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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

How Do We Foster Excellence? - Bridging Differences - Education Week

How Do We Foster Excellence? - Bridging Differences - Education Week:


How Do We Foster Excellence?

Elliott Witney files his last entry for Bridging Differences today. Deborah will respond on Thursday, and a new co-blogger will join her next week.
Dear Deb,
As we close our exchange, I want to express gratitude for this opportunity. I've never done anything like this before, and I deeply appreciate your asking me to join this discussion. It has been particularly interesting and exciting to discover how much we agree on. I also want to thank Emily Gasoi for introducing us. When Emily and I first met in my office to discuss our respective educational philosophies, I pulled your book In Schools We Trust off my bookshelf. I feel fortunate that she made this connection.
In your last post, which I found to be particularly thought-provoking and hopeful, you took issue with what I characterized as the "great progress" we have made by growing the number of high-quality public schools that serve young people from predominantly low-income families.
When I referenced "great progress," I definitely didn't mean to imply that I think we're there yet in the world of