Diane Ravitch's blog
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG
DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG
It is amazing how many of the 1% are willing to spend millions to remove due process from teachers, most of whom work harder and earn less than said zillionaire’s secretary or chauffeur. According to this article by Jennifer Medina in the “New York Times,” David F. Welch is a telecommunications executive who has spent millions to create a group called Students Matter to launch a lawsuit in Califo
From a New Jersey public school activist: “I am very happy to report that the Stop Forced Public School Closures legislation sailed through the Senate Ed Committee with 4 yes votes and 1 abstention. This is no small feat. But we had a lot of grass-roots support and it worked! Here’s a bit of the coverage.”
Jersey Jazzman: Why High School Sports Should Not Go Professional
Jersey Jazzman recounts stories of high school sports teams recruiting players from other districts to help them in the competitive world of athletic competition. He explains why this has happened. It goes hand-in-hand with our current misguided belief that education as it was once understood–that is, the development of each child in mind, body, and character– has been replaced by purely utilitari
Two Former NYC Principals Offer Advice to Mayor de Blasio
Robert Lubetsky and William Stroud published an article in the online Teachers College Record, offering advice for Mayor de Blasio. This is a shortened version of what appears on the TCR website. It was shortened by the authors. Schooling in New York City – From Accountability to Revitalization Robert Lubetsky City College of New York William Stroud Consortium for Policy Research in Education
Indianapolis: Plan to Hand Over Public Schools to Private Managers Advances
The Indiana State Teachers Association reports on a bill to privatize more public schools in Indianapolis. Privatization is not new. It is the theme song of the Obama administration in collaboration with libertarian think tanks and far-right governors. What is new here is that the legislature is passing this plan with no evidence that it will benefit children or improve education. No, wait, there
What Do Tennessee Teachers Really Think? Help This Video Go Viral!
The night before I addressed the Kentucky School Boards Association, I had dinner with a group of teachers and parents from Tennessee. The group included Mama Bears, BATS, and TREES. One of the BATS was Laura Hopson from Knox County, who teaches second grade children. She is smart, strong, experienced, and wise. She is also outspoken, as I learned by watching this video, in which she let the boar
Reader: Wendy Kopp on the Origins of TFA
The reader called “Democracy” posted this comment and a link to a YouTube video from 2012. I was unable to open the video, perhaps you can, but the comments on the video were still live. The comment reads: “Wendy Kopp: “there was a front page article in Fortune Magazine saying that corporate America was going to take on education reform. So, there were so many elements that made the timing for thi
Governor Haslam of Tennessee: Bad Collision with Facts
This blogger has gathered the latest wave of bad news from Tennessee, showing the emptiness of the Republican Governor Bill Haslam’s efforts to outsource everything public to whoever wants to make money. Even though President Obama praised red-state Tennessee as a prime example of the success of Race to the Top, conveniently ignoring the other Race to the Top winners where NAEP scores stagnated, t
YESTERDAY
Di Blasio Administration Shifts Funding from Charter Schools to Pre-School Plan
During his campaign, Mayor Bill Di Blasio pledged to provide universal pre-kindergarten for all children whose families can’t afford it. He said he would pay for UPK (universal pre-kindergarten) by imposing a modest tax increase on those with incomes over $500,000 a year. But he needs the support of Governor Cuomo and the State Legislature to raise taxes on the super-rich. In the meanwhile, the
States Finding New Names to Rebrand Common Core
Lyndsey Layton at the Washington Post reports that the name “Common Core” has become so toxic in some states that officials are calling it something else. This is known as old wine in new bottles. She writes: “Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) used an executive order to strip the name “Common Core” from the state’s new math and reading standards for public schools. In the Hawkeye State, the same stand
Maryland Superintendents Protest Rushed Implementation of “Reforms”
Valerie Strauss reports that almost all the superintendents in the state of Maryland signed a letter protesting the rushed timetable for Arne Duncan’s favorite reforms. She writes: “Nearly all of the superintendents of Maryland school districts have signed a statement that criticizes federal and state education officials for forcing them to implement several major reforms, including the Common C
Connecticut Teacher: Why I Want to Quit Teaching: UPDATE
[Note to readers: I abridged this article to comply with copyright limits. Please open the link and read the article in full at the Hartford Courant, which had the good sense to publish it.] Thanks to the punitive actions and policies of the U.S. Department of Education and the states, there is a new genre of writing by teachers, explaining why they are quitting. The most famous was written by Kri
New York Plans Cradle-to-Grave Data Tracking of Students
Here is another reason to opt your children out of state testing. The state plans to collect data on every student throughout their lives, on the nutty belief that someone somewhere will figure out from this Big Data “what works.” This massive collection of data reflects the NSA’s conviction that the best way to stop terrorism is to listen to every phone call and read every email of everyone in t
Gates Foundation Cheers the Growing “Momentum” of Common Core
The Gates Foundation has spent $200 million or so to pay for the Common Core standards. Gates paid for everything because the U.S. Department of Education is prohibited by law from doing anything that might control, direct,or supervise curriculum or instruction. Of course, this did not stop Arne Duncan from shelling out $350 million to pay for new online tests of the Common Core. The tests will ce
A Forum on Emerging Issues in North Carolina: Comments?
