Category Archives: June Atkinson

#DM7 Article: Hagan Attempting To Manufacture Outrage In #NCSEN

Posted on October 5, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

This is a reposting of my weekly article at Da Tech Guy blog: Hagan Attempting To Manufacture Outrage In #NCSEN By A.P. Dillon Given the busy week Kay Hagan (D-NC) is having, a dispatch from the NC Senate race is due here. … Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), BlueprintNC, June Atkinson, Moral Monday, POLITICS NC, Senate 2014 | Tagged , | Comments Off on #DM7 Article: Hagan Attempting To Manufacture Outrage In #NCSEN

#APUSH Is Going To Get A Debate In North Carolina

Posted on October 3, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

At the October meeting of the NC State School Board, the topic of APUSH came up. For those unfamiliar, APUSH stands for Advanced Placement U.S. History.

Recently the College Board has made controversial revisions to the APUSH framework, taking it from a five page document to a 95 page document. The changes are alarming, so much so that a national conference call was put together on August 4, 2014. Audio of the call is available via Georgia Stop Common Core. More articles on APUSH can be found at StopCommonCoreNC.org and on my blog.

Important Reads
NC Superintendent on #APUSH
NC Board Of Ed Plans To Stick With #APUSH

Critics of the new APUSH framework contend that it undermines the current teaching of U.S. History and with regards to North Carolina, does not align with the current law and requirements known as the Founding Principles Act (HB 588).

Video of this discussion on APUSH can be seen here. Fast forward to around the 1:37:30 mark.

I have a few comments on the video:

KEEP READING…. Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), EDUCATION, June Atkinson, NC Board Of Education | Tagged | 2 Comments

The Infamous “10,000” Comments On Common Core

Posted on October 1, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

If you’ve been following along in my journey to obtain the “10,000” comments, you know I’ve been looking for these pieces of feedback ever since Dr. Atkinson mentioned them.

Atkinson also commented during the course of the legislative research commission that there were “60,000 teachers” involved in the revision of the standard course of study. She was very vague and never brought that item up again. As of this moment, I don’t believe that there are “60,000 teachers” involved in any set of feedback for any course of study past or present. I think there’s been some “false witness” going on. Read on and see why. Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), Common Core, June Atkinson, NC DPI | Tagged | 6 Comments

Gates Grants Show Push On ‘Personalizing’ Learning

Posted on September 28, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

I’ve gotten in the habit of checking out the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant site on a regular basis.

I recently pulled up all the 2014 ‘college ready’ grants. The amount of money being doled out for 116 grants was over $87 million. This $87 million spans only 2014 through 9/28/14.

The second largest grant was to the CCSSO for over $6 million to support the implementation of their ‘strategic plan’:

KEEP READING, See who got the largest grant… Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), Common Core, June Atkinson | Tagged , | Comments Off on Gates Grants Show Push On ‘Personalizing’ Learning

Durham Schools Drops Teach For America

Posted on September 20, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

Here is an interesting tidbit. Durham schools has dropped their contract with Teach for America (TFA), citing the district no longer needs the group and that their turnover rate isn’t in line with the district’s retention goals.

The district has worked with TFA for the past decade and currently has 12 teachers from the program in local schools: Six at Southern School of Energy and Sustainability, four at Neal Magnet Middle School and two at Eastway Elementary School.

The Board of Education last month decided not to renew TFA’s contract, saying the district no longer needs the group’s help and that local schools need teachers willing to commit more than the two years TFA requires.

“We want to build a strong teacher workforce that’s made up of career educators,” school board Chairwoman Heidi Carter said Friday. “Our job is to look long term and make decisions that will benefit the most students over time.”

Carter said the inconsistency and turnover after TFA teachers leave can create problems, especially in high-risk schools where many of the teachers are placed.

“No organization in the business world builds its workforce from temp employees, and basically, that’s what this would be doing.” she said. – WRAL

This criticism about turnover is not new. Flashback to 2011 when Diane Ravitch spoke at Duke:

READ MORE – SEE THE DETAILS ON MONETARY JUGGERNAUT TFA Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), Common Core, EDUCATION, June Atkinson, NC DPI, NCGA, Pat McCrory | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Durham Schools Drops Teach For America

NC Governor’s Common Core Commission Pick: Ralph Andre Peek

Posted on September 17, 2014 by A.P. Dillon

Yesterday, Governor McCrory finally made his Common Core commission pick, Ralph Andre Peek. The pick came 16 days beyond the date for the first meeting as laid out by the bill McCrory signed into law.
Strike one.

The first meeting is slated to take place this coming Monday, at the Department of Public Instruction.

The inaugural meeting will be held on Monday, September 22from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the State Construction Office conference room, fourth floor of the Education Building, 301 N. Wilmington Street, Raleigh, NC.

The bill McCrory signed into law for this commission prohibits this. “Section 2.(a) – The commission shall be located administratively in the Department of Administration…”.
Strike two.

McCrory’s pick appears to be pretty much Pro-Common Core.
Ralph Andre Peek is businessman from the upper echelon of IBM who is tied to Pro-Core Teach for America, The NC Chamber’s Pro-Core ‘Hire Standards’, and the Pro-Core North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE).

Mr. Peek is listed an ‘unaffiliated” in political party registration. What is it with this Governor’s habit of not appointing folks from his own party? I can see 2016 now: Pat McCrory (U-NC).

KEEP READING… THERE IS A LOT MORE.. Unfortunately. Continue reading →

Posted in A.P. Dillon (LL1885), Academic Standards Review Commission, Common Core, June Atkinson, Pat McCrory | Tagged | 4 Comments