Diane Ravitch's blog
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DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG
Gerson: Why Common Core Won’t Work
Raymond Gerson teaches at Austin Community College. Will Common Core Produce Students Who Become Common? By Raymond Gerson Words can become like seeds for self-fulfilling prophecies because of the power of expectation. So let’s take a look at the words “Common Core.” One definition for the word “common” is “of no special quality.” In other words “ordinary.” According to Roget’s Thesaurus some syno
Alan C. Jones: What Knowledge Matters Most? Who Decides?
A reader added this insight into the debate about standards and which body of knowledge gets sanctified as “national standards” that everyone should know: I have made this comment before, but no domain of knowledge is neutral. Some group has to identify, categorize, organize, and interpret a discipline, a subject, a standard (although the term standard is a foreign concept in academia). What is
This is a terrific overview of some of the high points and the low points of 2013, written by the brilliant and prolific Anthony Cody. Cody continues his critique of the activism of the Gates Foundation and its agenda to remake U.S. education.
“Last Call: Please help build the Wait, What? blog” Dear Friends, Last financial request for 2013! (I promise) To donate go to: Wait,What? Donation Page Wait, What? could really use your help. As Wait, What? readers know, using one of his two pseudonyms Capital Prep Principal Steve Perry or a stand-in for him, made the […]The post Wait, What? Could Still Use Your Your Help… appeared first on Wait
Peg Robertson, one of the leading figures in the Opt Out movement, here writes movingly about her own experiences as a teacher, struggling to do her best for her students in an atmosphere dominated by corporate reform ideas. She writes about the family that shaped her views about education. She offers practical and wise suggestions for every teacher in the same predicament. This is an action guide
A judge in Douglas County, Colorado, ruled that the school board had violated the state fair campaign practices law by hiring two conservative commentators to write papers praising the district’s privatization agenda. One paper was produced by Frederick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute and the other by conservative activist William Bennett. Hess was paid $30,000 (half from district coffer
Paul Thomas: Teachers Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Paul Thomas taught high school for nearly two decades befor he became a professor at Furman University in South Carolina. He understands the dilemma of teachers caught between Scylla and Charydis, now known as a rock and a hard place. The dilemma arises when federal and state mandates require teachers to act in ways that violate their professional ethics. Thomas has specific advice to help teacher
Common Core and the Myth of Neutrality
Bill Boyle has come to the conclusion that the Common Core standards are “one more step in the decimation of the common good.” He got into a Twitter debate with an advocate for the standards, then realized that this–like so many other controversial issues–has no neutral ground, no set of facts that will dispassionately settle the questions. There is a narrative surrounding the Common Core that h
YESTERDAY
Reader: GERM in Spain
A reader describes the impact of GERM in Spain, where she teaches. The Finnish educator Pasi Sahlberg coined the term GERM in his book “Finnish Lessons.” It refers to the Global Education Reform Movement. GERM refers to interlocking strategies of testing, choice, competition. PISA spreads GERM. GERM turns education into a competition for test scores, instead of a process of human development. “Th
Ohio Parent on State’s Dual System of Publicly Funded Schools
Susie Kaeser lives in Cleveland Heights and is former director of Reaching Heights. She serves on the national board of Parents for Public Schools. She writes: I prefer to ignore charter schools. I know good people who work in them and use them. Charters don’t appear to have much to do with my school district. How much good can they do? How much harm? Reports of fraud, profiteering and failure pus
Gulen Charter Schools Embroiled in International Disputes
Sharon Higgins has followed the expansion of the Gulen charter chain for years. The Gulen schools are now the largest charter chain in the nation. They were founded by allies of a reclusive Turkish cleric, Fetullah Gulen, who lives in the Poconos. She writes: A political crisis has overtaken the Republic of Turkey. Most Americans don’t know that it has a direct relationship to charter school expan
Why Does Chicago’s Michael Madigan Love Gulen Charters?
What a fabulous story! Chicago Public Schools, known for their love of charters, turned down a proposal to open two new Concept charters. The one existing Concept charter school in Chicago had unimpressive test scores. So Concept went to the Illinois State Charter School Commission and won their charters! What a coup! How did it happen? Well, it seems that Concept charters are affiliated with th
Bruce Baker: The Ignorati Honor Roll of 2013: Pundit Edition
Bruce Baker of Rutgers is a one-man truth squad, policing the excessive claims of the “reform” movement. In this post, he begins by defining “Ignorati,” then identifies the pundits who reached the top of his charts. Here is his definition of “Ignorati”: “Elites who, despite their power, wealth, or influence, are prone to making serious errors when discussing science and other technical matters.
