Archives for the month of: March, 2016
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“If Donald Trump Were a Student….”

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2016 //
30

A reader comments on the behavior of Donald Trump. As we have seen in the debates, he taunts and ridicules his adversaries. The word “civility” is not part of his vocabulary. His demeanor is abrasive and abusive. He can be vulgar and crude in a way not seen in presidential campaigns in my lifetime. In debating, he loudly disagrees with others, sometimes speaking over them so they can’t be heard. He is crass; he scowls; he refers to his rivals’ physical appearance with regularity. He would not be held up as a model for American youth, although he might be the bogeyman who comes to get you when you misbehave.

 

 

The reader writes:

 

 

“If Donald Trump was a student in a public school he would be labeled a bully. He would be in counseling. He wouldn’t have friends, unless he could buy them off. Parents would be outraged at his behavior, his language, his entitled sense of self. He would be smart in class, but not the smartest by far-but he would tease the smart kids with no mercy. This is the adult version of that child we are seeing and it isn’t pretty. In fact, it’s shocking and scary…”

 

 

 

Categories Politics

Thomas Ultican: Time to Abolish Charter Schools!

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2016 //
15

Thomas Ultican is a teacher of physics and mathematics at a high school in California. The students in his school are 50% English language learners and 75% Title I (poor).

 

He writes here that the charter experiment has been a disaster for public schools. California was second in the nation to pass a charter law in 1992, and now 9% of the children are in charter schools. While the charter schools have a rich and powerful lobby, the public schools suffer from underfunding and overcrowding. The charters get to choose their students, and some charters are located in affluent communities, where they serve the children of the rich. This is very far from what charters were supposed to be when they were first proposed in 1988. Ultican writes that it is time to change the law in California and ban charters outright.

 

Ultican writes:

 

Today, twelve percent of all schools in California are charter schools with 9% of all state supported students attending charter schools. In these more than two decades; charter schools have enriched some people – have harmed public schools – have not improved publicly financed education – have increased segregation – have increased the cost of publicly financed education – have paid foreign based entities to operate schools in California – have generated massive fraud.

 

The California charter school experiment should be ended and these undemocratic publicly financed institutions should be carefully transitioned into the public schools system.

 

 

Categories California, Charter Schools, Education Industry, Education Reform, Privatization

Teacher: It is Very Hard These Days, But I Won’t Give Up

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2016 //
28

A teacher left this comment on the blog:

 

 

Your blog has provided me solace in my darkest times as an educator. I have left two comments on your blog. One of the comments I left as anonymous (because I feared the consequences, some imaginary and some very real, if that mega-influential corporation worth multi-millions in California, who ran the charter school where I was last working, found out I had said anything), which you shared as a post with your readers. And another time I left a comment as myself to applaud all that you share.

 

 

I am sad to report that I have to leave this comment as anonymous as well. Although it has been almost a year since I worked at that place ( I am no longer even in that state), I still haven’t found the courage to share all that went on there. I am a daughter of a man who was granted political asylum a long time ago, a man who came to this country risking everything, including his life, so as to be able to exercise his freedom of expression. And yet here I am, afraid to share that story because of that corporation. I have enough knowledge of the law to know that I can’t be prosecuted for libel or defamation if I shared the truth. But legal action is the last thing one needs to worry about when it comes to these corporations; they can ruin your lives.

 

 

I have worked as an educator in three states now (east coast, west coast, and southwest, sorry I can’t reveal more) and I can tell you that the problem isn’t going to be fixed by either of the Democratic candidates. My African-American friends tell me that they can’t support Bernie because focusing on class takes away from focusing on race. My white friends tell me they want to support Hillary because America hasn’t had a female president yet. Relatives who have identified with the Republican party in its so called glory days feel disloyal switching parties even if they don’t support Trump. The only thing all of them have in common is they have no clue, absolutely none, about what is going on in public and charter schools. Teachers every day are dealing with parents who are really ignorant or really entitled; administrators who have very little control over decisions; and responsibilities that go far beyond inspiring real learning.

 

 

Can any candidate fix any of the following?

 

 

1) Parents, regardless of their socio-economic status, are unable to raise their children like they once could. Of course, this is even worse for those who have had to deal with generational poverty.

 

 

2) Teachers who have no mentors and are getting their lessons from Pinterest (I love all the websites for teachers; technology has made sharing of ideas so easy for educators but it doesn’t address lack of depth of knowledge that teachers now have). Teachers who have little to no knowledge of history are teaching social studies.

 

 

3) Learning for the sake of learning, for exploring curiosities that instill desire to change the world, is no longer acceptable. If you are not going to work for Google (which may not even exist by the time some of these kids grow up), what is your education worth? A college degree is now the equivalent of a high school diploma, except one used to be able to get a job with a high school diploma and could still be a literate citizen. We can’t fail kids.

 

 

4) The shoving of technology in the classrooms as a solution.

 

 

5) The preying of corporations in the form of charters on communities where you can’t find teachers, experienced administrators, and parents who don’t have knowledge.

 

 

6) The inclusion of students who once had to go to behavior programs because they just couldn’t work with other students are now the teacher’s responsibility or the parent will sue the school.

 

 

Once upon a time, Hillary Clinton wrote a book, It Takes a Village: And Other Lessons Children Teach Us that influenced me deeply. This was in 1996. I was inspired by her clarity. I wished she was the President then. Except a few years later we got the No Child Left Behind by a different president.

 

 

It baffles me how a woman who once believed and wrote, “forward-thinking teachers and school administrators across the country are creating a whole range of alternatives to cookie-cutter teaching and evaluation methods, such as the use of student portfolios and exhibitions in addition to conventional exams to assess students’ progress” could support the privatization of charters that do nothing but testing.

 

 

I have emails upon emails from former students who were passionate learners when I had them who are now stating, “we are so tired of interim testing every few weeks.” Most people don’t know that in addition to PARCC and SBACC, if the school can afford it, there is interim testing. The frequency depends on the administration. The less an administrator knows about education, the more testing there is, as if magically the students will read and write better by taking more tests.

