David Coleman's Common Core Shows How Less Can Be More, Boring
Somehow I missed this in October from Perdido Street, but it is priceless:NYSED ELA Lesson Module - 17 Days On One Short StoryAs I posted earlier this week, the teachers who have had the misfortune to have to use the Common Core lesson modules provided by NYSED at a website they call Engage NY have found that the material is so full of mind-numbing, soul-sucking drudgery that they had lost the int
Times Editorial Board: Let's Be More Like Finland Except for Everything
We know what to expect when the NYTimes moneymen call on their token minority, Brent Staples, to craft an Editorial of the Absurd on CorpEd's antiquated reforms that have effectively blown up public education along with the teaching profession. Staples' most recent effort does not disappoint, as he uses the most recent PISA release to apply his pretzel logic and funhouse lenses to make sense of t
The Fight Against School Reform Is a Fight for Children
Why did commenters say that Diane Ravitch's, "What Happens to Kids Who Don't Graduate?" is her best post ever? Ravitch reviews the dramatic drop in Kentucky and New York pass rates after instituting Common Core assessments: In New York, the “passing” rate on the Common Core tests was 30% statewide. Only 3% of English learners passed, and only 5% of students with disabilities. The pass ra
Pittsburgh School Board Reconsiders TFA Deal As Real Teachers File for Unemployment
From the Post-Gazette:The board of Pittsburgh Public Schools heard from a dozen people Monday -- most of them teachers -- who oppose the district's plan to bring in Teach for America teachers to take hard-to-fill jobs at its most challenging schools.The outgoing school board voted 6-3 in November to approve a contract with Teach for America, despite a petition that asked them to defer the decision
Accountability without Autonomy Is Tyranny
At The Answer Sheet, Valerie Strauss confronts What’s wrong with this headline?:What’s wrong with this headline speaks to what’s wrong with a lot of the debate about school reform today. The problem is the indiscriminate and inaccurate use of the word “accountability.”While politicians and the media continue to pound at one nail—teacher quality—almost no one confronts the nearly universal lack of
12-17-13 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: MIT Researchers: Higher Test Scores Do Not Translate into Higher Levels of ThinkingMIT Researchers: Higher Test Scores Do Not Translate into Higher Levels of Thinking http://t.co/edCbAClW1g— Diane Ravitch (@DianeRavitch) December 17, 2013 MIT Researchers: Higher Test Scores Do Not Translate into Higher Levels of Thinking via Professor Diane Ravitchby Robert D. Skeels 12-16-13 Scho