Thanks to a recommendation by my good friend Andy Hargreaves, I got a call from the Samantha Bee Show, which interviewed me about education and the pandemic. Here is the link . I will make a confession: I have not seen it yet. I hate to watch myself on television. I have a mental image of myself looking younger, much younger (like, 35-40), and on television every line shows, especially when you a
On May 20, I will ZOOM with Dr. Michael Hynes, the most interesting and inspiring superintendent I know. Mike Hynes is superintendent of the Port Washington school district on Long Island, In New York. He is a visionary. His new book—about educational leadership—is Staying Grounded . He truly believes in whole-child education. He supports the parent opt-out movement. He believes that what matters
The Southern Poverty Law Center reports on the status of Confederate monuments and symbols. This subject may not be uppermost on your mind in the midst of the pandemic, but it remains a sore subject in the South, where most of these memorials are located. They are an affront to African American citizens and to anyone else who recognizes the injustices of the antebellum South and the continuing ra
Recently Trump promised Catholic leaders that if he is re-elected, he would fund Catholic schools. These two Christian leaders explain why that’s a terrible idea. Valerie Strauss introduced the essay: Late last month, President Trump had a phone conversation with Catholic leaders, educators and others, during which he promised to seek federal financial support for parochial schools to help them w
Veteran teacher Arthur Goldstein fears that Republican Senator Mitch McConnell will use his power to destroy public services in New York and other states whose revenues have been devastated by the pandemic. He writes: If
The Lancet, one of the world’s most prestigious medical journals, called on Americans to replace Trump for his grossly incoherent response to the pandemic. One of the world’s oldest and best-known medical journals Friday slammed President Trump’s “inconsistent and incoherent national response” to the novel coronavirus pandemic and accused the administration of relegating the Centers for Disease C
The House of Representatives in the Oklahoma legislature passed a bill to strip localities of their power during health emergencies, leaving that power to the governor, a Trumpermaniac. Among the changes the bill makes is to strip local officials of the authority to separate ill or exposed people, issue vaccinations and take other steps to prevent, manage and contain health threats. Instead, it w
Randi Weingarten and I talked about what happens next: after the pandemic, how we protect schools and children from “opportunistic” tech entrepreneurs, what does Cuomo have up his sleeve, can we trust Biden to ditch Race to the Top bogus ideas? Our conversation was recorded and live-streamed by the Network for Public Education. Carol Burris introduced us. The conversation wa facilitated by Darcie
Corey Robin, a professor of political science at Brooklyn Colege and the CUNY Graduate Center, argues that this is the time to resurrect public colleges and 7ni ersities. Writing in The New Yorker , Robin points out that most commentary in the media pertains to elite institutions, and public universities are stepchildren or forgotten. For decades, a handful of boutique colleges and powerhouse uni
Bob Shepherd lists what he hopes will be the lessons learned from the pandemic nightmare. Since I agree with him, I hope you will read his six lessons. Feel free to add your own ideas. Number one: Distance learning is a crock, and teachers are really, really important.
John Thompson, historian and retired teacher, has posted here many times about education and politics in his home state of Oklahoma. He writes today about the politics of the pandemic: When David Holt was elected mayor of Oklahoma City, I shared some of the concerns of fellow educators. I worried that the former Republican state senator would push for more charters, perhaps even the so-called “po
Here is a surprising combination. State officials today announced that Eva Moskowitz and her charter chain were guilty of violating the state privacy law regarding a student with special needs. Tomorrow, Eva will participate in a panel about meeting the social and emotional needs of students. Today: On Thu, May 14, 2020, 10:41 AM Leonie Haimson wrote: For immediate release: May 14, 2020 More info
Marion Brady is a retired educator who writes often on the subject he knows best. If anyone wants to “reinvent” or “re-imagine” education, start here. Let Laurene Powell Jobs save herself a bundle. Tell her to read Marion Brady. Learning is one of the deepest of all human drives and, ordinarily, a source of great personal satisfaction, even excitement. Kindergartners bring enthusiasm to schooling
This is another of the great Internet discoveries that everyone else in the world seems to have discovered . A friend sent it, and I was mesmerized by the quartet of talented performers. You will be too! I promise!
