Diane Ravitch's blog
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DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG
The Problem with Choice
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 7 minutes ago
A reader from Oregon explains the destructive consequences of choice. School choice has been a goal of the right for decades and is now embraced by the Obama administration: “For US education to thrive, charters must go. “Some Win, Some Lose with Open Enrollment”. The headline in the Eugene, Oregon Register-Guard may seem like an [...]
Learning from Kansas City
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 21 minutes ago
A reader writes to describe what happened in Kansas City as a warning to other cities (John Covington left the superintendency of Kansas City on short notice to head the Michigan Education Achievement Authority, which was created to oversee low-performing districts across the state): Learn from Kansas City’s mistakes. You spoke – in another blog, [...]
California Parent Trigger Leaders Sue for Money
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 hour ago
Readers may recall that an organization called Parent Revolution led the battle for a “parent trigger” law in California in 2010. Parent Revolution is funded by Gates, Broad and Walton foundations. Earlier this year, Parent Revolution worked with parents in Adelanto, California, to take over low-performing Desert Trails elementary school. Some parents wanted to rescind [...]
EduShyster Explains the “No Excuses” Model
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 hours ago
EduShyster is upset. She doesn’t understand why our nation’s leaders have embraced the idea that “success=compliance.” She is concerned that white philanthropists and white teachers are imposing strict discipline on black and brown children. This phenomenon is known as “no excuses.” As she mentions, the origin of ”No Excuses” may be traced to a book of [...]
A Call for Political Leadership
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 hours ago
Where are our leaders? Where are the political leaders with the courage and independence to support the commons against the power of Big Money? This reader read Gary Rubinstein’s brilliant Letters to “Reformers” and wrote this comment: “Thanks for making this series more widely known– it is so well done and important for people to [...]
Hari Sevugan Defends StudentsFirst Agenda
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 9 hours ago
I earlier reported the story on Huffington Post that said a number of top staffers had resigned, including Democrats. Hari Sevugan was a key figure in the article. He here explains his continued loyalty to Michelle Rhee’s mission. I hope he will write again to explain why he thinks that Rhee’s support for for-profit charters, [...]
Jersey Jazzman on the Democratic Defections from Rhee Camp
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 10 hours ago
It seems that Jersey Jazzman and I read Joy Resmovits’s article at the same moment and posted in tandem. Readers might want to know what he thought about the changing of he guard at StudentsFirst.
Rhee Loses Top Democratic Staffers
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 11 hours ago
Joy Resmovits at Huffington Post has a revealing story about how top staff at Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst have abandoned the ship. No one went on the record to explain the exodus but it is hard to see how any Democrat could be part of a campaign to curtail collective bargaining rights and to diminish the [...]
The VAM Mess in Pennsylvania
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 13 hours ago
Value-added assessment is all the rage since te introduction of Race to the Top. Before then, everyone understood that teachers, families, school resources and the student herself (or himself) were the determining factors in student test scores. But RTTT set off a movement to use scores to evaluate teachers, hoping to identify laggards and fire [...]
How to Live with an Outrage
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 19 hours ago
Chancellor Kaya Henderson is closing 20 public schools in DC, displacing 3,000 children. She has abdicated her responsibilty to improve the schools and is instead following the corporate reform script: close public schools while opening more privately managed charters. The Washington Post has an article advising parents and students how to accept the destruction of [...]
Jersey Jazzman Deconstructs Klein Record: Part 2
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 19 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman has decided to analyze Joel Klein’s record, since he is now one of the leading spokesmen for the corporate reform record. In this post, he looks at evidence of how New York City students fared on the NAEP compared to other cities that also take the same assessments.
Courts and NLRB: Charters Are Not Public Schools
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 21 hours ago
Courts have repeatedly ruled that charter schools are not public schools. These rulings have been sought not by charter critics, but by the charters themselves, to enable them to avoid complying with state laws. Julian Vasquez Heilig of the University of Texas warns African American students and their families that charters are not considered public [...]
As Detroit Public Schools Shrink, Proportion of Special Ed Kids Soar
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
http://www.freep.com/article/20121224/NEWS01/312240091/As-Detroit-Public-Schools-rolls-fall-proportion-of-special-needs-students-on-rise?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFrontpage
School Board Showdown in Los Angeles
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Steve Zimmer is an alumnus of Teach for America. He is not your typical TFA-er. He was elected to the Los Angeles Unified school board in 2009, after seventeen years as a public school teacher. He will be opposed by Kate Anderson, who has endorsements and major funding from the powerful charter school lobby. Zimmer, [...]
The Dichotomy Between Corporate Reform and Real Reform
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Anthony Cody has written a crisp analysis of the differences between what corporate reformers want and what supporters of public education want. People like Anthony and me are often told to be accommodating, to be more receptive of the corporate style ideas. But, as Anthony shows in this article, there are genuine differences. Public education [...]
