Thinking WAY Out of the Education Box | Teacher in a strange land

Thinking WAY Out of the Education Box | Teacher in a strange land

Thinking WAY Out of the Education Box

Heartwarming current ed-news:
Indiana decides that every teacher deserves to be Indiana Teacher of the Year in 2020!

Education Week gives us another five creative ideas for how to pandemic-proof your graduation ceremony!

Don’t miss 10 Ways to Inject a Little Fun into the End of the School Year!

Because that’s about where the education community is, right now— dealing with one crisis at a time.

We adamantly reject the ed-tech dream of empty classrooms and every kid at home with a device. We know how badly that’s worked, even when teachers had six full months to get to know their students, in person. But we can’t quite wrap our heads around what’s next. When we try, it feels like admitting that the prospect of School As We Knew It is probably down for the count.

Three weeks ago, I wrote a blog suggesting that we start thinking about a modified ‘gap year’—an admission that school would not be the same until we had confirmed medical solutions for combatting the coronavirus. So we might try ginning up some creative ideas about what to do with P-16 students in the intervening year. It was pretty amorphous service-learning stuff, with young adults and older teens combining on-line coursework with outdoor work and safe environmental or community health projects, a CCC or Peace Corps Lite, adapted to 2020.

That blog got lots of pushback, some of it downright hostile, with nearly all the angst CONTINUE READING: Thinking WAY Out of the Education Box | Teacher in a strange land

CURMUDGUCATION: Betsy DeVos Has, In Fact, Become Arne Duncan 2.0

CURMUDGUCATION: Betsy DeVos Has, In Fact, Become Arne Duncan 2.0

Betsy DeVos Has, In Fact, Become Arne Duncan 2.0

When this originally ran at Forbes.com, there was still some qujestion about the premise. Since then I've updated it with new info from DeVos herself.

For many conservatives, one of the greatest sins perpetrated by Obama’s secretary of education was using the powers of his office to bypass the legislature. Arne Duncan oversaw Race to the Top, which was instrumental in pushing Common Core and other preferred policies into schools across the country. Now Betsy DeVos is using nearly identical tactics to push for her own favorite educational ideas.

Race to the Top was a $4.5 billion program that was part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, a stimulus package meant to help reverse some of the effects of the Great Recession. States would have the opportunity to get education grants, but they would have to compete for the money by showing how closely they could adhere to the administration’s goals of college- and career-ready standards, high stakes testing, teacher evaluation, and data collection. The administration had tried and failed to get these goals passed into law through Congress. The financial pressure of the Great Recession and the looming penalties for the unachievable goals of No Child Left Behind (100% of students scoring above average on the Big Standardized Test) gave Duncan leverage to bypass Congress entirely. And rather than providing funding for all schools in all states, the program picked winners and losers.

Many conservative critics argued that RTTT and the waivers that followed were illegal. The backlash CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: Betsy DeVos Has, In Fact, Become Arne Duncan 2.0

Mitchell Robinson: Welcome Back to School! But Not So Fast… | Eclectablog

Welcome Back to School! But Not So Fast… | Eclectablog

Welcome Back to School! But Not So Fast…

As someone who visits a lot of schools each year to observe student teachers and work with my colleagues in the schools, a few thoughts on these newly-released CDC “back to school” guidelines…

• kids can’t keep their shoes and socks on for a full school day…masks?
• no shared items? everything in school is shared…pencils are shared, books are shared, construction paper is shared, glue is shared, drum sticks and mallets and tubas and bari saxes are shared, desks are shared, art supplies are shared…no school I’ve been in in the past 20 years has enough cubbies for each child to have their own. and let’s not even get started on morning and afternoon kindergarten rooms…
• unless we are reducing class sizes to single digits there is no way to keep desks at a 6 foot distance–and our ed reform friends have been telling us for decades that smaller class sizes are “inefficient and do not improve students’ test scores,” so that one is not happening…
• one child per seat and skip rows on school buses? yeah, right…adding another bus run in a public school budget is like crossing the River Styx–it just ain’t gonna happen.
• we can’t get sneeze guards installed in school salad bars…
• a “one way route” in many schools will require children and teachers exiting the school, walking completely around the building, perhaps in snow, rain, and/or mud, and reentering the school at the other side of the building–and yes, any architect who designed horseshoe-shaped schools was not real bright
• you *might* be able to get teachers to keep their classes in their rooms to eat lunch, but no shared playgrounds? what is a “personal playground”? so no recess? for young children?
• as if a plexiglass shield in a middle school bathroom would remain clean–we haven’t had doors that close in school restrooms for decades; sometimes no doors at all CONTINUE READING: Welcome Back to School! But Not So Fast… | Eclectablog