 

 

No one is asking any candidate real questions because no one in a position to ask knows any better.

 

 

I don’t know how long we can continue fighting the good fight regardless of who “wins”. At the local district and state level, everyone is in bed with Silicon Valley in one way or another, this delusion that somehow the start-up generation is going to jump start education, a car they have never even sat in, is beyond ludicrous at this point.

 

 

Both Trump and Sanders are extremes. I am afraid Clinton will offer more of the same Obama “progress” and we just can’t have more of the same anymore. The country will crumble under Trump, an extreme, sad, crumbling, but perhaps that’s the only way forward after it all falls apart for good instead of pretending things are fine like we have for the last 8 years.

 

 

I respect all you said and all you do. I thank the Universe for this blog every night!

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Very tired teacher who won’t give up.

Categories Teachers and Teaching

Sandra Stotsky: Opting Out is a Civic Duty, Not Civil Disobedience

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2016 //
8

Sandra Stotsky was responsible for the development of standards, assessments, and teacher tests when she was an official in the Massachusetts Department of Education in the 1990s. She has since become an outspoken critic of the Common Core standards.

 

In this article, she argues that parents should ignore attempts to bully them into taking the state tests. She says that opting out of mandated tests is a civic duty. I don’t agree with her that the money spent on the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act was wasted. In my book “Reign of Error,” I showed that there has been dramatic improvement in the scores of black and Hispanic students since the early 1970s, when the federal testing (National Assessment of Educational Progress) began. But I agree with Stotsky that the millions and billions spent on testing has been wasted.

 

She writes:

 

“If Common Core’s standards and tests are, as it is claimed, so much better than whatever schools were using before, why not use them only for low-achieving, low-income kids and let them catch up? Why can’t Congress amend ESSA to exempt students already at or above grade level in reading and mathematics and target ESSA funds to curriculum materials, teachers, and tests for just the kids who need a boost? That’s just the beginning. Maybe a different use of federal money is also needed.”

 

 

– See more at: http://newbostonpost.com/2016/03/16/opting-out-a-civic-duty-not-civil-disobedience/#sthash.RtytITBa.dpuf

Categories Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Opt Out, Resistance, Standardized Testing

John Merrow: Eva Goes on the Offense

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2016 //
24

John Merrow reports that Eva Moskowitz is going on the offensive to counter bad PR of the past few months:

 

 

“After many months of intense scrutiny and criticism, Dr. Eva Moskowitz, the founder and CEO of Success Academies Charter School Network, has gone on the offensive. In this effort, she has the help of an expensive PR firm, her traditional ally the Wall Street Journal, the Harvard Club of New York, and–surprisingly–WNYC reporter Beth Fertig.

 

 

“The recent criticism began last October, when the PBS NewsHour exposed her practice of multiple out of school suspensions of 5-, 6- and 7-year-olds. (My last piece for the NewsHour before I retired.) Later in October Kate Taylor of the New York Times revealed that one of her schools had a ‘got to go’ list of students to be dropped. Moskowitz did not fire the principal. In an electrifying report in February, Taylor wrote about a video of a Success Academy teacher humiliating a child.

 

“Dr. Moskowitz has retained Mercury LLC, the same PR firm that is advising Michigan’s embattled Governor, Rick Snyder. She emailed her staff accusing the New York Times of a ‘vendetta’ against her. On Monday, March 14, the Wall Street Journal published her op-ed, “Orderliness in School: What a Concept”. “Over the past year the Times’s principal education reporter has devoted 34% of the total word count for her education stories, including four of her seven longest articles, to unrelentingly negative coverage of Success,” Moskowitz wrote.

 

“But her main point was that she and Success Academies represent the last line of defense against violent and disruptive behavior in our schools. Did the PR firm suggest she tar her critics with the old reliable “commie-pinko” brush? (Making it parenthetical was a nice touch.)

 

 

[She wrote:]

 

“The unstated premise is that parents are susceptible to being duped because they are poor and unsophisticated. (Once upon a time, this view was known as “false consciousness”—the Marxist critique of how the proletariat could be misled by capitalist society.)”

 

Merrow writes:

 

“The Harvard Club of New York is, perhaps inadvertently, also helping Moskowitz. It has scheduled an evening presentation on Monday, March 29th , to be followed by a panel discussion. The blurb describing the event makes no mention of any criticism. Here’s a sample:

 

 

“Eva Moskowitz founded Success Academy Charter Schools in 2006 with the dual mission of building world-class schools for New York City children and serving as a catalyst and a national model for education reform to help change public policies that prevent so many children from having access to opportunity. Firmly believing that inner-city students deserve the same high-quality education as their more affluent peers, and convinced that all children, regardless of zip code or socioeconomic background, can achieve at the highest levels, she opened the first Success Academy in Harlem and today operates 34 schools in some of the city’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods. Success Academy continues to grow at a rapid pace and will be hiring more than 900 teachers and other personnel before the next academic year.

 

 

“After Moskowitz’s presentation, a discussion will be moderated by a ‘Senior Reporter’ from The 74, which is not a journalistic organization but an advocacy group. The panelists are James Merriman, President, New York City Charter School Center; Michael Petrilli, President, Thomas B. Fordham Institute; and Charles Sahm, Director, Education Policy, Manhattan Institute, all strong charter school advocates who have publicly supported Moskowitz and Success Academies.

 

 

“What do you suppose they will ‘debate’? How about this for a tough question: The New York Times: Threat or Menace?”

 

Read the rest and view the links. Merrow is still reporting although he claims to have retired

Categories Discipline and Suspensions, Education Industry, Education Reform, Harlem Success Academy

Pennsylvania: Schools Near Financial Collapse Without State Budget

By dianeravitch
March 18, 2016 //
7

Lawrence Feinberg produces this comprehensive summary of news about education in Pennsylvania every day. It is an excellent redource, especially valuable during the state’s prolonged budget crisis. The failure of the legislature and governor to agree on a budget has wreaked havoc on the state’s schools.

