You may have noticed in today's email announcement about Stretching the School Dollar that we misspelled the word "school" in the email's header. Outsourcing our own editorial capacity to India as a cost cutting measure seems to have backfired. As an education shop, we felt we had to apologize for the orthographic mauling of the institution we work daily to improve.
In a move that K.T. Hayloft has called "dastardly" and "akin in awfulness to the hypothetical love-child of Genghis Khan and Amy Winehouse," the California Department of Education plans to randomly select "superstudents" in each public school, youngsters whose test scores will count for those of all their peers.
Whither educational entrepreneurship? asks Rick Hess and a glittering array of experts who will speak at an American Enterprise Institute conference all day long on October 25, 2007. Find out more about the event and RSVP here.
About a year ago we published a major new look at high-achieving charter schools by exceptional story-teller David Whitman. You responded by buying every last copy we had (including the personal copies of our staff!). Well, good news: A new and improved second edition of Sweating the Small Stuff is now available for purchase on Amazon.com.
Think your child is going to school too young? Don’t move to Sweden. In Mother Svea, children enter preschool as young as twelve months.
This week, we welcome guest co-host Andy Smarick. He and Mike discuss the DC voucher program's slow death, Obama's overseas mea culpas, and Tucson's plans to ditch principals. Then, Amber tells us about the updated Calder study on high school TFA teachers and Rate that Reform talks old-school poisoning.
This week, Mike and Rick debate school discipline in Las Vegas, firing teachers in Iowa, and academic freedom in Florida. Jeff Kuhner is outraged about students who punch their teachers, and Education News of the Weird investigates a local retail area. Click here to listen through our website and peruse past editions.
Sometimes you have to take one step backward to go two steps forward. That's more or less what happened in New York State when the clock struck midnight on July 1, the long-scheduled date for "sunset" of mayoral control of Gotham's schools.
The Education Gladfly is published once a year by the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation. It ordinarily appears on April 1, but may never appear again if this issue is poorly received.
For information on Fordham's first year of experience as a charter sponsor in Ohio, there's no better source than the Foundation's brand-new Sponsorship Accountability Report 2005-06.
Are you a K-12 administrator or teacher? Or an education researcher? The Fulbright Scholar Program (one of the many Fulbright programs) invites you to apply for 2010-2011 academic year grants. The program, sponsored by the State Department, is geared towards academics and scholars looking to participate in international intellectual exchange. The deadline is August 1, 2009.
Do school turnarounds work? Come learn more at Fordham on January 28, 2010 from 2pm-3:30pm.
The Manhattan Institute seeks a Research Assistant on Education Policy to support Senior Fellow Jay Greene in the Institute's new office in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. This is a full-time position with health insurance and other fringe benefits.
The National Association for Charter School Authorizers’ Fund for Charter Authorizing Excellence is currently accepting grant applications in three categories: Authorizer Evaluation (up to $7,500), Strategic Planning (up to $50,000 with 15 percent funding match), and Implementation (up to $125,000 with 25 percent funding match).
This week, Stafford and Mike contemplate the impact of public school cuts on private school enrollments, paying students to attend Saturday tutoring, and the merits of celebrity high school graduation speakers. Then Amber tells us about a new evaluation of the Chicago performance-pay system, and Janie bans cell phones.
Fordham research director Unjust Toro announced this week that his hard-hitting editorials are officially for sale. Toro, sick of writing clever puns and anecdotes and receiving only one paycheck, said, "Listen, no one writes anything for free anymore.
Note: Gadfly needs feedback. Tomorrow, your favorite education-reform insect will e-mail you a link to a short reader survey. This is your chance to send him all the bouquets and brickbats you've been storing up. Please help us out and spend two minutes answering our multiple-choice questions.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation summoned 130 or so education heavies (many of them grantees) to Seattle this week to attend the foundation's gala unveiling of its long-awaited education strategy, the culmination of an intense rethinking process spearheaded by new education director
Diane Ravitch, usually a critic of the Gates Foundation’s approach to education reform, has radically changed course.
Encouraged by Warren Buffett's recent decision to pledge the bulk of his assets to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, last week in Dubai Bill and Melinda convened the world's 100-richest for five days of indoor skiing; sunbathing on artificial islands; and philanthropic, education chat.
West Wind Education Policy is putting on a May conference in Washington, D.C., that will examine the influence states have had on federal education policy. Email [email protected] for more information.
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools seeks a Vice President of Finance and Operations, and a Director of Field Services. Prospective VP candidates should be accomplished finance executives, have significant management experience, and be interested in and supportive of the charter school movement.
The National Council on Teacher Quality has already pointed out the poor quality of teacher preparation in reading instruction. But what about the math preparation of elementary school teachers? NCTQ is launching next week a report about that, too.
Wondering how budget woes can become opportunities? Join Fordham and a top-notch group of panelists on October 26, 2010 from 12:30 to 2:00PM for “Cost-Cutting Strategies and Opportunities for Schools and Districts.” RSVP here.
Can’t get enough of Jay Greene? The University of Arkansas’ Department of Education Reform is now accepting applications for its 2011 Education Policy Ph.D. cohort. Head over to the department’s website for more information on how to apply.
Think your district has already “cut to the bone” in order to close budget gaps? Think again. Join Fordham on October 26, 2010 from 12:30 to 2:00PM for our event: “Cost-Cutting Strategies and Opportunities for Schools and Districts.” RSVP here. Interested but can’t attend?
Curious about the draft K-12 Common Core standards? We can help you with that. Next Thursday, we’ll host Jason Zimba, member of the CCSSI mathematics work team, and David Coleman, member of the CCSSI English language arts work team, to explain the content, organization, and focus of the standards. Fordham’s Chester Finn will moderate. Join us from 10 to 11:30 on April 22.
This week, Mike and Rick chat about Washington, D.C., Saudi Arabia, and Miley Cyrus (who, if she ever entered Saudi Arabia, would be stoned within seconds). Amber brings us a lonely Research Minute, and Education News of the Weird is dope.
International education management organization SABIS is looking for a new Business Development Specialist. This person should strongly believe in the charter school movement, and be a self-starter, organized, and motivated; they would join the U.S. team as it helps expand SABIS-affiliated schools on our shores.
