Showing posts with label btr. Show all posts
Showing posts with label btr. Show all posts
3/20/12
The Hiatus Is Over
I took an unexpected hiatus from blogging the last few days. Why you ask? Because my computer died. Well, the hard drive died. But, because I back everything up and because I am a PC guy, all I had to do was drop a new hard drive in the machine and reload everything.
Done.
The hardest part is the time it takes, especially getting stuff back down to earth from the cloud. But well worth it.
Make back ups often. Be your own genius.
Also, don't forget that today at 5pm (PST) I am playing some cool music on the radio show!
TFT Plays Some Killer Music Again 03/20 by The Frustrated Teacher TFT | Blog Talk Radio
3/13/12
TFT's #SOSChat Radio Is Fully Funded!
We did it! You all donated and now I have a Premium account at Blog Talk Radio. Thank you so very much. I can now host whenever I want and for up to 2 hours! Awesome!
Many thanks to all who donated. In a year, I will have to ask for donations again, but don't let that stop you from donating today, or again! Do it frequently!
For the inaugural show I have invited Michael Butz (a fellow Deadhead and the reason for the picture above) to talk with me about education reform, especially as touted by Michelle Rhee and Students First. We will have an hour to talk and many guests have been invited to call in. We have a little community over at the SF FB page, and this show is an opportunity to actually speak with each other.
It was tough getting Mike to come on. I had to prove to him it would be okay. He now knows it will be fun. Good for him! He's right!
So, set the date: March 21st at 7pm PST.
3/3/12
Help Me Get A Premium Account At Blog Talk Radio (Updated)
A premium account would allow me 2-hour shows during prime-time with Skype calling available, as well as toll-free calling.
My radio show is growing. I began a new feature I call #SOSChat Kid Radio to get student voices out there to be heard. Alex just appeared yesterday. And second-career teacher and blogging partner David Russell appeared last week for a very interesting discussion of the Common Core, mastery learning and other stuff. He's sort of awesome.
Upcoming I have some great shows: Principal Brian Killeen of Florida will be on March 6; Dr. Michael Marder and I have been trying to set a date and we are close; Mike Butz, a fellow commentator over at the Students First Facebook page has finally decided to come on as well.
With all the interest now being shown in my show I really want a premium account. It costs $400/year, an amount I just don't have.
Here's the cool part: an anonymous donor has offered to match the next $100 in donations. Please consider a donation to the cause; help get the word out about education reform and how it is damaging our public schools, and therefore our future, not to mention our children.
Donations can be made by clicking on the TFT/Paypal logo just under this blog's title, right there near the top of the blog, or the little Donate button below.
Thank you in advance.
Bonus: Donors can be anonymous or I can recognize you publicly. Let me know if you want recognition. The default is for you to be anonymous. Donors who contribute $100 or more get a free TFT mug. Of course, you can't be anonymous if you want the mug--I'll need your name and address. I could just send you a picture of the mug...
2/22/12
We Need To Hear The Voices Of The Students!
Yesterday there was a twitter chat --#SOSChat-- that I spent a little time checking out and participating in. It was a chance for those of us concerned with education reform and the damage it's doing to get together to figure out how best to move forward; what will SOS look like? What should we do next? Where should we focus? It's the kind of stuff a grassroots organization needs to do, and it was extremely helpful.
For a while now I have been doing Blog Talk Radio, both my own shows and as a guest on other shows (there's a link at the top of this blog) as a way to spread the word about the dangers of the current reform proposals and the nonsense Michelle Rhee spouts about LIFO and tenure, among other things. Doing the radio shows is fun and a great way to meet new folks and have meaningful discussions and disseminate information.
A while back I had the thought that it would be a good idea to include the voices of actual kids --students-- in the mix. I never really tried to do it. I talked with my 14 year old and some of his friends and I know they have opinions about reform, but they are 14 and getting them to commit was something I didn't even really try very hard to do, so it never happened. My bad.
Well, after the #SOSChat I realized that we anti-reformers are pretty much all over the place in terms of strategy ideas to spread the word. There are a million suggestions that I won't go over here. But there are two suggestions I have that occurred to me as I was participating in the chat:
But that's not all. I want young kids too! Yes, like 2nd grade! When I taught 2nd grade I always had a few kids who could easily do their own radio show if given the chance. Surely there are some young kids who could handle a half-hour interview.
I will need parent input and permission. It can all be done over the phone and by email.
Are you interested in being interviewed? Are you a parent of a student who might be interested? Get in touch.
