Archives for the month of: August, 2014
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Peter Greene: How Arne Duncan Handed Off $28 Million to the College Board

By dianeravitch
August 26, 2014 //
53

Peter Greene calls attention to a new federal grant program of $28.4 million, to pay for low-income students to take Advanced Placement courses. AP courses are a source of revenue for the College Board, whose president is David Coleman, architect of the Common Core.

Greene writes:

“I will remind everyone, as I always do, that the College Board (home of the AP test and the SATs) is not a philanthropic organization, administering these tests as some sort of public service. They are a business, one of several similar ones, selling a product. This program is the equivalent of the feds saying, “Students really need to be able to drive a Ford to school, so we we’re going to finance the purchase of Fords for some students.”

“What does the College Board get out of this program?

“Huge product placement. David Coleman’s College Board has been working hard to market the AP test as the go-to proof that a student is on the college path. Some states (PA is one) give extra points to school evaluation scores based on the number of AP courses offered. The new PSAT will become an AP-recommendation generator. This program is one more tap-tap-tap in the drumbeat that if you want to go to college, you must hit the AP. The program can also be directed toward IB tests or “other approved advanced placement tests,” but it’s the AP brand that is on the marquee.

“The product placement represents a savvy marketing end run. The AP biz has previously depended on the kindness of colleges to push their product. But colleges and universities weren’t really working all that hard to market the College Board’s product for them. Now, with the help of state and federal governments and their own PSAT test, the College Board is marketing directly to parents and students, tapping into that same must-go-to-college gut-level terror that makes the SAT test the must-take test.

“$28.4 million.

“What do low-income students get out of this?

“A chance to take an AP test. Not, mind you, more resources to get ready for it, nor do they get help with actually going to a college after taking the test (which may or may not give them any help once they get in).

“These grants eliminate some of the financial roadblocks for low-income students taking Advanced Placement courses, letting them take tests with the potential of earning college credit while in high school,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.”

So it’s not help to prepare for the tests, no guarantee of earning college credit in high school, just a chance to take a test that you may not be prepared for. And a nice addition to the College Board’s bottom line. Let us not forget that Coleman got his start at McKinsey. He is a businessman, not an educator. And the College Board’s relationship with the DOE is good business.

Categories Testing, U.S. Department of Education

L.A.: Deasy Cancels Apple-Pearson Contract, Reopens Bidding

By dianeravitch
August 26, 2014 //
36

Following the release of internal emails that suggested inappropriate contact between Superintendent John Deasy, other LA officials, and top officials at Apple and Oearson, Deasy canceled the contract and announced he would start the bidding again.

The LA Times wrote:

“The suspension comes days after disclosures that the superintendent and his top deputy had especially close ties to executives of Apple, maker of the iPad, and Pearson, the company that is providing the curriculum on the devices. And an internal report that examined the technology effort showed major problems with the process and the implementation.”

In a memo
to the board, Deasy presented the cancellation of an ethically-challenged contract as an opportunity:

“Not only will this decision enable us to take advantage of an ever-changing marketplace and technology advances, it will also give us time to take into account concerns raised surrounding the [Common Core Technology Project] and receive new information from the California Department of Education regarding assessments,” Deasy wrote.

The remaining question is whether the LAAUSD board will hold Deasy accountable for the inappropriate meetings with the winning bidders, the use of repair funds from a bond issue, or any other aspect of the fiasco.

Categories Los Angeles, Pearson, Technology, Computers

Students in L.A. Silently Protest Computer Mess

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
18

Students at Jefferson High School in Los Angeles staged a sit-in to protest a scheduling breakdown now in its third week of school.

“Students gathered in the quad after first period, sitting in a grassy area in a silent protest of what they contend has been weeks of mismanagement by administrators that has wasted their time and severely interrupted their education.

“For the first weeks of school, many students were left without class schedules, others were given courses they did not need and some were without those required for graduation, students and teachers said.

“Several Advanced Placement courses were scheduled at the same time, leaving students unable to enroll in all the college-level courses they desired. Students still learning English were unable to enroll in courses at their level, as they were scheduled during the same periods.

“Problems were apparently intensified by a new computer database, known as the My Integrated Student Information System, which caused a litany of scheduling problems around the district in the first weeks of school.

