KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all

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

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Marc Tucker: The Relationship Between Child Poverty and Education Outcomes

by dianeravitch / now

Social scientists have repeatedly documented the close correlation between child poverty and academic achievement. You don’t have to be a social scientist to look at any graph that displays both test scores and family income: the kids from the richest families are at the top, and the kids from the poorest family are at the bottom. It is not surprising, because those with the least income have the

How Did Pro-Public School Candidates “Flip” the Denver School Board?

by dianeravitch / 1h

Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider reveal the secret ingredient to the success of the Resistance to privatization/portfolio district strategy in Denver in this podcast. For years, Denver had been a feather in the cap of DFER and other advocates of privatization. Betsy DeVos lauded Denver for its commitment to school choice, although she was disappointed that it had not yet adopted vouchers. th

YESTERDAY

Alan Singer: What Did We Learn from PISA?

by dianeravitch / 21h

Alan Singer calls out Common Core for the poor showing of US students on PISA. Remember all the promises about how Common Core would raise all test scores and close gaps? Nada. Of course, the deeper issue is that decades of test-and-punish reforms failed, not just Common Core. it those who pushed these failed policies will not abandon them. They will say—they are saying—that we must double down o

Mercedes Schneider: Emma Bloomberg’s New Ed-Reform Gig, Called “Murmuration”

by dianeravitch / 22h

In case you didn’t know, a murmuration is the sound of lots of birds flapping their little wings. Mercedes Schneider defines it here: The name, “murmuration,” refers to “hundreds, sometimes thousands, of starlings fly in swooping, intricately coordinated patterns through the sky.” Why does it matter? Because Emma Bloomberg, daughter of multibillionaire Michael Bloomberg, has created a new “ed ref

Pennsylvania: Why Did This Charter School CEO Pay Himself $11 Million Without Board Approval?

72by dianeravitch / 23h

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported on a federal audit that had surprising findings. A national audit of charter school management companies by the U.S. Department of Education has spotlighted an unnamed Chester City school where, auditors say, the CEO wrote checks to himself totaling $11 million without board approval. The report by the Office of Inspector General did not accuse the CEO of wrongd

John Thompson: The New Wave of “MisNAEPery” Heading Towards Oklahoma and Other States

77by dianeravitch / 1d

John Thompson, historian and retired teacher in Oklahoma, writes here about the use and misuse of NAEP scores to advance disruption in the schools. A new wave of “misnaepery” is heading towards Oklahoma and other states. After most or all of the corporate reform agenda became law in about 90 percent of states, reading scores dropped so much that even a reform true believer dubbed NAEP as “Nationa

Eli Broad Pays Yale University $100 Million to Take Charge of His Controversial Broad Leadership Academy

96by dianeravitch / 1d

Many school districts have had unfortunate experiences with “Broadies,” the graduates of Eli Broad’s management program for future school leaders. The Broad Leadership Academy has sent forth hundreds of would-be superintendents to impose Broad’s top-down management style, his faith in data, and his belief that the best way to reform a public school is to close it and replace it with a privately m

DEC 05

CORRECTION: An Apology to Pete Buttigieg and the Racially Integrated Public Schools of South Bend, Indiana

500+by dianeravitch / 1d

Several readers of this blog who live in South Bend, Indiana, wrote to say that Fred Klonsky is wrong about Pete Buttigieg and the status of racial integration in the public schools of South Bend. One native of South Bend wrote as follows. Fred Klonsky’s article is simplistic and wildly inaccurate and Mr. Buttigieg’s statement about “school districts” is absolutely correct. First, South Bend Comm

Politico: Betsy DeVos Thanks ALEC for Its Ideas to Defund Public Schools

500+by dianeravitch / 1d

Politico reports that Betsy DeVos thanked her ideological bedfellow, ALEC, for its help in framing proposals to defund public schools (aka vouchers, opportunity scholarships, tax credits, education savings accounts, a rose by any other name, etc.). ALEC is the far-right extremist libertarian organization that hates public schools, gun control, unions, environmental regulations, and anything else