I will be in Raleigh, North Carolina, on February 11 to participate in the Emerging Issues Forum. It brings together strong partisans from very different perspectives. The focus seems to be about recruiting and retaining the best teachers. It is an ironic time to discuss this topic when North Carolina teachers are feeling besieged by punitive legislation that is encouraging senior teachers to leav
Most Milwaukee Charter Schools Fall Below Expectations
Newly released state report cards show that 53% of independent charter schools in Milwaukee are not meeting expectations. Erin Richards of the Journal-Sentinel writes: Despite having more freedom over curriculum, budgets and staffing than traditional public schools, the majority of Milwaukee’s independent charter schools are not meeting performance expectations, according to statewide report card
JAN 30
A Reviewer of “Reign of Error” Has Some Advice for Readers of This Blog
This reviewer enjoyed the book and says she learned a lot. But she felt turned off by the tone of some of the comments on the blog. Some are nasty, some are sarcastic. I told her that many readers are frustrated and feel powerless because the tiny elite that now controls education doesn’t listen. As readers know, I don’t censor comments except for cursing and vendettas. When the tone turns viciou
Valerie Strauss Dissects the Empty Rhetoric in Obama State of the Union Address
President Obama continues his policy of using the State of the Union to demonstrate the gap between what he says and what his administration does. Valerie Strauss carefully dissects that speech here in reference to education. Once again, he warned that it was time to get away from “fill-in-the-bubble” standardized tests, perhaps unaware that the new federally-funded Common Core tests were made by
Rhode Island Town Says No to Common Core Testing
The school committee of Tobrtton, Rhode Island, voted 4-1 to delay Common Core testing. The state education department insisted that Rhode Island educators were deeply involved in the creation of the standards. “In its resolution, the committee states that that local school committees, teachers and parents were not involved in the development of the Common Core, a set of education standards deve
Mercedes Schneider and Peter Greene Offer Timely Help to Dennis Van Roekel
Dennis Van Roekel is a supporter of the Common Core standards. He recently said in an article in Education Week that no one has really set out their specific objections to the standards or offered a better alternative. Two teacher-bloggers here offer help to Dennis. I know that Dennis is a dedicated advocate for teachers and for public education, so I hope he will read and take heed of advice from
A New Day in New York City: Veteran Educators in Charge, not Whiz Kids
The new Di Blasio team is off to a good start in education. The Bloomberg team is quietly exiting stage right. One of the key players, Marc Sternberg, has moved to the Walton Family Foundation to promote vouchers. Another, Shael Suransky, will be president of Bank Street College, which does not share his enthusiasm for test-based accountability. The new chancellor, Carmen Farina, is assembling her
When Will Ohio Demand Charter Accountability?
Twenty years ago, when I supported the interesting idea of charter schools, there was a clear and oft-stated purpose for them: Freedom from regulation in exchange for results and accountability. That deal has been repudiated by the charter industry. They want freedom from regulation, freedom from supervision, and freedom from public audits with no accountability. They want public money with no c
Are the Members and Staff of the NY Board of Regents Effective?