 

Keystone State Education Coalition

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 18, 2016:

All daily postings are on our blog site at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org

“School districts are in the business of preparing kids to be productive members of society. The reduction in staff (450-plus positions) and budget cuts ($102 million) of the last five years left us with fewer services for Allentown students who have the greatest needs. The end result is we have fewer positions for remediating academic needs, increased class sizes, less social-emotional support, fewer electives, and fewer opportunities to build one-on-one relationships that all kids need, especially ours.”

Allentown’s Mayo: It’s more about the kids than state budget | Opinion

C. Russell Mayo is superintendent of the Allentown School District.

The financial crisis for the Allentown School District and other districts, created by the absence of a state budget for this 2015-16 fiscal year, is devastating. Needless financial costs and evaporated services are appalling, but that does not compare to the loss of hope — which is the essence of this crisis. Of course, our district suffers from additional financial costs and expense restraints from having no state budget. (The state funds 54 percent of our annual budget.) This past fall, we spent about $47,000 in fees and interest in borrowing $50 million. We covered unpaid bills remaining from the first semester and paid back the borrowed funds when a portion of the state money arrived in January. Since then, we have had to exhaust our fund balance and local taxes collected. In spite of spending on only essential items, delaying hiring for positions, and reducing payments to charter schools, the district now has to borrow $64 million to stretch to our next round of local taxes. Assuming the court approves this loan, we will incur at least $90,000 in additional fees with the potential for $500,000 in interest payments. Additionally, a lower Standard and Poor’s bond rating is likely. Even though these financial concerns are staggering, the major problem is the concern for our students.
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2016/03/its_more_about_the_kids_than_t.html
 

Local school districts facing financial collapse
Bradford Era By ALEX DAVIS Era Reporter a.davis@bradfordera.com

 

Local school districts on the brink of a financial collapse faced yet another roadblock on Wednesday in their efforts to secure months-overdue state funding. The latest hurdle came as Gov. Tom Wolf promised to veto a supplemental budget that would have restored funding to several programs, including education. The Senate and House passed the measure earlier in the day. Under that plan, House Bill 1801 would have increased education funding by $200 million and restored a majority of the $6 billion in funding cuts by Wolf’s line-item vetoes. The $30.031 billion spending plan would use existing revenues without a tax increase, according to Republican Senate officials. Now, school districts are back to square one, and that’s a position that doesn’t bode well for several area districts, especially the Austin Area School District, the smallest public school district in the state. That district could be left with only $54,460 in the general fund by the end of April, Business Manager Peggy Derr told The Era on Wednesday.
http://www.bradfordera.com/news/local-schools-districts-facing-financial-collapse/article_7a141afa-ebd9-11e5-975d-5f9c0e0af478.html
“The resolution relates to a high-profile case filed November 2014 in Commonwealth Court by the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia and the Education Law Center, on behalf of six school districts, including William Penn, seven parents, the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools and the NAACP Pennsylvania State Conference.

 

The case was filed against legislative leaders, state education officials, and the governor “for failing to uphold the General Assembly’s constitutional obligation to provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education.”

 

 

Haverford board votes to support William Penn School District in lawsuit
Delco Times By Lois Puglionesi, Times Correspondent

 

 

In an uncharacteristically divided tally, school directors voted 5-3 with one abstention to adopt a resolution expressing support for plaintiffs in the William Penn School District lawsuit “as they seek to enforce Pennsylvania’s constitutional guarantee of a thorough and efficient system of public education.” The resolution also urges the General Assembly to provide school districts with adequate revenues, based on a fair and predictable formula calculated to grant all students resources they need to meet state standards and lead productive lives. School director Larry Feinberg, who serves as legislative liaison, chair of the Delaware County School Districts Legislative Council and co-chair of the Keystone State Education Coalition, introduced the matter in January, when it sparked lively debate. School directors voted to table the measure in February, pending revisions Feinberg made.
http://www.delcotimes.com/general-news/20160317/haverford-board-votes-to-support-william-penn-school-district-in-lawsuit
For more info on the above lawsuit:
Thorough and Efficient
Pennsylvania School Funding Litigation Website: The Education Law Center of Pennsylvania and the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia
The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth.
– Article III, Section 14, of the Pennsylvania Constitution
https://edfundinglawsuit.wordpress.com/

 

Gov. Wolf Video: ‘Pennsylvania is running out of money’
WTAE.com Video Runtime 2:54 UPDATED 5:43 PM EDT Mar 17, 2016
Governor Wolf brought his message to Pittsburgh Thursday focusing on the importance of education funding
http://www.wtae.com/news/gov-wolf-pennsylvania-is-running-out-of-money/38569932#.VusoxP203jM.twitter

 

“Wolf said he would veto the current budget proposal by Republican legislative leaders to release education funding. He has called it “irresponsible and unbalanced” and said it does not properly fund schools or fix the deficit. “We’ve got to get this right. And fixing this for another three months, four months, then coming back and having exactly the same conversation in July, August, September, is not going to get us much,” Wolf said.”

