A Beautiful Letter to Educators from the Mother of a Sandy Hook Victim: “Love Them All”
This letter is a moving tribute to everyone who works in schools every day to care for, nurture, and educate children. It was written by Nebia Marquez-Greenhad, who lost one of her two children in the Sandy Hook massacre last December. Her daughter Ana Grace died, her son survived. In this letter, she thanks all of those who dedicate their lives to education. Since teachers, principals, social wor
Jan Resseger Reviews “Reign of Error”
Jan Resseger, previously selected as a hero of public education, lives in Ohio, where she has seen the pernicious effects of dire poverty, privatization, and profiteers who make generous campaign contributions to politicians who protect their faltering privately-managed schools. Here is her review of “Reign of Error.” She writes: “My personal favorite chapter on first-reading the book is “Troubl
Michael Paul Goldenberg: Time to Repel the “Ravitch Hawks”
Michael Paul Goldenberg decries the critics who think I am impolite, shrill, shrieking, noisy–and he notes, I am none of those things. The problem, he says, is that I disagree with the critics, and they are not used to that. If I were a man, they might use other adjectives. How familiar it is to hear powerful men complaining about a woman, a grey-haired woman at that, who doesn’t know her place. W
Oops! Bennett Left GOP Fundraising Lists on DOE Computers
Former State Superintendent Tony Bennett left detailed fundraising lists on Department of Education computers. Whether he broke the law or was merely careless is under investigation. Meanwhile, the files are public due to a Freedom of Information request by reporter Tom LoBianco of the Associated Press.
Mercedes Schneider Reviews “Reign of Error”
This review by Mercedes Schneider was written with teachers in mind, because Mercedes is a high school teacher in Louisiana. She writes with her usual spunk and verve. Spoiler alert: She likes the book. Read her penultimate paragraph and laugh out loud
United Opt Out Will Sponsor Book Club Discussion of “Reign of Error”
Three years ago, when my last book was published, I heard from a professor in Pennsylvania named Tim Slekar who asked if I would join the opt-out movement. I told him no. I thought it was too extreme. I don’t think so anymore. Testing has become extreme. It is now the driving force in education. The only way to make it stop is to stop cooperating with those who see children as data. I support thos
Anthony Cody Reviews “Reign of Error”
Anthony Cody, one of America’s best teacher-bloggers, reviews “Reign of Error.” He ably summarizes the major ideas in the book and refutes the claim that I “paint with too broad a brush.” And he concludes: “Educators feel that Diane Ravitch speaks for us in a way that few others do. That is clearest when she writes this, in bringing her book to a close: Genuine school reform must be built on hop
Diane in the Evening 9-15-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Sam Chaltain on “Reign of Error”Sam Chaltain is one of our most thoughtful bloggers. This is his review of Reign of Error, which appears in his regular column in Education Week. I appreciated his connection of this book to the work of the muckrakers. It is a comparison that I made in my own mind, but kept to myself because I was lo
