Pearson’s new CEO James Fallon says he will pursue emerging education markets. (Answer Sheet)
StudentsFirstNY’s education director takes aim at the UFT’s recent teacher evaluations op/ed. (SFNY)
High school students who want a TED Talk experience can apply now for TED Youth. (TED blog)
A film that documenting first-generation college students needs help funding distribution. (Kickstarter)
Fahari Academy tops the list of the charter schools with the highest student attrition rates. (SchoolBook)
A union analyst says it’s not attrition but whether new students arrive that is important. (Edwize)
A teacher laments the disappearance of his school’s basic yet effective data system. (NYC Educator)
Chicago’s teacher salaries and school days are now more in line with national averages. (Russo)
A teacher-in-training says Chicago’s new teacher contract should help teachers be better. (Catalyst)
Last night’s debate contained some blasts from the past for longtime ed policy observers. (Sara Mead)
Vernon
Can somebody please explain to me the never ending “feedback and constant evaluation” fetish so popular with Students First New York/Anna Hall? This organization seems to portray all NYC teachers as seekers of some kind of evaluation and feedback God to pour over our teaching on a minute by minute basis. They seem to think that NYC teachers are begging administrators to constantly be in the classroom taking notes and giving them feedback every day of every year. Maybe I’m just a seasoned, old chalk jockey, but I don’t know any fellow colleagues who are on the never-ending feedback/evaluation bandwagon. My guess is that Students First NY are just another front group for privateers looking to make the next big buck in teacher union busting and corporate takeover of our school system. The word will get out on these front organizations. Lastly, I truly believe that in 5 years people are going to look back on the whole “ed reform movement” as a massive waste of time and resources. (And yes, our schools do face massive problems like poverty, crime, over-crowded classes, large ELL populations, lack of support services, and too many baby faced folks in charge who are hardly 30 years old and only taught for a few years) None of these problems will be solved with a blind devotion to constant evaluation and feedback. Good principals know good teachers and it is that simple.
Clay
Your observation is a dead on bullseye! Well said.
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