To A Teacher At The End Of A Discouraging Week It just sucks. You spend the time and effort (and maybe money) to create a lesson that you hope will be engaging and provide your students an exciting, maybe even fun, break from routine. And it bombs. More than once. Not only do your students not appreciate it, but they bitch about it. Sure, these are students who generally bitch and moan about eve
We Measure What We Treasure, and Other Myths About Education Policy… | Eclectablog We Measure What We Treasure, and Other Myths About Education Policy… I received a phone call from a music teacher last night whose principal had recently marked her down on an unannounced, “drive-by” observation…because the students “weren’t engaged.” When she asked how the principal had come up with that rating, s
Bugs in Teachers’ Ears? What We Should Be Doing Instead. EdWeek re-ran a piece this week about teachers getting remote coaching via earpieces from ‘experts’–always the experts! –who were watching them teach via live video feed: Virtual teacher-coaching services have become more popular in recent years —teachers record their lessons, and remote coaches review the videos and offer feedback. This a
NH: No, Again, To Federal Charter Money A month ago, the Granite State's Joint Legislative Fiscal Committee said, "No, thanks" to an offer of $46 million from the feds to be used in doubling the number of New Hampshire charter schools from 28 to 55. The money was to come from the federal Charter School Program, a grant program that has come under fire due to a recent pair of studies showing mass
Wisconsin: Taxpayers Angry About Supporting Two School Systems The Eau Claire County Board was asked to endorse a resolution saluting “School Choice Week,” but homeowners turned out to denounce the loss of money from their public schools that was sent to voucher schools. One after another, homeowners asked why they were supporting two school systems, why the money intended for their public schoo
Newsom’s budget includes $900 million to address California teacher shortage Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed state budget includes $900 million to recruit and retain teachers, part of a plan to attack a critical statewide shortage of instructors, especially in math, sciences and for students with disabilities. The plan, included in his $222.2-billion budget unveiled Friday in Sacramento, was among
New York’s Jim Crow Schools Wisdom, and knowledge, as well as virtue, diffused generally among the body of the people, being necessary for the preservation of their rights and liberties; and as these depend on spreading the opportunities and advantages of education in the various parts of the country, and among the different orders of the people, it shall be the duty of legislatures and magistra
Bob Shepherd Reviews “SLAYING GOLIATH” Bob Shepherd is a polymath, a man of remarkable learning, an author, a scholar, and at the capstone of his career, a classroom teacher. Regular readers of this blog know him as a frequent contributor and a source of wisdom and humor. Here is his review of my new book, SLAYING GOLIATH: THE PASSIONATE RESISTAMCE TO PRIVATIZATION AND THE FIGHT TO SAVE AMERICA’
A Picture’s Worth I found this photograph Underneath broken picture glass Tender face of black and white Beautiful, a haunting sight “Photograph,” R.E.M. with Natalie Merchant but if you look long enough, eventually you will be able to see me. “This Is a Photograph of Me,” Margaret Atwood I’m afraid of everyone “Afraid of Everyone,” The National There’s a joke I repeat quite often: When I was in
2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions: 5. Be an Education Voter 2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions 5. Be an Education voter! It’s a new year and as is our custom here in the USA, we make resolutions which, while rarely kept, can be redefined as goals toward which we would strive had we the strength. [ Updated and edited from 2018 ] NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION #5 Be an Education voter. Have you been
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Praises Governor Newsom’s 2020 Budget SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond today praised Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2020–21. “Over the last year, my team and I have been collaborating with educational partners, including teachers and administrators all over the state, through my 13 workgroups, to estab
CATCH UP WITH NEWBLACKMAN (IN EXILE) On Work, Hunger and the Starvation of the Welfare State by Mark Anthony Neal / 1d 'Anthropologist Maggie Dickinson examines the intersections of hunger, work and the collapsing US welfare state - as the government pushes work requirements for social programs, food assistance subsidizes low-wage jobs, empowers the profits of capital over the lives of workers,
Education Research Report THIS WEEK Education Research Report Do Housing Vouchers Improve Academic Performance? Evidence from New York City by Jonathan Kantrowitz / 16h The Housing Choice Voucher program is currently the largest federally funded housing assistance program. Although the program aims to provide housing assistance, it also could affect children's educational outcomes by stabilizing
Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007 This Week With Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007 Check Out This New Video From Vox: “Teaching in the US vs. the rest of the world” by Larry Ferlazzo / 30min jerrykimbrell10 / Pixabay I’m adding this new video from Vox to: The Best Articles Pro
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all Slaying Goliath: The Passionate Resistance to Privatization and the Fight to Save America's Public Schools CLICK HERE TO Pre-order NOW Bob Shepherd Reviews “SLAYING GOLIATH” by dianeravitch / 21min Bob Shepherd is a polymath, a man of remarkable
Funds Diverted from Class without Proper Authorization Account documents showing request for withdrawal. Credit: O. C. Carle C.K. McClatchy’s Principal Peter Lambert and Associated Study Body coordinator Darell T. Martin are alleged to have diverted over $8,000 of student-fundraised money from the 2017 class account, according to social science teachers and 2018 class sponsors Lori Jablonski and
Pressuring Parents to Teach Their Kindergartners to Read: The New Norm? Pressuring Parents to Teach Their Kindergartners to Read: The New Norm? Ahh. There’s no place like home, especially if you’re a kindergartner whose been sitting and working all day on phonics worksheets, or seated in front of a screen doing reading exercises. Once you get off that school bus it will be time to finally make a
The Foundation of Real Writing As I've mentioned before, we have the poor fortune to live in a golden age of bad writing instruction. There are a variety of reasons for this, ranging from the rise of high-stakes testing to some less-than-wonderful traditions to the widespread discomfort with writing instruction of many classroom teachers. The last is probably the worst issue facing writing instr
Louisiana’s White Elephant A white elephant gift exchange, Yankee swap or Dirty Santa is a party game where amusing, impractical gifts are exchanged during festivities. The goal of a white elephant gift exchange is to entertain party-goers rather than to gain a genuinely valuable or highly sought-after item. “ By now, all of Louisiana is aware of the resignation submitted by Superintendent of Ed
The Market Fails Education One of the intended consequences of the federal legislation known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) was to force public schools in the U.S. to disclose and then address differences among demographics of students. Two of the key demographics targeted were race and socioeconomic status. While the outcome of this part of NCLB was not a surprise—exposing significant and persi
#LivesOverLuxury: The Poor People’s Army Will March on the DNC in Milwaukee on July 13, 2020 Today the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign officially launches preparations for the 2020 Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee where we plan to march to demand an end to the wars at home and abroad. The 67 cents of every taxpayer dollar that is devoted to waging war must instead be used
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all DID YOU MISS DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG TODAY? A site to discuss better education for all Massachusetts: A Parent Thanks a State Official Who Exposed Dark Money by dianeravitch / 18min One of the very exciting episodes in my new book SLAYING GOLIATH describes the struggle in Massachusetts surrounding a 2016 referendum to expand the numbe
Politics as Sport: The Naive Democracy of the U.S. Social media provide one easily accessible version of the marketplace of ideas in the U.S. While still gated by some levels of privilege, social media platforms include a fairly wide range of people participating by both posting who they are and what they believe or viewing those posts. Claimed political affiliations and support for political pa
Dem. Candidates Call for Equitable Public School Investment. Can the New Narrative Be Sustained? Is our society beginning to realize that we must invest in helping instead of punishing the school districts which serve our poorest children? Clearly the conversation about public education among the Democratic candidates for President has turned away from what has been a quarter century of bipartis
2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions: 4. Focus on developing positive relationships 2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions 4. Develop Positive Relationships It’s a new year and as is our custom here in the USA, we make resolutions which, while often broken, can be redefined as goals toward which we should strive. NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION #4 Focus on developing positive relationships in the classroo
"We Are All School Reformers" (Part 1) On the first day of a graduate seminar at Stanford University that I taught a few years ago, I asked each of the 20 students to give a two-minute self-introduction detailing their name, what they did prior to graduate school, and why they enrolled in “Good Schools”: Research, Policy, and Practice.” After they introduced themselves, I, too, took the time to
