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Sunday, April 25, 2021

CATCH UP WITH CURMUDGUCATION + ICYMI: Car Shopping Edition (4/25)

CURMUDGUCATION: ICYMI: Car Shopping Edition (4/25)




Car Shopping Edition

Only slightly more fun than a root canal. But I needed a new project. In the meantime, here are some good reads from the week.

State of Siege: What the Free State Project Means for New Hampshire’s Public Schools

Have You Heard welcomes Matthew Honglitz-Hetling, author of A Libertarian Walks Into A Bear, a book I just finished, so I was pretty pumped to have the HYH crew interview him. Oh, New Hampshire, my birth state, home of my families of origin--what the hell has happened to you.


Jeff Bryant takes a look at some of the painful, gritty details behind the fraud and waste that cost taxpayers a billion dollars via the federal charter program.


In Ohio, there's a battle between two fundamental ideas about what a school is--a social contract, or a consumer good. Jan Resseger breaks it all down.


Indiana is one of the states rushing headlong toward bigger, broader school vouchers and a dismantling of public education. The blog Live Long and Prosper has the details.


Paul Thomas has been one of the persistent and well-researched opponents of the SOR wave, and here he presents more explanation of why the new edu-fad is misguided and misguiding.


Thomas Ultican provides a guide to just some of the damage done to public education by America's wealthiest oligarchs.


Stephen Merrill at Edutopia explains that yes, learning loss is a thing and no, we shouldn't be making it the centerpiece of education policy.


John Warner in his substack takes a look why education isn't a race, and if it is, it's not a sprint, and maybe some folks should stop freaking out about the great pandemic pause.


Yong Zhao offers some insights into the pitfalls to avoid and the opportunities to embrace when dealing with policies addressing the dreaded learning loss


Look, I'm not generally interested in what big standardized tests have to say about how students are doing, but that's the way some folks like to play, and by the rules of their game, learning loss is not living up to its billing as a world-wrecker. Sarah Schwartz covers a new study for EdWeek.


Shariff El-Mekki offers some thoughts about how teacher preparation could better prepare teachers for today's diverse classrooms.


Maureen Downey at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution looks at a flap in Fulton, where parents are demonstrating against the district's decision to give teachers release time for vaccination. 

How White Americans’ refusal to accept busing has kept schools segregated

Brown v. Board didn't change everything. At the Washington Post, Matthew D. Lassiter looks at the slow steady undoing of desegregation in the US.


Tom Bartlett at the Atlantic looks at the actual data and discovers that maybe the news about a wave of pandemic school shutdown induced suicides may not have been entirely accurate.


Just in case there weren't enough reasons to conclude that this year's Big Standardized Test was a waste of time, now it turns out that New York decided to just go ahead and re-use questions from previous tests. And students noticed. Christina Veiga at Chalkbeat has the story.


Stephen Sawchuck writes for EdWeek, with special appearance by Jose Vilson. 


Well, that turned out to be a long list this week. Here's a nice palate cleanser from McSweeney's






A Search For Common Ground: A Worthwhile Conversation About Education - https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2021/04/13/a-search-for-common-ground-a-worthwhile-conversation-about-education/?sh=5948b3af4333 by @palan57 on @forbes






VA: Is This The Path To Math Equity
Virginia is working on a new "math path," and conservative news outlets have gone off. The initiative itself is loaded with the usual bureaucratic argle bargle, like Through collaboration with other stakeholders across the Commonwealth, the VMPI state task force will make suggestions for institutional changes that will strengthen the alignment between K-12 and higher education mathematics while e
A Powerful Call To Teach
Sharif El-Mekki is the founder of the Center for Black Educator Development , a group that's doing important work. He blogs at Philly's 7th Ward , and recent post is worth attention. I suspect that El-Mekki and I disagree on some education issues, but his view of the teaching profession is inspiring and powerful. Here's a bit from the post " Why We Need Black Men (And Women) To Answer The Call An
TX: Governor Still Holding On To Education Relief Funds
Texas Democrats have been reduced to tattling to the US Department of Education , as Governor Abbott continues to sit on $17.9 billion-with-a-b in aid that is supposed to be going to public schools. That huge pile of money that has been allocated by Congress through various packages. Texas school districts are trying to get budgets written for next year. But the money is just sitting there. Why?
Chris Evans (And Partners) Create A Useful Civics Tool
So this is how you do it. Chris Evans has entered the world of celebrity education support, and he's done it up right. There's a companion post to this one over at Forbes that explains in a little more detail what the site does; in this post, I want to explain why I think Evans and his partners are setting an example for how the rich and famous can have a positive impact on education. First of al
To Choice Advocates: Some Questions
I have concerns about school choice programs, and I usually express them as complaints, criticism, general snark. This time, I'd like to come at it a little differently. Let me frame these concerns as questions, because maybe there are answers that I'm just not aware of. As is obvious from a multitude of posts, I am skeptical; these questions show exactly what I'm skeptical of. And before I start,
ICYMI: Taxes Are Done Edition (4/18)
Yes, we all got extensions, but I'd rather have them done and gone, and this was a pretty easy year. Now we can move on to other swell things. In the meantime, let me remind you that you, too, can amplify voices in cyberspace. If your thought is "Hey, people should read this," well, then, you know people. Send them some this to read. My Learning Loss Formula: Read, Write, Share Russ Walsh doesn't
New Anglo-Saxon Caucus Has Some Education Thoughts. They Are As Bad As The Rest Of This Damn Fool Platform.
So, led by a team-up of House of Representative winners from Georgia and Arizona, there is now a White Racist Nativist America First Caucus that swears to "follow in President Trump's footsteps and potentially step on toes and sacrifice sacred cows for the good of the American nation" as well as calling for "common respect for the uniquely Anglo-Saxon political traditions." It's as awful as it is

