My Beauty Best Teacher

Quote from a CHEC teacher: " If so many probationary teachers are being terminated ... what does that say about those hiring them and the supposed amazing pool of people available for hire? So many questions, so little answers, but plenty of finger pointing towards the teachers... including unfortunately, many good ones."

These updates are being provided to you in real-time. Because so many teachers have been fired, I am having to stay near to my computer and phone as I report what's happening on our educational landscape. Stay tuned for updates ! As I receive additional updates, I will post information.

Columbia Heights Education Campus (updates)

21 DC Teachers Terminated
Principal Takeva gives the boot to her middle school teachers @ CHEC

I just received this update. There have been 21 DC teachers fired from the Columbia Heights Education Campus where Maria Tukeva is the principal. This has just been confirmed. Most of the terminated teachers are probationary teachers. As emails are coming in, I will continue to provide you updates .Terminations of this many teachers at one school are unprecedented.

Ludlow Taylor Elementary School

7 DC Teachers Terminated
Rhee fires 7 DC teachers at Ludlow Taylor elementary school @ 659 G St. NE where Carolyn Cobbs is the principal. Our own fellow education blogger Dee Does DC was terminated too. The special education department at Ludlow Taylor was wiped out by Principal Cobbs.

Garfield Elementary School

1 DC Teacher Terminated
Rhee fires 1 DC teacher at Garfield elementary school @ 2435 Alabama Ave SE where Tammy Thomas is the principal and one of the DC departing (resigning) principals. ( The Washington Teacher).

Sharpe's Triumph, by Bernard Cornwell, is one of the many books from the Sharpe series, which is a New York Times bestselling series. This one is a 'prequel' since it is one of the more recent books in the series and yet takes place earlier in the timeline. It is set in 1803 in India, and is about the adventures of a young British infantryman named Richard Sharpe.

In this campaign, the main action takes place as Sharpe tracks down a turncoat who defected from the British East India company to join the mercenary forces of the Mahratta confederation. As Sharpe tracks this man across India, he gets involved in the Second Anglo-Maratha War, which includes the Battle of Ahmednuggur and more notable Battle of Assaye. The action is fierce in the battle scenes, and the plot is moved along at an able pace throughout the whole book.

One of the great things about Cornwell's writings is that even though the book is fictional (there was no Sharpe), the setting and the events have been meticulously researched and are described in such great detail that you really do feel like you have been there and in your mind you can picture the great battle of Assaye. When the Scottish Highlanders of the 78th are advancing through hails of grapeshot and canon fire wearing their kilts and tall bearskin hats, and in right in the face of the enemy they put on their bayonets and charge, you feel like you are there. When the city of Ahmednuggur is captured by a brazen escalade assault (ladders at the walls), and a Scottish major scales the walls and wins the top by slashing with his claymore, it is a fantastic image that makes you feel as if you were part of the action too.

One thing that stood out in the book is the difference between professional soldiers and mercenary or irregular forces. In the Battle of Assaye, the British had about 10K professional soldiers, and the Mahratta forces had about 100K- but only 15K of those were trained soldiers, and when faced with true pressure, they cracked. A professional soldier is a powerful thing- trained, efficient, disciplined, and able to win a battle. The other day I was reading (can't remember where) about how this US army detachment of 10 soldiers was ambushed by over 100 Taliban, and the result was over 20 Taliban dead to 1 injured US soldier. The Taliban were shooting their AK-47's everywhere, but the US soldiers fired and killed, fired and killed, fired and killed, all while keeping track of their position and comrades. Trained professional soldiers such as we employ and the British employed are deadly instruments of war.

This was a highly entertaining read, and I am excited to find out that they actually made this book into a television series too, starring Sean Bean. I'll have to watch that. If you haven't read any of the Sharpe series before, you may want to start with the one before this, which is called Sharpe's Tiger and is about the Siege of Seringapatam, or just jump ahead to some of the better ones, such as Sharpe's Eagle or Sharpe's Company. They are historical fictions, and remind me of Horatio Hornblower, and likely are the inspiration for other such great series like Honor Harrington. Enjoy!

The Madhvani Foundation's underlying goal:

...is to maintain and promote scientific and technical education among the people of Uganda. The scholarship programme is aimed at benefiting Ugandans pursuing either undergraduate or graduate studies at University level in Uganda...they are looking for graduates with vision;individuals who are able to perceive the path to Uganda's future and who not only want to travel the road but also actively participate in its development.

15 DC Teacher Terminations @ CHEC Now Reported

Read it and weep. This just came in. There are now fifteen (15) confirmed DC teacher terminations at Columbia Heights Education Campus (CHEC) located on 16th Street in D.C. It is reported that 13 of these terminations were probationary teachers, 1 teacher was as a result of a 90-day plan termination, and 1 not yet known. (Posted by The Washington Teacher).

President Obama is going to be coming under fire soon for his vicious attack recently against a poor and defenseless animal. On camera in front of a national audience, Obama killed one of gods creatures, and then laughed about it as if it was funny. Animal Rights activists, who are rabid about their attempts to defend cows, chickens, and dogs, are sure to immediately release a press statement in opposition to Obama.

To be perfectly honest though, it is not Obama's fault that that animal was killed. He once watched a Kung-Fun movie, so that makes him an expert in Kung-Fun and Ninja tactics, and so it was just instinct that took over and not any malicious will.

Also, the news is not mentioning it, but wikipedia is sure to be updated soon recording that Obama is now the first black President to kill a fly on national TV. That is yet another first in this historic Presidency!

Here is the clip, with the sound redubbed by Barely Political to expose the deeper meaning behind Obama's ninja swat of the fly. If you want to watch the original clip, it's here. To quote Obama- "I got the sucka."

UPDATE: Okay, I was just kidding about Obama being embroiled in an animal rights controversy when I wrote this post, but life imitates art sometimes, and right on cue, here comes PETA. Via theblogprof, from HotAir: Inevitable: PETA miffed at Obama for swatting fly.

UPDATE II: With all due respect to RightMichigan, Obama is a Ninja. It says so on his birth certificate. If you doubt me, find it and prove me wrong.

Nicholas Norbrook reports in The Africa Report .

“Ghanaian farmers should be thinking about what they can sell into Niger, not what they can send to the UK,”-Tom Lines .Refocusing on local demand makes sense given the steady growth of African economies over the past decade. Galloping urbanisation and an emergent middle class has created the conditions for the emergence of supermarket chains in South Africa and later East Africa that have implanted themselves in over 20 countries across the continent.

via Trade Invest

Government officials actually had a decent idea in Lansing. Instead of working on raising taxes, letting go dangerous prisoners, or outlawing behaviors they don't like, some senators actually got to work trying to improve a real problem in our state- education. Senators in Michigan introduced a plan today to allow teachers and parents to convert their local schools into independently run schools with more flexible rules.

These new 'neighborhood schools' would still have to comply with strict state standards and would have to be sponsored by a mayor, city, county or township, although they could not be affiliated with a church or religious organization in any way, because apparently that would be bad.

Neighborhood schools could hire non-state certified teachers (like lawyers, businessmen, or doctors) and could offer merit pay to their teachers (like raising MME scores or having a slew of 5's on an AP test). The schools would be funded in the same way current charter schools are funded, with an annual state grant that’s based on enrollment.

As I understand it, these schools would be governed locally and would cut out the many layers of middle-management that make schools so inefficient, and could employ any other innovative practices that they think would help their students out.

This is a good idea- but it won't go anywhere. Other Senators are working on another plan for school improvement that will involve dumping more money into the system and put in place more restrictions on the free-market and parents, and this is a bad plan, and that system is closer to being passed than the 'neighborhood schools' idea.

The good plan is sponsored by Republicans, the bad plan by Democrats. Vote appropriately in future elections.

UPDATE: Some people have emailed me and accused me of selling out to the teachers union with this one- they want to know how this squares away with my usually free-market bent. Well, these types of schools create yet more competition, and they will be run by local companies (composed of teachers and parents), so as I see it, this is a very free-market based approach to education.

UPDATE II: Okay, did a little bit more research on this idea, and I like it more and more. Turns out there is a book out on this very premise: Can Teachers Own Their Own Schools- New Strategies for Educational Excellence, By Richard K. Vedder. Here is a review of it online:

Vedder presents a bold plan in which teachers, administrators and others involved in the educational process would become the owners of schools, acquiring an attractive financial stake in the process. Such privatization reforms could empower those directly involved and affected by school performance and end interest group barriers, paving the way for new, cost-effective means of improving educational outcomes. As a result, schools in which teachers, administrators, and parents have a significant financial stake would foster vibrant school communities with increased parental involvement and the innovation and efficiency essential to produce educational excellence.

Look, there is no way teachers would ever go for any sort of privatization scheme- to them, this is code for job layoffs and lower pay. I don't agree with that mentality- I think privatization can be a useful means of protecting jobs and even increasing teachers pay- but that is the way it is. The key is to put in place free-market schemes that are teacher-friendly.

Selling teachers on competition and privatization by letting them run their own schools and have an ownership stake in them is a great idea. This is not like GM or Chrysler where we are giving unions an ownership stake in a private company to encourage them to work harder and be more efficient- this is giving unions an ownership stake in a government-run enterprise to make them work harder and be more efficient. And that is a great idea.