Politico: Betsy DeVos and ED Collected Student Debt in Error on Thousands More Defrauded Students

27by dianeravitch / 1d

Politico Morning Education reports that the U.S. Department of Education mistakenly collected debt from many thousands of students who had been defrauded by a failed online for-profit college and were previously unreported. The last time the Department acknowledged having hounded students in error, it was fined $100,000. Why not fine the Secretary and the officials in charge personally so that th

Justin Parmenter: NC Software Giant Pays to Send State Legislators to ALEC Meetings

300+by dianeravitch / 1d

NBCT high school teacher and blogger Justin Parmenter discovered a shocking fact: a company in the state called SAS pays to send state legislators to the annual conference of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a far-right anti-public school organization that writes model legislation. SAS sells software to districts and states to evaluate teacher effectiveness. The SAS software is v

Thomas Ultican: Wealthy White Elites Are Attacking the Little Rock School District

by dianeravitch / 2d

Thomas Ultican writes here about the Walton-funded effort to control the public schools of Little Rock. Given the Walton love of charter schools, we can safely assume that they hope to eliminate democratic control of the citizenry and impose charter schools. Ultican follows the money, where it comes from, where it goes. He writes: In an apparent reaction to the 2014 school board election, new Rep

Two Conservative Billionaire Foundations Collaborate to Fund Disruptive Innovations

68by dianeravitch / 2d

The Walton Family Foundation and the Charles Koch Foundation are joining forces to fund disruptive innovations. Both foundations are hostile to democratically governed public schools. Both have supported charter schools and vouchers. Philanthropic groups associated with billionaire businessman and activist Charles Koch have announced two initiatives to deepen their involvement in K-12 education.

Kentucky: Districts Required to Take Charter School Training, with No Charter Schools in Sight

by dianeravitch / 2d

Back when conservative Republican Governor Matt Bevin was riding high, back when he was set to promote charter schools across the state, back when Betsy DeVos visited Kentucky to tout charter schools, every school district was required to take training on how to authorize charter schools. The applications, Bevin’s hand-picked state board assumed, would be pouring in and local boards needed traini

Kentucky: State Board of Education Meets, Omits Request to Fund Charter Schools

by dianeravitch / 2d

Kentucky’s outgoing Republican Governor Matt Bevin made clear that he wanted funding for charter schools, but he lost the recent election to Democrat Andy Beshear. The new governor made clear that one of his top priorities was supporting public schools. However, the State Board of Education and the State Commissioner were appointed by Bevin, and they seem to be holding on until their terms expire

DEC 04

SomeDam Poet on PISA: “That’s a Moron”

by dianeravitch / 2d

Our blog poet reflects on the meaning of the latest international test scores (PISA). That’s a Moron When the test hits your eye Like an old PISA pie That’s a moron When the scores make you drool just like a pasta fazool You’re a moron When you dance down the street with a test as your beat You’re insane When you walk in a dream but you know you’re not dreaming signore Scuzza me, but you see, bac

Peter Greene on PISA Scores: Who Cares?

48by dianeravitch / 2d

Peter Greene writes regularly for Forbes, where this article appeared. He explains for the umpteenth time (as I have done repeatedly) that the U.S. has never led the world on international tests, whether it was PISA, TIMSS, IEA, or any other. He writes: The top scores this year come from the usual batch of test takers, including the Chinese , who give the test to students from wealthy provinces..

The Lucrative Loophole That Charter Operators Exploit

29by dianeravitch / 2d

This article about charter real estate dealings was written by Professors Preston Green III, Bruce Baker, and Derek W. Black. They argue that lax state laws allow charter operators to reap profits while maintaining an ostensibly “nonprofit” status. While critics charge that charter schools are siphoning money away from public schools, a more fundamental issue frequently flies under the radar: the

Library Journal: GREAT Review of SLAYING GOLIATH!

