No Mentor Teacher For You !

Written by Candi Peterson

So it seems that there was another round of DC teacher positions eliminated by the District of Columbia Public Schools. Inside sources report that ten teachers were excessed on July 16, 2011 from the DCPS Mentor Teacher program (formerly known as the Helping Teachers program).This leaves approximately fifteen DCPS teachers to mentor first and second year teachers citywide in the District.

Given that there is research and literature documenting the importance of mentor teachers, DCPS could not have picked a worse time to reduce their already scanty mentor teacher department. The Center for Inspired Teachers cites a 2006 New Teacher Center report that shows that students whose teachers received strong mentoring support make bigger gains in reading than those in un-mentored classrooms. The New Teacher Center report also found that in a comparison of approximately 100 new teachers in three school districts, students of teachers who received two years of support from mentors, made gains comparable to those of students of veteran teachers.” See the following link for more information: http://www.newteachercenter.org/pdfs/NTC_Policy_Brief-Hill_Briefing.pdf

Are you wondering what those in charge of DCPS could be thinking? I know I am. As such, I asked a DCPS mentor teacher how these cuts to DC’s mentor teacher department would affect new teachers. This recently excessed mentor teacher who requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal, had this to say: “New teachers will now have limited support and will not have that one-to-one professional and technical guidance that a mentor offers such as organizing teacher classrooms, understanding instruction and data, getting through a typical day and classroom management skills, etc. Our students will suffer in the long run.”

Now that data is available from the US Department of Education’s (DOE) Office on Civil Rights, we can see educational trends across school districts in the U.S. Based on 2009 DOE data, 42% of teachers in the District of Columbia have two years or less of teaching experience while only 10% of teachers have less than two years in Fairfax County Public Schools and Montgomery County Public Schools, which are much larger school districts. I would venture to guess that other school districts like our suburban counterparts recognize the importance of teacher mentoring programs and would fight to the death to keep these types of programs in place even during a tight economy.

If we want real transformative change in public education, then we must first be honest about what is happening in our public schools. We must stop supporting knee-jerk administrative decisions to cut valuable programs which are not in the best interest of teachers or students. Let's start by standing together with other Americans in the national Call to Action Rally to Save Our Schools on July 30, 2011 on the Ellipse. We hope to see you there. For more information visit: http://www.saveourschoolsmarch.org

© Candi Peterson 2013

The Controversy of IMPACT

Written by Candi Peterson

DC Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson issued “You’re fired letters" this past week to 206 DC teachers. Before DC teachers knew of their own fate, the mainstream media had received a lengthy DCPS press packet on Friday, July 15 from the Office of the Chancellor (OOC) lauding teacher terminations and celebrating highly effective teachers eligible for merit pay. Bill Turque, staff writer for the Washington Post reported on the details of the DCPS firings as early as July 15. Turque wrote: “Of the 206 fired, D.C. officials said, 65 were rated ineffective this year and 141 were judged minimally effective for the second consecutive year, triggering dismissal.” An additional twenty-one teachers who were effective and/or highly effective were also terminated by DCPS because they could not find a permanent placement.

Friday's teacher firings are a continuation of Michelle Rhee's educational plan to terminate a significant share of the DC teaching workforce while establishing job loss as a likely consequence of poor classroom test scores on standardized tests. In DC, fifty-five percent of a teacher's performance evaluation is tied to student test scores in the testing grades. Prior to getting elected as DC Mayor in 2010, Vincent C. Gray who was then Chairman of the DC City Council stated that there was controversy over IMPACT teacher evaluations after the announcement of 241 teacher firings. At the time, Gray stated that he wanted to look further into the 2010 teacher dismissals. Fast-forward to 2011, we have heard nary a word from Mayor Gray on this issue now that he has been elected as city mayor. I guess with all of the ethical dilemmas the Gray administration has faced during his short tenure as mayor – teachers’ dismissals aren’t the priority they once were while he was campaigning. If Gray doesn’t take the time to review the IMPACT controversy, then shame on him.

