The main media "narrative" of today's ed-sec pick is that Arne Duncan was the "compromise" candidate that both reformers and the teachers union camp within the Democratic Party could abide. Fair enough. Everyone sees something in Arne Duncan that they can claim as their own.
I LOVE this idea. Putting ads on the outside of school buses is a no-brainer. Municipal bus systems have been doing this for years, and since the advertising is targeting to people outside the vehicles--not kiddies on the inside--how can anyone complain?
Today marks the start of the sixth week of Fordham's pick-the-next-secretary-of-education daily tracking poll. It appears that President-Elect Obama is going to name every position down to national dog-catcher before he announces his selection to lead the Department of Education. Patience is a virtue and Obama is giving us a chance to practice it.
On Sunday the Washington Post launched a major series of articles about D.C. charter schools; a second installment appeared today and a third is coming. Unfortunately, it started with a regrettable front-page story examining the banking industry's involvement with D.C.
The New Republic's Seyward Darby, she who penned this dynamite (as in explosive and as in very good) article about Linda Darling-Hammond, is reporting that a source is telling he
In our first installment of "Questions for Linda Darling-Hammond," we asked about a chapter she wrote in an anti-NCLB book.
Sometimes the conventional wisdom is right; President-Elect Barack Obama has selected Chicago schools CEO Arne Duncan as his secretary of education.?? Here's what our president, Chester E.
In a letter to the New York Times, LDH takes issue with David Brooks' (and others') depiction of her as a non-reformer:
What a confluence of events when Alfie Kohn, Matthew Yglesias, and Rick Hess take up that question all on the same day.
Yesterday we launched our new feature, Questions for Linda Darling-Hammond.
A new value-added study in Louisiana has found that teachers certified under non-traditional programs, The New Teacher Project's training program in particular, are more likely to be effective.
Mike Smith got it started by asking how many audience members had health insurance, had brought their kids to the pediatrician or the dentist, etc. And he said that just miles from here, kids die "every day" from complications from cavities. (OK, that's hyperbole, but we'll let it pass.)
It's Gene Hickok's turn. (Nice professorial glasses and sweater vest, Gene!) Of course, he says, there's a relationship between all of these social factors and achievement. That's why we were so focused on No Child Left Behind. "Disadvantaged kids are at a disadvantage," he admits.??(What's the opposite of hyperbole?)
The "affirmative" team insists that the broader/bolder manifesto signers are completely committed to holding schools accountable. And the "negative" team didn't disagree. Darn.
So some friends of mine asked me why we didn't pit the "broader/bolder" folks against the "educational equity" folks. You know, an intra-Democratic party brawl? The real answer was that we were worried that it would turn into a non-debate. Everyone would agree that we should both fight the war on poverty AND work on school reform.
Neither team. By audience applause, and Checker's verdict, it's declared a tie.
Denver schools superintendent Michael Bennet* is racing ahead of his competitors for the Arne-alternative spot in our pick-the-next-education-secretary daily tracking poll of education insiders.
This afternoon at 4:30 Fordham is hosting our second "Great Debate," this one on the "Broader/Bolder" manifesto. (Video of our first Great Debate is here.) Combatants (I mean participants) include:
The debate is about to begin. What to watch for? Will Mike Smith and Peter Edelman make it clear that they support test-based accountability? Or will they argue that since "schools alone" can't close the achievement gap, "schools alone" shouldn't be held accountable?
Peter Edelman just had the best line so far: "I go home every night to a household where the term "leave no child behind" originated." (Referring, of course, to his wife Marian Wright Edelman and her work??leading the Children's Defense Fund.) Edelman: Our society hasn't been living up to our ideals for the past forty years in terms of reaching??out to the neediest.
Doug Besharov is flummoxed. He was going to rebut the broader/bolder manifesto by going left...but Edelman just went SO FAR LEFT that it's going to be tough! His question: In a stimulus package, or in the federal budget, where does the last dollar go? Should it go to the schools or to these other social services?
Mike Smith just mentioned that his wife is the principal of a high-poverty charter school. Peter Edelman already mentioned that his son* works on charter school issues for Arne Duncan. Is it just me or is working in a charter school the new badge of a true progressive? Hooray for charter schools!
Mike Smith and Peter Edelman have announced that they are going to be the next education secretary. (They plan to job-share.)
Joel Packer of the NEA wants to know if we should expand the idea of accountability under NCLB. For example, should schools and social services agencies be held accountable for making sure kids get their asthma medicine?
Peter Edelman urges us to fight poverty. We're a wealthy nation, after all. Doug Besharov points out that the best way to fight poverty is through better education. And we ought to learn what works best under what conditions. So if there's not enough money for everything, let's spend money wisely, do solid research,??and learn something from it. And that's a wrap.
Kevin Carey spent a whole week writing about the Finns, and never once mentioned Checker Finn. Kevin, what's up with that?
