just don't seem to get it. The problem is not with who is the chancellor but in how the chancellor is chosen. So even though Dennis Walcott seems to be a thousand times more able than Cathleen Black, he will still be implementing a corporate reform agenda that is doomed to fail. Walcott will bring a slick and savvy look to the table and in fact if Bloomberg had any sense he would have appointed Walcott as Chancellor in 2002. Same results, but at least Walcott would have modified some of the voices of dissent increasingly emerging from the Black and Hispanic communities.

The very idea of the Black appointment, which some thought was akin to Caligula appointing his horse to the Roman Senate (HorseBlack Riding), was Bloomberg's way of dissing just about anyone who had any validity as an educator. Someone suggested on a listserve that he might as well appoint daughter Georgina's horse as chancellor. So even though Walcott has much more gravitas than Black, given Walcott's absolute and total support for the ed deform agenda, you might as well replace Black's face with Walcott's. (Get going photoshoppers.)

Former Parks Commissioner Henry Stern had "One piece of advice for Mr. Walcott: Call Diane Ravitch and Sol Stern. You don't have to do everything they say, but you should listen to them carefully. They can tell you a lot about the system for which you are now responsible. They are not bound by the mistakes of the past, and neither should you be. There are over a million children out there for whom you should be a great hope. Do everything you can not to let them down."

Sure, Henry. Hasn't Walcott been part of the process of shutting out voices like Stern and Ravitch? By the way, no matter how much I admire and like Diane and Sol, these are not the people I would urge Walcott to listen too. How about actual parents and teachers who do the work with kids? The feeling that somehow policy people know more than people on the ground is what has ailed education for far longer than the time mayoral control came into effect.

Last night, News 4 NY reported from Nutley, NJ on Dennis Walcott's appointment as Cathie Black's replacement. Why Nutley? Because that town's school board, unlike NYC's one-man school dictatorship, has been conducting a formal public search for a new superintendent of schools.

I have incorporated this small fact into my latest blog posting, "Be Like Nutley?" on the NYC Public School Parents blog. Please check it out for more at http://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2011/04/be-like-nutley.html .

Steve Koss

_____________
On another topic, check out this article. Praise and condemnation for Joel Klein.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/10/magazine/mag-10School-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine&pagewanted=all

Check out Norms Notes for a variety of articles of interest: http://normsnotes2.blogspot.com/. And make sure to check out the side panel on right for news bits.

Commentary on out with the old and in with the new chancellor- Hey Cathie, I didn't get my good-bye hug

UPDATED 5:30PM- Posting commentary and links as they come in.

Mike Bloomberg in his just-completed press conference stated that he only discussed resignation with Cathie Black this morning, implying that in the last few hours he had a conversation with Ms. Black, did a "search" for a replacement, decided on Dennis Walcott, approached him about the job, and received his acceptance.

Another snap decision about who will be overseeing the education of 1.1 million children?

Despite repeated questioning from reporters, the mayor is refusing to say much about Ms. Black -- hardly surprising. He wants everyone to "look forward," not backward. Message: "Please, everyone, please forget that I made this decision to hire Cathie Black.

A reporter on NY1 just stated that Dennis Black has spent virtually his entire life in public education. I guess that's already being sold as the conventional wisdom, when I believe it is rather far from true. A masters in education, two years as a kindergarten teacher, some time spent on the old Board of Education, never an education administrator -- hardly an entire life devoted to education.

I can't say I was enamored of Wolcott's first decision: to drag a group of Brooklyn grade school kids into City Hall and away from their classrooms to serve as nothing more than background props for a press conference. Sorry, Dennis -- kids are more than props to pretty up your image.

Steve Koss

It is nice to read your thoughtful posts, again, Steve- we've missed your insights!

The mayor and his Deputy's unabashed use a group of kids as cover, to distract away from the adults' mistakes, is so emblematic of the 'Children First'  phonies.

 It is ALL about the adults- just look at the one's jumping ship, either to get further up the privatization pipeline ( can't you just hear the loud sucking sound?)or to propagate the politics and policies imposed on NYC in other cities across the nation.

Let's hope that the media continue to carry the real stories, connecting the dots and digging for facts, and never go back to reporting by press release as they did for the first 9 years of this disastrous dictatorship.

Lisa

State Ed Commiss Steiner is going too - rats deserting: David Steiner Out as State Education Commissioner - DNAinfo.com

Check out this link for the Cathie Black video in dist 14 on Feb 28:
http://vimeo.com/21717003

South African Mona Davids:

Hmm, interesting...
Shael Polakow-Suransky is officially ACTING CHANCELLOR. It's history, the first (South) African acting chancellor.

I guess 17% rating finished Black off. All I can say is that some poor magazine will end up getting stuck with her. Can she give back the 3 million and get back on the IBM Board so she can sell ARIS versions 2 through 10 back to the DOE?

Bloomberg finally pulled the race card in desperation.