“Teachers have described over-enrolled classes, missing or inaccurate rosters, students without schedules and an inability to take attendance in the system.”

The students want an education, but their schedules are in chaos due to the district’s hasty adoption of a computer system that wasn’t ready.

Categories Los Angeles, Technology, Computers

Connecticut: Governor Malloy, Trust Your Best Educators

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
17

Connecticut is a state with many wonderful teachers, administrators, and schools. The state consistently ranks second or third in the nation on NAEP.

The state has some districts with high poverty and low test scores. Governor Dannel Malloy decided to solve their problems by aligning himself with the privatization by charter crowd. He hired Stefan Pryor, a co-founder of a charter chain, as his state commissioner and trusted him to enlarge the charters’ market share.

Malloy directed funding to charter chains, and things seemed to go his way until one of his favorite charter chains got in trouble. First it was revealed in the Hartford Courant that Michael Sharpe, CEO of the FUSE Jumoke charter chain, had a criminal record. Then it came out that he did not have a doctorate, even though he called himself “Dr.” For some reason, people in Connecticut seemed more disturbed by the phony credential than by the long-ago felonies.

Then came the case of “Dr.” Terrence Carter, who was in line to be the next superintendent in Néw London. It turned out that he didn’t have a doctorate either. Not to worry, he said, because he was receiving one from Lesley University in Massachusetts on August 25.

Jon Lender, the investigative reporter at the Hartford Courant who has broken all these stories, reported today that Lesley University did not award a doctorate on August 25 to Mr. Carter.

Stefan Pryor has announced he will not serve another term as Commissioner. Malloy has said he will pursue the same agenda. Let’s hope he chooses someone who believes in conducting background checks.

Lets also hope that he gives thought to getting a better agenda. Charters don’t solve the problems of poverty. They drain money from the public schools, pick the students they want, exclude those who are most difficult to educate, and boast of their success.

Governor Malloy, you have a state with many outstanding and experienced educational leaders. Choose one of them to strengthen public schools in every community in the state.

Categories Accountability, Administrators, superintendents

Florida: Charter Operators with “Troubled” Histories Request Another Chance

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
18

In Broward County, Florida, several new proposals for charter schools have been submitted by charter operators who previously closed down their schools. Despite their previous failure, the local board is likely to grant them a new charter because the board is not allowed to consider past performance. How crazy is that?

The story in the Sun-Sentinel by Karen Yi and Amy Shipley says:

“At least seven groups of applicants with ties to failed or floundering charter schools are seeking second chances and public money to open 18 more.

“Odds are, most will prevail.”

“School districts say that they can’t deny applicants solely because of past problems running charter schools. State laws tell them to evaluate what they see on paper — academic plans, budget proposals, student services — not previous school collapses or controversial professional histories.”

“District officials are currently reviewing applications for next year.

“Among those vying to open new charter schools, which are privately operated but publicly funded:

• A group that managed three new charter schools in Broward and Palm Beach counties that opened this year — and then shut down on the first day of school.

• The founder of two charter schools that failed in 2007 amid accusations of stolen money, shoddy record keeping and parent complaints, according to state and local records. A state investigation later chastised school directors for “virtually nonexistent” oversight, though prosecutors filed no criminal charges.

• An educator who was banned from New Jersey public schools, then consulted for two schools in Broward and Palm Beach counties that shuttered in 2013. The Palm Beach County school district closed one of the schools because of poor academics and financial difficulties; the Broward school chose to cease operations amid dwindling enrollment, according to school district reports.

“The Sun Sentinel also found three applications from leaders at two charter schools that were ordered to close this year for poor academics. Another three proposals came from a director at an existing charter school chided for its deteriorating financial condition. An entrepreneur who has consulted for a handful of failed schools is also listed on an application.

The authors previously published an exposé of the lack of oversight of charter schools in southern Florida.

Their stories raise important questions:

Does any elected official in the state of Florida care about responsible oversight of education?

Does any elected official in the state of Florida care about responsible oversight of taxpayer dollars?

If Florida’s elected officials want to improve educational opportunities, do they really believe that children are better served by allowing schools to be opened without regard to the past performance of those in charge?

Categories Charter Schools, Florida, Scandals Fraud and Hoaxes

Andy Hargreaves: What Is the Purpose of Educational Benchmarking?

