via @NYDailyNews, Thomas Kane: Teachers must look in the mirror http://t.co/go3YGxO9D5
— Rich Azzopardi (@RichAzzopardi) April 7, 2015
"I’ve carefully studied the best systems for rating teachers — & I can tell you the governor picked the right fight." http://t.co/go3YGxO9D5
— Rich Azzopardi (@RichAzzopardi) April 7, 2015
"The deal in Albany last week will finally give schools the tools they need to manage and improve teaching." http://t.co/go3YGxO9D5
— Rich Azzopardi (@RichAzzopardi) April 7, 2015
The article Azzopardi, Cuomo's spokesman, is linking to is a Daily News piece written by Thomas Kane, the former director of the Gates Foundation's Measures of Effective Teaching project.
Kane writes this:
Although the use of test scores has received all the attention, the most consequential change in the law has been overlooked: One of a teacher’s observers must now be drawn from outside his or her school — someone whose only role is to comment on teaching.
The fact that 96% of teachers were given the two highest ratings last year — being deemed either “effective” or “highly effective” — is a sure sign that principals have not been honest to date. An external perspective will make it easier for longtime colleagues to have a frank conversation about each other’s instruction.
Yet as valuable as they might be, external observations also present significant logistical challenges. A lot of time could be wasted as observers travel from school to school. One alternative would be to allow teachers to submit videos to external observers (and, possibly, to their principals as well).
Doing so would have a number of advantages. For instance, teachers usually struggle because of the clues they are not noticing while they teach. It is difficult for such teachers to recognize their mistakes after the fact by reading an observer’s written notes after class.
Giving teachers control of a camera, the opportunity to watch themselves teach, and allowing them to discuss their work with external observers, peers and supervisors will provide a more effective mirror than any observer’s written notes.
With the benefit of video, harried principals could do their observations during quieter times of the day or week. And when principals do not have sufficient content expertise, they could solicit the views of content experts.
Finally, video evidence would level the playing field if a teacher ever has to defend her teaching at a dismissal hearing.
Video is now widely used to coach improvements in athletics and dance and public speaking. Why not use it to improve teaching?
We used to hear from one of the Gates Foundation-funded astroturf groups like the Edcuators4Excellence how teachers needed to be observed frequently by their principals or assistant principals so that they could receive frequent feedback about their teaching practice.
We don't hear that anymore now that Governor Cuomo has decided that principals and assistant principals are as incompetent as the teachers they observe and outside evaluators must be brought in instead to observe teachers.
But as critics have pointed out, finding all of these outside observers and sending them all over the state to do their outside observations is going to cost an awful lot of money.
No worries, though - the ed deformers have the solution!
Ipads that video tape lessons - so much cheaper than having to send outside observers around the state and hey, everybody loves a selfie.
Plus teachers can learn so much about themselves by studying the video tape.
Back in the day, I had to submit a videotape of a lesson before I got my permanent certification.
I remember agonizing over it, worrying about what lesson to prepare, how to approach the lesson, whether to do group work or not.
A veteran colleague of mine told me I shouldn't worry, that nobody at NYSED watched the videos anyway.
He related a story to me about another teacher who agonized over a certification videotape, who tried so hard to get a great lesson on tape, then accidentally sent the wrong tape into NYSED.
This was discovered months later when the teacher went to watch a copy of Good Fellas he had made, then discovered it was his classroom certification tape!
Apparently NYSED had gotten a copy of Good Fellas instead of a videotaped lesson, but it didn't matter at all to the teacher's certification - the license was approved.
Now that story may be apocryphal (I think the veteran teacher was just trying to assuage my concerns over the certification tape), but I was reminded of that story as I read the insufferably self-serving jive from Thomas Kane, Harvard ed professor and Gates Foundation shill.
That the Cuomo flying attack monkey tweeted the Kane/DN story three times indicates this may be where they're going to go with the outside observations.
This way, they can say these are outside evaluations that are so much more accurate and impartial than observations done by administrators who work with teachers every day, but do it on the cheap - no travel expenses, no time spent traveling, no replacement needed for traveling administrators out on the observation trail.
And just in case you have any reservations about the new system, well, Gates Foundation shill Kane has some words of warning for you:
In the coming months, teachers and their representatives have a choice. Will they fight reforms or will they embrace higher standards as a means of restoring legitimacy to the tenure protections they cherish? Will they fight to keep paper-based observer notes, or will they embrace video as a more valid source of feedback as well as a means of empowering and protecting teachers? Will they fight the use of external observers, or will they open their classroom doors?
Yes, teachers, open up your classroom doors and welcome the all-seeing video camera that will be "a more valid source of feedback" than those old stodgy administrators the Educators4Excellence and other Gates Foundation shills used to crow about.
It's fun tracking how ed deform memes and talking points change over the years.
Sometimes they do a complete 180 without blinking.
Gee, I hope the video camera can catch that.
Got dog and pony show?
ReplyDeleteThis epitomizes the cluelessness of our policy makers. A 40 minute, staged video tells them less than nothing. I didn't think this state become a bigger laughing stock. Look how wrong you can be.
