Wednesday, March 10, 2021

THE TOP BANANA: TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES Wednesday, March 10, 2021 #REDFORED #tbats #REOPENSCHOOLSSAFELY #openonlywhensafe

THE TOP BANANA
TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES

Parents struggle with a new dilemma: Is it safe to send kids back to school? http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/lanowblog/~3/uB0QfsEv2dM/school-reopening-why-some-parents-reject-covid-return

Los Angeles: Teachers and District Strike a Tentative Deal | Diane Ravitch's blog - https://wp.me/p2odLa-tMe via @dianeravitch

LA reopening deal ends California's biggest schools standoff https://politi.co/2Ob793Q

Philadelphia teachers will soon have more options to get vaccinated, health commissioner says - Chalkbeat Philadelphia - https://philadelphia.chalkbeat.org/2021/3/9/22322180/philadelphia-teachers-will-soon-have-more-options-to-get-vaccinated-health-commissioner-says on chalkbeat

With “Justine,” Forsyth Harmon Charts Teen Queerness https://www.bitchmedia.org/article/justine-by-forsyth-harmon-interview

UC Davis offers to pay students $75 to stay put for spring break http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/lanowblog/~3/VKhwrh4uc78/uc-davis-offers-to-pay-students-to-stay-put-for-spring-break

L.A. schools could reopen starting in mid-April under deal with teachers http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/lanowblog/~3/x6IaJPor3Cw/la-school-district-teachers-reach-deal-on-school-reopenings

School regionalization plan appears to be on fast track https://www.njspotlight.com/2021/03/nj-school-regionalization-plan-sweeney-njea-bipartisan-approval/

Outrage in Camden over closure of three elementary schools https://www.njspotlight.com/video/outrage-in-camden-over-closure-of-three-elementary-schools/

The challenge is on to vaccinate New Jersey’s teachers https://www.njspotlight.com/video/the-challenge-is-on-to-vaccinate-new-jerseys-teachers/

Young Farmers Face A Barrier Their Parents Didn't: Student Loan Debt https://www.npr.org/2021/03/10/975545467/young-farmers-face-a-barrier-their-parents-didnt-student-loan-debt

New study of NYC school COVID-19 rates presents ‘compelling‘ evidence of low in-school transmission https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-analysis-school-covid-19-data-transmission-20210309-epaxi42255dnfjzxhhmtpxfjg4-story.html#ed=rss_www.nydailynews.com/arcio/rss/category/new-york/education/

Los Angeles Schools and Teachers’ Union Agree to Reopen Classrooms https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/us/los-angeles-schools-reopening-deal.html

Ed Notes Online: Jamaal Leads the Charge - Democrats split over Biden plan for academic testing during pandemic - Politico - https://ednotesonline.blogspot.com/2021/03/jamaal-leads-charge-democrats-split.html

Port Washington School Board Demands Waiver from Spring Testing | Diane Ravitch's blog - https://wp.me/p2odLa-tIz via @dianeravitch

Curmudgucation: Big Brother Knows What's in Your Heart | National Education Policy Center - https://nepc.colorado.edu/node/10804 on @NEPCtweet

Opinion | California’s Ethnic Studies Follies - The New York Times - https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/opinion/californias-ethnic-studies.html on @nytimes

Los Angeles agrees to reopen schools in April https://www.rawstory.com/los-angeles-agrees-to-reopen-schools-in-april/

Veien deler seg i to. Følg den røde. – Wrench in the Gears - https://wp.me/p7SU8W-20y

Back to School! Cleveland public school students set to return, first time in almost a year https://www.cleveland19.com/2021/03/09/back-school-cleveland-public-school-students-set-return-first-time-almost-year/

The Isolation of New Parenthood During the Pandemic http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheAtlantic/~3/M9JKbQqNb-c/

Slowly, More Students Return to Classrooms https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/10/us/schools-reopening.html

L.A. schools finally have a clear reopening plan. Here is what you need to know http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/lanowblog/~3/Y3Qp5g6tQoA/covid-reopening-plan-la-schools-what-to-know

