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Lorraine ForteEditor in Chief, Catalyst Chicago

GET UPDATES FROM Lorraine Forte Like School Closings Pose Big Challenge for Chicago Public Schools Posted: 04/25/2013 5:27 pm Read more

Chicago Public School Closings , Chicago Public Schools , Chicago South Side , Chicago Education , Chicago Education Reform , Chicago School Closings , Chicago School Violence , Chicago News
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As the saying goes, the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Unfortunately, that saying does not bode well for the thousands of children who will be displaced when 54 schools shut down this year.

It's also a bad omen for communities. The last thing Englewood, Austin or any of the neighborhoods -- most of them poor and black -- that stand to lose schools need is another boarded-up vacant building. (CPS says it is "working with community and city departments on a comprehensive planning process to determine the best use for unused buildings.")

With CPS losing enrollment, officials insist that the closings are needed to "right-size" the district, to save money and to provide more resources in schools that will stay open.

But many long-time observers and community activists aren't buying that. They hope for the best, but see no evidence that mass closings, the largest ever in a major urban district, will bring anything but more chaos and turmoil to communities that already struggle with social and economic woes. Our chart in the latest issue of Catalyst In Depth gives readers some hard statistics on the challenges faced by the 54 schools and their neighborhoods.

As we report in our latest issue, members of the Chicago Educational Facilities Task Force, which was created by lawmakers, are already sounding the alarm about children "falling through the cracks."

That fear is based in part on what happened last year, when CPS shut down four small elementary schools and displaced 467 students. CPS now cannot account for the whereabouts of 51 of those children, slightly more than one in 10 students. Yes, that's a small number. But as task force members point out, what about the multiplier effect with 54 closings instead of four? If CPS can't adequately track 467 children, why believe they can track thousands?

Critics also are skeptical of the promise that children will end up in high-achieving schools, which is the only way to make closings pay off academically. The district simply doesn't have enough top-notch schools. And a University of Chicago Consortium on School Research study found that most students displaced in previous closings over five years ended up at schools that were only marginally better academically.

That's what happened to Rose Traylor's granddaughter when Guggenheim Elementary in Englewood closed last year. Guggenheim students were assigned to Bond, a Level 2 school that has since fallen to Level 3, the lowest performance rating. Traylor characterizes Bond as "rough." Her husband says he has no confidence in its academics.

CPS has promised to open new specialty programs at some receiving schools -- in International Baccalaureate, arts and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) studies. But high-quality programs won't happen overnight. Without ongoing teacher training and resources, the promise will end up as nothing more than public relations "spin" to sell closings as a sound educational idea.

"This is a group of people who historically have not done what they said they were going to," says one knowledgeable observer. "For me to trust them, without vigilance, would be foolish on my part."

The district has promised that none of the closed buildings will end up housing charter schools. But as part of this year's plan, CPS has co-located charters with existing traditional schools. That practice has caused friction and controversy in the past.

Some 40 percent of previously shuttered schools now house charters or contract schools, and CPS plans to open more charters in coming years. Barring charters from closed buildings would be a 180-degree change of course from previous practice. Charters wouldn't benefit either, as facilities are their top need.

One promise that communities can likely have confidence in is that this year's mass closings won't be repeated next year. When CPS lobbied lawmakers for a bill to extend the deadline to announce this year's closings, sources say the district refused to include in that law its five-year commitment not to close more schools. But there's another factor: Mayor Rahm Emanuel certainly won't want more upheaval over closings next year.

CPS has a lot of promises to keep to make these closings, if they're approved, go smoothly. In this case, let's hope the past doesn't predict the future.

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Friday, October 4, 2013

10 Lessons from the Guest Blogging School of Hard Knocks

In this post-Panda and Penguin search landscape, one much talked-about topic when SEO specialists gather together for a virtual drink is guest blogging.

Guest blogging, as you may already have read from several different sources, is perceived as a way to rank high in the search engines, mainly because guest blogging is all about content. And with compelling content, social media sharing comes into play.

Given the many algorithm changes that have been happening of late, social media, as some blogging and SEO experts claim, is the new SEO.

I do content marketing for small businesses through guest blogging. While some say “guest blogging” is so 2011 and that the new norm is now “contributing,” to me, that’s nothing but a technicality.

Writing a guest blog post can be referred to by several different names, but the basics of success remain the same – content, relevance, value.

I’ve been doing this for over a year now and have already gotten a good number of guest articles published in relatively big and small blogs.

It’s a rocky ride, just like any online venture. But along the way, aside from the usual and not-so-usual pointers we read regarding the principles of successful guest blogging, including what to do to turn a guest blogging pitch into an absolute disaster, I’ve picked up a few invaluable blogging lessons that somehow make the ride less strenuous.

