Beyond ‘one-to-one computing’: Time for a new approach
Adding a digital device to the classroom without a fundamental change in the culture of teaching and learning will not lead to significant improvement. Unless clear goals across…
School Reform Opinion
Opinion: Why all high school courses should be elective
The rise of the Common Core State Standards has fueled a long national debate about what courses students should be required to take and when, the Washington Post…
Are charter schools worth it? A cautionary tale on quality
Charter schools are the fastest-growing sector of public education, taking root in most U.S. states, thanks to a big push by the education reform lobby and the federal…
Superintendent: Reforms could ‘wreak havoc’ on great schools
Here is a letter sent to the New Jersey State Board of Education from Michael A. Rossi Jr., superintendent of Madison Public Schools, about the state’s school reform…
Opinion: How to keep talented teachers from leaving
Imagine a profession whose influence on individual lives is more significant than that of nearly any other occupation, whose role in society is universally acknowledged to be among…
What English classes should look like in Common Core era
The recent controversy over how much fiction and non-fiction high school students are supposed to read under the Common Core State Standards begged the question of where the…
Five key questions about the Common Core standards
The Common Core State Standards are inexorably coming to the 46 states and the District of Columbia, which have approved them, the Washington Post reports.
What U.S. schools can learn from Russia
There is a tendency to beat up on our public schools based on the performance of American students on international tests. The impression that is created is that…
Column: Why schools used to be better
It’s one of the ironies of education reform that despite wave after wave, schools are seen by many as in worse shape as before all the changes, says…
Watch: Are schools to blame for America’s obesity epidemic?
To borrow a line from Kermit the frog, it's not easy being green -- or, eating green, the Huffington Post reports.
Stupid in America: Why we, and this viral video, are to blame
English rapper-poet Suli Breaks is out with a video that's taking the internet by storm, and young people are loving it, the Huffington Post reports.
Op-Ed: It’s time we ditched the college admissions tests
Parents, high school students, and college counselors, listen up. I’ve got good news about those dreaded and bank-account-draining college admission tests and test prep programs, Takepart.com reports.
Op-Ed: For students, ‘zip code does not define destiny’
As the founder and Executive Director of KIPP Delta Public Schools—a network of four college-preparatory public charter schools in Helena and Blytheville, Arkansas—I have dedicated my career to…
Op-Ed: True reform means ‘freeing educators of bureaucratic constraints’
At Rocketship Education, a public K-5 charter school system for low-income students, our mission is to close the achievement gap within our lifetimes, Takepart.com reports.
Should there be a bar exam for teachers?
Eager law school graduates are tasked with taking the dreaded bar exam before they practice law, says Takepart.com.
Is it possible to grade teachers on how much they inspire?
I grew up hearing my father talk about his treks to a one-room schoolhouse in Aiken, SC, says a contributor for Takepart.com.
What if the highest-paid people at school were… the teachers?
Barnett Berry shows a picture of himself from 1979 to a group of Arkansas teachers, says Takepart.com.
How the government can drive school innovation
Most of the funding and decision-making around education in this country occur at the state and local levels. The federal government has limited ability to effect change. That…
Failing public schools: Should they learn from thriving charters?
What makes a charter school succeed and how exactly can we transfer these ideas to failing public schools? These questions are examined in Roland G. Fryer's widely talked…
Expert: $8 billion needed for Texas students to meet new standards
Texas will need to spend an additional $8 billion annually in order for its students to meet the state's new college and career-readiness standards, school funding expert and…
Daggett: Schools must teach thinking skills
This article is no longer available.
Op-Ed: ‘Our schools have ignored the flight of great teachers’
Recently, many of the nation’s leading education experts gathered with classroom teachers to discuss the state of education in America at the annual Education Nation summit in New…
Educators at some high schools tout benefits of 4-day week
School officials in districts across the country are moving to three-day weekends in order to battle budget constraints, U.S. News reports.
Readers: Digital textbook implementation just a dream
According to readers, though digital textbooks sound good in theory, not all students would have access to these materials from home as well as school. Also, many schools…
Former teacher: Unions are bad for teachers
During my years as a teacher, I witnessed more harm than good as a result of the stranglehold my union had on the district where I worked. This…
Can Adderall fix bad schools?
Here's a modest proposal: Let's dose up kids stuck in low-income schools with Adderall, even if they don't have A.D.H.D, to compensate for the advantages enjoyed by kids…
How to achieve true educational transformation
True transformation would be providing each child with a personalized education plan; teaching to the standards, not the test; abandoning seat time in favor of performance; doing away…
Teacher: What school reformers don’t know
Policy makers and pundits don’t stop giving their opinions but we don’t hear enough from teachers in the debate about school reform, the Washington Post reports.
Review: Anti-union movie ‘Won’t Back Down’ is a step backward
This article is no longer available.
Military leaders point to schools in U.S. fat fight
Former U.S military leaders have identified a latent threat to the potential for a leaner, more agile fighting force: the school vending machine, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Is poverty destiny? Ideology vs. evidence in school reform
At the center of the school reform debate is the role that poverty plays in student achievement, says the Washington Post.
Peanut butter and jelly racist?
A lunchtime staple of students for years, the peanut butter and jelly sandwich could be considered one of the more popular items found in the sack lunches of…
A defense of Common Core State Standards
I’ve published a number of posts critical of the Common Core State Standards (here’s one and here’s another), but but below is a piece by an award-winning teacher…
How things look to a returning Chicago teacher
With the Chicago teachers strike continuing for a fourth day, it makes sense to hear how things look in the Windy City to an actual Chicago teacher, the…
Op-ed: For first-year teachers, it’s sink or swim
When students across the country go back to school this month, the vast majority will have an inexperienced rookie teacher. It’s startling but true. The teaching workforce is…
Until we get rid of funding inequities, real education reform can’t happen
Many of our schools lack adequate financial support, and the public is willing to pay higher taxes to remedy the situation. The problem lies in the ways our…
A new Finnish lesson: Why gender equality matters in school reform
Finland’s Pasi Sahlberg is one of the world’s leading experts on school reform and the author of the best-selling “Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn About Educational…
Education is a public good, not a commodity
Education is the great equalizer, the bedrock of the American Dream. Despite the highest levels of income disparity since the Great Depression, at a time when the personal…
Romney calls for smaller federal role in education
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has offered a program of education policy goals that calls for a smaller federal role in both K-12 and higher education, modifying but…
Will preschool budget cuts damage a generation?
Three days before the end of pre-school, Ms. Sabrena and the children sit around the table playing Bingo on boards the size of placemats. Nawal only needs one…