Is it any wonder that the teaching profession no longer attracts the best and the brightest talent? With an achievement gap that is a national shame, we need to gain and then retain the most qualified teachers we can. Our kids need great teachers. Focusing, almost exclusively, on getting rid of bad teachers while ignoring the problem of keeping good ones does not serve our children. No one argues that ineffective teachers have to go. The equation has two sides though. Recruitment and retention, almost universally ignored by these "reformers" is the other side.
The latest onslaught against the teaching profession comes from the group Put Kids First Minneapolis. These are progressive, noble, heartfelt folks. They are trying to do noble, progressive, heartfelt things. They are also pounding another nail into the teaching profession with their contract on teachers. The contract, has several good ideas, but there is no context or balance.
Put Kids First comes off as just another group trying to reform the human resources office, not the education classroom. They arrogantly claim that teacher contracts have always put adult needs ahead of kids. They say this as if support and well being of teachers can be divorced from their ability to teachers.
Imagine there are three major problems with the teaching profession. One, attracting top quality and talent of new professionals. Two, retaining those top professionals. Lastly, getting rid of inefficient teachers. All three problems need solving. Of the three, which will have the biggest impact on our kids? Which one should we focus on?
There is absolutely zero correlation between due process rights, collective bargaining, and seniority rules and student achievement. Zero. On the other hand, there is a huge correlation between teacher turnover and student achievement. There is also a strong correlation between expert teacher staff and student achievement.
For example, "For instance, black and Hispanic students are twice as likely as white students to be taught by out-of-field teachers (Education Trust 2008)". It's all well and good to get rid of bad teachers, but there is obviously not a flood of qualified teachers trying to get into these urban schools. You can treat teachers like indentured servants, and force them to teach where they don't want to, or you can entice them to. Right now, the reformers are making it almost insane for anyone to want to teach in the toughest schools.
Kids First claims to have the research, so let's take a look. My claim is that there is zero correlation between unions and achievement, therefore there is no good reason to try and diminish teacher rights. I make no claim that unions cause achievement, but they certainly have not harmed achievement.
The pink elephant rule of public relations is that the best way to win on the subject of pink elephants is to never discuss them. As soon as the subject comes up as in "There is no such thing as pink elephants," you are all thinking well you simply put a faint red dye in the washing water of a white elephant or some other strategy. So when Michele Bachmann is publicly saying "I'm a serious candidate for the presidency of the United States," then she is bringing up the very subject that she wishes to avoid.
NBC host Jimmy Fallon apologized to Michelle Bachmann for a song played on his program introducing her. Michele Bachmann could have ignored it. Instead Michele Bachmann made a news media fuss which meant a whole second day of major media coverage. Because of that coverage, people who would have never heard about the song, now do know about the song and its name "Lyin' A** B*****." Maybe she plans to use it as fundraiser incentive. Or maybe the public relations theory the Bachmann campaigns is following is that all coverage is good coverage.
Maybe Bachmann just wants the limelight and will do anything to get it because it the last debate, her frustration is leaking out.
Bachmann kicked off the debate on a weird, martyrish, note when she offered to pour water for the other candidates, joking "I've poured a lot of water in my time."
These are schools with more than 90 percent of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, more than 90 percent are minority students, and more than 90 percent of students met high academic standards on the state's Standards of Learning tests.
Where are these mythical 90/90/90 schools, what are they doing, and why aren't we doing it? The first two answers can be found in the article, "High Performance in High Poverty Schools". The last answer is a little trickier. You see, our urban schools in Minnesota are trying to implement the strategies from the 90/90/90 philosophy.
The headline of this article is somewhat misleading in that the 90/90/90 strategies are not a silver bullet. They take time, and they are not a one shot deal. It is a way of operating in a consistent, and habitual manner with a laser focus on high student achievement. The biggest hurdle to this program is that it requires an entire paradigm shift in how we operate as professionals.
For centuries, literally, teachers have operated as autonomous contractors in their individual classroom kingdoms. Principals have operated as building administrators, not instructional leaders. If we are going to make big changes, the very fiber of what it means to teach is going to have to change.
