Per page discussions (new posts)

Parents Take Action Against Standardized Tests:

Fri, 20 Jun 2014 04:20:58 +0000

A call for us to act and do what is right for children and the education of children. I hope these moves continue to grow and expose the big corporations impact on our education system.

Standardized Boycott: Re: Standardized Boycott

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 18:52:34 +0000

This is a yet another important area of investigation. I'd poke around @TheChalkface, The Badass Teachers Association, Diane Ravitch's tweets and blog.

Once you start looking into the rabbit hole…..

The Bluehat Movement: Power to the people

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 18:04:59 +0000

I am making a note of this video as i want to research this particular incident further. Some of the questions i will be investigating are did she go back to school? Did the school force her to test, even after she was told by school officials it would not affect her? Did anyone come to their assistance on this matter? How can we, like Zoe said, stand together like nails sticking out of a board to confront this issue.

Standardized Boycott: Standardized Boycott

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 17:55:05 +0000

Can we dig deeper into the this issue and find the forces that behind these big pushes for standardization? Publishers looking to increase profits, politicians looking to maintain offices and people of wealth looking to decrease the amount that they have to contribute to public education. All are power plays that have no concern for the student. We need to spread the word of how the people can influence the powers that are in place to represent the majority(middle and lower) not the minority (wealthy 1%).

The Power of Children's Imaginations:

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 17:40:29 +0000

This really shows the individual ideas and understandings that can come to light if everyone is allowed to develop their own ideas about something.

Highland Park Teacher Resigns:

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 17:35:14 +0000

What I find nearly a tear after this other post is that her story has echoed and her mentioned on many others that feel the same as she does is frightening. I also look towards the bigger picture. That this is a battle in the war against public education that is becoming more and more visible. Truly dedicated teachers are being forced out of the career they love by the propaganda of importance of standardized testing.

State Controlled Consciousness:

Thu, 19 Jun 2014 03:40:48 +0000

The political and social powers at work to produce and maintain their own status and position in society.

Making Kids Work a "Second Shift": Second Shift

Wed, 18 Jun 2014 14:26:17 +0000

I believe there is a certain necessity for homework. I know most of the time it is drill and kill, but if a teacher sets up their homework in such a fashion to incorporate applications of the concepts that students have learned in school or designed projects that can be completed over time, with these concepts intertwined throughout in homework pieces than it becomes meaningful. In jobs that I have outside the realm of education, I have taken ideas home with me and processed how to create a meaningful presentation of the issues at hand.

Achievement vs. Learning: Alfie Kohn

Wed, 18 Jun 2014 14:19:34 +0000

I understand what he is saying. Book smart, but lacking in the common sense and applications of knowledge area.

State Controlled Consciousness: Making sense

Wed, 18 Jun 2014 13:09:24 +0000

This actually makes more sense in explaining how we ended up with our current learning environment than any other example that I have heard. All of the pieces are coming together (factories, policing, compliance, and categorizing).

Building the Machine:: Hoodwinked

Tue, 10 Jun 2014 04:24:29 +0000

This goes to show how our government is trying to move our country into socialism. The American public never knew what happened, and still really don't. Unfortunately the people who control the funds are able to control our decision makers. This film was a real eye opener.

Some Common Practices: Learning occurs from multiple places

Thu, 05 Jun 2014 02:27:58 +0000

I am thinking about the section “learning occurs from simple, concrete to complicated, abstract. I believe that if a child has been exposed to multiple environments and things, then they are capable of creating understanding from any of the levels, depending on the topic and content. Example; if a child is raised on a farm and also has the opportunity to to go water skiing, snow boarding, snorkeling, fishing, and camping they will have more opportunities to bring new meanings from multiple directions.

Some Fundamental Questions: Fundamental Questions

Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:37:03 +0000

The landscape of the problems and the perspectives of the key players are the thoughts that come to the forefront in my mind. Who determines what is important and how it is to be addressed? Many political groups and organizations are trying to change the landscape of education. Their perspectives and those of educators may or may not be on the same page. The position of power or authority that makes the decision of what is important to education is in constant flux. There are too many variables that could be the focus of a solution.

Learning Theories: Learning Theories

Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:29:05 +0000

Some of these can over lap, but the ideas or concepts to be learned dictate the theory that can be applied. The more exposure to different types of learning theories can lead to individual discovery of the type that best fits your own personality.

Levels of Cognition: Levels of Cognition

Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:24:26 +0000

Seems as if the analytical and abstraction sections is where schools need to focus. The individual student then takes their interests and develops the transformative level of cognition through their desire to gain more understanding of certain ideas.

Example: Having been in the military I learned how to sew, I have no desire to know anything else about sewing other than a simple stitch. My mother on the other hand has taken the time to gain the knowledge of a seamstress and understands many things about sewing.

Paradigmatic Frameworks: Paradigms

Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:14:30 +0000

Who view is best or correct? And for which culture or society will it benefit?

Some Common Practices: Common Practices

Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:12:50 +0000

The accountability piece in education has that unfortunate time stipulation to it. Much like when a child learns to crawl, walk or talk. One can do things to attempt to speed up the maturation process, but inevitably it is the individual child’s make up that will determine the rate at which they progress. I have heard of children speaking within months of birth and in other cases, much like my niece, some wait for several years before speaking. In the case of the later, she is not intellectually challenged or low, it just took her longer to verbalize. This waiting or extended time is not always received well by policy makers.

Highland Park Teacher Resigns:

Fri, 21 Jun 2013 21:11:26 +0000

This video is very sad. She is very passionate about teaching and speaks with students at heart. It is scary to hear how unsupported she feels.

Common Core Standards:

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 19:21:22 +0000

And, the amount of money is going up… $100s of millions… plus the amount invested by testing and publishing companies. They're all banking on making a financial killing.

Common Core Standards: Common Core-Reflections

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:19:26 +0000

Wow, this is really great information, and background on the Common Core standards. I did not know that it was started by just one person and backed by millions of dollars from people in corporate America. The above reflections make me realize how the Common Core will limit creativity even more in our young children, whom we educate. I never really thought of the comparison of students who live in small or large cities, learning the same things, and how that could be detrimental to them. I thought in a very small way that it was beneficial to have states adopting CC in order to be more cohesive across the board. I looked at it as, if you have a student who moved back and forth between AZ and CA, they will benefit because the gaps should be less as the states would be teaching the same CC standards. However, now I can see the detriments, and the challenges as I am exposed to a different perspective. Unfortunately, I feel it comes down to increase control of the government, and this is another way for massive control over education, by every state (the ones who have adopted) all teaching the same standards. However, I have learned a long time ago, competition, helps us strive to do and be better, when there is no hierarchy, and everyone is doing the same, that system is doomed to fail.