Robots Will Never Replace Teachers. They Can Only Displace Us My favorite movie of all time is “2001: A Space Odyssey.” And my favorite character is the computer HAL 9000. In the future (now past) of the movie, HAL is paradoxically the most human personality. Tasked with running the day-to-day operations of a spaceship, HAL becomes strained to the breaking point when he’s given a command to lie
My Testimony Regarding the Governor's Proposed Budget for Education in Virginia I definitely owe the education blogosphere a post about my post-doc job market experience (hint: it was not good). For now, I will share that I am back in the classroom teaching high school U.S. & Virginia Government to seniors (and getting my butt whooped but in a humbling and valuable way, though), and have been si
Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » PISA Peculiarities (3): More Fear, Better Scores PISA Peculiarities (3): More Fear, Better Scores PISA has many peculiar and surprising discoveries… Fear of failure improves academic performance. That’s a conclusion one can draw from PISA’s analysis of its data. This is true at the system level. “At the system level, the greater the fear of f
WASHINGTON MET STUDENTS SEEK SUPPORT BEFORE JANUARY DECISION ON CLOSING The January 9, 2020 show of Education Town Hall featured four current students at DCPS’s Washington Metropolitan high school in studio, talking about their journey, and that of their fellow Washington Met students, since learning right before Thanksgiving that DCPS proposed closing their school. They are Lyric Johnson, 16 ye
INSECT-BASED TEACHER TRAINING The latest development in the never-ending struggle to improve teaching involves “A bug in the ear” AND “A fly on the wall.” This insect-based approach has a highly-trained but distant observers watching (on closed circuit video) teachers at work and giving them instructions and suggestions in real time, so the teachers can modify methods and instantly improve their
DeVos and Department May Face Increased Fine Back in October, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and her department were fined $100,000 for contempt of court regarding their non-compliance with a court order to stop collecting loans from students bilked by a chain of fraudulent for-profit colleges. Turns out that price tag could get a little steeper. In October, the department said that, oopsies
"Have To" History: United States vs. Nixon (1974) NOTE: I've finally completed "Have To" History: Landmark Supreme Court Cases . At the moment, it's available on Teachers Pay Teachers and intended to be an easily affordable resource for pretty much any American History or Government teacher of whatever level – from 8th Grade Civics to APUSH. I'm not looking to make serious money or anything, but
The Rural Schools Conundrum Have You Heard heads to rural Wisconsin to investigate a puzzle. Communities in the “reddest” parts of the state keep voting to hike their own taxes to pay for schools, even as they elect and re-elect politicians who enact cuts to school funding. What gives? The answers are complicated and surprising. Full transcript available here . And Have You Heard relies on liste
2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions: 3. Educate yourself It’s a new year and as is our custom here in the USA, we make resolutions which, while often broken, can be redefined as goals toward which we should strive. [ Updated and slightly edited from 2018 ] NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION #3 Educate yourself. BUT I DON’T HAVE ENOUGH TIME Teachers are overworked and overstressed. Often teachers go home af
LGBTQ Students Need Help, and Philanthropy Needs to Step Up Produced in partnership between Funders for LGBTQ Issues and Schott, we hope this infographic will help both those in philanthropy and LGBTQ advocates to chart a better course toward a future where all LGBTQ youth attend well-resourced, supportive and safe public schools. Schott is proud to be a longtime supporter of grassroots LGBTQ yo
IF THE TEACHERS OF COLOR AT YOUR SCHOOL ARE INVISIBLE TO YOU, WHY WOULD THEY STAY? I reread it slower this time, an email sent to 40+ staff members with the subject line, Congrats and Great Work, from my principal. The email was a glowing account of one of my colleagues’ recent accomplishments: wrote a grant … new outdoor classroom … dedication … significant contributions to our school community
Top Reads of 2019 For the past decade or so, I’ve tried to read 100 books a year. It’s been a worthy and mostly achievable goal, a nice round number, and incentive to be deliberate in choosing titles, because—hey, tick-tock. I don’t log books that I didn’t finish (or almost finish—I included one 600-pager this year that I started skimming after diligently reading 400 mind-numbing pages). I also