The problem is that today's "reformers", progressive and conservative, Democrat and Republican, are all stuck in a 19th century paradigm of teaching. What works in these 90/90/90 schools are teams of teachers working in collaboration where all students belong to all teachers.
Meanwhile, the reformers want us to go back to the days when we pretended each teacher had "their" students, as if no other teacher had an impact on the child's education. Teachers have to change, which is hard enough as it is, but the reformers want us back in our isolated classroom kingdoms, where we are ineffective. Teachers working in collaboration is the most powerful reform to come around in a century, yet we want to focus on the individual.
The report about the impact of this summers government shutdown is out. Minnesota Republicans must be so pleased that the media just can't stop talking about how little damage it did. $65 million doesn't sound like a lot when you consider the billions and trillions the Republicans run up in debt when they're in charge.
That, of course, is a steaming pile of crap.
19,000 state workers weren't paid. Republicans always ask for everyone else to sacrifice so that the 1% get their goodies.
Here's a press release I received in my inbox from MAPE that sums it all up pretty well:
"The $65 million dollars that the Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner cited as the reason there was minimal cost from the state shutdown was due to the sacrifice of 19,000 public employees. Make no mistake, the cost of covering the shutdown was taken directly from the pocketbooks of state workers. And, let me be clear, the impact on our laid off workers was not minimal.
In addition, I find it troubling to read that administration officials claim that taxpayers were not really affected by the shutdown - have they forgotten that public employees pay taxes?
Let's not forget that the shutdown was caused by GOP legislators who refused to listen to the majority of Minnesotans who wanted taxes raised on millionaires. They were in charge, they did not lead, but they did make sure to receive their paychecks. It's time for the political posturing to end and for the GOP Majority to work in the best interests of the citizens of our state."
Sometimes Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) likes something that she heard or something that she made up so much that she'll continue to repeat it regardless of how many news organizations debunk her claim and no matter how many journalists question her about the veracity of her claim. In particular, Bachmann just loves her conspiracy theory that Iran has said they'll attack Israel once they get a nuclear weapon.
Its possible that she believes very strongly that Iran would nuke Israel if they could. But that's different. She's not saying "in my opinion" she saying that they have said it.
There were a bunch of dubious claims, but I'll just highlight one questionable statement that came from Michele Bachmann. Its something that she's said before and its has been challenged on and it in regards to Iran and their intentions with respect to nuclear weapons. Here's what she said:
BACHMANN: "Iran announced that they plan to strike Israel. They've stated as recently as August, just before President Ahmadinejad came to the UN General Assembly. He said that he wanted to eridicate Israel from the face of the earth. He has said that if he has a nuclear weapon, he will use it to wipe Israel off the face of the earth, he will use it against the United States of America."
That statement is just plain incorrect. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, has never said that he would use a nuclear weapon against Israel or against the United States. In fact, Iran has said over and over and over again that they have no intention of obtaining a nuclear weapon.
(NPR)
With her new book out, Michele Bachmann: Case for Conviction, how much more evidence do people need before labeling her a chronic and unrepentant liar?
Certainly not the Star Tribune. She emitted three new conspiracy theories this week and repeated her Iran-will-nuke-Israel lie yet again this week during a debate. All the Strib could report on was her plucky campaign speechwriter toiling on despite the irrelevance of her campaign. The point is, the Strib has always missed the boat on Bachmann reporting and will continue to do so.
The special election to fill the Minnesota Senate seat vacated by Larry Pogemiller took another turn since I posted last night.
First, the Minnesota chapter of the Sierra Club endorsed Peter Wagenius, Policy Director for Minneapolis Mayor RT Rybak. Wagenius faces Kari Dziedzic, Jacob Frey, Mohamud Noor and Paul Ostrow in the Dec. 6th DFL primary.
The Sierra Club North Star Chapter has endorsed Peter Wagenius in the upcoming special election primary on December 6 for Minnesota Senate District 59.
