CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Spongebob Edition (3/6)
Spongebob Edition
I'm coming off a week of working as the pit conductor for a local high school production of Spongebob: The Musical, which turns out to be actually a great little show, hilarious and silly and yet with much to say about friendship, science denialism, and how folks react to a crisis. And the music is great. It's not for your average high school--the technical requirements are considerable--but my old friends are talented leaders and they have a well-developed network. It was all a reminder of how rich and complicated the whole business of developing student theater can be, and how it gives some students a fantastic growth experience that helps them bloom and become the talented humans they can be (and none of it is useful for raising scores on the Big Standardized Test).
But that was my adventure. Here's your reading from the week.
New teacher certification exam Will hurt Texas education
You know what Texas doesn't need? It doesn't need to add edTPA to its teacher requirements.
Betsy DeVos's American Federation for Children tried to boost vouchers in Georgia, using her time-honored technique of threatening the people on her own side. It didn't go well.
Why Public School Supporters Need to Keep On Pushing Back Against Laws Banning Discussion of “Divisive” Subjects at School
Jan Resseger looks at some of the news surrounding the wave of gag laws sweeping the nation.
Don’t Expect Your Students to Attend Your Funeral
At The Educator's Room, Jeremy Adams with a hard look at some of our romantic notions about teaching.
At The Nation, Jennifer Berkshire takes the unusual step of talking to actual teachers about the ongoing exodus from teaching.
Some good news; Indiana shot down its latest attempt at micro-managing teachers.
Nancy Flanagan looks at the rise of smack talk in society, and schools.
Andrea Gabor at Bloomsburg looks at student journalism can become a doorway to civics education
Teaching the War in Ukraine is Fighting the War at Home
Steven Singer, current events in the classroom, and the Charge of the Light Brigade
Scott McLeod reports on a student protest against the Don't Say Gay bill, and the administrative punishment that rained down on it. "Hand in that Pride flag, kid."
Tennessee continues to be a microcosm for all the worst parts of privatization, and TC Weber continues to bring the receipts for all the self-serving conflict of interest and profiteering.
Blue Cereal Education to parents-- I don't really want to raise your kid.
Detroit teachers have been through a lot. I’m still standing.
First person account at Chalkbeat from Dorothea Williams-Arnold
WV lawmakers push for larger control of education policy
West Virginia is poised to become one more state where the legislature wants to squash local control of schools.
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College Board Vs. CRT PanicThe College Board is a for-profit company that makes a bundle selling products that make teenagers look smart as well as establishing itself as a gatekeeper for college entrance. It is amazing to me that some folks are still tricked by that name into thinking this is some sort of non-profit college entrance agency. Nope. The College Board has made some huge mistakes, including hiring Comon Core ar
KY: The Panic Comes For Dolly PartonDolly Parton is a national damn treasure, but one Kentucky state senator had the guts, briefly, to express concern about Parton's signature philanthropic effort being a piece of the Great Indoctrinatin' going on in America. Stephen Meredith was a hospital CEO before being elected to Kentucky's senate in 2017. Wednesday he was in committee discussing SB 164 , a bill for creating a state partnershi
Learning Loss and the Big Standardized TestOn Twitter yesterday I posted a thread that seemed to touch a few nerves, so I'm sharing it here as well. You want to talk about learning loss? Then talk about all the learning lost to high stakes testing. 1/ — Peter Greene (@palan57) March 1, 2022 Not just the test itself, but the time spent in test prep and just plain learning how to take that kind of test and speak the test manufacturers' langu
Catalyze Challenge: Throwing Money At EdupreneursIt's another one of those things that helps you realize that some reformsters are operating in just another world entirely. Meet the Catalyze Challenge. It's a grant competition that "supports innovation in career-connected learning that meaningfully bridge education and career." Its analysis of the need is the same old same old-- "Ourt education system promises economic opportunity for all--but
Burnout and Moral InjuryI never had a name for it. But there was a frustration, something like anger and a kick in the gut, that I was being required to do things as a teacher that I knew were bad practice, not just useless in achieving success, but detrimental to my students. I first encountered the term "moral injury" in writing about t he medical field (in an article no longer accessible on line). But I recognized it
Study: Test Data Does Not Help Students Raise Test ScoresToday in "Things Teachers Have Been Saying For Twenty Years But Are Now Being Verified By Research," we present Heather Hill, a professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Hill has recently publicized some of her recent study which somehow combines the obvious with dubious conclusions. Here she was at EdWeek back in 2020: Question: What activity is done by most teachers in
IN: Barring Teachers From School BoardsOn the national level, it really has become death by a thousand tiny cuts for the teaching profession. This proposed amendment in Indiana is by no means the most egregious, but it is just an unnecessary swipe at teachers and school employees. HB 1130 is mostly about making sure that school boards get a full hammering from the public-- each public member in attendance must be given at least three m
ICYMI: Goodbye, Rose Edition (2/26)My wife's grandmother passed away last week, a ripe and well-aged 90 years old. She was a feisty old broad in the best sense of the word. Salty, sassy and a constant reminder to live your damn life. Her memory will be a blessing. And now for this week's reading. Jargon may have turned parents against social and emotional learning Javeria Salman at Hechinger with a theory about why there's such a
Tax Credit Scholarships and Education Savings Accounts: A PrimerTax credit scholarships and education savings accounts often travel together and end up as two sides of the same policy. It's easy to get them kind of confused (here at the Institute we might have suffered from that confusion ourselves on occasion). But here's a quick, simple explainer to help you figure out what particular policy is being pushed in your state. Education Savings Accounts ESAs are
