Diane Ravitch's blog
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DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG
Corporate Reform in Idaho
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 16 hours ago
A reader in Boise sends the following comment about the trial of Khan Academy videos, funded by the Albertson Foundation: From the article linked in Diane’s post: “The statewide pilot received $1.5 million for training, technology, technical assistance and assessment from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation.” The Albertson Foundation has given over $500 million [...]
Another Bold Jindal Reform: Cut Special Education Funding
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 17 hours ago
The wonders of education reform never end in Louisiana. Reformers Bobby Jindal and John White want to take money dedicated to public schools and give it to religious schools that teach creationism. That’s reform. Even though a judge said this plan was unconstitutional, that doesn’t stop them. You know, the fierce urgency of now, sending [...]
The Best Picture of the Day
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 18 hours ago
Please see this picture. It shows what is truly sick about U.S. education today. It proves again that a photograph is worth 10,000 words.
Kevin Huffman’s Zombie Policies
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 19 hours ago
The Tennessee Education Association sent out this bulletin today. State Commissioner Kevin Huffman, whose only classroom experience was two years in Teach for America, has plans to adopt every evidence-free, demoralizing tactic in the corporate reform playbook. Huffman is a purveyor of zombie policies. Nothing he advocates has any evidence behind it. “Pay for performance” [...]
How Bad Is New Jersey’s New Teacher Evaluation System?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 19 hours ago
Jersey Jazzman studied the teacher evaluation system devised by State Commissioner Chris Cerf and concludes it is an unmitigated disaster. Like it or not, teachers will be forced to teach to the tests. Teachers will be fired because of the test, using a system whose designer said it should not be used for this purpose. [...]
How to “Invest” in Los Angeles Schools: Buy the School Board
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 19 hours ago
In this perceptive essay, California teacher David B. Cohen has some interesting observations about Mayor Villaraigosa and Superintendent John Deasey. The mayor has no regrets about asking billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Rupert Murdoch to pour vast sums of money into the school board race. He says that “we” (himself and the billionaires) have to stop [...]
School Closings in Chicago: Call in the Lawyers
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 22 hours ago
Chicago’s Superintendent Barbara Byrd-Bennett knows better, but she is following orders. Just following orders. The “independent panel” that she convened advised her to go full steam ahead. Who will be hurt? African-American children, African-American families and communities. Barbara, don’t do it. Barbara, tell Rahm no. Barbara, you know this is wrong. Serve the children, not [...]
Does Democracy Matter?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 22 hours ago
In school, when we study history and civics, we learn about the principles of democracy. We learn about government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” We learn about how important it is for citizens to be informed and to participate in decision-making because the government is their servant, not their master, and [...]
Corporate Greed in Florida
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 23 hours ago
Now here is an interesting debate topic: Who really controls the Florida legislature? Jeb Bush or ALEC? Or are they the same people with different organizational ties? Read here to learn about ALEC’s role in Florida. Recently, ALEC was about to pass a resolution condemning the Common Core standards, but Jeb intervened to stop it. [...]
TeacherKen on The Network for Public Education
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 23 hours ago
Ken Bernstein is one of the nation’s best education bloggers. He blogs frequently at The Daily Kos. He is wise in the ways of federal policies and politics. He also is a gifted teacher and a great person. One of the great rewards of writing my last book was that I met this great and [...]
Students: Please Join Our National Campaign for Your Schools
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
This is a great suggestion for the Network for Public Education: we need students and student organizations to join with us! If you are a student, please join us. If you are part of a student group, please join us! This is where you can sign up: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/network-membership/ We need you. “I’m sure you have [...]
Proof: Bill Gates Has No Idea about Schools–or Children
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
They say that if you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail. When you have made billions of dollars by selling technology, you start thinking that you hold the answer to all the world’s problems. Bill Gates thinks he has the answer to education: standardized testing, data, and measurement, with lots of technology. Does [...]