by dianeravitch / 2d

SLAYING GOLIATH will be published on January 21. Please consider giving a pre-order for Xmas to your friends. On that date, I will appear in conversation with Carol Burris to discuss the book and the issues it raises. That event will be sponsored by the Community Bookstore at Congregation Beth Elohim at 274 Garfield Place (Eighth Avenue) in Park Slope, Brooklyn at 6:30 pm on January 21. The books

Fred Klonsky: Pete Buttigieg Discovers Segregated Schools in His Hometown

100+by dianeravitch / 3d

Fred Klonsky writes with amazement that Mayor Pete Buttigieg just realized that there are segregated schools in his hometown of South Bend. He acknowledges that he was slow to come to this realization. Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg told Reverend William Barber that he didn’t notice South Bend’s public schools were segregated. Buttigieg is the mayor of South Bend. “I have to con

Yong Zhao: How PISA Created the Illusion of Education Quality and Marketed It to the World

36by dianeravitch / 3d

Yong Zhao, the brilliant education analyst, writes here about the great PISA illusion. If you have not read any of Zhao’s books, do so now. If you have not heard him speak, google him or invite him to your next big conference. He is insightful, provocative, thoughtful, absolutely delightful! He is a master at making people think and debunking hoaxes. Please read the entire post to learn how we an

DEC 03

More on PISA Results from Politico

36by dianeravitch / 3d

Politico Morning Education reports : U.S. SCORES IN READING, MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE LITERACY REMAINED ESSENTIALLY FLAT FROM 2015 in the latest Program for International Student Assessment results, but U.S. rankings improved because other education systems worsened. — The 2018 PISA results showed U.S. average scores in reading and science literacy were higher than the average of about three dozen

Teresa Hanafin on Apple’s World Remapping

by dianeravitch / 3d

Teresa Hanafin wrote this morning in Fast Foreard for the Boston Hlobe. “Just spotted this disturbing story: Another major US company caved to the demands of an autocrat in the name of profit. Apple changed its map and weather apps for users in Russia, redrawing the borders of Crimea to show it as part of Russia instead of Ukraine, capitulating to Russian President Vladimir Putin. As you know, Ru

Chris Whittle Tries a Splashy Comeback

by dianeravitch / 3d

Chris Whittle is the Uber entrepreneur of for-profit education. Back in the 1990s, he launched the Edison Project, assuming that George H.W. Bush would be re-elected and would get a voucher plan through Congress. That didn’t happen, so Edison sought contracts to run low-performing schools. Lots of push back from districts and parents. The share price plummeted. To learn th3 story of Edison, read

New Hampshire: Legislature Puts $46 Million Federal Charter School Grant on Hold

34by dianeravitch / 3d

New Hampshire has divided government. The governor is a Republican, who chooses the State Commissioner. But in the last election in 2018, Democrats won control of the legislature. The State Commissioner is a home-schooling parent who is hostile to public schools. He comes from the Betsy DeVos mold. Speaking of DeVos, she gave New Hampshire $46 million from the federal Charter Schools Program, whi

An Ongoing Debate about Charter Support Among Black and Latino Families

39by dianeravitch / 4d

On November 26, the New York Times published an article that had this headline: ‘Minority Voters Chafe As Democratic Candidates Abandon Charter Schools.’ The point of the article was that many black and Latino families are very disappointed that all the Democratic candidates have turned their backs on charter schools, excepting Cory Booker, currently polling around 1-2%. The article was especiall

Indiana: Karen Francisco on Shady Charter Real Estate Deals

300+by dianeravitch / 4d

Indiana legislators have rewritten state laws to favor privatization of public assets. If a public school is considered unutilized, a charter operator can claim it for only $1. When the West Lafayette school district sued to challenge the law, a judge sided with the legislators. Give the public school away to a private operator, even though it belongs to the public who paid for it! Karen Francisc

PISA: Another Bad Showing for “Reformers”

100+by dianeravitch / 4d

The PISA results were released, and they put the test-and-punish reforms of the past two decades in a harsh light. Billions have been spent on testing and spurious teacher evaluations. Dana Goldstein writes in the New York Times: The performance of American teenagers in reading and math has been stagnant since 2000, according to the latest results of a rigorous international exam, despite a decad

DEC 02

Time Magazine: How the Elites Lost Their Grip

by dianeravitch / 4d

Can this be true? Anand Giriharadas, author of Winner Take All, writes in TIME that the elites lost their grip in 2019. Let’s hope it is true. Democracy is a great idea, worth fighting for.