Billionaires Are The Biggest Threat To Public Schools - PopularResistance.Org

Billionaires Are The Biggest Threat To Public Schools - PopularResistance.Org

BILLIONAIRES ARE THE BIGGEST THREAT TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS

For Education “Disruptors” Like Bill Gates And Betsy DeVos, COVID-19 Isn’t A Crisis—It’s An Opportunity.

The COVID-19 crisis is shaping up to be a golden opportunity for those eager to shake up public education.

In recent months, as schools closed to limit the spread of COVID-19, millions of students, teachers, and administrators have been forced to flip a switch and embrace distance learning. Many states have hinted that this situation could continue well into the next school year.

Now, panic is spreading among public school advocates as key proponents of “disruptive” education models scramble to capitalize on the chaos.

First came the news, in late April, that Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who has long been a political and financial supporter of school choice schemes, has been authorized by Congress to hand out $307 million in grant money to state departments of education—provided they use the funds to “reimagine” (read: privatize) K-12 schooling.

Then, in early May, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that he would be working alongside billionaire education reform advocate Bill Gates to construct new ways of delivering instruction in the COVID-19 era.

Gates, of course, has a long history of tinkering with public schools from a philanthropic distance, using his billions to fund everything from small high school programs to the spread of charter schools in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans.

Much of Gates’s work has been controversial and short-lived, such as his efforts CONTINUE READING: Billionaires Are The Biggest Threat To Public Schools - PopularResistance.Org

What CDC wants schools, camps to do before reopening - The Washington Post

What CDC wants schools, camps to do before reopening - The Washington Post

Here is exactly what the CDC wants schools and camps to do before reopening

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has finally issued full interim guidance on how schools and other establishments can safely open during the covid-19 pandemic, and below are all the recommendations for schools and camps. They are detailed but worth reading to see the level of care CDC experts want school officials to consider before reopening campuses.

Last week, the CDC released short “decision trees” in six areas but held off on this more detailed version because that is all the Trump administration would allow the country’s premier health agency to do then. The CDC later published the extensive set of guidelines on its website without announcing the move.

President Trump has repeatedly urged states to allow businesses and other sectors of the economy and civic life to reopen and has mocked calls by experts such as Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to go slowly so as not to spark a surge in novel coronavirus cases.

The new extended guidance covers reopening schools, child-care facilities, restaurants and mass transit, as explained in this Washington Post story. You can also read the entire set of guidelines at the bottom of this post.

The CDC made clear that opening many institutions should be guided by the transmission rates of the novel coronavirus in each community.

Here’s what the CDC issued for schools and camps, complete with every link the agency provided.

Sign up for our Coronavirus Updates newsletter to track the outbreak. All stories linked in the newsletter are free to access.

INTERIM GUIDANCE FOR SCHOOLS AND DAY CAMPS

As communities consider a gradual scale up of activities toward pre-covid-19 operating practices in centers for learning, such as K-12 schools and summer day camps, CDC offers the following recommendations to keep communities safe while resuming peer-to-peer learning and providing crucial support for parents and guardians returning to work. CONTINUE READING: What CDC wants schools, camps to do before reopening - The Washington Post

Meet Dr. Cade Brumley – Educate Louisiana

Meet Dr. Cade Brumley – Educate Louisiana

Meet Dr. Cade Brumley

Today, the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) appointed a successor to John White who has been recognized by national publications as not only the longest serving of any state superintendent of education, but also the most controversial. Today marks the end of a reign of terror in which the only way was White’s way.