This statement was written by Katie Zahedi and Bianca Tanis. Katie Zahedi is principal at Linden Avenue Middle School in Red Hook, NY, and serves on the administrative panel for NYSAPE. Bianca Tanis is a public school parent in the Hudson Valley as well as an elementary special education teacher and a co-founder of NYS Allies for Public Education. “We ask that the New York State Education Departme
A Veteran Principal Eloquently Denounces Common Core and Race to the Top
This powerful speech was written and delivered by Frank Sutliff to a crowd of concerned citizens and educators at the Oneonta (New York) Forum on January 18, 2014. Sutliff is a Principal and is also the President of SAANYS (School Administrators Association of New York State). He said: I appreciate the opportunity I have been given to speak here today. Although I am the President of the School Ad
JAN 29
Dennis Van Roekel Supports Colorado Lawsuit
NEA President Dennis Van Roekel strongly supported the legal action of the Colorado Education Association against SB 191, one of the worst bills of its kind in the nation. It was written in 2010 by State Senator Michael Johnston, ex-TFA. Fully 50% of teachers’ evaluations are tied to test scores. I was in Denver the day the law passed in the Senate. Johnston and I were supposed to have a lunch de
Deasy: Poverty Has No Causal Role in Low Performance
Los Angeles Superintendent John Deasy testified in the trial of the lawsuit claiming that teacher tenure violates the civil rights of students. The plaintiffs in the Vergara lawsuit want to eliminate due process so it is easier to fire teachers if their students have low test scores. Most researchers acknowledge that family income and education play a larger role in student test scores than teac
Teacher: Tenure Protects Against False Accusations
From a reader: I guess the thing about tenure is this: Most critics say it protects bad teachers. In essence it is just the opposite. It protects good, excellent teachers from “helicopter parents” and personality conflicts with administrators. Say you are a clerk in a store, and a customer accuses you of being dishonest In your dealings with them. The accusation is not at all true. Do you think yo
Providence Student Union: The Guinea Pigs Protest!
The creative Providence Student Union is staging another brilliant protest against high-stakes testing. It’s their lives! PRESS RELEASE CONTACT: Aaron Regunberg | Aaron@ProvidenceStudentUnion.org | (847) 809-6039 “GUINEA PIGS” PROTEST EXPERIMENTATION AT STATE HOUSE – STUDENTS, DRESSED AS LAB ANIMALS, DEMONSTRATE AGAINST HIGH-STAKES TESTING Providence, Rhode Island – January 29, 2014 – High schoo
Indiana: Legislative Committee Wants to Ban Testing for Voucher Schools
Phyllis Bush of the Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education sent word that it is -16 degrees in Fort Wayne, Indiana. But the legislature never rests, she says: “At 1:30 the Senate Education Committee will be discussing taking away the Statewide testing requirements for voucher schools. Anything for keeping the playing field level….just in case you are a glutton for punishment, here is the l
Does Tenure Violate the Civil Rights of Students?
What a ridiculous claim! In a court case in California, a bevy or flock or pride of teacher-bashing organizations argue that teacher tenure violates the civil rights of students. The bevy says that bad teachers hurt students and tenure protects bad teachers. Maybe next they will sue to eliminate tenure in higher education so everyone is an adjunct. In higher education, tenure is a guarantee of a
The Illogic of the Néw York Times on Accountability
A few days ago, the Néw York Times published a bizarre and illogical editorial. It went like this: black and Hispanic students are very ill-prepared for college. However, the Bloomberg administration accountability program was a great success, and–except for the simplistic and failed A-F system. So, if so few students were succeeding, why is the accountability program indispensable? I posed this q
Breaking News: The Hero Parents of Newark
Last night, the parents of Newark spoke out in unison against the bullying tactics of the Christie administration. As veteran journalist Bob Braun reported, state-appointed superintendent Cami Anderson stormed out of the meeting after a parent accused her of not caring as much about Newark’s children as she does about her own. The parents of Newark are fighting together against not only state co
New Jersey: Law Aims to Curb School Closings
David Sciarra of the Education Law Center in Néw Jersey wrote this description of a legislative proposal that would slow or stop school closings in state-controlled districts such as Newark. The key change is that schools may not be closed without the approval of the local board. Sciarra writes: NJ Parents Push New Bill to Regulate School Closings The wave of school closings continues to sweep ac
NH Teachers Take CC Test, Find Serious Flaws