Peter Goodman: NYC Needs a Chancellor Who Can Lead
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
New York City has been swaddled in hype and spin for the past dozen years. The mayor gained control of the schools in 2002 and he appoints the chancellor. He also appoints a majority of the school board, who serve at his pleasure. He has appointed three chancellors in a row who were not educators. [...]
Rocketship to Nowhere
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
I posted a couple of times about John Merrow’s PBS profile of the Rocketship charter chain, but I think there is more to be said on the subject. The chain now has seven charters in San Jose, California, and it will soon expand into many more urban “markets.” When it enters a new territory, it [...]
FOUND: One Brave Superintendent in Connecticut!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Earlier today, I posted Wendy Lecker’s article, in which she said she was in search of one brave superintendent in Connecticut, who would stand up against the data-driven, test-obsessed climate of the times. I have found him. He is Thomas Starice, the superintendent of the Madison, Connecticut, public schools. Superintendent Scarice consulted with his school [...]
Tough Choices: TFA or Goldman Sachs or McKinsey?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Today the New York Times ran an admiring article about Teach for America. I almost missed it because it was in the business section. The young people interviewed intend to move on to six-figure jobs on Wall Street after they put in their two years in the classroom. Some say they are making quite a financial [...]
In Search of One Brave Superintendent in Connecticut
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Wendy Lecker is a civil rights lawyer who lives in Ciponnecticut. She worked on the lawsuit for more funding for high-needs schools in New York, called the Campaign for Fiscal Equity and has just agreed to become the lawyer for the Campaign. In this terrific article, she asks whether there is any superintendent in Connecticut [...]
The War on Local School Boards, Bridgeport Edition
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Josh Eidelson explains in Salon.com what happened in Bridgeport, Connecticut, when the corporate reformers promoted a referendum to abolish the elected school boards and give the public schools to the mayor. Despite the active support of Michelle Rhee and a heavy infusion of money, the voters of Bridgeport decided they preferred to keep their right [...]
When Reading History, Read Great Books
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Will Fitzhugh created The Concord Review to publish exemplary historical research by high school students. He has long waged a struggle to persuade teachers and schools to assign histories by leading scholars, not just cut-and-paste, pedestrian textbooks. Since many state standards emphasize coverage, not depth, this has been a hard sell. Real histories are exciting [...]
Gary Rubinstein Talks to the Reform Leaders
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Gary Rubinstein was one of the first members of Teach for America. He is now one of the leading critics of TFA and corporate reform. His blog is consistently thoughtful and informative. A few months ago, Gary decided to write to the top figures in the corporate reform movement. His letters and the replies he [...]
Noble Charters Make Money on Student Fines
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
The Noble charter chain in Chicago has picked up millions of dollars from the Chicago public school system for running its dozen charter schools. Next year it is budgeted to receive $69.9 million. It is also getting a nice chunk of change by fining parents when their children misbehave. The schools charge $5 for each [...]
Heilig: Why Vouchers Don’t Work
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Julian Vasquez Heilig of the University of Texas is beginning an investigation of the effectiveness of vouchers. He writes here about Texas but his conclusions would apply to any other state as well. He examines whether vouchers are cost-efficient and how they affect the public schools. Until the past few years, vouchers were a dead [...]
Maureen Reedy: Time for Action
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Maureen Reedy, veteran Ohio teacher, writes: Mary, Linda, Lisa, Ann, George, Cheryl, Neil, Marcie, Ron, Robin, Stef, Joe, Ms. Cartwheel Librarian … and other Public Education Patriots, Great! Great! Great! I am so inspired by our growing group interest in Public Schools Across America/Hands Across America ~ Together, we are going to figure out a [...]
Is Privatization of Public Schools a Good Idea?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
I disagree with this post by a faithful reader. But I think it deserves discussion. There are many reasons to object to privatization. One is that there is no evidence that privately managed firms that operate public services provide more efficient or less costly service. Another is that privately managed firms, when operating for profit, [...]
Jonathan Pelto Reports: Has CNN Dropped Dr. Steve Perry?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
According to Connecticut blogger Jonathan Pelto, CNN has severed its relationship with Dr. Steve Perry. Dr. Perry became best known for his putdown of teaches and unions, as well as his claims about his own miraculous achievements as director of a magnet school in Hartford. Pelto does a good job deconstructing those claims. Jersey Jazzman [...]
When Students Love Learning
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
I often get comments by teachers that move me close to tears. This is one of them. In the best of times, what the writer says would not be remarkable. In these times, these words remind us how education can be powerful and why these days it is not, it is just filling in the [...]
