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Education news nuggets

Sometimes I think there are too many acronyms in education.

Quotable & notable

?And Johnny still can't read. Even his diploma. I don't see what there is about the last 50 years of failure that's worth enshrining in marble, and a shock to the system might be just what the system needs. We can hardly make matters worse.'' *

Traditional pensions: cui bono?

Younger teachers in Illinois, whose pensions were slashed last year by the legislature, should start asking whose benefits they're really paying for. The new Tier 2 pension only costs about 5 percent of salary...yet teachers are paying 9.4% of their salaries into the Teacher Retirement System.

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Education news nuggets

After years of salamander stories and locker decoration shopping trips,

Quotable & notable

?We are moving into a partnership mode with states, rather than telling states you've got to do this and this and this'' * ?Tom Harkin, Senator from Iowa and head of the Senate education committee

A progressive school finds some accountability religion

I was prepared for a rant against all things reform when I started reading the New York Times Q & A interview with Maria Velez-Clarke, the principal of the Children's Workshop School in Manhattan's East Village, about the school's C-grade from the City.?

Quotable & notable

?At the end of the day it might be all talk, but I think there are a lot of families that value diversity.'' * ?Madely Rodriguez, P.S. 29 parent

Even done well, differentiated instruction won't work without a curriculum

I have always been suspicious of differentiated instruction if only because, like its kissin' cousin customized learning, it sounds too good to be true.?

Education news nuggets

Kids these days (and politicians every day) could use some

New study on student discipline: black kids take it on the chin

The wonderful hubris of the new National Education Policy Center study on Discipline Policies, Successful Schools, and Racial Justice, is not the assertion that discipline data should be an essential metric in gauging a school's success ? which it should ?

Tackling the retirement time bomb

Teacher pension systems around the country are falling into crisis due to poor investment returns, unfunded increases in benefits, and poor governance and management.

Education news nuggets

Unions and college students join Occupy Wall Street,

Quotable & notable

?What can the state department do for higher performing districts? Get out of the way.'' * ? Stefan Pryor, Connecticut's new education commissioner

Amber Winkler joins Fordham's executive team

On behalf of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, I am happy to announce that today our board elected?Dr.

Amber changes her name to Waterfall

Janie and Daniela go two-for-two. This week they unpack Duncan's teacher-prep plan, quality control in digital learning, and the parallels between football and education. Amber boots out ineffective teachers and Chris calls out of turn. [powerpress]

Education news nuggets

I wonder if the lessons from ?Moneyball' can help

Upon further review...Paul Gross' critique of the NRC Science Framework

Guest blogger Ze'ev Wurman, an executive with Monolithic 3D, a Silicon Valley startup, has participated in developing California's education standards and assessments in mathematics since the mid-1990s.

Quotable & notable

?A child who is suspended from school is more than likely waving a red flag for needing intervention and support. Metaphorically speaking, this is a time you want to put your arms around a student, rather than push them away.'' *

The best education change agent: deadlines

I happened on a small story in the Times on Sunday, called ?Deadlines Get Results,?

High Flyers in the news and on the air

Differentiation, tracking, and the needs of high-achievers are hot topics these days, thanks in part to Fordham's recent study Do High Flyers Maintain Their Altitude? Performance Trends of Top Students.

Education news nuggets

I wonder if surfing and break-dancing are forms of vigorous physical activity under

Quotable & notable

?The culture of bullying won't end until people across the country take action and show children and teens that they care'' * ? Julie Hertzog, Director of Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights Center's National Bullying Prevention Center

Computers in the classroom: the disconnect between K-12 and higher education

Education news nuggets

Massachusetts might start testing kindergarten

Quotable & notable

?It's the old business of if you want your test scores to go up, don't test the lower-scoring students'' * ? Doug McRae, Retired testing consultant

Is a single-minded focus on "college for all" the enemy?

I've been traveling a bunch the past few weeks, making it harder to blog. (Though there's always time to tweet!) So I'm a little late to the party on the recent report from Complete College America, Time is the Enemy.

AMO Non-enforcement: Easy Flex vs. ESEA flex?

Guest blogger Christine Wolfe served in the George W. Bush Administration as the Associate Deputy Secretary for Policy and is currently President of Wolfe Policy Consulting.

More on "college ready" and "college for all"

Part of the answer to Mike's Single-minded Focus question this morning about the depressing college completion data is in Sam Dillon's front page New York Times story, also this morning, on the