This year teachers took their mission way beyond the classroom. Starting in West Virginia, we staged half-a-dozen walkouts in red states across the country demanding a better investment in children’s educations and often getting it. Then we took that momentum and stormed our state capitals and Washington, DC, with thousands of grassroots campaigns that translated into seats in government. It was
Charter school teachers in Chicago are in their fourth day of a strike . Yet I wonder why the leaders of the charter movement are quiet. Where is Peter Cunningham of the Education Post ? Where is Shaver Jeffries of Democrats for Education Reform ? Not a word from Campbell Brown or Michelle Rhee ? Nothing from Bill Gates , Cory Booker, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton ? Not a peep from Betsy DeVos
“I hate Christmas.” Teachers hear that with surprising regularity around this time of year . I hate Christmas. I hate Thanksgiving. I hate every holiday. America’s public school students are living under tremendous pressure. The social safety net is full of holes . And our children are left to fall through the ripped and torn fabric. The sad fact is that one in four students in America’s classroo
Betsy DeVos is furious! She and her family spent boatloads of money this election cycle and few of their candidates won. Instead, lawmakers were largely selected by these things called… ew… voters. She was so enraged that she used her platform as Secretary of Education – another prudent purchase by her family – to lash out at teachers unions for – get this – having too much influence!!!!! She tol
I’m standing in front of my first period class after a long Thanksgiving break. Papers are rustling. Pencils are being sharpened. Voices are lowering to a whisper. And it occurs to me how glad I am to be here. So I tell my students. “We have a lot to go over today,” I begin and most of my middle school faces turn serious. “But I just want to tell you all how happy I am to be here.” Curiosity move
Dear freshmen lawmakers, We did it! After a fiercely contested election, we have finally begun to turn the tide back toward progressive politics. Midterms usually are sparsely attended, but this year we had an unprecedented turnout. A total of 2 3 states had double-digit percentage-point increases compared with their 1982-2014 midterm election averages. And the result is one of the largest and mo
Democratic gains in the midterm elections were a repudiation of the policies of Donald Trump. Yet holding nearly the same views as Trump’s Education Secretary Betsy DeVos earned two Pennsylvania state representatives high leadership positions with House Democrats. Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Philadelphia, was elected minority whip – the second highest position after floor leader. Rep. Joanna McClinton,
Sometimes the most racist aspects of a society are right there in front of you, but no one seems to notice. Take the racial achievement gap . It’s a term used to describe the fact that black and Latino students don’t do as well academically as white students. Why does it even exist? Why do students of color in the United States achieve less than their white peers? They have worse grades, lower te
Linda Darling-Hammond is one of my education heroes. Perhaps that’s why her recent article in the Washington Post hurts so much. In it, she and her think tank buddies slam education advocates Diane Ravitch and Carrol Burris for
