newteacher

On 2 Million Minutes

Friends,

   A few folks have asked for thoughts on the documentary 2 Million Minutes on global education and American competitiveness.  It does have an Indiana connection as parts were filmed in Carmel but I think it has some major flaws (i.e. assumptions, biases, representation) but I'll reserve too much comment for now so that folks can post their own reactions.  Certainly, this has caused a lot of buzz around education reform circles so  I hope that folks will comment with their two cents.  Here's a link with a bit more than the trailer: Eschoolnews

Two Million Minutes Trailer

"Regardless of nationality, as soon as a student completes the eighth grade -- they have just Two Million Minutes to prepare for college and ultimately a career. This important documentary examines how students in India and China are being better prepared than American students to compete in a flattening world. For more information, go to www.2mminutes.com."

Obama & Education

From a friend of mine's blog....it's not good I'm afraid.  When Obama said that Education was his example of where he differed with the Democratic Party I got worried; when he picked Arne Duncan, I got very worried; when he starts sounding like "Bush Light" (see below), I'm terrified.

Obama & Education

An Obama activist friend of mine reacted to the speech outlining an education agenda given by the President to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce  by calling it ‘Bush lite’. Despite important attention to ‘crumbling’ schools, funds to prevent teacher layoffs due to state budgetary crises, mild criticism of the ‘testing regime’, and some awareness of the relationship between other socio-economic issues and education; it’s hard to argue with that dispassionate characterization. Obama’s evocation of “high standards” coupled with “high expectations”, his call for a “new culture of accountability”, not only broke no new ground, but seemed to echo Bush platitudes, even as he called for No Child Left Behind (NCLB) to “live up to its name.”  READ MORE

Immigrant Teens and US Schools

A compelling article here from the NY Times with so many important issues for contemporary education.  From literacy to the impact of high-stakes testing to globalization's hidden aspects, there is a lot for educators to think about here....again, however, so much comes down to taking the time to know the child.

Immigrant Teens Struggle With Formal Schooling

Fanta Konneh is the first girl in her family to go to school. Not the first to go to college, or to graduate from high school. Fanta, 18, who grew up in Guinea after her family fled Liberia, became the first to walk into a classroom of any kind last year.

Related

Students in Stephanie Grasso’s English class at Ellis Preparatory Academy in the Bronx were assigned to write memoirs this fall. The essays show how far they have come and how much more they have to learn.

Read a Selection of Memoirs (pdf)

“Just the boys go to school, so I always knew I was left out,” said Fanta, a student at Ellis Preparatory Academy in the South Bronx. “But here, I am trying. I can say many things I did not know before. I can learn things more.”

New York City classrooms have long been filled with children from all over the world, and the education challenges they bring with them. But hidden among the nearly 150,000 students across the city still struggling to learn English are an estimated 15,100 who, like Fanta, have had little or no formal schooling and are often illiterate in their native languages.

More than half of these arrive as older teenagers and land in the city’s high schools, where they must learn how to learn even as their peers prepare for state subject exams required for a diploma.

“They don’t always have a notion of what it means to be a student,” said Stephanie Grasso, an English teacher at Ellis Prep, which opened this fall and is New York’s first school devoted to this hard-to-educate population. “Certain ideas are completely foreign to them. They have to learn how to ask questions and understand things for themselves.”

The largest share of these students come from rural areas of the Dominican Republic, where they did not attend school because it was too far away or because they were working to support their families. Others fled religious persecution in Tibet, civil wars in West Africa or extreme poverty in Central America, often missing years of class while in refugee camps.

One of the 82 pupils at Ellis, Harunar Rashid, said he spent his first two years in the United States as an indentured servant to a Bangladeshi family, finally escaping. School officials believe that he was imprisoned, but have not pursued it because he does not know where he was held.

New York is one of the only states to identify these difficult cases, classifying them as Students with Interrupted Formal Education, but state education officials do not offer a suggested curriculum, provide any additional financing or track their progress. Last year, New York City provided a total of $2.5 million to 53 schools with large populations of these students — about $165 extra per person; they are entitled to the same extra services as others who are still learning English, but nothing more.

Read More at NYtimes.com

International education tied to Indiana’s future

From http://www.doe.in.gov/reed/newsr/2008/11-November/InternationalEd.html. 

