Latest News and Comment from Education

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-29-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:






Connecticut: More Trouble for New London Superintendent Candidate
The Day, a Connecticut publication, reports more problems for Terrence Carter, applicant for the superintendency at New London, who used the title “Dr.” and “Ph.D.” without having earned the title. The Day reports that sections of Carter’s job application were identical to other publications. That is known as plagiarism and is unacceptable in school or higher education. “New London – At least 10

NAISON: What the BATs Told Duncan and His Staff
Wow! This post will knock your socks off, unless you work for the U.S. Department of Education. The post was written by Mark NAISON, one of the co-founders of the BATs. (I don’t know why, but my iPad always converts Mark’s last name into all-caps.) The Badass Teachers Association held a rally outside the U.S. Department of Education on July 28, and several were invited to meet with staff at the Of

Badass Teachers Meet with Duncan and Staff
Politico.com reports that representatives of the BATs met with Secretary Duncan. “BADASS TEACHERS OUT IN FORCE: Several hundred teachers, parents and students sang, danced and demonstrated outside the Education Department on Monday, protesting federal education reform under the Obama administration. The rally was hosted by the Badass Teacher Association. On the list of grievances: The Common Core,

Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Pays Big Salary to Stay-at-Home “Advisor”
Governor Tom Corbett has made a cushy deal for his former stat education commissioner, Ron Tomalis. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that Tomalis is paid full salary, has no office, and no one is sure what work he does. He is supposed to be a higher education advisor. “When Ron Tomalis stepped aside as state education secretary 14 months ago, he landed what seemed like a full-time assignment i


David Berliner Responds to Economists Who Discount Role of Child Poverty
Erik Hanushek, Paul Peterson, and Ludger Woessmann take issue with David Berliner and Gene Glass’s view about how high levels of child poverty in the U.S. affect our students’ performance on international assessments. In the following post, David Berliner responds to their critique. Criticism via Sleight of Hand David C. Berliner ​Hanushek, Peterson and Woessmann (2014) (HPW) criticize Berliner, G
Carol Burris: Poor Teacher Evaluation Systems Will Not Improve Education
Carol Burris, principal of south side High School in Rockville Center, New York, writes here about the multiple flaws of test-based teacher evaluations. At an Ed Trust celebration, Duncan told the crowd, “But we can’t let the perfect become the enemy of the good. We can’t let the utopian become the enemy of the excellent. And we can’t let rhetorical purity become the enemy of rigorous practice.” I
What Counts Most in Education? Intellect or Interest? Facts or Soul?
In what most surely be the most famous statement by David Coleman, the architect of the Common Core standards, he said that “no one gives a s— what you think or feel.” In place of personal motivation, Coleman stresses cool intellectual analysis of text and problems in the Common Core. Fiction, which might dwell too much on emotion, takes a back seat to informational text. But this is wrong, says
ALEC Meets Today in Dallas to Plan for More Privatization
The Progressive.com managed to get a copy of ALEC’s agenda for its 41st annual meeting in Dallas. ALEC wants to eviscerate Medicaid, support fracking, and expand charter schools in hopes of destroying America’s great public school system. All for the corporations and the 1%, nothing for the people. They are shameless.
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 7-28-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Microsoft Lays Off 18,000 Workers While Seeking Visas for Foreign WorksrsUnbelievable. Microsoft lays off 18,000 workers while pressing Congress to expand the number of visas for engineers, mathematicians, scientists, and other workers. Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and casino operator Sheldon Adelson wrote an article calling for Con