Here is a question: Answer in five sentences or less. Who decided all the students of the U.S. should be tested online? Another question: Who benefits? What can we do about it? Opt out. Teachers in Nashua, Néw Hampshire, took an early version of the online Common Core test, Smarter Balanced Assessment, and encountered multiple problems. “NASHUA – If there was any question about how well the state
21st Century Child Abuse
Recently I was listening to a classical music station and heard a beautiful piece of music. The announcer said when it ended that Mozart composed it at the age of 9. I couldn’t help thinking, “but what were his test scores?” When I watched the chorus of the Celia Cruz High School sing the National Anthem at Mayor de Blasio’s inauguration, I had the same thought. It is becoming a habit. When I see
JAN 28
Breaking News! Colorado Teachers Will Sue to Stop Failed Law
The Colorado Education Association, which represents the overwhelming majority of teachers in the state, will sue to block further implementation of SB 10-191. That law, written by ex-TFA State Senator Michael Johnston in 2010, wiped out due process for teachers and tied evaluations of teachers and principals to student test scores. This method, called VAM, has failed wherever it was tried. Most
5 Newark Principals Sue for Freedom of Speech
The five Newark principals who were suspended for daring to question Superintendent Cami Anderson’s plan to close their schools have sued her for violating their First Amendment rights. They were joined by a Parent-TeCher organization whose president was barred from his child’s school. Anderson was appointed by Governor Chris Christie’s administration. Newark has an elected school board but has b
Houston Learned from Los Angeles What NOT to Do with Technology
The Los Angeles iPad program has become a national lesson in what NOT to do. Other districts, watching the slow-motion disaster in L.A., are taking heed and planning their purchases and implementation of technology with greater care than was exercised in the nation’s second largest district. L.A. committed to spend $1 billion on iPads, pre-loaded with Pearson content. The controversies about cost,
Sarah Darer Littman: What Will Connecticut Pay to Implement Common Core Testing?
Sarah Darer Littman, a journalist in Connecticut, read that Maryland will spend $100 million for Common Core testing. This led her to wonder what the Common Core testing will cost in her own state. She asked the State Education Department to fill in the blanks about costs and about what district will receive, and she was surprised by what she learned: When I looked at the dollar grant per student
Lamar Alexander Proposes Sweeping Voucher Legislation
Lamar Alexander, Republican Senator from Tennessee, will propose voucher legislation today in a speech at the American Enterprise Institute. According to politico.com, “The Tennessee Republican will roll out a school choice bill at the American Enterprise Institute today. It consolidates dozens of federal programs that make up about 41 percent of all federal education spending, with an incentive
Math Teacher Explains What Is Wrong with the Common Core
Roy Turrentine, an experienced teacher of mathematics in Tennessee, explains why the Common Core standards are misdirecting the teaching of his subject. The creators of the CCSS did a disservice to the standards and to American education by refusing the test the standards in real classrooms with real teachers and real students. By failing to field test the standards, there was no feedback from the
Peter Greene: Do Choice Schools Need Testing?
Peter Greene, a teacher in Pennsylvania, has emerged as a favorite blogger of mine. He is on top of the news with sage observations, and he is pithy. In this post, he looks closely at University of Arkansas’ professor Jay Greene’s argument that schools of choice do not need testing. Jay Greene, a professor in the “department of education reform,” thinks that the marketplace provides accountability
Paul Thomas Rebuts Jay Greene: No Escape Route from Testing for Choice Schools
Paul Thomas here critiques Jay Greene’s claim that schools of choice should not be subject to the same regime of standardized testing as public schools. Thomas warns about the numerous academics and “think tanks” that are financed by interested parties and thus do not offer disinterested advice. Greene is a strong advocate of charters and vouchers; his “Department of Educational Reform” at the Un
Whitehurst: Test More, Not Less
Grover (Russ) Whitehurst is worried that the public is turning against standardized testing. As George W. Bush’s director of education research, he was and is a true believer in testing. As head of the Brown Center at Brookings, once known as a bastion of liberal thought, Whitehurst wants to see the programs he tended under Bush’s NCLB survive. Yet they are, as he puts it, “in a bit of trouble.”
JAN 27
Yesterday, the Blog Readership Broke a Record
Yesterday, the blog recorded 69,817 page views. This was a record for the blog. The single most-read blog was the breaking news from Indiana, alerting readers that Governor Pence was trying again to strip the powers of Glenda Ritz. Over 30,000 people read that entry. Information is power. Stay informed.