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to sign bill banning transgender girls from female sports https://www.cbsnews.com/news/south-dakota-governor-kristi-noem-bill-ban-transgender-girls-female-sports/ via @CBSNews

What changes were made before Cleveland teachers union agreed to return? - cleveland.com - https://www.cleveland.com/news/2021/03/what-changes-were-made-before-cleveland-teachers-union-agreed-to-return.html on @clevelanddotcom

What to know about the Mass. plan to reopen K-8 public schools in April | Boston.com - https://www.boston.com/?p=21661573 by n-decosta-klipa

Philly students could attend school this summer and stay hybrid in the fall, the superintendent says - https://www.inquirer.com/education/philadelphia-school-district-reopen-hybrid-20210309.html#new_tab via @PhillyInquirer

Guns-in-schools bill heads to the House floor - https://idahoednews.org/pcuYv via @idahoednews

Austin school district plans to cut 200 jobs through attrition - https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/03/05/austin-school-district-cut-jobs-positions-falling-enrollment/4602806001/#new_tab via @statesman

Boston school bus drivers to picket over alleged lack of COVID-19 protocols | Boston.com - https://www.boston.com/?p=21659276 by christopher-gavin

Rep. Harold Dutton files bill that would clear way for takeover of Houston ISD board by state - https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/education/article/Rep-Harold-Dutton-files-bill-that-would-clear-16011929.php#new_tab on @houstonchron

USDA announces free school meals for youths through summer http://a.msn.com/01/en-us/BB1eqg9g?ocid=st

The Problem With the CDC’s Six-Foot Rule for Schools - https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/03/the-problem-with-the-cdcs-six-foot-rule-for-schools.html#new_tab on @intelligencer

 Proposed Memorandum of Understanding Between Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) & Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA)

Safely Reopening Schools to In-Person Instruction/Services March 9, 2021

 - https://returntogether.scusd.edu/sites/main/files/file-attachments/scta_revised_proposal_reopening_3-9-213.pdf#new_tab 

Plano schools bringing in outside investigators after viral claims of racist bullying and abuse - https://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/2021/03/09/plano-schools-bringing-in-outside-investigators-after-viral-claims-of-racist-bullying-and-abuse/#new_tab via @dallasnews

Metro Nashville Public Schools plans to use stimulus to give teachers $1,000 - https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/education/2021/03/09/metro-nashville-public-schools-plans-use-stimulus-give-teachers-1000/6887078002/#new_tab via @tennessean

Big Education Ape: Minnesota: Time for the Failed “Reformers” to Leave the Schools Alone | Diane Ravitch's blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/minnesota-time-for-failed-reformers-to.html

Big Education Ape: Teacher Tom: What the Evidence Tells Us We Should Be Doing in Our Schools - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/teacher-tom-what-evidence-tells-us-we.html

Big Education Ape: Fact Checking “Cancel Culture” – radical eyes for equity - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/fact-checking-cancel-culture-radical.html

Big Education Ape: Great News: Vouchers Blocked Again in Texas! | Diane Ravitch's blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/great-news-vouchers-blocked-again-in.html

Big Education Ape: Call Congress Today to Stop Testing - Network For Public Education - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/call-congress-today-to-stop-testing.html

Big Education Ape: Jeff Bryant in German News Weekly Die Zeit: The fixation on testing is deeply anchored in education officials in Washington DC | Ed Politics - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/jeff-bryant-in-german-news-weekly-die.html

Big Education Ape: Rep. Jamaal Bowman Leads Effort to Reverse Federal Stance on Testing | Diane Ravitch's blog - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/rep-jamaal-bowman-leads-effort-to.html

Big Education Ape: NYC Educator: My New Job - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/nyc-educator-my-new-job.html

Big Education Ape: Strategic Advocacy Over Decades Brought Us an Expanded Child Tax Credit: Can the Same Kind of Strategic Organizing Produce School Funding Reform? | janresseger - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/strategic-advocacy-over-decades-brought.html

Big Education Ape: NYC Public School Parents: Letter from members of Congress to Sec. Cardona asking him to waive the tests; and how to have your voice heard - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/nyc-public-school-parents-letter-from.html