"We believe that Peter's experience and dedicated advocacy on environmental issues make him uniquely qualified to handle the job of Minnesota State Senator," said Margaret Levin, State Director of the Sierra Club North Star Chapter, "Peter Wagenius will be an outstanding representative for the people of Senate District 59, and we look forward to working with him as our newest State Senator."
The primary election in Senate District 59 is scheduled for December 6, 2011. The general election will be held on January 10, 2012. Senate District 59 includes all of Northeast and Southeast Minneapolis, as well as both the East Bank and West Bank campuses of the University of Minnesota and the surrounding Cedar/Riverside neighborhood.
(from the Sierra club's press release email)
Secondly, Hussein Samatar is supporting Wagenius. This is an interesting development. Samatar is co-hosting a fundraiser for Peter. Samatar has a close allegiance to Rybak so supporting Peter isn't a complete surprise. This will make Noor's hope to have the Somali vote unified behind him far more difficult than it might have otherwise been. Samatar is a prominent figure in the community and is the first Somali ever elected to office in the United States.
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton recently ordered a vote on whether some daycare workers would be able to unionize. A hearing provided a forum for some dissent, or at least concern:
Gov. Mark Dayton's order for a vote on whether some in-home child care providers can join a union came under attack Monday from providers and advocates who say most of those affected will not be able to vote.
"All providers will be affected by unionization, and all should have a right to vote," Katy Chase, executive director of the Minnesota Licensed Family Child Care Association, told a legislative hearing.
Unsurprisingly, Republicans seem to be on their side.
Her position found support among Republicans on the committee, particularly when Josh Tilsen, commissioner of the Bureau of Mediation Services, which will conduct the election, said he was unsure if decisions made by the unions could affect other providers...
A spokeswoman for Dayton said the governor limited the election to providers who have a relationship to the state via the subsidy program, and said the "meet and confer" process would not affect other providers without legislative changes and full discussion and debate. She said Dayton has no plans to amend his order.
I'm not accusing anybody of being a Republican tool. This is somewhat more complex, logistically, than trying to unionize all the workers at one factory, for example. Some people may not be cognizant of the fact that nobody will be forced to join the union, if it happens. And, the relentless anti-union propaganda, to which Americans are continually being exposed in corporate media and elsewhere, is undoubtedly having an effect.
Friday of last week was the deadline for parties in Minnesota's redistricting lawsuit to submit their maps. Three groups submitted maps; the Britton, Hippert (GOP) and Martin (DFL) intervenors. On Monday I went over the partisan composition of the three maps and yesterday I went over the five metro area districts. Today I'm going to discuss the way the three outstate districts were drawn.
Before I get into the maps I'll once again recap the partisan numbers with this nifty color coded excel table.
This is a table of the differences in the average Democratic vote %, color coded so that the districts that get the most Republican are redder and the ones that get the most Democratic are bluer.
I think the SD59 special election primary race is fascinating. First off, the primary winner will win the general because this is Minneapolis. Secondly, SD59 decided not to hold a endorsing convention. There are 5 legitimate candidates all vying to replace Larry Pogemiller in the Minnesota Senate. The candidates are Kari Dziedzic, Jacob Frey, Mohamud Noor, Paul Ostrow and Peter Wagenius.
Dziedzic is the clear frontrunner (I explain why below) and normally in any other district, the campaign she has put together would be enough to guarantee victory. However, Noor has a shot if the other candidates can peel enough voters away from Dziedzic because of the rise of the Somali community in Minneapolis politics. And knowing Wagenius, Ostrow and a little bit about Frey, they'll all work really hard.
Last weekend, I drove up Marshall St NE on an errand and the Dziedzic lawn signs are everywhere. These signs are just for the primary, they say Vote Dec. 6, and everyone knows [cough] signs win elections [/cough].
More importantly, she's got the Dziedzic family name and Brian Rice on her side. Rice is the attorney who represents the city police union, firefighter's union, the park board and so many interests that I've lost count. The end result of her family name, Rice and her own abilities is she has raised a huge amount of money. Her supporters list is a massive laundry list of who's who in Nordeast politics. From the current City Council Member Kevin Reich (Ward 1, Nordeast) and Council President Barb Johnson (North Side) to Hennepin Co. Commissioner Peter McLaughlin to former Mayor Sharon Sayles Belton ... to name but a few. Women Winning, the Building Trades union and the Firefighters (local and state affiliates) have endorsed her.