The Amazing Activism of the Grassroots Network of NPE

by dianeravitch / 4d

The Network for Public Education is fortunate to have the leadership and energy of Marla Kilfoyle, former national director of BATS. She has developed connections with dozens of organizations fighting to protect and improve public schools. Read her latest report here. The report includes a call to action to protect student privacy. The deadline for taking action is December 8. Please open the lin

Jennifer Hall Lee: Why I Volunteer at My Local Public School

84by dianeravitch / 4d

Jennifer Hall Lee lives in Pasadena, California. Her child is now enrolled in the high school, but Lee continues to volunteer and raise money for the middle school, where she is needed. In a note to me, she said that 45% of the students in Pasadena are attending private schools, charter schools, or home schooled. The public schools are suffering because of this splintering of civic energy. She ex

ProPublica: Trump Administration Systematically Rolls Back Rights of LGBT Individuals

by dianeravitch / 5d

During the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump spoke of his commitment to protect the rights of LGBT people. He lied. ProPublica released a report documenting the Trump administration’s step-by-step dismantling of federal protections of LGBT persons–in the military, in public housing, in schools, in health care, and in enforcement of civil rights in the courts.

Boston: Falling Enrollment Forces Charter Chain to Retrench

by dianeravitch / 5d

The celebrated Boston charter City on a Hill is closing one of its schools and imposing budget cuts at another due to falling enrollments. Once a shining star in the Boston charter school world, City on a Hill Charter School is facing a massive financial crisis, prompting trustees on Monday to enact a series of dramatic budget cuts: It will lay off 23 teachers, administrators, and other staffers

DEC 01

Trump Administration Defends Christian School That Discriminates Against LGBT Students and Teachers

100+by dianeravitch / 5d

Politico Morning Education reports that the Trump administration has joined a court case on the side of a Christian school in Maryland that was removed from the state’s voucher program because it discriminates against LGBT students and teachers. This is not surprising. The DeVos family has funded anti-gay organizations and state referenda for many years. The Trump administration takes the view th

Superintendents to Public: Get Your Facts Right!

61by dianeravitch / 5d

The National Superintendents Roundtable has a message for the public: be fair when judging our public schools. Schools today are far better than they were 40 or 50 years ago, by all conventional measures. what they might have added was that schools made steady progress until about 2007 or so, when No Child Left Behind took hold, then things were made worse by Race to the Top and Common Core. The

Helen Ladd on the Negative Effects of Charter Schools

99by dianeravitch / 5d

Helen Ladd is one of our nation’s most distinguished economists. She has written extensively about education and poverty, as well as school choice. Dr. Ladd informed me that she has written some new scholarly articles about charter schools. I read them and was impressed. I asked if she would let me post them here. She said that they are on a website that has limited access. However, she said, the

Audrey Watters on Fables of School Reform

by dianeravitch / 6d

This is a fascinating and informative article about the perilous world of edtech by the mistress of edtech debunkers, Audrey Watters. Watters attended a meeting of edtech entrepreneurs and investors in San Diego, where she quickly picked up on their braggadocio, their lingo, and their misinformation. We used to speak of hedge fund managers as the “masters of the universe.” Once you have read Watt

NOV 30

How an ER Nurse Got Stuck with a Bill for $899,000 Until ProPublica Called Her Employer

27by dianeravitch / 6d

Imagine this: an emergency room nurse gives birth to a premature baby. She gets a bill for $898,984 from her employer. She thought she had insurance coverage. Her employer says she didn’t sign up in time for the baby. What is she to do? ProPublica gets involved. This obviously is not an education issue. But it is an issue about what kind of society we are. “Lauren Bard opened the hospital bill th

Jack Hassard: Facts Are Facts

24by dianeravitch / 6d

Jack Hassard taught science and science teachers for many years. He clings to the old-fashioned idea that “facts are facts.” He is offended by the idea of “alternative facts” or the charges of “fake news” used to discredit anyone that Dear Leader disagrees with. A fact is verifiable. An opinion is not. He writes: As science teachers, we think of facts as a repeatable observations or measurements.

