Marc Epstein: Big Lie Journalism in New York City
Marc Epstein taught at Jamaica High School in NYC for many years. He has a Ph.D. In Japanese history. Since his school started closing, he has taught in many of the city’s schools. He writes: What Ever Happened To In Loco Parentis? Well, another June another student field trip drowning. But this time around the schools chancellor has assured us that there were a sufficient number of chaperones an
David Foster Wallace in 2005: “This Is Water”
David Foster Wallace gave the commencement speech at Kenyon College in 2005. In this speech, called “This Is Water,” Wallace tried to explain to the graduates what really matters most in life. Wallace was a gifted and successful novelist. He contrasted “the default setting” in which most of us live, reacting with frustration, anger, greed, me-first, to a conscious choice about leading a different
The Superintendent of a High-Performing District Speaks Out
An earlier post linked to an article by Scott Waldman in the Albany Times-Union, in which Waldman pointed out that rankings accurately reflect the socioeconomic status of families in the schools, not the quality of the schools. He asked, what do those school rankings really demonstrate? This letter came from a superintendent in the area of upstate New York about which Waldman wrote: I am the sup
ee cummings on the common core
David Coleman, the architect of the Common Core and now president of the College Board, once famously said–in a presentation at the New York State Education Department–that as you grow older, you learn that “people really don’t give a s–t what you feel or what you think.” And so students will be reading more “informational text”–not prose, not nonfiction, but “informational text,” which sounds lik
Diane in the Evening 7-6-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: How One Rogue Democrat Saved Vouchers in ArizonaJust when vouchers seemed to be in trouble in the Arizona legislature, Democrat Barbara McGuire changed her vote to preserve this stealth attack on public schools. Blogger David Safier says no one should be surprised by her last-minute switch.by dianerav / 6h Oklahoma: Barresi Pulls O
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 7-6-13 #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2
Diane Ravitch's blogLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOGTODAYSetting Goals by Race, Etc.: Everyone Does It, and It’s WrongIn a recent post, I criticized Alabama for setting goals based on race, ethnicity, and disability status. I said it was unAmerican. Our goal as a society is equality of educational opportunity. There is something repulsive, to me at least, in saying that s