Time to start a "Deny Walcott Waiver" movement? Yes he taught kindergarten and has a masters in education, but he has been a major architect of the dismantling of public ed. See Michael's comment below - but I feel it could have been worse - a sell-out educator with real creds and a P.H.d.

Watch the UFT try to claim credit for this, along with the earth spinning on its axis. It was those whistles they blew at the Feb. 3 PEP.

Sam Anderson comments:

With Dennis, the privatization plot thickens.

Connecting dots...
(a)  Al Sharpton becomes publicly closer to Obama as Obama launches re-election. Both Obama and Arne Duncan come to NYC to speak before Al's National Action Network.

(b)  Al's been chummy with Bloomberg and Walcott for years. Hence, Al's in the key position to "sell" Walcott to the negro loyal opposition forces in the electoral, business and religious sectors as a true promoter of Black Education. Meanwhile, Walcott is a proven "good negro" to white folks by his Urban League "street creds" and his 9-year proximity to Billionaire Bloomberg.

(c)  Walcott can become Bloomberg's and his class allies' blackface to their national privatizing of public education policies.

(d)   With a potential $2billion re-election war chest, Prez Obama will need a few "acceptable" Blackfolk to -once again- convince US educators to gather their collective strength and campaign and vote for this version of EVIL. Sir Walcott will make a great surrogate for Obama and the Dems.

(e)  The last dot is that if the republicans have the upper hand on the national scale, Dennis is their man also. He would have about 18 months to work with them on their national education policies.

In Struggle,

Sam Anderson

Michael Fiorillo:

Hello All,
This is not a good development. Every day that Black was Chancellor, she further undermined Bloomberg and revealed his contempt for students, parents and teachers. Walcott will follow the same smash-and-grab agenda, but will be far more adept at it, and his being black will provide a partial shield from criticism.
After all, if people are motivated by power and greed, better for the rest of us if they are incompetent and the butt of jokes. Black was a gift from the Gods of Absurdity, which they have sadly taken back from us.
Let's all hope that this comes too late to revive people's view of Bloomberg, but it makes our job harder, not easier.
Best,
Michael Fiorillo

 Lisa Donlan on Nadelstern blames press for CB's failure! (These no excuses guys sure have a lot of excuses)

Clearly the failure was not about the lousy results of the neo-liberal union-bashing, autocratic, privatizing educational experiments, re-orgs , complete 360's and other kick-the-anthill management tricks passed off by this administration for the last 10 years as reforms.

 No,  w/o the necessary pandering by the press and the inflated edubudgets spent on the vendors, bells and whistles,  the very system is destabilized since it can stand no scrutiny and obviously hangs by a thread of PR gloss and spin. Good riddance to all the rats fleeing this sinking ship. Too bad we and our kids are going to be stuck w/ the remaining wreck for years to come.

DENY WAIVER COALITION .

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, April 7, 2011 CONTACT: Mona Davids                                                    917-340-8987 Lupe Todd (for Assemblyman Jeffries)          917-202-0116 Chris Owens                                                     718-514-4874  Deny Waiver Coalition Statement on the resignation of Unqualified Chancellor Cathie Black "Mayor Bloomberg's political treatment of education is leading to disaster for our children."  Today's resignation of Schools Chancellor Cathleen P. Black closes another sad chapter in the history of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's manipulation of public education in the City of New York.  Ms. Black's departure is a clear victory for parents and all those who care about the quality of public education. After disregarding the concerns of many, Mayor Bloomberg pushed ahead with the nomination and defense of a candidate unqualified to lead the largest public school system in the United States of America.  Cathie Black's departure confirms for parents, teachers and administrators their fear that the Bloomberg administration's education track record is strong on rhetoric, hype and titles, yet weak on substance.  The Mayor has provided a textbook lesson in the dangers of unfettered Mayoral control of our education system.  In sum, Mayor Bloomberg's political treatment of education is leading to disaster for our children.  The Deny Waiver Coalition is proud to have continuously highlighted the fact that the Mayor "had no clothes" when it came to this appointment.  The Deny Waiver Coalition has never wavered in its demand that an appropriate individual serve as Chancellor -- an individual whose experience in education substantially exceeds the minimum criteria for the position.  There remains cause for concern.  The Deny Waiver Coalition called for a national search to find the best Chancellor candidate.  That has not happened.  The Coalition demanded a Chancellor with proven experience at leading public schools or school systems.  New York City still does not have that.  The Coalition advocated for transparency in the Chancellor selection process.  That has yet to happen. Accordingly, the Deny Waiver Coalition members support the immediate adoption of legislation amending the New York State education law to strengthen the minimum requirements for service as Chancellor of New York City's public schools, and to minimize the discretion allowed with regard to waivers on the part of the Mayor and the State Education Commissioner. The Deny Waiver Coalition includes individual petitioners who challenged the appointment of Cathie Black in court.  Parent Petitioners from the five boroughs are New York State Assemblymember Hakeem Jeffries (Brooklyn), Democratic State Committeeman and District Leader Chris Owens (Brooklyn), Ms. Mona Davids (Bronx), Mr. Noah E. Gotbaum (Manhattan), Ms. Khem Irby (Brooklyn), Ms. Lydia Bellahcene (Brooklyn), Ms. Patricia Connelly (Brooklyn), Ms. Monica Ayuso (Queens), Ms. Mariama Sanoh (Brooklyn), Mr. John Battis (Brooklyn), Ms. Latrina Miley (Manhattan), Ms. Shino Tanikawa-Oglesby (Manhattan) and Ms. Maria Farano-Rodriguez (Staten Island).  The teacher Petitioner is Ms. Julie Cavanagh (Brooklyn).

