Mayor Rahm Emanuel: Don’t Close Dyett High School!
As I write, community activists in Chicago are demanding that Mayor Emanuel allow Dyett High School to remain open. The local community is fighting for the school. They want it to be a school dedicated to global leadership and green technology. Only 13 students remain in the school. They remain as a symbol that the community will not give up. They will not abandon a high school that they cherish
Jersey Jazzman Tries to Educate Editorial Writer Tom Moran About Charter Schools in Hoboken
Jersey Jazzman is not only a music teacher; he has been earning his doctorate in statistics at Rutgers University. In this post, he uses his knowledge of classroom and statistics to try to educate the chief editorial writer for the Star-Ledger, Tom Moran, about the difference between the public schools of Hoboken, New Jersey, and the charter school of Hoboken, New Jersey. As you can see from JJ’s
Matthew Di Carlo: The Fatal Flaw of the Reformers
Matthew Di Carlo of the Shanker Institute says that the reformers cannot succeed, despite their best intentions, because they over promise what they can accomplish. Whether it is a promise of closing the achievement gap in short order, turning around 1,000 schools a year for five years, college for all, or making every single child proficient by the year 2014, they set goals that might–if all goes
New York: Shame on the League of Women Voters
The League of Women Voters is sponsoring a debate between gubernatorial candidates in Néw York. For some reason, only Governor Cuomo and Republican challenger Rob Astorino have been invited. The Green Party and other qualified parties were not invited. This is not right. It is good that Cuomo agreed to debate at all. He refused to debate his primary opponent Zephyr Teachout or even to mention her
Worcester Educators Oppose PARCC testing
Educators in Worcester, Massachusetts, spoke out against the school committee’s decision to adopt the federally-funded Common Core test, at least partially, splitting the district between PARCC and the established Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). PARCC was field-tested last year in Massachusetts. See what the teachers say about it. The Commissioner of Education in the state, M
Bloomberg News: Google Quits ALEC
Bloomberg News reports that Google will or has quit ALEC. Probably this means Google will not renew its membership in this radical extremist organization, which writes model laws to bust unions, privatize public education, restrict voting rights, oppose gun control, deny climate change, and eliminate regulations on corporations. Google was alarmed about climate change denial. Apparently the rest
My Review of Kristen Buras’ Counter-Narrative of the “New Orleans Miracle”
The first thing to be said about Kristen Buras’ new book is that the publisher overpriced the book ($125). As the author, she had nothing to do with that poor decision. This is a book that should be widely read, but at that price, it won’t be. There will eventually be a softcover edition, but probably not for a year. Urge your library to buy it, or get together a group of friends to pool the cost.
Providence Teachers Reject Contract
By an overwhelming margin, the Providence Teachers Union rejected a contract that would have eliminated all job security. “PROVIDENCE — The Providence Teachers Union on Monday rejected a three-year contract proposal that would have eliminated the job-security clause and allowed management to create a new compensation system that would have awarded extra pay for additional responsibilities. The 1
VAMboozled: Jesse Rothstein on VAM and Tenure
Audrey Amrein-Beardsley here summarizes and comments on a very enlightening interview with Jesse Rothstein in the Washington Post. Rothstein, an economist, conducts research on teacher evaluation and accountability. Rothstein, on teacher evaluation: “In terms of evaluating teachers, “[t]here’s no perfect method. I think there are lots of methods that give you some information, and there are lots
Alan Singer Does a “Close Reading” of the Great Common Core Debate
Alan Singer, a professor of social studies at Hofstra University on Long Island, New York, adopts the close reading strategy of the Common Core to critique the “great debate” about Common Core. You may recall that the debate pitted educator Carol Burris and Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute against Mike Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and Carmel Martin of the Center for Am
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-22-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Joanne Yatvin: Let More Teachers Re-Invent the Wheel, Or Why We Don’t Need StandardizationJoanne Yatvin, now retired, wrote the following commentary in 1990, almost 25 years ago. It was published in Education Week. It remains as pertinent today as it was then. In fact, with the Common Core adopted by most states, it is even more pe