 More about International Education week at http://www.iew.state.gov/.

  

Guest Column                                     

International education tied to Indiana’s future

By Dr. Suellen Reed, Superintendent of Public Instruction

Gone are the days when our neighbors were our sole competition. Today’s Hoosier workforce must compete – not just with other cities and states – but in a diverse and rapidly changing global marketplace. That ability begins with a solid educational foundation.

Indiana has stronger global ties than most Hoosiers realize. For the second consecutive year, our state leads the nation in attracting new jobs through international investment, according to a report from IBM Global Business Services. Moreover, Indiana’s population is becoming more diverse with our public schools now ranking third in the nation for the increase in limited English proficient students.

Indiana already loses many of its best and brightest graduates to other states, a brain drain that could increase as the global economy expands. This was never more apparent than when I met a summer intern here at the Indiana Department of Education, a college student from Butler University. She speaks three languages fluently and is learning her fourth while studying international issues in politics and religion. If Indiana doesn’t offer job prospects that fit her interests and skill set, she surely will find those opportunities elsewhere.

The bottom line: If we are to maintain and increase our position as a global player, Indiana must provide its citizenry with a greater understanding of other languages and cultures through international education.

These realities underscore the significance of our upcoming observance of International Education Week, held from November 17-21. With that in mind, I strongly urge Indiana’s leaders at the state and local levels to work together to:

• Increase access for students to learn a world language starting in elementary school and continuing through high school,
• Integrate technology and international education across subject areas and align with standards consistent with 21st Century skills,
• Provide professional development and international exchange opportunities for Indiana teachers through exchange agreements with partner countries around the world, and
• Boost participation in international student exchange as participants and hosts. 

Indiana citizens distinguish themselves on a global scale in all fields of endeavor, from space exploration and medical discoveries to artistic expression. To ensure this record persists well into the future, I urge Hoosiers to get involved. If you can offer our students a cultural experience, contact your local school. If you speak a second language, volunteer to help young children learn these skills. If your company does business outside this country, help students and decision-makers in your community understand the importance of international competence.

How well we meet the challenges of the 21st Century will depend on all of us. Let those in leadership know your shared concerns, do your part to make a difference and together we will secure a prosperous future for our children. Learn more at www.doe.in.gov/internationaleducation.

Education & Poverty

From the IndyStar....the editorial board connects the dots between public education and economic status.  I'm often struck by how people don't see these as connected or in looking at education as investment in society writ large.  The positive effects of education counter both poverty and crime yet folks still balk at repair for old school buildings and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (check out the latest on the IPS Bond Referendum).  This state has an economic problem, a governor who thinks that privatising and deregulation is the answer, and whole population of young people without much hope.  Getting a handle on this ought not to just be filed under civic duty but patriotism and even, morality.

Top priority in tight budget: breaking poverty's chains

Posted: October 12, 2008

"Our position: State, despite tight revenues, must be aggressive in improving education.

An invisible cord ties together two of Indiana's sorriest statistics.

Nearly one in five children in Indiana now lives in poverty. The childhood poverty rate increased five times faster than the national average between 2000 and 2006, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and now stands, for the first time, equal to the national average.

Indiana also ranks 44th in the nation in the education level of its adult work force.

What do childhood poverty and adults' educational attainment have to do with one another? Plenty.

It's not by coincidence that Indiana's childhood poverty rate has accelerated at the same time that its manufacturing base has declined. Workers who used to rely on family-sustaining jobs at local factories now struggle to make ends meet in service-sector positions.

What can be done to stop the trend? Well, there's not much hope for Indiana to return to the days when students could finish high school, land a job at an auto plant or other manufacturer, and pretty well be set for life.

The road to even moderate prosperity now runs through higher education, whether with a four-year degree or more technically oriented training.

Thankfully, state leaders, from the governor's office to the back benches of the General Assembly, now understand that reality. But the firmness with which they grasp the concept will be tested in the months ahead.

That's because state government is entering a budget-writing cycle that House Ways and Means Chairman William Crawford calls the "most challenging in its history.''

Forgive Crawford a bit of exaggeration; Indiana, after all, in its long past has weathered bankruptcy and Depression. But the chairman's point is well taken. State revenues were already falling short of projections before the Wall Street meltdown of the past month.

