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A proposed charter school is splitting the Williamsburg community in half, but while opponents turned out in force for a hearing Tuesday, the program is expected to be approved by the Panel for Educational Policy. NY1's Lindsey Christ filed the following report.

Parents at a Fort Greene elementary school are lashing out against the city's proposal to move a new charter school into their building, claiming that their own expansion plans were denied to make room for a school with more political clout.

The large-scale expansion of charter schools in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina has generated few differences in educational practice between traditional and charter schools. One difference that did emerge in a RAND study was this: Parents of kids in charter schools perceived a greater sense of choice and greater satisfaction with those schools, on average, than did their counterparts in traditional schools.

n 2007, the city put an end to the diversity-based admissions policies at the East Village Community School and other elementary schools in the neighborhood. Since then, the East Village Community School has seen a rapid influx of white and high-income families, according to parents and Department of Education figures. "Our school has radically changed since they stopped looking at ethnicity," said Kessler, 47, an East Village resident who is co-president of the school's PTA and has two children there. "I think it would be better for my kids to be exposed to a range of people."

Federal school "turnaround" strategies that call for firing teachers, replacing managers, or closing troubled public schools or converting them into charter schools often meet with understandable skepticism, resistance and even anger among the parents whose children attend those schools. How should policymakers react? According to a recent study from the think tank Public Agenda, the answer is to treat the harsh realities caused by turnarounds as a public relations problem. That's the conclusion of a review released today of What's Trust Got to Do With It? A Communications and Engagement Guide for School Leaders Tackling the Problem of Persistently Failing Schools.

In preparation for the November 29 public hearing with the Department of Education about the proposed co-location of Success Academy Cobble Hill at 284 Baltic St., parents, teachers and even some drowsy students gathered Monday for a District 15 wide PTA meeting to discuss a course of action and voice concerns.

New York City voters trust the teachers union more than Mayor Michael Bloomberg to protect the interests of public-school students, according to a new poll that gives the union a jolt of credibility as it negotiates over a new teacher-evaluation system. The poll, released Wednesday by Quinnipiac University, found that 56% of city voters said they trust United Federation of Teachers while 31% trust the mayor. Parents of public-school students preferred the union by an even wider margin, with 69% telling pollsters that the UFT can be better trusted to do what's best for their children. By a margin of 47% to 39%, voters said they believe the teachers union is playing a positive role in improving the city's education system.

Last spring students, teachers and parents endured the outbreak of what we soon called "testing madness." On top of the regular state tests, teachers across Mecklenburg County were required to administer 52 new high-stakes standardized tests, part of then superintendent Peter Gorman's goal of testing every child in every subject every year. The tests were tied to a pay-for-performance scheme that was slated for rapid approval by the state legislature. We were racing down a fast track to nowhere. This year, however, the rush has slowed. The pay-for-performance legislation has stalled. Interim superintendent Hugh Hattabaugh announced recently that CMS was scrapping the 52 extra tests. For the moment, students and teachers can focus more on learning, and breathe a little easier. Why the change? People stood up for the kind of education they believe in.

Special education has become the new wedge for advocates of school choice-private school vouchers, charter schools, and other options for public school students. Some school-choice proponents told me that students with disabilities inspire sympathy, and state lawmakers wouldn't stand in the way of their getting these additional opportunities. The big risk for parents who choose vouchers is that they'll lose their federal rights to be involved in their child's education as provided by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

It resembled a street carnival. Excited children in bright colors, holding up scarecrows and blowing bubbles, were being serenaded by the raucous sounds of the Rude Mechanical Orchestra. But the scarecrows were christened "Bloomberg," "Tisch" and "Cuomo." The children held up placards that said things like "No More Testing. My Brain Is for Learning!" And sprinkled throughout the crowd were posters and cutouts of pineapples.

"This week a film partially funded by Walden Media, which is owned by entrepreneur and conservative Philip Anschutz, will be released in theaters. The film, Won't Back Down, is a work of fiction but claims to be based on real life events and tells the story of a teacher and a parent in a 'failing' school who join forces to 'save their school.' Walden Media also funded Waiting for Superman, which was billed as a documentary on education and chronicled the stories of several families navigating the educational landscape intermixed with commentary from journalists, economists, philanthropists, and business folks who surmised the troubles of public education today. These two films differ in style, but their substance is aligned and their conclusion is the same: teacher unions are the obstacle to student achievement."

"Showdowns in Chicago, Philadelphia, New York City and beyond have turned out parents and teachers in droves-and revealed how out of touch education reformers really are."

"Overcoming years of tensions and divisions, parents and teachers are linking arms to save public schools."

"Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña missed a crucial opportunity this week, as field tests started in schools across the city. She should have told parents and school leaders that they could choose whether to let their children participate or not."

If you're a parent, you've probably experienced a certain degree of fear at some point or another about your kids using the Internet. Maybe you peer over their shoulders while they check their Facebook pages, or try to catch glimpses of IM conversations they have with their friends. But do you worry about how they communicate online with their teachers? A new Missouri state law makes the case that you should.

The American Federation of Teachers has landed in a bit of hot water over a presentation, given by a regional affiliate lobbyist at its recent TEACH professional-development conference, that details how the Connecticut chapter "diffused" a "parent trigger" legislative proposal in that state.

New York City Parents File Lawsuit Against Separate and Unequal Charter Co-locations and Illegal Free Rent and Services to Charter Schools

As strapped public schools try to squeeze every possible dollar out of their budgets, an unpleasant reality awaits parents: They will most likely have to pay for programs and services that schools once provided free.

Last night's meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy meeting was exhilarating, stirring, and depressing all at once.   Over a thousand parents, teachers, and striking Verizon workers showed up for the pre-meeting rally, and hundreds more filled the auditorium afterwards at Murry Bergtraum HS, chanting, booing Walcott and the DOE, and speaking up passionately for the need for more caring education priorities, and against the $120 million Verizon contract, which will steal even more resources from our children and the company's workers.

Joel Klein responds to Steve Brill.