Two cheers for teacher evals
Chester E. Finn, Jr.Principal power is a priority, but it's not everything
Welcome to Ohio, Wendy Kopp
The Education GadflyTFA, teacher evaluations, and a lot of letter writing
Teacher eval data, part 2: the perfectionist disease
Peter MeyerThe new teacher evaluation system in New York is far from perfect. But it is necessary. And it is best to have the debate in public—at least until we have a system that proves itself capable of providing good education from behind closed doors.
Teach For America finally comes to Ohio
Terry RyanThis is surely a good day for education and the children of the Buckeye State who will benefit from the passion, smarts, dedication and expertise of TFA corp members.
Education First provides Common Core rubric and state implementation tool
Kathleen Porter-MageeThe new report is an important addition to the Common Core conversation that deserves a careful read by state policymakers looking for guidance while developing their implementation plans.
Charter schools’ self-dealing hurts kids and needs attention
Terry RyanFordham has worked in Dayton – as a funder, charter-school authorizer, and charter-school advocate – to push for the creation and growth of high quality charter schools since 1998.
Untie teachers' hands on ed tech
Chris TessoneClassrooms are increasingly being left behind as the rest of American life benefits from substantial improvements in service delivery—enabled not only by new technology but by flexible organizational structures and nimble financing.
A Sunshine State trigger needs more sunshine
Adam EmersonBy limiting debate on a polarizing parent trigger bill, the Florida Legislature is only going to sow the same confusion that has frustrated Californians.
Teacher eval data, part 1: the public’s right to know
Peter MeyerIt is more important to air the opinions of the many than to sequester them behind closed doors monitored by the few.
A “war” that leaves one side well outgunned
Adam EmersonIt’s almost become flippant for Democratic lawmakers to disparage a school voucher as “a war on public education,” but a look at the numbers shows the conflict is pretty one-sided.
Measuring poverty, one chicken nugget at a time
Layla BonnotIs the number of free and reduced-price lunch participants really an accurate proxy for the number of poor kids in America’s schools?
NPR’s “math guy” on video gaming as the future of math education
Mike LaffertyThe only issue more worrisome than the agonizingly slow improvement in the math achievement of American students is what to do about it.
You can’t principal-proof a school
Kathleen Porter-MageeWhy top down evaluation systems are doomed to fail
Milwaukee Evaluations: Final Reports
Adam EmersonChoice + accountability = higher achievement
National Cost of Aligning States and Localities to the Common Core Standards
Kathleen Porter-MageeThe $16 billion-dollar question
Certification Requirements and Teacher Quality: A Comparison of Alternative Routes to Teaching
Lisa GibesMany paths to better teachers
Stagnation, snobbery, and spending: another week in Washington
The Education GadflyGOP Rep. John Kline’s ESEA reauthorization bills slipped out of the House Education and the Workforce Committee on a party-line vote, but will likely stall in their current state.
Letter to the Editor
In response to Fordham's review of "The School Improvement Grant Roll Out in America’s Great City Schools"
Ohio seeks waivers from federal education law
Bianca SperanzaOhio is one of 26 states, along with the District of Columbia that applied for a second-round waiver. If approved (and most observers believe it will be), what will the waiver mean for the Buckeye State?
You can’t principal-proof a school: Why top down evaluation systems are doomed to fail
Kathleen Porter-MageeIt’s time for education reformers to get out of the business of trying to improve the civil service rules of our broken education bureaucracies and get back into the business of empowering educators—including school leaders—to get results for kids.
NPR’s “math guy” on video gaming as the future of math education
Mike LaffertyIs video gaming the future of math education?
Purists vs. hawks in the charter debate
Terry RyanOhio’s charter school community has been split into two camps since the inception of the state’s first charter law in 1997.
More lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer for Ohio students?
Emmy L. PartinA bill pending in the Ohio General Assembly would make it possible for students to spend far less time in school than they do now.
State rejects White Hat applications
Bianca Speranza, Kathryn MullenThe rejection of the White Hat applications will come as a surprise to many observers because ODE has rarely challenged large, not to mention politically well-connected, operators.
Ohio seeks waivers from federal education law
Bianca SperanzaOhio is one of 26 states, along with the District of Columbia that applied for a second-round waiver. If approved (and most observers believe it will be), what will the waiver mean for the Buckeye State?