Dr. Cade Brumley first caught my attention back in late 2016, or early 2017. One of the non-profit education reform groups with inappropriate influence over education policy was repeatedly giving subtle praise to him. I’ve learned after seven years of advocating for education, when these groups support something, or someone, there’s a connection somewhere, or a plan. A little digging revealed that Brumley had participated in the Broad Superintendent’s Academy, the Harvard Institute for Superintendents, and National Institute for Excellence in Teaching programs which are heavily funded fronts for education reform policy. Connection found.

After a couple of conversations with friends who live in DeSoto parish, the small rural school district where Brumley served as superintendent, I learned that he was widely regarded and respected as a straight-shooting school leader and a genuinely good guy.

I followed him on Twitter for a few months, noting that his comments related to school policy were often in line with mine, and occasionally opposite of John White. I decided to reach out to him and ask him to explain the affiliation with the fellowships. CONTINUE READING: Meet Dr. Cade Brumley – Educate Louisiana

California education chief says schools can’t open without masks

California education chief says schools can’t open without masks

California education chief says schools can’t open without masks

SACRAMENTO — California has a major goal to meet before schools can reopen: acquiring masks for teachers and more than 6 million students.

Local school districts will decide when they will welcome students back to physical classrooms and the state is not mandating a common opening date, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said Wednesday. But he made one thing clear: Personal protective equipment is a must.

"They need lots of personal protective equipment. There have to be masks and hand sanitizer and the ability for hand washing and other resources for our schools to open safely," Thurmond said in a news conference. "We know that having access to this personal protective equipment is a critical factor in the ability to reopen. Quite frankly, our schools cannot reopen without it."

The state Legislature passed Gov. Gavin Newsom's coronavirus relief package in March, which included $100 million for personal protective equipment and cleaning for schools that remained open, but more will be needed to accommodate all of the state's schools in the social distancing era, Thurmond said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended face coverings, desks spaced six feet apart, and, if feasible, daily health checks in schools as part of detailed guidance quietly published this week.

While Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has said his area schools will not be able to safely reopen until students can be tested for the coronavirus "at least weekly, if not more frequently," Thurmond has been silent on the issue of testing.

Most districts in the state are sticking with their original start dates of late August CONTINUE READING: California education chief says schools can’t open without masks

States of Shock: the Coming Budget Calamity – Have You Heard

States of Shock: the Coming Budget Calamity – Have You Heard

States of Shock: the Coming Budget Calamity

A looming budget calamity worse than the Great Recession could mean mass teacher layoffs and deep cuts to school spending. In our latest episode Have You Heard previews the bleak budget forecast, how to avert it, and why the GOP seems to want states to go broke. Experts Bruce Baker, Sarah Reckhow and Jesse Rothstein weigh in, and, in a sign of what’s to come, we meet a teacher whose alternative school is going online and for-profit next year. Full transcript of the episode is here. And if you enjoy Have You Heard, please consider supporting us on Patreon.

Have You Heard · #89 States of Shock: the Coming Budget Calamity

States of Shock: the Coming Budget Calamity – Have You Heard

NYC Educator: Can We Safely Reopen Buildings? If So, How?

NYC Educator: Can We Safely Reopen Buildings? If So, How?

Can We Safely Reopen Buildings? If So, How?

We're looking at the possibility of opening our building in September. Will that happen? Your guess is as good as mine, but mine is we will not. Nonetheless, everyone's got to plan otherwise. I imagine a lot of schools would go end to end. That is, half the students enter in the AM, and half in the PM. Teacher schedules in high schools would overlap the sessions. I suppose elementary teachers could prep while other classes are going on, but I don't know much about what they do, so I could be wrong.

Now this will suck for a whole lot of reasons. One is the schedules could easily run 6 AM to noon, and then noon to 6 PM. I don't imagine many people will be happy about either. Another is this will only reduce student population by half, and that may not be enough. In my school, already at 210-220% capacity, it will certainly not suffice.

How do you achieve adequate social distancing to make a school building safe. Well, on top of your end to end programming, you could have students come in every other day, or every other week. You could then have classes stream via video, and the other half of the students could submit work via Google Classroom or something of that nature.

In the case of a building like mine, perhaps students could come in live every third or fourth week. This really underlines the lack of vision of those who run the DOE. As though it weren't bad enough that they had such disregard for us and our students that they forced us to convert classrooms into two, and convert closets into classrooms, the health issue makes it that much worse. And you can't argue that students who get so little face time with teachers are being treated equally. This makes the state's decision to defy the C4E decision, the one that specified lower class sizes, all the more egregious.