La. State Superintendent John White Resigns On January 08, 2020, Louisiana state superintendent John White submitted his letter of resignation to the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE). In it, White states, “I write to advise you… I will be vacating the position March 11, 2020, and to recommend that the board identify a new state superintendent.” White’s resignation let
Daniel Koretz: American Students Are Not Getting Smarter, and Test-Based “Reforms” Are to Blame Daniel Koretz is one of the leading authorities on testing in the United States. A professor at Harvard University, he has written two important books about testing–its uses and misuses. The first was Measuring Up: What Educational Testing Really Tells Us. His latest is The Testing Charade: Pretending
Installing air filters in classrooms has surprisingly large educational benefits $1,000 can raise a class’s test scores by as much as cutting class size by a third. An emergency situation that turned out to be mostly a false alarm led a lot of schools in Los Angeles to install air filters, and something strange happened: Test scores went up. By a lot. And the gains were sustained in the subseque
The Legacy of Superintendent John White John White has submitted his letter of resignation from the position of Louisiana State Superintendent of education. In his resignation letter White claims the following: "Louisiana is better educated today than any point in its history," BESE Vice-President Holly Boffy, said the state made "great strides" during White's time. This post examines the key me
18 years ago, Mike Pence voted against No Child Left Behind. So did Bernie Sanders. Their reasons weren’t the same. On Jan. 8, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the K-12 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. It was hailed as a civil rights law that would help historically marginalized students but is better known for ushering in the high-stakes standardized testing era. The law — a compr
Public Advocates Endorses Schools & Communities First Initiative Today, Public Advocates Inc. announces its endorsement of the Schools & Communities First ballot initiative and pledges to support the effort to place it before California’s voters on the November 2020 ballot and secure its passage. Below is a statement from our President and CEO Guillermo Mayer: For nearly 50 years, Public Advocat
Bernie Sanders: America must end high-stakes testing, finally invest in public education Across the country, teachers, parents and students are pushing back against an ineffective and punitive standardized tests regime. I stand with them. Wednesday marks 18 years since the signing into law of No Child Left Behind, one of the worst pieces of legislation in our nation’s history. In December 2001,
A Personal Message to Bill & Melinda Gates Hi, Bill and Melinda, We have never met but I feel that I know you because I am so familiar with your education projects. I have tried in the past to meet you and have a candid conversation but have never had any luck. You were always too busy or out of town. But I am trying again. I will be in Seattle on February 3-4. I arrive on the afternoon of the 3
In 2020, We Must Demand a Black Education Agenda As a black woman, mother and grandmother, the words I want to hear from presidential candidates on “public education” are this: How do we innovate for, build true academic progress around and save trapped black students from dysfunctional education systems? Full stop. Instead, what I’ve heard as candidates discuss education on the campaign trail—l
The Criminal Miseducation of Black Students in the LAUSD I f African American students in the Los Angeles Unified School District were a single district, that district would be the eleventh largest in California. This stat comes from a recent analysis of LAUSD test results that unsurprisingly confirms the district’s systemic failure of Black students. Over half of South L.A. schools with the lar
Did Tennessee Learn Any Lessons From Its Failed School Reform Plan? Tennessee’s Achievement School District , a plan to rescue the state’s worst schools, is not yet a decade old. But according to a proposal obtained by Chalkbeat, the ASD will not live to see the ten-year mark — at least not in its present form. Kevin Huffman was a lawyer who had spent a couple of years in a Teach for America cla
2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions: 2. Teach your students, not “the test” 2020 Teachers’ New Year’s Resolutions 2. Teach your students, not “the test” It’s a new year and as is our custom here in the USA, we make resolutions which, while often broken, can be redefined as goals toward which we should strive. [ Updated and slightly edited from 2018 ] NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION #2 Teach your student
On Teacher Morale Our school is generally a good place to work. Sure, there are things to complain about, and I spend a good portion of my time complaining about them and/ or trying to fix them. Nonetheless, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that, having gotten rid of two really insane supervisors recently, we haven't got any more of them. Of course, that could change at any moment, but fo