I’ll be highlighting ten of them, so if you’re ready and comfortable, let’s begin:

1. Do not venture into territory you know nothing about, unless you’ve done a good amount of research and are confident you can tackle the subject high and low.

2. Do not write about subjects that have been beaten to death a thousand times. If you must, make sure to inject a fresh perspective, like your personal experience, a case study and so on. Creativity can go a long way.

3. Lengthy posts are not always in. Despite what everyone else is saying, sometimes, short, concise posts that pack a punch are better. Just remember to review the blog’s requirement on minimum number of words or look for guest blogging opportunities with fewer restrictions if necessary.

4. Humor sells. While snarky stirs the pot, if you can’t handle the heat it might generate in the comments section, stay away from it.

5. Do not take rejections negatively. The editor always has a reason for not publishing your article. If you want to know why, politely ask. In spite of the explanation and you still disagree, calm down. Never walk away in rage. Burning bridges is not going to address the problem. Besides, it’s not your blog. It’s their blog.

6. What others perceive as mistakes, consider as “room for improvement”. If you’ve been given the chance to edit your article, follow instructions to the letter. Otherwise, maintain an open dialogue with the editor if the changes requested don’t necessarily suit your taste.

7. Don’t get too cocky. Even when several of your articles have already been published in the same blog, there’s no guarantee that article you just submitted for review is going to get published as well.

8. Find a critic. This person can be anybody you trust, like a blogging partner or a friend who reads your stuff. Just make sure she’s not your mom, particularly if she’s the doting kind. No matter how skilled you think you already are, there are things you don’t see through your own eyes.

9. Read a lot, especially about breakthrough trends. Editors, bloggers and readers appreciate cutting edge more than period pieces, unless you’re writing for a history blog.

10. Keep the lights in your blog’s porch open. If all else fails, your guest article should always find a home.

This, of course, is only applicable if you follow the first and ultimate guest blogging golden rule: Write and pitch articles you would be willing to publish in your own blog.

Bonus video:

11. Find a mentor. It doesn’t have to be somebody you communicate with on a regular basis. This can be somebody who runs a blog that gives sound advice on guest blogging. One VERY obvious candidate: Ms. Ileane of Basic Blog Tips.

12. Last but definitely not least, keep believing in yourself even when no one seems to believe your content is compelling enough, or relevant enough, or valuable enough.

Strive to better your craft every opportunity you get. Do not give up at the first sign of difficulty. Instead, persevere. Soon, you’ll prove the unbelievers wrong.

What about you, have you already started your guest blogging journey? If so, what guest blogging lessons have you learned so far?

Tagged as: Guest Blogging

View the original article here

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Michigan School Chief: End Project By Secret Group

East Lansing-- Michigan's school chief on Monday urged the disbanding of a work group that has been secretly developing ways to lower the cost of public education through technology and a funding mechanism that resembles vouchers.

Mike Flanagan, state superintendent of public instruction, said he was pulling a Department of Education employee off the work group on the same day Gov. Rick Snyder began distancing himself from the project started by his administration's chief information officer, David Behen.

Read the whole story at Detroit News

View the original article here

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

John Pavley: Bring Your Own Tech to School... and Become a Hacker!

John Pavley: Bring Your Own Tech to School... and Become a Hacker! HPFB.init();

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GET UPDATES FROM John Pavley Like 78 Bring Your Own Tech to School... and Become a Hacker! Posted: 03/24/2013 10:47 pm Read more

Helicopter Parents , Amish , Apple Mac Mini , Byot , Configuration Management , Dropbox , Google Chrome , High School , Technology News
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Getting a new computer is quite a traumatic experience for me. On my personal Mac Mini (vintage 2009) I have all my favorite apps installed and all my folders and files just where I like them. I have all my accounts, system settings, network settings, and fonts customized and optimized. It took me weeks of trial and error to get it set up so I can focus on thinking and producing and not getting distracted by missing bits and bytes.

Over the years Apple has helped out by allowing me to "migrate" my data, accounts, apps, and network settings every time I buy a new Mac (which isn't often). And Google helps with synchronizing my bookmarks and browser plugins when I sign in to Chrome. I don't use iCloud or Google Drive, but I do use Dropbox to ensure important documents follow me around as I wander from machine to machine. These tools all help me feel at home on the computers I use.

It's important to feel at home with your tools in order to perform well. Using someone else's computer always gives me a feeling of cognitive dissonance. I see this with the developers we hire at Huffington Post: It always takes a day or two to configure a new employee's new computer. Even then, as new tasks and new projects come up, a developer's computer needs continuous tweaking so that work isn't interrupted by firewall complaints or missing UNIX libraries.

All this synching, optimizing, and personalizing is known as configuration management and it's a thriving technology business. Tools like Puppet enable professional system administrators to automate the setup of server farms and user's computers. Tools likes Apple's Migration Assistant, Google Chrome Sign In, and Dropbox bring configuration management to ordinary mortals.