Jason Stanford: Time to Investigate Pearson in Texas
Jason Stanford, an independent political journalist in Texas, calls for an investigation of Pearson in Texas. Stanford noticed that New York’s State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman extracted a settlement of $7.7 million from Pearson because of the co-mingled activities of its charitable foundation and its for-profit activities. He believes that is similar problems would be found in Texas. Pea
DEC 26
I Answer Four Questions
Ray Salazar, a teacher in Chicago, wrote a blog post asking me to respond to four questions. I will try to do that here. I am not sure I will accurately characterize his questions, so be sure to read his post before you read my responses. Before I start, let me say that he obviously hasn’t read my book Reign of Error. Consequently, he relies on a five-minute interview on the Jon Stewart show and a
A Teacher Reflects on Fahrenheit 451 and BATs
Comment from a reader: I’ve been rereading FAHRENHEIT 451 and in 1951 Ray Bradbury saw today coming. He has his protagonist’s boss say, “Give the people contests they win by remembering….names of state capitals or how much corn Iowa grew last year. Cram them full of noncombustible data….and facts….. Then they’ll feel they’re thinking….And they’ll be happy because facts of that sort don’t change.
Newark Plans to Close School Praised by Michelle Obama as “Phenomenal”
Jersey Jazzman reports that Newark officials, who love to close public schools, will close a school that First Lady Michelle Obama highly praised. When she visited Maple Avenue Elementary School in 2010, she praised the staff and called the school “phenomenal.” The Obama administration loves closing public schools and firing everyone who works in them. This is called a “turnaround.” It is one of
Can You Answer This Question?
A question from a reader: Hi Ms. Ravitch, As a young person (about to finish undergrad) interested in potentially becoming a teacher but with a lack of formal educational training, I’m wondering if you might have some recommendations for me, for strong fellowship/teacher-training programs. TFA doesn’t seem to provide enough support to its teachers (and in so doing, to the students they teach). Wo
For-Profit “Turnaround” Schools in Indiana Earn an F
Charter Schools USA took over some low-performing schools in Indiana, and its three schools are still low-performing. The state paid out $30 million to five so-called “turnarounds,” but none has turned around. The chief academic officer for Charter Schools USA, which operates Emma Donnan, Manual and Howe, says turnaround is not “a quick fix.” “What is encouraging about our results as we’ve been tr
Teacher: Child Abuse in My Classroom
Mark Naison, co-founder of the BATs, sent me this story by a teacher: The Child Abuse Imposed by Testing: By Bronx Teacher Chris Whitney I had a student leave my classroom in an ambulance last year during the middle of a practice test. He was having an asthma attack brought on by panic. He kept saying, “I can’t do this.” As his teacher, I knew him. I knew that “school” was hard for him and he w
An Interview with “District Administration” on the Privatization Movement
I do my best to explain the assault on public education. It is unprecedented in American history. Public schools have always had critics, but never has there been a calculated effort to replace public schools with privately managed schools. And let’s be frank: that movement has succeeded because of bipartisan support and the availability of hundreds of millions–or billions, if you include Race to
DEC 25
Humor from Chicago: How to Spot a Corporate Reformer
Here is a new blogger–at least new to me. A Chicago teacher–or teachers–is employing wit and satire to portray the out-of-touch socialites who are devoting their time to school reform in the Windy City. Humor can be a powerful tool when combatting the failed ideas of the powerful.
Fred Smith: My Bronx Christmas Memories
Fred Smith, a testing expert who advises anti-testing groups and is quick to spot testing errors, sent me his Christmas memories. Diane, Thank you for your warm Christmas reminiscence. My father, Max, was born in Russia—Proskurov in the Ukraine in either 1912 or 1913. No one knew for sure and whatever records were kept were never computerized. He came with his older sister (Rivka = Becky) and mot
“All I Want for Christmas Is….”