A blast from the past, thanks to Jeff Kaufman. Check out Walcott's subcontractor pals.

November 3, 1999, Wednesday


URBAN LEAGUE GETTING $9M CONTRACT FROM BOARD OF ED.




BYLINE: SUSAN EDELMAN


The Board of Education is set to award a massive $9 million contract today to the New York Urban League in a deal aimed at getting parents to join "school leadership teams" to help run the city's 1,100 schools.


The unprecedented contract - $3 million a year for three years - is earmarked for a citywide campaign and media blitz to drum up interest in the teams and to train parents who sign up.




"This will cover five boroughs and reach parents of different racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds," said league president Dennis Walcott.


The money will pay for staff, educational forums, training sessions, an Internet site, public relations and advertising such as bus posters.


School leadership teams spring from the 1996 Governance Law, which gives Chancellor Rudy Crew broad powers over school boards and superintendents, and were supposed to be in place by Oct. 1.


Each team is to have 10 members - half parents and half school administrators and teachers. They will have input in educational plans, budgets and issues such as school uniforms and safety.


The Urban League has subcontracted with three groups for its Parent Leadership Program: the United Federation of Teachers; Aspira of New York, a Latino community organization; and the United Parent Associations.


Ernest Clayton, UPA president, said the $9 million to be spent by the board isn't enough.


"When it comes to teacher and principal development, they spend money like crazy," he said. "It's about time they try to make an attempt to treat parents well."




ORGANIZATION: UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (55%); UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (55%);


COUNTRY: UNITED STATES (90%);


STATE: NEW YORK, USA (90%);


COMPANY: UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (55%); UNITED FEDERATION OF TEACHERS (55%);


SUBJECT: EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION EMPLOYEES (90%); TEACHING & TEACHERS (90%); EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION (90%); SCHOOL BOARDS (90%); CITY GOVERNMENT (78%); SCHOOL PRINCIPALS (78%); SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS (73%); MARKETING & ADVERTISING (71%); TEACHER UNIONS (67%); RELIGION (55%); PUBLIC RELATIONS (54%);


LOAD-DATE: November 3, 1999

IS 303 - Julia Daniely, PTA President

NYCDOE attempts to shoe-horn a 4th school into an already overcrowded IS 303 in Coney Island. Excerpts from the public hearing.

Another New Generation Activist Enters the Fray

In August, Julie Cavanagh asked me what was my long-time goal, aside from laying in the sun smoking a cigar. Not one to think about things too deeply, I responded, "To find 50 more people like you." (A whole bunch of us are fighting it out over who really discovered Julie, who a year and a half ago was only known inside her school community and in some ed policy groups.) Well, it certainly has been a pleasure for "grampa" (as Julie often refers to me) to meet an increasingly large group of new gen ed activists. That they all seem so much wiser than "grampa" makes me kvell.


Liza Campbell is one of this new generation of rising stars flooding the teacher activist movement in direct opposition to groups like Educators4Excellence. While believing in dedication to the classroom, these activists also believe they must fight outside the classroom, not for a narrow self-serving political agenda like E$E but for the social justice rights for their children and the parents of their children, along with their own rights as teachers. Reforming the UFT is also in their sights (and don't think this isn't making the Unity honchos nervous - they are badmouthing groups like GEM behind the scenes).

I only know Liza, a 25 year old 3rd year teacher, for a few months but have been extremely impressed with her creative energy, organizing skills and willingness to take on any task. And she knows so damned much in such a short time.

Liza was one of the leaders of the under 5 year group of teachers passing around a petition supporting LIFO. And she has been writing some great stuff at the Gotham Community section. Her last piece was Why I Love Unions, But Not Always Their Leadership.  This is an absolute must-read.
Liza closes with

Unions, as a collective representation of working people, can be an incredibly powerful counter-force to corporate interests. Individual working people can have very little impact on policy because they do not have the financial prowess on their own to affect national policy the way those with a good deal of money at their disposal can. I am proud to be a member of a union, and I am very proud of my fellow UFT members. But when union leadership becomes too far-removed from the lived reality of their rank-and-file members and spends a significant amount of their time with the very people who are pushing the policies they should be fighting, they run the risk of losing sight of their mission. If the UFT had a leadership with a social justice orientation that viewed its role as strengthening educators’ ability to educate and mobilize against misguided reforms, then I would not only be proud of my union but proud of its leadership as well.

