Connecticut

“No Way to Measure the Effectiveness of an Educator”

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“There is no way to measure the effectiveness of an educator.  Further, there are too many factors beyond our control which impact how well some students perform on standardized tests, such as poverty, exposure to violence, homelessness, hunger, and other social issues beyond our control.“
– Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis, after failing to bring forward a vote to end the CTU strike.  Apparently, she hasn’t paid much attention to what her AFT brothers and sisters in New Haven, CT have done, when the established the Teacher Evaluation and Development system in partnership with New Haven Public Schools as part of a collective bargaining agreement.
The New Haven Federation of Teachers seemed to break new ground and establish a fair system for measuring the effectiveness of an educator.  The system has been regularly promoted by national AFT President Randi Weingarten, education leaders across the country, thought leaders and the media.  Guess the news never quite made it to Chicago, though.

Yes Connecticut, We Can

Eduflack Connecticut

Long-time readers of Eduflack will notice that I have been writing a great deal about Connecticut lately.  In my professional life, I’m fortunate enough to work with a terrific education advocacy group in the Nutmeg State — the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now. 

ConnCAN’s mission is to fight so that every child — regardless of race, family income, or zip code — has access to great public schools.  By focusing on the achievement gaps and pushing for real solutions, ConnCAN is committed to better schools, better and better supported educators, and better outcomes.
So obviously much of what appears on Eduflack is often seen through the lens of education improvement in Connecticut.  That’s why I am happy to announce I’m now writing a new blog focused on education reform in Connecticut — Yes Conn, We Can.
What’s even more exciting is that Yes Conn, We Can is now part of a family of blogs found at the New Haven Register.  Yes Conn, We Can is one of four community blogs currently included in the Register’s Connecticut Blogs section.  
From time to time, I’ll repost some Yes Conn, We Can posts here on Eduflack, if they are particularly relevant to the national education discussion.  
Happy reading!

Choosing Reform in CT’s Largest City

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Yesterday, the voters of Bridgeport reiterated the need for the continued push for reform in the Bridgeport Public Schools. With Hernan Illingworth, Jacqueline Kelleher, and Kenneth Moales now CONTINUING THEIR SERVICE on the Bridgeport Board of Education and with John Bagley joining the Board, the city can continue to move forward, ensuring that all Bridgeport kids receive a world-class education.

Without question, there has been a great deal of vitriol surrounding the progress made in Bridgeport over the past 10 months. Those seeking to protect a broken system, a system that simply was not serving the families of Bridgeport, have been quick to lob any charges (no matter how baseless) to try and slow or outright derail the improvements recently adopted in Bridgeport.

DURING THE PAST YEAR, we have seen the cost of the Bridgeport Public Schools’ central office greatly reduced, ensuring that the community’s tax dollars are going where they need to – toward the education of kids.

During the past year, we have seen the school district right its financial ship, restoring a trust in the stewardship of Bridgeport schools.

During the past year, we have seen an unprecedented focus on student learning, with educators and advocates, parents and policymakers joining together to improve the quality of local schools.

During the past year, we have seen all corners of Bridgeport join together to help turn around the James J. Curiale School, demonstrating a real community commitment that no child should have to attend a failing school.

During the past year, we have seen the city pledge to ensure that all Bridgeport kids have exemplary teachers lead their classrooms, as the city joins in the state’s groundbreaking student learning-focused teacher evaluation efforts.

And the during the past year, we have seen city residents embrace the possible and the hopeful in Bridgeport Public Schools, trusting in the leadership of Superintendent Paul Vallas and his plans for restoring Bridgeport schools to glory.

Let there be no mistake, change is hard. Change is particularly hard when it means breaking practices and behaviors that have ruled the roost for decades, leading folks to believe that change is impossible. But Mayor Bill Finch has demonstrated that change is possible, is necessary, and is achievable. Superintendent Vallas has PROVIDED THE BLUEPRINT for achieving that change. And now the voters of Bridgeport have reaffirmed the execution of that blueprint.