Burris: Néw York’s Old Standards Better than Common Core
Carol Burris, principal of South Side High School in Rockville Center, NY, has read the Common Core standards. The 2005 Néw York standards, she concluded, were superior. Parents and educators are outraged. Does State Commissioner John King care? Burris writes: “”Hit the delay button.” That was the message New York’s senators sent to state Education Commissioner John King during last week’s heari
Matt Di Carlo: New Data Show High Teacher Attrition in DC
Matthew Di Carlo of the Shanker Institute reports a new study of teacher attrition in the District of Columbia. The numbers of teachers leaving the district are startling. Whether it is working conditions or policy, the District is not a good place to work. DCPS has an attrition rate of 25%, far above the national average. But it is far higher in the highest-poverty schools, as much as 40%. Di
Teacher: Indiana Punishes Struggling Schools Instead of Helping Them
If you saw a person drowning, would you throw him a life preserver or would you tell him to swim harder? Or perhaps withdraw the lifeline that he was clinging to? If you saw a visually impaired person trying to cross a busy street, would you help her or would you tell her she is on her own? Or, to make things worse, take away her cane? This Indiana teacher responded to another reader to explain ho
Debate about Cost of Pre-K Grows in NY
Elected officials in NY are debating the cost of universal pre-K. It was a central plank in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s campaign. He won in a landslide. He wants to pay for it by a tiny tax increase on incomes over $500,000. This would add about $1,000 a year in new taxes, less than dinner for 2 at Per Se or other high-end restaurants of 1%. Yet the pushback and debate about cost continues. See here.
New Study: Cami Anderson’s “One Newark” Will Not Create One Newark
Cami Anderson, appointed by the Christie administration as superintendent of Newark, New Jersey, has a plan called “One Newark.” Newark has been under state control since 1995. Oddly enough, Anderson’s plan is not about “One Newark.” “One Newark” would be a plan to unify the schools, the students, the families, and the community into a single purpose: educating the young. But “One Newark” is about
Welner Writes a Message to the President: Are We Serious About Reducing Inequality?
Kevin Welner, director of the National Education Policy Center at the University of Colorado at Boulder, wrote the following: Poverty and the Education Opportunity Gap: Will the SOTU Step Up? Tuesday’s State of the Union address will apparently focus on issues of wealth inequality in the United States. The impact of poverty is extremely important for issues such as housing, nutrition, health a
Jason Stanford: Why Is Duncan Asking Pearson for Advice?
Jason Stanford, a Texas journalist, is appalled that President Obama and Arne Duncan met with Pearson to get advice about how to prepare low-income students for college. The White House refers to Pearson as “the world’s leading learning company,” instead of the world’s largest testing company. What advice do you think Pearson offered? Stanford bets: more testing, better testing. He notes that Texa
JAN 26
Starr to Duncan: Stop Calling Educators Liars
Joshua Starr to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan: Stop calling lifelong public educators liars. This is one of Arne’s most inexplicable habits. He has repeatedly said that educators lie to children. They tell children they are smart, they tell them they passed, they tell them they did good work, when Arne knows better. He knows our kids are lazy and dumb. He alone tells the truth. Thanks to Jo
Randi Applauds New York Teachers for Withdrawing Support for Common Core and King
In an article in “Politico Pro,” which is behind a paywall, AFT President Randi Weingarten applauded the decision of the New York State United Teachers, which passed a resolution of “no confidence” in New York State Commissioner John King. She said that NYSUT was right to withdraw support from Common Core unless there are “major course corrections.” The implementation of the standards was badly
Mark Naison: Obama’s “Scorched Earth” Policy for Urban Schools
Mark NAISON writes here about the Obama administration’s determination to destroy public education in urban centers. In city after city, public education is dying, replaced by privately-managed schools that do not get higher test scores except by excluding or kicking out low-scoring students. Many urban schools have been taken over by for-profit chains. In education, this will be the legacy of Ar
Join Moral Monday in Raleigh on February 8
Extremists and cultural vandals who temporarily hold the reins of power in North Carolina and states like Tennessee, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan like to claim that they are “civil rights leaders,” that they are putting “students first,” and other balderdash. The privatizing of public education is part of a larger assault on democracy. On February 8, genuine civil rights leaders are ra
Some of America’s Richest Financiers Fund Campaign for Tax Credits in New York
Some of the nation’s wealthiest men are building a campaign chest to promote tax credits for private and religious schools. If the legislature acts on their request, it would transfer $250 million in education funds to nonpublic schools. 5,000 students packed the Westchester County Convention Center in White Plains, New York,last November to cheer the proposal. “The rally in White Plains, and an