Slaying Goliath: Diane Ravitch’s New Book Traces a Quarter Century of Public Education Disruption In her new book, Slaying Goliath: The Passionate Resistance to Privatization and the Fight to Save America’s Public Schools , Diane Ravitch summarizes, defines, and humanizes the widespread attack that has threatened public education across the United States in the past quarter century. And she trac
Hoboken, NJ Charter Schools: An Update for 2020 Long time readers know I have always thought one of the most interesting charter school sectors in New Jersey, if not the United States, is in Hoboken. A small city across the Hudson from Manhattan, Hoboken has undergone a period of extraordinary gentrification over the last several years. As detailed in a great book by Molly Vollman Makris -- Publ
WASH MET CLOSING ON JAN 9 EDUCATION TOWN HALL On our January 9 show, the first of 2020, Education Town Hall will be talking with four current students at DCPS’s Washington Metropolitan high school about their journey, and that of their fellow Washington Met students, since learning right before Thanksgiving that DCPS proposed closing their school. Listen at 11 a.m. EASTERN on Thursday, January 9
Keeping Progressive Schools Alive Dear Friends and Colleagues, Happy New Year and a special thanks to those who respond to past blogs about choice, et al. I always mean to respond to each comment. They helped my thinking a lot. And, I have decided to start a new political tendency: “The ‘It Depends’ Party.” I find it is my answer to so many of the issues facing us in life, and in schools. For ex
Students with Disabilities: Between a Rock and a Hard Place Students with Disabilities: Between a Rock and a Hard Place Parents with students who have disabilities are troubled by the problems their children face in public schools. They may turn to charter schools believing they will finally get the services they find lacking in public school. But charter schools are not an acceptable answer in m
HECHO EN USA: BILINGUAL EDUCATION More US schools teach in English and Spanish, but not enough to help Latino kids Classes taught in both languages help students from various backgrounds, but many districts have fought to keep Spanish out of schools. The USA TODAY Network is launching a series on the Latino community in the USA called Hecho en USA, or made in America. Roughly 80% of all Latinos
Teachers Unions Not the Only Ones Opposing Charter Schools | Dissident Voice Teachers Unions Not the Only Ones Opposing Charter Schools Promoters of privately-operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools that seize billions of dollars a year from public schools have long promoted the illusion that it is mainly teachers unions that are opposed to charter schools. Keeping in mind that 90% of
The Decade in Education: What a Long, Strange Trip It’s Been I’m sure you’re not geeked to read yet another combination critique/regret-fest/prognostication blog on the preceding Decade in Education. So I’m not going to write one. Besides, two extremely excellent ‘decade pieces’ were recently published, very different but both relevant and well worth your time. The first is Audrey Watters’ The 1
Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007 It's Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... A VERY BUSY DAY The latest news and resources in education since 2007 Most Popular Posts Of The Week by Larry Ferlazzo / 4h I’m making a change in the content of the regular feature. In addition to sharing the top five posts that have received the most “hits
The Greatest Ed Tech Goof Of All Time (Adam Laats) Adam Laats is an educational historian at Binghamton University, State University of New York. A former teacher, he is currently at work on the Lancasterian system of schooling in early 19th century America. Laats had read a post by Audrey Watters, “The 100 Worst Ed-Tech Debacles of the Decade.” He then wrote this post for his blog. What have be
Opting Out: The Story of the Parents’ Grassroots Movement to Achieve Whole-Child Public Schools This is a book you will want to read if you are a parent, a teacher, a teacher educator. Opting Out: The Story of the Parents’ Grassroots Movement to Achieve Whole-Child Schools is an essential addition to your bookshelf. It was written by Professor David Hursh of the University of Rochester and paren
Have Democrats Changed Course On Charters? | OurFuture.org by People's Action Have Democrats Changed Course On Charters? Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bennet wants you to know how much he cares—really cares—about education. Speaking at the Public Education Forum 2020 , Bennet began his remarks by declaring he is “the first school superintendent in the history of America to run for pre
How Tech Killed Tractors, And Why Teachers Should Care If you don't spend a lot of time around farms and farmers, you might have missed this story, which just made its way into legit journalistic coverage via the Star Tribune of Minnesota-- there is an exploding market for forty-year-old tractors . Adam Belz reports on auction bidding wars over old tractors. Is it because of tractor nostalgia? N