Last week the New York Times published a great story on the issues around kids using their own tech gear in school. It's a great idea to help with ever shrinking public school budgets but some educators are worried about tech support problems or the lack of research on personal devices and learning. Well, I have an excellent domain expert at home on the whole Bring Your Own Tech (BYOT) issue: My high school-aged son.

(When my kids are all grown up I will have to adopt new ones so I can continue to stay current on tech trends!)

My son's high school lets you BYOT. And he has friends at a nearby high school where every student is given an iPad. I don't know what the official analysis of these programs is but my son gave me the test subject's perspective and embedded journalist's analysis.

School X lets students bring their own phones, pads, and laptops into class -- if the teacher thinks it's a good idea. Some kids use the devices to take notes or catch up on Reddit. This is the equivalent of the spiral notebook back in my day. Sure, browsing the web during class should be frowned upon but everyone doodles (the pre-Internet age equivalent of browsing). When the lessons are interesting the students use their devices to google unfamiliar topics, chat with friends in other classes to get their opinion, and bookmark sites for research later that day. This is exactly what I see people do in meetings I attend. Unless there is some harebrained no-devices-in-meetings rule we're all multitasking.

School Y gives every student an iPad. At first this is awesome because every kid wants a free iPad and it levels the playing field. If your parental units (that's what they call people like me) can't afford or just don't understand the value of an iPad the school steps in and provides.

But the kids at School Y have learned the harsh lesson that nothing is really free. The school supplied iPads have configuration management and monitoring software installed. iPad usage is controlled. Only approved programs are installed. The students can't multitask. These tightly controlled iPads prevent the free flow of communications and information that make our mobile Internet age empowering.

In response to this aggressive monitoring kids at school Y jailbreak their iPads. I actually like the irony of a whole school of high schoolers motivated to become hackers because of a poorly thought-out school technology program created by well-meaning but out-of-touch administrators.

It would be better for everyone if school Y followed school X's example and allow uncontrolled BYOT in the classroom. It's more productive and it lets kids develop the skills they will need in the workplace. What about families that can't afford to buy their kids high-tech gear? These lines from the NYT article address that problem nicely:

And while district administrators worried initially that poorer students would not own devices, they discovered something of 'an inverse relationship' between family income and the sophistication of their devices, particularly smartphones, said Don Boulware, the district's director of technology services.

It is hard to live well, let alone go to school, in the 21st century without a smartphone. The "inverse relationship" observed by Boulware is caused by over protective helicopter parents keeping tech out of their children's hands for fear of the negative affects of technology on a child's cognitive development. I think this strategy is counterproductive, as nothing is more positive than having all the world's information and opinions at a high school student's fingertips.

In the real world, which increasingly is becoming the virtually augmented reality world, a smartphone, a pad, or a laptop are survival tools. Even the Amish have a word processor. (This is not a joke but rather a great example of off-the-grid-I-will-not-participate-in-your-broken-culture thinking.)

Yes, there are kids in both schools X and Y who cannot afford fancy computing devices and they should be helped. Helped in a way that actually addresses their problems in a real and permanent way that a school monitored iPad does not. Let's save the configuration management software for the server farms and give kids what they need without digital strings attached.

Follow John Pavley on Twitter:www.twitter.com/jpavley

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seamonkeykingChing Dai, make me whole again!394 Fans 18 minutes ago (11:29 PM)Good stuff, Mr. Pavley. It is amazing to see the changes in the way kids interact with their school these days. If you don't know how to upload a PDF file to the school's server, do google searches, and find info online, you don't stand a chance in school. Remember those old filmstrips on hygene and lunchroom etiquette?seamonkeyking: Good stuff, Mr. Pavley. It is amazing to see thehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/seamonkeyking/bring-your-own-tech-to-sc_b_2946119_239642414.htmlHistory |Permalink |Share itThis comment has been down-ranked into oblivion. View comment You have not right to carry out this operation or Error this operation.

Loading comments… astargzr 3 Fans 42 minutes ago (11:05 PM)Kid'sastargzr: Kid'shttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/astargzr/bring-your-own-tech-to-sc_b_2946119_239639288.htmlHistory |Permalink |Share itThis comment has been down-ranked into oblivion. View comment You have not right to carry out this operation or Error this operation.

Loading comments… astargzr 3 Fans 43 minutes ago (11:05 PM)I stopped reading at everyone in your kids school gets an iPad. If only.astargzr: I stopped reading at everyone in your kids school getshttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/astargzr/bring-your-own-tech-to-sc_b_2946119_239639226.htmlHistory |Permalink |Share itThis comment has been down-ranked into oblivion. View comment You have not right to carry out this operation or Error this operation.

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