 
Gov. Wolf addresses prospect PA budget battle could force some school district shutdowns

WTAE By Bob Mayo

 

PITTSBURGH —Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf visited Pittsburgh Brashear High School to spotlight its career and technical education programs Thursday, but also to warn of continuing danger to state education funding in the ongoing budget battle between the Democratic governor and Republican-controlled state Legislature.. “We have a choice. And it’s a really stark choice,” Wolf told students, teachers, and staff after his tour of the school. The choice, Wolf said, is between the state making a commitment to raise revenue to support and expansion education or continuing on a path he said would risk education cuts in the long-term. “Pennsylvania is running out of money. We have been using smoke and mirrors in our budgets. We have been spending money we don’t have,” Wolf said. The governor said if the state’s budget isn’t resolved by July — the start of the next fiscal year — Pennsylvania will face a $2-billion deficit that could lead to a billion dollar cut in education funding.
http://www.wtae.com/news/gov-wolf-addresses-prospect-pa-budget-battle-could-force-some-school-district-shutdowns/38570774
No Wolf veto yet on GOP-backed Pa. budget bill

 

GoErie By Kevin Flowers 814-870-1693 Erie Times

 

Gov. Tom Wolf took no action Thursday on his threat to veto a new, $6 billion Republican-backed spending bill approved by the state Legislature aimed at ending the 8-month-old state budget fight. Wolf was at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Thursday, outlining a proposal for government reform that includes calling on the state Legislature to ban gifts, contracting, reforms, more oversight of lobbying and other moves to increase transparency. He did not indicate when a veto might happen. On Wednesday, Wolf said he would officially reject the new spending bill, designed by Republicans to be part of a $30 billion spending package that would help finish the partially completed 2015-16 state budget. The bill would increase spending from the state’s main bank account by about $870 million, and deliver half the public school aid increase, or roughly $200 million, that Wolf had initially sought for fiscal year 2015-16, which began July 1.

 

http://www.goerie.com/no-wolf-veto-yet-on-gop-backed-pa-budget-bill

 

Reading School Board told state budget impasse’s cost: $1,000 per day in interest
Reading Eagle

 

The Reading School District is racking up $1,000 per day in interest payments thanks to the ongoing state budget impasse, and district officials are fed up. At the Reading School Board’s workshop meeting Wednesday night, several board members expressed dismay about the impact the impasse is having on the district, which was forced to borrow $20 million to make up for state funding that has been held up. “It’s just so frustrating to be in this position,” said board President Robin Costenbader-Jacobson. Costenbader-Jacobson expressed anger toward state officials, saying more pressure needs to be put on local members of the Legislature to get a deal done.

 

– See more at: http://www.readingeagle.com/news/article/reading-school-board-told-state-budget-impasses-cost-1000-per-day-in-interest#sthash.EjXGk9aW.dpuf

 

 
Auditor General to research how budget crisis is costing schools

 

WITF Written by Ben Allen and Radio Pennsylvania

 

 

– Schools have already had to borrow nearly $1 billion to cover operating costs while Governor Tom Wolf and state lawmakers fight over a completing this year’s budget.

 
Now, state’s top fiscal watchdog is planning to put more pressure on those who have failed to get a deal done. It’s round three for Auditor General Eugene DePasquale. His office has already released two reports on how the budget crisis is affecting schools. Now, he’s planning to do a third, just as some districts are warning they may have to shut down or declare bankruptcy.
Red Lion in York County recently said it faces that option. DePasaquale says it is not alone.
“Allentown talked about borrowing, certainly seen that it in Erie as well, those are two others. And we’re starting to see how others are affected. April’s a pretty big month if there isn’t a budget by then,” says DePasquale.

http://www.witf.org/news/2016/03/auditor-general-to-research-how-budget-crisis-is-costing-schools.php
 

Education Advocates: PA Budget Bill Falls Short

 

Public News Service

 
HARRISBURG, Pa. – The budget passed by the General Assembly on Wednesday falls far short of providing what Pennsylvania schools need, according to education advocates. More than eight months after the budget was due, lawmakers have sent Gov. Tom Wolf a supplemental budget bill that would increase K-through-12 school spending by $202 milion over last year, far short of the $400 million the governor had sought. Cheryl Kleiman, staff attorney for the Education Law Center, said that just isn’t enough. “We have called for an increase of at least $600 million between this year and next,” she said, “and this budget simply doesn’t get us there.”
Wolf also has said the bill, which passed on an almost party-line vote, does not adequately fund education and doesn’t address the looming $2 billion deficit in next year’s budget. He has said he will veto the bill. –
See more at: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2016-03-18/education/education-advocates-pa-budget-bill-falls-short/a50922-1#sthash.NbLUlVDX.dpuf
http://www.publicnewsservice.org/2016-03-18/education/education-advocates-pa-budget-bill-falls-short/a50922-1

 
Vogel Supports Restoration of Funding for Schools, Agriculture, Hospitals
ElwoodCity.org

 

HARRISBURG — Senator Elder Vogel Jr. (R-47) issued the following statement today in response to the Senate’s passage of legislation to restore approximately $6 billion in funding for education, agriculture, and hospitals that Governor Wolf eliminated from the state budget in December: “Today, I voted for and the Legislature restored the $6.05 billion in funding that was vetoed by Governor Wolf back in December. If Governor Wolf signs it into law, our public schools will remain open, the 1,000+ folks that work for Penn State Extension will not be laid off, and we can finally move past this ugly situation and do the work that Pennsylvanians expect from their government.

Vogel Supports Restoration of Funding for Schools, Agriculture, Hospitals


Blogger note: Tim Eller was formerly Press Secretary for Governor Corbett. The Keystone Alliance for Public Charter Schools is an alliance of brick and mortar charter schools only and does not advocate for cyber charter schools.

 

 

Proposed budget dooms Pa. charter schools
The Evening Sun

 

Tim Eller is the executive director of Keystone Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

 

Supporters of public school choice next year will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law. Since 1997, the number of brick-and-mortar charter schools has grown to 160 and enroll nearly 100,000 students, with tens of thousands more on waiting lists. At a time when the charter school sector should be gearing up to celebrate this significant milestone, instead, it is preparing to battle anti-school choice advocates’ efforts to close down charter schools and force students back into the very schools they fled that failed them year after year. Governor Wolf in February proposed a 2016-17 spending plan that calls for cutting nearly $500 million in funding to charter schools, which would result in the shutting down of virtually every charter school across the state. Without understanding how charter schools are funded, the Wolf administration’s proposal selectively aims to cut by at least 50 percent the per-student funding amount charter schools receive for educating disabled students.
http://www.eveningsun.com/story/opinion/readers/2016/03/17/proposed-budget-dooms-pa-charter-schools/81871868/
 

Gov. Wolf should drop veto threat – it’s time to get it done: Thursday Morning Coffee
Penn Live By John L. Micek

jmicek@pennlive.com

 

Good Thursday Morning, Fellow Seekers.
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before:
The Republican-controlled General Assembly sends Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf legislation it hopes will end Pennsylvania’s ages-old budget standoff. The bill sails through the House and Senate, mostly along party lines, and lands with a thud on Wolf’s desk. And that’s when it all goes wobbly: Proclaiming it inadequate and not up to the task of righting the state’s fiscal ship and closing the deficit, Wolf vetoes it, resetting the clock and starting the drama anew.

