‘Do You Wanna Go To Starbucks?’ (or ‘how to get through finals’) — a musical parody
If you or anybody you know is suffering through finals, here’s some relief: a mini-musical parody on the song from the movie “Frozen” called “Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?” Done by two students from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, it is called, ”Do You Wanna Go To Starbucks?” Music and acting by […]
A Common Core math quiz. See how you do.
As the Common Core State Standards are being implemented in most states and the District, new aligned tests are being designed for students to start taking next year. Right now, millions of students around the country are taking field tests on these exams, and by many accounts, the questions are a lot more difficult than […]
U.S. lawmakers thank their favorite teachers: ‘She flunked me — and rightly so!’
Thanks to all the teachers out there who are helping students #ReachHigher and achieve their dreams. You’re incredible! #ThankATeacher –mo — The First Lady (@FLOTUS) May 6, 2014 In honor of National Teacher Day on Tuesday, a number of U.S. lawmakers from various states tweeted about their favorite teachers at #ThankATeacher. Here’s a list of […]
New report cites $100 million-plus in waste, fraud in charter school industry
A new report (see below) by two groups that oppose reforms that are privatizing public education finds fraud and waste totaling more than $100 million of taxpayer funds in 15 of the 42 states that operate charter schools. The report, titled “Charter School Vulnerabilities to Waste, Fraud, & Abuse,” and released by the nonprofit organizations Integrity […]
A history of Pearson’s testing problems worldwide
Now that Pearson, the worldwide education company, has won a huge contract with PARCC, one of the two multi-state consortia designing new Common Core-aligned tests with federal funds, it seems like a good time to review problems Pearson has had with previous projects. I’ve run one of these before but this is an updated list […]
What ‘setting high expectations’ for all students really means
How many times have you heard that schools need to create “a culture of high expectations” for all students? What exactly is that? Esther Quintero, a research associate at the nonprofit Albert Shanker Institute, explains in this post, which first appeared on the institute’s blog. By Esther Quintero What exactly is “a culture of […]
5-5-14 The Answer Sheet
The Answer Sheet: Virginia’s SOL exams: what students need to know to pass (and graduate on time)Today is the day when Virginia students will start running what teacher Mary Tedrow calls the state’s ” testing gauntlet” which seems to test endurance at least as much as knowledge. In this post, Tedrow looks at the sample questions of Standards of Learning tests and explains what students need to kno