As for those who speak of schools being babysitting services, those days are over. Parents will have to make other CONTINUE READING: NYC Educator: Can We Safely Reopen Buildings? If So, How?

About a Teacher (Robert Pondiscio) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

About a Teacher (Robert Pondiscio) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

About a Teacher (Robert Pondiscio)

“Robert Pondiscio, author of How The Other Half Learns: Equality, Excellence, And The Battle Over School Choice, is senior fellow and vice president for external affairs at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.” This appeared in Education Next May 7, 2020

Few vocations have suffered more in the hands of Hollywood mythmakers than teaching. This is curious. Schools offer a familiar and fertile setting, and teaching is inspiring, aspirational work. There is rich potential for drama in student backstories or in a good teacher’s ability to change a child’s life trajectory. And say all you want about how teachers should be the guide on the side not the sage on the stage, there is a performative aspect to teaching that ought to lend itself to character-driven, compelling storytelling.

All of the elements are there. So why is it so hard to make a good teacher movie?

Mostly, it’s because, when the subject is school, filmmakers have never been able to resist swinging for three-run homers with one man on base. The clichés are legion: the inspiring maverick (Dead Poet’s Society) who unlocks the hidden brilliance of rowdy students (Stand and Deliver) while pushing back doggedly against the system’s low expectations (Lean on Me). Even worse is the subgenre of white savior teacher movies (Freedom Writers, Dangerous Minds) set in CONTINUE READING: About a Teacher (Robert Pondiscio) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Eckhart Tolle Meets John Dewey | tultican

Eckhart Tolle Meets John Dewey | tultican

Eckhart Tolle Meets John Dewey

By Thomas Ultican 5/20/2020

Professor Michael J. Hynes new book Staying Grounded; 12 Principles for Transforming School Leader Effectiveness inspired this title. I have an aversion to self-help writings and new-age philosophy. After reading two chapters, that is exactly how I saw this book. It made me wonder why my friend Diane Ravitch recommended it. After reading a few more chapters, I got it. There is a lot to like. If the principles taught in this book were widely embraced, it would be a boon to education everywhere.

In the introduction Hynes tells the reader that he will reveal his ideas concerning the purpose of schooling and how to ensure that each child reveals their potential. He opens by recommending the “philosophy that recognizes the fact that all children are different and meet them where they are.”

This a great starting point but it runs squarely into the devilish nature of standards based education. At the beginning of the new millennia, the cruel standards based philosophy began dominating classrooms. It was heartbreaking to observe students who although learning; were not learning fast enough. Instead of being encouraged while their intellectual abilities grew, they were crushed and taught to hate learning. That definitely was not meeting “them where they are.”

The book started naturally enough with principle one. It opened by quoting the Buddha, “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles.” The point was that a busy administrator needed some regular self care. Buddhist philosophy is known as the inner path. Principle one was all about entering the CONTINUE READING: Eckhart Tolle Meets John Dewey | tultican

Testimonies from parents, teachers, and students about the importance of reducing class size | Class Size Matters

Testimonies from parents, teachers, and students about the importance of reducing class size | Class Size Matters | A clearinghouse for information on class size & the proven benefits of smaller classes

Testimonies from parents, teachers, and students about the importance of reducing class size

On Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, parents, students, educators and advocates testified on the importance of reducing class size at City Hall hearings of the NYC Education Committee, chaired by Council Member Mark Treyger. Below are links to written statements of some of these testimonies. Video testimony can be found here.

Regent Kathy Cashin testifies how when she was Superintendent of District 23 in Brooklyn, she reduced class size, and this completely transformed her schools, causing them to make the greatest gains in achievement in the entire city.  She says that when you reduce class size, the “whole world changes”  for both students and teachers.

Lorraie Forbes and Tiffani Torres, high school students from Teens Take Charge, speak out about how their experience of large classes caused them to struggle and miss out on the chance to excel.   As Lorraie put it, “I feel as if my fellow students and I are being robbed of the opportunity to be as big as we can be.”  