A post from the wonderful Jan Resseger: A Special Christmas Wish for What Children Need This Year: Quality Teachers The Rev. John Thomas, the former General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ, is now a professor and administrator Chicago Theological Seminary. His wonderful blog post for this Christmas is about the importance of quality public school teachers: All I Want for Chr
Some Stunning (and Shocking) Facts to Reflect upon This Christmas Day
This is a mind-blowing video about wealth inequality in America today. These are facts to reflect upon this Christmas Day. Inequality is huge and growing in our beloved nation. A tiny proportion of our population owns a vast amount of our nation’s wealth. Wealth inequality, like income inequality, has grown dramatically in the past generation. There really is a 1% that owns an unbelievable amount
Pope Francis on the Dangers of Poverty and Inequality
I am not in the custom of quoting religious leaders, being a secular Jew, but I am nonetheless impressed by Pope Francis’ advocacy on behalf of the poor and his critique of the unfettered market. To clarify, I understand and believe in the values of a free marketplace of goods and services, but at the same time, I think that society has an obligation to make sure that the market is regulated suffi
The Christmas Spirit: A Dirt Road in Alabama
This is a beautiful story by Larry Lee about what happened when he told the story of a woman and her children living in a mobile home in rural Alabama. It is a story of kindness and the spirit of Christmas. Our country should not have so many people eking out a bare existence. There shouldn’t be such glaring inequality. But in the meanwhile there is spontaneous kindness. Lee begins: “Don’t you
My Memories of Christmas in Texas
As you may know, I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. I am third of eight children. My parents were both Jewish, as am I. Yet every year we celebrated Christmas. Is this puzzling? It wasn’t at all puzzling to me and my siblings. Every Christmas, the family bought a Christmas tree, and we all joined in decorating it with lights, ornaments, and tinsel. Every Christmas morning, we woke up like a
DEC 24
Chiara’s Christmas Gift to Others: Honesty and Courage
Chiara de Blasio, the 19-year-old daughter of the Mayor-elect of New York City, released a video describing her struggles with alcohol and drug dependency, as well as depression. She very honestly addresses how hard it was to seek and find help, how much it meant to have the support of her parents and to engage in therapy. She is honest, open, and direct. Her candor will make it easier for others
VAM Expert: D.C. Score Errors Are NOT a “Minor Glitch”
Last Friday, before the winter break, D.C. officials quietly released the news that the D.C. IMPACT evaluation system contained technical errors. It was the perfect time to reveal an embarrassing event, hoping no one would notice. Spokesmen minimized the importance of the errors, saying they affected “only” 44 teachers, one of whom was wrongfully terminated. But Professor Audrey Amrein-Beardsley e
The Regents Research Fellows: Who Are They?
Whitney Yax has prepared an infographic that describes the web of connections and experience among the New York Regents Research Fellows. You will not be surprised to learn that many have a background in Teach for America, the New York City Department of Education, and New Schools for New Leaders. Nine of the 25 fellows had classroom experience.
Peter Dreier: The Real History of the Pledge of Allegiance
I received this email today. It is a valuable reminder to our friends who wave the flag to defend the politics of greed and indifference to the sufferings of others. Friends, During these days of shopping madness and conspicuous consumerism, it makes sense to remind ourselves that Francis Bellamy, a Christian Socialist, wrote the “Pledge of Allegiance” in 1892 as an antidote to Gilded Age greed,
Pelto: Connecticut Governor Malloy Will Pay PR Firm $1 Million to Sell Common Core
Blogger Jonathan Pelto reports that Governor Dannell Malloy of Connecticut plans to spend $1 million to a public relations firm to sell the idea of Common Core. This suggests that he is concerned about the kind of public backlash that was caused by the botched implementation of Common Core in New York. Connecticut is one of the three highest performing states on NAEP, and parents are not likely
Will Bunch: What’s So Different About America?
Will Bunch, Philadelphia columnist, writes here about American exceptionalism. Why do we have endless battles over small distractions while ignoring the most glaring problems in our midst? Why do we have talk show hosts babbling about the latest burp in the culture wars while remaining silent about the stark inequality that blights our country? Why do we celebrate the “success” of our billionai
What This Fifth Grade Teacher Learned While Teaching in Finland
Tim Walker moved to Finland with his family. They have moved permanently, as Tim’s wife is Finnish. Tim now teaches fifth grade in Helsinki. He experienced culture shock. Here is what he learned: children need time to refresh, teachers need time to refresh. Both groups take frequent breaks during the day. But that’s not all: read on.
Paul Horton: A Message for the Gang of Four about the Cultural Revolution in U.S. Education
Consider this historical satire. It was written by Paul Horton, who teaches history at the University of Chicago Lab School. A Modest Proposal for the Gang of Four (Arne Duncan, Bill Gates, Michelle Rhee, Jeb Bush) Your plan for defeating the yellow dogs of reaction has not been effective. You need to get serious. Because you know very little about the history of revolutionary progress (Mr. Dun
A Season to Be Grateful to Teachers of Music and Art
David Gamberg, superintendent of schools in both Southold and Greenport, New York, is an educator who cares about the whole child. He knows what matters most. He knows that test scores are not what matter most in the development of a healthy child. In this post, he describes the music classes in second grade in Southold. He sees the joy that the teachers and students share. And he can’t help but r
DEC 23
Patrick Hayes on the VAM Fiasco in D.C.