A Newspaper with a Split Personality
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Two days ago, the New York Daily News published a beautiful tribute to the heroes of Sandy Hook, both the dead and the living. The newspaper called them its Heroes of the Year. The editorial was written with such eloquence and feeling that it brought me to tears. I admit I was surprised by this [...]
Protest in Australia Against Our Corporate Reformers
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Here is a website in Australia that keeps watch on the damage done to Australian education by bad ideas imported from the USA. The question is why Australia–which ranks above the US on those international tests–should be copying the methods of the US. The Treehorn Express Treehorn is the hero of an easy-to-read, sad children’s [...]
Jersey Jazzman Deconstructs Joel Klein’s Record
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Joel Klein served as Chancellor of the New York City public schools for eight years. He had no previous experience as an educator. But he came to the job with a determination to reinvent the system and wipe out whatever he found. He has often boasted of the dramatic gains that occurred under his leadership, [...]
A Personal Invitation to Join a Protest in DC
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Should I go? This video was made by Peggy Robertson, who is a leader in the National Opt Out movement. What a fabulous invitation to join the Opt-Out protest on April 4-7 on the steps of the US Department of Education! Who could resist Sam and Luke? I will be there on April 4 at [...]
Teachers in Hawai’i Speak Up
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
A reader responded to my roundup of the good news of 2012 and chided me for not mentioning the courage of teachers in Hawai’i, who have stood up and spoken up for their profession. And then I received this comment from a teacher in Hawai’i: Aloha! Hau’oli Makahiki Hou — 2013! Thanks for a terrific [...]
My News for 2013
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Faithful readers of the blog may recall that I started a new book last June. I am pleased to announce that it will be published next fall by Knopf, the finest publishing house in the United States. The title is under wraps for now. If you have been reading the blog, you know what it’s [...]
EduShyster’s Predictions for 2013
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
EduShyster, that merry prankster of edu-reform offers her predictions for the New Year. She says 2013 will be the year of the edupreneur. This is a new genus americanus, the ultimate result of turning the public education system into an emerging market.
The Best of 2012
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
2012 was a year in which supporters of public education–parents, educators and concerned citizens–won some huge victories against the privatization movement. Let’s begin with the elections of 2012. Reform idol Tony Bennett was booted out by the voters of Indiana, who elected veteran educator Glenda Ritz as State Superintendent of Education. Idaho was a great [...]
The Worst of 2012
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
December 14, 2012, will be engraved in our hearts and memories forever as a dark and terrible day in our national history. It was a day when the unthinkable, the unimaginable, happened in Newtown, Connecticut. It was a day when every parent’s worst nightmare became a reality. It was a day when educators heroically defended [...]
Noa Rosinplotz Speaks for Herself!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Earlier today, I published an essay about testing (“The Voice of a Data-Point”) by a sixth-grade student, Noa Rosinplotz. Her story was so thoughtful and well-written that some commenters could not believe it was written by a sixth grade student. I emailed Noa and asked her to read the comments and respond. This is what [...]
Common Core and the Fiction/Non-Fiction Question
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Education Week has an article by Catherine Gewertz saying that defenders of the Common Core are out in full force to quell the uproar about whether CC will mean less fiction. It is interesting that the two loudest voices defending CC are Jeb Bush’s Foundation for Educational Excellence and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, both [...]
When Non-Profits Are Very Profitable
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
The New York Times had a front-page story yesterday about a non-profit corporation that runs halfway houses in New Jersey. It may be non-profit, but the owner and his family are making millions. Does this remind you of anything else you have read lately?
An Ally Offers His Help to You
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Robert Rendo, a National Board Certified Teacher, has offered his talents as an illustrator to help all those fighting misguided reform. He writes: Dear Diane, I am a veteran teacher of 19 years, Nationally Board Certified, and teach a low income immigrant population. I am also an editorial illustrator with works in the New York [...]
The Voice of a Data Point
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
This is a story written by Noa Rosinplotz, a sixth-grade student in the District of Columbia public schools. It first appeared on a Facebook page called “Children Left Behind,” a protest site for students and families. Noa sent it to her story, and she also wrote a letter, which follows the story. Students are not [...]
Love Is the Answer
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Please read about Mr. Wright, a brilliant physics teacher in Louisville. An award-winning film was made about him, not just because of his vivacious, unorthodox teaching style, but because of his love for his son, who was born profoundly disabled. Please read the story about him in the New York Times and watch the video. [...]
Time for Action
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
In response to Katie Osgood’s post, “A Message to Reformers,” Maureen Reedy wrote the following: “Katie, Diane and Friends, I am loving your article Katie, it is right on in every way. No more! No MORE!!! NO MORE!!!! I have contacted Ed Schultz, a production company in California, Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim [...]
