Perdido 03

Perdido 03

Monday, March 30, 2015

NYSUT, UFT Bring Us Another Disaster

So much for all those rallies, ad and rhetoric from union leaders that they're not going to let Governor Cuomo destroy public schools.

The budget agreement was announced last night and in it we got details of the new teacher evaluation system and other education reforms agreed to by Cuomo, the Assembly and the Senate.

Three parts should be particularly galling to you if you're a teacher:

1. NYSED gets the power to re-do the evaluation system to make it a "state-wide" system. Yes, that's right - the same people who gave "Dr" Ted J Morris Jr. a charter school get the power to impose a statewide evaluation system.

2. Teachers who are rated "ineffective" two years running are subject to being declared "incompetent" and fired within 90 days unless they can demonstrate "clear and convincing evidence" to the contrary. Teachers who are rated "ineffective" three years running are subject to disciplinary charges and expedited firing in 30 days unless they can prove the ratings were based on "fraud."
3. The state gets to takeover chronically "failing" schools (10 years or more) and if they cannot show improvement in one year. The state gets to take over moderately "failing schools (3 years of "failing") if they cannot show improvement in two years

In the past, NYSED rigged the Common Core tests so that 70% of students would fall below the proficiency rate.

There is no reason to think they won't rig the APPR re-do they've been tasked with so that large swaths of teachers are declared "ineffective" as well.

As is the case now, if a teacher is "ineffective" on the test component of the system, that teacher must be declared "ineffective" overall.

Two consecutive "ineffective" ratings and you're out of a job in 90 days - good luck finding "clear and convincing evidence" to the contrary that you're not "incompetent."

As for the state takeover plan, so-called "failing" schools have to submit a plan to NYSED to show how they'll improve in a year - NYSED gets final approval of the plan.

You can bet that plan will be as rigged by the sociopaths at NYSED as the Common Core test results.

If so-called "failing" schools do not hit their benchmarks in a year, they're handed over to the state for receivership.

Some schools that were "failing for three years or less get two years to show improvement.

In short, the state's going to be taking over lots of schools and handing them to charter operators.

On Saturday, NYSUT President Karen Magee said the following:

"The policies proposed by Gov. Cuomo are harmful to our children and our students and that is unacceptable," she said, "and we are not going to let him do that!"

Dunno how you read the above agreement details that we have, but it sure sounds like Cuomo got a lot of the policies he wanted in the budget.

I am especially concerned by the evaluation re-do.

Giving the sociopaths at NYSED the power to re-do teacher evaluations and impose a statewide system onto New York may provide politicians in Albany with some cover for the damage, but it surely doesn't bode well for schools, students or teachers.

I would expect that something like the New York City system that former NYSED Commissioner John King imposed on teachers in the NYCDOE will make it around the state.

Mark Naison summed the education policies agreed to in the budget framework this way:


Another disaster from our union leaders brought to us in a year where Cuomo had his budget agenda hijacked by Preet Bharara and Shelly Silver's arrest and his poll numbers plummet even before NYSUT began running ads against him (Cuomo's been under water in the Siena poll since late 2014.)

13 comments:

  1. This can only improve NYC's system. If everyone is getting the same it has to be better than what we have now. Are real school districts really going to accept the crap NYC has had?

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    Replies
    1. NYSED gave "Dr" Ted Morris Jr. a charter school. Do you think they're concerned with quality?

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    2. I think there will be more push back and lawsuits from the Scarsdales and Long Islands of the state. The scores necessary to get effective are much lower everywhere outside of NYC. If all of a sudden they need 12/20 instead of 3/20 to not be ineffective it might be an issue.

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  2. I want to know much more about the "outside evaluators". I teach in a non-tested subject area so there is really nothing I can do about the tesing aspect of my evaluation. However, I need to to know A LOT about how the outside evaluators will work. (Will they do formal, informal, or both types or observations? Will the observations be announced, unnannounced or both? Will the principal be responsible for formal or informal observations? What percentage weight do the outside evaluators have vs. principal observations? Will the outside observers have certification in the subject are of the teachers they observe?) These are all extremely important questions to I and the countless other non-core teachers in NYS.

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    Replies
    1. Think about what a disaster everything they do is. Now think about that disaster trying to do evaluations. I wonder how many people will need to be hired to do all of these observations. NYC alone has about 75,000 teachers.

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    2. My guess is that a heap of the vaunted school aid increase will actually go to further feeding the dysfunctional state ed. bureaucracy. Look what happened to all the "Race to the Top" money. And, just like all those kiss ups and toadies rushed to "embrace" the Common Core (and cash in on it, too), the same flunkies and nim nuts will be loving every minute of evaluating us. Calling all "consultants" and retired educators who have no conscience....time to hit the feeding trough again.

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    3. Yes, the professors in a NY metropolitan area administrative degree program have banded together just in time to form a "consultant group" for exactly the purpose that anonymous mentioned above.
      The vultures are circling and they see big bucks in their future.

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  3. Once again Mugrew and Magee:

    THANKS FOR NOTHING!!!!

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  4. CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE - IM A FREAKIN ARTS TEACHER GETTING 59% EVALUATED IFF KUDS I DINT KNOW. I DARE THEM TO FIND ME "INEFFECTIVE". TES RBE, I WILL PROVE IT TO BE INCORRECT.

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  5. So we need to survive at least 4 years until a new governor comes in? hopefully things will change then. Maybe Teachout somehow gets elected. Any other way out of this mess?

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  6. Union was successful in one thing - keeping charter cap for now...

    Ensuring their dues collecting agency stays open

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  7. freken mulgrew claiming huge victory...what it is then?? this crap is driving every one crazy...who the hell knows what the fuc is going on!!! better off not reading any of this shit

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  8. No one knows what the hell they're talking about. Keep reading this crap and it will drive you crazy. Just follow these simple 3 steps.
    1. Be Kool with your administrators (purchase your X-mas gifts and end of year gifts) each year
    2. Make sure you're in a school with decent kids (if not, your 50% will eventually get you terminated)
    3. Finally, never ever go into the teacher lounge

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