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Tuesday, February 12, 2013

MORNING UPDATE: LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 2-12-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

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In Praise of Senator Lamar Alexander

Some 20 years ago, I worked as Assistant Secretary of Education in the administration of President George Herbert Walker Bush.
I was in charge of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement and also Counselor to the Secretary of Education, who was Lamar Alexander.
Secretary Alexander took a big risk with me because I was a Democrat with no prior experience in government.
I developed great admiration for him as a thinker and leader. He understood the limits of federalism and he was 


Why Is Education Talk So Vacuous?

Jersey Jazzman deconstructs Michelle Rhee’s appearance on Jon Stewart’s show and wonders why interviewers allow her to avoid any real analysis of her policy recommendations. Instead of asking what is the evidence for her views, she is allowed to get away with glittering generalities about how much she loves teachers.
Jon Stewart is one of our very best interviewers, yet she spun her blather past him.
Jersey Jazzman writes:
“Our nation’s dialogue about education has been commandeered by a bunch of ill-informed, intellectually

Jeb Bush: Change the Rules of the Game and Win

Matt Di Carlo of the Shanker Institute here dissects the claims of Jeb Bush about the success of the state letter grade system.
As he shows, the number of A-rated schools went up because the state changed the rules of the game.
You can always get more points on the basketball court if you

Superintendent: Race to the Top Costs His District

Superintendent Ken Mitchell took a close look at what his district is getting to comply with Race to the Top mandates and what it will cost his district to comply.
It is not a pretty picture.

Joel Klein, the Quintessential Corporate Reformer

Mercedes Schneider continues her review of the board of the National Council of Teacher Quality.
Earlier entries reviewed the bios of Wendy Kopp, Michelle Rhee, and other prominent figures whose lives intersect again and again on the boards of the groups seeking control of American education, with the full-

Is There a Method Behind the Madness of “Calibrating” Principals?

Jersey Jazzman read Carol Burris’s account of her “training” sessions where she was being “calibrated” by people who know how to calibrate principals.
He saw behind the smokescreen.
The goal is to create a system so “objective” that principals have no room for judgment and teachers may be

Diane in the Evening 2-11-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 4 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: Gerald Coles Replies to Critics: Obama’s Second Term by dianerav I posted Gerald Coles’ predictions about President Obama’s second term. Many commenters responded. This is Coles’ response to those who raised questions: With respect to the suggestion that the “federal govt. should get out of the classroom entirely,” I think that’s a complicated issue, given, for example, the federal government’s role in ending LEGAL segregation of schools. While issues of curriculum and what should and should not be discussed in the classroom do caution against a A Reader... more »