But you have to read it all - and leave some comments. I want to include a comment from another older gen much-admired activist, Michael Fiorillo - watching Michael and the new gen activists like Julie and Liza mingling brings a big smile to my face since I have often been the connector (which  seems to be my main purpose in all this).

Congratulations on your fine analysis of the shortcomings of the UFT leadership, but things are unfortunately even worse than you say.

The aggressive attacks against teachers and public education in NYC would not have been possible without the dictatorial powers the mayor has over the school system, and these powers would not have been granted without the approval of the UFT, and Randi Weingarten in particular.

The union had in the past successfully repelled mayoral power grabs, but in 2002 Weingarten acquiesed to it. The fragmentation, destabilization and privatization of the system started immediately, as intended. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver propsed a bill that would have given the mayor increased power over the Board of Education, but with checks and balances in place. Weingarten rejected that, inexplicably choosing absolute control of the schools by the mayor.

Worse was yet to come. The initial law granting the mayor absolute control of the schools was designed to sunset in 2009, allowing for the issue to be revisited, based on Bloomberg and Klein's actions. By that time there was widespread dissatisfaction with what Bloomberg and his factotum Klein were doing to the schools, and stakeholders began mobilizing to rein in the mayor's power. There was also strong sentiment in the union that something had to be done to limit the mayor's power.

After all, isn't checks and balances what the US system of government is supposed to be about?

Weingarten, however, had no intention of allowing that to happen, having apparently gotten used to getting rides in the mayor's private jet. So, using the craftiness that she never employed against the DOE, she impaneled a union committee to come up with suggestions for governance of the schools, in anticipation of the 2009 sunsetting of the law.

This Governance Committee, of which I was a member, worked diligently to come up with an alternative to the executive dictatorship that is destroying public education in cities across the country. Although I felt that the Committee's report did not go far enough, and participated in drafting a minority roport that would have gone farther in restricting exectutive power and giving more control to parents, teachers and elected officials, the Committee report that was eventually approved at the unions' Delegate Assembly would have been a tremendous improvement over what we have now.

But even that was not allowed to be. Acting unilaterally, without consulting the membership or the community groups that had enlisted in the fight against mayoral control, Weingarten sandbagged everyone by approving the continuation of mayoral control with just a few meaningless adjustments. Not a word was spoken by Michael Mulgrew in opposition to any of this.

And here we now find ourselves, with the DOE aggressively closing schools, enabling charter invasions, working 24/7 to undermine teaching as a career with professional autonomy and turning the education into a joyless forced march to competition for poverty-level jobs.

The story of the decline of unions over the past 35 years is in large part the story of the decline of the United States, as it has allowed for accelerating income inequality and concentration of power by finance capital. It is only the labor movement, as a self-financed working class institution, that can act as a counterweight to the immense power of employers.

This is playing out everywhere today, but especially in the public schools, since they have been targeted as a market that has yet to be maximized, and as a potential source of public wealth that has yet to be extracted by private interests. Sadly, what the oligarchs and their lapdogs propose is nothing less than the near-total destruction of public education, which despite its many shortcomings, is a uniquely American experiment in democracy. And Randi Weingarten and the one-party state that is the UFT/AFT have been the enablers of that.

Mulgrew got about the same percentage of votes as Mubarek in Egypt in the last election. Watch the deluge when LIFO goes.

The Case for LIFO - Ed Deform Discriminates Against Women — Women Speak Out

Garrison alleged that Bloomberg told her twice to "kill it" when she informed him she was pregnant, adding "Great! Number 16," a reference to the number of women then on maternity leave.....At least 58 female employees at the financial news service Bloomberg are filing claims against the company after it was alleged they were sexually discriminated against after becoming pregnant.

The leadership academy principal I had told a teacher who just returned from maternity leave that her school children must come before her own infant. The principal was trying to mandate meetings after school (besides the monthly faculty conference.)
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During my tenure as a teacher, young attractive and idealistic, I was pursued mercilessly by my married principal to begin an intimate relationship. Turning him down continually, my patented response to him was, “I don’t mix business with pleasure.” I was 22 years old and wise for those 22 years. He was in his fifties. His response was to observe me in my classroom every day for months, memorialize his observation in writing always finding something wrong with my lessons, waiting for my written response to his letter and calling me into his office to discuss the lesson and the response....When I received a “U” rating in June of that year, I contested it.

Would one expect less than a policy based on discrimination of women from Michael Bloomberg, one of the spearheads of ed deform who famously told pregnant women to get rid of it. (I put a bunch of quick links to articles about that incident at the end of this article.)

Think this one through. Teachers are expected not to go home when the school day ends, and "service" within the school might count as part of your evaluation, which could lead to a u-rating and firing. And then there's the sexual harassment. So many stories of male (and female) supervisor sexual threats towards women. Retired teacher Joan Mettler wrote a story in The Wave about her being U-rated because she wouldn't sleep with her principal. And there are so many stories of political persecution too.