The Southern Education Foundation explains why the virus is hitting the South hard, especially poor people. It’s the result of decisions made by callous leaders: SEF Statement on the Impact of COVID-19 in the South “The rapid spread of COVID-19 has produced devastating effects for virtually every sector of our society. With schools and businesses shuttered, under-resourced hospitals inundated wit
Only days ago, Mercedes Schneider wrote about major layoffs at Success Academy , which seemed to be belt-tightening. But the belt will not actually be tightened because Success Academy is now hiring 1,000 new staff. What’s the story with the revolving door? Schneider looks at Glassdoor reviews, where employees write anonymously about their workplace. SA burns through employees at a rapid clip. Tu
Kizzmekia Corbett is a brilliant 34-year-old African-American woman who is leading the National Institute of Health’s effort to develop a vaccine for the coronavirus . Her brilliance was first recognized by her third-grade teacher, Mrytis Bradsher, at the Oak Lane Elementary School in rural Hurdle MIlls, North Carolina. In her 25 years of teaching, she had not seen such a precocious child. Ms. Br
The College Board offered 45-minute Advanced Placement tests online for 1 million students, but at least 10,000 of those students submitted their test answers and they were rejected. The College Board blamed the failure on the students’ browsers and said they were “only 1%” of all test-takers. Shrug. We have to take the College Board’s word that the technical failure was limited to 10,000 student
Garrison Keillor marks an important milestone that reminds us of times when public leaders were intelligent and eloquent: It was on this day in 1940 that Winston Churchill gave his first speech as prime minister to the House of Commons. He had taken over the job three days earlier. The speech Churchill gave is considered one of his greatest. He said: “I would say to the House, as I said to those
Nancy Bailey asked moms on Mothers’ Day to reimagine public schools. Whom do you trust? Moms or Bill Gates and Eric Schmidt? This is what moms told her. Bailey lists 23 ideas that she gathered from them. Here are the first few. She writes: I collected their comments and added a few of my own. Feel free to add to the list. The Arts. All schools must provide arts education. Music, painting, dance,
Leonie Haimson is a tireless advocate for small class size. At the drop of a hat, she will recite the research showing the value of small classes, especially for the neediest children. She just published an article showing how New York City can afford to reduce class sizes. She identifies the specific ways that the city can shift funds to reduce class sizes. She begins: The New York City Departme
Unbelievable! A second-grade student in Palm Beach County hacked into the school district’s computer system. What was that nonsense about distance learning being the wave of the future? Ha! The Palm Beach County School District is in the midst of a massive computer security crisis that draws into question the authenticity of every assignment completed by every student since “distance learning” be
Mitchell Robinson is a professor of music education at Michigan State University. He has been remote teaching, and he is not pleased with it at all. He begins: A friend asked me how I was doing during this pandemic, and I thought I’d share my perspective as a teacher who has struggled to find my footing in our new reality… How am I doing, you ask? To be honest, not well. I’ve been a teacher for 4
This story was first reported in the Los Angeles Education Examiner by Sara Roos. I mistakenly attributed the initial reporting to parent advocate Carl Petersen . Roos reported that Superintendent Austin Beutner, a former investment banker, has brought management consultants Bain and Company to provide strategic guidance to the district. With Governor Cuomo assigning the task of “reimagining” edu
David Dayen writes regular reports on the politics of the pandemic for The American Prospect. He posted this today. First Response I read this interview between Ezra Klein and Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chair Pramila Jayapal, and I have to say I’m tiring of what amounts to a bunch of excuses for how progressives have been functionally locked out of policymaking during this crisis. Jayapa
