Ecology of Education

A Teacher’s Field Guide to Parents

Teachers would be foolhardy to label parents as either good or bad. Not all parents are created equal and cannot be categorized on a single spectrum.  To do so would jeopardize a teacher’s ability to survive. Literally.  I mean, I’m talking life or death here. You see, when normally mild mannered and reasonable people become [...]

Spill Happens: Education Reform & the Gulf of Mexico

There are a number of things we could arguably learn from the on-going Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico: These things are NOT fail safe. We should get off oil. MMS’s regulators are too lax. BP took too many chances. Corporations are to blame. Lobbyists are to blame. Politicians are to blame. We are [...]

Emerging Trend: Teachers as Advocates

(This piece was originally published at Cooperative Catalyst.) I keep waiting on the invitation: Who: Teachers What: Education Reform Policy Party Where: Wonk Circles All Over When: NOW! Why: We want YOU to help envision & shape the next generation of schools. The paradox, of course, is that as the reformation of education garners greater [...]

Gulf Oil Spill Tracker

Oil Spill Estimate Pick your level of gush: NOAA’s super-conservative-we-just-publish-what-BP-tells-us or the Dr. Doom expert analysis. Either way, it’s not looking good. It’s looking goo.

Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the Learning Revolution

The next installment of Sir Ken Robinson’s take on schooling, learning, teaching, and the revolution (not evolution) of education.  He softens his deconstruction of our education system with humor, though he looses non of his poignancy.  Among the insights: We are building our education system around a fast food model, where everything is standardized, yet [...]

Lawmakers to Teachers: Answer These 5 Questions!

I submitted 5 open-ended questions I thought lawmakers should ask teachers before crafting bills aimed at reforming education. The policymakers on the Education Policy Committee thought it was a great idea (especially after the stink teachers made about not being included in reform efforts in Florida).  However, in order to more easily quantify the responses, [...]

The Multi-Dimensional Job of Teaching

Today, a guest repost from Trudy Norton, from her site Mrs. Norton’s Blog. She wrote this insightful piece about a day/life of a public school teacher in response to FL Senator John Thrasher’s comments following Crist’s veto of his bill, SB6.  However, this piece speaks to all teachers, be they Floridians, Texans, Iowans, or humans. Response to [...]

Teacher Uprising of 2010: It’s About Collaboration, Not Merit Pay!

Critics of Gov. Charlie Crist’s veto of Sentate Bill 6 sensationalize it as “a real setback”, “putting the brakes on progress” & squandering of “an opportunity to improve teacher effectiveness.” Across the nation editorial boards have sounded in on the debate raging down here in Florida, including the Chicago Tribune, which headlined their ed as, “Status [...]

Governor Crist’s #SB6 Veto Press Conference (Video)

Gov. Crist Vetoes SB6 Press Conference Video This is the video from Governor Crist’s press conference in which he announced he was vetoing Senate Bill 6. This video is from Association Internet Video.

Governor Crist’s #SB6 Veto Letter

(Some) FL Republican Legislators’ Letter to Crist: Veto #SB6

Below is a letter that 6 Florida Republican Legislators sent to Governor Crist today, urging him to veto SB 6. You can click on the link below the images to download a copy of the pdf yourself. Crist Veto SB 6 Letter Image: Veto2009

Connecting the Dots in Florida: Inside SB6′s Players

The numerous connections between businesses, political players, and the current brand of education reform makes for a conspiracy theorist’s candy shop. Unfortunately, its hard to chalk the such theories up to an overactive imagination once the relationships are exposed. I received the below response and link resources from a Florida parent/teacher/SB6 opponent concerning the myriad [...]

From Florida Teachers to Florida Legislators: Thanks!

Representative Rouson’s Remarks on SB6

Everyone admits that we must do more for our children because in some respects we are failing them. In some respects they are not achieving the way they should so we must take the shoe off and challenge ourselves to walk differently…..

but I submit that we must listen and include experts, the professional educators and teachers as we walk.

Teachers’ Voices Fall on Deaf Ears in #SB6 Debate

Legislative proponents of SB6 and HB7189 are listening to one main demographic: The Chamber of Commerce. The voices of teachers, parents, and administrators are falling on deaf ears. Why?

Why Florida Schools Were Left Behind in the Race to the Top

It came as quite a surprise for some when Florida was not listed among the winners of Race to the Top. What went wrong? A look at Senate Bill 6 & House Bill 7189, reveals Florida’s failure to collaborate.

10 Gaps in Education (that don’t get enough press)

Not all gaps are created equal. Here is a handy guide to 10 gaps in education that not everyone knows about, but have a major impact on schools, teachers & students.

Critical Transformations: 15 Tools

Major seismic shifts can transform educators, and by proxy, instruction. However, more often than not, it’s just the opposite. Here are 15 implementable small steps that lead to transformation.

Engaging Your Stakeholders with Podcasting

Educators feast on hope. We hope to make a difference. We hope students will become life-long learners. We hope it won’t take too long to grade that stack of assignments we’ve been neglecting all week. We hope the students bring us our favorite candy the day after Halloween. Mostly, though, we hope to find curricular [...]