CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Feast Of Stephen Edition (12/26)
Feast Of Stephen Edition
Yes, that's today. Sing "Good King Wenceslas," the only good Feast of Stephen carol I know of. The list is a little short this week because so many of us have been busy.
Death Threats And Doxxing
How all this anti-mask, anti-crt stuff is playing out at actual school districts--in this case, in Texas.
The Decline of Standardized Testing
Quick Axios explainer in the wake of Harvard's dumping of the SAT and ACT scores.
Theocrats are coming for the school board
If you know folks in the evangelical conservative Christian world, you've been hearing the refrain "We have to take back schools" for ages. Meet some of the groups currently interested in actually making that happen. From Salon.
I Love Teaching, But...
Steven Singer saying what many teachers are thinking (and saying, and acting on).
16 charts about schools in 2021
From the actual j0ournalism side of The 74, an article for all of us chart fans, some curious details from the year in graphic form.
How a Wisconsin tribe helped launch a MAGA charter school
Great piece from Ruth Coniff at the Wisconsin examiner, looking at a tribal college that is stealing a page from the Michigan playbook. Small college with financial issues? Just start authorizing charter schools any old place around the state founded for any old reason, and start pocketing your percentage. Particularly striking in this case, as the charter being authorized features a view of history that is not exactly respectful of the Native American story.
Data Queen Guidera to be Next VA Ed Secretary
The indispensable Mercedes Schneider has the scoop on Virginia's next education chief. Spoiler alert: it's not looking good.
Beware of "evidence-based" preschool curricula
Peter Gray at Psychology Today reminding us to look at the research behind the "evidence" because some of it sucks.
Anti-mask parents not constitutionally allowed to change school rules
The Hill brings us news of a case decided in federal court that went against Nevada parents who wanted to change school mask mandates.
Pirates, Profiteers and Privatizers
Thomas Ultican with a look at all three. Or rather, the one movement that combines them all.
Ayn Rand writes Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer
McSweeney's with yet another deep cut literary lampoon. "They hate you, Rudolph. They hate you for your strength."
Okay, maybe the list isn't so short after all. Also, this week over at Forbes I looked at the PA lawsuit laying bare just how badly funded the state's schools are.
CATCH UP WITH CURMUDGUCATION
Merry ChristmasEvery year I update my youtube playlist of things that are (mostly) off the beaten Yuletide musical path, not to be contrarian, but because 1) I like them and 2) it's as good a time as any to reflect on what a wide a varied species we are, and the many ways we express that. And if you're more of a Spotify type, here is a playlist from my family. All the aunts and uncles and cousins and etc etc co
FL: Another Assault On EducationFlorida owns the Number One spot on the Public Education Hostility Index , but Governor Ron DeSantis is not willing to rest on his laurels. You may have already heard about this, or you may have passed over the news because it's Florida, but some bad news needs to be repeated, particularly when it comes from the state that launches so many of the bad trends in education. DeSantis has borrowed fro
Class With Dr. DeepfakeThe MIT Media Lab gas something to show us. Yikes. The video shows old pictures being brought "to life." Here's Einstein "talking" with a voice barely escaping cartoon German scientist territory, Van Gogh with a mystery accent, and Mona Lisa not actually saying, "It's a-me, Mario!" While MIT acknowledges the potential for harm of deepfakery and AI animatronics, I'm not sure they really get it. Th
Common Core In The Discount BinEvery community has some kind of deep discount store, the place that is the final stop for merchandise that people just won't buy until it's marked way, way, way down. In my neck of the woods, it's Ollie's (moto: "Good stuff cheap" which--well, you have admire a store that cuts to the chase). Today the CMO (Chief Marital Officer) and I were out shopping, stopped at Ollie's. and here's what we fou
ICYMI: Homecoming Edition (12/19)My daughter and her family are on a plane today, returning with considerable trepidation to the area for Christmas stuff. Scary to have them navigate the current pandemic wave, but boy do I want to see my children and grandchildren. Ho ho ho, indeed. Here's some reading from the week. College, Career, or Whatever Readiness Jose Luis Vilson talks about the resurgence of college and career readines
PA: Senate Wants To Block Any School COVID Vaccination MandateIn Pennsylvania, under section 1303 of the school code , we find a requirement to vaccinate school students. Right now, some legislators are preparing to mess with that. School directors, superintendents, principals, or other persons in charge of any public, private, parochial, or other school including kindergarten, are required to make sure that every child is immunized before being admitted to
8 Bad Education ModelsAs we consider (or ignore) the opportunity to rethink and re-imagine education, all of our worst ideas about what education actually is have come bubbling to the surface like hippopotamus farts in a stagnant pond. There are many bad ways to frame education, models that are damaging for students or simply twist education into unproductive shapes. Here are some of the worst. The Empty Vessels Stude