On his daily “The Writer’s Almanac,” Garrison Keillor recognizes two important historical birthdays today. I must have read every Edward Lear poem and limerick to my children. His writings gave them a love of language and wordplay, which I believe is a firm foundation for learning.. Today is the birthday of the poet and artist Edward Lear (books by this author) who wrote lots of limericks and non
NEW JERSEY MUST REJECT EDUCATION SECRETARY DEVOS’ ADVICE TO GIVE EMERGENCY COVID-19 FUNDS EVEN TO WEALTHY PRIVATE SCHOOLS Education Law Center is urging New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy to firmly reject a non-binding directive from U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to set aside federal emergency relief funds under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act for all private
Eric (Chaz) Chasanoff died of COVID-19 at the age of 69. He was a greatly admired high school teacher and blogger. He started his blog “Chaz’s School Daze” in 2006 in response to the oppressive policies of the Bloomberg-Klein regime. He was an inspiration to other teachers and bloggers, including me. The UFT honored him as a teacher and a fearless activist. This was his assessment of the legacy o
Sweden has tried a radically different approach to the coronavirus. It didn’t close down its economy, life went on as usual, with people still going to bars and restaurants but encouraged to practice social distancing, which some people honor and others don’t. The theory was that the people of Sweden would develop “herd immunity” and escape the ravages of the disease. But now the chief epidemiolo
Lisa Haver, a retired teacher and current activist in Philadelphia, wonders why state and city leaders are so fearful of democracy. When state control of the public schools ended—capping a two-decade era of defunding and additional privatization of public assets—it was replaced by mayoral control. She argues that Philadelphia needs an elected school board. We vote for our leaders in every electio
The New York Times has an interesting story today about the varied approaches to reopening schools in Europe . The common threads are testing, smaller classes, and social distancing. NEUSTRELITZ, Germany — It was Lea Hammermeister’s first day back at school after almost two months at home and she was already preparing for a test. Not a math or physics test. A coronavirus test — one she would admi
The University of California is suspending the SAT as a requirement for admission until at least 2024. This is a major blow to the College Board, which owns and administers the SAT. In a major decision that could lead to a shake-up of the nation’s standardized testing landscape, University of California President Janet Napolitano is recommending the suspension of the SAT and ACT tests as an admis
Andrew Cuomo has a longstanding dislike for teachers and public schools. He made his disdain clear when he failed to appoint any current New York City educators to his “reimagine education” task force. Why should he listen to teachers and principals when he can call Bill Gates, Michael Bloomberg, Eric Schmidt and other billionaires and CEOs to decide what schools should look like when they reopen
Laura Chapman reports on budget cuts to schools in Ohio, which hurt public schools but protect charters and vouchers. She writes: Bad news from Ohio again. Not quite Lord of the Flies (fiction or non-fiction truth) This week, Governor DeWine is proposing $355 million in K-12 education cuts with $300 million coming out of foundation aid to local school districts from the current state budget that
Broadway is dark. But the music lives on. This is the great song,“ You Will Be Found,” from Dear Evan Hansen. It’s sung by a huge virtual choir of young people. Enjoy!
Sign up and join Randi and me when we discuss reopening schools. When: Wednesday, May 13 at 8 pm EST Our ZOOM conversation is sponsored by the Network for Public Education. Listen in and prepare to ask questions.
