Thursday, April 16, 2020

CURMUDGUCATION: Arne Duncan Smells Katrina 2.0

CURMUDGUCATION: Arne Duncan Smells Katrina 2.0

Arne Duncan Smells Katrina 2.0


Arne Duncan said a lot of silly things while he was secretary of education, but perhaps most infamous was his notion that was that Hurricane Katrina was "the best thing" to happen to education in New Orleans.

But now he's starting to make similar noises about the current pandemic pause. Here he is in an interview at the 74:

I don’t want us to go back to the old normal. And there’s a whole bunch of things that this time allows us to think and to challenge. Can we think about the fundamental school year and calendar year? Can we think seriously about not seat time, but about competency? Can we think about what should truly continue to be online and learn virtually, and what should be done in a physical building?

He had a similar moment on Twitter yesterday:

Now is the time to reimagine education.Now is the time to end massive inequities.Now is the time to close the digital divide.Now is the time to give every child in America the chance to learn anything they want, anytime, anywhere.


You will notice that the line about "the chance to learn anything they want, anytime, anywhere" sounds an awful lot like Betsy DeVos's repeated call for learning anywhere, any time. There were CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: Arne Duncan Smells Katrina 2.0