THIS AND THAT FOR APRIL
We found some interesting articles from around the internet for your reading enjoyment. Most of these have been referenced elsewhere by bloggers - Peter Greene at Curmudgucation, the Atlantic, and others.
More on Secretary of Education Devos
Rolling Stone Magazine recently forayed into the education arena, profiling Betsy Devos in a recent article by Janet Reitman. Betsy Devos' Holy War is an interesting portrayal of the new Secretary of Education. This article covers much of the same ground as The Red Queen from Edushyster author Jennifer Berkshire. Reitman writes:
'(But) criticisms of the new secretary of education, based on her poor knowledge of and lack of support for public schools, arguably miss the point. "Public education is the biggest opportunity for those who believe they have to save souls," says Rachel Tabachnick, a researcher of the religious right's impact on policy. "If you're looking at the merger of free-market ideology and the religious right, that is the plum to be picked."'
Economic growth in the United States: A tale of two countries
On the Washington Center for Equitable Growth website, there's a fascinating analysis of economic growth since the early 60's by Thomas Piketty, Emmanuel Saez, and Gabriel Zucman, who write:
"It’s a tale of two countries. For the 117 million U.S. adults in the bottom half of the income distribution, growth has been non-existent for a generation while at the top of the ladder it has been extraordinarily strong. And this stagnation of national income accruing at the bottom is not due to population aging. Quite the contrary: For the bottom half of the working-age population (adults below 65), income has actually fallen. In the bottom half of the distribution, only the income of the elderly is rising."
Pre-kindergarten vs. full-day kindergarten
One of the discussions that has taken place around the statehouse and among superintendents is with regard to whether pre-k programs are more effective than full-day kindergarten. Fortunately, there's a 2011 study (this is the link to the summary) by Jim Hull from the Center for Public Education that gives us information about the impact of the two programs.
The study indicates that both pre-k and full day kindergarten programs have a positive effect on student achievement. However,
"Students who attend pre-k and half-day kindergarten are more likely to have higher reading skills by the third grade than students who attend full-day kindergarten alone. "
Here's the link to the full study.
Gary Rubinstein's Blog
If you have not had a chance to check out Rubinstein's blog, and you enjoy statistical treatments of school data, you should give it a read. Rubinstein has made a habit of debunking "miracle schools", which are schools which have suddenly shown incredible growth in achievement, and are often celebrated as successfully battling the odds.
In his most recent post, Rubinstein examines the data about the Eagle County School District in Colorado, which was celebrated by Bill Gates in 2013.
The Call to End Teacher Tenure
Here is an article by Diane Ravitch, noted educational historian, about Checker Finn's call for the end of teacher tenure. Ravitch states her opinion on Finn's position, and explains why teacher tenure is different from the practice in many colleges around the country.
Ravitch differentiates the concept of teacher "tenure" (actually called "continuing contract status"), which provides additional due process rights for teachers beginning with their fourth annual contract, from tenure, which comes with additional protections, typically at the college or university level.
Leaders, Character, and Policy
Peter Greene (Curmudgucation) wrote a thoughtful piece about administrators and policy last week that is worth a read. From his post:
"A good manager in any business or institution really has just one job-- to create conditions in which her people can do their best work. If it's raining, a good manager is out there holding an umbrella over the front-line worker; not yelling at that worker for being wet.
It's important to have an administrator who has classroom experience, who knows the regulations, who has a broad understanding of education, and all the other things search committees look for. But one of the most critical issues is character.
At this point in my career, I've worked for many administrators, and I don't remember the various policy decisions and implementations nearly as well as I remember whether they were decent people or not."
Economic growth in the United States: A tale of two countries
On the Washington Center for Equitable Growth website, there's a fascinating analysis of economic growth since the early 60's by Thomas Piketty, Emmanuel Saez, and Gabriel Zucman, who write:
"It’s a tale of two countries. For the 117 million U.S. adults in the bottom half of the income distribution, growth has been non-existent for a generation while at the top of the ladder it has been extraordinarily strong. And this stagnation of national income accruing at the bottom is not due to population aging. Quite the contrary: For the bottom half of the working-age population (adults below 65), income has actually fallen. In the bottom half of the distribution, only the income of the elderly is rising."
Pre-kindergarten vs. full-day kindergarten
One of the discussions that has taken place around the statehouse and among superintendents is with regard to whether pre-k programs are more effective than full-day kindergarten. Fortunately, there's a 2011 study (this is the link to the summary) by Jim Hull from the Center for Public Education that gives us information about the impact of the two programs.
The study indicates that both pre-k and full day kindergarten programs have a positive effect on student achievement. However,
"Students who attend pre-k and half-day kindergarten are more likely to have higher reading skills by the third grade than students who attend full-day kindergarten alone. "
Here's the link to the full study.
Gary Rubinstein's Blog
If you have not had a chance to check out Rubinstein's blog, and you enjoy statistical treatments of school data, you should give it a read. Rubinstein has made a habit of debunking "miracle schools", which are schools which have suddenly shown incredible growth in achievement, and are often celebrated as successfully battling the odds.
In his most recent post, Rubinstein examines the data about the Eagle County School District in Colorado, which was celebrated by Bill Gates in 2013.
The Call to End Teacher Tenure
Here is an article by Diane Ravitch, noted educational historian, about Checker Finn's call for the end of teacher tenure. Ravitch states her opinion on Finn's position, and explains why teacher tenure is different from the practice in many colleges around the country.
Ravitch differentiates the concept of teacher "tenure" (actually called "continuing contract status"), which provides additional due process rights for teachers beginning with their fourth annual contract, from tenure, which comes with additional protections, typically at the college or university level.
Leaders, Character, and Policy
Peter Greene (Curmudgucation) wrote a thoughtful piece about administrators and policy last week that is worth a read. From his post:
"A good manager in any business or institution really has just one job-- to create conditions in which her people can do their best work. If it's raining, a good manager is out there holding an umbrella over the front-line worker; not yelling at that worker for being wet.
It's important to have an administrator who has classroom experience, who knows the regulations, who has a broad understanding of education, and all the other things search committees look for. But one of the most critical issues is character.
At this point in my career, I've worked for many administrators, and I don't remember the various policy decisions and implementations nearly as well as I remember whether they were decent people or not."