Peter Greene’s Rules for Life

by dianeravitch / 7d

I never thought about sitting down and writing out my “rules for life,” but Peter Greene did. They are good as anything I could write, actually better, so I share them here with you.

If Hedge Funds Gobble Up the Free Press, Will Freedom of the Press Survive?

23by dianeravitch / 7d

The New York Times reported on a huge merger of newspapers. In August, Gannett, the parent company of USA Today and more than 100 other dailies, and New Media Investment Group, the owner of the newspaper chain 

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

Demand Reform to Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law – Before It’s Too Late | gadflyonthewallblog

Demand Reform to Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law – Before It’s Too Late | gadflyonthewallblog

Demand Reform to Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law – Before It’s Too Late

If no one answers a question, was it even asked?

Way back on August 24, 2019, the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) quietly posted a little notice on the PA Bulletin Website asking for public comment on the state’s charter school law.

This is not exactly a high traffic site.

It’s a state-run page that includes proposed rules, notices, proclamations, court rulings, actions and executive orders.

Unless you work for the state, are a journalist or a policy wonk, you probably didn’t see it.

Since then, there has been little fanfare, no hoopla, nothing much in the media about the notice at all.

But this is a huge opportunity for residents fed up with the nonsense the school CONTINUE READING: Demand Reform to Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law – Before It’s Too Late | gadflyonthewallblog

CURMUDGUCATION: White Flight, Without The Actual Flight

CURMUDGUCATION: White Flight, Without The Actual Flight

White Flight, Without The Actual Flight

We can talk about lots of complicated economic and sociological forces that have fed the problems of school segregation in this country, but the root causes are pretty simple–historically, we have a whole lot of white folks who don’t want their children to go to school with the children of black folks, and they have been creative about finding ways to avoid it.

When Brown v. Board of education forced desegregation, communities all across the South responded with segregation academies, private schools where only certain children were welcome. While we’ve long known about these schools, a new website called Academy Stories has launched, featuring first persons stories from people who attended those schools. The site has only a handful of stories at the moment, but each one is worth the read, a story of what the years of desegregation looked like to students. In some cases, the move to a private academy was masked by language about quality and being “pioneers.” Some were more direct. Writes one:

Others might cloak their racism in talk about providing “quality education” or “upholding our traditions,” but my father voiced his prejudices for all to hear.

There was also, of course, white flight. White families exited areas in search of neighborhoods that CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: White Flight, Without The Actual Flight

"Flexible" | Blue Cereal Education

"Flexible" | Blue Cereal Education

"Flexible"

The Offer

Several years ago, I was asked by a major edu-organization for whom I did some work to lead a week-long training in Jordan. Like, the country. In the Middle East. Far away. 

The workshop was for no less than the King’s Academy – a prestigious boarding school founded and regularly visited by, you know... the KING. Like, of Jordan. The country. In the Middle East. Far Away. 

Of course I said yes, and it turned out to an amazing experience in more ways than I’ll attempt to recount here. There was, however, something that confused me. 

I’m pretty good at the teacher workshop thing. I could fake some basic humility about it, but it would be disingenuous and – unless you’re new to the blog – you’d never buy it. 

What I’m not always successful at is making people in power happy with me. While I liked to think I carried some notoriety in my little corner of the world, I was hardly the first name that should have come to mind when someone in Manhattan said, “We have a chance to make a strong first impression and promote our rather uptight branding in a potentially lucrative foreign market – whom shall we send forth?”

How I was even on that particular list?

