Teacher Tenure

Will a New Chancellor Mean a New Direction for NYC Public Schools?
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Will a New Chancellor Mean a New Direction for NYC Public Schools?

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

The end of 2017 brought the announced retirement of Carmen Fariña as New York City School Chancellor. Regarding her replacement, Mayor Bill de Blasio, according to Chalkbeat, “emphasized that he is not looking for someone to shake things up but rather wants  someone who will follow through on the course that he and Fariña set out.” Remember those issues… Continue reading Will a New Chancellor Mean a New Direction for NYC Public Schools?

The New York City DOE Chooses Cash Over Kids
Accountability · Blog

The New York City DOE Chooses Cash Over Kids

Laura WatersLeave a comment

Those of us in the education arena argue all the time but here’s something we all agree with: the most important factor in raising student achievement is great teachers. The New York City Department of Education has chosen to ignore this factor by forcing principals from 39 schools to hire 41 teachers from what was… Continue reading The New York City DOE Chooses Cash Over Kids

Can Parents Really “Change” a School? Should They?
Accountability · Blog

Can Parents Really “Change” a School? Should They?

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

In response to my November 6 post, a reader wrote: If we want to see all schools get better, why keep steering people to “The Best” ones, thereby depriving them, and their locally zoned schools, the opportunity to truly flourish? Case in point, PS 191. With the amount of investment that will go into that… Continue reading Can Parents Really “Change” a School? Should They?

If You See Something, Say Something: Teachers, Their Students, & Ethical Conversations
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If You See Something, Say Something: Teachers, Their Students, & Ethical Conversations

Vivett DukesLeave a comment

As educators, our jobs entail so much more than teaching the content area in which we are certified. We spend hours each day with our students and, as such, have constant opportunities to talk to them about the development of their moral character, a class that is not taught in most public schools but one… Continue reading If You See Something, Say Something: Teachers, Their Students, & Ethical Conversations

“Why Would Anyone In Their Right Mind Lower Standards?”: Charter Schools Win a Round
Accountability · Blog · Finding the Right School · School Choice

“Why Would Anyone In Their Right Mind Lower Standards?”: Charter Schools Win a Round

Laura WatersLeave a comment

“They were  bullshit!” said my Dad. I burst out laughing . My soft-spoken father, who most often could  be found reading history books and playing chamber music when he wasn’t teaching social studies at John Bowne High School in Flushing, so vehemently negative about the courses he took while earning his M.A. in education! At… Continue reading “Why Would Anyone In Their Right Mind Lower Standards?”: Charter Schools Win a Round

Willful Blindness: Official Pushing NYC’s ATR Plan Has A History Of Giving A Pass to Bad Teachers
Accountability · Blog

Willful Blindness: Official Pushing NYC’s ATR Plan Has A History Of Giving A Pass to Bad Teachers

nyschooltalkLeave a comment

(This is a guest post from Pete Cook. It was originally published on his blog, PE & CO.) The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) is planning to move as many as 400 teachers out of the district’s Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR) and into full-time classroom positions at schools this fall, regardless of whether those schools… Continue reading Willful Blindness: Official Pushing NYC’s ATR Plan Has A History Of Giving A Pass to Bad Teachers

Gov. Cuomo: “Only 38 percent of the students are graduating at class-level, but 99 percent of teachers are doing well.” What’s the Fix?
Accountability

Gov. Cuomo: “Only 38 percent of the students are graduating at class-level, but 99 percent of teachers are doing well.” What’s the Fix?

Laura WatersLeave a comment

Last week our new blogger Tina Posterli, a parent on Long Island, described her frustration with New York State’s teacher evaluation system. For those catching up, Gov. Cuomo, the State Legislature, and the Board of Regents originally signed off on an accountability system that would link 50 percent of student outcomes on standardized tests to… Continue reading Gov. Cuomo: “Only 38 percent of the students are graduating at class-level, but 99 percent of teachers are doing well.” What’s the Fix?

Mayor de Blasio Turns His Back on Low-Income Parents Protesting His Forced Placement of 400 Teachers
Accountability · Blog

Mayor de Blasio Turns His Back on Low-Income Parents Protesting His Forced Placement of 400 Teachers

Laura WatersLeave a comment

Below is a press release from StudentsFirstNY, which relays reactions of New York City parents to the news that Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Carmen Fariña will force placements of 400 of the 882 teachers assigned to the Absent Teacher Reserve. The ATR is more popularly known as “the rubber room,” via Steven Brill’s 2009 New… Continue reading Mayor de Blasio Turns His Back on Low-Income Parents Protesting His Forced Placement of 400 Teachers

Do Kids Care If Their Teachers Are Certified? Should Parents?
Accountability

Do Kids Care If Their Teachers Are Certified? Should Parents?

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Last week, New York City schools received two pieces of contradictory news, which made for an interesting contrast in how teachers are viewed. In the first, the Department of Education will now require principals to staff vacancies with teachers from the Absent Teacher Reserve, also known as “the rubber room,” where pedagogues who have been… Continue reading Do Kids Care If Their Teachers Are Certified? Should Parents?

A Teacher Tosses a Seven-Year-Old Out the Door and Keeps His Job?
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A Teacher Tosses a Seven-Year-Old Out the Door and Keeps His Job?

Laura WatersLeave a comment

Two days before Christmas, seven-year-old Ka’veon Wilson came to class at P.S. 194 in Harlem with a tray of cupcakes for his classmates. His teacher, Osman Couey, shoved him out the door and locked it. Ka’veon, a special education student, started banging on the door to get back in. School psychologist Steven Castiglia heard the… Continue reading A Teacher Tosses a Seven-Year-Old Out the Door and Keeps His Job?