TFA to feds: “We aren’t a cult!”: Teachers’ unions have long criticized Teach For America’s practice of sending teachers into classrooms after just five weeks of training. Now TFA faces new challenges, as the FBI investigates allegations that it’s a cult. Agents have raised questions about “indoctrinating practices” at Institute, TFA’s summer training program for corps members. They cite a number of “telltale signs”: sleep deprivation, ritualized chanting, lack of compensation, and the shunning of quitters. A TFA representative took strong issue with the federal probe: “This is all a misunderstanding. We’re forging bonds. We’re a family. And to succeed, corps members need to be completely devoted to the success of their students. We can’t quit. And if someone does quit, we have to make sure they never again see the inside of a classroom.” Alumni admitted that, yes, some beliefs are common to all TFA corps members, but denied that there’s something in the water. “We never drank any Kool-Aid,” added one alumnus, “plenty of chardonnay, sure, but no Kool-Aid.”
A ghost(writer) in Peter Cunningham’s attic: Have you ever read an Education Post byline and said to yourself, “I wonder if this teacher or parent I’ve never heard of actually exists?” Well, they don’t. A recent investigative report from Alexander Russo has revealed that posts authored by the likes of “Sally Smith, Teacher”; “Bob Mendez, Parent”; and “Eric Barry, Former Educator” are all pseudonyms of one Bobby Bonanza, a twenty-two-year-old graduate student who subleases Peter Cunningham’s attic. Bobby, with help from Peter, has mastered the art of writing short, heartwarming pieces that strike the perfect balance between mild provocation and banality. “My secret,” he told Russo, is to ask myself, “What would a second-rate, predictably liberal editorial board write about this?” The rest takes care of itself.
Untimed tests’ unintended consequences: New York City has become the site of an education policy gone horribly wrong. On the heels of new regulations removing time limits from all city-wide tests, a FOIA request has required New York City school officials to admit that an eight-year-old male student has been taking his mid-year assessment for 109 straight days. First administered on December 14, a source tells us that the student is only on page four of twenty-five. The law allows for bathroom, food, and sleep breaks in a place of the student’s choosing—and mandates that testing cannot interfere with important childhood activities, such as school, family time, play time, birthday parties, and more. City officials say they plan to change the regulations during the next administrative session, but that’s not until October.