So, since 75% of the teaching corps are females and we expect at least some of them might have children one day - and maybe want to buy a house in the more affordable suburbs, thus requiring more of a commute, and those with children might feel that tug at 3PM to get home, and those with sick children might need to take a few extra days off a year - well, SCREW YOU!! THERE'S NO ROOM FOR FAMILIES IF YOU ARE A TEACHER!!!!!

Here are some voices of women commenting on the teacher evaluation system and the implications for women. (from the ICE listserve.)

My husband and I both taught and I was the one when they were young who did the "running around" with our three girls even when I went back to teaching after a hiatus. On Parent/Teacher nights, I left school, picked them up, fed them and then dragged them with me to conferences where they did their homework. Then we took the bus home. Not until my husband was out of the classroom was he able to take off early to pick up a sick child and go to the doctor. Getting involved in anything at school or in the community was not easy, almost impossible when they were young. I feel for the young teachers at my school who have begun their families. To be asked to come to a function in the evening or stay after school is a juggling act, an imposition on their family responsibilities. Now that my three are young ladies, I can be involved and give my time. But even the youngest one who is not out of HS yet will call her dad, "What's for dinner tonight? Are you going to be home?" And it's not just for the meal, but for the sense of family gathering that she asks. Maybe all the parental care we gave to raise independent, civic minded, educated daughters should be taken into account as I am evaluated...not the "extra time" I put into the school building.

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I have been a single mom for over 19 years with 2 daughters.  I was lucky that my children were in the same school that I taught in and therefore were able to stay late with me and attend after school and evening events with me.  A lot of the times they were in them so that killed two birds with one stone!  It was quite tough and that was before the extra 150 minutes and all this overwhelming data!

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I'm concerned about the evaluation of teachers based on their work in communities or extra work on school committees, etc.

I think there is an inherent bias here. At the risk of stereotyping, it has been my observation that women take more responsibility for child caring and care taking. That does not mean that there aren't men out there contributing. But more often than not, if the father is not a teacher or is not on a early schedule, it is the woman with young children who is running home for dental appts., pediatrician appts.,etc. As my daughter says, as much as my son-in-law takes responsibility for their daughter, he still doesn't know her shoe size.

When I go to the nursing home every day, I see the sign ins - it is overwhelmingly the "daughter" visiting.

And then there is the single parent - running home to pick up kids or to parents to do care taking.

When my kids were young, I checked out at 3. When they were grown, I usually stayed until 4 or 5 o'clock.

And doing work during the day, giving up preps, etc. is not easy either for the mother or caretaker - you need that time in school to do prep or just rest - because there is no time at home to do that stuff.

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Participation on school committees should never be part of the evaluation system:
a. It interferes with the contractual business of the UFT, which treats participation on such committees as part of its internal affairs and should not be "evaluated" -- just like voting in our internal elections should not be part of the evaluations.
b. One of the strongest reasons that UFT members do NOT participate on committees is that in way too many schools they are waste of time (principal gets what they want anytime they want to: by coercing,threats, retaliation, etc.) .

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If you can't ward off any movement to include participate on commitees, etc. - then perhaps you could try giving equal weight to caretaker teachers - those who have small children and other kinds of dependents that exclude their participation. It is just as important to do raise your children in the way you see fit as it is to serve on a school commitee or participate in community work. If you include one form of "credit", you must include the other.

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The leadership academy principal I had told a teacher who just returned from maternity leave that her school children must come before her own infant. Principal was trying to mandate meetings after school (besides the monthly faculty conference.)

Bloomberg
Lawsuit Says Bloomberg's Company Discriminates Against Pregnant ...
Sep 27, 2007 ... Lawsuit Says Bloomberg's Company Discriminates Against Pregnant Employees. 2007_09_bloombergwomen.jpg Mayor Michael Bloomberg's civilian ...
gothamist.com/2007/09/27/lawsuit_says_bl.php - Cached

Pregnant staff at Bloomberg claim sexual prejudice - Americas ...
May 3, 2008 ... At least 58 female employees at the financial news service Bloomberg are filing claims against the company after it was alleged they were ...
www.independent.co.uk › News › World › Americas - Cached - Similar

U.S. sues Bloomberg, alleging company bias against pregnant ...
Sep 28, 2007 ... U.S. sues Bloomberg, alleging company bias against pregnant workers ... Lewis also said the company had no policy allowing employees to work ...
www.nytimes.com/.../28iht-bloomberg.4.7675416.html - Cached - Similar - Add to iGoogle

New York Class-Action Pregnancy Discrimination Lawsuit Against ...
Jun 23, 2010 ... The female employees allege that Bloomberg violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, ...
www.new-york-employment-lawyer-blog.com/.../new-york-classaction- pregnancy.html -

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg Testifies in Pregnancy ...
May 15, 2009 ... This isn't the first pregnancy discrimination charge against Bloomberg. In 1997, a female executive employee said that the mayor urged her ...
www.lifenews.com/2009/05/15/state-4148/ 

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Film Screening & Discussion, Apr. 11, 2011: The Inconvenient Truth Behind 'Waiting for Superman'

Monday, April 11, is a busy evening. A GEM general meeting at CUNY at 5, a film screening of our movie at 6 at C.L.O.T.H and a hearing at Paul Robson HS in Brooklyn at 6PM. Friday there is an ICE meeting, a Fight Back Friday meeting - both at the same diner, and an event at the NYSUT convention (It's Apr. 8, do you know where your favorite Unity Caucus slug is?) at the Hilton at 6:30 where part of our movie will be shown. I have a feeling some people won't be happy because we don't call for the downfall of capitalism as one of our real reforms. But Unity Caucus will red-bait us anyway.