Given that USA Today newspaper broke the story on March 28, 2011 that half of all DC Schools likely corrected students mistakes and cheated on standardized tests, one has to wonder why Chancellor Kaya Henderson is moving forward with the dismissal of teachers based on flawed standardized test score data. Unfortunately, it took Henderson three years to finally support an investigation into allegations of a DCPScheating scandal that was previously made known to the Rhee/Henderson administration by former State Superintendent Deborah Gist in 2008. It begs the question, can we really trust that a comprehensive investigation will be completed by the DC Inspector General Charles J. Willoughby who appears to be a one man operation? Given that USA Today newspaper had an entire investigative team of 12 reporters when looking into cheating on standardized tests and former Governor Sonny Perdue had Georgia law enforcement to take over their investigation into the 2010 Atlanta public schools high erasure scandal after he declared a local investigation as “woefully inadequate”, why should we expect anything less in our nation’s capital?

Now is the time to support the end to the test driven culture in Washington, DC and elsewhere. I concur with teachers and parents for education reform that we must demand a call to action and insist on a thorough federal investigation of the extent of cheating in DC Public Schools over the past three years, the causes and the consequences, and needed corrections in our school system culture. This investigation must address specific allegations of erasure and falsification on answer sheets, as well as any district actions that might have encouraged cheating, or that were taken to cover it up. It is also time to call for a moratorium on the IMPACT evaluation system and teacher terminations until a federal probe has been conducted into the DCPS cheating scandal. Anything less would be a real tragedy.

© Candi Peterson 2013

Join us on Saturday, June 18, 2011 @3:30 pm

Please Join Washington Teachers' Union for a Special Event! Saturday, June 18, 2011 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm Premiere Screening & Panel Discussion Benning Public Library 3935 Benning Road, NE Washington, DC 20019 Please join WTU President Nathan Saunders, General Vice President Candi Peterson, community and education leaders for a premiere screening and panel discussion about the documentary, "The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman." This documentary was written and directed by New York City public school teachers and parents in response to the misleading film, "Waiting for Superman." It depicts the real-life experiences of public school parents and educators to show how these so-called reforms are actually hurting education. It also highlights the kinds of real reform - inside schools and in our society as a whole - that are urgently needed to genuinely transform education in this country. **WTU members are encouraged to attend this free event and participate in an engaging discussion about the challenges facing education reform in general and in the District of Columbia Public school system.** FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: (202) 291-3399

DCPS Job Fair To Be Held Thursday, June 2, 2011

Washington Teachers' Union (WTU) has learned that DC Public Schools will be holding a Transfer Fair, tomorrow, June 2nd. The details are below.

Elementary School/Early Childhood Educators, Social Workers, and Special Education Teachers

DCPS Educators interested in transferring schools and excessed teachers interested in interviewing for a teaching position for School Year 2011-2012 are invited to attend the DCPS Transfer Fair tomorrow, Thursday, June 2 at McKinley Technology Senior High School. Please check the Human Resources page of the Educator Portal for a list of available vacancies.

Time: 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm (Social Workers)

5:00 -7:00 p.m. (Social Workers and Elementary, Early Childhood Educators, and Special Education teachers)

Location: McKinley Technology Senior High School

151 T St NE

Washington, DC 20002

Contact: DCPS Staffing, dcpsstaffing@dc.gov

Supporting Website: Check DCPS Educator Portal for Vacancy Listings

WTU Protests the Washington Post

Written By Candi Peterson

Approximately 300 teachers, school personnel, city workers, union and community members protested outside The Washington Post building on Friday, April 15. This day was selected because it coincided with a day-off furlough for DCPS employees and DC government workers. The protest was organized by the Washington Teachers' Union (WTU) against the Post due to their biased reporting that consistently vilifies teachers and fails to include more balanced reporting of the obstacles teachers face in a mostly urban school district. According to WTU President, Nathan Saunders, "You've got to understand that the Washington Post has been vicious against, not just teachers unions, but the Washington Teachers' Union in particular, for the last three or four years. And everything that the former chancellor, Michelle Rhee, has done in the District, they have embraced wholeheartedly at the expense of working teachers."

