The Ugly Facts About Ed-Reform, Partisan Bickering and the Resistance
I find it disturbing how quickly basic facts are flushed down the memory hole. Yes, Betsy Devos is the extreme example of the type of privatizer destroying public education, but … Continue reading
New bedfellows in education: Bill Gates and Donald Trump
Exactly how far will Bill Gates go in furthering his agenda of privatizing public schools and ensuring that Common Core Standards is instituted in every classroom across the country? … Continue reading
Seattle Event: Closing the Opportunity Gap Detracking and De-Testing. An evening with Carol Burris and Wayne Au
Wednesday, January 11, 2017 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM Garfield High School Quincy Jones Performing Arts Center 400 23rd Avenue Seattle, WA 98122 This event is supported by … Continue reading
It’s time to restructure the US Department of Education
Two of our constitutional amendments played an important role in public education. In 1791, the 10th Amendment stated, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, … Continue reading
Thanks to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), It’s a Year Too Late for Hand-Wringing over Charter Schools
Last year, I wrote an open letter to Senator Patty Murray pleading with her to reconsider the lavish financial support charter schools were slated to receive in the soon to … Continue reading
During this time of giving, some recommendations
With a Trump presidency and administration, we need to strengthen and support organizations and news groups that fight to protect democracy and the rights of all human beings. To follow … Continue reading
Passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) – $8 Million from the Gates Foundation and the Myth of Local Control
Remember when a return to local control was the biggest selling point for the passage of The Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA)? States would be allowed to set their own … Continue reading
ELO’s: How Community-Based Learning Advances the Cyber Education Agenda, Part 1
Editor’s note: Post republished with permission from Wrench in the Gears. ELOs: How Community-Based Learning Advances the Cyber Education Agenda ELO’s are learning experiences that by definition happen OUTSIDE the classroom. … Continue reading
Seattle’s response to the election: Student walk outs, community meetings and more
This is one of the many reasons I love Seattle. First, a press release: All School Walkout and Students Protest for Solidarity November 14, 2016 Students all across Seattle, will … Continue reading
Now what: Getting past the neoliberal agenda
What we do next goes beyond the specifics of education to the larger picture. I saw the creep of neoliberalism in public school education with the notion that the free-market … Continue reading
The Attack on Teachers Goes to College
Originally published on The Progressive website. The Attack on Teachers Goes to College The dramatic lockout of faculty at Long Island University in Brooklyn this fall brought home the reality … Continue reading
The US Department of Education’s Digital Promise to advance the ed-tech field and online learning in public schools
Editor’s note: Cheri Kiesecker was a panelists for the Webinar: Stop the Ed Tech Juggernaut hosted by Parents Across America. Click here for links to the video recording and slides from the program. -Carolyn Leith … Continue reading
Serious student privacy concerns with new Summit/Facebook platform
Summit charter schools opened a location in Seattle last year. The school calls what they do “blended” or “personalized” learning which means placing a student in front of a computer during most, … Continue reading
Washington State’s Digital Promise School Districts: Creating new markets for personalized learning snake oil
Back in 2011, Congress created a non-profit which would allow education startups and software companies easier access to America’s public schools. The initiative was called Digital Promise. From White House … Continue reading
The National Education Association (NEA) and Bill Gates
To follow is an open letter to NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia written by teacher and parent Kevin Ohlandt and originally posted on Exceptional Delaware. An Open Letter To NEA … Continue reading
The deets on DFER, Democrats for Education Reform
The following is the most comprehensive investigation and reporting that I have read so far about Democrats for Education Reform (DFER), a group disguising themselves as a Democratic political … Continue reading
The NAACP calls for a moratorium on charter schools
On October 15, 2016, Members of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Board of Directors ratified a resolution Saturday adopted by delegates at its 2016 107th … Continue reading
Parents Across America endorses #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool action by Washington State teachers
Parents Across America endorses the action of teachers, counselors, instructional assistants, office staff and other educators who will wear “Black Lives Matter” t-shirts to school on Wednesday, October 18th. We … Continue reading
#BlackLivesMatterAtSchool: The Network of Public Education (NPE) supports educators in Washington State
The Network of Public Education extends its support and solidarity to educators in Washington state who are taking a strong public stand in their action this week. By … Continue reading
#BlackLivesMatterAtSchool: Hundreds of professors across the country support Seattle educators in their day of action
Originally posted at I Am an Educator. Solidarity with #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool: Hundreds of professors across the country support Seattle educators in their day of action Over 200 scholars and professors nationwide sign … Continue reading
Join Parents Across America’s Poverty, Race and Education book club series with Jesse Hagopian and his book “More Than a Score”
Topic: Race, Poverty, and Education: Let’s get real about leveling the playing field Time: Nov 20, 2016 7:00 PM Eastern Time, 4 PM Pacific Time The guest for Parents Across … Continue reading
The Seattle Education Association endorses the Black Lives Matter at School action
Re-posted from I Am an Educator: #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool: Hundreds of educators across Seattle to wear “Black Lives Matter” shirts to school on Oct. 19th Educators in Seattle are starting off the school … Continue reading
Relay Graduate School Indoctrination
Editor’s note: Recently, Seattle Schools Community Forum published a guest post about the Summit Atlas Public Forum that was held on September 29th. The Summit charter school chain set up in … Continue reading
Podesta emails show NEA behind the scenes on the Clinton endorsement
From:[email protected] To: [email protected] Date: 2016-03-13 17:06 Subject: From Bill Ivey …Secretary Clinton is not an entertainer, and not a celebrity in the Trump, Kardashian mold; what can she … Continue reading
Teachers in Seattle affirm that Black Lives Matter in public schools
Editor’s note: There has been a run on the Black Lives Matter t-shirts. Our suggestion is to either wear a plain black t-shirt showing your support or order one online. … Continue reading
Stop the Ed Tech Juggernaut: A Parents Across America Webinar
Members of Parents Across America (PAA) have spent extensive time looking into quantities of writing and research that raise red flags about the impact of the EdTech explosion on our … Continue reading
Questions We Should Be Asking About “Future Ready” Schools
How far are we from the day we’ll be forced to rely on online education modules to inspire and excite the minds of young people; where badge collections replace … Continue reading
Our question to OSPI candidates Erin Jones and Chris Reykdal about the recent charter school grant to Washington State
While another lawsuit is pending in Washington State challenging the constitutionality of the Charter School law, the Washington State Charter School Commission and State Superintendent Randy Dorn fell all over … Continue reading
Round 2 in Washington State over charter schools
Originally published in The Progressive: To Kill a Vampire: The Continued Resurrection of Charter Schools in Washington State Washington state residents have voted charter schools down three times. Twice, initiatives … Continue reading
SEATTLE’S CEDAR PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: IS THERE RACIAL EQUITY?