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
21

Andy Hargreaves of Boston College asks an important question: What is the purpose of benchmarking? We collect data, we measure, we test, we set goals, but why? Will it improve performance if we know that someone else does it better? Do they have the same challenges, the same resources? Is there more to education than raising tests ores and do higher test scores necessarily mean better education?

Andy begins with two stories about benchmarking, one positive, one negative. One improved public health, one made it easier to conduct war.

Right now, under pressure from No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top, everything is measured. Why? To fire teachers and principals? To close schools? To hand public property to entrepreneurs? Who benefits? What do we do with the losers? Throw them away? Plenty of children were left behind, and many will not make it to “the top.”

Andy writes:

“Is the purpose of our educational benchmarking to further the public good, to raise the standards of education for all, to elevate the poorest and most disadvantaged students to the greatest heights of accomplishment? And once we have done our calculations and made our maps, what pathways will be opened up, and what people and resources will be pulled along them in this worthy quest for equity and excellence? The White House announced earlier this summer that it would address educational inequities by collecting data to help pinpoint where they existed, but there seemed to be no plan to bring up the people and resources to correct them.

“Is there a second purpose of educational benchmarking then? Is it to delineate the weak from the strong, inciting nation to compete against nation, Americans against Asians, and school against school. After we have pinpointed schools that are failing, does this just make it easier for invading opportunists to set up charter schools in their place, or to market online alternatives, tutoring services and the like?

“As in surveying, benchmarking in education should be about discovering where we stand and learning about who we are and what we do by observing those around us. It should be about improving public education, just as the sewer maps for my hometown contributed to public sanitation. Benchmarking should not be about fomenting panics about performance in relation to overseas competitors. And it should not be about dividing schools, families and communities from each other to create easy pickings for the educational market.

“Whenever we are engaged in the data-driven detail of educational benchmarking, these are the greater questions we should be asking. Of what map or whose map are we the servants?”

Categories Closing schools, Data and Data Mining, International, Research

Florida: Teacher Evaluation System Is So Flawed That No One Can Explain It

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
42

This editorial from the Tampa Bay Times was published in March, but I just discovered it and wanted to share it. Unlike the editorial writers in many other cities, the Tampa Bay Times went beyond the press releases and self-serving statements of public officials.

They pointed out that the ratings had a margin of error of 50%. “That means it is useless. Still, the state intends to base half of a teacher’s performance evaluation, and future pay, on this absurdity.

“As Tampa Bay Times staff writers Lisa Gartner and Cara Fitzpatrick reported, the state’s flawed system rates some of the region’s most honored teachers as low performers. Hillsborough County teacher of the year Patrick Boyko, a social studies teacher at Jefferson High School, scored a minus 10.23 percent, with a margin of error above 50 percent. Translation? His students scored 10 percent worse on the FCAT than typical children across the state even though the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test measures students in reading, writing, mathematics and science, but not social studies. Of course, it mattered little since the margin of error larger than Boyko’s actual VAM score invalidated the whole process.”

“Even lawmakers had to acknowledge it wasn’t fair to judge teachers based on students’ performance in academic areas they do not teach. But how do you assign a numeral measurement to teachers who inspire and challenge children to read classic literature, explore scientific principles, create a piece of art, write a song, or run a 5K for the first time? In Florida, you would check to see how the kids did on their math FCAT. The system is so convoluted that one Hernando School District administrator correctly observed the highest rated teachers are likely the physical education staffers at A-rated schools.

“Like Florida’s controversial school grading system, these teacher evaluations, relying on the value-added model, are not credible and conflict with the school districts’ own performance standards. House Speaker Will Weatherford has said he wants to restore trust and integrity to the school grades, but he also champions a value-added concept for rating teachers — a model, he acknowledges, that is so complex he can’t explain it. Neither district administrators nor classroom teachers have confidence in this evaluation system. The Department of Education should toss its modeling and let districts devise an evaluation system for teachers that more accurately reflects the daily occurrences inside individual classrooms.”

If only other editorialists took the time to look at the VAM ratings, they too would conclude that this multimillion dollar exercise in number-crunching is Junk Science.

Categories Florida, Teacher Evaluations

Bob Braun: How New Jersey Leaders Broke the Law to Charterize Newark

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
9

Bob Braun, veteran reporter turned independent blogger, charges that officials in New Jersey broke state laws requiring a random lottery to advance the charter movement in Newark.

