Well, it didn't take long for Biden to return to his corporate ed reform roots. Not a surprise, but even when hope is a very tiny thing with very small feathers, it's a bummer when a big cat chomps it up. Time to move on. Here's some reading from the week.
America prefers teachers who offer themselves as tribute. And that needs to stop.
Myriam Gurba at lulzcollective with a hardhitting piece looking at that damned hero teacher myth.
Accountabaloney looks at the issues of missing students, and the dominoes that are going to fall because of them.
At Have You Heard, Jack Schneider and Jennifer Berkshire talk to Cristina Groeger about a topic that is often on my mind--why the whole "educate the poors and they will become not-poors" doesn't, and can't, work
Teachers Unions aren't the obstacle to reopening schools
At the New Yorker, Sarah Jones takes a more balanced look at what thee real problems are (hint: years of infrastructure neglect aren't helpful)
US Ed Department Promotes Putting Student Records on Blockchain
Cointelegraph caught this grant from the department of creepy developments.
We Don't Need Standardized Testing in a Pandemic
I wrote about this Jersey Jazzman piece this week, and if you still haven't read it, here I am telling you again to go read it.
The Most Important "Skill" In A Post-Covid World
Joshua Hatala blogs about schools, the pandemic, and the new post-modern demand that students "figure it out" as they contemplate life and the world.
Education Development Center and Urban Collaborative
Thomas Ultican takes another deep dive into another group of education disruptors.
A History of Technological Hype
At the Kappan, Victoria Cain and Adam Laats take a look at the long, sad history of technological baloney. A good swift overview.
Standardized Testing during the Pandemic is Corporate Welfare Not Student Equity
Steven Singer lays it out.
Teachers, Testing and Why We Might Just Chill
Nancy Flanagan on why we could maybe just take a breath about the whole testing thing.
Why Aren't There More Black Teachers?
Rann Miller at The Progressive addresses what should be one of our major concerns in education these days.
Philly-based group launches $3.12 million initiative to develop Black teachers
In the Philadelphia Inquirer, a look at a group that has a plan for expanding the Black teaching force. Their allies aren't necessarily friends of public education, but this is work that needs to be done.
My Complete, Unedited Review of Doug Harris's Book, Charter School City
It's been a long journey, but here te indispensable Mercedes Schneider finally publishes her full review of Harris's book about New Orleans and its charter conversion. In the process, she provides some useful on-the-ground insights into the gutting of public education in NOLA
Who's assessing the assessment?
At the Kappan, a detailed look at just how very bad edTPA really is, and how Pearson fights back, again, against any criticism.
Instead of surveillance, try an ethic of care
John Warner at Inside Higher Ed looks at student surveillance and sees a better way, including radical notions like "an easy way to judge whether or not something violates an ethic of care for students is whether or not I would agree to be subjected to the same requirement as a condition of doing my work."
Schools face a substitute teacher crisis
NBC news picked up this piece from Hechinger Report which is somehow mystified that terrible pay and conditions have exacerbated the long-stewing sub crisis. A little infuriating, but still worth the read.
England's catch-up tutors ae being short-changed by private employers
Somebody's making a bunch of money from the covid make-up tutoring business in England, but it's not the teachers who are doing the actual work.
New Morehouse College Program Encourages Black men to complete unfinished degrees
From NPR, a good idea being developed.
Representative Jamaal Bowman educating an uninformed mom on BLM won late night
It has been pretty damn cool to see teacher Bowman make his mark in DC, and this week he also appeared on Stephen Colbert's show, winning the attention of the folks at Vulture.
