Teacher's blog shares passion, heartbreak

Normally sharing a well-written blog by a passionate teacher is a joyful task. Today's discovery comes with an overlay of sorrow.

I met Vivian Connell,  a former Providence High teacher with strong views on the fate of the profession,  at the Emerging Issues Forum in Raleigh in mid-February. I enjoyed her way with words,  and we exchanged emails afterward.

Connell

If you read Jane Stancill's recent story,  you know that about a month later Connell was diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's syndrome.  She's a few years younger than me, facing a relentless and fatal illness.

I was tempted to feel sorry for her. Then I read her blog, "finALS."

"Well, hello there, Death! I was not expecting you, yet, here you are,"  she writes of getting her March 12 diagnosis. She moves quickly on to her plans for the years she has left:  "I want to join my fiery, righteously indignant, kick-ass colleagues in education blogging as we defend the essential civic institution of public education against an onslaught, a wrong-minded and dangerous take-over by private interests that threatens the nature of American democracy."

Not much hand-wringing there.  I get the sense she'd much rather face a good argument than a dose of pity  --  and someone who describes Diane Ravitch as her hero is likely to spark plenty of good arguments.  You can read more about her path from teacher to lawyer back to teacher,  as well as get her take on all that lies ahead for her.  That include not just her illness,  but her plans to take her students to the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington.

Lieberman

And while I'm sharing good writing,  Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has posted a piece about International Baccalaureate life by East Meck student journalist Hannah Lieberman,  titled  "I think, therefore IB."   CMS spokeswoman Stacy Sneed said as far as she knows,  it's the first piece of student reporting posted on the district's site.  I think it's a great idea and hope to see more student work. 

Testing boycott and teacher ratings

A snowstorm, an earthquake  --  and now we have Pamela Grundy and Pat McCrory on the same side of an education issue. The end times must be here.

Grundy, a founder of Mecklenburg ACTS and Parents Across America,  is urging parents to boycott state exams this spring,  part of a national  "Testing Resistance and Reform Spring"  protest against excessive testing.  Other sponsors are FairTest,  United Opt Out,  the Network for Public Education and Save Our Schools.

Grundy and Carol Sawyer of Meck ACTS

So far there aren't a lot of details about the boycott.  Charlotte-Mecklenburg parents have talked about keeping their kids out of testing in the past;  the official stand is that tests are part of the curriculum and parents aren't allowed to opt out.

McCrory,  the Republican governor,  probably doesn't support the boycott.  But he did get vocal about the hazards of overtesting at last week's Emerging Issues Forum on teachers.   (Speaking of which,  anyone interested in issues raised at that forum can sign up for a free online course on world-class teaching,  sponsored by N.C. State's Emerging Issues Institute.)

No one's arguing against kids taking tests to show what they know.  The controversy springs from the barrage of N.C. exams designed primarily to rate teachers and schools.  A lot of folks who want solid data about the quality of public schools say the state is going too far in the quest to generate numbers that may or may not capture teacher quality.

Meanwhile,  we just got a first look at how those test-generated ratings play out for N.C. schools and districts.  I'll be eager to hear what people are thinking as they check out data on their schools.  The state's site makes it easy to look up schools and districts,  but it's tough to do any kind of big-picture comparison and analysis looking up one data point at a time.  State officials say they'll send me a spreadsheet as early as today.  If you'd like a copy,  shoot me an email at ahelms@charlotteobserver.com with  "spreadsheet"  in the header.

I caught up with Julie Kowal,  executive director of CarolinaCAN,  after I'd filed the story on value-added ratings.  Her group is big on data and accountability,  so it was no surprise to hear her say that  "the wonk in me"  loves this report:  "It is so valuable for the state to make this publicly available in the way they have. We need this data to be able to make responsible decisions."  But she added a note of ambiguity:  "The parent in me thinks it's very difficult to know what it's good for."

State's big issue: Teachers and money

Next month policymakers and opinion-shapers from around the country will gather at N.C. State University to discuss  "Teachers and the Great Economic Debate."

Each year since 1986,  the university has convened a forum on  "big issues that affect North Carolina's growth and prosperity."  Recent topics have included health care, manufacturing and  "investing in Generation Z."

This year the Institute for Emerging Issues is zeroing in on teachers:  How they're treated,  how they're paid and how well they inspire learning,  around the globe and here at home.

Ron Clark and students

State leaders such as former Gov. James Hunt,  who co-chairs the institute,  and state Board of Education member John Tate will share platforms with such national education celebrities as Ron Clark,  whose founding of Atlanta's Ron Clark Academy was turned into a TV movie,  and Diane Ravitch,  one of the most prolific and controversial voices in the education scene.  Gov. Pat McCrory and Phil Berger,  president pro tem of the state senate,  have been invited to speak,  and a panel of legislators will discuss next steps for North Carolina.

The forum is Feb. 10 and 11. Registration costs $400  ($275 for higher education, nonprofit and government representatives),  which puts it outside the reach of many teachers.  The Belk Foundation is addressing that by footing the bill for 150 teachers from around the state.  There's also an option to watch online;  staffers say last year's forum drew about 1,000 in-person participants and 1,200 online viewers.