 

That’s a scenario that’s played itself out at least three times since the Senate GOP sent Wolf a budget bill last June 30. And it seemed likely to play itself out again this week as the chamber teed up yet another spending bill for a swift voyage to Wolf’s desk. But on Wednesday, there were encouraging signs that, at least it as it concerns the current year’s budget, Pennsylvanians might be spared an encore performance of the increasingly tedious budget drama.
http://blog.pennlive.com/capitol-notebook/2016/03/another_budget_another_veto_th.html#incart_river_index
Commentary: Policy failures fuel Pa. budget impasse
Inquirer By Berwood A. Yost

 

 

Berwood A. Yost is the chief methodologist for the Franklin and Marshall College Poll, director of the Floyd Institute’s Center for Opinion Research, and director of the Floyd Institute for Public Policy Analysis. byost@fandm.edu

 

Why don’t we have a state budget? The answer is neither short nor simple.
Pennsylvania’s budget impasse is the direct result of three state policy failures: the failure to find the reliable funding sources that state government needs to operate, the failure to reduce the spending growth that existing laws require, and the failure to support reforms that make elections more competitive. Corporate taxes as a share of general-fund revenues have steadily declined because the amount of money generated by those taxes has remained, in inflation-adjusted terms, unchanged since 1988. Revenue based on consumption taxes, such as the state sales tax, has grown by 27 percent, and revenue from other sources, such as the personal income tax and table games, has grown by 87 percent. This is policy failure one: not finding a sustainable revenue stream to replace money lost because of changes to corporate taxes.
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20160316_Commentary__Policy_failures_fuel_Pa__budget_impasse.html#R5rK4x12K3LgERPk.99
 

Education philosophies clash at packed Philly SRC meeting
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN MCCORRY MARCH 18, 2016

 

Thursday’s Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting again became a forum to debate the school district’s plans for drastic intervention at several of its lowest performing schools.
The evening began with a clash of minds on the front steps of district headquarters. Before the meeting, the NAACP joined the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and other traditional public school advocates in a rally against the district’s school conversion plans — all of which would result in dramatic faculty shakeups. NAACP Philadelphia chapter president Rodney Muhammad called for the SRC to be abolished with a reference to the slave trade. “They are nothing but a consultant group for private industry who wants to take over our children and put them back on the auction block,” he said. Muhammad’s statement was directed in part at Mastery charter — one of three nonprofit charter organizations that has applied to takeover three low-performing elementary schools. Those remarks didn’t sit well with Kirby Ames, a senior at Mastery’s Shoemaker campus in West Philadelphia. He stood on the other side of the steps with dozens of other Mastery supporters listening to speakers bash the charter’s motives.
http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/homepage-feature/item/92000-education-philosophies-clash-at-packed-philly-src-meeting?linktype=hp_impact

 
Plan for 3 more Philly charters draws protests, counterprotests
by Mensah M. Dean, Staff Writer

 

Before the School Reform Commission could start its scheduled meeting Thursday, the School District’s plan to hand over several struggling schools to charter operators drew demonstrators and counter-demonstrators to the steps of district headquarters on North Broad Street. On one side, about 150 parents, teachers, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers president Jerry Jordan, State Rep. Curtis Thomas, and Philadelphia NAACP president Minister Rodney Muhammad were cheered as they spoke passionately in opposition to turning public schools into charters. “This is a dangerous arrangement for our children, it’s a dangerous arrangement for public education,” Muhammad said. “The NAACP is here to shut the SRC down. They’re nothing but an advertising agency for privatizing education in Philadelphia.” On the other side: About 150 people, including many parents. One of them, Jathiya Singleton, could not comprehend the depth of emotion.
Her three children, ages 7 to 10, attend Wister Elementary in Germantown, one of three schools the district has targeted for charter management.

 

http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20160318_Plan_to_convert_3_Philly_schools_to_charters_draws_protesters_and_counter-protesters.html#X9syrBIDxkq33aJB.99

 
Emails show effort to sway SRC on Wister charter conversion

 

Documents reveal the Philadelphia School Partnership moved to influence SRC members. PSP says its preference for Renaissance charters is no secret.

 

The notebook by Bill Hangley Jr.

 

Newly released documents shed new light on behind-the-scenes moves by the Philadelphia School Partnership to revive Mastery Charter School’s bid to run Wister Elementary, after Superintendent William Hite had reversed course and recommended that the school remain under District control. The documents, mostly emails, were released by the Philadelphia School District after requests from the American Federation of Teachers and the Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools (APPS) under the state’s Right to Know law. Among them is an email to School Reform Commissioner Bill Green from a senior PSP executive. It indicated that PSP board members planned to call SRC members Sylvia Simms and Feather Houstoun to encourage them to “move for and/or support a resolution to transfer Wister to Mastery.” PSP sent its email just days after Hite, citing some academic improvement at the school, decided to take Wister off the charter transformation list.
http://thenotebook.org/articles/2016/03/17/emails-show-effort-to-sway-src-on-wister-charter-conversion

 
Senator eyes legislation requiring public superintendent contracts
The Sentinel by Amanda St. Hilaire abc27 News Mar 16, 2016
Questions have arisen about school district transparency in light of legislation that would require school boards to be more open with taxpayers during hiring processes. “If you can’t defend something publicly, then it’s probably not a good idea,” Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said. It’s his mantra, and he believes school districts should follow suit. Often called Pennsylvania’s fiscal watchdog, DePasquale can now be called the inspiration for a new bill promoting transparency After seeing DePasquale’s scathing audit of Connellsvile Area School District in Fayette County, state Sen. Pat Stefano, R-Fayette, is getting ready to introduce legislation that would require school boards to publicly post employment offers for superintendents and principals at least two weeks before voting. “At a minimum, I hope it spearheads a discussion on some of the iss es taking place in some of the school districts,” DePasquale said.
http://cumberlink.com/news/local/education/senator-eyes-legislation-requiring-public-superintendent-contracts/article_7ce5231a-c32c-5d19-9cff-c8b639b3bfd4.html

Nazareth teachers put off plans for Friday strike; classes are on
Sarah M. Wojcik Contact Reporter Of The Morning Call March 17, 2016
The Nazareth Area teachers union has postponed plans for a strike Friday, preventing at least temporarily what would have been the first teacher walkout in the Lehigh Valley in seven years.
The school district announced on its website that all schools will be open Friday and operating on a regular schedule. “As part of the ratification process, the Nazareth Area Education Association will be presenting a [contract] proposal to teachers early next week,” the district said. The school board had scheduled a special meeting for 9 a.m. Friday. That meeting is still on, the district said. The two sides had a series of bitter exchanges Wednesday, with the union announcing plans for a strike and the district issuing a long rebuttal. On Thursday, they came together in an attempt to hash out an agreement. The district said the teachers had until 7 p.m. to decide whether they still intended to strike. Shortly before 8 p.m., the strike postponement was announced.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/nazareth/mc-nazareth-teachers-strike-0317-20160317-story.html

Tennessee school funding proposal threatens status quo
Education Dive By Erin McIntyre | March 17, 2016
Dive Bref:

 

A proposal that passed through a Tennessee House panel and is now set to be considered by a Finance Committee would amend the state constitution to grant the General Assembly sole discretion over school spending.

 

Bill sponsor Rep. Bill Dunn (R), says the legislation will protect taxpayers from activist judges who might rule the state is not adequately funding education, and from situations in other states where courts have increased taxpayer burdens.

 

 
Interested in letting our elected leadership know your thoughts on education funding, a severance tax, property taxes and the budget?
Governor Tom Wolf, (717) 787-2500
Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Turzai, (717) 772-9943

House Majority Leader Rep. Dave Reed, (717) 705-7173

Senate President Pro Tempore Sen. Joe Scarnati, (717) 787-7084

Senate Majority Leader Sen. Jake Corman, (717) 787-1377

Lawrence A. Feinberg
Keystone State Education Coalition
Visit us online at KeystoneStateEducationCoalition.org
Visit us on Facebook at KeystoneStateEducationCoalition
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
The Keystone State Education Coalition is pleased to be listed among the friends and allies of The Network for Public Education. Are you a member?

Categories Budget Cuts, Education Reform, Funding, Pennsylvania

Study Finds Many Charter Schools Give Disparate Discipline to Black Students and Students with Disabilities

By dianeravitch
March 18, 2016 //
16

The UCLA Civil Rights Project faulted many charter schools for harsh disciplinary policies towards black students and students with disabilities. These practices, the study concluded, contribute to the school-to-prison pipeline. The new study is called Charter Schools, Civil Rights, and School Discipline: A Comprehensive Review.

 

The comprehensive analysis by the Center for Civil Rights Remedies at the UCLA Civil Rights Project identified 374 charter schools across the country that had suspended 25% or more of their entire student body during the course of the 2011-12 academic year. The comprehensive review also revealed:

 

Nearly half of all black secondary charter school students attended one of the 270 charter schools that was hyper-segregated (80% black) and where the aggregate black suspension rate was 25%.
More than 500 charter schools suspended black charter students at a rate that was at least 10 percentage points higher than that of white charter students.

 
Even more disconcerting, 1,093 charter schools suspended students with disabilities at a rate that was 10 or more percentage points higher than that of students without disabilities.

 
Perhaps most alarming, 235 charter schools suspended more than 50% of their enrolled students with disabilities.* (*This count includes schools with at least 50 students enrolled and excludes alternative schools, schools identified as part of the juvenile justice system, virtual schools and schools that enrolled fewer than 10 students with disabilities. Any school where rounding of the data or another error produced a suspension rate of more than 100% for a subgroup also was excluded.)

 
“It’s disturbing to see so many of these schools still reporting such high suspension rates because that indicates charter leaders continue to pursue ‘broken windows,’ ‘no excuses’ and other forms of ‘zero tolerance’ discipline,” said Daniel Losen, the Center’s director and the study’s lead author. “And we know from decades of research that frequently suspending children from school is counter-productive.”

Categories Charter Schools, Discipline and Suspensions, Education Reform, Race, Special Education

How Should Teacher Education Be Held Accountable?

By dianeravitch
March 18, 2016 //
30

The National Education Policy Center published a study comparing different methods of holding teacher education accountable. Several scholars collaborated.

 

 

Here is the summary of their findings:

 

 

“Teacher preparation has emerged as an acutely politicized and publicized issue in U.S. education policy and practice, and there have been fierce debates about whether, how, by whom, and for what purposes teachers should be prepared.

 

 

“This brief takes up four major national initiatives intended to improve teacher quality by “holding teacher education accountable” for its arrangements and/or its outcomes: (1) the U.S. Department of Education’s state and institutional reporting requirements in the Higher Education Act (HEA); (2) the standards and procedures of the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP); (3) the National Council on Teacher Quality’s (NCTQ) Teacher Prep Review; and (4) the edTPA uniform teacher performance assessment developed at Stanford University’s Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity (SCALE) with aspects of data storage and management outsourced to Pearson, Inc.