Urban Teacher blogger and a former DC teacher questioned, "Why is the Post such an awful place for citizens to get information about what's really going on with education in the District?" We also have to wonder, why did it take USA Today newspaper's investigative journalists, Jack Gillum and Marisol Bello to cover the story: "When Standardized Test Scores Soared in DC Were the Gains Real?" This story appeared in USA Today's newspaper on March 11, 2011 and found that cheating likely occurred during the Rhee/Henderson administration during 2008-2010. It begs the question where was the Washington Post?
Another reason for Friday's protest was to call attention to the Washington Post's relationship with Kaplan Higher Education which accounts for the majority of the Post's revenues which comes from standardized testing. It is the position of the WTU, that the Post fails to adequately cover education reform from all vantage points, fails to print letters to the editor from education stakeholders, colors their editorial viewpoint and heaped undeserving praise on former Chancellor Michelle Rhee during her term as Chancellor, despite her many transgressions.

Teachers and protesters carried signs that read: "Cancel your Washington Post subscription today" and "We'll stop buying until you stop lying," while singing chants as a big inflatable union rat loomed large at the footsteps of the Post. Speakers from other unions included Josh Williams, President of the Washington Metro Labor Council, Bill Simon, Former WTU President, Caneisha Mills, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) representative, Johnny Walker, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) representative. In addition, there were speeches made by Vincent Orange, At Large City Council candidate, Robert Brannum President of DC Federation of Civic Associations, Jerome Brocks, activist teacher and now retired, Sheila Gill, wrongfully terminated school counselor and a host of others with closing remarks given by Reverend Grayland Hagler who encouraged protesters to march in solidarity around the K street corridor.

All in all, it was a beautiful day and just the start of actions planned by the Washington Teachers' Union which will build momentum and seek to convince our government and Mayor of the need to provide adequate funding for public education in the District.

© Candi Peterson 2013

WTU Call To Action: Furlough Protest Rally on Friday, April 15

WARAGE EQPROFITS" DETAILS WHAT: WTU Furlough Day Rally WHEN: April 15, 2011, 10:30 am WHERE: Washington Post Building, 1150 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC WHY: The Washington Post has buried the truth about education reform in DC! The Washington Post endorses IMPACT (test score centered teacher evaluation) at any cost! The Washington Post's ownership of Kaplan Higher Education, the U.S. premiere education profiteers, creates a conflict of interest on education policies. BACKGROUND: The Washington Post has consistently discounted the credentials, abilities and performance of hard working DC public school teachers. Kaplan's revenues, which are generated primarily by federal student loans, fuel their Editorial Board. The education stories have been uniquely biased against traditional public education creating a worse situation. Their national agenda has been about profit, not the people of Washington, DC or their children. CALL TO ACTION: The WTU is asking for all those who care about public education in the District to: Join forces to let the Washington Post know that we will not stand by while they continue with unfair and biased reporting. Boycott the Washington Post newspaper until they stop lying! Support community newspapers that report fairly and care about teachers, students and real education reform in the District. Click here to view the detailed flyer. WOULD YOU LIKE UNION RELATED PARAPHERNALIA? Em S

DC Politicians Don't Care About DCPS Cheating Scandal

by Candi Peterson

Let’s take a trip down memory lane. Remember back in 2008, OSSE (Office of the State Superintendent of Education in DC) requested that McGraw Hill Testing Company conduct an erasure analysis due to abnormally high (statistically improbable) proficiency rates on standardized tests conducted in Washington, DC during April 2008? This computerized analysis revealed some disturbing results that occurred when103 public schools in the District of Columbia and some charter schools were flagged for having statistically high rates of wrong answers that were erased and replaced by correct answers on standardized tests during years 2008 to 2010. Deborah Gist, former DC State Superintendent of Education, recommended an investigation into why DC Public Schools (DCPS) erasure rates were so high but her recommendation to investigate met a roadblock by the Rhee/Henderson administration. USA Today's – through the use of Freedom Of Information Access (FOIA) requests uncovered a five month exchange of memos from DCPS officials questioning the rationale for a further investigation at the time. (click link to see memos, emails and tables).