The Question

I kept wondering, so I called my primary contact at the all-seeing acorn and asked. Of CONTINUE READING: "Flexible" | Blue Cereal Education

Mississippi Miracle or Mirage?: 2019 NAEP Reading Scores Prompt Questions, Not Answers | radical eyes for equity

Mississippi Miracle or Mirage?: 2019 NAEP Reading Scores Prompt Questions, Not Answers | radical eyes for equity

Mississippi Miracle or Mirage?: 2019 NAEP Reading Scores Prompt Questions, Not Answers

There is a disturbing contradiction in the predicted jubilant response to Mississippi’s outlier 4th-grade results from the 2019 NAEP reading test. That contradiction can be found in a new article by Emily Hanford, using Mississippi to recycle her brand, a call for the “science of reading.”

This is a great deal to ask of the average reader, but Hanford’s argument is grounded in a claim that most students in the U.S. are being taught reading through methods that are not supported by scientific research (code for narrow types of quantitative research that can identify causal relationships and thus can be generalized to all students).

However, the contradiction lies in Hanford’s own concession about the 2019 NAEP reading data from Mississippi:

The state’s performance in reading was especially notable. Mississippi was the only state in the nation to post significant gains on the fourth-grade reading test. Fourth graders in Mississippi are now on par with the national average, reading as well or better than pupils in California, Texas, Michigan and 18 other states.

What’s up in Mississippi? There’s no way to know for sure what causes increases in test scores [emphasis added], but Mississippi has been doing something notable: making sure all of its teachers understand the science of reading.

To be fair, there is a way to know, and that would be conducting scientific research that teases out the factors that can be identified as causing the CONTINUE READING: Mississippi Miracle or Mirage?: 2019 NAEP Reading Scores Prompt Questions, Not Answers | radical eyes for equity

Why Sue Desmond-Hellmann leaving as the CEO of the Gates Foundation matters - Vox

Why Sue Desmond-Hellmann leaving as the CEO of the Gates Foundation matters - Vox

The Gates Foundation has enormous impact. Its CEO leaving could have an enormous impact, too.
Sue Desmond-Hellmann has helped Bill Gates spend $5 billion a year.

The leaders who call the shots at major philanthropies are some of the most powerful people in the world that you’ve never heard of.

And one at the tippy-top of that list is stepping down in a rare changing of the guard at the Gates Foundation.

Sue Desmond-Hellmann, the CEO of the $50 billion charity, said she would leave her post next year due to health and family issues, ushering in a new era at what has been viewed as the tech sector’s most successful giant charity. Desmond-Hellmann has served as Bill Gates’s senior-most aide for the last five years, overseeing the world’s largest foundation that dispenses about $5 billion a year in grants.

And so while Desmond-Hellmann has not been a household name, she held enormous influence across the globe, shaping everything from malaria programs in Africa to billionaires’ willingness to participate in the Gates-led Giving Pledge. The CEO of a megafoundation is the type of person who operates with little scrutiny or accountability but whose opinions can ricochet around the world and direct the flow of billions of dollars.

That’s especially true if you’re the head of the Gates Foundation, which has been called, correctly, the nerve center of Big Philanthropy. The Gates Foundation is a role model for many newly wealthy who dream of enormous influence after their business careers, as Gates has had. In the 20 years since they established their foundation, the Gateses and their other rich peer, Warren Buffett, have made it bigger in assets than the older, legacy philanthropies that are icons, those named after people like Ford, Rockefeller, or Carnegie.

That’s made Desmond-Hellmann herself a big deal. A doctor and former AIDS researcher who rose high in the leadership ranks at Genentech, she’s only the third CEO of the CONTINUE READING: Why Sue Desmond-Hellmann leaving as the CEO of the Gates Foundation matters - Vox

Poverty Won’t Be Solved By Committee: Education For Liberation, Less Data More Freire – Wrench in the Gears

Poverty Won’t Be Solved By Committee: Education For Liberation, Less Data More Freire – Wrench in the Gears

Poverty Won’t Be Solved By Committee: Education For Liberation, Less Data More Freire

The video below is public testimony I gave to the Jobs and Education Subcommittee of Philadelphia City Council’s Special Committee on Poverty Reduction and Prevention on Thursday December 5, 2019 at Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School in North Philadelphia. It is my belief that this committee was created to jump start pay for success initiatives in our city, a city of deep poverty. You can read about the predatory nature of pay for success finance here.