Patrick Hayes is a teacher in Charleston, South Carolina, who is leading the fight to block test-based, value-added evaluations of teachers in that district. As many posts on this blog have iterated and reiterated, most researchers think that VAM is flawed and error-ridden. (Check out Audrey Amrein-Beardsley’s blog VAMboozled and Edward Haertel’s ETS lecture.) Hayes read about the errors in the Ma
Breaking News: D.C. Teacher Evaluation Scores Flawed
Last Friday, officials at the central office of the District of Columbia Public Schools quietly released the news that the teacher ratings on its highly touted IMPACT system contained errors. It was not clear how many teachers were affected. If you want to bury a policy disaster, the best time to announce it is on a Friday before a long holiday, on the assumption it will be ignored and forgotten.
New York Times: Staff Cuts Cause Increased Class Size
Motoko Rich reports on a district in Pennsylvania where budget cuts have led to teacher layoffs and increased class sizes. The story could be repeated in districts across the nation. Class sizes are growing, and schools are eliminating guidance counselors, nurses, classroom aides, librarians, and regular classroom teachers. In Philadelphia earlier this fall, a 12-year-old student died because the
Tony Bennett and the Privatization Money Trail
You remember Tony Bennett? Not the famous singer but the guy who was State Commissioner of education in Florida. The guy who led the effort to privatize public education in Indiana and led the charge for charter schools, vouchers, for-profit charters, virtual charters, high-stakes testing, the A-F grading system, and the elimination of collective bargaining rights for teachers. Remember that he wa
Robert Freeman: How to Destroy Education While Making a Trillion Dollars
We know the formula by now for destroying public education and handing it off to entrepreneurs who can cut costs, package it, extract a profit (or remain nonprofit while paying exorbitant executive salaries): Cry “crisis.” Set impossible targets (100% success on tests normed on a bell curve). Demoralize teachers. Fire the most experienced teachers. Hire low-wage temporary teachers who will leave
Who Will Win the Lysenko Award for 2013?
From Nebraska comes a letter from a retired teacher. He thinks there should be a special award for the person who best exemplifies the failed ideas of Trofim Lysenko. Lysenko was a biologist and agonomist whose ideas about agriculture were wrong but made compulsory. Here is the winner: A challenge to readers of your blog: Find an organization or a department or college of education that would d
Buffalo: A Story of Bad Policy, Bad Mandates, and Administrative Incompetence
A teacher in Buffalo read the New York Times series about the homeless child named Dasani and shared this story of administrative mandates, bad policy, and the harm inflicted on students. Why does Race to the Top assume that a school is “failing” when its students have unaddressed needs? Why does it assume that students who have unaddressed needs will get higher test scores if their teachers and p
Mercedes Schneider Offers Advice to Michigan Legislators and Parents About New Orleans Model: Run the Other Way!
Mercedes Schneider was invited to testify to a Michigan legislative committee about the alleged “New Orleans miracle,” which she explains is a mirage. In addition to presenting her views in a five-minute video, she made a ten-minute video specifically directed to Michigan parents. She explains what is happening in Louisiana, the data manipulation, the political games played with statistics to bols
DEC 22
Last Minute Xmas Shopping: Your Race to the Top Toys Aligned with Common Core!
Please check out this shopping catalogue of toys, fully aligned with the Common Core! It might easily be confused with the real thing, so I feel impelled to tell you it is a spoof written by two New York City teachers. My favorite: the plane built in mid-air while it is flying. Watch out below! By next year, there might really be a catalogue just like this one, and it won’t be a joke.
Here is a Good Xmas Gift: Advice from an Experienced Teacher
David Greene has published a new book about teaching called Do the Right Thing. David Greene taught social studies and coached in NYC, Woodlands HS, Scarsdale HS, and Ardsley HS for 38 years. He was a field supervisor for Fordham University, mentored Teach For America Corps members in the Bronx, was a staff member of WISE Services and treasurer of Save Our Schools March Committee. He has appeared
Larry Cuban on the Los Angeles iPad Fiasco
Larry Cuban, experienced educator and historian emeritus of education at Stanford University, reviews the iPad mess in Los Angeles and wonders: What were they thinking? Why so little forethought to the cost and utility of the iPads? Why is Los Angeles paying Apple more than the retail cost of similar devices? What does research show about the relationship between such devices and test scores? Why
Indiana: Tony Bennett’s Favorite Charter Falls from A to F
Remember that Tony Bennett, after being beaten by Glenda Ritz in an election last fall, was hired to be Commissioner of Education in Florida? Remember that he resigned his position in Florida after the Associated Press released emails showing that Bennett had changed the grading system to lift the grade of a charter school founded by a big campaign contributor (both to his campaign and to the stat
Add This Great New Blog to Your Reading List!