 

“These four initiatives reflect different accountability mechanisms and theories of change, and they are governed by different institutions and agencies, including governmental offices, professional associations, and private advocacy organizations. Despite differences, each assumes that the key to teacher education reform is accountability in the form of public assessment, rating, and ranking of states, institutions, programs, and/or teacher candidates.

 

“This brief addresses two questions for each initiative: What claims do proponents of the initiative make about how it will improve teacher preparation and thus help solve the teacher quality problem in the U.S.? What evidence supports these claims? The first question gets at the theory of change behind the initiative and its proponents’ assumptions about how particular mechanisms actually operate to create change. The second involves the validity of the initiative as a policy instrument—that is, whether or not there is evidence that the initiative actually meets (or has the capacity to meet) its stated aims.

 

“This review has two major conclusions. The first is that across three of the four initiatives (HEA regulations, CAEP accreditation, and NCTQ’s reviews), there is thin evidence to support the claims proponents make about how the assumed policy mechanisms will actually operate to improve programs. The advocates of these initiatives assume a direct relationship between the implementation of public summative evaluations and the improvement of teacher preparation program quality. However, summative evaluations intended to influence policy decisions generally do not provide information useful for program improvement.

 

“The irony here is that while these policies call for teacher education programs and institutions to make decisions based on evidence, the policies themselves are not evidence-based. Thus there is good reason to question their validity as policy instruments that will have a positive impact on teacher education quality. In contrast, the edTPA has some evidentiary support as a policy initiative, but concerns within the collegiate teacher preparation community plus state implementation problems suggest that widespread implementation and professional acceptance may be challenging to accomplish.”

 

 

 

http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/teacher-prep

Categories Education Reform, Teacher Education

FairTest: Testing Resistance and Reform Around the Nation

By dianeravitch
March 18, 2016 //
6

This is the weekly report from FairTest, which has been fighting for reform of testing for many years.

 

 

In state after state, policymakers are responding to constituent concerns by re-evaluating testing mandates. The changes they initially consider are often cosmetic, such as substituting one mediocre exam for another. But escalating grassroots pressure — particularly opting out — is beginning to force legislators to focus on the real problems of standardized testing overuse and misuse. Already, several have repealed or postponed requirements to evaluate teachers based on student tests scores. By working together, parents, students, teachers, administrators, academics and community activists can increase the odds that more genuine assessment reforms are enacted this year.

 

 

National Is a New Day Really Dawning with “No Child” Successor Law?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/03/11/is-a-new-day-really-dawning-with-no-child-left-behinds-successor-law/
National Why the Opt-Out Movement is Good for Students and Parents of Color
http://www.progressive.org/pss/six-reasons-why-opt-out-movement-good-students-and-parents-color

 

 

Multiple States Southern States Reconsidering Role of Student Test Scores in Teacher Evaluation
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/teacherbeat/2016/03/reconsidering_test_scores_in_teacher_evaluations.html
Multiple States On-Line Testing Stumbles Spark Legislation
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/03/09/online-testing-stumbles-spark-legislation-in-affected.html
FairTest Chronology of Computerized Testing Problems
http://fairtest.org/computerized-testing-problems-2013-2015

 

 

Arizona Legislature Supports Test Shopping “Menu” Instead of Endorsing Opting Out
http://www.tucsonweekly.com/TheRange/archives/2016/03/09/state-testing-opt-out-is-out-test-shopping-is-a-definite-maybe
Arizona Governor Signs Bill Allowing “Menu” of State Tests
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/03/11/ducey-signs-bill-allowing-menu-of_ap.html

 

 

California Proposed History, Social Science Exams Raise Questions About Testing Burden
http://edsource.org/2016/proposed-history-social-science-tests-raise-concerns-about-testing-burden/561606
California Opting-Out Protects Children From Testing Fixation
http://www.citywatchla.com/index.php/the-la-beat/10714-tests-and-children-accessories-to-education

 

 

Colorado Don’t Add Another Mandatory Test
http://www.denverpost.com/editorials/ci_29622733/dont-add-another-mandatory-test-colorado-students
Colorado Opt Out Billboards
http://www.uniting4kids.com/?na=v&id=4&nk=143-5641f8a865

 

 

Connecticut Another Year Delay in Using Student Test Scores to Evaluate Teachers
http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Another-year-reprieve-from-using-test-scores-to-6880221.php

 

 

Florida Opting Out a Strong Backlash to Overzealous Standardized Testing
http://www.bradenton.com/opinion/editorials/article64764797.html
Florida Students Start Opting-Out of Standardized Tests
http://weartv.com/news/local/local-students-now-opting-out-of-standarized-tests
Florida Don’t Tie Teacher Bonuses to Their Old College Admissions Exam Scores
http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/columns/ruth-dont-tie-sat-scores-to-teacher-pay/2268675

 

 

Georgia Test Reformers Make More Progress in State Legislature
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local-education/school-testing-opponents-score-another-round-in-th/nqjJD/

 

 

Indiana Legislature Kills Current Test But Will Its Replacement Have Lower Stakes?
http://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/with-istep-dead-can-the-new-version-lower-the-stakes
Indiana Misuse of Scores in Test-and-Punish Policies is Major Problem
http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/A-complex-issue–simplified-11913513

 

 

Louisiana Standardized Testing Is Not What Matters
http://www.theadvertiser.com/story/opinion/2016/03/08/voices-standardized-testing-not-important/81479910/

 

 

Maine Poised for the Latest Standardized Testing Debacle
http://fromthemiddle.bangordailynews.com/2016/03/11/home/poised-for-the-latest-standardized-testing-debacle/

 

 