For a while now I have been doing Blog Talk Radio, both my own shows and as a guest on other shows (there's a link at the top of this blog) as a way to spread the word about the dangers of the current reform proposals and the nonsense Michelle Rhee spouts about LIFO and tenure, among other things. Doing the radio shows is fun and a great way to meet new folks and have meaningful discussions and disseminate information.
A while back I had the thought that it would be a good idea to include the voices of actual kids --students-- in the mix. I never really tried to do it. I talked with my 14 year old and some of his friends and I know they have opinions about reform, but they are 14 and getting them to commit was something I didn't even really try very hard to do, so it never happened. My bad.
Well, after the #SOSChat I realized that we anti-reformers are pretty much all over the place in terms of strategy ideas to spread the word. There are a million suggestions that I won't go over here. But there are two suggestions I have that occurred to me as I was participating in the chat:
1. Numbers. Numbers matter. Stephen Krashen made the point that Lady GaGa has 2 million followers and Diane Ravitch only in the thousands. I agree that's ridiculous, considering there are two million teachers in America. Want to impress? Get Diane's follower count up into the millions. Krashen's too.So I want to interview public school students on Blog Talk Radio. I want teenagers to tell the public what they see their teachers dealing with. I want to hear what the teachers do for these kids, or what they don't do. I want kids to tell me what they like about school and what they think should change. I want to hear honest assessments of what life on the ground in public school is like for teenagers.
I have a feeling there are about a million teachers who aren't on twitter. Find them. Get them on twitter, even if just to Follow Diane and then never tweet again.
2. The public think teachers suck--in the aggregate. People like their own teacher, think less of other teachers in the school, even less of others in the district, even less of others in the state, and even less of teachers nationally. It's just like congress where you like your congressperson but hate congress.
Therefore, I have determined, our voices are pretty much moot. They are not really that helpful. We need the voices of others--a proxy. Parents are a good proxy.
Kids are better. Interview kids.
But that's not all. I want young kids too! Yes, like 2nd grade! When I taught 2nd grade I always had a few kids who could easily do their own radio show if given the chance. Surely there are some young kids who could handle a half-hour interview.
I will need parent input and permission. It can all be done over the phone and by email.
Are you interested in being interviewed? Are you a parent of a student who might be interested? Get in touch.
2/18/12
TFT Interviews Dr. Kevin Foster on 2-21-2012
Kevin Michael Foster is an educational anthropologist and a graduate faculty member at The University of Texas at Austin. He holds appointments in African and African Diaspora Studies, Curriculum & Instruction, and Educational Administration.
He currently directs ICUSP (The Institute for Community, University and School Partnerships) and splits his time between campus and the central Texas community.
He is the founder of COBRA (the Community of Brothers in Revolutionary Alliance) and co-founder of VOICES (Verbally Outspoken Individuals Creating Empowered Sistas). These programs serve black, brown and other students in low-income schools and have a near 100% college going rate among members.
Dr. Foster has received numerous awards for his work, but received greatest professional satisfaction from an invitation to serve as an Executive Branch Policy Fellow in Washington DC. He served at the National Science Foundation from 2009-2010 before returning to Austin to be with his family and local community.
Kevin's Twitter: @kevmfos
Kevin's blog: http://fosteringthefuture.blogspot.com
9/17/11
Why So Few Posts?
I have a new job. Not enough folks have the money to hire me as a consultant, even with my sliding scale of fees, so I took a teaching job. Now that I am working for someone else I have much less time for blogging. It's kind of a bummer, but a steady income is not a bummer.
There does seem to be lots of movement in favor of questioning the current edreform policies and ideas spouted by know-nothings like Rhee, Gates and the rest (yeah, you too Tilson). Rhee's organization, StudentsFirst, is now touting partnerships with teachers because they realize that they need the support of teachers if they are going to get their agenda enacted. What they don't seem to realize is that hiring TFA quitters and former teachers who have chosen to leave kids and become policy gurus does nothing for Rhee and her organization's desire to become loved by actual teachers who have remained inside classrooms despite Rhee's unfounded vitriol against us.
Even Arne Duncan is trying to get on our good side by saying we should double teacher salaries. This sounds nice, but is just more of the same teacher-bashing--this time it's just veiled. There is no money to do such a thing, and even if there was enough money, higher-paid teachers cannot overcome the devastating effects of poverty on our low-scoring students. Hence, offering more money is a veiled claim that poorly paid teachers are slouching on the job. Um, no, we're not. Fuck you.
The movement to opt out of standardized testing is also gaining traction. We have seen some prominent educators publicly claim that they have opted their own kids out of the state test. If my kid's mom is cool with it, we will also opt our son out. The oligarchs don't need or deserve all that data on my kid. They are abusive as it is, and I don't need their abuse aimed directly at my son. Fuck those assholes.