Exactly. And this comes after all that E4E nonsense about teachers needing frequent feedback from building supervisors.
DeleteThomas Kane is a no nothing elite from Harvard. He knows nothing about teaching in a public school (his area of expertise, according to Harvard is charter schools), he has no background as a teacher and doesn't even have an PhD or EdD in Education. His doctorate, not surprisingly, was in public policy. Here is his resume. http://www.nber.org/vitae/vita294.pdf Sadly, the UFT should use his lack of expertise and lack of knowledge as a way to discredit his stupidity (that seems to pass because of his Harvard credentials). Instead, they sit back and declare victory... It's like we live in North Korea where the great leader (whether it is Mulgrew or Cuomo) is always right and we thank them for the morsels or for the suffering we get.
ReplyDeleteWhat exactly does one learn when getting a doctorate in public policy?
DeleteI bet there's at least one class on "How to get on the Gates/Broad/Bloomberg" payroll.
Check this out:
ReplyDeleteMerryl Tisch’s kid, Benjamin Tisch worked for the Fortress Investment hedge fund.
Peter L Briger, Jr. is the principal and co-chairman of the board of directors of Fortress. He serves on the board of Caliber Schools, a charter school network.
Merryl Tisch has been on the Board of Regents since April 1996. After 19 years of terrible performance how can this woman point the finger at us? She is a sickening disgrace.
I wonder how many people get lung cancer and die as a result of having smoked the Tisch Family Cigarette (i.e., Newport.)
DeleteDisclosure: I smoked Newport cigarettes back in my teens and twenties.
Thankfully am cigarette free these past 16 years.
And talking about North Korean type propaganda, have you seen this video from Eva...errr..."Students First"
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nystateofpolitics.com/2015/04/studentsfirstny-touts-cuomos-education-measures/
Yes, thank you, Governor Cuomo. You are destroying all public school education in NYS for political gain. Thank you. Where is the UFT/NYSUT commercial?
Yes, posted that the new talking point from Cuomo and his ed deformer backers is that the new system "reduces testing."
Deletehttp://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2015/04/new-cuomodeformer-meme-cuomos.html
I too had to send in a video to NYSED before I got my evaluation. If we have to once again send in videos this can actually be a good thing. Teachers can simply remove difficult kids from the class for that period by sending them to a fellow teacher for the lesson. Teachers who teach multiple classes can pick their "best" class for the observation tape. Teachers can use two or more cameras and edit the footage to remove any footage that might seem damaging to the observation. In other words, there is a ton of ways to game the system if video is used. Lastly, if a person's observation is rated poorly, there MUST be written evidence that shows what the observer of the video found to be ineffective. This means that somebody MUST actually watch it and comment on it in the event that a teacher is to be held on 3020 charges for incompetence due to poor evaluations. To me the biggest question about all of this is that Cuomo is stating that he wants 35% of the evaluation to be counted by the outside observation and only 15% by the observation of the principal. With 35% being a huge weight, will that mean that teachers will be able to get a pre and post observation conference? How could that even be accomplished if it done by video?
ReplyDelete(I meant to say that I too had to send in a video to NYSED before I got my certification)
DeleteSeems the whole jive about feedback, discussion pre- and post-observation, etc. is all gone and now we're down to just the compliance/accountability. This is what they always wanted, but they used the feedback points to try and win people over to the initial change to the system.
DeleteShould I go on a diet prior to my filming?
ReplyDeleteNo, but you can have an "open audition roll call'' for the students that you feel are worthy of being videoed. Also, make sure to get the extremely important parental permission (waivers) for filming.
DeleteYeah, dunno if the genius from Harvard understand the part about needing the waivers and the possibilities of mixing and matching students for an optimal lesson.
Delete"Apparently, NYSED had gotten a copy of "Goodfellas" instead of a videotaped lesson, but it didn't matter for this teacher's certification- the license was approved."
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean I'm funny? Like I'm a clown who's here to amuse you, to make you laugh?... Why am I funny? WHAT THE FUCK IS SO FUNNY ABOUT ME?"
How long before teachers have to act like Tommy from "Goodfellas," before they get some respect from these arrogant, know-nothing, so-called reformers?
"Sorry about your tablecloths, Henry..."
DeleteParents can OPT-OUT of having their children on video.
ReplyDeleteI have heard nothing new from our feckless union NYSUT. Perhaps they're figuring out how they're going to throw us under the bus again.
ReplyDeleteI wrote to Karen Magee days ago. Still no response. NYSUT has completely disappeared when we need it most.
DeleteEmblematic of our union leaders. They'll be back in time for the next election, though. Theirs, I mean.
DeleteYeah. You won't get a response from Magee. I tried that, too.
ReplyDeleteEven Weingarten, who used to respond to my queries, stopped responding to me. I think it's because she never had an answer for my Hochul robocall questions.
