Why She Quit Teaching
I hate to see anyone give up when they love their work. When you read this essay, however, you will undertand why the pressure got to be too much for this teacher.
Do you think we could persuade Bill Gates and Eli Broad and Arne Duncan to read it too?
Maybe they could help figure out how to keep people like this teacher in the schools. We need her.
We don’t need people taking potshots and making her job harder.
Do you think we could persuade Bill Gates and Eli Broad and Arne Duncan to read it too?
Maybe they could help figure out how to keep people like this teacher in the schools. We need her.
We don’t need people taking potshots and making her job harder.
What Is the Point of Democracy in Education?
This post is very provocative. It may or may not have relevance to the readers of this blog, because so much of it refers to a British context and pertains to higher education. But what is relevant is the discussion of the conflict between democracy and free market efficiency.
As I read it, I thought about the argument for mayoral control: “It may mean giving up democracy, but it is more efficient.” Look to Cleveland, Chicago and New York City, and what you see is that democracy has been abolished with no increase in efficiency or effectiveness. What we have instead is one-man control, no-bid contracts, school closings, indifference to the views of constituents, and no improvement in educational quality.
Here is the heart of the matter:
…the nub of the matter is captured by his analogy with democracy — “the worst system except for all the
More “Liberal” Pundits Who Disdain Teachers
As I read it, I thought about the argument for mayoral control: “It may mean giving up democracy, but it is more efficient.” Look to Cleveland, Chicago and New York City, and what you see is that democracy has been abolished with no increase in efficiency or effectiveness. What we have instead is one-man control, no-bid contracts, school closings, indifference to the views of constituents, and no improvement in educational quality.
Here is the heart of the matter:
…the nub of the matter is captured by his analogy with democracy — “the worst system except for all the
More “Liberal” Pundits Who Disdain Teachers
A reader writes to add to an earlier list of “five liberal pundits”
Add NY Times columnist Tom Friedman and former Tribune editor/current Daily Beast contributor James Warren to the list.
Friedman has been wrong about almost everything he has every written about – from the wonders of global free trade to the wonders of the Iraq war.
Matt Taibbi has done the best take downs of Friedman. Here’s the most famous of those:
http://nypress.com/flat-n-all-that/
Glenn Greenwald points out how Friedman is emblematic of our imperial press corps
Which Liberal Pundits Attack Teachers?
Add NY Times columnist Tom Friedman and former Tribune editor/current Daily Beast contributor James Warren to the list.
Friedman has been wrong about almost everything he has every written about – from the wonders of global free trade to the wonders of the Iraq war.
Matt Taibbi has done the best take downs of Friedman. Here’s the most famous of those:
http://nypress.com/flat-n-all-that/
Glenn Greenwald points out how Friedman is emblematic of our imperial press corps
Which Liberal Pundits Attack Teachers?
In this article, five “liberal” pundits are cited who never side with teachers.
If the article had looked beyond the “liberal” side, it would have added Jonathan Alter and David Brooks, who are firmly on the side of the “reformers” who blame teachers and their unions for all the ills of American education. Alter appeared in “Waiting for Superman,” where he lauded testing and accountability, and Brooks claimed that the charter schools of the Harlem Children’s Zone had closed the achievement gap and never posted a correction to acknowledge that it had not. Anyway, he is a self-proclaimed conservative so there is no reason to expect him to support teachers and public education.
Is It Time to Sell K12 Stock Short?
If the article had looked beyond the “liberal” side, it would have added Jonathan Alter and David Brooks, who are firmly on the side of the “reformers” who blame teachers and their unions for all the ills of American education. Alter appeared in “Waiting for Superman,” where he lauded testing and accountability, and Brooks claimed that the charter schools of the Harlem Children’s Zone had closed the achievement gap and never posted a correction to acknowledge that it had not. Anyway, he is a self-proclaimed conservative so there is no reason to expect him to support teachers and public education.
Is It Time to Sell K12 Stock Short?
This investment service says the trend is downward, and it’s a good time to go short on K12. High student churn, poor results, increasing government scrutiny do not augur well for the future of for-profit virtual schooling.
About Those “Outrageous” Teacher Salaries
About Those “Outrageous” Teacher Salaries
I read recently that the average teacher salary in Boston is $81,000.
In Chicago, the average salary is $71,000.
Nationally, the average salary for teachers is about $51,000.
The cost of living in different regions and cities affects teachers’ salaries.
Many in the media think that it is an outrage that teachers are paid “so much.” I think that anyone who says this on radio or television should disclose their own salary. I have no doubt that it is a multiple of what teachers in the same region are paid.
Why aren’t they shocked that the head of K12, the online company, is paid $5 million to deliver a shoddy
How Did a Good Teacher Get a So-So Rating?
In Chicago, the average salary is $71,000.
Nationally, the average salary for teachers is about $51,000.
The cost of living in different regions and cities affects teachers’ salaries.
Many in the media think that it is an outrage that teachers are paid “so much.” I think that anyone who says this on radio or television should disclose their own salary. I have no doubt that it is a multiple of what teachers in the same region are paid.
Why aren’t they shocked that the head of K12, the online company, is paid $5 million to deliver a shoddy
How Did a Good Teacher Get a So-So Rating?
One of our readers got his score from the state education department. He is in a state of shock and rage:
Today I’m angry, disgusted, demoralized,and frustrated. I am also firmly resolved to fight back against the tsunami of junk ideology that all good educators face these days.
I received my ‘growth score’ today from the New York State Education Department.
I know, I really shouldn’t care what my score is. I know 100% of my students tested at or above grade level in
Secrets of Charter Success
Today I’m angry, disgusted, demoralized,and frustrated. I am also firmly resolved to fight back against the tsunami of junk ideology that all good educators face these days.
I received my ‘growth score’ today from the New York State Education Department.
I know, I really shouldn’t care what my score is. I know 100% of my students tested at or above grade level in
Secrets of Charter Success
A fascinating article in The Notebook in Philadelphia describes a charter school that has found a unique way to limit the kind of students who apply. Applications are available only one day in the year.
They are not available online.
They are not available at the school.
They are available only at a private golf club.
Parents who don’t know how to apply o
When Education Doesn’t Matter
They are not available online.
They are not available at the school.
They are available only at a private golf club.
Parents who don’t know how to apply o
When Education Doesn’t Matter
Louisiana under Bobby Jindal is diminishing the value of certification. State Commissioner of Education John White (ex-TFA) thinks that nothing more is needed than a college diploma to be a teacher. Extra degrees, like a masters or a doctorate, will not be recognized or rewarded in this state. In other words, they want students to get more education but not their teachers.
This teacher wonders if she can get her money back:
I earned a Ph.D. In Curriculum and Instruction from Louisiana’s flagship university to strengthen my pedagogy
This teacher wonders if she can get her money back:
I earned a Ph.D. In Curriculum and Instruction from Louisiana’s flagship university to strengthen my pedagogy