School Siting Task Force report and spreadsheets | A clearinghouse for information on class size & the proven benefits of smaller classes School Siting Task Force report and spreadsheets The School Siting Task Force, created by Local Law 168 , met only twice with no input from parent members appointed by the DOE or City Council members. It produced only a 1 1/2 page report, along with two spread
Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » PISA Peculiarities (2): Should Schools Promote a Competitive or Cooperative Culture? PISA Peculiarities (2): Should Schools Promote a Competitive or Cooperative Culture? PISA has many peculiar and surprising discoveries… Should we encourage students to co-operate? Yes, because according to PISA, the omnipotent judge of education policy and pr
In Sacramento, Youth Activists Push to Get Police Out of Schools As a 10th grader at Sacramento’s Luther Burbank High School, Stephanie Lopez remembers when she saw a school resource officer treat her brother like a criminal. Her brother had bumped into the officer and apologized, Lopez said. But the officer proceeded to question him and asked him for his ID. “It was all new to me,” said Lopez,
More Latinos Earned Degrees This Past Decade Than Any Time In History 70% more Latinos earned degrees in the past decade than any previous decade. Last month, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released a comprehensive data analysis on the state of education across all educational levels, and it appears enrollment of Latino students at college campuses has increased. But while L
Why Are Grades Important? Some Teachers Say They Do More Harm Than Good Schooled is a series by Zach Schermele, a freshman at Columbia University, that explores the nuances of the American education system . English teacher Gina Benz began to worry when several Advanced Placement (AP) students she knew were hospitalized for behavioral health problems in 2010. The need to “keep a high GPA, get th
Why aren’t our teachers as diverse as their students?Several states and districts have pledged to try to close the diversity gap Diversity is growing among students in most U.S. schools, but not among teachers, The Washington Post reports . Only one-tenth of 1 percent of Latino students attend a school system where the portion of Latino teachers equals or exceeds the percentage of Latino student
Fraud, waste, misconduct: Inspector General’s report details year of cases in Chicago schools Chicago schools’ investigative office discovered a swim coach who pocketed nearly $30,000 in pool-rental fees, the district’s failure to collect nearly $2 million in pre-kindergarten payments, and school employees underreporting their income to obtain free preschool. And the office opened nearly 500 inv
Charlotte, N.C.: Voucher School Abruptly Closes Mid-Year The Legacy Prep School in Charlotte, North Carolina, closed its doors at the end of the holidays, leaving parents and students on their own to find a school. Legacy Prep was a private school that relied on vouchers from the state. Parents were stunned. “ Yes, 100% caught off-guard,” said Jackie Davis, whose son attends Legacy Prep. On Frid
Prison “Reform” To Incarcerate The World: “Smart” Justice & Global Finance Imposition of social control through brutal policing, incarceration, state supervision, exorbitant fines, and forced labor has a long, well-documented history in the United States. The ongoing harm, and devastating legacy of trauma linked to it, disproportionately affects Indigenous and Black communities, the very ones up
NC: Whitewashing The Charter Report North Carolina's 2020 Annual Charter Schools Report has caused some consternation among members of the state's Charter Schools Advisory Board (CSAB). They've seen the first draft and requested a rewrite, because, well, members of the public might become confused by the information that suggests Bad Things about North Carolina's charter industry. This is not th
Vouchers: Should States Be Subsidizing Private Education at a Steep Cost to Public Schools? Wisconsin and Ohio were the pioneers, the states which launched school vouchers—public tax dollars covering private school tuition. Wisconsin launched Milwaukee vouchers in 1990, and Ohio followed suit in 1996 with a Cleveland voucher program. What are the problems with the idea of vouchers? Vouchers have
Michael Kohlhaas dot org EMAILS BETWEEN EXCELENCIA CHARTER ACADEMY FOUNDER RUBEN ALONZO AND VARIOUS LAWYERS AT PRIVATIZING LAW FIRM REVEAL STRATEGIES OF OBSTRUCTION AND DELAY – EMAILS BETWEEN EXCELENCIA CHARTER ACADEMY FOUNDER RUBEN ALONZO AND VARIOUS LAWYERS AT POWERHOUSE PRIVATIZING LAW FIRM YOUNG MINNEY CORR – DISCUSSING HOW TO RESPOND TO MY REQUEST FOR PUBLIC RECORDS – REVEAL STRATEGIES OF OB
Wendy Lecker: Putting a price tag on public schools When it comes to using one’s fortune to influence American policy, billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch stand out. The Kochs have spent a fortune pushing American politics and policy to the right. Their secretive organization, Americans for Prosperity, is a major player in anti-labor activities, such as Wisconsin’s slashing of union righ