She's the insider candidate with the political machine behind her. Its her race to lose. She's got nearly all the institutional support she needs and should know how to run a campaign in SD59. And this would be more than enough in any other district.
Her only competition for endorsements is Somali activist Mohamud Noor. He's got MAPE and the Teacher's. Both sides are going to try and get the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation to endorse them. No endorsement is more likely. We should know in a few days, apparently.
UPDATE: The MRLF decided not to endorse in the SD59 race. Also, I forgot that Stonewall DFL endorsed Noor. [/UPDATE]
Dziedzic and former Minneapolis Council Member Paul Ostrow are going to battle it out for the votes in the northern half of SD59. I think that this particular battle is critical in this race.
Why? Take a look at a map of the district. Did you notice the bottom of the map? Cedar Riverside neighborhood is part of SD59. That area has the Cedar Riverside towers and there's also that tower south of Hwy 94 but north of Franklin Ave. There's an awful lot of Somalis living in this neighborhood as well as strewn throughout NordEast Minneapolis. Many of them are citizens now. Like thousands. And this is why Noor has a chance.
Strangely, Peter Wagenius may not have that much of a chance in this race. He's well known in Seward, Prospect Park and around the University, but has few connections in the heart of the district up north. Among politicos he's well known as part of the RT Rybak brain trust and as a permanent fixture in the Mayor's Administration, but that doesn't mean your average Nordeast primary voter will know who he is.
Unfortunately, Jacob Frey may have picked the wrong year to run. This short campaign is going to hurt his chances. He needs a full campaign season to build up his name recognition. He started out too far behind in my opinion. And this is unfortunate as he sounds like he'd be a great State Senator.
Let's kick some numbers around. I'm going to guess that 3,000 of the regulars who always turn out to vote in Nordeast primaries are going to vote. If Ostrow can peel away enough off Dziedzic, Mahamud Noor might win. I'm going to guess that neither Wagenius nor Frey break 500. If they do, those are votes that Dziedzic didn't get. If Dziedzic were to pull 50% in any other district or around 1,500 votes in this district, she would would win by a healthy margin in any other year. But not this year. She may need to two-thirds or more this year.
Here's why: few Somalis are part of the normal primary voting pool in which the other four are swimming. Noor brings in voters from outside the normal pool -- Somalis. Considering he got 1,600+ votes out of SD59 precincts in the last School Board primary and these were primarily Somali voters, he only needs to find and turn out a few hundred more Somalis and add a handful of regular voters per precinct to break 2,000 votes. 2,000 might easily be enough to win this primary and win the Senate seat.
From an interview with Michele Bachmann, which has just appeared in "Christianity Today" ("a magazine of evangelical conviction.")
On the basis of society:
...the underpinning of society is religious faith. Morals are built on religious faith. Virtue is built on morality and influences a culture.
On her worldview:
...For me, I am driven by a biblical worldview, just like the Declaration of Independence is: "We are endowed by our creator with inalienable rights.
"
On waterboarding:
..One thing I think people fail to understand about waterboarding is that people are not injured or killed in that process. It is an uncomfortable process, but people don't receive permanent injuries, nor are they killed in the process.
If Democrats are going to take back the State House, we have to venture into more difficult territory. Last weekend, Tom DeGree announced his candidacy for 56A(pending) in the Lake Elmo area. With jobs and fiscal concerns at the top of the list with his voters, Tom DeGree has the background to be a better leader. He has the skill to bring 56A back to prosperity.
Tom has a degree in business from the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Along with his partner, he has run a successful business for eight years. In fact, they just tripled the capacity of their restaurant, the Wilde Roast Cafe. As an employer of over seventy employees, Tom knows what it is like to run a small business. He understands first hand the policy's that can help Minnesota businesses flourish.
Tom is also heavily invested in producing the next generation of leaders. He has taught in the Saint Paul School District for sixteen years. He has advanced education degrees from both Saint Thomas and Hamline Universities. The combination of his business acumen and educational devotion make Tom a formidable candidate in this district.
