Some interesting thoughts on teaching from McSweeney’s — here’s a good one:
“Since my singer-songwriter thing isn’t taking off yet, I’ve been thinking about going into lawyer-ing. I mean, how hard can it be? I know criminals like me, or at least the two that I see once a year at Thanksgiving do.”
So, if you visit the website of TennesseeCAN — a pro-privatization education “reform” group, you find this:
I know Tennessee is the volunteer state and we’re certainly a friendly bunch, but are we really building a grassroots organization to help improve education in Minnesota?
Maybe, just maybe, the 50 state CANs as they are known aren’t really all that grassrootsy. Here’s how Minnesota CAN describes their work:
It’s cut and paste advocacy — sounds very organic and grassroots, right?
Anyway, you’re welcome, Minnesota!
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
Keep the education news coming!
Covering the ongoing TNReady story has been fascinating and intense. It’s meant constant engagement on Twitter and via other social media and multiple posts and updates each day.
It’s also made me reflect on what is now six consecutive legislative sessions of education policy coverage via this platform.
In addition to updates on legislative action that impacts our schools, students, teachers, and parents, I’ve written extensively on a full range of education issues. I’ve covered the State Board of Education, the Commissioner of Education, and local school boards (especially in larger districts).
This blog has featured guest posts from educators (and I welcome more submissions via andy@tnedreport.com) and from policymakers.
Readers can count on 4-5 posts per week covering timely, relevant education news. On weeks like last week, posts are added and updated frequently. Additionally, in-depth reports are provided on topics like NAEP scores and teacher compensation.
All of this to say: I’ve decided to open a Patreon page as a means of generating some revenue to make this site truly sustainable.
Your support — even a few dollars a month — will ensure TNEdReport continues and grows. With steady funding, I can devote significant time to the site and explore ways to offer more and better content.
If you’d prefer to simply make a one-time contribution, you can do that, too!
Thank you for reading!
Unifi-Ed out of Chattanooga has this to say about legislation related to Signal Mountain creating an independent school district:
Tennessee Senate Bill 1755 was proposed on January 23, 2018 by State Senator Todd Gardenhire. The bill proposes that all property and assets in a municipality that belong to a county school system would be forcibly transferred to the municipality if it forms an independent school district.
There are a variety of consequences of this bill, if it passes, that run counter to the desires expressed by the Hamilton County community through the recent process of the forming the Action Plan for Educational eXcellence (APEX Project).
Reverse Robin Hood Effect
Under this bill, the state would force the transfer of assets from one entity to another without compensation. Taxpayers own their schools, yet this bill would allow for their property to be seized. Historically across the state, and within our own community today, the municipalities that have formed independent districts have been affluent suburbs.
This situation creates a transfer of wealth from lower income neighborhoods to more prosperous communities. It is, in effect, a “reverse Robin Hood” effect — stealing from the poor to give to the wealthy.
READ MORE on this attempt to force the transfer of school district assets without compensation. The basic premise that the entire county’s taxpayers paid for the buildings would seemingly dictate that any creation of an independent district would result in at least some proportional compensation back to the larger district.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
While discussing how the state’s new A-F report card that rates schools will impact districts and students, Wilson County Director of Schools Donna Wright pointed out that the attendance calculations could be problematic for both high school seniors and students in Kindergarten.
The Lebanon Democrat reports on Wright addressing the issue:
“That doesn’t even make sense that they would hold schools hostage and keep students in schools after they have completed all of their assignments and everything that they’ve met. But they’re looking at that 180 days of instruction. It’s getting so complex. I want this board to understand. We have to find a way to take care of our kids and particularly when you have to look at kids in kindergarten, kids in the 504 plan and kids in IEP. When you ask the Department of Education right now, we’re not getting any answers.”
Wright is referring specifically to policy implications that would result in requiring high school seniors to attend school even after they’ve completed all requirements and attended a graduation ceremony. On the other end of the spectrum, Kindergarten students often phase-in in small groups in order to ease the transition to school.
At issue is the 180-day instructional requirement. In some cases, high school seniors complete all requirements and exams ahead of graduation and end their school year several days “early.” This would result in less than 180 days of instructional time. Kindergarten students who phase-in also end up having slightly less than the 180 required days.
Strict adherence to the guidelines behind the Report Card would mean schools could be penalized for the phase-in and graduation issues Wright raises.
Final guidance from TNDOE might help address this, but as Wright noted:
When you ask the Department of Education right now, we’re not getting any answers.”
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
Chalkbeat’s Grace Tatter wrote her last piece for the online education news site this week. She’s moving on to Harvard for graduate school.
I could go back and count the number of blog posts of mine that included the words “Grace Tatter reported…” or some variation of that phrase, but that would take too long.
Tatter did an incredible job providing comprehensive coverage of education policy in Tennessee. She was there and wrote about numerous key events.
Her stories were clear, concise, and accessible.
Often, a paragraph from a Grace Tatter story would inspire me to dig a little deeper, find out a little more, and write a post of my own.
So, I say goodbye to Grace Tatter. Your work will be missed. I know the newer faces at Chalkbeat will continue doing sound work, and I look forward to it.
And, one last time, I’ll cite something Grace said to make a point:
Even when stories don’t seem to be about money, they usually are. How much money is being spent on testing, teacher salaries, school discipline reform? How much should be available for wraparound services? Why do some schools have more money than others? Is there enough to go around? Tennessee leaders have steadily upped public education spending, but the state still invests less than most other states, and the disparities among districts are gaping. That’s why more than a handful of school districts are battling with the state in court. Conversations about money are inextricable from conversations about improving schools
Once again, in typical Tatter fashion, she nails it. We can’t have the conversation about improving our schools without the conversation about investing in our schools. Money matters.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
A new report shows that 27 state affiliates of the National Education Association lost active members in the past year, including Tennessee. Tennessee Education Association’s (TEA) membership dipped last year and has been continuously decreasing over the past five years.
In Tennessee, TEA had 28,802 active members during the 2015 – 2016 school year. That’s down 7%, or 2,240, from their 2014 – 2015 total of 31,042. TEA has lost over 37% of their active members in the past five years.
The decrease in membership is a direct result of the state’s mission to do whatever it takes to make the union as weak as possible. Teacher’s collective bargaining and payroll deductions were stripped away, and the membership has been decreasing since then.
While TEA can no longer collectively bargain, they can do what is known as collaborative conferencing. Teachers at Metro Nashville Public Schools voted to start collective conferencing with the district this past school year.
The Tennessean describes collaborative conferencing as:
Collaborative conferencing is a form of district and union negotiation where topics such as: salaries or wages; grievance procedures; insurance benefits; fringe benefits; working conditions; vacation; and payroll deductions can be discussed. Other topics outside those listed are prohibited in meetings and conversations.
Another reason to join TEA was the ability to gain liability insurance. Now, the state of Tennessee provides all public school teachers with liability coverage at no cost, though the amount of coverage is not clearly defined.
The Fund provides liability insurance coverage to covered individuals and protects against damages or claims arising out of the performance of their work and within the scope of their employment or assignment
I have spoken to many teachers who agree with the positions of TEA, but do not want to spend $670 a year to become a member of a union that no longer has power. The state of Tennessee has done everything it can to reduce the amount of power TEA has in hopes of reducing their membership. It looks like it has worked.
What should TEA do to increase membership? I would love to hear your ideas.
Alanna Autler of WSMV noted yesterday that State Representative Jason Powell of Nashville has drafted legislation to be introduced in 2018 that will ban corporal punishment for students with disabilities. Powell had previously attempted to pass legislation banning the practice for all students, but that legislation never made it out of a subcommittee.
Autler reports:
A state lawmaker has vowed to file legislation that would ban the use of corporal punishment against students with special needs following an investigation by the Channel 4 I-Team.
“This seems like a no-brainer,” said Rep. Jason Powell, D-Nashville.
The I-Team found in a single school year students with disabilities received corporal punishment at a higher rate than their peers without disabilities at 60 Midstate schools.
Disparities could be found at dozens of schools, according to data released by the U.S. Office of Civil Rights. The most recent data available is from the 2013-2014 school year.
At Allons Elementary in Overton County, 62.5 percent of students with disabilities received corporal punishment compared to 7.7 percent of students without disabilities.
“It’s absolutely unfair to have students with disabilities punished at a higher level than students without disabilities,” Powell said. “I would say it’s troubling. To say it’s shocking, it’s not.”
It’s still unclear why Tennessee lawmakers allow the practice of corporal punishment to continue or why more local school boards haven’t banned the practice.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
WSMV’s Alanna Autler reports that students with disabilities in some middle Tennessee school districts are disciplined with corporal punishment at higher rates than their peers without disabilities.
From the story:
A Channel 4 I-Team investigation has found that at 60 schools in Middle Tennessee, students with disabilities received corporal punishment at a higher rate than their peers without disabilities.
These are students protected under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which ensures services to children with a variety of special needs ranging from autism to intellectual and physical disabilities.
The I-Team analyzed data from the 2013-2014 school year, which is the most recent data published by the U.S. Office of Civil Rights.
Autler’s story also notes that only seven middle Tennessee districts have banned corporal punishment.
Whether and when to use corporal punishment in Tennessee schools is a district-level decision.
Of course, one way to eliminate this disparity would be to ban corporal punishment at all Tennessee schools. That would require legislative action.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
It’s Friday, and that means another TC Weber poll.
This week, TC is asking about vouchers, teacher challenges, and how open MNPS is to teacher/parent involvement.
Take a minute and check it out and vote — TC promises to write up something interesting.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport