Tuesday Open Thread

 Update:  Cleveland has an orchestra class and will be adding a second one thanks to the efforts of one student, Robert Babs, and yet another dedicated SPS music teacher, Michelle Maury.  Thanks to a reader for this tip; here's the story from KING-5.

Some news items first:
  • Congrats to Aki Kurose for winning the City's competition for best middle school attendance.  They got Mollie Moon ice cream for the whole school.  This is the second competition they have won (the other was a national attendance competition).
  • SPS has won a grant for $241k for fresh fruit and veggies for our food program.   This continues a program for a fruit or veggie snack for students and will go to 13 elementary schools where their F/RL rate is 80% or more.
  • One of my favorite little bookshops, Ada's Technical Books, is having a good program this Thursday the 12th at 7 p.m. with author, Jessica Sklar.  She will be discussing her book, Mathematics in Popular Culture; Essays on Appearances in Film, Fiction, Games, TV and other Media.   From their website:

What's on your mind?

Comments

mirmac1 said…
Reposting this Op-Ed in the LA Times:

Retooling Teach For America
7/10/12, 8:54 AM
Anonymous said…
Hey, speaking of the awesome Ada's, they are having a great event tonight at 7pm, for you and your kids! The SparkTruck from Stanford's School of Design is driving across America, and tonight they'll be at Ada's, showing kids (and adults) how to make stuff. They have a laser cutter, 3D printers, and more. STEMmy, and very fun! See: sparktruck.org

-Friend of Ada's Technical Books
7/10/12, 11:45 AM
mirmac1 said…
Very interesting article, in light of DFER's recent donation of $50K to the charter initiative:

"Cease and desist" using Democrats in your name
7/10/12, 12:19 PM
Melissa Westbrook said…
Thanks Mirmac, great article. CA Dems can legally get DFER CA to cease and desist. I checked and WA state Dems can't.

This sums it up:

The reform movement's goals include shutting down low-performing public schools; weakening or eliminating teacher tenure; and expanding charter schools, which are publicly funded but often run by private-sector managers, some of them for-profit companies.

"Wealthy Democrats have joined Republicans in pouring millions into political campaigns, lobbying and community organizing to try to advance these goals nationwide."

The Republicans must be laughing their heads off.
7/10/12, 12:26 PM
dan dempsey said…
Thanks Mirmac ---A few thoughts on TFA...

from the Article Above:
(1)"Being a great teacher has to be one of the hardest jobs in the world.

(2)Those first couple of years in the classroom are a huge learning curve for any teacher, and it seems arrogant to think that just because the TFA kids went to good schools and got good grades, they'll instantly be able to teach.
==========================

(3) TFA began providing TFA Corp Members into schools that would have had at best marginally qualified teachers (and in many case an ongoing progression of substitutes) in the positions that TFA CMs filled. This was over 20 years ago.

(4) Today TFA provides CMs that in many cases will fill positions that would be occupied by experienced fully qualified teachers. The results from this use of TFA CMs in almost every case reveals this is a dubious plan and will not close achievement gaps over time.

(5) The Federal Gov. and many corporations are providing funding to TFA. It appears that several corporations think of such contributions as contributing to the public benefit. Chase Bank lists contributing to TFA as among its many "supposed" works that aid the community. ---- TFA 2012 is not the TFA of 1990. -- Chase get a clue.

==========
But Kopp misses the point by focusing on the number of applicants rather than on potential longer-term benefits to public education. Rather than bend to the student's perception that teaching is not prestigious enough to do long term, TFA should instead use its vast resources to encourage students to see teaching as the end goal, and TFA as a viable means to that end.

The revelation that if a 3 year commitment was required there would be a large decline in the number of TFA applications --- seems to indicate TFA is more interested in enlarging its own size and greater penetration into districts that have no need for it (like Seattle) rather than for the welfare of students and long term improvement in those districts.
7/10/12, 12:59 PM
Dorothy Neville said…
Did you know your Seattle Library card offers you free access to local museums? Burke, Henry, EMP, Wing Luke, NW African American, and more.

Details here.
7/10/12, 1:24 PM
mark said…
Do you have any more info regarding the Special Ed Audit? It seems to have been not such a big deal. Has the district issued any directives or changed any procedures because of the audit?
7/10/12, 2:21 PM
mirmac1 said…
mark (or D Wade or Nate or whomever), there was an accountability audit that found SPS deliberately miscoded costs against restricted-use funds, both Capital and Special Ed. If you have been following SPS' really great track record on audits, you would know it literally takes years for staff to get it right. I suggest you ask Ballard's principal how he intends to screw SpEd kids come fall. Report back when you're done. Inquiring minds want to know.
7/10/12, 2:39 PM
Jan said…
Dan (and mirmac1): I noted Wendy's discussion of recruitment numbers as well. At a 3 year commitment, the numbers fall by half. Wonder what they would look like at 5? It would improve the program substantially if they went for kids willing to commit 4 or 5 years (and notwithstanding Wendy's comment that none of these kids can see past 48 months -- I would note that military commitments regularly run 4 or 5 years (at least in the Navy), law school is 3, medical school is 6 or 7 (4 years plus internship/residency), Frankly, "these kids" have no problem seeing beyond 2 years. They just don't want to commit to the hard work of teaching that long (long hours, relatively low pay, clock ticking to get to that Goldman Sachs, GE, or Morgan Stanley job, etc. etc.). In that case, they shouldn't teach at all (if they are supplanting professional career teachers who are looking to invest a lifetime of professional development and work in the field) -- or they should ONLY be teaching where they are replacing subs or uncertified teachers in districts that can attract NO "real" teachers. Because at 5 weeks of training (plus s dab at night/weekend work during two years when ALL of their nights/weekends would be better lesson planning and preparing for the kids they are currently teaching), they are not. Real teachers, that is. Seriously, if the thought of THREE years instead of two drops their numbers by half -- the half that leaves does NOT contain people we want to invest teacher training time and effort in.
7/10/12, 2:59 PM
Melissa Westbrook said…
I thought it quite funny that Wendy Kopp, who extolls how mature and great these teachers are, then says that to them, two years is a long time.

So are they middle-schoolers or grown adults? Do they want to be teachers or not?

Even Bill Gates says the program length should be longer.
7/10/12, 3:54 PM
Anonymous said…
Nicely put Jan.

So what were the folks at the Professional Educator Standards Board doing when they approved TFA?

They at PESB were going along with the Big Money wishes ... no surprise there ... Stritikus should be in hot water over this fiasco ... but the state legislature represents $$$ not constituents... The machine rolls on ... All hail Wendy Kopp.

-- Dan Dempsey
7/10/12, 6:17 PM
Anonymous said…
http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/10/12666787-report-students-say-school-is-too-easy?lite

Students say school is not challenging enough. Interesting little article.

FHP
7/11/12, 7:27 AM
Anonymous said…
Here is an analysis of this article by Penn State researcher, Ed Fuller, in Diane Ravitch's blog:

http://dianeravitch.net/2012/07/11/are-u-s-schools-too-easy/
7/11/12, 7:48 AM
Anonymous said…
Oops the above comment is signed

Teacher/Parent
7/11/12, 7:49 AM
Josh Hayes said…
That's an awesome program, Dorothy -- thanks for pointing it out! My daughter's always wanting me to take her to the Burke, but I balk at the entry fee for what is, after all, a rather small (publicly viewable, anyway) museum. I'm definitely going to use this.
7/11/12, 9:20 AM
Anonymous said…
Hamilton Middle School's orchestra teacher who was RIF'ed has been re-instated. No word on the counselor, though.
7/11/12, 10:23 AM
mirmac1 said…
It appears the "grassroots" of this charter coalition is a retired couple in Lake Stevens

Yes on 1240 PDC stats
7/11/12, 10:36 AM
Anonymous said…
Looks like the talk goes on about a downtown school - meeting on Thursday.

http://queenanne.komonews.com/news/events/765288-discuss-possible-downtown-school-uptown-alliance-meeting-thursday

CT
7/11/12, 3:13 PM
Maureen said…
Hey Melissa, I am getting Charter School ads again (I must have cleared my ad preferences). I'm wondering if you get paid more if we click through the ads? I think it would be sort of amusing if charter proponents were subsidizing you!
7/12/12, 2:11 PM
Anonymous said…
Smart thinking Maureen! You must not be a Republican from Texas.
7/12/12, 2:50 PM
Anonymous said…
Oops! that's me

Pardner
7/12/12, 2:51 PM
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