Fast forward to year 2011, when USA TODAY'S newspaper and their cast of thirteen staff writers conducted their own investigative probe into the extraordinarily high erasures on standardized tests in the District of Columbia Public Schools. This piece found that DCPS likely cheated under the Rhee/Henderson administration. Even when these findings came to light and a recommendation was proffered by Gist to investigate further, Michelle Rhee along with Deputy Mayor of Education, Victor Reinoso and Kerri Briggs – successor to Deborah Gist in 2008 - refused to investigate and swept its dirty little secret under the rug.

Again in 2009, there was a second round of questionable proficiency rates on standardized tests in DC Public Schools. The USA TODAY investigation revealed that 46 DC public schools were flagged for having high erasure rates of wrong answers corrected to right ones. Caveon Consulting Services eventually conducted limited investigations in 2009 into the process and training of eight DC public schools at the request of DCPS. However, DCPS did not request that Caveon Consulting Services conduct a data analysis of the questionable testing data.

Given that three years have now passed since the questionable results were first released, one has to wonder why Mayor Gray and other government officials aren’t irate and calling for an intensive federal investigation to determine if fraud occurred like the federal probe conducted by the state of Georgia in 2010 by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. A USA TODAY article reported that “… only 4% of Georgia’s schools were considered of “severe concern” after their 2009 standardized tests,” according to Kathleen Mathers of the Georgia Governor’s Office of Student Achievement. In contrast, more than 15% of DC’s public schools had so many classrooms flagged in 2008 that they would have raised severe concern."

Former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue (whose term ended in January 2011) ordered law enforcement to take over the Georgia investigation because he said he was dissatisfied with the failure of the districts in Atlanta and elsewhere to explain the erasures. Here in DC, It is important to note that a referral was only recently made by the Henderson administration to the DC Inspector General to investigate after the USA TODAY's newspaper investigation featured a number of articles on DC Public Schools' questionable testing gains at schools like Noyes Elementary School (Former Principal Wayne Ryan during 2001-10- now Instructional Superintendent for DCPS) and others. Even though Kwame Brown, Chairman of the DC City Council, announced that he would hold public hearings on high erasures, these hearings have now been cancelled.

Do DC politicians really care? Why aren’t government officials more alarmed? What are they afraid they will learn? Why were the DC City Council hearings cancelled? This scandal is full of many examples where unethical actions have had negative effects on the entire city of Washington, DC, our public schools, parents, community, school personnel and especially our students. The principles of accountability were sacrificed by Rhee’s administration. Besides obviously being disingenuous and dishonest, Rhee’s administration acted unethically.

In addition to calling for a federal probe, I wholeheartedly concur with Conducting the Inner Light, DC teacher turned blogger's assessment of the DCPS cheating scandal below: “Michelle Rhee’s reform has never been about the children. She used the district’s children to further her political ambitions. High test scores were necessary for her story and for advancing her agenda. If she didn’t collude in that cheating then she was certainly willfully negligent in her diligence to make sure those test scores were valid. If she were still the Chancellor of DCPS than it would be necessary for her to resign. As it is, Kaya Henderson and the rest of the Rhee team should resign or should be asked to resign by the mayor. Teachers had lost most of their trust in Rhee by the time she left. Most of us see Henderson as nothing more than Rhee’s factotum ...."

Isn't it time to clean house or will Mayor Gray allow Henderson to bring him down like Rhee did Fenty?

© Candi Peterson 2013

WTU Membership Meeting - March 17, 2011

WTU will host a membership meeting on Thursday, March 17, 2011 from 4:30- 6:30 p.m. at McKinley Senior High School. All WTU members are encouraged to attend.

Improperly Fired DCPS Teachers Speak Out!

By Candi Peterson

In 2008, approximately 75 probationary teachers were fired at the direction of then Deputy Chancellor Kaya Henderson. In 2008, Henderson sent an email to DC Public Schools principals indicating that if they wanted to get rid of probationary teachers they could simply click on a link listing the names of teachers from their schools. On March 10, 2011 - some of these wrongfully terminated teachers spoke out at the Washington Teachers' Union office about their stellar accomplishments and their horror at receiving letters in the mail during July and August 2008 indicating they were terminated without explanation. These teachers talked about only learning of the reasons for their terminations several weeks ago after an arbitrator's decision ordered them reinstated with back pay to DCPS. Their firing had nothing to do with their performance as teachers. Here is what they said:

"I always received positive evaluations, never been written up on warning," said Kadesha Bonds, who was a second-year teacher. (Kadesha Bonds pictured at top left with award)

"I was never written up. I never received bad evaluations. It was always about what I was wearing or my personal life," said Bianca Clemons, who was also in her second year.