Yet, despite the new fiscal reality, Indiana must move forward aggressively in increasing options for childhood education, fostering better student achievement and bolstering adult education programs.

Finding more money for education at a time of national recession unquestionably will be tough. Lawmakers may well have to accept measures they normally would shun, including Gov. Mitch Daniels' proposal to lease the Hoosier Lottery, in order to raise more money for education.

But, to improve Indiana's long-term economic health, state leaders must do everything possible to build a better-educated work force.

Past failures such as the state's slow embrace of community colleges and resistance to full-day kindergarten and charter schools are contributing to high poverty rates and low per-capita incomes.

That's why it's critical for legislators not to delay once again an aggressive agenda for improving student achievement and creating more avenues for adult education. Yes, the money is tight, but Indiana faces no greater need, no higher priority.

In the past, Hoosiers could work their way out of hard times. Now, they must study as well."

Education & the Next President

Friends,  this seems like a must-see.....education has been pretty lightly covered so far and when mentioned, mostly in sweeping generalities.  Perhaps here we'll see some of the deep issues during this debate [links are wikipedia--not the best but "fair and balanced" perhaps].  We might here too start some discussion on the candidates and positions on public education.  Have at it!

Teachers College Presents "Education and the Next President"
Tune in Tuesday, Oct. 21, 7 p.m. Eastern Time, for this live webcast of a
debate between Linda Darling-Hammond, education adviser to Democratic
Presidential nominee Barack Obama, and Lisa Graham Keegan, education adviser
to Republican nominee John McCain.

Register at :
http://www.edweek.org/ew/marketplace/webinars/webcast_ed_next_president.html

Education & the Election

Interesting article in NY Times on the election and education policy….FYI http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/09/the-early-word-obama-on-education/.  It seems that education policy will be part of the ways the Obama Campaign wants to distinguish itself from both McCain and more traditional Democratic platforms.  Also included are some details of McCain's ed policy.   This was all over the news and is worthy of some on-line discussion.  Any thoughts, folks?

"The Obama campaign is framing a day of contrasts with the Republican ticket on the issue of public education as Senator Barack Obama prepares to deliver a speech about how to “modernize and strengthen our education system.”

According to the campaign, Senator Obama will propose doubling funding for “responsible” charter schools and address the hiring and firing of teachers. “We can’t settle for schools filled with poor teachers,” " 

Interfaith & Habitat for Humanity

The International Interfaith Initiative is working with community partners and the Center for Urban & Multicultural Education (CUME) to expand civil society, educate, and empower.  Several events over the last two years have included convening Youth Dialogues with middle-schoolers from different faiths, symposia on issues of faith and civil society, and connecting diverse religious and civic communities for open dialogue and discussion on various social issues.  The Initiative is still just beginning but exciting things are happening.  Read about their latest efforts:

 3 Faiths Coming together for MidEast Trip:

By Robert King   Posted: May 12, 2008

They will travel halfway around the world together, build a house for a needy family together and reach out to refugees of war together.

But showing people how different faiths can work together for the common good is the biggest thing a group representing Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities in

Urban Ed & the Story of Stuff

So, last night I went to see this short film "The story of stuff" about rethinking consumption and our most basic economic assumptions about how we live our life. Check it out, you can download the whole movie. One of the interesting things that came up however was how our local, urban school district has moved to throw-away lunch trays for "cost cutting" reasons. Besides the unbelievable pile of waste they produce, think about what they're teaching the kids. Of course, in a lot ways, these are throw-away kids as well as the city, the state, the country, and our society backs away from supporting public education. I wonder if folks of a green variety might see public education as an allied cause.... coalitions across interests can make a big noise.

One of the best parts is on her Story of Stuff blog where a group of high school kids made a video in response, mocking her a little bit but engaged none the less. Her response is a thoughtful one. Maybe this is something that kids in schools could rally around as well.

Legislative Alert....again

Interesting day at the Indiana Statehouse yesteday as the state PTA organized a rally in support of public education (see IndyStar) and, in particular, in protest of the new property tax reforms that would cut the budgets of at least 38 school districts by $1million.  IPS in specfic stands to loss $15million if the bill goes through.  It should be noted that none of the speakers suggested that there isn't an issue with the recent property tax reassessments and how it was handled just that the bill as written would hurt public school children....