Big Education Ape: Yong Zhao: New article: Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap - Education in the Age of Globalization - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/yong-zhao-new-article-build-back-better.html

Big Education Ape: A VERY BUSY DAY Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007 #REOPENSCHOOLSSAFELY #openonlywhensafe - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/a-very-busy-day-larry-ferlazzos_10.html

Big Education Ape: DID YOU MISS DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG TODAY? A site to discuss better education for all #REDFORED #tbats #CANCELTEST #REOPENSCHOOLSSAFELY - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/03/did-you-miss-diane-ravitchs-blog-today.html

YESTERDAY

THE TOP BANANA: TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES Tuesday, March 9, 2021 #REDFORED #tbats #REOPENSCHOOLSSAFELY #openonlywhensafe

by Mike Simpson / 23h

Big Education Ape THE TOP BANANA TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES Homeroom: How Grandparents Can Help With Online Learning http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheAtlantic/~3/8K1U0iZ90f0/ Education Research Report: Does Online Course-Taking Increase High School Completion and Open Pathways to Postsecondary Education Opportunities? - http://educationresearchreport.blogspot.com/ Nearly 3,000 NOLA Public Schoo

Big Education Ape

Minnesota: Time for the Failed “Reformers” to Leave the Schools Alone | Diane Ravitch's blog

Minnesota: Time for the Failed “Reformers” to Leave the Schools Alone

After thirty years of devotion to “reform” (aka, deform or disruption), reform leaders in Minnesota are proposing a state constitutional amendment that will install more mischief into the state’s public schools. Rob Levine, an ardent critic of privatization, has written this account of their multiple failures and their plans to try yet again to impose their ideas on the state’s schools. He wrote this post at my request, after I saw his tweets about the travesty that “reformers” are promoting. Rob is a “follow the money” kind of person, which unsurprisingly removes the veil from bold promises that never come true. Minnesota is allowing big money to dictate the fate of its schools. Is there any accountability in the state for thirty years of failure? Why do “reformers” never learn from their failures?

He writes:

In the Fall of 2022 Minnesotans may be voting on a constitutional amendment that will fundamentally change state law around public education. How will this change public education? Surprisingly, even the authors profess not to know the answer to this question. The only thing certain about the proposed amendment is that it will CONTINUE READING: Minnesota: Time for the Failed “Reformers” to Leave the Schools Alone | Diane Ravitch's blog

Teacher Tom: What the Evidence Tells Us We Should Be Doing in Our Schools

What the Evidence Tells Us We Should Be Doing in Our Schools

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Economic Forum, and Unicef (and according to the dubious measurement of standardized test scores) Finland has the best schools in the world. They have achieved this status by building their educational system on evidence. The US languishes around the middle of the pack, often falling into the bottom half according to some measures. We have achieved this lack of success by relying upon the busy-body guesswork of policy makers, billionaire dilettantes, and administrators who listen to them.

It shouldn't be surprising that the system based on evidence, on research, on reality, would outperform the one based on the fantasies and feelings of people who are not professional educators. In Finland, they do not try to teach kindergarteners to read because the evidence tells us that formal literacy instruction should not start until at least the age of seven and that children who are compelled into it too early often suffer emotionally and academically in the long run. In the US we are forcing kindergartners, and even CONTINUE READING: Teacher Tom: What the Evidence Tells Us We Should Be Doing in Our Schools

Fact Checking “Cancel Culture” – radical eyes for equity

Fact Checking “Cancel Culture”

Every white person in this country—and I do not care what he or she says—knows one thing. They may not know, as they put it, “what I want,” but they know they would not like to be black here. If they know that, then they know everything they need to know, and whatever else they say is a lie.
ON LANGUAGE, RACE AND THE BLACK WRITER, JAMES BALDWIN (LOS ANGELES TIMES, 1979)

If we can take seriously the high-quality source, the actor who plays Mr. Bean, it appears we should be fearful of a future where there is no freedom of speech because “what we have now is the digital equivalent of the medieval mob roaming the streets looking for someone to burn,” claims Rowan Atkinson.

Of course, this is but one of many alarm bells about the scourge of “cancel culture.”