"When I left in June of 2008, my report said I was fine. On July 17th, I got the same letter saying you’re had been fired. I said, ‘What?’" said photography teacher Leigh Mosley.

Kadesha Bonds, a former "2006 New Teacher of the Year" stated that she had a conversation with Vincent Gray when he was Council Chair and he agreed at that time that an injustice had been done to this group of wrongfully terminated teachers. Having been in office as DC's mayor for approximately 60 days- it saddens many of us that Mayor Gray has already forgotten the commitments he made to right the injustices of the Rhee and Henderson administration. Despite Mayor Gray's earlier statements which suggested that he would follow the arbitrator's ruling in this case, this group of wrongfully terminated teachers are still playing the waiting game to return to their first love- the joy of teaching in our schools while DCPS appeals this ruling. Listen as these teachers speak out and tell their side of the story on Fox 5 news and WJLA.

Reinstated DC Public Schools Teachers Speak Out About Their 2008 Firings: MyFoxDC.com

Veteran Teachers Need Not Apply: Henderson Recruits TFA Alums Despite Budget Deficit

By Candi Peterson

Kaya Henderson, Interim Chancellor of DC Public Schools recently delivered remarks at the Teach for America (TFA) 20th Anniversary Summit. Hosted by Teach for America founder and CEO, the event drew what was referred to as an "all-star lineup of education, government, and social justice leaders," including TFA alum, Michelle Rhee, former Chancellor of DC Public Schools.
During the event, Interim Chancellor Henderson spoke about the true power of the TFA movement, the rise to high level administrative positions by many TFA'ers and forecast that maybe one day a TFA'er would land in the White House. Henderson encouraged TFA'ers to dust off their resumes if they want a chance to make history by coming to work for DC Public Schools.
It is interesting to note, that despite a lingering recession, budget crises and widespread teacher hiring slowdown, TFA teachers are being hired at a steady pace. The growth is often times coming at the expense of veteran teachers who are losing their jobs- in some cases to make room for TFA teachers who typically are hired at much lower salary levels. Remember the 266 mostly veteran teachers who were laid off in 2009 subsequent to the hiring of hundreds of TFA'ers? A recent study from the Education and the Public Interest Center report titled: "Teach for America: A Review of the Evidence" found that the learning curve and turnover rate of TFA teachers does harm to vulnerable students who are in need of highly trained and highly skilled teachers.
A You Tube video of Kaya Henderson speaking during TFA's 20th Anniversary Celebration has been widely circulated on the Internet and is posted below. I don't know about you, but it appears to me as though Henderson is still carrying Rhee's 'Teach for America' torch and is completely oblivious to the budget crises that we are facing in the District of Columbia. Please watch the video and let us know what you think about Henderson's remarks.We're listening.


© Candi Peterson 2013

WTU Letter To Mayor Gray Re Furloughs

Friday, February 18, 2011

Mayor Vincent C. Gray

Government of the District of Columbia

Executive Office of the Mayor

1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 316

Washington, DC 20004

RE: Alternatives to Furloughs

SENT BY MAIL

Dear Mayor Gray:

On Wednesday, February 16, 2011 District of Columbia Public Schools’ teachers received a letter informing them of four (4) mandatory furlough days. A copy of this letter has been attached for your reference. The Washington Teachers’ Union believes teachers should not suffer due to poor budget decisions made by senior level DC government officials. These same officials also violated city spending laws, causing employees economic hardship and reducing confidence in our city’s government.

The D.C. Anti-Deficiency Act sets strict limits on agency spending. Yet Freedom of Information Act records demonstrate more than 400 violations of the law between fiscal years 2005 and 2007. There is also clear indication that certain agencies exceeded their budgets by at least $1 million nearly 100 times in fiscal years 2006 and 2007. While teachers may be held accountable for student progress with the threat of termination, which officials are to be held accountable for the deficit and violation of the D.C. Anti- Deficiency Act? It would be unfair to penalize teachers for the wrongdoings of these officials. Hence, WTU would like to propose the following budget-reducing alternatives instead of furloughing teachers.