When Disruptive Students Are Coddled, the Whole Class Suffers Last month, NBC Nightly News aired a segment on the latest classroom-management technique to sweep America’s schools: “ room clears ”: When a child throws a tantrum that could physically endanger his peers, teachers evacuate all of the other students from the classroom until the troublemaker has vented his rage upon empty desks, table
CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Off To A Great New Year's Start Edition (1/5) Off To A Great New Year's Start Edition (1/5) Marking the new year always strikes me as a bit odd-- we draw an arbitrary line in the chronological sand, then get all excited about examining it. Humans are fun. In the meantime, this week's list is loaded with some exceptionally good readings. Remember to share the ons that speak
Los Angeles: Charters Are Proliferating Where They Aren’t Needed Earlier this year, LAUSD board member Scott Schmerelson revealed that 82% of the charter schools in Los Angeles have empty seats (no waiting lists). Yet because of California’s charter-friendly environment, the privately managed schools continued to open. A new report finds that charters in Los Angeles are proliferating where they
Former Ohio Superintendent: Lies, Lies, Lies! Enough! Former superintendent Tom Dunn wrote a blistering critique of federal and state interventions into education that were lies, all lies. And the promises and lies continue despite the failure of all the previous promises. He writes: As a former school superintendent, one of my most important, difficult, and frustrating responsibilities was tryi
Discrimination lawsuit against Sacramento City Unified schools may end up in settlement Months after advocacy groups sued the Sacramento City Unified School District for discrimination against students with disabilities and black students, the district and the plaintiffs may seek a settlement. The news comes after a federal court granted the mutual request in December for a seven-month stay of t
Reform Funded Research: Winning KIPP Lottery Does Not Significantly Increase Chance Of Persisting In College The way reformers misuse data follows a very simple and predictable plan: First they get some skewed data, then pick a ‘researcher’ to interpret the skewed data. The ‘researcher’ then writes a report which gets touted in The74, EduPost, and eventually even makes it into more mainstream pu
EdSpeak and Doubletalk: A Glossary to Decipher Hypocrisy and Save Public Schooling Education historian, professor, author, and founder of the Network for Public Education, Diane Ravitch, and education blogger, author, and retired educator, Nancy Bailey, co-authored a new book: “EdSpeak and Doubletalk: A Glossary to Decipher Hypocrisy and Save Public Schooling”. They kindly included Parents Acros
The Misleading Rhetoric of School "Choice" Advocates: Wealth and "Choice" One of the functions of this blog over the years has been to deconstruct the rhetoric of education reformers as they advocate for their preferred policies. Foremost among these is the expansion of school "choice." "Choice," in our current discourse, comes in two basic flavors: charter schools (often sold as "public charter
Loophole could give F-rated charter schools millions meant for better schools By Patrick O'Donnell, The Plain Dealer CLEVELAND, Ohio – East Academy, Cleveland Preparatory Academy and West Park Academy charter schools each scored an F on their latest state report cards. But school leaders are claiming they are “quality” schools, so they can receive new bonus tax money of up to $1,750 per enrolled
Corporate School Reform and “Disruption” Also Hurts Children in Suburban Schools Corporate School Reform and “Disruption” Also Hurts Children in Suburban Schools The following is written by a teacher who asked that I post her essay but remain anonymous. Isn’t it sad that we live in a time where teachers feel they will get in trouble if they write about their concerns and question the establishmen
Providence Journal: First, Fire All the Teachers! This is the most curious news story of the week. It appeared unsigned in the Providence (Rhode Island) Journal, prepared by the “GoLocalProv News Team.” It says that the fate of the reform of the Providence public schools lies in the hands of the Providence Teachers Union, led by Maribeth Calabro; she, the story warns, may be able to veto the new
What is the Primary Impediment for Kids Not Graduating from High School in New York State? What is the primary impediment for kids not graduating from high school? If I conducted a poll the answer would probably be failing to pass Regents Examinations, and, you’d be incorrect. The primary reason is chronic absenteeism. Blaming the Regents Examinations is akin to arguing over the brand of band-ai
Big Education Ape TOP POSTS THIS WEEK 1/4/20 The real story of New Orleans and its charter schools - The Washington Post Bill Gates spent hundreds of millions of dollars to improve teaching. New report says it was a
