Public funding with no disclosure

Charter schools are in NC, and I’m assuming they are here to stay. I’ve seen good ones and some far from good. What I do not understand is why the legislature thinks that Charter Schools should not have to disclose salaries. 

Cotham: New NC Senate bill shields salaries of for-profit charter school staff 

That version says that “charter school personnel records for those employees directly employed by the board of directors for the charter school” are subject to the same disclosure requirements and privacy protections as employees of school districts and other public bodies.

Doesn’t sound too bad to me. Looks like we should know, but notice that phrase “directly employed by the board of directors.” BAM! There is is. Anyone hired by the charter company doesn’t fall under the those guidelines. With the magnifying glass on education these days, why would the legislature want to do this? OR is our intense focus saved for public education? Is this legislature so blind as to think that every charter school will be such a roaring success that they need NO public accountability? Are they so enamored by the idea of school choice that they really think no one will abuse those public funds? Do the parents considering the charter not have a right to know if the teachers are making far above or below the average wage?

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56 days of summer – 35

Today, my goal is to complete the MS for this math book, then let it sit until Monday for another round of editing. I’d also love to finish with my vehicles and get the BB paper cleaned up out of the guest room! I can do mess for a short period, but there comes a point that it wears on my nerves.

Cheryl Ristow posted a video this morning of a teacher decorating his room. It is not all practical, but I do love his enthusiasm. I have done some impractical things in my room (even knowing they were impractical) because I loved the way they looked and HOPE really does spring eternal donchano. I didn’t do themes in my classrooms – well, I did, but the theme was Math. 😉 I’m doing my second one in the library now and I love how the theme can tie things together. I love the filming theme he uses. Got to add that to my Pinterest board!

 

 

Barb Kibler shared a Buzzfeed Link – 35 Money Saving DYIs for the Classroom from 2013. I realize this kind of teacher craftiness is not everyone’s cup of tea, but I’ve tried many of these things. I cannot tell you how many stacking boxes and cans (metal and plastic) I’ve repurposed over the years. Sometimes what I ended up making was NOT less expensive because of covering it (or, yes, even the mistakes I made), but I just couldn’t find something to fit a purpose. I would recommend finding boxes from a source other than the Post Office. Those are clearly marked that they are for USPS use only. But once you start collecting boxes, they multiply quickly.

 

paint chip calendar

Oh man! I thought this was a terrible idea for education!

and someone wants a similar model for medicine. At least this ground breaking idea is in MO and not NC (for a change of pace). 

Defying The AMA, Some Politicians Lower Standards For Practicing Medicine

loss of 10% of teachers?

Not quite 10%, but close. That’s huge. Wondering what their notice period is. I’ve always had to give 30 days. 

IPS board member: ‘Exodus’ of teachers

Indiana: State Takeover and Privatization of 5 Schools Is Not Working

Everyone keeps asking teachers for data to support curriculum decisions (when they actually get to make any decisions that is), so where is the data that this concept works? If it did work and if there was hard proof, that data would be all over the place.

Diane Ravitch's blog

Under former State Superintendent Tony Bennett, five schools–four in Indianapolis and one in Gary–were taken over by the state and given to private operators. Students are leaving, there’s not enough money, and there is acrimony between the private operators and the schools.

The new State Superintendent Glenda Ritz prefers improving schools rather than taking them over, but she is working with a hostile state board of education, appointed by a hostile governor. After two years of privatization, all five schools are still F-rated.

The losers? The children.

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56 days of summer – 26

Yesterday, I hit the halfway mark in my manuscript. Today is also dedicated to writing. Wondering if 3/4 is too much for which to hope. I’m am seriously disliking fractions found in the real world at the moment 😉 Writing math problems makes for a pretty boring report.

I did sneak in a few other things. Still looking for some books to fill out series. Still cutting out letters. I am about to move on to modes of transportation!

 

56 days of summer – 19

Last night I finally got around to watching Rise of the Planet of the Apes. I’ve always loved Planet of the Apes movies. This one was pretty good. Apes are much more realistic these days.

Today, I went to the library to work with my friend Stephanie. Got new labeling up on the shelves and some of the new theme up.

So this year’s theme:

Reluctant readers in the library

This article has some tips for advising reluctant readers on the latest and greatest without having to read them all yourself.

Tips for the Reluctant Readers’ Advisor

Myths and Super Teachers

This is good, very good.

 

HT: Diane Ravitch

56 days of summer – 14

Today is the 4th of July. American Independence. I watched a sad video where people could tell what they do on the day but not what the day represents. I was going to make a comment, but then I saw two posts in the few on the screen that bashed teachers for this lack of knowledge. I don’t know about you, but I did not need to go to school to know what we celebrate on July 4!

The day was not much different for me (since it is one of my summer days!). It was a beautiful day, so I read on the back deck for a while finishing Adrenaline. Then I:

• Cut out letters for banners in the library.
• Worked on the student page of the library website.
• Got a few station activities started.
• Cleaned out my desk and the office closet. (Which means a boatload of stuff for recycling and the shredder.)
• Started looking over the assignment for the 5th grade math book.
• Cooked out on the same deck 😉
• Watched all of season 1 of The Paradise. This is a cute show if you haven’t looked at it yet. There are only 8 shows in the first season.
• I also watched a movie called Today’s Special which was surprisingly funny. That was nice after I thought it might just be stupid. I’ve started too many shows or movies lately that just can’t hold my attention.

Beautiful rendition of The Star Spangled Banner