It would be easy to smile at Atkinson’s goofy face and brush this off—except there are dire consequences to this manufactured crisis. Take for just one example the language being used to propose legislation in my home state of South Carolina.

“Pushing back against what they called America’s ‘woke mob,’ a group of GOP lawmakers want to protect South Carolina historic monuments and markers and penalize any community or elected official that removes them,” writes Adam Benson for the Post and Courier (Charleston, SC). CONTINUE READING: Fact Checking “Cancel Culture” – radical eyes for equity

Great News: Vouchers Blocked Again in Texas! | Diane Ravitch's blog

Great News: Vouchers Blocked Again in Texas!

Our wonderful allies, Pastors for Texas Children, send us wonderful news: Friends of public education raised their voices, stood together, and stopped new voucher legislation!

Vouchers Blocked Again!

Last week, we celebrated the victory of your tireless advocacy for public education funding for our children when we announced Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to extend “hold harmless.” Today, we have another piece of good news:

The voucher proposal in this session’s House Bill 3 has been removed.

In a meeting earlier today with Pastors for Texas Children and Raise Your Hand Texas, HB 3 author Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) indicated that all education issues, including vouchers, are being taken out of the bill. This change will be reflected in a committee substitute later this week. We thank Chairman Burrows and Gov. Abbott for their wisdom in removing the voucher from the bill.

PTC Executive Director Rev. Charles Johnson gives “joyous testimony to the love and support Texans have for their neighborhood and community public schools – and firm opposition to the privatization of them through vouchers.”

“That we have to keep delivering that memo to the Governor and a third of the Legislature is outrageous and unacceptable,” he says.

Year after year, Pastors for Texas Children will continue to deliver that message, with your help.

In case you missed it, HB3 is a pandemic response bill that deals CONTINUE READING: Great News: Vouchers Blocked Again in Texas! | Diane Ravitch's blog

Call Congress Today to Stop Testing - Network For Public Education

Call Congress Today to Stop Testing

In December of 2019, candidate Joe Biden promised that if elected, he would stop standardized testing. His Department of Ed, however, said that we should have testing in the middle of the pandemic.

We pushed back and today, we have good news! Some members of Congress are asking the U.S. Department of Education to change its mind about testing! Read about it here. Let’s give them our support TODAY!

We need more members of Congress to get on board. We can’t give up.

1. Call Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office at: (202) 225-4965.

Here is a suggested script.

My name is (name). I am calling to request that Speaker Pelosi ask the President and Secretary Cardona to grant waivers from annual testing. Forcing schools to administer annual tests undermines the administration’s call to support our students’ social-emotional and mental health in this time of crisis. We need to put children, not data, first. Thank you.“

2. Then call your Representative and Senators. You can find their numbers here and here.

Here is a suggested script.

“My name is (name), and I am a constituent of (name). I strongly oppose the Department of Ed’s recent letter that forces schools to administer annual tests this year. All of our schools’ efforts must be used to support our students’ social-emotional and mental health in this time of crisis. I am requesting that (name) speak with the President and Secretary Cardona and ask them to grant waivers from the annual testing mandate. Thank you.”

Call Congress Today to Stop Testing - Network For Public Education

Jeff Bryant in German News Weekly Die Zeit: The fixation on testing is deeply anchored in education officials in Washington DC | Ed Politics

JEFF BRYANT IN GERMAN NEWS WEEKLY DIE ZEIT: THE FIXATION ON TESTING IS DEEPLY ANCHORED IN EDUCATION OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON DC

In an interview with Die Zeit’s United States correspondent Heike Buchter, Jeff Bryant explains what’s behind the decision by the Biden administration to enforce the federal mandate for student academic testing in a pandemic even before incoming education secretary Miguel Cardona took office. Excerpts:

