OECD Sponsors School Level Tests to Foster Test Mania and Its Own Control
The OECD has created tests that schools can administer to their students in order to compare them to the nations of the world. Some schools have gleefully administered the tests, happy to discover how their students compare to children of the same age in the rest of the world. Finnish educator Pasi Sahlberg, a visiting professor at Harvard Graduate School of Education this year, warned that it w
What Would Happen if You Let Joy Enter the Classroom?
From Bellevue, Nebraska, watch a video of classes where joy, caring, and compassion have crowded out rigor and grit. Nothing said about being a global competitor. Nothing about college and career readiness. Just the joy of learning and sharing and caring.
Who or What is the “American Federation for Children”?
This is news you need to know. The American Federation of Children is a rightwing organization that spends heavily to promote vouchers and to support candidates in state and local races who support vouchers. When Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin was under siege for attacking public sector workers, he was honored (along with Michelle Rhee) by the AFS. The AFS is funded by the DeVos family, whose
Why Empathy for Children Matters
A reader posted this comment: It is obvious that the designers and supporters of CCSS do not have empathy for children. Narcissism is on a spectrum and intensifies with chronic stress. This is evident in how the Common Core Environment has created systemic Narcissism from the top down: The antithesis of narcissism is empathy. If you have unconditional love for children and can be an empathic,
Innovation Ohio: State Shortchanges Public Schools, Favors Charters
A new report from Innovation Ohio shows that the state regularly Shortchanges public schools to favor charters. Charter operators give generous campaign contributions to the governor and legislators. “Proponents have long claimed that community or ‘charter’ schools are the cure for much of what ails Ohio’s education system. If only parents had more “choice” over where their children attend school
Why Congress Can’t or Won’t Abandon the Failed NCLB
Thanks to Mercedes Schneider for bringing this article to my attention. If you have ever wondered why Congress refuses to abandon or revise or do anything to the failed No Child Left Behind, this article explains why. NCLB declared that all schools would have 100% proficiency by 2014. Even in 2002, after the law was signed, it was already obvious that many members of Congress did not believe t
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONG Diane Ravitch's blog 5-10-14 #thankateacher #EDCHAT #P2
Diane Ravitch's blogLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH ALL WEEK LONGDIANE RAVITCH'S BLOGIs TFA Recruiting in the Bathrooms at the University of Michigan?A blogger named Democracy Tree reports that TFA is putting up recruitment posters in the toilets at the University of Michigan. Probably it is to recruit teachers for the financially strapped Educational Achievement Authority, where 27% of the teachers are T