Today's announcement about "common state standards" an important milestone

They said it was an impossible dream.

NY may cut funds for private schools

Governor Patterson has proposed cutting nearly $88 million over two years in aid to private independent and parochial schools.

Reading Arne Duncan's tea leaves

What's the cosmic significance of the Arne Duncan pick???The Wall Street??Journal's Gerald Seib, channeling Checker, says that it proves President-Elect Obama's pragmatism:

Common standards a laudable goal, but watch for perils

Leaders here at Fordham praised the report Benchmarking for Success: Ensuring U.S. Students Receive a World-Class Education, released today by The National Governors Association, Council of Chief State School Officers and Achieve, Inc.

Mo' money, mo' problems

In light of this morning's release of Fordham's open letter, this article from Tuesday's NY Times seemed all the mo

The 'Fly is here

Sad news: the 'Fly is flying home for the holidays--and will remain out of your inboxes for two whole weeks! It's tough, we know, but that's why we made this week's edition such a humdinger.

21st century skills have been around for at least 21 centuries

That's one of the great points in this strong U.S. News and World Report piece by Eduwonk Andy Rotherham.

Introducing "Reform Realism"

Now that there's a Secretary-Designate for the Department of Education, we at Fordham are ready with some advice for him.

Holiday gifts for astute Flypaper readers

Surely you already know that Bethany Little was the uber-insider that first put bi

Sayonara SES and choice?

The one part of our "open letter" to the incoming Administration and Congress that seems to be surprising folks the most is our call to eliminate No Child Left Behind's public school choice and supplemental educational services (tutoring) provisions. Yes, this proposal is counter-intuitive.

Video: Mike explains education "Reform Realism"

Malicious muckraking

Shame on the Washington Post. A recent barrage of charter school coverage by said paper, including a front page story brazenly entitled "Public Role, Private Gain," has wrongly raked a civic minded business man over the metaphoric coals. He's Thomas A.

A holy plea

As the year of Catholic schools draws to a close, Rev. Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, weighs in on the challenges facing inner-city Catholic schools. His take is noteworthy because only last year he shocked the Catholic community by announcing that seven D.C.

'Tis the season

A substitute teacher in Britain has landed on Santa's naughty list this year. Annoyed by her youngsters' rowdy excitement over the fat man's impending arrival, the teacher blurted out to the class: "It's your parents who leave presents on Christmas Day!" Imagine the instant transformation: pure glee to pitiful heartbreak.

Fourth and long

Here's a hypothetical that's sure to alarm a San Diego Chargers fan: What if Ryan Leaf had been granted tenure?

Acting on Data: How Urban High Schools Use Data to Improve Instruction

Amanda Datnow, Vicki Park, Brianna KennedyCenter on Educational GovernanceUSC Rossier School of Education (commissioned by New Schools Venture Fund)2008

Value Added Assessment of Teacher Preparation in Louisiana: 2004-2005 to 2006-2007

George Noell, Bethany Porter, R. Maria Patt, and Amanda DahirLouisiana State UniversityNovember 2008

Fordham's busy week in the media

Arne Duncan isn't the only one who has had a busy week! Fordham's Checker and Mike have been quoted in numerous articles over the past few days, giving their views on Obama's pick for education secretary.

Ivory tower types unite!

As a thinker tanker, I have to assume that this line in President-Elect Obama's speech yesterday was aimed at people like me:

Work for Fordham

We are seeking a staff assistant for our D.C. office--if you want to join our terrific team, please read the job description and apply now!

Pilloried for Volunteering in D.C. Schools

That's the headline of a thoughtful letter in today's Washington Post, coming to the defense of

The lurking danger of Linda Darling-Hammond

A colleague writes in to say: The Duncan appointment is good news, however, I'm still hearing that LDH may get Institute for Education Sciences Commissioner.?? That is almost at the level of a classical tragedy--the??Roman sack of Carthage, the burning of the library at Alexandria.

Fordham on the air

What's the future for education reform now that Arne Duncan's been named education secretary?

Arne Duncan a good choice to bridge education differences

Thomas B. Fordham Institute President Chester E. Finn, Jr., Tuesday, hailed President-elect Barack Obama's pick for education secretary.

So we're doing better (what a relief), but, yikes, still falling behind?

The fifth in the series of biennial national and state-by-state report cards for higher education is out this month. Ohio, like much of the nation, is doing better, as usual, but not good enough.

Public pension funds threaten us all

State Rep. Larry Wolpert, R-Hilliard, is completing his fourth term in the Ohio House and will leave the General Assembly because of term limits.

Doing more with less really does require a whole new approach

The dismal economic news for Ohio keeps piling up. State revenues continue to plummet and economic forecasters are predicting a shortfall, at best, of more than $7 billion for the next two-year budget. Buckeye State government is going to have to figure out how to do more with less. This is particularly true for education, where per pupil cuts of at least 10 percent are likely. Last week, Gov.

Five thoughts about Arne Duncan

1. He's widely (and fairly) seen as the "consensus candidate," bridging the divides between two camps within the Democratic Party (the reformers and the establishment). But he's not so much a compromise as a canvas upon which people of various persuasions can paint their hopes and dreams (much like his boss). To the reformers, he's a crusader for charter schools and merit pay.

Bethany Little, the uber-insider

We've already weighed in on what president-Elect Obama's selection of Arne Duncan as the next U.S. Secretary of Education may mean for education policy.