Where Are the Closing Schools?
Jersey Jazzman connects the dots about school closings.
Do they close in white neighborhoods? No.
Do they close in affluent neighborhoods? No.
Guess where they close? In high-poverty neighborhoods.
My guess: the white and affluent neighborhoods are next.
Do they close in white neighborhoods? No.
Do they close in affluent neighborhoods? No.
Guess where they close? In high-poverty neighborhoods.
My guess: the white and affluent neighborhoods are next.
An Armed Guard for Every School?
Eclectablog is one of my favorites. I don’t know the writer, but he or she is super smart and witty, which is a great combination.
Here is a post explaining that an armed guard in every school (132,000 schools of all kinds) would cost something north of $10 billion.
That’s lot of moola-boola on new weaponry.
It also means another 132,000 guns in the schools.
Eclectablog refers to this as “gun porn.”
Be sure to open this
Here is a post explaining that an armed guard in every school (132,000 schools of all kinds) would cost something north of $10 billion.
That’s lot of moola-boola on new weaponry.
It also means another 132,000 guns in the schools.
Eclectablog refers to this as “gun porn.”
Be sure to open this
No One Opposes Reading Non-Fiction
A reader posted a comment yesterday wondering why so many who read this blog are opposed to reading non-fiction, or in the jargon of the day, “informational text.”
This is a reference to the debate about the Common Core standards, which mandate a 50-50 split between literary/informational text in lower grades, and a 70-30 split in high school grades.
Let me clarify my own view, as well as what I have derived from hundreds of comments by parents and teachers. No one opposes reading non-fiction. You are reading an informational text right now! Teachers of science, history, and mathematics have always assigned informational texts. Few such classes read fiction. So the question comes down to what the English teacher assigns. Probably, if the English teacher assigned 100%
This is a reference to the debate about the Common Core standards, which mandate a 50-50 split between literary/informational text in lower grades, and a 70-30 split in high school grades.
Let me clarify my own view, as well as what I have derived from hundreds of comments by parents and teachers. No one opposes reading non-fiction. You are reading an informational text right now! Teachers of science, history, and mathematics have always assigned informational texts. Few such classes read fiction. So the question comes down to what the English teacher assigns. Probably, if the English teacher assigned 100%
An Interview with Todd Farley
This was sent by a reader of the blog. Todd Farley wrote a terrific book about the testing industry called “Making the Grades,” based on his many years on the inside of that industry. He knows the tricks of the trade. If you haven’t read his book, you should.
Interview with Todd Farley by Rebecca Rubenstein.
She writes:
In 2009, I had just graduated college and was part of a class fumbling its way into one of the worst economic climates in U.S. history. Our prospects were, to say the least, uncertain, though my class’s guest
Interview with Todd Farley by Rebecca Rubenstein.
She writes:
In 2009, I had just graduated college and was part of a class fumbling its way into one of the worst economic climates in U.S. history. Our prospects were, to say the least, uncertain, though my class’s guest
Please Arm These Teachers!
This elementary school teacher wants to be armed with smaller classes.
She also wants to be armed with after school clubs and resources for her special education students. Readmore about how she wants to be armed.
This education dean also wants to arm teachers.
He wants to arm them with passion, purpose, knowledge, understanding, and courage.
Anyone listening?
She also wants to be armed with after school clubs and resources for her special education students. Readmore about how she wants to be armed.
This education dean also wants to arm teachers.
He wants to arm them with passion, purpose, knowledge, understanding, and courage.
Anyone listening?
Teacher: Common Core Harms My Title I Students
One of the unsettled questions about the Common Core standards is whether they will widen or narrow the achievement gaps between children of different races and different income levels. In their first trial in Kentucky, the gap grew larger, and scores fell across the board. Some see this effect as a temporary adjustment to higher standards. Some suspect that it is intended to induce panic among parents about public education. Some see it as an opportunity for entrepreneurs to sell more stuff to schools.
This teacher read Stephen Krashen’s post last night about the Common Core and offered the following comments.
“From a teacher who has spent this year implementing CC I can tell everyone it has been a nightmare of epic
This teacher read Stephen Krashen’s post last night about the Common Core and offered the following comments.
“From a teacher who has spent this year implementing CC I can tell everyone it has been a nightmare of epic
The Belly of the Beast
This article, published in The Times Educational Supplement (London), is an in-depth explanation of how the Global Educational Reform Movement (GERM) took shape and became powerful. Here you will meet Sir Michael Barber, who coined the idea of “deliverology,” and learn about his rapid ascent from trade union activist to Tony Blair advisor to McKinsey guru to Pearson strategist.
You will learn about the fierce struggle among advanced nations to have the highest test scores and be #1 on
You will learn about the fierce struggle among advanced nations to have the highest test scores and be #1 on
Teacher: How Toxic Testing Drove Me Out of the Classroom
Carole Marshall, a former journalist, published the following in the Providence (R.I.) Journal on December 14, 2012:
TESTING MANIA LEAVES URBAN STUDENTS BEHIND
As a person who left a teaching position at Hope High School, in Providence, last June after almost two decades, I’d like to add my perspective to the discussion of high-stakes testing.
I left several years earlier than I’d planned to. I’m proud of my teaching record and of the role I played at Hope: I was the internal facilitator for school improvement when we broke down Hope into small learning communities.
TESTING MANIA LEAVES URBAN STUDENTS BEHIND
As a person who left a teaching position at Hope High School, in Providence, last June after almost two decades, I’d like to add my perspective to the discussion of high-stakes testing.
I left several years earlier than I’d planned to. I’m proud of my teaching record and of the role I played at Hope: I was the internal facilitator for school improvement when we broke down Hope into small learning communities.
Diane in the Evening 12-26-12 Diane Ravitch's blog
coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 11 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: A Literacy Expert Opposes the Common Core Standards by dianerav Stephen Krashen is a professor emeritus at the University of Southern California, where he taught linguistics. He comments here in response to an earlier post about the Common Core standards: What this excessive detail also does is (1) dictate the order of presentation of aspects of literacy (2) encourage a direct teaching, skill-building approach to teaching. Both of these consequences run counter to a massive amount of research and experience. There is very good evidence from both first and sec... more »
