LA School Report

Just about everyone who watches LAUSD is scratching their heads wondering just what board member Steve Zimmer is doing — lately more than ever. He’s introduced two incredibly polarizing motions recently– one to reject the use of Academic Growth Over Time in teacher evaluations, and one to provide greater oversight for charter schools and, more...

Enrollment in new teacher programs down 33 percent since recession hit SI&A Cabinet Report:  Of the teachers that are being trained, half come out of the California State University system with 43 percent graduating from a private or independent university and the remaining 7 percent from the University of California, according to the CTC report. LAUSD officials...

On Monday, representatives from LAUSD and UTLA met again to discuss teacher evaluations — the 15th session since July 11, when a judge ordered the two sides to develop a new system for evaluating teachers and principals that includes some measure of pupil progress. Superintendent John Deasy told Teresa Watanabe of the LA Times, “I...

Uncertainty surrounds many district applications for Race to the Top SI&A Cabinet Report: With just over a month remaining to the deadline, about 80 local educational agencies in California are trying to decide whether to seek a federal Race to the Top grant given the long odds and resources required to even compete for a share of...

Parent activist Scott Folsom (4 LA Kids) suggests that there could be a big change in the makeup of the LAUSD board after the Spring elections — and is throwing his own name into the ring as a candidate (again). “History tells us school boards prefer to appoint their own superintendent when their membership changes,” writes the Deasy...

Slim chance for teachers strike in L.A., officials say LA Times: Few observers expect tensions over performance reviews to ignite a strike in Los Angeles, as it did in Chicago, because of myriad differences in conditions surrounding the two cities’ school districts. Group w/ties to Koch Bros drops $4 million on Prop 32 SF Chronicle:  Look what just...

We got an interesting email in response to our post about LAUSD’s low math scores from a  Cochran Middle School math teacher named Rustum Jacob, who offers two additional reasons why scores are as low as they are:  more 9th grade students being placed into Geometry, and no real alternatives for 9th graders who aren’t...

You might be surprised to find out that “Won’t Back Down” — a screening of which I snuck into the other night — isn’t actually the fictionalized story of Desert Trails, site of the real-life still-unfolding parent trigger attempt outside of Los Angeles, or the CA parent trigger law that allows parents to vote to...

LAUSD Superintendent: “If You Don’t Like the Results, Fire Me” NBC: Less than two months from a crucial statewide vote on two propositions that would funnel more money into schools, Deasy made a push. “We’re talking about not being able to complete the school year if this fails in November,” Deasy said. Georgia team meets with LA...

Want to know who’s filed to run for LAUSD board member next year, and how much cash they’ve gathered for their campaigns?  Click over to the LA City Ethics Commission’s website: 2013 Municipal and LAUSD Election. Below is a snapshot from yesterday evening showing the three LAUSD races for 2013 (towards the bottom). District 2 is the...