Editor’s note: Original post written by Kevin Hilman for the Olympic Hills PTA blog. Post re-published with permission. -Carolyn Leith For the last year and a half, the Olympic Hills Elementary … Continue reading
ALEC is Excited About the New Testing Provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), so is iNACOL
Personally, whenever a bill in Washington D.C. is praised for its bipartisan nature – I get worried. The common ground discovered by Democrats and Republicans, usually comes at our … Continue reading
“Learning is Earning” the Rand Corporation way with digital badges and Edublocks
All of the elements are in place: There’s piece work employment without financial security or due process. The opportunity for corporations to pay employees in script instead of actual cash. Smart … Continue reading
The ESSA and opting out of the SBAC
Some state departments of education have threatened to withhold a high school diploma if a student doesn’t take and pass a so-called college readiness test in grade 11. However, no … Continue reading
The Doublespeak of Ed Reform Regarding Charter Schools
Originally published in The Huffington Post, by co-editor Sue Peters I can’t help but wonder if it isn’t an intentional Catch 22 that some people are trying to trap our … Continue reading
Our Children at Risk: Parents Across America reports dangers of too much ed tech
Members of Parents Across America (PAA) have spent extensive time looking into quantities of writing and research that raise red flags about the impact of the EdTech explosion on our … Continue reading
Too much Tech for Students: A School Technology Opt-Out Letter
This was originally posted on the Parents Across America website. We reached out to Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, author of the just-released book, “Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction is Hijacking our … Continue reading
Video: John Oliver on Charter Schools
The dirty laundry is finally being aired on prime time.
The Struggle over Mayoral Control of Seattle’s School Board
This article was originally published in The Progressive. Snuffing out Democracy-the Struggle over Mayoral Control of Seattle’s School Board Seattle and the state of Washington have determinedly resisted the … Continue reading
Following the charter school cash in the Washington State Primary: The latest money scheme
UPDATE: Two mistakes have been corrected from the original post. Voters for Washington Children spent $15,000 in digital ads AGAINST Luis Moscoso in the District 1 Senate race. In addition, … Continue reading
It’s back to court for charter schools in Washington State
The Washington State Supreme Court deemed charter schools unconstitutional in 2015 and yet the charter schools remained open on the promise of private money supporting them. The $14M never … Continue reading
Who is actually running the US Department of Education?
We have known about the Broad Prize award, representing an award given to school districts by the Broad Foundation, which is proudly displayed in the offices of the Department … Continue reading
Email shows how Seattle Mayor Ed Murray plans to take over the school board
If Mayor Murray wants to address the “achievement/opportunity gap” in a way that is more appropriate to his office, he needs to focus on a living wage for all … Continue reading
This Goes Under “Cashing In On Ed Reform” : K12 Inc.
K12 Online Learning is in Washington State using tax dollars to cash in on the online charter school industry. This was first published on the Seattle Education blog in 2012 and originally posted at … Continue reading
What we never mention
We speak of poverty which is devastating, it brings hunger, homelessness, ill health and an inability to focus in the classroom, but we have not spoken about the … Continue reading
The right-wing propaganda machine Project Veritas is now going after teachers and their unions
The right wing attack dogs, Project Veritas, the group that took down ACORN and went after Planned Parenthood, is now targeting teachers and teachers’ unions. They “exposed” the president of the … Continue reading
The Community Schools Initiative in New York: A common sense approach
Part of the challenge in turning around schools is that outside-of-school factors likely account for twice as much of the variance in student outcomes as do inside-of-school factors.5 Accordingly, the … Continue reading
Green Dot charter schools: A cautionary tale
This post is being republished regarding Greendot charter schools. The charter school chain opened a school in Washington State in defiance of the Washington State Supreme Court ruling and word … Continue reading
Bill Gates backs climate denier Judge David Larson for Washington State Supreme Court position
Gates is so blinded by his desire to have charter schools in our state that he doesn’t seem to be concerned with the qualifications of an individual who will potentially … Continue reading
Why We Need Independent Media
Posted with permission from TurningPointNews.org. About the author: Elizabeth Hanson M. Ed. Is a college instructor from Seattle Washington and co-founder of turningpointnews.org. She is also a co-author of the … Continue reading →