Curtis D. Young, member of CB12 Youth and Education Committee and Executive Director of Artistic Noise, a juvenile justice nonprofit,  testifies that large class sizes contribute to high suspension rates and the school-to-prison pipeline for young black boys.

Shino Tanikawa, a NYC public school parent leader, member of the Fair Student Funding task force, and member of the School Diversity Advisory Group, speaks about how the DOE’s funding system incentivizes principals to overcrowd their schools and classrooms.  She points out that for integration to be truly successful, class sizes should be small to allow teachers to reach their students whatever their backgrounds, both culturally and academically.

Karen Sprowal, a NYC parent, explains how her son struggled in his public school because of the large class sizes.  She finally transferred him to a private school with smaller classes, costing the city $93,000 in tuition per year. As Karen put it, “Even as class size reduction may be costly, I would like the DOE and our elected officials to think about the costs of NOT lowering class size.”

Leonie Haimson, Executive Director of Class Size Matters,  describes how PS 25, a small school in Bed Stuy, outperforms the city average in achievement, even though it is composed of 100% students in poverty, 31% with disabilities, and 22% homeless.   How?  It has very small class sizes and thus acts as a natural experiment for what class size reduction could achieve in the city as a whole.

Lori Podvesker, director of education policy at INCLUDEnyc, explores how important smaller classes are for students with disabilities, a teacher’s ability to provide student-centered instruction, and effective classroom management.

Randi Levine, project director at Advocates for Children of New York, testifies that families,  CONTINUE READING: Testimonies from parents, teachers, and students about the importance of reducing class size | Class Size Matters | A clearinghouse for information on class size & the proven benefits of smaller classes

COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #21, Nationwide Waiver to Extend Unanticipated School Closure Operations - Nutrition (CA Dept of Education)

USDA Child Nutrition Responses #21–25 - Nutrition (CA Dept of Education)

COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #21, Nationwide Waiver to Extend Unanticipated School Closure Operations

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Main Web Page

On April 27 and May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released several Policy Memorandums. The Policy Memorandums announce Child Nutrition Responses which include five waivers that are intended to provide clarification to state agencies and Child Nutrition Programs (CNP) operators during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency. The Policy Memorandums are:

• COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #21, Nationwide Waiver to Extend Unanticipated School Closure Operations (PDF)
  This waiver, issued on April 27, allows the California Department of Education (CDE) to establish new deadlines for sponsors to complete their Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) application packets. For Summer 2020, CDE Nutrition Services Division will be working with SFSP sponsors for submissions of their application packets by the following dates:
  
  
  • New sponsors, the complete application packet should be submitted no later than June 1, 2020.
    
  • Returning sponsors that have not been operating during the emergency and are beginning summer meal service in the traditional manner, should submit their application packets at least 30 days prior to the scheduled first day of operation. For example, if your first meal service date is July 15, then you will need to submit your Child Nutrition Information and Payment System (CNIPS) application packet by June 15.
    
  • Current sponsors operating due to the unanticipated school closure and will be continuing their service through the summer, have until August 30 to complete their mandatory training and update their CNIPS application packet. The extended date is due to the USDA’s response to a CDE waiver requesting additional flexibilities.
    

• COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #22, Nationwide Waiver to Allow Non-congregate Feeding in the Child Nutrition Programs—Extension.
  This waiver extension allows the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the School Breakfast Program (SBP), the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), and the SFSP to waive the congregate feeding requirement. This Extension is effective immediately and remains in effect until August 31, 2020.

• COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #23, Nationwide Waiver to Allow Meal Service Time Flexibility in the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, and Child and Adult Care Food Program—Extension.

This waiver extension allows the NSLP, SBP, and the CACFP to waive the meal service time restrictions in each respective program. This Extension is effective immediately and remains in effect until August 31, 2020. Note that the waiver extension does not apply to the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) and SFSP, as these programs received waiver extension through the COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #17.

• COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #24, Nationwide Waiver to Allow Meal Pattern Flexibility in the Child Nutrition Programs—Extension.
  This waiver extension allows the NSLP, SBP, CACFP, and the SFSP to waive the requirements to serve meals that meet the meal pattern requirements during the health emergency. Operators electing to use this waiver must fill out the waiver application located at Meal Pattern Waiver Application. This extension is effective immediately and remains in effect until June 30, 2020.

• COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #25, Nationwide Waiver to Allow Parents and Guardians to Pick Up Meals for Children—Extension.
  This waiver extension allows the NSLP, SBP, SSO, and SFSP to waive the requirement that program operators must provide meals directly to children, and allows parents and guardians to pick up meals at non-congregate meal sites on behalf of their children. This Extension is effective immediately and remains in effect until August 31, 2020.

For operators that have already received a waiver for non-congregate feeding and meal service time flexibility, you do not need to re-apply for a new waiver. For those operators that have not submitted a request for these flexibilities, you will need to opt in for Waiver numbers 22 and 23. More information on this waiver application will be forthcoming.

For more comprehensive COVID-19 Guidance, please visit the School and Child and Adult Day Care Meals web page.

Contact Information

For any questions regarding these waivers, please contact your respective program’s County Specialist. The County Specialist for each program can be found in the following Form IDs in the CNIPS Download Forms section:

• SFSP—Form ID SFSP 01.
• NSLP, SBP, and SSO—Form ID Caseload.
• CACFP—Form ID CACFP 01

Questions:   Nutrition Services Division | 800-952-5609

USDA Child Nutrition Responses #21–25 - Nutrition (CA Dept of Education)

DID YOU MISS DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG TODAY? A site to discuss better education for all

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

A Virtual Choir and Orchestra of 300 Sings “You’ll Never Walk Alone”

by dianeravitch / 27min

Enjoy this beautiful rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel, performed by 300 people from 15 countries. Here are the liner notes: In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, 300 people from 15 different countries came together to participate in a virtual rendition of the beautiful song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Carousel

SomeDam Poet: Protect Your Children from the Trolls!

by dianeravitch / 1h

SomeDam Poet warns: The trolls are waiting under bridge To pounce upon the passing kids Disguised as broads and billy goats With candy and with diet kochs

The New York Philharmonic Honors NYC’s Healthcare Workers

by dianeravitch / 1h

This is a special virtual performance by the New York Philharmonic, playing Ravel’s “Bolero, ” to honor the city’s brave healthcare workers. Enjoy!

Commonweal: Trump Administration’s Cruel Efforts to Strangle People of Cuba

by dianeravitch / 1h

In 2013, I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to Cuba with my partner and two friends. The Obama administration had relaxed restrictions on travel, and we visited as part of a people-to-people program. Our group flew to Miami, then boarded an American Airlines charter jet that brought us in less than an hour to Jose Marti airport in Havana. Many of our fellow passengers were a Cubans carry

Michael A. Cohen: The Era of Stupid

by dianeravitch / 1h

Michael A. Cohen is a regular columnist for the Boston Globe. He has determined that the current era will henceforth be called “the Era of Stupid.” President Trump’s moronic behavior is the defining feature of American life. Americans have long divided our nearly 244-year history into eras. There was the Era of Good Feelings in the 1810s and 1820s; the Gilded Age in the late 19th century; the New

Peter Greene: Kudos to Dr. Les Perelman, the Slayer of the RoboGrader!

by dianeravitch / 2h

Peter Greene recognizes one of the great education heroes of our age , Dr. Lester Perelman, who retired a few years ago from MIT, where he taught writing. Les Perelman carefully and thoroughly debunked “robograding” of student essays. ETS had a robograder that allegedly graded thousands of essays in a minute or less. Perelman showed that students could write nonsensical paragraphs containing blat

Bill Phillis: Ohio Supreme Court Strikes Down Local Control of Schools

22by dianeravitch / 3h

Perhaps you recall that Republicans used to favor local control of public schools by elected boards. That time is now gone, since Republicans bought into the idea of privatization of public funds. Now they support state takeovers, even though there is no evidence that state takeovers have ever been successful, and a good deal of evidence (see the Michigan “Education Achievement Authority” and the

Ross Barkan: Andrew Cuomo’s War on Public Higher Education

68by dianeravitch / 4h

Perhaps you know New York Governor Andrew Cuomo only through his daily coronavirus briefings, where he has been thoughtful, strong, and compassionate. But there is another side to Cuomo. He doesn’t like public 

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