Friday Open Thread
From the Eastlake Ave. Blog, concern over by TOPS from neighbors about a new development that says it is just 5 units but:
"...neighbors note that it will actually have 39 individual units grouped around common kitchens on each floor (a basement and four other floors, with one kitchen on each floor).
The neighbors also question locating such a project, which they fear will have transient occupants, just two doors from the TOPS@Seward School and two houses away from a daycare center." There are also concerns around parking (which really is difficult around TOPS).
DPD seems to think it about the size rather than the number of units and that it part of the Residential Urban Village (under the Comprehensive Plan).
I've heard of this kind of "apartment" which is basically a small room with a bathroom (smaller than a studio). I'm sure it fills a need but it seems like the City should take into account how many people could potentially live there and the impacts on a neighborhood.
The district reports that four SPS high school science teachers are attending a summer camp of sorts at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. They get to work with scientists one-on-one on projects they are interested in. They also spend time in a teaching lab to learn new science skills to use in the classroom.
Along with the knowledge the teachers will bring back, they also will be able to borrow SEP science kits for the year. While some cost up to $10,000, the kits include items from the more exciting microcentrifuges down to every day plastic wrap and dishwashing detergent. The kits have all the pieces to conduct experiments on topics such as DNA gel electrophoresis, bacterial transformation and fruit fly genetics.
Further, the teachers will be provided with donated surplus lab supplies, a resource library, a $500 stipend and graduate level credit through the University of Washington.
What's on your mind?
"...neighbors note that it will actually have 39 individual units grouped around common kitchens on each floor (a basement and four other floors, with one kitchen on each floor).
The neighbors also question locating such a project, which they fear will have transient occupants, just two doors from the TOPS@Seward School and two houses away from a daycare center." There are also concerns around parking (which really is difficult around TOPS).
DPD seems to think it about the size rather than the number of units and that it part of the Residential Urban Village (under the Comprehensive Plan).
I've heard of this kind of "apartment" which is basically a small room with a bathroom (smaller than a studio). I'm sure it fills a need but it seems like the City should take into account how many people could potentially live there and the impacts on a neighborhood.
The district reports that four SPS high school science teachers are attending a summer camp of sorts at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. They get to work with scientists one-on-one on projects they are interested in. They also spend time in a teaching lab to learn new science skills to use in the classroom.
Along with the knowledge the teachers will bring back, they also will be able to borrow SEP science kits for the year. While some cost up to $10,000, the kits include items from the more exciting microcentrifuges down to every day plastic wrap and dishwashing detergent. The kits have all the pieces to conduct experiments on topics such as DNA gel electrophoresis, bacterial transformation and fruit fly genetics.
Further, the teachers will be provided with donated surplus lab supplies, a resource library, a $500 stipend and graduate level credit through the University of Washington.
What's on your mind?
Comments
I guess those 46 percent haven't heard about heiresses dumping money into our state to pass their fellow billionaire's pet project.
recent poll
We have come to know it more recently as “Swiftboating”. If FUD can be used by a campaign supporting a guy who was AWOL through much of his career in the Air National Guard to successfully sow doubt and confusion about the military career of a decorated veteran, then it can be used effectively anywhere. and the Wikipedia article points to its being used by the corporate education reformers (h/t Ravitch blog):
"FUD is now used to undermine public belief in the value of public education. Those who employ this tactic want to see privatization of the schools, and especially to see public resources turned over to private entrepreneurs and for-profit schools, especially for-profit virtual schools. They claim that public education is failing (see the Council on Foreign Relations task force report, chaired by Joel Klein and Condoleeza Rice), and that the public system is so broken that public schools are a threat to the economy and even to national security. They never acknowledge that test scores on the federal testing program (National Assessment of Educational Progress) are at their highest point in history. The advocates of privatization relentlessly attack public schools for social failures, never admitting that poverty is a more potent cause of academic failure than schools or teachers. Ironically, Bill Gates has been in the forefront of those using FUD to claim that the public schools are obsolete and broken."
So if at some point you are feeling frustrated by the, let us say, facts-challenged information disseminated by the pro-Charter people, you have an acronym for it now. And none of us should be too surprised that Micrsoft money is supporting it.
I don't know what happened after I left - I did see they had the people broken into groups & there were the typical pre-canned questions written on poster paper ...
'so you support 1/4 of kids failing', or, some more subtly written slanted garbage.
By the way - before my report, I checked out the web pages of A+ and ESN and there are NO:
staff listed,
staff biographies listed, (oh, wait, there aren't any staff!)
donors listed,
Sauron and his Ringwraiths meld
1984AndAstroTurfs
While I'd certainly agree that those kinds of tactics would instill FEAR, they sure as hell don't leave much in the way of Doubt or Uncertainty!
PlusCaChange
Explain the details of 1240 to folks, have them seen what it will mean -exactly to districts throughout the state - and they may vote against it.
This is not the dream charter initiative they are making it out to be. And, hey, even CRPE says you can't get it right the first time.