My radio show on BTR is also suffering from my new job, as I can no longer do it in the afternoon. If I am to do more radio I must do it during prime-time, which requires a pro account that I cannot afford, hence the donation widget in my sidebar on your left there. I would love to do more radio, and if you want me to do more, I need your financial help to do it. Consider a donation, won't you? I am in contact with a few interesting education leaders who are interested in interviews, and I think they would be a valuable addition to the counter-reform movement that is gaining steam. Anyone who donates is invited to be a guest on the show!
Remember, poverty is the reason for the achievement gap. We've known it for 60 years, and we've been in denial for that long. The reformers have done a good job defeating this idea by saying poverty is not an excuse. They are right. Poverty is not an excuse, it's a goddamned diagnosis.
There does seem to be lots of movement in favor of questioning the current edreform policies and ideas spouted by know-nothings like Rhee, Gates and the rest (yeah, you too Tilson). Rhee's organization, StudentsFirst, is now touting partnerships with teachers because they realize that they need the support of teachers if they are going to get their agenda enacted. What they don't seem to realize is that hiring TFA quitters and former teachers who have chosen to leave kids and become policy gurus does nothing for Rhee and her organization's desire to become loved by actual teachers who have remained inside classrooms despite Rhee's unfounded vitriol against us.
Even Arne Duncan is trying to get on our good side by saying we should double teacher salaries. This sounds nice, but is just more of the same teacher-bashing--this time it's just veiled. There is no money to do such a thing, and even if there was enough money, higher-paid teachers cannot overcome the devastating effects of poverty on our low-scoring students. Hence, offering more money is a veiled claim that poorly paid teachers are slouching on the job. Um, no, we're not. Fuck you.
The movement to opt out of standardized testing is also gaining traction. We have seen some prominent educators publicly claim that they have opted their own kids out of the state test. If my kid's mom is cool with it, we will also opt our son out. The oligarchs don't need or deserve all that data on my kid. They are abusive as it is, and I don't need their abuse aimed directly at my son. Fuck those assholes.
My radio show on BTR is also suffering from my new job, as I can no longer do it in the afternoon. If I am to do more radio I must do it during prime-time, which requires a pro account that I cannot afford, hence the donation widget in my sidebar on your left there. I would love to do more radio, and if you want me to do more, I need your financial help to do it. Consider a donation, won't you? I am in contact with a few interesting education leaders who are interested in interviews, and I think they would be a valuable addition to the counter-reform movement that is gaining steam. Anyone who donates is invited to be a guest on the show!
Remember, poverty is the reason for the achievement gap. We've known it for 60 years, and we've been in denial for that long. The reformers have done a good job defeating this idea by saying poverty is not an excuse. They are right. Poverty is not an excuse, it's a goddamned diagnosis.
8/23/11
TFT Welcomes Dr. Stephen Krashen
On Wednesday, August 24th at 3:30 I will be interviewing Dr. Stephen Krashen on Blog Talk Radio! I have lifted the Wikipedia information about the good Doctor and placed it here so you can get an idea of who he is, and what he has done, as well as why he should be heard.
He is a research machine.
I think I will ask him about his 1978 Venice Beach Open Incline Press/Nonsensical 100 meter dash win.
Hope you'll listen!
From WikipediaWork
Dr. Krashen has published more than 350 papers and books, contributing to the fields of second language acquisition, bilingual education, and reading. He is credited with introducing various influential concepts and terms in the study of second language acquisition, including the acquisition-learning hypothesis, the input hypothesis, the monitor hypothesis, the affective filter, and the natural order hypothesis. Most recently, Krashen promotes the use of free voluntary reading during second language acquisition, which he says "is the most powerful tool we have in language education, first and second."
Awards
- 1982 : winner of the Mildenberger Award, given for his book, Second Language Acquisition and Second Language Learning (Prentice-Hall)
- 1985 : co-winner of the Pimsleur Award, given by the American Council of Foreign Language Teachers for the best published article
- 1986 : his paper "Lateralisation, language learning and the critical period" was selected as Citation Class by Current Contents
- 1993 : the Distinguished Presentation related to School Library Media Centers, was awarded to by editors of the School Library Media Annual
- 2005 : Krashen was inducted into the International Reading Association's Reading Hall of Fame.
- 2005 : elected at the National Association for Bilingual Education Executive Board.
