And my school system did not lose a day because of weather or any unforeseen event. The fall semester ended on the day it was supposed to according to the school system's calendar, but it's this calendar that needs to end. Calendar flexibility is an issue that received much more attention in this last couple … Continue reading Just Finished The Fall Semester Over A Month After The Winter Solstice

This past week WLOS out of Asheville interviewed Mark Johnsonon the recent attempt to pass a budget in North Carolina therefore leaving teacher raises in doubt. Take a listen if you can. State School Superintendent Mark Johnson recently spoke to News 13 about the budget and recent protests surrounding it. Johnson said he wants to … Continue reading Mark Johnson’s Recent Interview With WLOS – Translated

What if I were to extend the school year for another 100+ days beyond the already allotted time frame and when students got to class, called for an unsupervised study hall day after day because I refused to enact a lesson plan? Imagine all of the school buildings needing to be kept open, the meals that … Continue reading What If I Ran My Classroom Like Berger & Moore Ran The NCGA?

EdNC.org has a useful tool that helps education wonks and interested parties view the latest school perfomance grades in an interactive manner that allows the user to change major variables. Here is the link to their latest version. Currently, the formula is calculated with 80% for achievement on standardized tests and 20% on growth. Note … Continue reading What If The NC School Performance Grading Formula Were Different

Since this explanation was last posted, more and more lawmakers are still making the claim that what has stalled a budget from passing is that Gov. Roy Cooper under the influence of teacher groups like NCAE refused to take a raise of 3.9% for teachers. And this graphic is still being used to cast a … Continue reading That Erroneous Claim Gov. Cooper Left A “3.9% Pay Raise” For Teachers? It “Ain’t” What They Say It Is

From WRAL's Kelly Hinchcliffe last week: When reached by email Wednesday evening, the superintendent's spokesman, Graham Wilson, released the following statement: "We do not know where the text message came from. We are conducting an investigation to try to find out." Wilson later sent a more detailed response: "First, to ensure that blogger-conspiracies do not … Continue reading “DPI Spy Squad” Or The “Deep State” Or Maybe Even An “Elite Squad Of Ninjas?” Where Did Exhibit C Come From In The iStation Debacle?

Today will mark the another day for the hearing for the iStation / Amplify debacle over the procurement of a reading assessment tool for elementary schools. Liz Bell of EdNC.org has been covering everyday. The long-awaited hearing on the Department of Public Instruction’s choice of an assessment tool vendor to test K-3 student reading began … Continue reading Why Isn’t Mark Johnson Testifying In The iStation Hearing?

It's sadly humorous to hear so many NC GOP lawmakers "claim" that we as teachers" are allowing pay raises to stay on the table by supporting Gov. Cooper's veto against the current edition of the now-overdue budget. Why? Because those are the same lawmakers who took away longevity pay from teachers years ago.   In … Continue reading Remember Longevity Pay? The Same Lawmakers Who Said They Were Giving Teachers Raises Took That Away Years Ago

NCGA GOP stalwarts are trying to frame the narrative that Gov. Cooper and NCGA Senate Democrats placed teachers on the chopping block because they upheld a veto on what was presented as a 3.9% average raise in teacher salaries. And that narrative is a gross misinterpretation of the reality. On the surface, what Berger & … Continue reading Why That “3.9% Pay Raise” That Was Vetoed Really Wasn’t a “3.9% Pay Raise” To Begin With

A graphic was circulated often last fall on social media that portrayed Gov. Roy Cooper’s latest veto of an NC Senate bill concerning teacher raises in NC as a slap in the face of teachers. And after today's announcement from the NCGA that there would be no budget compromise, people like Phil Berger will try … Continue reading Looking At That Erroneous Claim That Cooper Left A “3.9% Pay Raise” For Teachers