Thus, GEMers will be all over the place. I'm putting links to all these announcements on the sidebar.

On Monday, April 11th at 6:00 p.m., Community League of the Heights will host a community screening of “The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting For Superman,” the brand new NYC documentary challenging the ideology and prescriptions of the 2010 film "Waiting For Superman."

WHEN: Monday, April 11th, 6:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.

WHERE: Church On The Hill, 2005 Amsterdam Avenue, 2nd Fl. (between 159th and 160th)

WHO: Parents, youth, educators, and other community members, especially residents of Washington Heights, West Harlem and Inwood.

PANELISTS INCLUDE: Julie Cavanagh, Film Director and Public School Teacher; Miriam Aristy-Farer, Public School Parent; Adam Stevens, Assistant Principal, Community Health Academy of the Heights; Dr. Sam Anderson, Black New Yorkers for Educational Excellence. Moderated by Joe Rogers, Jr., Founder & Facilitator, Total Equity Now.

Post-screening small group discussions and a Q&A with panelists will examine several teaching and learning-related themes covered in the film. Building on a similar screening and discussion of “Waiting for Superman” on March 28^th, this event will expose community members to additional, sometimes contrasting, perspectives on today’s pressing issues of education policy and practice.

Please join us!

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Panel Discussion on Teachers' Unions, Thursday, April 7, 2011 with Sam Coleman, Lois Weiner and Leo Casey

Well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad. Sam and Lois have a lot to offer. Watch Leo try to explain the UFT "we surrender" strategy.

Part of a three-part series continuing 2011-2012:

Citizen Teacher:  Discussing Teachers in Society 

Thursday, April 7 

6:00 - 7:30 pm 

at Bank Street School of Education 

610 W. 112th St. 

free and open to the public 

Discussing historical background of teachers' 

unions in NYC, strengths and critiques of unions, 

and union portrayal in the media. 

Panelists include: 

Leo Casey of the United Federation of Teachers  

Sam Coleman of NYCORE

Lois Weiner, Professor of Education and 

author of The Global Assault on Teaching, Teachers, and Their Unions 

and more TBA 

Sponsored by the Bank Street School of Education Council of Students

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The ICK Factor: People Who Run Charter Schools and Tweedies Look Alike

So I spent the evening at yet another phony baloney charter school hearing.  Every single charter school leader and the henchmen and women behind them look alike, walk the same way - or scurry like little rats clutching their Blackberries. And the hordes of Tweedies there to run the meeting and supposedly be neutral look just like them.

I'm really getting sick of them because they all have the same script:
Charter schools bus in loads of people wearing tee-shirts and make sure to get them there an hour early to stand in line so they can get first dibs on signing up to speak with their little scripts that will be sure to talk about how they grew up in the neighborhood, attended public schools, believe in choice, brag about how their kids love school and reading.

And the public schools trying to fight back. The IS 303 crew met in front of the schools and marched over to Lincoln HS for the meeting. Quite a spirited march.

This case is a doozy. IS 303, as I reported yesterday (Rally at IS 303 Today and March to Lincoln HS to Oppose Co-Location of Coney Island Prep Charter School), is being invaded by Coney Island Prep (CIP - as in CIP from the fountain of public funding.) IS 303 already has 3 schools - IS 303, Rachel Carson HS and a Dist. 75 program. So why not add a 4th school which wants to expand from 5-12 over time? We heard all the same old lying crap from the CIPers and Tweedies and your basic sleazy local politician.

A building is not a school.
This is only temporary - we have our own building just waiting for them but it is delayed.
All your schools are great but we need more.
choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice
Our kids are from the neighborhood.

I won't bore you with the rest of the list. I have lots of tape with great stuff from a former student and Julia Daniely and will post a follow-up.

Deputy Chancellor Marc Sternberg was in charge of the event. The first time I saw him up close and he reminds me of John White - sort of beginning to look like him, with the same air of superiority and arrogance. Sneaking looks at his Blackberry - until I filmed him and he hid it. Grimacing when people from both sides fought it out verbally, trying to drown each other out, making like he really cared about the chaos he and his Tweedy pals have brought to the public schools.

I really came away not liking this guy, sort of akin to how I felt when I saw Santiago Taveras interact with the CEC 14 meeting I taped on Feb. 28. The announcement that he was leaving came during the meeting and I'll have more to say and show you on this guy who actually staked his integrity on the fact that he believed the PEP and DOE actually listen to the voices of parents. (I have a half hour video up on this meeting - Voices of Parents, Teachers and Principals at Feb....
FYI- Taveras is taking a job with a DOE vender - how corporate of him. See: follow up to question re conflict of interest rules re Santiago Taveras and other DOE employees

I feel the same about Sternberg just watching his body language. Another possibly former good guy who turned to the dark side. They are all Darth Vaders.

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Rally at IS 303 Today and March to Lincoln HS to Oppose Co-Location of Coney Island Prep Charter School

Coney Island is reacting badly to the co-loco at IS 303 of Coney Island Prep charter. We should have been following this situation more carefully. The reaction from IS 303 seems to be getting stronger and stronger, so I am changing my plans to head over at 5pm to tape the march to Lincoln HS for the hearing at 6. Here are some reports from a parent and a teacher:

The CEC 21 meeting was a shambles. Although it was supposed to be a regular cec meeting it was primarily a proposal co location meeting. many people did not get the time to speak, because one speaker representing CIP (Coney Island Prep) made some references of the 303 children not sharing with others and also she said that making this co-location is like the little rock 9. These comments were unnecessary and not true which almost started a riot. The school is multicultural and her "pulling the race card" was way, way out of line.The superintendent was scared after that and closed the meeting. The turnout was so big they had to turn people away. Public Hearing is today at Lincoln HS.

The CEO/Director of CIP has gone on record as saying the following:
"I came to Coney Island because it was the only place in the city that did not have a charter." He taught for a few years in Jersey before becoming this CEO/DIrector. Told administrators at PS 303 that he would be willing to pay rent so that principals in the school would have extra money to deal with budget cuts (what a guy). Many parents do not like the school but their children do. They brainwash the kids and use money as incentives. Parents were furious when the CEO/Director told them he may move the school outside of the Coney Island area. He wants his school to go from 5th grade through the 12th grade.

Some You Tube Videos of the CEC 21 March meeting regarding Co-Location Charter Proposal at 303.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zoY_3f6vH8&feature=player_embedded

While the UFT has often been absent in co-loco battles, having their own co-loco charters, UFT District 21 Rep Judy Gerowitz has been involved in every charter school fray in District 21 and 22, fighting the good fight.

Here is the CEC 21 resolution opposing the charter:

                                                                                                                 

·       521 West Avenue, Room 446, Brooklyn, NY 11224 Tel: (718) 714-2503 Fax: (718) 714-2615                                          Email: CEC21@schools.nyc.gov

·       Members:  Yoketing Eng, President  · Mohammad Akram, 1^st Vice President  · Julius Bowens, 2^nd Vice President · Marla Edmonson, Recording Secretary · Stuart Handman, Treasurer, Brooklyn Borough President Appointee  · Dionne Hastings · Dr. Tim Law, Brooklyn Borough President Appointee ·

                  Evangelean Pugh, Sandra Rodolico, Marianne Russo

·       Administrative Assistant:  Mary Montemarano              

·       Community Superintendent:  Isabel DiMola    District Family Advocate:  Lottie Dobson-Shannon  Administrative Assistant:  Diane Novarro 

         Room 351  Fax: (718)714-2616                         Tel: (718) 714-2505                                                      Tel: (718) 714-2502

                 

                                                VOTED AND APPROVED MARCH 9, 2011

RESOLUTION AGAINST THE CO-LOCATION OF CONEY ISLAND PREP INTO BUILDING K303 WHICH INCLUDES I.S.303, RACHEL CARSON HIGH SCHOOL AND P771K

WHEREAS, the K303 building is already occupied by three separate school communities, including I.S. 303K, RCHS and 771K; and

WHEREAS, the addition of 270 students from Coney Island Prep presents a hazardous situation for the current students of I.S. 303K, Rachel Carson High School (RCHS) and 771K; and

WHEREAS the current construction of the I.S. 303K facility is not designed to safely support the existence of four separate school populations; and

WHEREAS, the current design and placement of school facilities, specifically the student cafeteria and gymnasiums, does not support the safe passing of several hundred students from different schools at one time; and

WHEREAS, the school facilities that are expected to be shared with Coney Island Prep are already fully utilized throughout the school day; and

WHEREAS, I.S. 303K implements a unique instructional model that includes self – contained classes on the 6^th and 7^th grades to meet the academic, social and emotional needs of their students; and

WHEREAS, I.S. 303K students continue to benefit from their school’s current instructional design, and all members of the school community, including parents, teachers, School Leadership Team members and students, continue to fully support the current self contained model; and

WHEREAS, the above – referenced instructional model was included in the I.S. 303K’s Restructuring Plan that was submitted to the NYSED for the 2005 – 2006 school year; and

WHEREAS, the Educational Impact Statement (EIS) drafted by the Office of Portfolio Planning (OPP) proposed the termination of the I.S. 303K’s current self – contained model and has suggested that I.S. 303K reconfigure it’s educational plan to revert back to the traditional middle school footprint, despite the success of it’s current program; and

WHEREAS, the change of instructional programming proposed by the Office of Portfolio Planning contradicts the NYC Mayor’s and Chancellor’s vision of empowerment for school principals; and

WHEREAS, the OPP has indicated that Coney Island Prep can be allocated as many as eighteen classrooms (15 classrooms from I.S. 303K and 3 classrooms from RCHS); and

BE IT RESOLVED THAT, Community Education Council District 21 (CEC 21) is concerned about one thing, the children of this community and giving them the education that they deserve. I.S. 303 has undergone dramatic educational restructuring to better meet the needs of the students from our community.  These students continue to thrive as a result of the strong educational initiatives and vision of this school.  I.S. 303 has built a strong bond with the community that embraces what they do everyday on their children’s behalf.  The progress and performance of students in I.S. 303K, RCHS and P177K will be impeded by the co-location of Coney Island Prep; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the DOE must work to ensure that students and families in every community have high- quality educational options; and

THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, CEC21 is against the co-location of Coney Island Prep into Building K303, which includes I.S. 303K, Rachel Carson High School and P771K.
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Would We Get Better Results if the Wall Street Journal Gave Merit Pay for Better Reporting?

"Of course, not everything you try works." 
- Joel Klein on wasting $57 million on failed merit pay schemes.

Hey, Joel, how about "nothing you tried worked?" Except turning the UFT into a wus, which in the ed deform world is all that really matters anyway.

From the Joel Klein School of Management

I was howling with laughter after reading this article on teacher merit pay in the WSJ today blaming poor results on the NYC merit pay boondoggle on the fact that entire schools got pay instead of individual teachers.

In 2007, New York City and its teachers union launched an experiment to determine whether rewarding teachers with extra cash would boost student performance.
Four years and $57 million later, the answer appears to be no. Backers of incentive pay are blaming the way New York's program was structured, and school and union officials are pointing fingers at each other.

Researchers posited that because the bonuses were based on how well entire schools performed, and how well they performed compared to similar schools citywide, the money didn't offer much incentive to individual teachers to excel.
"It was clear in 2007 that this plan wouldn't enable the best teachers to earn dramatically more, and therefore would likely be limited in long-term effect," said Bryan Hassell, co-director of Public Impact, a research and consulting organization that is often at odds with the teachers union. He wasn't involved in the studies.
"This plan paid chump change compared to what the best teachers should be earning for reaching more kids successfully," Mr. Hassell said.

Boy, if only they has offered individual teachers lots more money instead of chump change. The scores would have soared. Just like they did in Washington DC under Michelle Rhee.

The funniest lines in the entire piece belong to "no excuses" Joel Klein who always makes excuses:

"I believe and have always believed in merit pay at the individual teacher level," said Joel Klein, who was then schools chancellor. "The union would agree only to a schoolwide program. It made sense to try. Of course, not everything you try works," he said. Mr. Klein is now an executive at News Corp., which owns The Wall Street Journal. 

Poor Repert. He hires a guy who made a $57 million losing bet. A guy who believed individual merit pay would work but because the union wouldn't sign onto that tossed enormous amount of money into the trash because "It made sense to try."

No follow-up on this issue from reporter. Like, do you think it was wise to spend so much money that could have been used for real instruction or supplies on something you just wanted to try? Like in throwing it against the wall to see if it sticks?

Let's parse the reporting a little further:

Research is mixed on merit pay's success. A rigorous and closely watched study of a Nashville incentive-pay program found it didn't improve student test scores, while a study of Denver's merit-pay initiative found it attracted higher-quality teachers and kept them in hard-to-staff schools. [CONVENIENTLY LEAVING OUT - BUT DIDN'T IMPROVE SCORES]
But there is a key difference between those programs and New York's. Both Nashville and Denver directly linked performance pay of teachers to the performance of students in their classes. The Denver program also considers classroom evaluations as part of the bonus pay and allows teachers in non-tested subjects to get cash based on schoolwide improvements.

So, the Nashville experiment which DID use individual merit pay failed but Denver is somehow counterposed as not failing to justify saying "Research is mixed on merit pay's success" when in fact there it also failed in raising scores. In fact research has been clear that merit pay has been a total failure wherever it has been tried. But here comes a bait and switch tactic by saying the Denver experiment "attracted higher-quality teachers and kept them in hard-to-staff schools." Exactly what is meant by higher quality teachers? Based on what? Test scores? Or were they from Teach for America which automatically makes them higher quality in the world of ed deform?

A working paper (pdf) just released by Harvard University economist Roland G Fryer flatly contradicts the argument. In a randomised trial in more than 200 New York City public schools, he found "no evidence that teacher incentives increase student performance, attendance or graduation". On the contrary, Fryer reported that teacher incentives may actually decrease student achievement, especially in larger schools.

Another failed ed deform "experiment" on the children in this country. But why site research that refutes WSJ editorial policy? 

Sorry, I have to give this piece an "F". But I have an idea for how Rupert can improve the quality of reporting on the WSJ. Launch an experiment to determine whether rewarding reporters with extra cash would boost performance.

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