Criticism
As education policy in Krashen’s home state of California became increasingly hostile to bilingualism, he responded with research critical of the new policies, public speaking engagements, and with letters written to newspaper editors. During the campaign to enact an anti-bilingual education law in California in 1998, known as Proposition 227, Krashen campaigned aggressively in public forums, media talk shows, and conducted numerous interviews with journalists writing on the subject. After other anti-bilingual education campaigns and attempts to enact regressive language education policies surfaced around the country, by 2006 it was estimated that Krashen had submitted well over 1,000 letters to editors.
In a front-page New Times Los Angeles article published just a week before the vote on Proposition 227, Jill Stewart penned an aggressive article titled 'Krashen Burn' in which she characterized Krashen as wedded to the monied interests of a "multi-million-dollar bilingual education industry." Stewart critically spoke of Krashen as the father of bilingual education. Krashen has been widely criticized in conservative and nativist political circles due to his influence on the field of language minority education, second language acquisition, and his efforts to educate the public on matters related to English language learners in schools.
Krashen has been an advocate for a more activist role by researchers in combating the public's misconceptions about bilingual education. Addressing the question of how to explain public opposition to bilingual education, Krashen queried, "Is it due to a stubborn disinformation campaign on the part of newspapers and other news media to deliberately destroy bilingual education? Or is it due to the failure of the profession to present its side of the story to reporters? There is a great deal of anecdotal evidence in support of the latter." Continuing, Krashen wrote, "Without a serious, dedicated and organized campaign to explain and defend bilingual education at the national level, in a very short time we will have nothing left to defend."
Personal
Dr. Krashen also holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and was the winner of the 1978 Venice Beach Open Incline Press/Nonsensical 100 meter dash Championship. He spent two years in Ethiopia teaching English and science with the Peace Corps.
8/17/11
Coming Up On TFT's Blog Talk Radio Show...
TFT Welcomes Peter Hooke
- by The Frustrated Teacher
- in Education
- on Fri, Aug 19, 2011 03:30PM
TFT Welcomes Sahila ChangeBringer
- by The Frustrated Teacher
- in Education
- on Mon, Aug 22, 2011 03:30PM
TFT Welcomes Dr. Stephen Krashen
- by The Frustrated Teacher
- in Education
- on Wed, Aug 24, 2011 03:30PM
8/14/11
TFT Will Interview Bradley Rees Monday, 8-15-11
Join me tomorrow at 3:30 Pacific (Blog Talk Radio) for what should be an interesting conversation with Bradley S Rees, former congressional candidate and Tea Party member.
We will talk about education reform and why the reformers seem to ignore the truth.
The show will only be a half hour long, and surely won't be enough time. And that is why I am asking you all to help me fund a Pro Account at Blog Talk Radio--a $400/year investment. I also need a new computer, and am hoping to raise $900 to fund both those things. Please consider making a donation.
8/10/11
Help Me Fund My Blog Talk Radio Show
My computer died and I am using an old one that locks up and can't handle Skype. It also can barely play videos, and having more than 2 tabs open on my browser seems to tax the innards too much.
I also would like to go Premium at Blog Talk Radio. As it is now with my free account, I can only host a half hour show, not during prime time, and without Skype--which makes the archive, as well as the live show, much clearer than doing the show over the telephone.
A Premium account would also allow me to upload all the music I want, and I want to upload some cool rare stuff I have and do an occasional music show.
I don't have the $400 it costs for a year of Premium Blog Talk Radio, nor do I have a decent computer.
I get no money for blogging or administrating my various Facebook pages, nor do I get paid to spend inordinate amounts of time debunking Michelle Rhee, like I do. I do it all because it is important to me and to our future.
Please consider making a donation to help me get a wider audience so we can make education better for ALL children, especially our most vulnerable, impoverished children.
7/19/11
I'll Be On Blog Talk Radio Again Tonight
Neil has invited me on his show to rebut the nonsense I rebutted yesterday. Seeing as how I didn't have time to do the rebutting justice, I will be on his show tonight at about 7:30pm California time. Click the picture to go to BTR and the show's page.
7/11/11
Who Shut Me Down And Why?
I have a few Facebook pages. Arrest The Pope is the largest at almost 7800. Then there is Miseducation Nation with about 700 "likes" I started last year when NBC decided to shut teachers out of their discussions on education reform.
Back in March of this year I started Students?First, a Facebook page to counter Michelle Rhee's influence at her Students First propaganda machine.
Well, my Students?First Facebook page is nowhere to be found. I can't find out why it's gone. I suppose regular people can "report" a page, but there was nothing nasty there, just facts about education.
But, given Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million investment in education, if Michelle Rhee asks you to take down a page, you do what you're told to stay in the good graces of the billionaire boys club.