Two New York City public school teachers have launched a terrific blog. Jennifer Hogue and Adam Bergstein have a great sense of humor and irony. Right on the face of it is a countdown clock showing how many weeks (1), days, hours, minutes, and seconds left until King Bloomie departs the office of mayor. In the latest, written on December 16, Adam confesses: My name is Adam C Bergstein; I’m 43 an
Teachers: Common Core in Kindergarten Class
These comments were posted by a kindergarten teacher in response to a post about the Common Core English language arts standards: I teach kindergarden. The five-year olds have an incredibly tight schedule to keep in our county: an hour of math, hour of science, 2 hours of language arts, half hour of social studies. We kindergarten teachers have had to sneak in rest time and social centers (such a
Reader: Exxon Mobil and the Devaluing of AP Courses
Reader Christine Langhoff writes in response to a post wondering about Exxon Mobil’s fervent advocacy for the Common Core standards: “Exxon Mobile came into the Boston Public Schools in about 2003, trying to destroy our contract by inserting merit pay through a project called the Massachusetts Math and Science Initiative (MMSI), a branch of the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI). And sur
Vicki Cobb: The Ultimate Handcrafted Item is a Child
Vicki Cobb, a prolific and successful writer of books for children, writes here about the replacement of handcrafted items by machine-made items. And yet, even with all that is easily available made by machine, more than half of the population, she says, like to make things by hand. She writes: Unfortunately the factory mentality has invaded our educational system with the goal of mass producing c
DEC 21
Why Teachers Don’t Like the Common Core
Although Arne Duncan, Jeb Bush, the New York Times, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Exxon Mobil have done their best to create an air of inevitability about the Common Core (the train has left the station), parents and teachers continue to object to the imposition of these untested standards written mostly by non-educators. In this article, which appeared in the Journal News in the Lower Hudson
A Retired Teacher Reviews “Reign of Error”
This letter came to my mailbox. It says quite a lot about how teaching–and the perception of teachers–has changed in the past decade. Dear Dr. Ravitch, Finally, I thought, someone has come forth to tell the truth about the state of education in the United States today. Reign of Error is such an important book. I have been urging everyone I know to read it now. As a retired New Haven, Connecticut h
Leonie Haimson: The Woman Who Stopped Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch, and the Ed Profiteers
Below is a letter from Leonie Haimson, who was previously added to the honor roll of this blog for fighting for students, parents, and public education. Leonie almost singlehandedly stopped the effort to mine student data, whose sponsors wanted confidential and identifiable information about every child “for the children’s sake.” Leonie saw through that ruse and raised a national ruckus to fight
Bruce Baker on Statistically Illiterate Pundits and NAEP
Bruce Baker has written an important post about the inability of pundits (and journalists) to read NAEP data. Part of the misinterpretation is the fault of the National Assessment Governing Board, which supervises NAEP. It has a tight embargo on the scores, which are widely released to reporters. It holds a press conference, where board members and one or two carefully chosen outsiders characteri
Why a D.C. Charter School Teacher Resigned
Caleb Rossiter resigned as a math teacher at Friendship Public Charter School in D.C. He wrote an open letter to the Board of Trustees of the school explaining why. Here is a selection from his brutally frank letter. “I recently resigned from a position as a ninth grade Algebra 1 teacher at Technology Preparatory because of unremitting pressure from the administration to alter failing grades and
Why No Common Core at the School The Obamas Chose for Their Children?
This is a description of the philosophy of the lower school the Obamas chose for their children. Here is the academic program. No mention of the Common Core. Sounds like a wonderful school. Wouldn’t you want this for your child?
VAMBOOZLED: D.C. IMPACT Evaluation System Makes No Sense
A reader who teaches in the District of Columbia wrote to ask my advice. He couldn’t understand his evaluation based on the District’s complex IMPACT evaluation system. I sent it to a teacher evaluation expert, Audrey Amrein-Beardsley. She wrote a post trying to make sense of the evaluation report. Read it here.