Approximately 93 percent of education funding comes from the state or local level. As we are a federalist system where a state is responsible for the safety, morality, and health of its residents (known as “police powers”), education falls within a state’s reserved powers, and thus it is primarily a state responsibility to fund its educational […]
Current Events in Education
Google Conference Shows Power of Tech in Education
Technology can greatly enhance instruction by encouraging meaningful collaboration, creation, and developing 21st-century skills. This was the main message of last weekend’s conference in Roseville, Calif. (near Sacramento). Known as a “GAFE” Summit (Google Apps for Education), this two-day event provided inspiration and technical know-how for integrating the use of Chromebooks and other Google technologies […]
I Don't Believe in School Choice and Neither Should You
Across the country there was a tour going on named “The School Choice Tour” that’s been hitting cities in the United States touting how important it is for parents to have school choice for their children. I imagine their tour stops are full of parents and students who get up and speak about how their […]
Where's The Outrage for Jordan Davis?
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] For months we’ve witnessed educators across the country becoming infuriated with the possibility that a national set of standards, the Common Core Standards, will be implemented in states across America. People […]
The Experiential Illiterates
I try very hard–and often unsuccessfully–to avoid hyperbole and straw men in my argumentation on behalf of the American institution of public education. My bias is clear, and there is no preventing it from seeping into my writing and speaking and thinking. There’s no getting around it. I have friends both in real life and […]
The Top 5 Things That Teachers Think (To Themselves) But Do Not Say (Out Loud)…
There are many skills that must be acquired if one is to be a truly great teacher. But what every teacher knows is the art of holding one’s tongue. How many times has something biting, vituperative, but honest, popped into our consciousness as we go about teaching our classes or partaking in teacher meetings and […]
Myths About Snow Days
The recent Polar Vortex has caused snow days and cold days along with delays and early dismissals across the country. Georgia was recently hit with snow causing delays on major highways to the point where people were abandoning cars. Students and and teachers were even forced to spend the night in school because they were […]
What Do the Green Shoe Laces Mean in Educational Reform?
On Long Island in the summer of 2013, neon green laces started flying off the shelves. They became the symbol of the anti-high stakes testing revolution. This symbol has been embraced by thousands of educators, parents and students in an effort to stop bad tests from hurting children, the mission of a group called Lace […]