THE TOP BANANA: TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES Sunday, April 25, 2021 #REDFORED #tbats #openonlywhensafe #edchat #K12 #learning #edleadership #edtech #engchat #literacy #edreform

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THE TOP BANANA
TODAY'S EDUCATION HEADLINES 



Biden is set to roll out the plan during a Wednesday speech to Congress. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-biden-community-college-free_n_6084a67ce4b09a22a4429e69?ncid=engmodushpmg00000004 via @HuffPostPol

“PLCs Can ‘Unleash the Learning!’” | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/?p=117103 on @Larryferlazzo

Howard University Students Protest Cut of Classics Department, Hub for Black Scholarship https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/25/us/howard-classics-department.html

The Danger of Shortchanging Parents http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheAtlantic/~3/0lmXzo_UM7E/

Ed Tech Digest | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/?p=117082 on @Larryferlazzo

Washington Teachers' Union approves of DCPS in-person approach | WJLA - https://wjla.com/news/local/washington-teachers-union-approves-of-dcps-in-person-approach on @7newsdc


Big Education Ape: CATCH UP WITH CURMUDGUCATION + ICYMI: Car Shopping Edition (4/25) - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/04/catch-up-with-curmudgucation-icymi-car.html



Why Non-Native English Speakers Actually Speak The Best English : Goats and Soda : NPR
Tower Of Babble: Non-Native Speakers Navigate The World Of 'Good' And 'Bad' English Picture this: A group of non-native English speakers are in a room. There's someone from Germany, Singapore, South Korea, Nigeria and France. They're having a great time speaking to each other in English, and communication is smooth. And then ... an American walks in the room. The American speaks quickly, using e
EdAction in Congress April 25, 2021 - Education Votes
EdAction in Congress April 25, 2021 Chauvin’s conviction reinvigorates push for systemic change Derek Chauvin’s conviction is raising hopes that George Floyd will be remembered not just for his tragic death, but for reinvigorating the fight for desperately needed systemic change. “While the jury reached the right decision and did in fact convict former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of
NewBlackMan (in Exile) TODAY #BLM #BLACKLIVESMATTER
NewBlackMan (in Exile) NewBlackMan (in Exile) TODAY Big Education Ape: THIS WEEK WITH NEWBLACKMAN (IN EXILE) - http://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2021/04/this-week-with-newblackman-in-exile-blm_24.html "You see a lot of people doing acrobatics to show why Ma’Khia deserved to die, not why she deserved to live": On the Adultification of Black Girls by Mark Anthony Neal / 12h "The fatal police shoo
Lee High teacher reassigned to paid, non-teaching post amid controversy over BLM flag, her organization says #BLM #BLACKLIVESMATTER #SPLC
Lee High teacher reassigned to paid, non-teaching post amid controversy over BLM flag, her organization says Lee High teacher reassigned to paid, non-teaching post amid controversy over BLM flag, her organization says Students planned demonstration but it was shut down by school staff JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Robert E. Lee High School teacher who was told to remove a “Black Lives Matter” flag fro
"Capacity-ism:" Florida spends $1 Billion per year on a fraudulent voucher marketplace that has created zero private education capacity. A documentary. - Public Enemy Number 1
"Capacity-ism:" Florida spends $1 Billion per year on a fraudulent voucher marketplace that has created zero private education capacity. A documentary. $1 billion per year has produced few -- if any -- products worth buying in Florida's voucher marketplace. That's because markets alone don't create capacity; and there is no equity without capacity. Put aside what you think about Jeff Bezos and A
During Pandemic, More Parents Come To Appreciate Teachers and Understand Teaching | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice
During Pandemic, More Parents Come To Appreciate Teachers and Understand Teaching Teacher Appreciation Week begins May 3rd. With school closures over a year ago and the onslaught of remote instruction, many parents have come to appreciate not only what teachers do in classrooms (and now on screens) than ever before (see here ) but also how complex the act of teaching is. Celebrities sport T-shir
More Money, More Privatization | Live Long and Prosper
More Money, More Privatization INDIANA’s NEW BUDGET BILL — MORE PRIVATIZATION The Indiana General Assembly has passed the 2021 budget bill, and once more, the Republican super-majority has done its best to line the pockets of religious schools with a large increase for unaccountable school vouchers. This year, they have added money to the privatization piggy bank in the form of Educational Schol

YESTERDAY

TOP POSTS THIS WEEK Saturday, April 24, 202 #REDFORED #tbats #openonlywhensafe #edchat #K12 #learning #edleadership #edtech #engchat #literacy #edreform
Big Education Ape TOP POSTS THIS WEEK 4/24/21 Biden promised to end federal funding of for-profit charter schools. A new report explains how they operate. - The Washington Post Huge cash influx pouring into Kansas City school board races | The Kansas City Star Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona Joins Roundtable Discussion with Students to Discuss Experiences During the Pandemic | U.S. Depa

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