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 winter 2009 edition of Education Next is here. Luckily, you can fill your Gadfly-less Thanksgiving with some of this meaty reading material.
If you couldn't watch Monday's spectacular panels (introducing A Byte at the Apple) live (either in person or via our streaming webcast), don't fret.
Mike and Rick talk sharp implements, Fryer's student pay-out scheme, and keeping elusive superintendents in their jobs... more than three years. (Rick's solution? Manacles.) Amber questions the methods of the highly anticipated college admissions tests study and Rate that Reform plays with needles--used ones.
The city of Ardmore - the center of business and trade for Southern Oklahoma, framed by the rugged beauty of the Arbuckle Mountains to the north and Lake Murray to the south - seeks a new director of Student Achievement.
The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) is a project of the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences, established to provide educators, policymakers, and the public with a central, independent, and trusted source of scientific evidence of what works in education.
TFA seeks to fill two posts: one is a senior position (VP for Research and Public Affairs), and the other would be a good fit for a recent college graduate interested in education policy (it combines the duties of an office manager and a research assistant--email
The Center for Charter Schools at Central Michigan University (motto: "Passion, Commitment, Integrity") will be incomplete until it finds a new associate director. Candidates should, of course, be strong supporters of charter schools, but they should also be serious about the role of authorizers.
Around the Fordham office, we've got decent writers and thinkers aplenty. Trouble is, none of us can add. We're looking to hire an Accounting and Office Manager. Do you have experience in financial and accounting practices and an understanding of office administration?
Keys to Improving Dayton Schools, Inc. (k.i.d.s.), a non-profit organization based in Dayton, Ohio, seeks an exceptional educator to work closely in partnership with area charter schools to guide, assist, and strengthen their academic improvement efforts.
The American Enterprise Institute's Rick Hess authors a monthly "Education Outlook." The august August issue is about mayoral control and well worth reading.
Rick Hess has yet another new book out--When Research Matters: How Scholarship Influences Education Policy. And you can listen to a distinguished panel discuss its findings at an American Enterprise Institute event on Thursday, February 7th, at 10:30 a.m.
This week Mike, and not-really-a-guest-but-semi-regular-co-host Andy Smarick, discuss the English teacher practice of letting students pick their own reading material, the new Boston Parent University, and performance pay for Los Angeles top school officials. Then Amber tells us about a new Ed Next study on the Obama Effect and Rate the Reform gets swine flu.
We often discuss the place for innovation in K-12 education. This all-day AEI conference will evaluate the topic in a tertiary context. How will online learning, redefining the role of professors, and rethinking the link between postsecondary programs and the labor market play out?
The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2007 results were released Tuesday (see here) and they show American kids are making progress against their international peers. TIMSS is a rigorous international comparison of fourth- and eighth-grade students' math and science test scores across countries.
Gadfly made an error in the November 20, 2003 issue in describing the "highly qualified" teacher requirements of NCLB (see http://www.edexcellence.net/gadfly/index.cfm#1561).
The Center for American Progress (CAP) hosts policy leaders (including the Education Gadfly Show's Rick Hess) who will chat about how to attract and retain talented, high-quality teachers. They will consider a new paper by Susan Sclafani and Marc Tucker on international experiences with teacher and principal compensation systems. The event takes place October 16 at 9:30 a.m.
The U.S. Department of Education released the results of the 2001 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in history today, and while the scores of fourth and eighth graders have modestly improved since 1994, the scores of twelfth graders were frustratingly low and showed no improvement.
This week, Mike and Rick discuss the Department's stimulus guidance, the Boston Teachers Union's rejection of TFA, and NCTAF's ominous predictions about teacher retirements and pensions. Then, Amber explains the details of the new IES study on the DC voucher program and Rate that Reform gets smutty (but just a little).
Mourning the departure of one Andy Smarick from the hallowed Fordham halls? Turn that frown upside down: The New Jersey Departmentof Education is now hunting for a new Assistant Commissioner for Professional Excellence and also an Assistant Commissioner for Finance.
From the south side of Chicago to Harvard, Australia, and back, Arne Duncan’s unconventional path to Secretary of Education has the makings of a screenplay. Or at least a New Yorker article. Windy City native Duncan attended the University of Chicago’s prestigious Lab School by day, then turned up at his mother’s low-income afterschool program north of Hyde Park.
The Hoover Institution's Koret Task Force on K-12 education recently hosted an internal debate between members who emphasize choice-based educational reform (namely Paul Peterson and Caroline Hoxby) and two who emphasize content and curriculum (namely Diane Ravitch and Don Hirsch). You missed it? No worries.
Bill Bennett's terrific U.S. history textbook, America: The Last Best Hope, is making serious strides into the classroom as one place after another endorses and starts using it as the high school (and college) mainstay that it deserves to be. In recent weeks, both Indiana and Illinois added it to their state-approved lists.
This up-and-coming policy shop is looking for an Education Director to lead that sector of the organization’s work. This person would have 10-15 years experience in education policy, be an exceptional writer and leader, and be comfortable in a “virtual” office setting--HSG coordinates operatives all over the country.
While the devastating effects of Haiti’s January 12 earthquake remain agonizing, there has been an upwelling of compassion and generosity across America, albeit with a couple of odd twists.
This new and improved second edition of David Whitman’s acclaimed book, Sweating the Small Stuff, is sure to sell out fast. Get yours today on Amazon.com.
The second edition of Fwd: Arresting Insights in Education summarizes Ohio report card data for Dayton's dis