He writes:

“New Jersey and local school officials have been involved in a conspiracy to evade laws governing the operation of charter schools in order to allow the wholesale “charterization” of public schools in Newark, the state’s largest city. State Education Commissioner David Hespe allowed the city’s charter schools to ignore legally-mandated lotteries while, at the same time, he secretly amended the charters of those privatized schools as an after-the-fact method of justifying the elimination of lotteries.”

Read it all, to this sad conclusion:

“By April, Cerf had left as commissioner, joining the private company “Amplify” so he could use the contacts he made as New Jersey commissioner to make a lot of money. Hespe, a once-trusted public servant who previously served as state education commissioner, took over in February. He apparently needed the job more than the good reputation he had developed in the past as commissioner under former Gov. Christie Whitman, so he did his new master’s bidding. He stretched the law until it broke.

“And he did it while, all the while, assuring union leaders and others he was desperate to get rid of Cami Anderson. That was a great if laughable ploy–fooling the most vocal critics of Cami Anderson so they would stay quiet while he and Anderson prepared both to impose “One Newark” on the city, quiet anger against the incompetent superintendent, and give Christie’s agent another three-year contract.

“Scamming the city. Its parents. Its children.

“One Newark” is illegal. It’s illegal because it discriminates on the basis of race. It is illegal because it violates a raft of state laws and regulations.

“And it is illegal because it violates the charter school law.

“But, in a New Jersey operated by Gov. Christie’s Mafia, illegal is only what the governor says it is. And Hespe and Anderson do his bidding.”

Categories Education Reform

“Effective” Teachers Fleeing Houston Because of Flawed VAM

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
16

Audrey Amrein-Beardsley reports that highly rated teachers are leaving the Houston public schools because of the erratic EVAAS measure. Seven teachers are suing the district based on its erratic measure.

In this post, she tells the story of a teacher with 15 years experience who prefers teaching in high-needs schools.

“The one teacher highlighted in this piece, “holds a mathematics degree from the University of Houston, has taught all levels of high school mathematics for 15 years…and has repeatedly pursued assignments in high-needs schools with large Latino populations. While administrators, parents and peers have consistently rated him as a highly effective teacher, his EVAAS scores have varied wildly. While at [one district high school], he earned one of the highest EVAAS scores and year-end bonuses possible. Two years ago, teaching the same subject at [another high school] he received a below-average EVAAS score.” This teacher decided to leave the high-needs school in which his students’ performance apparently “biased” his results. He explained, “I can’t afford to be heroic. I want to be in the toughest schools, but the EVAAS model interprets my students’ challenges as my personal [and professional] failure.”

Teachers in training, she reports, are shunning Houston because of the flawed EVAAS.

Don’t forget: the purpose of EVAAS was to ensure that HISD had only “great teachers.” When will district leaders recognize it is driving away its best teachers?

Categories Houston, Teacher Evaluations

Fred Smith: Do New York State Education Officials Ever Tell the Truth?

By dianeravitch
August 25, 2014 //
14

Fred Smith, a testing expert who worked many years at the New York City Board of Education, has become a mentor to the opt-out movement in New York. In this article, which was published in the New York Daily News, Smith writes, “Do you solemnly swear to tell the half-truth, the partial truth and nothing like the truth? Apparently, that’s the vow press officers who work for the New York State Education Department take.”

“Why was half of Thursday’s announcement of the 2014 test results devoted to testimonials, mainly from selected superintendents, on how educational gains are being made due to implementation of the Common Core?”

Smith writes that:

“The 2014 tests were given in April and scored in May, with the results and press release issued in August. Why the delay. The same pattern was followed in 2013.

“The delay is unexplained, and it feeds suspicions that the state is sitting on the results trying to figure out the most advantageous way to package them.”

Under pressure from parents, the state released half the test questions. Smith wonders, why not release them all? By the time teachers get the test results, the children are no longer in their class. Nor do teachers learn which questions their students got right or wrong. If teachers can’t learn anything about their students other than whether he or she was rated as a 1, 2, 3, o4, of what value is the test?

The state’s contract with Pearson stipulates that test questions may not be used again, so why not release to the public the entire test that the public paid for?

Categories Common Core, New York, Testing
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