William Golding’s novel about a group of adolescent boys who are stranded and create their own society has been a staple of English classes for many years. It is a cautionary tale about the brutality that lies within the human heart. Dutch historian Rutger Bregman was fascinated by the story but unpersuaded by its thesis. In this article in The Guardian, he describes his search for a counter-narr
Tom Ultican spent many years in Silicon Valley. Then he switched careers and became a teacher of advanced mathematics and physics. He frequently taught AP courses. He recently retired. He explains in this article why he turned into a critic of AP classes. He engaged in a dialogue with Jay Mathews, the veteran education journalist at the Washington Post. Mathews creates a method for ranking high s
The Syracuse, New York, journal has sound advice for Andrew Cuomo : Remote Learning is a stopgap. Parents and students want real teachers and real schools. Stop musing about “reimagining” education. Your musings are unsound. Listen to parents and teachers. Let the Board of Regents and the New York State Education Fepartnent do their job. The editorial begins: Parents, teachers and students had ba
An expose in the New York Post revealed leaked emails in which the de Blasio administration promised to stall release of an investigation of substandard Yeshivas in exchange for Orthodox Jewish support of mayoral control of the New York City public schools in the state legislature. The substandard Yeshivas allegedly don’t teach English, science, or other secular subjects. The city was supposed to
Saturday Night Live, for those who have never seen it, is a comedy skit show that airs on NBC on…wait for it…Saturday night. The cast is unable to congregate because of the virus. In this skit , Alec Baldwin gives a graduation speech to the high school class of 2020.
Jamelle Boule is an opinion columnist for the New York Times who voiced the case for Bernie Sanders in late February . He wrote this column before Senator Sanders ended his campaign but when it was clear he would not win the nomination. Joe Biden is on track to win the Democratic nomination for president and has been endorsed by Bernie Sanders. Biden will need to unify the party to have any chanc
Peter Greene taught high school students in Pennsylvania for 39 years. Now he blogs and writes about education for Forbes, where people in the business world get schooled about education realities. In this article , he makes clear that a Bill Gates has a horrible record in education policy and should butt out of New York. Greene points out: Nobody has expended more money and influence on US educa
Gary Rubinstein was one of the earliest corps members of Teach for America. He knows it’s routines well. He has long been critical of the inadequacies of its teacher preparation program, which offers a five-week training to young college graduates before they start teaching real classes. As he explains here , the teachers in training get only 20 hours of practice teaching, which he thinks should
This is a story of staggering, incomprehensible incompetence. In the early days of the coronavirus, the nation’s only manufacturer of the high-quality N-95 face masks used by medical professionals offered to produce millions of them but was turned down by high-level federal officials. It was Jan. 22, a day after the first case of covid-19 was detected in the United States, and orders were pouring
Susan Edelman, investigative reporter on education issues, reports on emails showing that New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio made a deal with Orthodox Jewish leaders—a powerful voting bloc in the city and state politics—to stall an investigation of shoddy yeshivas in exchange for their support in the state legislature renewing mayoral control of the New York City public schools. Edelman writes: M
This Wednesday, Randi Weingarten and I will discuss the reopening of schools, maybe other issues. We will talk for an hour starting at 7:30, then answer questions for half an hour. Join us!
Perhaps you have never heard of State Senator Andrew Brenner. Read Denis Smith’s recent post about Brenner, and you will learn about an elected official who is “radioactive,” “disingenuous,” tone-deaf, and possibly the dumbest elected official in Ohio. While chairing the education committee, he described public education as “socialist.” But that’s only a small part of his infamy. Smith writes: Ye
A team of reporters from the Washington Post interviewed 82 sources, including administration officials, advisors, and outside experts to tell the story of what happened inside the White House during a crucial period in responding to the pandemic. Trump was indecisive, he vacillated, he consistently put politics over science. He was more willing to listen to FOX News hosts and political advisors
Dora Taylor, parent activist in Seattle, warns of the dangers of coronavirus capitalism. She notes that some elected boards have granted unusual powers to their superintendents to make contracts. Seattle’s superintendent, she says, has signed some doozies. It is especially sad to see Seattle in this trouble, as the parents and educators there have been unusually vigilant in protecting their publi
Naomi Klein coined the iconic book Shock Doctrine, about the way that the powerful elites use emergencies to expand their power because of the crisis. New Orleans was one of her prime examples of “disaster capitalism,” where the devastation of a giant hurricane created an opportunity to break the teachers union and privatize the public school system. In this brilliant essay, published in The Inte
This is a valuable source of information a bout the occurrence and consequences of the coronavirus and governments’ response to it. It is called Worldometers. It provides excellent graphs about the spread and intensity of