“‘[Cardona’s] life story must have played a big role in his nomination,’ says Jeff Bryant, chief correspondent for Our Schools, a project that promotes public education…Cardona’s options for combating this existential crisis with grants and orders are limited. As in the federal German system, education is a matter for the federal states and municipalities in the USA. But he could use the political influence of his office, says education activist Jeff Bryant…The effects of the pandemic are adding to the pressure. The Chamber of Commerce, the lobbying association of large corporations, is concerned about the learning deficits among many students. The fixation on metrics, as they are common in business, is now deeply anchored in education officials in Washington, says Jeff Bryant. This is shown, among other things, in the fact that the Biden government announced before Cardona’s inauguration last week that it wanted to hold the annual state exams to record the effects of the pandemic on school performance. DeVos suspended testing last year.”

https://www.zeit.de/2021/10/miguel-cardona-us-bildungsminister-schule-corona-pandemie/komplettansicht

Jeff Bryant in German News Weekly Die Zeit: The fixation on testing is deeply anchored in education officials in Washington DC | Ed Politics

Rep. Jamaal Bowman Leads Effort to Reverse Federal Stance on Testing | Diane Ravitch's blog

Rep. Jamaal Bowman Leads Effort to Reverse Federal Stance on Testing

Before he became a member of Congress, Jamaal Bowman was principal of a middle school in the Bronx. He knows what kids need: more support, not more testing. He is now vice chair of the House Education Committee. In New York, before entering Congress, he was an active member of the opt-out of testing movement. He is now spearheading an effort to roll back the Biden administration’s refusal to grant waivers to states from the mandated federal testing.

He wrote a letter to Secretary Miguel Cardona and gathered signatures from other members of Congress. What is remarkable is how few members signed his letter.

Bowman said that requiring testing this year would add stress to kids who are already traumatized and divert school administrators’ resources and attention away from reopening safely.

“We absolutely should not be doing this now in the middle of a pandemic,” he said in an interview, adding that it CONTINUE READING: Rep. Jamaal Bowman Leads Effort to Reverse Federal Stance on Testing | Diane Ravitch's blog

NYC Educator: My New Job

My New Job

My first year as a teacher was my worst. I did a lot of on-the-job learning. One thing I learned was that my supervisor was out of her freaking mind. I had no experience. She promised to help me with grading, failed to do so, and then managed to hate me and everything I stood for when I didn't get grades in on time. This resulted in things like not getting enough books when I needed them and having a kid named Frankie steal them out of the bookroom for me.

I had students who made me crazy, but some who were helpful. One, after I told him I was going crazy keeping up with all the mail in my box, kindly arrived every morning before I did and tossed it all into the trash. While I missed meetings and such as a result, I could always say I was never notified, and no one was able to prove otherwise. During my second year, I was in a new school with a new supervisor who was actually supportive, and I started to grow into the job a little.

Every year was a little better, until this one. I'm doing the best I can, and I'm not getting into any particular trouble beyond that of being chapter leader. That's perpetual, and I've grown used to it. I'll go so far as to say helping people is very rewarding and despite my complaints, I ultimately love doing it.

But man, this year is my second worst. Online learning thing is just not what I signed up for. I would never have lasted in a job that entailed sitting at a desk, and that's the job I have now. While we may open wider next year, I don't think we're going back to doing what we actually do.

In our school, we had until March 8th to negotiate with students to resolve NX grades. I had a few on the borderline, pushed them a little, and managed to get them to pass CONTINUE READING: NYC Educator: My New Job

Strategic Advocacy Over Decades Brought Us an Expanded Child Tax Credit: Can the Same Kind of Strategic Organizing Produce School Funding Reform? | janresseger

Strategic Advocacy Over Decades Brought Us an Expanded Child Tax Credit: Can the Same Kind of Strategic Organizing Produce School Funding Reform?

On Saturday, after the U.S. Senate joined the U.S. House of Representatives to pass President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan, I started thinking about how a huge coalition and strong advocates can sustain support for an important reform even through times that feel bleak and hopeless. Now, as a result of persistent and strategic advocacy, suddenly an election of new leaders has on some level adjusted our society’s collective notion of the role of government.

Welfare reform imposed policies that punished parents who were not working by reducing their access to public assistance. In doing so, President Bill Clinton and the Congress that replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families entirely neglected the needs of America’s poorest children. But as of this weekend, by expanding the Child Tax Credit, Congress accepted the idea that as a society we bear collective responsibility for the well-being of our children. And while the expanded Child Tax Credit is part of this year’s time-limited pandemic relief, my Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and Colorado Senator Michael Bennett have promised to try to make the changes permanent.

Back in 2004, I read Jason DeParle’s powerful book, American Dream: Three Women, Ten Kids, and a Nation’s Drive to End Welfare, about how the 1996 welfare reform harmed children. Since then I have filled my clipping file with DeParle’s articles about our collective responsibility for poor children, most recently last summer, when DeParle pushed for expanding the Child Tax Credit in the NY Times and the New York Review of Books. At the same time, I realized that powerful research and advocacy organizations—including First Focus on Children, the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the Urban Institute, and the Brookings Institution—were working to expand the CONTINUE READING: Strategic Advocacy Over Decades Brought Us an Expanded Child Tax Credit: Can the Same Kind of Strategic Organizing Produce School Funding Reform? | janresseger

NYC Public School Parents: Letter from members of Congress to Sec. Cardona asking him to waive the tests; and how to have your voice heard

Letter from members of Congress to Sec. Cardona asking him to waive the tests; and how to have your voice heard

See the letter sent today by members of Congress to our newly-confirmed Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, asking him to grant waivers so that states do not have to give students the federally-mandated exams this year, in the midst of the pandemic. This letter was spearheaded by newly-elected Representative Jamaal Bowman from the Bronx and Westchester, and a former Bronx middle school principal. More on this here.

On Feb. 22, the letter from the US Department of Education, rejecting state waivers before Sec. Cardona even took office was signed by Ian Rosenblum, an acting assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education and the former executive director of the pro-testing organization, Education Trust-New York.

As Rep. Bowman points out, “Mr. Rosenblum, with all due respect, has never been a teacher or school administrator in his life, and it’s important that our parents and educators know that these decisions are being made by people who do not have the experience to make those decisions. That’s unacceptable in and of itself.”

A few days ago, Diane Ravitch posted on her page a list of the organizations that signed a previous letter on Feb. 3, urging the US Education Dept. not to grant waivers for testing. This letter was led by Rosenblum's previous employer Ed Trust. Diane also including information we had gathered on the many millions of dollars these organizations had received by the pro-testing, billionaire-led Gates and Walton Foundation. She also posted the list of organizations and the millions of Walton and Gates funds given the organizations that signed onto a press release on Feb. 23, also led by Ed Trust, posted the day after Rosenblum rejected the waivers, urging the Department not to grant states any flexibility in this regard:

"The Department must not, as part of its promised state-by-state “flexibility,” grant waivers to states that would allow them to substitute local assessments in place of statewide assessments or to only assess a subset of students.

If you want to have your voice heard over the insistent shouts of the billionaires and the groups that they fund, you should call the US Dept. of Education at 800-872-5327 from 9 AM-5 PM; press #3, and tell them to cancel the tests.

NYC Public School Parents: Letter from members of Congress to Sec. Cardona asking him to waive the tests; and how to have your voice heard

Yong Zhao: New article: Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap - Education in the Age of Globalization

Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » New article: Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap

New article: Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap

Abstract

A dangerous trap exists for educators and education policy makers: the learning loss. This trap comes with a large amount of data and with sophisticated projection methods. It presents a stunningly grim picture for education and it invites educators and policy makers to make wrong decisions and invest in wrong things. The article identifies a number of undesirable outcomes that their concerns could lead to. It also suggests several productive actions when the pandemic is controlled and schools reopen. My article Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap published in Prospects on March 4 2021. Below is the abstract and you can read here.

A dangerous trap exists for educators and education policy makers. This trap comes with a large amount of data and with sophisticated projection methods. It presents a stunningly grim picture for education. This trap invites educators and policy makers to make wrong decisions and invest in wrong things.

The learning loss

The trap is the so-called learning losses during the Covid-19 pandemic. A number of organizations and individuals have put out various estimates about what students have lost due to school closures and remote learning during the pandemic. For CONTINUE READING: Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » New article: Build back better: Avoid the learning loss trap

Latest News and Comment from Education

Wednesday, March 10, 2021