Do Poor Kids Need Art and Music Education?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
This is one of the most important posts you will read this year–or next. The Rocketship charter chain hopes to be the mass-produced model for poor kids in America. It intends someday to enroll one million children. Jersey Jazzman takes a close look at John Merrow’s PBS episode about Rocketship charters. . The children in [...]
Corporate Reform Vs. Equity, Per Julian Vasquez Heilig
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Julian Vasquez Heilig of the University of Texas is devoted to equity for students of color. This has made him a critic of corporate reform. And it may account for the name of his blog, which is “Cloaking Inequity.” You should browse his blog archives. He writes with verve and humor, which we know is [...]
Why the Reform Movement Is Foundering
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
An English teacher explains that she always teaches non-fiction in her courses. What she can’t understand is the mindset of those who want to impose a statistical straight jacket on teachers. She wonders if the people who did this have sound educational values. “The argument that English teachers are opposed to non-fiction because they love [...]
Should Public Schools Depend on Charity?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
A reader asks a good question: Call me a socialist, but I am totally against any & all fundraising for public schools. We as a nation should provide all our children equally with the highest possible standards we as a nation can afford. Private schools can do their own thing, whatever they can afford. (though [...]
Common Core Nonsense
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
In an earlier post, I complained about the arbitrary ratios embedded in the Common CoreStandards for fiction and “informational text.” I asked who would police whether Mr. Smith and Ms. Jones was teaching too much or too little fiction. Please read this exchange. A reader commented as follows: “You ask at the end of your [...]
A Question About those Rocketship Charters
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Labor lawyer comments on the Rocketship post: “Rocketship operates charters that enroll students via application. Therefore, it necessarily follows that the Rocketship will enroll a different mix of students than the low-SES-area neighborhood public schools. In low-SES areas, many parents are too unconcerned/dysfunctional to learn about the charter, to successfully complete the application process, and [...]
Why Is John Deasy Reconstituting a Successful School?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
This is a puzzling story. At Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, teachers, administrators, students, and the community leaders worked together to improve te school. It seemed to be working. The school made enormous gains. But then Superintendent John Deasey stepped in and pulled the plug. He will reconstitute the school, break it up into [...]
A Teacher of Latin Writes In Defense of Fiction
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
In response to the discussion about the time allotted to fiction and non-fiction in the Common Core standards, a teacher writes: One of the things that really bothers me about this mandate is the devaluing of fiction. Right now we are foolishly engaging in a short-sighted culture of thinking that the only things that matter [...]
How the Profit Motive Changes Education
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
A reader writes in response to a post last night about Diana Senechal’s article on Big Ideas in education. I added that many of the Big Ideas today are driven by the profit motive, and Diana wrote to say that she did not make that point. I did. This reader shares his or her experience [...]
Can High-Quality Schools Be Mass Produced?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
John Merrow raised this question in his PBS show about Rocketship charters. I have not visited one of these schools so do not pass judgement on them. I can say without qualification that I would not want my grandchildren to attend a school where children spent two hours a day in front of a computer [...]
The Secret Deals Behind Zuckerberg’s $100 Million Gift to Newark
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Jersey Jazzman reports on a massive dump of emails about Mark Zuckerberg’s gift of $100 million to “save” Newark’s schools. The emails were released on Christmas Eve, with the expectation that no one would notice them. There never was any expectation that much of the money would reach the children of Newark. A big chunk [...]
How a Cynical Narrative Can Advance Privatization
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Dennis Sparks has written a powerful post about the narrative of failure and decline that is now being cynically employed to privatize public education. Many of those now telling this story stand to benefit by taking over schools, firing teachers, and replacing them with computers, or selling the computers and software that replace the teachers. [...]
A Message for Reformers
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
This is a message for corporate reformers from Katie Osgood. I hope it will be read carefully by the folks at Democrats for Education Reform, Stand for Children, ALEC, Teach for America, Education Reform Now, StudentsFirst, the Gates Foundation, the Walton Foundation, the Broad Foundation, the Dell Foundation, Bellweather Partners, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, [...]
Newtown Changed Everything
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
David Kirp is one of our most perceptive thinkers and writers about education. You will enjoy his new book about a wonderful public school in New Jersey. It is called “Improbable Scholars.” In this article, he says that the massacre of little children in Newtown represents a frightening turning point in our society. What happened [...]
Why the Double Standards?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Arthur Goldstein, who teaches ESL and English in a Queens, New York, high school, writes a consistently excellent blog (nyceducator.com). In this post, he raises an intriguing question: Why is that reformers can criticize teachers nonstop and say ridiculous things about them but get twisted into paroxysms of outrage if anyone dares to defend teachers [...]