Why the Teachers in Strongville, Ohio, Are Striking
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
When I heard about Strongsville, I thought I was reading a children’s storybook about a wonderful, all-American city, a city where all the families are happy and have nice houses, and the children play in well-equipped playgrounds, and go to wonderful schools. Think of it: Strongsville. It evokes Wheaties and Jack Armstrong, the all-American boy, [...]
Bruce Baker: Where There Is a Con, Look for a CAN
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
In his inimitable style, combining wit and solid analysis, Bruce Baker dissects the latest “data-free drivel” from ConnCAN. Baker responds to a report claiming that the state was helping low-performing, high-needs districts. Not true, says Baker. And he has the evidence to back up his response. The question: Why do the news media report “studies” [...]
Randi Weingarten Arrested in Philadelphia Protest
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Randi Weingarten and other protestors were arrested and hauled off in handcuffs while demonstrating against school closings in Philadelphia. Neither the Mayor nor the School Reform Commission was willing to meet with Weingarten. After her release from custody, said the article in the Huffington Post, “Weingarten said she sees the school closure plan as siphoning [...]
Big Money Didn’t Buy Much in L.A.
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Great reporting by Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times about the school board race. DFER–the hedge fund managers who call themselves Democrats for Education Reform–put out a hilarious press release boasting of the victory of Monica Garcia over a field of four candidates with no funding. She outspent her closest competitor by 50-1, more [...]
CPS Plans to Close Schools, Increase Class Sizes
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
I just received a press release from the Chicago Teachers Union, alerting the public that CPS plans to close schools and to increase class sizes. To call this “reform” is outrageous. The children in Chicago needs smaller classes, not classes of 35-40. A teacher who is a “high-quality” teacher in a class with 24 students [...]
Will Public Education in Philadelphia Die Today?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Helen Gym of Parents United for Public Education in Philadelphia writes here: Dear Friends: On the day of the SRC vote to close down a historic and unprecedented number of schools, I’m hoping you’ll join (or send your support for) PCAPs, Parents United, the PFT and others in a large rally at 440 at [...]
New Mexico Scraps Skandera’s Grading System
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
In the midst of debate about whether to confirm Hanna Skandera as State Secretary of Education, the New Mexico State Senate voted to eliminate the school grading system that Skandera had created. No one understood it. She said it was designed by “experts,” but even one of her spokesmen admitted that very few people understood [...]
Privatization Accelerates in UK
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Want to see the hand-writing on the wall? Look at what is happening in the U.K. The minister of education, Michael Gove, is moving rapidly to increase privatization of state schools. There is lots of talk about choice, competition, testing, accountability. Consider this account: “This is a story about England’s schools, but it could just [...]
Idaho Will Use Khan Academy Videos
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Idaho will introduce Khan Academy videos to 10,000 students in 47 schools, a mix of public, private, and charter. The videos will teach math, science, history, and art. The project is underwritten by a local Idaho foundation. I would like to hear from teachers who have reviewed the Khan Academy videos. What do you think [...]
NBCT Teacher Beats Rhee Candidate in West Sacramento
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
National Board Certified Teacher Sarah Kirby-Gonzalez won a hard-fought election to the school board in West Sacramento, beating a man who works for Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst. She got more than 50% of the vote, he got about 25%. As we saw in Los Angeles and earlier in Louisiana, the corporate reformers have decided that they [...]
Texas Officials: Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Jason Stanford writes a great blog about Texas politics. He has developed a special interest in education. After all, Texas was once home to the “Texas miracle,” and gave the nation No Child Left Behind. In this column, he reports on what happened when a friendly legislator tried some questions on the fifth grade math [...]
Anthony Cody Announces Network for Public Education
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 day ago
Anthony Cody writes a great blog. He is very likely the nation’s most eloquent spokesman for the teaching profession. He is a National Board Certified Teacher who taught middle-school science for many years in Oakland. Today, he joined me in releasing the news of the Network for Public Education. Let me be the first to [...]
Breaking News: New Group to Oppose Corporate Reforms
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Dear Friends, It is time to organize to support our children, our schools, and our educators against the well-funded attacks on them. Please join me and a group of education leaders from across the country in building a movement for improving and strengthening our schools with research-based reforms, not fads and sanctions. Today we announce [...]
Did Skandera’s All-Expense Paid Travel Break New Mexico Law?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
According to a report in the Santa Fe Reporter, Hanna Skandera has taken numerous trips to conferences and meetings, with travel expenses paid by organizations that do business with the state. The story says, “… over the past two years, various PED [Public Education Department] contractors have paid for Skandera’s flights and hotel rooms. For [...]
Newtown Students Will Not Take State Tests
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
In January, the Newtown Board of Education asked the state education department of Connecticut to exempt students in the district from the state tests, due to the trauma of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December. The state education department agreed, but needed to get permission from the U.S. Department of Education. The [...]
Nashville: Charter School Sticker Shock
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
The Metro Nashville school board was surprised to learn that new charter schools will absorb millions of dollars from the district’s budget, with more on the way. The state legislature is about to approve legislation to override the veto of local school boards, so Nashville is sure to get more charters than it wants or [...]
TFA Wins Award for Hubris
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Louisiana is in a budget crisis, and Governor Bobby Jindal has been closing hospitals that serve indigent patients and other social services for the needy. He has also been trying to find a way to fund his expensive voucher program, since a state court declared it unconstitutional last fall. But Teach for America is undaunted [...]
Oprah: Is It for Real or a Ploy?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Last week, I posted a comment from a teacher in Louisiana who watched the first segment of Oprah’s “Blackboard Wars” and was pleasantly surprised to see that the program showed how hard it is for a novice to teach and that charter schools have the same problems as public schools, that they are not a [...]
A Parent Reflects on the LA Election
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
This parent was not opposed to charters. She didn’t pay much attention to battles over school issues, although her own children attend a public school in Los Angeles. But when she realized that millions of dollars were flowing into the school board race, many from out of state, she began to realize that something big [...]
How Corporate Reformers Explain Big Loss in Los Angeles
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
While we were celebrating Steve Zimmer’s thrilling win over Kate Anderson in the Los Angeles school board race, the corporate reform crowd had to figure out how to spin this embarrassing defeat. Here it is, fresh from Twitter: Deasey kept his school board majority! Monica Garcia was re-elected! Big money saves Deasey! Inconvenient facts: The [...]
Chain Store Charter School To Open in Memphis
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Aspire Charter Schools will open in Memphis, its first venture outside of California. It comes with a big wad of money to guarantee success. The perks are munificent, since the chain has set aside $100,000 for marketing before the school opens this fall under private management. Philanthropists–eager to prove that privatization works better than public [...]
If Only Mayor Bloomberg Understood Proficiency Rates…
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
Matt Di Carlo noticed an odd sentence in Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s “State of the City” address. The mayor, as is now customary, was applauding his administration for the amazing progress of the schools under his stewardship, and he said the following, in anticipation of the new Common Core assessments: “But no matter where the definition [...]
How Georgia Politicians Violate State Constitution
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 2 days ago
As Anthony Cody explains, the Georgia state constitution is clear: “No money shall ever be taken from the public treasury, directly, or indirectly, in aid of any church, sect, cult, or religious denomination or of any sectarian institution.” What part of that is ambiguous. Even the phase “directly or indirectly” says NO. Yet Georgia has [...]
L.A. Upset!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
According to the results posted in the Los Angeles Times, with 100% of the vote counted but not certified, Steve Zimmer won by 52-48%! Assuming that no one discovers a precinct with thousands of uncounted votes, this is a stunning upset! Zimmer faced the combined opposition of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, billionaire Eli Broad, billionaire media [...]
LA Election: Early Returns (Gasp!)
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
The latest bulletin from Los Angeles: Monica Garcia, with the billionaires’ bundle, easily beat four opponents who had no money, including the fearless Robert Skeels. But–wow!–the main target of the billionaires, Steve Zimmer, was running ahead of his opponent. What an upset that would be! Nearly $5 million was raised by the mayor of Los [...]
NY Post: “Obama Blesses Walmart”
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post ran an editorial pointing out the irony of Obama selecting the director of the Walmart Foundation to run OMB, the agency that makes decisions about the nation’s spending. During his 2008 campaign, Obama criticized a hillary Clinton for sitting on the board of Walmart, and he blasted the corporation’s hostility [...]
Why Do Conservatives Want to Kill Small-Town America?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
This is one of the best newspaper articles I have read about the damaging impact of vouchers and tax credits on small-town and rural America. The big question is why so many conservatives want to destroy one of our nation’s most enduring and central institutions: our public schools. There is little or no evidence that [...]
Untitled
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Experienced teacher John Thompson crossed the border from Oklahoma to Texas
Teachers in Grand Rapids Say They Qualify for Food Stamps
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Want to know why teachers are demoralized? Read this story from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Michigan has been a national leader in attacking public education, increasing charters, and diminishing teachers’ pay and benefits. Governor Rick Snyder must take pride in crushing his state’s public school teachers. Oh, did you know that more than 80% of the [...]
Breaking News! Public School Supporters Sitting In Philly Mayor’s Office
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Public school activists are conducting a sit-in in the office of the mayor of Philadelphia to protest school closings. This is the announcement I just received: BREAKING NEWS – March 5, 2013 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Hello PCAPS (Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools & Moratorium Endorsers, The fight for education has just reached new levels! [...]
Viva Eastside Memorial High School!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
On other posts, I have told the story of Eastside Memorial High School in Austin, Texas. The school board and superintendent (Broad-trained) decided to give the school to a charter chain called IDEA. This was not popular with the community. Many families in the neighborhood pulled their children out of the IDEA charter in protest [...]
Why the Bloomberg Reforms Failed
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Mayor Bloomberg plans to start four charter high schools that will open after his term of office ends. This constitutes an admission that his own efforts to reform the public schools have failed. The mayor has had 11 years of total control of the public school system. Every year, he closes more schools. Some of [...]
The History of the Term “Failing Schools”
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Kevin Kosar, who earned his Ph.D. at NYU in a study of federal education policy, researched the use of the term “failing schools.” It was seldom used until 1990. Since then, as you can see when you open the link, it has become a commonplace term. This is clearly political, since test scores for every [...]
Research on School Closings
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Before the passage of No Child Left Behind, public schools were seldom closed for low test scores. School officials and the public understood that low test scores reflected the social and economic conditions in which students live. It made no sense to punish the school because its students were living in poverty. After NCLB and [...]
Florida Newspaper: What Miracle?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Former Governor Jeb Bush traverses the nation, especially the red states, bringing news of the Florida miracle. After the debacle of the “Texas miracle,” which thrust NCLB on the nation, Mr. Bush would be well-advised to pick another issue. The Palm Beach Post wrote a scathing editorial taking down the myth of the Florida miracle [...]
The Smear Tactics of Corporate Reformers
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Jersey Jazzman has pulled together an impressive collection of smears, wherein the corporate reformers’ attack machine tried to silence and/ or intimidate their critics. JJ’s recitation brought to mind some of the many brushes I have had with the smear machine. The first occurred in 2007, when I realized that someone in the NYC Department [...]
Breaking News! More $$$$ into Los Angeles Race
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
The Los Angeles Times reports two late donations to the campaign to elect a board that supports privatization. The California Charter Schools Association put up $300,000. Rupert Murdoch’s News America Corporation added $250,000. The charter association anticipates increased numbers of privately managed charters with no supervision. The Murdoch corporation has financial involvement through its subsidiary [...]
What George Orwell Teaches Us About Corporate School Reform
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
An incisive essay posted on Valerie Strauss’s blog explains how we can use George Orwell’s classic 1984 to understand corporate-style school reform today. The essay, written by North Carolina teacher Chris Gilbert, demonstrates that Orwell perfectly understood how lies, repeated often, tend to be accepted as truthful. Corporate reformers say the same things over and [...]
Activist Groups Call on States to Drop Common Core Testing
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
This just in from organizers of protest demonstration in D.C. from April 4-7: Campaign to Withdraw from Assessment Consortia The Common Core was a clever plan hatched by the corporate sponsors of ACHIEVE to ensure that national standards based tests, now being completed by the federally financed PARCC and SBAC consortia, would be cemented in [...]
Why Louisiana Judge Struck Down Tenure Law
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 3 days ago
Mercedes Schneider explains the significance of the Jindal legislation–Act 1–that was declared unconstitutional by a Louisiana judge yesterday. The state constitution says that each piece of legislation shall deal with only one subject. It was on this procedural ground that the law was declared unconstitutional. As Schneider shows, Act 1 covered numerous subjects. Its primary [...]
If You Really, Really Want to Improve Schools, Close Them (Not Really)
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Here is EduShyster, with her usual irreverence, telling us how to achieve true excellence: Close public schools. Close so many public schools that the public gives up and gets used to it. Make grand promises. As they sing in Chicago (not only the Broadway musical and the movie, but the actual city): “Give ‘em the [...]
Walmart Foundation vs. Walton Foundation
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Earlier today when I posted about President Obama’s decision to name Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the CEO of the Walmart Foundation, to become the head of the Office of Management and Budget, I made the error of identifying her as CEO of the Walton Family Foundation. It was obviously a mistake, and readers quickly called my attention [...]
Whose Side Are Duncan and Obama On?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Earlier today, I posted about the battle in New Mexico over the confirmation of Hanna Skandera. Skandera wants to import Jeb Bush’s “Florida Model” of testing, school grading, charters, vouchers, and online corporations to New Mexico. She worked for Bush, Spellings, and Schwarzenegger. Her views are identical to those of Romney. Yet as the linked [...]
New York: Educators Have “Initiative Fatigue”
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Please read this article that appears in the latest issue of the journal of the New York State School Board Association. It describes how many teachers, principals, and superintendents are feeling overwhelmed by the changes raining down on them. Then comes these paragraphs: “John King is on the wrong side of history,” author and blogger [...]
CEO of Walmart Foundation Picked for Key Obama Job: UPDATE
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Sylvia Matthews Burwell, the head of the Walmart Foundation, has been selected by President Obama to take charge of the Office of Management and Budget. This is one of the most important policy jobs in the federal government. The director of OMB decides how money should be allocated, which programs should live and which should [...]
Paul Thomas on Mathematica KIPP Study
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Paul Thomas is unimpressed by the latest study of KIPP by Mathematica Policy Research. He firmly rejects the “no excuses” model of schooling, in which students are constantly monitored and disciplined for the smallest infractions. He believes it is classist and racist. His main point is that the means do not justify the ends. If [...]
Are Standardized Tests Worthless?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
In response to my post earlier today about the growing movement against testing–and its misuse for rewards and punishments–Robert D. Shepherd sent the following comment: “I think that it’s empirically demonstrable that these tests aren’t even valid and reliable as tests of reading, writing, and math abilities, much less of teacher and school performance. What’s [...]
Deborah Meier on Standardized Testing
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Deborah Meier responded to an earlier post about the growing movement against testing. I said that testing is misused now, as a way to punish (or reward) students, teachers, principals, and schools. Deborah says that standardized testing is in itself problematic, for all the reasons she gives here: Standardized testing was not intended to serve [...]
Breaking News: Louisiana Judge Tosses Out Jindal Tenure Law
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
A state district judge in Louisiana, R. Michael Caldwell, threw out the state law that was intended to make teacher tenure extremely difficult to get or keep. This is the same judge that held most of the law constitutional only a few months ago. He just reversed himself. Last December Bobby Jindal and John White [...]
The Million-Dollar Question in Los Angeles School Race
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
A reader, who is obviously stunned by the all-out, multi-million dollar campaign to oust Steve Zimmer from the Los Angeles school board in tomorrow’s contest, asks this question: “Is it over the top to say that the election of Steve Zimmer is the canary in the coal mine for American democracy? Maybe. But when you [...]
Why the Pushback Against Standardized Testing?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Every regular reader of this blog knows the answer or answers to the question that is the title of this post? Standardized testing is being misused. It is designed to measure how a student can read or do math in comparison with others in the same grade or age. It is not designed to measure [...]
Will Skandera Be Confirmed as Secretary of Education in New Mexico?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
The Acting Secretary of Education in New Mexico is Hanna Skandera, who worked in Jeb Bush’s state department of education in Florida and also for Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. She was appointed by the Republican governor but the Democratic-controlled State Senate has not confirmed her. Skandera wants to bring [...]
Why Does the National Media Ignore School Closings?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Bruce A. Dixon of Black Agenda Report asks a simple question: Why does the national media ignore mass closings of public schools? He says that if the national media gave as much attention to the school closings as it did to the privatization propaganda films “Waiting for Superman” and the “Won’t Back Down,” the public [...]
Which Billionaires Are Trying to Buy the Los Angeles School Board?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 4 days ago
Tomorrow, March 5, is Election Day in Los Angeles. Voters will select the local school board. Will billionaires (and some mere millionaires) persuade them to vote the slate they want? Anthony Cody follows the money, since some of the donors will gain financially by electing their slate. Mayor Villaraigosa boasts of having raised $3.7 million [...]
Don’t Miss It: Occupy the DOE 2.0
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Make plans to attend Occupy the DOE 2.0 in Washington, D.C., on April 4-7. Here is the official schedule. What a stellar lineup of speakers. I am speaking on Thursday afternoon. Many wonderful thinkers, activists, teachers, writers. A great opportunity to network with friends and allies who want to change the course of American education. [...]
A Close Look at the Latest KIPP Study
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Bruce Baker looks closely at the latest Mathematica Policy Research study of KIPP and draws some useful lessons. Mathematica says KIPP is more successful than the nearby public schools. Why? Baker shows that KIPP spends substantially more (in some districts, $5,000 more per student), has smaller class sizes, higher salaries, “coupled with a dose of [...]
Jonathan Kozol Endorses Steve Zimmer for Los Angeles School Board
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
From: Jonathan Kozol To: Steve Zimmer School Board Member, L.A.U.S.D. Subject: The Re-Election of an Enlightened Educator Dear Mr. Zimmer, March 3, 2013 I’ve been one of your strong admirers in the education world for a good while now. I’m writing to tell you and my many friends in Los Angeles that I think your [...]
Hopkinson: Is School Reform About Escaping Blackness?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Natalie Hopkinson is one of our nation’s most interesting and provocative writers. In this article, she asks the question that is the title of this post. She could have gone further to look at the strict disciplinary rules of the “no excuses” schools. Or the nearly all-white young teaching staffs in all-black schools. What is [...]
Des Moines Reader Asks for Advice
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
A question from a reader: “Des Moines Iowa needs some advice. “Des Moines superintendent candidates narrowed to 3″ ” Carey Wright, chief academic officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools.” http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/des-moines-superintendent-candidates-narrowed-to/article_2a3e9d7c-8429-11e2-9794-0019bb2963f4.html
We Owe Oprah an Apology
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
When readers learned that Oprah’s OWN network was filming in New Orleans, they feared that she would repeat the inflated and fraudulent claims about charter schools that are so often repeated on television. So did I. But according to this Louisian teacher, all of us were wrong. We owe Oprah an apology. The charter schools [...]
Another Charter School Conflict in Chicago?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Advocates of charter schools can’t understand why anyone questions the purity of their motives or the excellence of their results. When there are scandals, they brush them off as mere anecdotes. When a charter operator steals millions, that’s an anecdote too. Nothing interferes with their belief that deregulation and lack of oversight is the right [...]
Rightwingers Pouring Big Money into Tennessee Voucher Campaign
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Tennessee is the next target for voucher advocates. The far-right American Federation For Children has poured $800,000 into an ad campaign for vouchers. This is the same organization that honored Governor Scott Walker and Michelle Rhee in 2011, the year that Walker went after the teacher unions in Wisconsin. The voucher campaign has the support [...]
Hear John Kuhn Speaking Candidly
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
John Kuhn is recognized among many educators as our most eloquent spokesman, a champion of students, educators, and public school. Here he is interviewed on “The Chalkface,” speaking as he always does, from the heart.
What Happened in Alabama: The GOP Coup
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
The Republicans in Alabama are not usually thought of as the guardians of minority children, the poor, and oppressed. Last week, they slipped through a bill that allows tax credits for private and religious schools. The cover story is that it is “for the children.” The reality is that it is intended to destroy public [...]
Your Child’s Data: Now Online
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Crack investigative journalist Stephanie Simon has done it again. In this article, she describes the $100 million plan to collect confidential student data and put it into a giant database. Simon writes: “In operation just three months, the database already holds files on millions of children identified by name, address and sometimes social security number. [...]
Mother Crusader Calls on Charter School to Stop the Smear Campaign
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Mother Crusader, a tireless New Jersey mom, discovered a p.r. campaign against those who criticize the siting of charter schools in their community. The campaign charges that citizens who contacted their public officials to oppose the charter in question were illegally “colluding” against the charter. The citizens in question–members of Save Our Schools New Jersey– [...]
Children’s Privacy: Gone Forever?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 5 days ago
Sheila Kaplan of Education New York is a tireless advocate for the privacy rights of children and families. Those rights are now under serious threat, since the U.S. Department of Education decided to change the regulations that protect them (FERPA). She suggests you read the following: Software Industries NPRM to US ED about the 2011 [...]
Gary Rubinstein’s Brilliant Idea to Fix TFA
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Gary Rubinstein has a brilliant idea to make TFA teachers better. His big complaint about TFA is that the organization doesn’t prepare its teachers for a real classroom. They get five weeks of training in the summer, practice teaching for only a few hours in front of small classes, and then take on large classes [...]
What Do the State Commissioners of New Jersey and New Mexico Have in Common?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
A good question, no? Both have had trouble getting confirmed. Both are members of Jeb Bush’s Chiefs for Change. Both are committed to privatization. Read here to see what else.
Oregon: Fight to Protect Student Privacy Rules
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
This parent warns that BIG DATA is working its way into the schools, not only in Oregon but across the nation. Why do they want to know everything about your child? The most likely reason: for marketing stuff to them. We have already learned about the collaboration between the Gates Foundation and Rupert Murdoch to [...]
How Bill Gates’ Small Schools Failed in NYC
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Marc Epstein used to work in a large comprehensive high school that was broken up into small schools. Since then, he has worked in many small schools. Based on his knowledge, experience, and research, he came to question and doubt Gates’ belief that NYC’s small schools were successful. Read here to know why he reached [...]
Putting Students Last: The Alabama Story
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
The following post was written by Larry Lee, who lives in Alabama and writes often about education and politics. He describes the passage of a bill to create tax credits for students to go to private and religious schools. School kids make a poor rope in a political tug of war. Anyone in Alabama who [...]
Our Love Affair with Data: A Sad Tale
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Jem Muldoon wants to know the meaning of it all. She wants to know why we must devote our lives to data and let data drive our decisions. Why are so many of us assessment victims when we should be assessment consumers?
Who Gets Walton Foundation $$$$$$$$$$$?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
It is useful every so often to review the list of organizations that are funded by the ultra-rightwing Walton Foundation. This past year, the foundation gave out $158 million for “education reform.” As you will see, almost all of that money went to support charter schools and vouchers and organizations that advocate for privatization. Of [...]
Needed Now! Courage, Not Compliance!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Just minutes ago, I posted a strong letter from Superintendent Jeff Ramey, calling on parents and educators to support their schools and protest the budget cuts and tax caps that undermine them. Carol Burris, an outstanding high school principal in Long Island, New York, responds here: Superintendent Rabey, I assure you, there are outraged New [...]
Why Are Walton Billionaires So Interested in Los Angeles Schools?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
The big school board race is this week in Los Angeles, and we know that the billionaires have lined up behind their slate. We know that Eli Broad wants to own his hometown’s school board and Mayor Michael Bloomberg has tossed $1million into the race to help the same candidates that Eli wants. What is [...]
NY Superintendent: Where Is the Outrage?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Here is a superintendent who is willing to raise his voice to demand that the Governor and Legislature fund New York state’s public schools. These days, there is so much fear in education, so many educators intimidated by get-tough, know-nothing politicians, that it is refreshing to encounter a superintendent who is willing to speak truth [...]
Teachers Must Produce 100% or Fail
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
A letter from a teacher in Las Vegas: “Today at my school we were handed a 5 page back to back document that explained, somewhat, how we teachers are going to be evaluated. Every paragraph started with “All students.” Really? All students? I live in Las Vegas which continuously becomes more crime ridden as the [...]
A Review of the Latest Gates’ MET Study
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 6 days ago
Jesse Rothstein, one of our premier economists and an experienced analyst of teacher evaluation studies, reviewed the latest MET study. MET (Measures of Effective Teaching) is the Gates Foundation’s premier effort to show that someone has finally figured out a formula to measure teacher quality. Rothstein says that the MET study did not succeed at [...]
Why Puttering Matters
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Diana Senechal is a woman of many talents, as you know if you read her recent book The Republic of Noise. She believes in contemplation, solitude, and puttering. She believes that in the quiet moments of her life, we do our best thinking and find our best selves. This is her explanation of why puttering [...]
Time for Action!
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Maureen Reedy, tireless crusader for public education in Indiana and the surrounding states of Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan, is launching an action program. These states are hotspots of the radical attacks on public education. Please join her! Time For Action Update… Hello Friends and Patriots for Public Education, Parents Across America, Public Schools Across America [...]
Jindal and White: Artful Dodgers?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Last fall, a state court in Louisiana ruled that it was unconstitutional for the state to pay for vouchers by taking dollars from the Minimum Foundation Program. The state constitution says the money is for public schools only. Judge Tim Kelley, a Republican, ruled that private and religious schools are not “public schools.” He wrote: [...]
Should Teachers Be Armed?
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
I must begin by saying this is satire. If I don’t, some readers will take it seriously. It was written by Paul Karrer, an elementary teacher in California. He is responding to the demand from some quarters that teachers should be armed. Read here and see what Paul thinks.
Why NYC Closes High Schools But Shouldn’t
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
The New York Times published a page one story about the closing of the Jonathan M. Levin High School in the Bronx. The school was opened ten years ago to commemorate the life and tragic death of a young teacher who happened to be the son of the CEO of AOL Time Warner. He was [...]
What Mayor Bloomberg Wants More Than Anything in the Schools
dianerav at Diane Ravitch's blog - 1 week ago
Mayor Bloomberg believes that having a high-quality teacher is crucial, and most people would agree with him. Mayor Bloomberg also thinks that class size is unimportant, and most parents and teachers would disagree with him. In the past, he said that he would be happy if he could double the class size and double teachers’ [...]
