Quotable & notable
?Regular working folks don't have tenure. Why should bad teachers?'' * ? Lane Wright, Press Secretary for Florida Governor Rick Scott
PODCAST: Amber meets the shoe bomber
Before embarking on a moral crusade, Mike and Rick laugh in the face of ESEA reauth and downplay the statistical importance of the SAT. Amber makes Third Way's new report look silly and Chris applies for medical stress leave. [powerpress]
Quotable & notable
?It is no secret that charter schools are having to deal with the idea that there is a selection process which would seem to prevent the kids who need it most from getting into the schools.'' * ?Gregory Morris, Children's Aid Society staff member
Joint Fordham-AEI book a finalist for award
Stretching the School Dollar: How districts and schools can save money while serving schools best (Harvard University Press, 2010), edited
New to Twitter? Start here
Michael J. PetrilliDo you have a voracious appetite for education policy news and views? Do you need to stay abreast of the latest school reform debates? Do you want to have access to breaking news, as soon as it's reported? Are you always looking for new ways to waste time? Then Twitter is for you!
Zen and the art of school board maintenance
Peter MeyerWe were about half-way through our four-hour school board ?Governance Team Retreat? when I saw an opening.? ?The facilitator, sent to us by the New York State School Boards Association (for a nice fee), had handed out a 27-page document that covered the standard ?roles and responsibilities? of...
Quotable & notable
?Bullying doesn't stop at 3 o'clock, and neither should a school's authority.'' * ?Valerie Vainieri Huttle, Assemblywoman from New Jersey
Quotable & notable
?Although Hyde-Bronx is located in the significantly disadvantaged Hunts Point neighborhood, the school believes that students need to feel respected and responsible.? *
Obama calls for more school stimulus
Chris TessoneLast night, in his speech before Congress, the President called for another round of stimulus spending, including $25 billion for school modernization and $35 billion for what the Administration calls "teacher rehiring," i.e., calling teachers back from layoffs pending for budget reasons.
Quotable & notable
?While they're adding teachers in places like South Korea, we're laying them off in droves. It's unfair to our kids.? * ? Barack Obama, President of the United States of America
You can't make this stuff up: Don't write anything down.
Peter MeyerI was paging through a July issue of the New York State School Boards Association newspaper, On Board, and spotted an interesting comment from a superintendent, in a story by Lynne Lenhardt, Area 7 Director (has nothing to do with UFOs), who had sent
Education news nuggets
I wonder if the College of William and Mary hired Robert Gates because he is the only muggle that can drive a
Quotable & notable
?Perhaps the most profound element of our own culpability is that we have not effectively taught most students the use or value of critical though
Teaching about 9/11 in 2011
Chester E. Finn, Jr.This week, teachers across the land are greeting students, assigning seats, issuing textbooks, struggling to remember everyone's name?and doing their best to teach one of the most challenging lessons of the year: the events of September 11, 2001, why they happened, why they matter, and why we are commemorating them.
Teaching about 9/11 in 2011: What Our Children Need to Know
Richard Rodriguez, Andrew J. Rotherham, William Damon, William Galston, Victor Davis Hanson, Katherine Kersten, Lucien Ellington, Craig Kennedy, Walter Russell MeadAny number of organizations are offering advice about what to teach schoolchildren about the events of September 11, 2001, yet (unlike that day's murderous pilots) most sorely miss the mark. Fordham's publication, "Teaching about 9/11 in 2011: What Our Children Need to Know," highlights the danger of slighting history and patriotism in the rush to teach children about tolerance and multiculturalism. It combines ten short essays by distinguished educators, scholars, and public officials from our 2003 report, "Terrorists, Despots, and Democracy: What Our Children Need to Know," essays that feel more timely than ever, and includes a new introduction by Chester E. Finn, Jr. reflecting on how the lessons of these essays apply today.
A Bronx cheer for Bloomberg? A new poll is harsh
Peter MeyerAs the author of a generally upbeat 2008 report for Education Next on Michael Bloomberg and his takeover of New York City's schools in 2002, I felt a bit sad reading this morning's New York Times poll report showing that New Yorkers
Quotable & notable
?Parents want choices, and whether you are a parent in a low-income urban community or an affluent suburb, everyone wants the best possible education for their child.? * ? Alice Johnson Cain, Vice president of external relations at NAPCS
Another Times trio: mimicking charters, home ec revival, and Walt Gardner
Peter MeyerThe New York Times continues to provide a generous medley of education reporting, including, of course, from their controversial "On Education" columnist Michael Winerip.? Alas, Winerip is not among the three recent stories I want to highlight here:
Quotable & notable
?We can't sit idly by and let parents think that only the quality charter schools can educate poor kids well.'' * ?Terry Grier, Houston Superintendent
Wakeup call for the digital revolution
Peter MeyerYesterday, the New York Times began a series on technology and education (?Grading the Digital School?) on a decidedly downbeat note: the huge investment in digital technology ?
A review of the PARCC ELA content frameworks
Kathleen Porter-MageeA few weeks ago, the two groups charged with creating assessments aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) released content specif
Get SMARTer: How well are SBAC's assessment plans aligned to the Common Core?
Kathleen Porter-MageeA few weeks ago, the two groups charged with creating assessments aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)?the?SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the?Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)?released ?content speci
Republican presidential hopefuls quietly turning homeschool policy into a real issue?
????On his presidential campaign website, Ron Paul describes his policy positions on twelve different issues, including abortion, health care, and the economy. Education is not among the headings. But ?homeschooling? is.