Sun Feb 7, 2010 at 12:24 PMBy: Huberman Gimmicks! Teachers can call BS when they see it! Huberman to issue performance management booklet The problem is that the way school is structured. Huberman and the CAO's know that a longer instructional day is needed. They have known that for some time. Duncan didn't do anything about it. Instead they chose to buy expensive programs like Princeton and Cambridge, to give the impression that the board is doing something. There is something wrong with the way school is organized. Schools should be about building professional communities. It is about collaboration on the essentials. Any successful business person understands that quality time necessary to collaborate, plan, strategize, evaluate performance, do peer reviews, etc. Huberman should take money away from his gimmicks and move them over to where it is necessary, in the schools and classrooms! We don't need gimmicks!

Mon Feb 8, 2010 at 2:12 PMBy: zeta Huberman to issue performance management booklet I know that teachers are feeling the pressure of getting scores up. When my school closed I made a promise to myself that never again would test scores be used against our people, our students and parents at any school I worked at.

I developed a program within my classroom to address the social-emotional needs of the students which drove the capacity for them to receive instruction in a manner that benefited all. The result of that was on a annual basis I was getting 2-3 years growth. The final
year, my scores rose from in reading and math 30-40 points.

I then went to become a Lead teacher. I wanted to work with children in the most "at risk" communities to see if I could do it school- wide. It worked like a charm in one year we moved the entire school 22 points and got off probation. My position was closed
and I was black balled by the new administration that came in.

They actually did not want that school to come off probation because the AIO hated the principal and wanted her to fail . Also they wanted the land and wanted to turn the school around. Their plans were foiled.

The message is this. Enjoy working with the children. Don't buy into the test score hype. It's a scam and even if you get the scores uo they will close the school for under-utilization or some other reason.

When it's all said and done I am so happy that for over twenty years I was able to work with the most wonderful group of little people I have ever known. I was able to help mold them and had a ball doing it. That, Huberman , Duncan or Daley cannot take away from me. He cannot take the wonderful years of teaching I had teaching on the South before all African American teachers were demonized and attacked by REN 2010 hate filled policies.

Teachers Teach and fight for the right to do so. Find any opportunity you can to reach out and deal with the needs of your students. Try to give them what they want but not at the expense of the children.