- Since I assume all of my loyal Gadfly Bites subscribers (happy summer to all 9 of you!) pay attention to all things Fordham and not just me (seriously, if you don’t, you definitely should), I will assume that you all read this guest piece posted on our blog last week. It is an analysis of Ohio’s third grade ELA test scores for fall 2021 and seemed pretty sobering to me at the time. Not as bad as we expected but not exactly a win. A different version of the same analysis was published by EdNext last week with a much perkier headline and tone than the previous version. And now, in a somewhat troubling game of telephone, that version of the analysis translated to “everything's back on track in schools!” in this editorial. One test, one subject, one grade, one day. I guess test scores are only a “problematic one-time snapshot” unless they show you what you want to see. (Times Leader, 6/21/22)
- In this piece, there are 950 words that describe a new report showing just how damaging Covid-caused learning loss has been for Cleveland Metropolitan School District students. Definitely not a snapshot, the picture is all data driven and very clear as to negative cause and negative effect. The final 170 words of the piece then purport to show hope for change and improvement, disconnected entirely (IMO) from the problems enumerated and with nothing more than wishful thinking to back it up. (Cleveland Scene, 6/17/22)
- Not to be too churlish here, but how much science did the I Promise School students actually do related to this University of Akron rocket launch project? Hint: It’s not exactly rocket science. (Akron Beacon Journal, 6/22/22)
- Finally today: Seems like middle school science fairs are going to start looking a whole lot different than I remember them starting in 2023. (University of Cincinnati, 6/21/22)
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