Education
I’m not sure one has to be a conspiracy theorist to think that government policies have become little more than a series of scams perpetrated on the American people. Take Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top concoction. Sure, there’s some favorable nods in the direction of reform and school choice, but those…
As we’ve learned, the state American Federation of Teachers (AFT) union has decided to support Race to the Top (RTTT). It isn’t too much of a leap to see the link between the recent Central Falls agreement and the AFT sign on, but there also can be little doubt that rank-and-file teachers remain skeptical about…
Rick Hess at EdWeek interviewed RI Ed. Commissioner Deborah Gist in light of the recent agreement between Central Falls teachers and Superintendent Frances Gallo. Hess’ focus was on the importance of a good evaluation system for making reform work. Rick Hess: The deal turns critically on the teacher evaluation component that’ll be introduced next year…
The press releases are coming out concerning an administration-union deal in Central Falls. First in the emailbox was the union’s take: The Central Falls Teachers Union and the Central Falls School District reached a tentative agreement Saturday to implement a transformation plan for Central Falls High School for the 2010-11 school year in a way…
New (Citadel?) media site GoLocalProv has compiled a ranking of the Rhode Island Public High Schools. The top 10 comprise some of the usual suspects and some that may surprise: 1) East Greenwich 2) Block Island 3) Narragansett 4) Barrington 5) South Kingstown 6) Classical 7) Exeter-West Greenwich 8) Lincoln 9) Middletown 10) Mt. Hope…
I’m not a fan of saying, “How high?,” when the federal government says, “jump,” and waves around a bunch of money. It’s also detrimental to begin seeing federal dollars as some sort of cost-free windfall. That said, the Race to the Top matter has brought forward the true face of labor unions and highlighted their…
In a video posted today (at the previously-unknown-to-me RIDETV website), RI Education Commissioner Deborah Gist speaks directly to educators regarding Race to the Top (RTTT) and how, regardless of whether or not RI wins this round of RTTT, there will be a new teacher evaluation system implemented. The system will be used to evaluate all…
Julia Steiny describes the sort of data that school teachers can use to improve instruction: Per the data-collection protocol, [Lonsdale Elementary School Principal Jeannine] Magliocco asks the kids at one table what they are learning today. As two girls speak over one another, we learn that this is a math class. They explain that while…
Any strategy that increases the opportunities for families to choose the schools in which their children will be educated is worth a look, and Governor Carcieri’s proposal to do so by increasing private donations for scholarships appears to be a good one. The dark lining, though, is that it only emphasizes the perverse incentives that…
Chris Powell notes a strategy worth considering: Nominations for Connecticut’s mayor of the year should include Wallingford’s William W. Dickinson Jr. for proposing, in the town budget he recently submitted to the Town Council, to reduce the school board’s budget by exactly the amount the board planned to pay raises to teachers. The mayor thus…