Education reform
More evidence of the failures of our education system
9/11 Responders blame the Democrats for not getting their health bill passed. The Washington Monthly The assumption is based on an idea — Congress operates by majority rule — that should be true but isn’t. For much of the country, procedures like “filibusters,” “secret holds,” and “cloture votes” are completely foreign. Indeed, it’s very likely [...]
It is the culture
It Isn’t the Culture, Stupid – Web’s #1 Source for K12 and Higher Education News and Commentary – EducationNews.org The “it’s the culture” argument, fails to acknowledge, however, that the Chinese/Asian value of education is not just about hard working and respectful students. The culture is also responsible for the adoption of a coherent [...]
Interesting discussion on the value of Teach for America
The Answer Sheet – Valerie vs. Jay on Teach for America, KIPP, etc. Valerie vs. Jay on Teach for America, KIPP, etc. Ultimately, I think I have to side with Jay Mathews on this one. I think Valerie Strauss misses the point. Teach for America isn’t saying that you need “elites” in public schools to [...]
Giving them what they want
EducationNews.org – A Global Leading News Source – Five “Honorees” of Bunkum Awards Announced for their Contributions to Sub-Par Education Research In an effort to help education policy makers separate the wheat from the chaff, expert third party reviews are provided by the Think Tank Review Project, a collaboration of the Education and Public Interest [...]
Tell me this isn’t just politics
Texas refuses federal school funds But Perry said Texas “reserves the right to decide how we educate our children and not surrender that control to the federal bureaucracy.” Perry’s objections seem to center on the fact that the grant rules give preference to states that sign on to a push for national curriculum standards. Perry [...]
Because most people can still master the material even if they don’t under a third of it…
Kerrville Daily Times Kerrville Independent School District officially supports the six plaintiff districts in claiming that commissioner Robert Scott is overreaching in his interpretation of a recently enacted law against minimum grades. Minimum grading policies are the practice of giving failing students at least 50 percent on report cards regardless of whether a student’s cumulative [...]
Now why are people worried about homeschoolers?
Recently, there’s been another article on the need to regulate homeschoolers. As best as most homeschoolers can figure out, it’s because we don’t think like everyone else and are passing that trait on to our children. See, it’s not about preventing harm, it’s about control and we all know how well that turns out education [...]
If it’s good enough for George Bush…
Star-Telegram.com: | 01/10/2008 | Report gives an average grade to Texas education Texas gets a C for public education, according to Education Week’s 12th annual Quality Counts report. Because Texas is interested in producing future presidents. Technorati Tags: Texas Education, Education Week’s Quality Counts, Education rankings
Vouchers are about choice, not quality
MySA.com: Metro | State In recent weeks, community members have rallied and pleaded with trustees, begging them to spare West Campus, which has about 600 students. But faced with a heart versus head dilemma, trustees voted to close the campus, which has had chronic low enrollment for years, operates at a deficit and has an [...]
Because education officials wouldn’t lie
Critics say TEA’s dropout figures mislead public | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle Bob Sanborn, who runs a Houston-based education research and advocacy group, said the changes addressed some of his concerns. But, he said, the state still allows schools to get credit for students who never graduate. Students can say they are dropping out to [...]