Every child in Bridgeport, and every child in Connecticut, deserves a world-class public education. Cities like Bridgeport are now working to make that happen, with no excuses.

(The above blog post, authored by Patrick Riccards, was originally posted on the ConnCAN blog — www.conncan.org — on September 5, 2012.)

In Ed Advocacy, It’s All About the States

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How do you raise awareness about educational improvement in the United States?  That is the big question this week over on the National Journal’s Education Experts blog.  Riffing off of some of the education reform activities at the recent political conventions, the folks over at NJ are actually hypothesizing that there is no disagreement on our need to improve.  

Those seeking change and improvement know that is far from the case.  Those forces seeking to defend the status quo, those looking to protect a system that fails millions of kids (particularly kids who are black or brown or poor), will resort to almost anything to stand against those seeking to bring a better public education to all kids.
Dear ol’ Eduflack weighs in on the discussion, focusing on the importance of state-led advocacy, as opposed to national advocacy, to bring the real change we need while respecting our nation’s history of local control in the schools.

At the end of the day, lasting education reform is not going to happen at the national level. As a country, we have too much pride in local control and community involvement in public education. Instead, those changes we seek and need will come because of advocacy at the state level, where the voices of diverse communities can come together and demand common change. One where those diverse voices can leverage their power to demand real change from their governor and legislature, change where the haves and have-nots in the state have access to the same excellent public schools, regardless of race, family income, or zip code.

In Connecticut, we are just now, after nearly a decade of work, starting to see the policy results of such a state-based advocacy approach. The real challenge now is not letting up on the gas, and continuing to speed toward the reforms we need. It means finding common ground with groups we have previously sparred with, and partnering with individuals we have once stood against. It means continue to do what is right, even if that means facing the vitriol and assaults from those who currently benefit from a failed status quo.

Happy reading!

We Should All Be Ed Reformers!

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We should all agree that every child deserves a world-class education.  We should all agree (based on NAEP data and a plethora of information from groups like Education Trust) that there are serious achievement gaps we, as a nation, must overcome.  We should all agree that every classroom should be led by an exemplary teacher, and that teacher should be supported to continue her successes.  And we all should agree that we must constantly improve our public schools, ensuring they are adapting to the times and the needs of our kids and communities.  

We should all be education reformers. 
Over at the ConnCAN blog, Eduflack has a new blog post on making this point.  After clarifying the record on attacks made by many of those looking to prevent reforms and protect a failed system, I note:
At the end of the day, every single Connecticut resident should be a champion for education reform, one who demands real, meaningful school improvement. While we may disagree on the best path to achieve that improvement, we all should agree that reform is needed. And for those who stand in the way of reform, those who defend the status quo, we must ask: Who benefits from protecting a system of haves and have-nots, a system where educational quality is dictated by one’s race, family income, or zip code?
It is all the rage to question the motives of those who are looking to reform the schools, and it is even more en vogue to answer those questions with vitriol lacking in even the basest of facts.  Why not ask the motives behind protecting a system where fourth graders struggle to read at grade level, more than a third of Black and Latino students drop out of high school, and the majority of students who do get to college require remedial courses?

Just the Facts

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Many Generation Xers may remember the cartoon G.I. Joe remaining us every week that “knowing is half the battle.”  And with all of the facts and figures thrown around during education reform discussions, knowing the statistics is definitely a non-negotiable.

In recent months, Eduflack has been writing a lot about the reform efforts in Connecticut.  This week, the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) released its Field Guide to Education in Connecticut 2012.  This document, available in both hard and soft copy, provides educators and advocates, policymakers and parents with a one-stop shop when it comes to education statistics in the Nutmeg State.
From stats on who attends Connecticut’s public schools to achievement gaps, spending to test scores, the Field Guide has it all.  And it serves as a primer for those who are looking to understand the state of public education in a state like Connecticut.
Happy reading!
(Full disclosure: Eduflack is not only affiliated with ConnCAN, but he heads the org.)