DeleteYou would think that NYSUT had a plan of attack ready to go before this budget was passed. I want to know what CONCRETE ACTION this union is going to take and it had better be strong. I have spoken to many teachers and they say they are ready to take action.
ReplyDeleteThe last thing the union leadership wants is teachers ready to take action. They'll ratchet up the protests when they see the need, but then they'll defuse the situation by disappearing. There's a LOT of anger out there right now, which NYSUT could be capitalizing on, but they don't want to. That doesn't serve their purposes.
DeleteI know. I'm not expecting much from them. NYSUT makes me sick.
DeleteI've said it before and I'll say it again. I WANT MY NYSUT DUES BACK!!!
ReplyDeleteRep. Assembly in May. If membership truly mobilized, every local sent reps, a wildcat thing is possible. Raise a noise to your locals folks. It may be awkward w folks you work with, but its time to get pissed.
DeleteMy principal at my high school "campus" already told me that the "campus" principals are going to rotate within the "campus" for observations. They're laughing as much as us. What a mess. What a joke! You voted for Cuomo?
ReplyDeleteBelieve or not-- as much as this Citizen Kane guy knows little about education or what really takes place in the classroom--he does make a valid point about videoing teacher classroom practice---but it never be used by an outside person bureaucrats-who know nothing about your school and want to use them as a 'gotcha' . But, videos can be a useful teaching tool and if done properly, a teacher can learn so much about their practice from a 40 minute lesson. My school gave us an option of VHS video taping our 40 minute lessons (almost 30 years ago). We were told to take the video to watch on a school VCR or take it home to watch at our leisure and self-reflect using a checklist of what was working along with all challenges. We then shared our reflections with our supervisors (and many were excellent as they made time for us)- Any challenges was to be a focus for any subsequent supervisor visit --as part of improving teacher practice- -once again followed by immediate feedback. This was strictly an in-house practice and had protocols-and although they weren't perfect-- at least the video process was fair and non-threatening--unlike the intent of today's reformers.
ReplyDeleteHelp wanted:
ReplyDeleteWork from home to rate teachers.
Too funny.
I'm much more interested in the Tisch troubles.l than in this wingnut. If she's under enough pressure, her choice for SED commssioner may be more teacher friendly. Contrary to Bakeman, I think SED will have a wide latitude in deciding whether certain teachers are even rated on tests. If she's under pressure to choose someone who isn't like King, lots of good teachers may let off of a very unfair hook.
Can NYSUT get our money back????
ReplyDeleteFrom State of Politics:
NYSUT Spends Nearly $600K In First Two Months
APR 8TH - 1:58 PM
Posted by Nick Reisman in Education 0 Comments
Expenses records filed with the state’s lobbying regulator show the education battle show at least $757,093 was spent by both pro-charter school groups or the statewide teachers union during January and February.
The figure is likely to grow when the organizations reveal their March and April lobbying data later in the year with the Joint Commission on Public Ethics.
The New York State United Teachers union alone spent $591,093 during the first two months of the year, with money being spent on travel to Albany for rallies, advertising and in-house printing and postage.
Records show that during the same time period last year, NYSUT spent a fraction of that amount on lobbying costs: $179,350.
NYSUT’s spending came as Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed a series of changes to the state’s education policies, including a new criteria for teacher evaluations, a strengthening of charter schools and making it easier to close schools deemed to be “failing.”
In the end, Cuomo was able to have the Legislature adopt the evaluation criteria that would require at least one classroom test, plus in-classroom observations for teachers.
The budget includes a receivership plan for struggling schools and makes it more difficult for teachers to obtain tenure.
Overall, the education budget increased school aid by $1.3 billion.
NYSUT reported spending $246,614 on advertising purchases through media consultant Shorr Johnson Magnus. An additional $165,000 was paid to Visuality for advertising expenses, along with $30,000 for website development.
The Miram Group, a consultant firm, was paid $30,000 in February by NYSUT.
The prominent pro-charter and education reform groups did not file itemized spending reports in January and February.
Northeast Charter Schools Network reported spending $16,000, while the Success Academy network retained Albany Strategic Advisors for $120,000 and Bender Cantone for $6,000.
StudentsFirstNY, a group that has been aligned with Cuomo on his education reform measures, reported spending $30,000.
Families For Excellent Schools, which held a massive outdoor rally and concert at the Capitol in March, did not report any lobbying expenses in January and February.
They did not get much bang for their buck. They should hire more effective lobbyists. I may be available shortly. Should I check out some stylish suits?
DeleteYes, posted about this too. I was begging to run strong ads to take Cuomo's numbers down to the Mendoza line. In a war for survival, you've got to go with all you've got. But not NYSUT or the UFT. Half-assed all the way.
DeleteTisch's ass is grass and the opt out movement is the lawn mower, as it were. Long Islanders start your lawn mowers and trim this petulant obnoxious plutocrat.
ReplyDeleteAre you sure this wasn't an informational text on the 3rd grade CCSS test?
DeleteHere's the rub: do they look at every video? I met someone that accidentally sent her wedding video in and SED wouldn't return the video.
ReplyDelete