A Bizarre Article Planted by StudentsFirst
I usually ignore editorials and opinion articles in the tabloids of New York City because 99% say the same things: public schools are bad, public school teachers are awful or criminal or should be fired, and charter schools are all great.
Today, however, someone on Twitter asked me about an opinion piece in the Daily News. I read it and discovered it was written by someone who said he was the father of twin daughters in kindergarten in Brooklyn. The girls were in different classes. The father is upset because he can tell that one teacher is great and the other
Today, however, someone on Twitter asked me about an opinion piece in the Daily News. I read it and discovered it was written by someone who said he was the father of twin daughters in kindergarten in Brooklyn. The girls were in different classes. The father is upset because he can tell that one teacher is great and the other
A Fab New Program: America for America
Friends and readers, many years ago I worked for a small magazine. Once in a while, we would receive a submission from a completely unknown writer. We said “it came over the transom.” Now to understand the expression, you have to know what a transom is. It’s the movable glass panel on a hinge over the door. You left it open to get air circulation, in the days before air-conditioning. So, if you worked in this little magazine, you might have an article literally tossed over the transom, unsolicited. Who knew? Maybe it would be the next great
The Outrageous Attacks on Susan Rice
I don’t usually comment on matters outside education, but I had to say something about the bullying of Susan Rice.
I don’t think I ever met Susan, but I knew her mother fairly well when I worked at the Brookings Institution, so I followed Susan’s remarkable career.
Susan Rice graduated from Stanford University, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She was a Rhodes Scholar with double degrees from Oxford University. She was on the staff of the National Security Council and an
I don’t think I ever met Susan, but I knew her mother fairly well when I worked at the Brookings Institution, so I followed Susan’s remarkable career.
Susan Rice graduated from Stanford University, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She was a Rhodes Scholar with double degrees from Oxford University. She was on the staff of the National Security Council and an
Randi Weingarten’s Excellent Proposal for the Teaching Profession
Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, understands that teachers must be better prepared in the future. At present, the standards for entry into teaching are a hodgepodge, are set by every state and district at varying levels, and many new teachers arrive with an online degree or with only a few weeks of “training.” This is not good enough.In Finland, which has an excellent school system, all teachers are prepared over the course of a five-year program that includes subject matter knowledge and pedagogical skill. No one is allowed to teach without that deep and well-planned preparation for the classroom. Finland has eight universities. All of them follow the same
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 12-13-12 Diane Ravitch's blog
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Teacher: When I Dared to Ignore the Standards by dianerav A teacher writes: “I went to the Thinking in the Deep End blog, as you suggested, and returned to your site resisting the urge to cry. As a recent arrival to the teaching field — as a creative writer/poet and journalist who did so at the ripe age of 48, that is — I am utterly distressed at the test-centric atmosphere of the urban high school where I teach Language Arts. The again, I feel like a giddy young rebel, as I recently decided to guide my st... more »