Audrey Amrein-Beardsley writes on her blog VAMboozled that Néw York teacher Sheri Lederman rejected a settlement offer from the state.
Lederman, a veteran teacher on Long Island, is suing the state to challenge the validity of VAM. Although she has long been recognized as a superstar teacher, she got a low rating. Her husband Bruce is a lawyer, who is litigating on her behalf.
The state offered to raise her rating if she would abandon the lawsuit. The state said that the teacher evaluation process will be changed, in some fashion, but the Ledermans rejected the offer because there is no certainty that VAM will disappear.
Amrein-Beardsley explains the situation and adds useful links.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Two heroes … Shari and her husband Bruce.
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sorry about that misspelling:
“Two heroes … SHERI and her husband Bruce.”
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Glad she is sticking with it. Are there any other suits out there that will inform the public of this ridiculous use of “mathematical certainty.”
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From one New York teacher to another – thank you thank you thank you for making the state run scared and for drawing the curtain on the phony testing “moratorium” the state is trying to use to deflate the opt out movement. We will not be fooled!
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Yes! So glad Leferman can’t be bought!
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Meant: Lederman. And in this can I applaud both Ledermans.
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New York would like nothing better for this to go away to avoid the public scrutiny they are bound to get from the outcome. The Ledermans are right to stay the course.
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“The state offered to raise her rating if she would abandon the lawsuit. ”
I guess we now know how “objective” their evaluation system is if they can simply raise ratings of certain people when they feel like it.
One wonders: can friends of Elia and Cuomo get their ratings raised in a similar manner? How about people who pay a bribe?
Elia and Cuomo are a disgrace to NY state.
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Great point.
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SomeDAM Poet: you nailed it—
“I guess we now know how ‘objective’ their evaluation system is if they can simply raise ratings of certain people when they feel like it.”
And thanks to the other commenters on this thread.
Imagine: a teacher that can’t be bought!
😎
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Perfect example of an intended bribe from state officials who want to escape from this high profile case. And I think that there is absolutely no certainty that VAM will disappear. The Ledermans have a lot of savvy. I hope they win this case and that VAM is thoroughly discredited, as it should be, and has been by major research groups.
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Laura-If you or I tried to coerce resolution it would be called a “bribe.” When the government does, it is called leverage.
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One of the things that the corporate reformers seem to forget is that not everyone will act only for their own selfish interests. Lederman could take that settlement, then safely continue on in her job … but in doing so, she would be throwing every other New York state teacher in her position under the bus … as the atrocious VAM system would continue.
She didn’t, and she won’t.
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The lawyers representing NY know that they are going to lose.
“The End” (or at least the beginning thereof) — after the Jim Morrison song
This is the end, Reformer friend
This is the end, of test and VAM, the end
Of our elaborate plans, the end
Of everything that stands, the end
No safety or surprise, the end
They’ll never bite into our cowpies, again
Can you picture what will be, so limitle$$ and free
Desperately in need, of some billionaire’s hand
In a desperate land
Lost in a DOE wilderness of brain
And all the policies are insane, all the policies are insane
Waiting for the rain in Spain, yeah
There’s danger on the edge of town
Ride the King’s VAMway, baby
Weird scenes inside the Cuomo mind
Ride the VAMway west, baby
Ride the snake, ride the snake
To the lake, the Cuomo lake, baby
The snake is long, 3000 miles
Ride the snake, he’s old, and his skin is cold
The Test is the best, the Test is the best
Get here, and we’ll do the rest
The Magic Bus is callin’ us, the Magic Bus is callin’ us
Driver, where you takin us?
The VAMmer awoke before dawn, he put his stats on
He took a farce from the cattle modelry
And he walked on down the hall
He went into the room where the teacher taught, and, then he
Paid a visit to another, and then he
He walked on down the hall, and
And he came to a door, and he looked inside
“Teacher?”
“Yes Andrew”
“I want to VAM you”
C’mon baby, give a test for us
C’mon baby, give a test for us
C’mon baby, give a test for us
And meet me at the back of the Magic Bus
Doin’ a VAM, on a magic bus
Doin’ a VAM, c’mon, yeah
VAM, VAM, VAM, VAM, VAM
This is the end, Reformer friend
This is the end, of test and VAM, the end
It hurts to set VAM free
But they’ll never follow me
The end of testing and DAM lies
The end of Pearson spies
This is the end
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“the test is the best” hahaha
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Great work! I truly wish this were the end. I have a feeling as long as corporations can make a bundle from public funds, the madness will continue in one form or another.
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Great poem! “It hurts to set VAM free/ But they’ll never follow me” Well, that’s true in my case since they used VAM to push me completely out of teaching…
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This woman and her husband are my heroes. I’m so glad they won’t “settle.” A terrible injustice has been done to teachers across the country and these people cry out for vindication. In addition to that, I believe the Ledermans can demonstrate that the education people who work for the state of New York knew very well that VAM was a sham, making them liable for punitive damages.
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Thank you for your integrity, Ledermans. Now, Diane, will you publicize that the VAM moratorium is fictitious. High school Regents teachers will still receive VAM scores for students taking their exams.
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It’d be like settling with Rosa Parks and allowing her to sit at the front of the bus, but still keeping segregated seating on buses.
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She should serve as a role model for this nation’s politicians… NOT EVERYONE CAN BE BOUGHT OUT OR PAID TO GO AWAY AND SHOVE WRONGS UNDER THE RUG! Bravo Shari Lederman!
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I hope that American Justice is not a “”jungle”” legal system in Education matter.
Leadership without true talent and without human conscience is bought and bribed. In the same manner, they thought that they can offer BETTER RATING and UNDISCLOSED amount of settlement after they insult the TALENTED AND CONSCIENTIOUS teacher without any apology.
In short, if the Judge fails to judge this “Lederman’s case”, then her/his talent and conscience can be investigated. Back2basic
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As I suffered through long years of a reform-bought school leadership, trying hard to understand our district’s sudden devotion to a new, non-collaborative top-down management, your words here would have been a boon: Leadership without true talent and without human conscience is bought and bribed.
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Keep up the good work!
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