Defending the Early Years Against Adult Demands
Are you concerned about current efforts to force academic standards onto little children? Are you concerned about the movement to stamp out play? Do you think that little children should experience childhood before they are subjected to the academic treadmill? Do you think that school can and should be more than a boring progression of test prep and testing? If so, you will enjoy learning about t
Teacher Blasts Los Angeles’ “Sneak Attack” on Music Program
This comment came from Barbara Aran, a retired music teacher in Los Angeles: She wrote: This what I planned to say to the LAUSD Board on Tuesday December 17th, but couldn’t get in–this is what I would have said on that day: My name is Barbara Aran. I am a retired LAUSD elementary teacher. Today I speak for the school communities of Wilshire Crest Elementary and Laurel Elementary schools. Ladies
JAN 25
Breaking News: Indiana’s Governor Pence Will Try Again to Strip Glenda Ritz of Authority
Republicans in Indiana still can’t get over the fact that the voters elected Glenda Ritz as state commissioner of education in 2012 and tossed out their idol, Tony Bennett, who outspent Ritz 10-1. Ritz won more votes than Governor Mike Pence. Ever since the election, Pence has tried to take away the powers of the office of state commissioner of education and transfer them to the state board of edu
Breaking News: New York Teachers’ Union Votes No-Confidence in State Commissioner John King
On Saturday morning, the Board of Directors of NYSUT–the New York State United Teachers–voted unanimously for a resolution of “no confidence” in State Commissioner John King. This is tantamount to calling for his removal. The implementation of Common Core testing in New York state was widely recognized as a fiasco. Many legislators, including the leader of the State Assembly, have called for a del
Faust/Marsalis: Why the Arts Matter
Drew Faust, president of Harvard University, and Wynton Marsalis, master musician, wrote a joint article for USA Today about the importance of arts education. They wrote: “We hear widespread calls for “outcomes” we can measure and for education geared to specific employment needs, but many of today’s students will hold jobs that have not yet been invented, deploying skills not yet defined. We not
Schneider Offers Advice to NYC’s Teachers’ Union: Operation Boomerang!
Mercedes Schneider has closely analyzed the union-busting techniques of the so-called Center for Union Facts and its leader Richard Berman. Here she digs out the details of Berman’s long-planned strategy to damage unions with negative advertising. Now Berman is plastering New York City with billboards and radio ads to lower the public’s opinion of the United Federation of Teachers. A poll a year a
Learning More About How Environment Affects Intelligence
Back in the years before World War I, the I.Q. test was invented in Europe, first by Francis Galton in England, then by Alfred Binet in France. The idea of I.Q. testing was adapted in the United States for use in sorting millions of recruits for the Army, deciding which ones were officer material and which were the troops headed for the front lines. After the war, American psychologists enthusiast
NOLA Columnist: Farewell to the Students at John McDonogh
Jarvis DeBerry, a columnist for the New Orleans Time-Picayune, has written a letter to the students at the John McDonogh School, a charter school that is closing after Steve Barr took it over and pledged to turn it around. Barr’s company is called “The Future Is Now.” He invited Oprah to send in a television crew to document his success in taking over what he called New Orleans’ “most dangerous sc
My Response to a Teacher in North Carolina: Please Don’t Give Up
I hope teachers will find the inner strength to stand up to the bullying by governors and legislators. If you can’t teach, find another job. But if you are a good teacher and you are devoted to making a difference in the lives of children, don’t give up. Stay and fight. Join grassroots groups. Join the Network for Public Education. In every state there are groups of parents and educators standing
Pearson Redefines Its Goal as “Efficacy”
Who owns American public education? Until a decade ago, we might have answered: the public. Or the states. Or the local school boards. Now, the likely answer is: the U.S. Department of Education. Or the Gates Foundation, which seems to own the U.S. Department of Education. But there may be another answer (this is not a multiple-choice test, and there is more than one right answer): Pearson, the
Hackschooling: Is This the Future?
This amazing video from a TED talk by a confident teenager named Logan LaPlante has had more than 3.6 million views on YouTube. In his view, the main purpose of education should be to help students become “happy and healthy.” He describes his own unique version of schooling–which he calls “hackschooling.” It is homeschooling of a sort, using the Internet to delve into whatever interests him. It is
Hey, Excellent Teachers! Want Larger Classes?
An organization called Public Impact in North Carolina has this cool new idea–actually, not so new, because Bill Gates has been pushing it for a few years: What if school districts selected only the most excellent teachers, fired the bad teachers, and increased the class sizes of the really excellent teachers? Then the really excellent teachers could make more money, the school system would have f