In 2016, the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia prepared a white paper lauding Philadelphia’s potential to become a center for the impact economy. Perhaps we could even aspire to be the Silicon Valley of “impact!” Yes, we have THAT MUCH poverty, and Main Line venture capital interests are falling all over themselves to package the data of misery management for a tidy profit. See my previous post on social impact investing and public education in Philadelphia.

Here is my testimony. It’s about ten minutes long.

*Correction. I misspoke at the beginning of my testimony. Mass school closures in Philadelphia took place in 2015 not 2013.

It was SUCH a long hearing with six official panels and over twenty CONTINUE READING: Poverty Won’t Be Solved By Committee: Education For Liberation, Less Data More Freire – Wrench in the Gears

Broad Center to move from L.A. to Yale along with $100-million gift - Los Angeles Times

Broad Center to move from L.A. to Yale along with $100-million gift - Los Angeles Times

Broad Center to move from L.A. to Yale along with $100-million gift

The Broad Center, which has attracted praise and suspicion for its training of school district leaders, will move from Los Angeles to Yale University, along with a $100-million gift provided by founder Eli Broad, the center announced Thursday.

The donation is the largest ever for the Yale School of Management and will help fund a master’s program for public education leaders and advanced leadership training for top school system executives — efforts that had been undertaken by the center in Los Angeles.

The current participants will finish their work at the center in Los Angeles before the operation shifts to the East Coast.

“I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished in the last 20 years and I can think of no better future for the Broad Center than Yale University,” Broad said in a statement.

Broad, an 86-year-old billionaire, has recently been planning for the future path of his endeavors in various fields, including medicine and art, for which he has funded research and advocacy.

The Broad Center has received praise for offering a fresh and evolving take on school district management outside traditional education.

As described by Broad and center leaders, the mission was twofold: to attract and train talented leaders from outside education — including business executives and senior military officers — and to provide needed skills to career educators who rose through the ranks, often starting as teachers.

“The job of leading a large urban school district or a district of any size is incredibly complex, difficult and important,” said Executive Director Becca Bracy Knight. “Instruction is at the core, but other pieces are needed to make that happen well: transportation, food services, safe facilities, hiring and development, external communication and communicating with the community, board governance, and labor relations.”

The center has two tracks: an academy for people in top leadership positions and a residency, which targets earlier career professionals and recently began offering a master’s degree.

Separate from the center, Broad has been a major funder of privately operated, CONTINUE READING: Broad Center to move from L.A. to Yale along with $100-million gift - Los Angeles Times

Teacher Platforms (Ben Williamson) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Teacher Platforms (Ben Williamson) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Teacher Platforms (Ben Williamson)

“Ben Williamson is a Chancellor’s Fellow at the Centre for Research in Digital Education and the Edinburgh Futures Institute at the University of Edinburgh. His research traces the connections between educational policy, digital technologies, and practices in schools and universities. He is the author of Big Data in Education: The digital future of learning, policy and practice (Sage, 2017) and over 30 research articles and chapters.“

Amazon has launched a new service allowing teachers to sell and buy education resources through its platform.

The massive multinational platform company Amazon has announced a new service allowing teachers to sell lesson plans and classroom resources to other teachers. The service, Amazon Ignite, is moving into a space where Teachers Pay Teachers and TES Teaching Resources have already established markets for the selling and buying of teaching materials. These services have reimagined the teacher as an online content producer, and Amazon has previously dabbled in this area with its Amazon Inspire ‘open educational resources’ service for free resource-sharing. But Amazon Ignite much more fully captures the teaching profession as a commercial opportunity.

The operating model of Amazon Ignite is very simple. Teachers can produce content, such as lesson plans, worksheets, study guides, games, and classroom resources, and upload them as Word, Powerpoint or PDF files using the CONTINUE READING: Teacher Platforms (Ben Williamson) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice