For Book Banners, It's Never Enough
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Fans of reading restrictions like to point at the most extreme cases, books
with graphic depictions of sex acts. And there's no doubt that there are
some w...
Outside My Kitchen Window
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If you live in North America, chances are you might live near a Cooper’s
Hawk. You might be lucky enough to spot a Cooper’s Hawk darting through
trees...
“Science” as Bad Faith Bullying
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[Header Photo by jesse orrico on Unsplash] The more things change, the more
things stay the same. Especially in America. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The
Great Ga...
Around the Public Education Horn
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[image: Image]
Look what's on the DOGE Dopey Boys list, *Head Start and Pell Grants.* I
would bet they get rid of some of the Department of Education in...
Gifts of Christmas Past
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In a holiday-themed archetype of legislative overreach, Alabama passed an
ethics law back in 2011, forbidding K-12 school teachers from accepting
expensive...
Trump and McMahon’s America First Agenda
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Linda McMahon, Trump's nominee for Secretary of Education, is Board Chair
of America First, which has an agenda for K-12 schools. It is filled with a
sub...
Building Community Amid Uncertain Doom
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Over the last few weeks, I’ve had good opportunities to be “in community.”
One of those opportunities happened at The Cutting Room, where School of
...
...
SPI Leads Effort to Protect U.S. Education Dept.
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State Superintendent Tony Thurmond meets with members of Congress, leading
effort across states to protect the United States Department of Education.
1798
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Year 1798
__________
Three alien acts gave the president the power “without trial or even a
statement of his reasons, to banish foreigners from the ...
Billionaire Sponsored Malarkey from Education Trust
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By Thomas Ultican 12/3/2024 Education Trust (aka EdTrust), using what it
calls equity analysis, critiqued various states’ Every Student Succeeds Act
(ESSA)...
Peace at the Thanksgiving Dinner Table
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I was concerned about having Thanksgiving with family because I did not
want to get into heated political discussions about the 2024 presidential
election....
Education Has Failed and What Can We Do Next?
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Education has failed to prepare children for the world today. Despite the
increased investment, impactful reforms, hardworking teachers and school
leaders,...
Defining Productivity, Cost, and Efficiency
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Recycled material here… The central problem with US public schools is often
characterized as an efficiency problem. We spend a lot and don’t get much
for i...
November Parent Engagement Resources
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Greeting a family in their preferred language is a small gesture that
demonstrates respect and eagerness to connect with parents. Creating a
Welcoming Envi...
An Apology
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I want to apologize for not responding personally to those who shared their
views on last week’s blog post, my analysis of why the Democrats lost.
I’ve be...
¡Si, ganamos!
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En victorias desde la Carolinia del Norte hacia el Estado de Washington y
Maine, encontramos la evidencia que cuando nos organizamos, ganamos.
Siempre encu...
A message from Quaker Meeting for Worship
-
the branch of Society of Friends to which I belong is unprogrammed, we have
no designated ministers. Anyone who feels moved by the Spirit is free to
rise...
Try Substack?
-
Seems like the popular new thing. Here’s my first try – it’s about
yesterday’s UFT Retired Teachers Chapter meeting – first ever not run by
Unity. (Spoiler...
Number 18 — A barely-hanging-on Blogoversary
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Blogoversary #18 SEPTEMBER 14, 2006 I started this blog while I was still
teaching, in 2006. I had just begun my 31st year as an educator. Just like
in pre...
Student "Growth" Measures Are STILL Biased
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This caught my attention:
New Jersey school districts may soon be evaluated differently, *with a
greater emphasis on student growth* as compared to stud...
AIN’T IT AWFUL
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As the terrible feelings of dread and angst spread across the world the
great majority of the American people feel powerless before the onslaught
of those ...
15 Questions for the Candidates
-
Those citizens who fantasize about defying tyranny from within fortified
compounds have never understood how liberty is actually threatened in a
modern bur...
We are making a CPESS documentary!
-
In 2020, I was approached by Deborah Meier and Jane Andrais and I decided
we should document the story of Central Park East Secondary School (CPESS).
This ...
The Sky is Falling, or is it?
-
Well, this is the first anniversary of the introduction of Generative AI in
the form of ChatGPT to the world of education. Before it was a week old,
over o...
Vote NO on the UFT Contract. Here is Why:
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The best reason to vote no on this contract is this: UFT Unity* lied* to us
in 2018. They misrepresented that contract. It was predicated on deals we
wer...
Metaphors in ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech
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In this article, we will explore the powerful use of metaphors in Martin
Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” ...
Read more
Testimony to the CPS Truancy Task Force
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I prepared testimony for one of two public hearings held by the Chicago
Public Schools Truancy Task Force, a body mandated by state legislation.
The meetin...
Skin Deep
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She spends so much time on her outward appearance. There is never a hair
out of place. Her makeup is perfect and her clothes are stylish and match
to ...
There Is A Teacher Shortage.Not.
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THERE IS A TEACHER SHORTAGE. And just to be sure you understand, it’s not
that teachers don’t want to teach. It’s not that there aren’t enough
teachers cer...
THERE IS A TEACHER SHORTAGE. NOT!
-
There is a teacher shortage.And just to be sure you understand, it's not
that teachers don't want to teach.It's not that there aren't enough
teachers certi...
Abortion: Only For Those Who Need It!
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NOTE: This post contains my opinions on Catholicism based on my experiences
as a child in the 1960's and 70's. Take what you like and leave the rest. I
m...
Book Banning Turns to Dick and Jane
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Breaking News: Dateline February 4, 2022 - Parents in Dimwitty, Alabama
have asked the Dimwitty Board of Education to ban the children's primer *Fun
with...
On the Edge of Silence
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“There is but one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide.
Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the
fundamen...
Have You Heard Has a New Website
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TweetHave You Heard has a new website. Visit us at
www.haveyouheardpodcast.com to find our latest episodes and our entire
archive. And be sure to check out...
Follow me at Substack
-
I've moved. Follow me at Substack
I'm now posting regularly at Substack. You can subscribe for free to my new
Edu/Pol blog at michaelklonsky.substack.com
...
Aspiring Teachers Get New Help Paying For College
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[image: colorful classroom pattern]
*; Credit: shuoshu/Getty Images*
Cory Turner | NPR
New rules kick in today that will help aspiring teachers pay for c...
Tips Akses Situs Judi Qq Tanpa Perlu Takut Nawala
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Kegiatan berjudi slot melalui situs judi qq online, sekarang sudah
dilakukan oleh banyak penjudi Indonesia. Tentu, Kamu yang sedang membaca
artikel ini a...
GA run-offs need your help!
-
Extremely important. Volunteer if you can. Thank you if you are already
doing so. Out of state opportunities here: Ralph …
Continue reading →
The Threat of Integration
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I have lived in the same house in the Miracle Mile section of Los Angeles
for over 30 years, where up until now I have had little or no interaction
with th...
We fight for a democracy worthy of us all!
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The nation stands at a crossroads, said NEA President Lily Eskelsen GarcÃa
in her final keynote address to the 2020 NEA Representative Assembly and
it’s up...
The Passing Of Chaz 1951-2020 Age 69
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I am the son of Chaz and like to inform you that he passed away this
afternoon from the COVID virus. My father passed in peace beside his loved
ones. We ar...
Thoughts on schooling in the era of COVID-19
-
Well, a whole lot has changed since I returned to blogging a month and half
ago. In case you didn't notice, and I'm sure everyone reading this did,
there's...
NAEP scores and "the science of reading"
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*Sent to US News. They just informed me that they no longer publish
letters to the editor. *
*Re: “National reading emergency” November 12*
*[https://www...
Poverty vs District School Performance
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This ranking lists all Louisiana school systems and certain individual
schools in order of increasing poverty. The table includes the district
performanc...
2019 NAEP Scores: Achievement Gap or …?
-
Here you go: A ‘Disturbing’ Assessment: Sagging Reading Scores,
Particularly for Eighth-Graders, Headline 2019’s Disappointing NAEP Results
NAEP 2019: Re...
Cara Menang Bermain Judi Bola Online
-
Bermain judi bola online tentu saja memiliki kesenangannya tersendiri baik
itu mendapatkan keuntungan maupun ketika menantikan hasil skor pada sebuah
perta...
A Storm is Coming! (…again)
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A new Commissioner will have as much impact on our state ed system as a new
meteorologist will have on …
Continue reading →
The World According to Michelle Rhee
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The men behind the curtain fashioning the brave new world of corporate run
education in America! Michelle Rhee is the founder of StudentsFirst, The
New T...
Blockchain: Life on the Ledger
-
Originally posted on Wrench in the Gears:
I created this video as a follow up to the one I prepared last year on
Social Impact Bonds. It is time to examine...
New Local Businesses in Sacramento
-
Starting a new local business in Sacramento is a monumental task, but can
be accomplished with footwork, perseverance and knowledge. One must learn
the loc...
3rd Grade Reading: Who is Failing?
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Education Trust Midwest has just released its study on third grade reading
and, predictably, the results aren’t great. This study uniquely compares
Michiga...
Opting out of the Dinosaur (end of year test)
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Today I sent in a second letter to refuse PARCC/CMAS for my son, Luke. The
first email I sent at the beginning of the year was not sufficient as they
requi...
Resurrection
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I realized it's Lent, but this blog, bless Jesus Christ, can't wait.
Ok, so with that said, I plan to discuss Class Action suits in existence,
as well as w...
IDEA Is Still The Law Of The Land
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Unless you've been living under a rock, you know the US Department of
Education (USDOE) rescinded 72 Dear Colleague and other letters of
explanation to ...
Education Is a Civic Question
-
In their final post to end Bridging Differences' decade-long run, Deborah
Meier and Harry Boyte urge readers to put the energy, talents, wisdom, and
hard w...
Site News: New Home for Education News & Commentary
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Quick! Get over there! The daily education news roundup and education
commentaries that you're probably looking for are now being published over
at The Gra...
An Open Letter to NC Lawmakers
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An Open Letter to NC State Lawmakers and NC State Superintendent Mark
Johnson: I am a NC native, voter, and public school teacher. I am
addressing you all ...
The Secret to Fixing Schools (My Next Bestseller)
-
The Secret to Fixing Schools (My next bestseller) Prologue I just finished
watching a fascinating documentary on Netflix entitled, “The Secret”. The
film p...
Farewell, Sleep
-
Today is the official last day of my spring break. I've done a scientific
survey: My natural bedtime is 2 AM, and my natural wake up time is 9:41
AM. Tom...
Capturing the Spark
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It’s been a long time since InterACT was an active education blog, though I
remain quite proud of what we did here. Those of us who wrote blog posts
here h...
Random Musings and Observations. . . .
-
I’ve been gone a while from the blogging scene. Some of my more regular
readers no doubt noticed but did not hassle me about it. Thank you for
that. Sinc...
MY NEW BLOG
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My new blog will consist of fictitious headlines, meant to be a blend of
humor and satire. I apologize ahead of time if any other satirical site has
simila...
Dear White Educators
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Dear White Educators,
I struggle with you. I struggle with me. I struggle with how, if, and when
to write us this letter. There is no perfect time, no per...
Thank you
-
Dear Readers,
Thank you for visiting *The Perimeter Primate*. This blog is being retired
for the time being. Although I no longer post here, I do still s...
I am Retiring
-
I have some news: I am retiring from the PBS NewsHour and Learning Matters.
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other
conte...
Flaws at the Heart of Current Education Reforms
-
Originally posted on Creative by Nature:
“Teaching is an art form rooted in the wise and careful use of educational
research and assessment tools. When gove...
The MAP Test
-
Teachers will be voting this afternoon on the contract that has been
tentatively agreed upon. I am asking all teachers to not allow an
evaluation system th...
NAACP ratifies controversial resolution for a moratorium on charter schools - The Washington Post : NAACP ratifies controversial resolution for a moratorium on charter schools The North Carolina NAACP’s president, Rev. William Barber, gestures during a news conference in Richmond in June. On Saturday, national NAACP leaders backed a moratorium on the expansion of charter schools. (Steve Helber/AP
CURMUDGUCATION : Catch up with CURMUDGUCATION There Are More Important Things 17 by Peter Greene / 2h This is Homecoming week at my high school; Thursday parade, Friday game, and tonight, the Big Dance. It's a big deal. I've been the Student Council adviser in charge of all this stuff for years and years now, and I never cease to be amazed at how worked up some students get about it. After all, i
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Rehabilitating Rahm Emanuel : Rehabilitating Rahm Emanuel After spending much of the past year in the Democrats' dog house, it appears Rahm is being rehabilitated. Now that Clinton feels that IL in the bag, it's becoming safe for party regulars, including POTUS himself, to be seen and even have their pictures taken with the mayor. On Tuesday, Emanuel felt confident
Breaking News: Charter Resolution Ratified by @NAACP National Board – Cloaking Inequity : Breaking News: Charter Resolution Ratified by @NAACP National Board Statement Regarding the NAACP’s Resolution on a Moratorium on Charter Schools CINCINNATI – Members of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Board of Directors ratified a resolution Saturday adopted by delegat
gbrown: "Democracy Now" Award-Winning Journalist Amy Goodman to Turn Herself in to North Dakota Authorities on Monday Oct. 17 : "Democracy Now" Award-Winning Journalist Amy Goodman to Turn Herself in to North Dakota Authorities on Monday Oct. 17 "'I will go back to North Dakota to fight this charge. It is a clear violation of the First Amendment,' said Goodman. 'I was doing my job as a journalist
LAUSD’s Huntington Park Considers Charter School Moratorium | deutsch29 : LAUSD’s Huntington Park Considers Charter School Moratorium Los Angeles is the center of a major push by billionaires Eli Broad and the Waltons to expand the charter school sector. However, a new, potential complication to the billionaire will for charter schools for non-billionaire children is the sensible idea that public
October 2016 Information Memoranda - State Board of Education (CA Dept of Education) : October 2016 Information Memoranda Background information and updates on issues of interest to the State Board Members. Periodically, the State Board Members may receive information memoranda from State Board staff and the California Department of Education. The information memoranda may include background info
DoED settlement: For-profit school must scale back student success claims - CSMonitor.com : DoED settlement: For-profit school must scale back student success claims Advertisements for DeVry, a for-profit university, claimed that since 1975, 90 percent of graduates find a job within six months of graduation. The government says that those claims are unsubstantiated. The US Department of Education
Minority students are underrepresented at the nation’s top public schools - MarketWatch : Minority students are underrepresented at the nation’s top public schools More evidence our nation’s top public schools are turning into bastions of wealthy, white students Our public higher education system, typically thought of as a great equalizer, isn’t as great an engine of social mobility as we imagine
Mayor Kenney Blasts School Reform Commissioner’s Approach To Languishing Teacher Contract Talks « CBS Philly : Mayor Kenney Blasts School Reform Commissioner’s Approach To Languishing Teacher Contract Talks CITY HALL (CBS) — The four-year-old stalemate between the Philadelphia School District and its teachers appears to be fraying nerves, and not just between the union and the district. On Friday
Tada! Students Soon to Get Trained Dance and Theatre Teachers : Tada! Students Soon to Get Trained Dance and Theatre Teachers TADA! made it through both houses of the legislature, buoyed by the support of the California Teachers Association, California Federation of Teachers, California Dance Education Association and California Educational Theatre Association. This effort picked up many vocal al
Reinvigorating Our Unions: Organizing Ourselves First, to Meet the Changing Times | Alternet : Reinvigorating Our Unions: Organizing Ourselves First, to Meet the Changing Times A union president explains how labor needs to adjust to be relevant today. This isn’t your father’s labor movement. Back when my dad was a Cleveland bus driver and member of the Amalgamated Transit Union, Americans had a m
Response: There is 'Hope That ESSA Will Bring Positive Change To Classrooms' - Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo - Education Week Teacher : Response: There is 'Hope That ESSA Will Bring Positive Change To Classrooms The new "question-of-the-week" is: What practical impact do you think The Every Student Succeeds Act will really have in the classroom? The Every Student Succeeds Act is the successor
Bill Gates' Billions Blocking Him From Enlightenment - Jeff Reifman : Bill Gates’ Billions Blocking Him From Enlightenment Citizen Microsoft, Seattle Weekly Cover Last week, Bill Gates called on political leaders to accelerate innovation . “But innovation starts with government support for the research labs and universities working on new insights,” he said. “The public sector’s investments unloc
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 10/14/16 Featured Post The Most Important WikiLeaks Revelation Isn’t About Hillary Clinton | New Republic Huntington Park: Tiny city becomes battleground in larger war over LA charter
NAACP ratifies controversial resolution for a moratorium on charter schools
The North Carolina NAACP’s president, Rev. William Barber, gestures during a news conference in Richmond in June. On Saturday, national NAACP leaders backed a moratorium on the expansion of charter schools. (Steve Helber/AP)
Leaders of the NAACP, the oldest civil rights organization in the United States, bucked intense pressure from supporters of charter schools on Saturday and ratified a resolution calling for a moratorium on the expansion of charters and for stronger oversight of these schools.