Candidates like Tom need our support to flip these districts. Although 56A leans conservative, they have had Democratic representation as recently as the 2006 and 2008 cycles. In fact, conservative star Michele Bachmann was handily beaten by El Tinklenberg by 6% in Lake Elmo. Tom is the type of fiscally responsible and socially open minded candidate that can win in 56A. We need bold steps, and we need bold leaders. This is a district we have to have.
As a member of the House of Representatives I will work to assure businesses have an environment where they can thrive, and our youth continue to have quality educational opportunities. Tom Degree
To learn more about Tom Degree you can visit his website @ tomdegree.com
To learn about campaign events and fundraisers you can visit his Facebook page @ Degree For House
Disclosure: I am neither a paid or volunteer part of the DeGree campaign. He is a prominent member of my church and I support his candidacy.
The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers - Local 59 today announced its endorsement of Mohamud Noor for Minnesota State Senate. Noor is running in the DFL special primary on December 6th.
"The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers is very excited to endorse Mohamud Noor. He will work collaboratively to help close the achievement gap in our schools," said Lynn Nordgren, MFT Local 59 President. "As a parent, as a community leader and public employee, he has demonstrated that he cares deeply for the well-being of children and families. Mohamud understands that parents, teachers and elected leaders all must come together to address achievement gap and promote educational success for all students."
MFT Local 59 represents over 3,000 teachers working in schools throughout Minneapolis. MFT 59 is an affiliate of Education Minnesota, the largest union in the state, representing over 70,000 educators. MFT members include teachers, educational aides and other staff positions in K-12 schools.
"I fundamentally believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to succeed," said Mohamud Noor. "I look forward to working with teachers and educators to address the inequities in our system. As a community, we share the belief that all children have a right to a quality education. Addressing the achievement gap will be a top priority for me in the Legislature."
Mohamud Noor lives in Northeast Minneapolis with his wife, Fariyah Del, and their three young children. They are proud Minneapolis Public Schools parents and Fariyah works as an educational aide at Lyndale Elementary School.
The report about the 
... news you'll never see in the Star Tribune
The special election to fill the Minnesota Senate seat vacated by Larry Pogemiller took another turn since I posted last night.
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton recently 
Friday of last week was the deadline for parties in Minnesota's redistricting lawsuit to submit their maps. Three groups submitted maps; the Britton, Hippert (GOP) and Martin (DFL) intervenors. On Monday I went over the 
Dziedzic is the clear frontrunner (I explain why below) and normally in any other district, the campaign she has put together would be enough to guarantee victory. However, Noor has a shot if the other candidates can peel enough voters away from Dziedzic because of the rise of the Somali community in Minneapolis politics. And knowing Wagenius, Ostrow and a little bit about Frey, they'll all work really hard.
Her only competition for endorsements is Somali activist Mohamud Noor. He's got MAPE and the Teacher's. Both sides are going to try and get the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation to endorse them. No endorsement is more likely. We should know in a few days, apparently.
Dziedzic and former Minneapolis Council Member Paul Ostrow are going to battle it out for the votes in the northern half of SD59. I think that this particular battle is critical in this race.
Strangely, Peter Wagenius may not have that much of a chance in this race. He's well known in Seward, Prospect Park and around the University, but has few connections in the heart of the district up north. Among politicos he's well known as part of the RT Rybak brain trust and as a permanent fixture in the Mayor's Administration, but that doesn't mean your average Nordeast primary voter will know who he is.
Unfortunately, Jacob Frey may have picked the wrong year to run. This short campaign is going to hurt his chances. He needs a full campaign season to build up his name recognition. He started out too far behind in my opinion. And this is unfortunate as he sounds like he'd be a great State Senator.
Tom is also heavily invested in producing the next generation of leaders. He has taught in the Saint Paul School District for sixteen years. He has advanced education degrees from both Saint Thomas and Hamline Universities. The combination of his business acumen and educational devotion make Tom a formidable candidate in this district.
