The DC Miracle Continues to Unravel
Valerie Strauss reports that the DC principals’ evaluations are in and half got low ratings. Only 11 percent were “highly effective.” As Strauss puts it, time to blame the principals for the disrict’s achievement gaps and low scores.
Matt Taibbi: Who Is Looting Your Pension Fund?
In this stunning article in Rolling Stone, Matt Taibbi describes the cool deals that have enriched hedge fund managers while the pensions of public employees are whittled away. His article is based on research conducted by investigative journalist David Sirota for the Institute for America’s Future. Read Sirota’s article in Salon here, with a link to the full report. And here. A sample: “A study
Should the Gates Foundation Be Sued for Wrongful Termination?
This reader notes that Bill Gates admits that we won’t know if his education “stuff” works for a decade. Yet based on Gates’ support for evaluating teachers by student test scores, teachers are losing their jobs.eanwhile, most researchers agree that the metric is flawed, unreliable, and unstable. This comes the reader’s suggestion: “Here’s a suggestion offered only partly tongue-in-cheek.. The Ga
NYCDOENUTS Reviews “Reign of Error”
A NYC teacher who calls his or her blog NYCDOENUTS has written a wonderful review of “Reign of Error.” Teachers understand that this book may be (to use Arne Duncan’s favorite phrase) a “game changer.” You see, big money can buy legislators, it can buy ads, it can buy media. But words and ideas can beat big money in a democracy, if we organize. NYCDOENUTS concludes: “In the final chapters of the
Patrick Welsh: Four Decades of Failed Reforms
Patrick Welsh is an experienced teacher who writes often in the Washington Post about the real problems of schools. If only the editorial board of the Post–besotted with the failed strategies of corporate reform–would heed the wisdom of Patrick Welsh! In this article, he describes the many reforms that have been imposed in teachers in his high school since he started teaching forty years ago. The
Matt Bruenig has written in many journals. He also has a blog, where this post appeared. He analyzes a fairly straightforward question: Can schools end poverty? The column is a commentary on the “reformers” who say that we can’t end poverty until we fix schools, or something to that effect. We have heard the same statement from Michelle Rhee, Arne Duncan, Joel Klein, Bill Gates, and others. Duncan
Bill Gates: We Won’t Know for a Decade Whether Our Ideas Work
In the early years of this century, Bill Gates felt certain that he knew how to fix the nation’s high schools. He pumped $2 billion into breaking them into smaller schools, often Nader the same roof. In 2008, he decided he was not pleased with the results,and he dropped that idea. Then, he decided that teacher evaluation was broken, and he would use his billions–plus the billions of Race to the
Suburban New York Parents Don’t Believe Common Core Tests
New York’s first Common Core tests, administered last spring, produced a dramatic score decline. 70% of the students across the state allegedly “failed.” State education leaders said the tests set a new “benchmark.” They implied that the tests demonstrated the failure of the state’s schools, that more “reform” was needed, and that more years of testing and accountability would cure the widespread
Wendy Lecker Reviews “Reign of Error”
Wendy Lecker is senior attorney for the Campaign for Fiscal Equity at the Education Law Center. She writes frequently in Connecticut newspapers about education issues and advocates on behalf of students. Here she reviews Reign of Error. She notes, quoting the Nobelist Niels Bohr, that true experts are willing to acknowledge their mistakes and learn from them. She then goes on to write: Another Nob
In Which Jared Polis and I Find Common Ground, Maybe
Gary Rubinstein’s analysis of the charter schools founded by Congressman Jared Polis showed that the schools posted low test score growth. Congressman Polis responded in a comment (posted below) that this was understandable because his charter schools enroll very low-performing students, many of whom barely speak or read English, and many of whom are overage for their grade and far behind. It is u
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-29-13 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Young Poet Brilliantly Slams Ed-CrueltyThis is a stirring, eloquent poem at a slam in Boston, by a young man whose sister teaches new immigrant children. After one year in a new country, they must take standardized tests in English. If they fail, their teachers fail. This is madness. Listen for three minutes and hear his vivid imag
What Does Reign of Error Mean? | Assailed Teacher
What Does Reign of Error Mean? | Assailed Teacher: What Does Reign of Error Mean?Posted on September 28, 2013 | 1 CommentDiane Ravitch has always been my go-to person for matters of American schooling.Back in 2004, I was 25 years old and starting my fourth year as a history teacher. It was the year I decided to branch out and create a philosophy elective at my school. I wanted to enable my philoso
KPFA with OEA + BFT presents: "An Evening with DIANE RAVITCH" "Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger for America's Public Schools"
KPFA Radio with Oakland Education Association and the Berkeley Federation of Teachers presents: "An Evening with DIANE RAVITCH" "Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger for America's Public Schools" Host: Philip Maldari | KPFA 94.1 FM Berkeley: Listener Sponsored Free Speech Radio: Date of the Event: Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 7:30pm - 9:30pmK
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 9-28-13 #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2
Diane Ravitch's blogLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONGDIANE RAVITCH'S BLOGPhilly Teacher: May 100% of Your Students Score Proficient by 2014!This was written by Raniel Guzman, who is a teacher in the School District of Philadelphia and an adjunct professor at Esperanza College of Eastern University: May 100 % of your students score proficient or above on standardized tests by 2014.