Remember to tune it at 3:30 pm today to Blog Talk Radio!
Back in March of this year I started Students?First, a Facebook page to counter Michelle Rhee's influence at her Students First propaganda machine.
 |
| Remember me? I used to be on Facebook @ Students?First |
But, given Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million investment in education, if Michelle Rhee asks you to take down a page, you do what you're told to stay in the good graces of the billionaire boys club.
Remember to tune it at 3:30 pm today to Blog Talk Radio!
7/8/11
No, I Don't Work For You
Last night I was on Ken Pettigrew's radio show for an interview. It got ugly.
I was explaining the reform movement to these conservatives and they decided to say that since they were tax payers, I work for them. I told them I do not work for them, I work for a school district (I didn't bother to tell them I am out of the classroom now, but my points are about teachers and who they work for, not about me).
They then said no, I work for them.
So, I will do my best to explain my position on Monday July 11 at 3:30 Pacific time.
One angle is this: According to Ken's logic, the Secret Service also works for him. I am sure if they thought he was about to shoot the POTUS, they would shoot Ken, even though they work for him. Same with the MPs at the gate to any military base--if Ken wants to try to bust in, they'll either shoot him, or stop him, all the while "working" for him.
And if he were to come into a school uninvited and without checking in, the teachers would be right in surrounding him and stopping him until the police came (who also work for him).
It's a stupid angle, and one conservatives use all the time.
5/6/11
3/18/11
Mark Your Calendars: 2 Blog Talk Radio Shows Lined Up
Next week, on Monday, March 14 and then on Friday, March 18 (both at 3:30 Pacific), I will be hosting my Blog Talk Radio show with an invited guest for each show.
Monday's show will include DC Parent, a commentator over at MichelleRheeFirst who thinks LIFO is bad and too many teachers suck. I disagree.
Friday's show is the much anticipated Stuart Rhoden joint.
You can listen over the phone or the internet, and you can call in!!
Listen to Tfteacher
Monday's show will include DC Parent, a commentator over at MichelleRheeFirst who thinks LIFO is bad and too many teachers suck. I disagree.
Friday's show is the much anticipated Stuart Rhoden joint.
You can listen over the phone or the internet, and you can call in!!
3/14/11
TFT On Blog Talk Radio Today With DC Parent
DC Parent and I will discuss Michelle Rhee's (and DC Parent's) obsession with firing veteran teachers in favor of retaining newbies (LIFO) and other reforms.
We confirmed last week, but I haven't heard back as of this writing. If I have no guest, I will play some music, read some comments from Students First, and respond to them. I will take callers, as usual.
Take a listen to my BTR show, today, live, at 3:30 Pacific time.
Listen to Tfteacher
We confirmed last week, but I haven't heard back as of this writing. If I have no guest, I will play some music, read some comments from Students First, and respond to them. I will take callers, as usual.
Take a listen to my BTR show, today, live, at 3:30 Pacific time.
2/9/11
Blog Talk Radio, Anyone? Updated
Blog Talk Radio is cool thing. It's free (Premium services available) and easy. The free option allows me a maximum 30 minute show, once a day, and not between 4 and 8pm, which is prime time. I can have up to five callers at a time and there is a chatroom during the show which gets podcasted for posterity.
My experience so far has been great. I have been on a few shows with the Total Tutor and the Bronx Teacher and everyone is always gracious. It is a good way for opposing sides to air their differences. People tend to have good manners on the air.
Since doing their shows I chose to discuss some things with a dude on my own show (available now!). It was also fun, and interesting, and illuminating. I would like to do more. I have one more scheduled for the dude and I, but can schedule more. I think I could only do a show if I knew someone was going to be there to have a dialog, especially if they disagree with me.
Anyone interested? It'll cost you the price of the toll call (619 area code) to get on the air. Listening is free.
Listen to Tfteacher Update: Sevren (the dude) has pulled out of the March 7 radio show. Actually, the post above this one has the details (instead of coming on the radio with me, he wants to sue me!).
My experience so far has been great. I have been on a few shows with the Total Tutor and the Bronx Teacher and everyone is always gracious. It is a good way for opposing sides to air their differences. People tend to have good manners on the air.
Since doing their shows I chose to discuss some things with a dude on my own show (available now!). It was also fun, and interesting, and illuminating. I would like to do more. I have one more scheduled for the dude and I, but can schedule more. I think I could only do a show if I knew someone was going to be there to have a dialog, especially if they disagree with me.
Anyone interested? It'll cost you the price of the toll call (619 area code) to get on the air. Listening is free.
I need a new guest. Let me know in comments if you would like to come on the already scheduled show.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
