Schneider on NCTQ Report: “Put on Your Hip Boots”
Mercedes Schneider here reviews the controversial NCTQ report. Having reviewed the members of the board, she concludes that NCTQ is uniquely unqualified to pass judgement on the nation’s colleges of education. NCTQ is not a research organization. It is not a think tank. It is not a professional organization. It is an advocacy group and few of its board members have ever taught or have any direct
President Obama, Please Read This
This teacher in Pennsylvania wonders why President Obama is turning his back on the calamity facing students in Philadelphia. Please send his comment to the White House. After years of budget cuts and layoffs, isn’t it time for action? The Obama girls attend a wonderful school with small classes, experienced teachers, arts, physical education, science labs, a library: shouldn’t everyone? The teach
Katie Osgood: CPS Is Hurting Children
Katie Osgood spoke at a rally on July 4 outside Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s home. This is part of what she said: “My name is Katie Osgood and I am a teacher. I teach at a psychiatric hospital here in the city, working with students from all over the Chicagoland area and of all ages including hundreds of CPS students. And in my hospital, I have seen directly the impact of Rahm Emanuel’s terrible school
A Teacher in Huffman World
Tennessee state superintendent Kevin Huffman expects to get great teachers by cutting the salaries of those with advanced degrees and experience. Wonder where he learned that formula? And of course, he will evaluate teachers by test scores, aka junk science. This is supposed to improve education because the top graduates of the nation’s universities will rush to teach in a state where advanced deg
New Republic: Why Is Rhee in Tennessee?
In The New Republic, Jeff Guo writes about Michelle Rhee’s brazen attempt to buy the Tennessee legislature. In the last election cycle, she supported hard-right Republicans except for one Democtatic legislator who supports vouchers. This renegade also supported the notorious “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which sought to prevent teachers from discussing homosexuality. (Rhee’s StudentsFirst named the author
Which State Has the Highest Graduation Rates?
Graduation rates change every year, and the definition is not always exactly the same. In the most recent federal survey of state graduation rates, published in October 2011, the data are correct as of 2009. At that time, the average for all reporting states was 75.5% and the states with the highest graduation rates were: Wisconsin (where 90.7% of students graduated in four years’ time); Vermont,
Stop Knocking Indiana’s Great Public Schools
A.central feature of the corporate reform narrative is the oft-repeated claim that our public schools are failing. They elite e that if they say it often enough, the media will repeat their narrative. But it is not true. Read this commentary from Indiana, where the privatization movement has slandered the public schools repeatedly, as a prelude to their takeover. The privatized schools get worse
Diane in the Evening 7-8-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Hugh Bailey on Vallas: Don’t Believe in MiraclesHugh Bailey is tired of the oft-told tale of the miracle district and the “savior” who comes in on a white horse, turns around a low-performing district, then rides off into the sunset. He is writing in this case about Paul Vallas, but he is looking at the repeated stories of miracle