Some were there to show their support of educators and most shared concerns about the increased expectations and reduced resources available for teachers to do their jobs. Worries about the reductions and eliminations in arts and vocational education were prevalent. Participants had critical questions for the Stand rep.
Honestly, I was anxious to go, and what I took away was a reassurance that parents and teachers in our community want similar things from public education for all of our children. Those things are NOT the extremes proposed by Stand for Children propose.
If educators and public education advocates don't go to these events because we disagree with the rhetoric of the host, then we lose a chance to contribute to the conversation where it matters - with folks who don't already share our opinions. We also lose the opportunity to hear and learn from other invested community members.
I'm glad I went and I'd encourage educators and advocates to attend similar events in the future.
-Two Cents
The presenter was very good at painting everything into pictures that nobody could disagree with. Sample check boxes on the "send me more info" card (these following the statement about providing every student with a great teacher) are:
[] Yes, I support great teachers for students!
[] I'd like to learn more.
I'm for apple pie and truth, justice, and the American Way, too.
Maybe she saw two hands go up that she knew belonged to teachers and didn't want to hear the comments. Maybe she just wanted to go home at the end of her scheduled work day. Must be nice.
-Two Cents
The current Charter Initiative is the latest assault on rational planning.
The largest pointless expansion of "testing" will be part of the Common Core State Standards ... this will be an incredible race to the bank for Pearson Publishing and friends.
If anyone thinks that CCSS is not about the MONEY ... read the recently published K–8 Publishers’ Criteria for the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics .
Page 1 last paragraph:
These criteria were developed from the perspective that publishers and purchasers are equally responsible for a healthy materials market. Publishers cannot deliver focus to buyers who only ever complain about what has been left out, yet never complain about what has crept in. More generally, publishers cannot invest in quality if the market doesn’t demand it of them nor reward them for producing it.
What better way than to have 45 states bow to the wishes of Obama/Duncan and go for CCSS sight unseen.... Truly masterful marketing by fiat to create a really health materials market for publishers. ---- Thanks to excellent leadership by Randy Dorn, Eric Pettigrew, Sharon Tamiko-Santos, et al.
When asked about the distinction between the two, she said that A+ Washington is more of a "living document" that encompasses more than 30 other education organizations, including Stand for Children.
I can see people being drawn into A+ Washington with its very impressive sounding educational support goals, but not realizing that A+ is essentially a front for all of the other reform groups. A+ enables them to have an outlet that distances itself from the charter and initiative campaigns while drawing unsuspecting people into the reform fold.
the event was hosted and paid for management loving, teacher bashing Ringwraiths of Sauron.
( would it make sense to go to the Chase branch 1/2 a block from the library, and fire everyone due to what Dimon and his criminal friends did with CDO MBS LIBORED whatevers in Manhattan ?? In America, it would!)
there were appx. 16 people in the room - I don't know how who felt about what, I was leafleting outside.
while my anti thieving management message works well outside the Seattle area - ya know, with people who are at the shi**y end of the stick on all the re-orgs and restructurings and outsourcing, I live in Seattle and get to afflict the afflictors instead of the afflicted.
1984AndAstroTurfs
excerpt:
Honig says that “computer-adaptive testing,” which the Smarter Balanced Consortium of states creating the new Common Core standardized tests is promising, will enable teachers to better identify which students are ready for Algebra in eighth grade and which students in lower grades could be on an accelerated path to Algebra.
The goal of adaptive assessments is to individualize testing; computer programs will be able to tailor questions based on answers to previous questions. They are more precise in identifying the extent to which students are ahead of or behind grade level. (Doug McRae, a retired standardized testing expert from Monterey, repeated his doubts at the State Board meeting this week that Smarter Balanced will deliver computer-adaptive testing or that technology-impaired California districts will be capable of deploying it until 2018 or later.)
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Pretty typical of leaders guiding education ... 45 states adopt a plan which is unproven and untried ... but is promising. (There is a sucker born every minute. Thank you WA legislature and Randy Dorn and Guv. Christine G.)
The Legislature is unable to adequately fund what is needed in the classroom in violation of the state constitution but .... appropriates money for the CCSS and saddles Districts with unfunded additional costs. (Hey its good for publishers and campaign donations)
Public School Parent
MAP is "computer-adaptive testing," which is currently being used to determine if "students in lower grades could be on an accelerated path to Algebra."
Parents have been lobbying for advanced students to take Algebra I in 6th grade. It's a small group relative to district enrollment, but big enough for a class or two at Hamilton. Pre-APP split, a cohort of advanced students could take Algebra I in 6th grade, but not under leadership at HIMS (students at Eckstein could accelerate beyond APP students at HIMS). This is changing for the upcoming school year, but based solely on MAP scores. Students must achieve a certain cutoff score, which parents are being told is based on Winter testing (Spring doesn't count, even though teachers were told Spring scores were the basis for cutoff). Nice huh?
The Trouble With Online Education