· Reduce sick leave by the same amount of days before a teacher is furloughed thereby achieving the same savings;

· Eliminate outside consulting contracts including those contractors employed to hire new personnel;

· Discontinue non-essential student testing and terminate the credit recovery program;

·Eliminate Instructional Superintendents, Master Educators’ positions and relegate teacher/school personnel evaluations to principals; and

· Place a moratorium on administrators’ bonus payment including capping all non classroom teacher salaries over $100,000 including the Chancellor’s bonus.

These suggestions are representative of the ideas expressed by our city’s concerned teachers. For further details, please feel free to reference Washington Teachers' Union Blog at: http://thewashingtonteacher.blogspot.com/ . I look forward to discussing this matter with you in the near future.

Sincerely,

Nathan Saunders

President

Finding Alternatives to DCPS Furloughs!

By Candi Peterson

The Balanced Budget Furlough Emergency Act of 2011 which calls for furloughs of DC government employees has caught the attention of all of us. Budget cuts have been no stranger to the District of Columbia public schools (DCPS). Teachers, school personnel and students have often had to bear the brunt of administrator over-spending. In fiscal year 2010, under the Rhee/Henderson administration, 266 educators were wrongfully terminated allegedly due to a budget deficit they didn’t help create.

Displeased with the emergency legislation that only reduces costs through emergency furloughing, WTU Executive Board passed a motion authorizing the union leadership to identify other alternatives that would avoid the need for furloughs. WTU agreed to compile your ideas on how we could achieve long-term cost savings in our public schools. Listed below are many of your recommendations from posts and emails we have received, thus far :

Alternatives to Furloughs

Allow employees to donate sick days in lieu of furlough days

Conduct a forensic audit of DCPS to identify waste/fraud

Close excess schools

Cut back on AP courses and enrollments

Cut printing costs of IMPACT evaluation booklets

Cut the following non-instructional teacher work days:

February 18 – Professional Development day

February 28- Parent Conference day –( this is less desirable than the May 16 Parent Conference day)

March 18 – Professional Development day

May 16 - Parent Conference Day

Discontinue non-essential testing of students

Don't add more International Baccalaureate Programs

Eliminate July 4 as a furlough day as teachers/school personnel are in a non-pay status

Eliminate Master Educators’ positions and relegate teacher/school personnel evaluations to principals and/or managers/supervisors

Eliminate perks for management, such as iPhone voice and data plans

Eliminate Teach For America contract and hire outright

Eliminate the partnership between Anacostia SHS and Friendship. We don’t need to pay the salaries of additional administrative staff

Eliminate the August professional development day for teachers/school personnel

End credit recovery

End school one day early when students aren’t in school

Furlough on professional development days, not holidays which will reduce savings in the form of energy costs and closed buildings

Increase computer usage versus excessive paper usage in schools, stop massive copying and worksheets

Place a moratorium on administrator bonus pay

Put an end to DCPS contracts that aren’t justified

Reduce the # of administrative positions in central office

Reduce the # of DC BAS tests given

Reduce the amount of administrative salaries in central office by setting a cap on six figure salaries

Reduce costs through energy savings (i.e. get thermostats on radiators, reduce excessive heat and AC, put hand air-dryers in bathrooms)

Reduce DCPS Executive staff salaries

Reduce Pre-K to half day

Reduce the # of Instructional Coach positions per school

Reduce the # of newly acquired Instructional Superintendent positions

Reduce the # of Special Education Program Manager positions (from 3 per discipline to 1 per discipline)

Reduce out of control spending in the special education budget

Rent out underutilized schools

Review money spent on consultants and organizations (i.e. Kaplan) and cut costs

Stop excessive meetings for DCPS staff at alternative locations by promoting video conferencing

Use vacant school buildings instead of renting space for government administrative offices

Work four- 10 hour days

The WTU will be forwarding all of your ideas to Mayor Gray for consideration. Thanks for your input.

© Candi Peterson 2013