It’s been a long time coming, but the British Tories have a new idea in education. And with the ruling party falling out of favor (or favour), these conservatives may just spark a revolution, if they can get it done. Instead of trying to change the calcified system, they’ll bring in fresh blood, by funding up to 500 privately-run schools with public dollars.
The media just can’t get enough of Michelle Rhee. Not only must we know middle-of-the-night Blackberry habits, but we also want to know about her love life and how she likes her manicures.
Has he, mortal enemy of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, seen the error of his ways? Or as the Wall Street Journal puts it, “Do you believe in political miracles?” Earlier this year, Senator Dick Durbin, of which we speak, inserted language into the fiscal year 2009-2010 Congressional budget that cuts the program from next year’s expenditures.
Plenty of philanthropists like to think they make a palpable difference in the real world, but often that turns out to be wishful thinking. It’s even rarer that they make an important positive difference during their own lifetimes.
That is the question. So far three tactics have dominated: closing failing schools completely and relocating their students; reconstituting schools with new faculties and staff; or handing the reins of schools over to independent charter operators. Denver tried the first two years ago.
At yesterday's congressional hearing on education in the nation's capital, Sen. Richard Durbin, long among the most strident opponents of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program, signaled his possible willingness to help reauthorize the program. The WSJ comments here.
The Hassels have a new post up on Eduwonk about turnarounds. I'm generally a big fan of this talented duo and have been for years.
NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg came out today with a fantastic plan to expand and improve charter schooling in the Big Apple. In a visit to the city's oldest charter, hizzoner argued for a cap lift, authorizing power for the city, multi-campus charters, facilities aid, and much more.
CATO is hosting an event this Friday that will seek to answer the question: Can the Nation's Best Charter Schools Be Brought to Scale?
There has been much ink spent on the debate around 21st century skills.
Michael DeArmond & Dan GolhaberNational Center on Performance IncentivesFebruary 2009
What, exactly, will Ohio use for academic content standards for its students, schools, and teachers, and how, exactly, will the state hold them to account for results? Getting the standards right – specifying the knowledge and skills that teachers should teach and children should learn – is at the heart of just about everything else that matters in K-12 education.
The justification behind tax credits is straightforward – to stimulate investment in a particular area by providing incentives that reduce the tax liability of individuals and/or corporations.
Inspired by the “Graph of the Week” offered up by our friends at the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Ohio, we’ll be rolling out regular graphics on the Flypaper blog to illustrate interesting trends and facts about public education, especially as the
On his School Law blog this week, Ed Week's Mark Walsh reviews the new book ???From Schoolhouse to Courthouse ???--published earlier this month by Fordham and Brookings Instituti
Quotable: "If I was not able to get him into Accotink Academy, my child right now would probably be dead or in jail." - Barbara Elmore, Washington, DC Parent
Sad new out of San Francisco today. Education philanthropist Don Fisher passed away at the age of 81.
This past weekend's New York Times magazine is a school-centric issue with one article in particular that caught my eye: teaching self-control to young kids .
As Flypaper readers may have noticed (and if you haven't I'm a little bit offended!), I haven't been blogging lately. That's because I'm working on a book, which is consuming most of my time and attention.
Since its creation early in President G.W. Bush's first term, the US Department of Education's Office of Innovation and Improvement has been involved in some of the most interesting education issues around. It continues to oversee a number of valuable programs and initiatives under the current administration.
Today's Education Gadfly and Wall Street Journal editorial both capture the most important news about Caroline Hoxby's
I just finished finished reading Secretary Duncan's speech on the future of ESEA/NCLB. Checker already weighed in here, but let me add a couple other thoughts.
My case study on the charter conversion of seven Washington, DC Catholic schools was just released by Seton Education Partners. If you're at all interested in urban charters, CMOs, Catholic schools, or the crisis of faith-based inner-city education, you might want to check it out.
A bill introduced by Ohio State Representatives Hite and Dubois would make it official state
Eight months into the Obama administration, the White House has been mute on its intentions regarding the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act, George W. Bush's signature education accomplishment--and a statute that nearly everyone in America believes needs a makeover. Of course there's no consensus as to what that makeover should look like--one reason that Messrs.
Rollin Binzer, directorDinosaurs of the Future ProductionsSeptember 25, 2009
Fifteen years after the fall of apartheid, South African schools are flatly failing as vehicles of social mobility; many black schools are plagued by teacher absenteeism (despite the highest teacher unionization rate in the world), scant accountability, even less authority in the hands of principals, and achievement scores that rank below poorer African peers.
Karin ChenowethHarvard Education PressSeptember 2009
