Reflecting on the Unthinkable
The tragic deaths in Newtown, Connecticut, have been difficult for me to process or respond to. The first actual writing I’ve done on the topic actually came in comments on another blog, written by Michael Petrilli. I don’t often find myself agreeing with Petrilli or the Fordham Foundation in their analysis of education practices, policies, or reform. (And I never did hear back from the foundation’s president, Checker Finn, regarding the free lunch I put up in a wager based on something he wrote about teaching).However, Petrilli’s post today took up education reform in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook school shootings, and it’s well worth reading. He offers two ideas he takes away from the tragedy:
First, we in the reform movement need to tone down any rhetoric that implies that a typical teacher isn’t committed to doing right by her or his students. This isn’t a new idea, but the heroism of the Sandy Hook teachers (and administrators) brings the point into sharp relief. That’s not to say we should relax our efforts to identify and remove ineffective teachers from the classroom. Just as