Members of the NAACP’s board of directors, meeting in Cincinnati, ratified a resolution adopted in July by delegates to the organization’s 2016 convention that called for a moratorium on more charter schools until:
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1. Charter schools are subject to the same transparency and accountability standards as public schools 2. Public funds are not diverted to charter schools at the expense of the public school system 3. Charter schools cease expelling students that public schools have a duty to educate 4. Cease to perpetuate de facto segregation of the highest-performing children from those whose aspirations may be high but whose talents are not yet as obvious.
This was not the first time the NAACP has expressed concern about charter schools, but this resolution goes further than others approved in recent years and had generated an intense campaign by supporters of charters to try to persuade the group’s board not to ratify it.
This is Homecoming week at my high school; Thursday parade, Friday game, and tonight, the Big Dance. It's a big deal. I've been the Student Council adviser in charge of all this stuff for years and years now, and I never cease to be amazed at how worked up some students get about it. After all, it is the first Big Dance of the year, and for our freshpersons, the first Big dance of their entire hig
StudentsFirstNY launched back in 2012, an Empire State spin-off of the StudentsFirst orgnization launched by former DC chancellor, She Who Will Not Be Named. She was always nominally a Democrat (check out this awesomely non-prescient article from 2012 that says she's taking over the Democratic Party), but the NY branch of StudentsFirst was formed by Jenny Sedlis , who worked with Eva Moskowitz (th
Rick Hess recently posted a piece that makes a couple of discussion-worthy points while neatly sliding right past a couple of other ones. In " Why You Should Learn to Love Educational Productivity ," Hess argues for an embrace of "productivity," but I'm not sure that word means exactly what he thinks it means. We get to the "productivity" issue by sliding past a different one. Hess opens by noting
The feds have released their rules governing teacher preparation programs, and they are just as stupid as they have promised to be all along. How stupid? Kate Walsh of the impossible-to-take-seriously National Council on Teacher Quality saw the rules and pronounced them even "better" than she had expected , with extra-super-accountability. The genius portion is the part that links college teacher
There are some educational issues that have become so covered with layers and layers of detail and nuance and policy and jargon and baloney and nature's own fertilizer that it can become difficult to see the relatively simple problem that lies beneath the giant mounds of stuff. Closing the achievement gap is one such issue. It's the subject of considerable discussion and policy wrangling, and is t
I don't even want to be still writing about this story, but apparently Florida's flock of school administrators include some of the most terrible people ever. So here we are. You will recall that several Florida parents sued their district, the state, and anyone else connected to the baloney-faced rule about refusing to pass third graders who hadn't scored on the third grade reading Big Standardiz
I am just emerging from the final sprint of my seasonal fall marathon. I've been directing a community theater production of Disney's Little Mermaid, a show which may not have a great deal of intellectual heft, but which does include a great number of moving parts. The show ran for two weekends in our community theater, with the second weekend corresponding with our local festival. As one of the g
Last week at the Atlantic, teacher-author Timothy Walker took a broad look at the reports of teacher stress (a good follow-up to his earlier piece on teacher burnout ). Walker did a good job of gathering up the current data on teacher stress, but he stopped short of one huge question. On twitter he opened the door to that question, so I'm going to go ahead and step through it. Walker's compendium
This morning we had some professional development from our local police department, The training centered around the ALICE method of dealing with an active shooter. What are we supposed to do when there's an active killer in the building? ALICE focuses on three choices-- run, hide or fight. There were some specifics mixed, including some of the specifics of blockading a classroom door and making t
I It's a short list this week, but still worth reading. The Annual Autopsy You know I love a good analogy. Here's one more way to look at the uselessness of "data." Education's Failure To Retain Great Teachers Another look at the sad state of teacher retention in the ed biz. Seven Things I learned from Attending a Charter School Board Meeting Nancy Flanagan went to a charter board meeting and had