My Hat's Off to ED
by Frederick M. Hess • Jun 25, 2012 at 8:25 am
Cross-posted from Education Week
Cross-posted from Education Week
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Big props to the Obama Department of Education for doing something that you don't see too much in Washington or in edu-circles. Last Thursday, the Department invited my colleague Andrew Kelly and I tocome over and have a public, unscripted conversation about our book Carrots, Sticks, and the Bully Pulpit(Harvard Ed Press, 2012). This was a sterling example of how leaders can signal that they're interested in hearing constructive criticism and willing to take the time to hear the thinking of those who aren't necessarily on the same page.
How so? One, I've been a sympathetic but emphatic critic of a number of Obama administration initiatives in K-12 and higher ed. Two, while the book's varied contributors offer what is (I think) an even-handed treatment of what we've learned about Uncle Sam's efforts to improve schooling, it certainly challenges some of the
