CURMUDGUCATION:
Interviewing with HAL
In a recent post, The New Teacher Project (TNTP) asks an interesting question. And by "interesting," I mean "dumb."Can Better Questions Lead to Better Teachers? By "better," TNTP means "very specific multiple choice questions asked by a computer." As it turns out, I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this question, so let's end the suspense right away. Jessi
Duncan to Rest of US: Shut Up
Last week Arne Duncan John King shared a bill at the National Action Network gathering in NYC. King's message was "Blah blah blah standards tests blah." Same old, same old. Duncan, however, field tested a new message that translates basically to, "All youse normals, just shut up."John King's history as NY High Commissioner of Educationy Stuff is that of an old school politician
YESTERDAY
Dead Wood & Tenure
Some people want to insist that schools can be run like businesses. We can get into all the reasons they are wrong another day; for today let's go ahead and say that there are things for Education Leaders to learn from businessmen.W. Edwards Demming used to like to quote from his own mentor, Peter Scholtes, in talking about deadwood in an organization. The observation came out in many phrasings ov
Anti-Test & Pro-Core
I have explained repeatedly why I don't believe that the CCSS can be cut free from The Standardized Test Program that accompanies them (both here and here). But it really should come as no surprise that a large (and possibly growing) number of people are calling for just that.We've seen this in the world of ed reform before. In decades past, when a new reformy idea appeared, a large number of peop
APR 10
A Mercedes Schneider Reader
When it comes to fired-up scholarship, passionate digging out of detail, and supplying simple facts for the Resistance, it is hard to beat Mercedes Schneider.Schneider has one of the most varied backgrounds in the field. She started out as a classroom teacher of German and English, then acquired a PhD in applied statistics and research methods from the University of Northern Colorado and moved to
New Teacher Performance Testing
Today's Education Week includes a commentary from national representatives of school principals, school district administrators, and teacher-prep programs; these folks start out arguing for performance based assessment for new teachers, but then give limited endorsement of corporate baloney instead.Their opening point is well-made; people looking to enter the teaching profession need real support
Parents and Tenure
As battles over tenure across the country heat up, teachers will keep encountering parents who are in favor of ending job protections for teachers.We teachers have our favorite pro-tenure arguments, the long list of bad reasons that teachers in non-tenure districts lose their jobs. But those arguments are most compelling to us. They speak to our professional concerns. What can we say to parents th
#AskArne- Student Data & Test Edition
Yes, dear readers, the Department of Education continues to crank out youtube videos in which Arne Duncan is fake-interviewed about an educational issue. The newest clip presents a Teach to Lead update, a shady tale of data privacy, and some huge whoppers about the testing going on.. I have included the link, but it's really only as corroboration; it's in your blood pressure's best interests not t
APR 09
Strangers in Mathland
If you are none-math person, here's your quick partial explanation of why math under the Common Core is so hinky. I'm an English teacher, so I've rather stayed away from the math side of the Common Core Standards. But I can't help noticing that if you are of a certain age (say, mine) some of it seems vaguely familiar. Let me give you a hint...(Note: Tom Lehrer is, as the young folks say, the bomb.
Common Corer? I Don't Even Know Her!
With his House appropriations subcommittee testimony Tuesday, Arne Duncan remains the highest profile reformy booster to wipe the Common Core lipstick off his face and stammer, "But, honey, I barely even know the woman!"It's not the first time for Arne-- it hasn't even been a month since he watched Indiana dump the Core and said, "Yeah, well, fine. They can do that if they want to.&
APR 08
I Love My Job (Seriously)
Regular readers of this blog (I believe there are at least three, now) probably expected that the headline was setting up some sort of sarcastic satirical rant. But no-- that's not where I'm going today.Because I do, in fact, actually love my job.Sometimes it's the obvious stuff. A few weeks back I was hustling in overdrive overtime to pull together a hundred-plus students into a production of the
Why "Reformy"?
Part of a series of posts for folks who are just beginning to find there way through the current debates on education. My blog dedicated to that audience is Reclaiming Pubic Education 101.As one wades out into the sea of education blogging, one repeatedly encounters the term "reformy" or "reformy stuff." There's a short explanation, but it underlines one of the central issues o
APR 07
Just How Federal Are the Core Standards?
It has become a matter of conventional wisdom that the Common Core State Standards are a federal program in everything but name, even as the Arne Duncan and the administration keep making mouth noises about how it's totally not federal at all. Because that would be politically inexpedient. Also, it would be illegal.The definitive Duncan statement on strategy and tactics of CCSS dispersal is still
What the Hell Happened in Kansas?
Late last night, the Kansas legislature stripped Kansas teachers of all major job protections.I suppose you could claim that it wasn't all bad; Kansas ultimately decided NOT to pay parents to home school. But all in all, it was still pretty bad.It was a textbook example of how politics works these days (and also how it is covered; in Pennsylvania I followed the story in real time on twitter).On Sa
APR 06
It's Not the Implementation, Stupid
One of the favorite fallback positions of beleaguered fans of the Common Core has been, "The Standards are actually swell. It's the implementation that's messed up." From national union chiefs to thinky tank wiseguys to people who make their living pushing the Core to-- well, there isn't anybody else. But they are all in agreement-- it's just this one feature of how we've rolled the stan
Six Heads of the Reformy Hydra
Public education really does have many enemies these days, and while it may sometimes seem like they are a large amorphous mass, there are distinctions to be made. These six groups have come together in a perfect storm to bring us to the mess that is our current high stakes test driven corporate agenda status quo. To defend ourselves, it's best to see each one clearly.The Profiteers (money)The edu
APR 05
Five Top Duncan Posts
When I started blogging, I had no idea I would post so much so fast so often. But now more company is coming over and it turns out that I am "Below Basic" in curating. So my goal is to do some collection posts for folks who think they'd like to see some of the old stuff, but did not bring their cyber-wading boots.Nobody fires me up quite like our Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan. Here
The Ethan Rediske Act: Another Update
Andrea Pratt Rediske is taking a hard-earned weekend break, so this seems like a good time to update folks on where things stand.Ethan Rediske is the eleven year old boy who was required by the state of Florida to bring a note from his doctor proving he was profoundly disabled and dying before the state would excuse him from The Test. After Ethan's death. his mother Andrea thought it would be a go