Maryland Educators Urge State to Test Less
http://www.delmarvanow.com/story/opinion/2016/03/09/column-hammer-20160309/81484110/
Maryland Test Exemption Bill Heard by Legislative Committee
http://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/continuing_coverage/annapolis_2016/test-exemption-bill-inspired-by-frederick-family-considered-by-house/article_81165dfe-6103-5f0b-80e3-d22d430b0592.html
Maryland Letters to Editor Say Schools Focus Too Much on Testing
http://www.delmarvanow.com/story/opinion/2016/03/14/maryland-schools-focusing-much-testing/81669996/

 

 

Massachusetts Administrators Exclude Teachers From Testing Conversation With Parents
http://www.cambridgeday.com/2016/03/10/surprise-exclusion-of-teachers-riles-parents-at-world-cafe-over-effects-of-student-testing/
Massachusetts Tool Kit: How to Organize An Opt-Out House Party
http://www.citizensforpublicschools.org/the-facts-on-opting-out-of-mcas-or-parcc/how-to-organize-an-opt-out-house-party/

 

 

New Jersey Schools Post Instructions on How to Refuse State Tests
https://www.tapinto.net/towns/basking-ridge/sections/education/articles/bernards-schools-post-instructions-for-how-to-ref

 

 

New York Educator Supported by Opt-Out Groups On Verge of Election as State Ed Chancellor
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/bronx-educator-with-support-of-opt-out-groups-poised-to-become-new-yorks-chancellor-20160308
New York Why the Opt Out Movement Will Continue to Grow
https://optoutcny.wordpress.com/2016/03/07/the-rest-of-the-story/
New York Mobile Billboard Promotes Opting Out
https://dianeravitch.net/2016/03/12/opt-out-truck/

 

 

North Carolina Educators, Activists Pan State’s School Grading System
http://pulse.ncpolicywatch.org/2016/03/15/panel-of-educators-activists-pan-n-c-s-system-of-grading-schools/

 

 

Ohio Does State Testing Format Deserve an “F”?
http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2016/03/08/in-state-testing-does-format-earn-an-f/

 

 

Oregon Letter Challenges Whether Computerized Test Scores Are Comparable with Pencil-and-Paper Exams
http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20160309/OPINION/160309659

 

 

Tennessee Hundreds Plan to Opt Out of State Exams
http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/31447426/41-percent-of-normal-park-opts-out-of-tn-ready-tests
Tennessee State Representative Opts Daughter Out of Testing, Organizes Other Parents
http://www.wbrc.com/story/31419681/lawmaker-wife-to-hold-meeting-for-parents-of-students-looking-to-opt-out-of-testing

 

 

Utah New Law Removes Student Test Scores From Teacher Evaluation
http://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/archive/2016/03/11/pdd-law-passes-removing-sage-test-scores-from-teacher-evaluations/

 

 

West Virginia Legislature Passes Bill Affirming Common Core Test Repeal, Bars Opt-Out Punishments
http://wvmetronews.com/2016/03/12/bill-dealing-with-common-core-standardized-testing-on-track-for-passage-by-sessions-end/

 

 

International Pension Fund Stockholders Challenge Pearson’s Heavy Reliance on U.S. Testing Business
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/03/10/pension-funds-say-pearson-relies-too-much-on-u-s-testing-business/

 

 

ACT/SAT Test Revisions Don’t End Debate on Bias and Inequality in College Admissions Exams
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/new-sat-gets-better-reviews-from-students-but-doesnt-end-debate-on-testing-bias/
ACT/SAT College Admissions Tests for All Students? One More Bad Idea From Political Elites
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/work_in_progress/2016/03/sats_for_all_one_more_bad_idea.html
ACT/SAT Wells College Admissions Now Test Optional
http://auburnpub.com/news/local/wells-college-admissions-now-test-optional/article_7d730727-7401-5d25-bcad-9db4d12e314e.html
ACT/SAT University of Minnesota Leaders Debate Dropping Admissions Exam Requirement
http://www.mndaily.com/news/campus/2016/03/09/u-leaders-debate-use-act-test

 

 

Teaching, Not Testing, Makes Better Students
http://phys.org/news/2016-03-students.html

 

 

 

Bob Schaeffer, Public Education Director
FairTest: National Center for Fair & Open Testing
office- (239) 395-6773 fax- (239) 395-6779
mobile- (239) 699-0468
web- http://www.fairtest.org

Categories Education Reform, Standardized Testing

EduShyster Interviews Preston Green on Whether Charter Schools Are Public

By dianeravitch
March 18, 2016 //
16

EduShyster interviewed Preston Green, who has studied the legal status of charter schools and published scholarly articles on the subject.

 

Green points out out in the interview that a major difference between public schools and charter schools is the rights of students. The constitutional rights of charter students are significantly less than those of students in public schools.

 

Dr. Green points out that charter schools have a different legal status than public schools.

 

EduShyster writes:

 

“Dr. Green warns that both state and federal courts have issued rulings stating that students in charters do not have the same due process rights as public-school students. So what does this mean for cities like Los Angeles where a dramatic expansion of charter schools is on the table? *Half of the publicly-funded schools in Los Angeles might be legally permitted to ‘dismiss’ students without due process.* says Dr. Green. *We have to ask ourselves if such a scenario is acceptable.*

 

 

“I asked Dr. Green to explain some recent court rulings on student rights, and how they relate to the larger debate over whether charter schools are public or private entities. Take it away, Dr. Green. Court is in session…

 

 

By Preston Green
“Charter advocates claim that charter schools are *public schools* because *they are open to all, do not charge tuition, and do not have special entrance requirements.* But what about student rights? State and federal courts have issued rulings suggesting that students attending California charter schools do not have the same due process rights as those enjoyed by public-school students. In Scott B. v. Board of Trustees of Orange County High School of Arts, a state appellate court found that charter schools were exempt from due process procedures that applied to public-school expulsions. In reaching this conclusion, the court observed that the state education code generally exempted charter schools from rules that applied to traditional public schools, and the expulsion statute was one of those rules.”

 

In short, students check their constitutional rights at the charter school door.

Categories Charter Schools, Education Reform, Students
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