Still obtuse about standardized testing
For all that President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan talk about wanting to move beyond “bubble tests,” the high-stakes role ofstandardized testing in public education as a result of their policies can hardly be overstated. Here’s a new look at testing by Walt Gardner, who writes the Reality Check blog for Education Week. Gardner taught for 28 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District and was a lecturer in the UCLA Graduate School of Education. He uses his background to put educational issues in context for readers.
By Walt Gardner
When I was at UCLA working on my California teaching credential in the mid-1960s, I
Blaming stressed-out moms for school failure
I said I wouldn’t publish anything more about “Won’t Back Down,” the pro-parent trigger movie, but …. Here’s a post, written by Vicki Abeles and Wendy Grolnick, about the film but also about other movies and books that subtly — and not so subtly — blame some parents, especially mothers, when schools fail and kids fall behind.
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Pennsylvania eases NCLB rules to help charter schools
How is this for fair? Charter schools in Pennsylvania are now being assessed by easier rules than are traditional public schools when it comes to determining whether No Child Left Behind mandates have been met.
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