Eformray Ealismray

December 18, 2008

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(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Well, a few days after I begged my friend Mike Petrilli to ixnay on the averickmay alktay now he has labeled the Fordham position on federal education policy making as “Reform Realism.” Get it- it’s a lot like “smart growth!”

Don’t get me wrong, even a crusty “Local Controller” like me finds things to admire about the Fordham position. But easplay, no more inguisticlay inspay!

In addition, I thought the Senate voted down national standards 98 to nothing in the late 1990s. Perhaps this is a new fantastic version of realism- but who knows what will happen next?

6 Comments | blogging, instructional reform | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

Akili Smith with Tenure

December 18, 2008

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Malcolm Gladwell weighs in on teacher quality, certification and value-added analysis in a must read article drawing attention to the similarities between teaching and the NFL draft.

Now, lots of people like to bust on the San Diego Chargers for drafting Ryan Leaf with the second overall pick in 1998 (one pick behind the great Peyton Manning btw).

Personally, I think the Bengals taking Akili Smith with a similar high pick the next year represents an even more tremendous screw up, and the Bengals turned down the Ricky Williams deal from the Saints to draft a guy who threw 5 touchdowns and 13 picks before getting cut. Instead, the could have had the Saints entire 1999 draft and a couple of high 2000 picks just to move down a few spots.

But I digress. Gladwell’s point is an excellent one: no one can figure out which college QB will translate into the pros, and no one can seem to figure out who will make an excellent teacher. Get them in the classroom and figure it out, but don’t give Akili Smith tenure.

2 Comments | teacher quality | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

You have GOT to be kidding me

December 18, 2008

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(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Now the Universities, whose costs have been outpacing health care inflation in recent years, are begging for a bailout. There’s gall, and then there is breathtaking gall, and then, there is this nonsense.

1 Comment | higher education | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

PJM on the Incredibly Interesting Uninterestingness of Arne Duncan

December 18, 2008

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(Guest post by Greg Forster)

This morning, Pajamas Media carries my column on the selection of Arne Duncan as Obama’s education secretary. At first, I agreed with Jay’s assessment that the choice is a boring subject, but after thinking about how boring it is, I now find it fascinating:

It really is amazing how totally uninteresting — how completely devoid of any possible justification for paying attention to it — the choice of Duncan for education secretary is. In fact, the selection has succeeded in fascinating me by achieving such an unprecedented level of anti-fascinatingness. It repels my interest so strongly that I can’t stop thinking about it.

Not that this means I’m wowed by the pick:

If Duncan is acceptable to everybody, that’s another way of saying he’s the lowest common denominator. And as a great education reformer once said: “Woe to you when all men speak well of you.”

2 Comments | politics | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Greg Forster

Teacher Certification: Ineffective, Counterproductive and Possibly Racist…

December 17, 2008

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

…but other than that, it’s swell!

Let’s start with ineffective. Super chart! below from the Brookings Institute, you will recall, shows average gain scores in mathematics for three different groups of teachers: traditionally certified, uncertified and alternatively certified:

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The differences between the three groups are far, far, far, far smaller than differences within each of the three groups. Schools keeping out the uncertified and alternative certified teachers on the right side of the curve are doing a grave diservice to their students.

Next, let’s look at evidence from Paul Peterson and Daniel Nadler’s recent Education Next piece on certification.

ednext_20091_70_table1

There is some suggestive evidence that alternative certification programs help state teaching forces look more like the ethnic composition of their states. Another way to put this might be to say that requiring people to take 30 hours of course work for no apparent reason (see Super Chart! above) may have a disproportionate impact on minority students. Or, put another way, genuine alternative certification seems to provide more opportunity for minorities to enter the teaching profession.

Now “racist” is a tricky term. Some argue that the SAT exam is racist, as it has a disproportionate impact on minorities. From what I understand, the SAT does successfully predict college success to a large degree, while teacher certfication does not predict student gains (see Super Chart! above).  If so, by my way of thinking, the SAT is not racist, while teacher certification may be, de facto.

Let’s put it another way: if SAT scores don’t predict college success any better than certfication predicts successful teaching, I’ll happily join the chorus calling to eliminate the exam.

Finally, Peterson and Nadler show that the 21 states who have done more than symbolic alternative teacher certfication have made larger than average gains on NAEP.

ednext_20091_70_fig3

This of course does not prove that alternative certification caused the faster gains, but they certainly didn’t prevent these gains. Florida, a leader in alternative certfication, has about half of their new teachers coming from alternative routes. As you can see, it doesn’t seem to be hurting their academic achievement.

florida-arizonaAs the figure below shows, Florida’s free and reduced lunch eligible students now outperform the statewide average in my home state of Arizona.

As one of Jay’s neighbors once said, it’s time for a change in how we train, recruit and compensate teachers.

14 Comments | teacher quality | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

Saba: Advance on All Fronts!

December 17, 2008

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Dave Saba of the American Board for Certification of Teaching Excellence (and of Friday Fish Porn fame) recommends that education reformers adopt a comprehensive education reform plan to improve public schools with as many credible strategies as possible.  A must read.

2 Comments | politics | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

School Voucher Mythbusters

December 17, 2008

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(Guest post by Greg Forster)

A while back, I posted this to help people find comprehensive lists of the research on various subjects related to school vouchers. It’s a list of lists – in case you’re looking for a list of all the available research on whether vouchers improve education for the kids who use them, or whether they improve public schools, and so forth. Some of the lists are more scholarly and contain a lot of technical information, while some are presented in a more easily accessible format.

Well, here’s a big update on the list-of-lists front: the Friedman Foundation has released a set of “myth buster” guides to the research on the six most common school choice myths. For each myth they’ve provided a brief, handy reference sheet and a slightly longer, more detailed guide to the research. Even the detailed version of each myth buster is still less technical than the other lists on my “meta-list” page, compiled by Jay and other scholars, but it does go over the most important technical issues (how do we distinguish the impact of vouchers from the impact of other factors like family influence?) and provides the references you’ll need to dig further if you wish.

 

Myth: Vouchers hurt public schools and take the best and brightest.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Myth: Private schools aren’t really better than public schools.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Myth: Vouchers will lead to increased segregation.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Myth: Private schools are hostile to tolerance and democratic values.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Myth: Vouchers are costly and drain money from public schools.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Myth: Private schools exclude difficult students.

Research: Short version, detailed version.

 

Take note that these are true comprehensive lists, including all high-quality studies on each of these questions. I’ve noticed that it’s always voucher supporters who are willing to discuss all the evidence, while voucher opponents typically cherry-pick the evidence, mischaracterize the evidence they’ve cherry-picked, and then falsely accuse voucher supporters of cherry-picking evidence.

So I would say Jay’s theory about why school vouchers keep winning against impossible odds is well supported by the empirical evidence – although in this case I haven’t compiled a comprehensive list.

What stronger breastplate than a heart untainted!
Thrice is he armed that hath his quarrel just,
And he but naked, though lock’d up in steel
Whose conscience with injustice is corrupted.

Henry VI, Part II, Act 3, Scene 2

2 Comments | civic values, competitive effects, money myth, school funding, special ed, vouchers | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Greg Forster

Most Annoying Education Blog Topics of 2008

December 16, 2008

Here are my top 5:

1) Who will be Obama’s education secretary?  OK, now we know it is Arne Duncan.  Can we stop now?

2) Who is Eduwonkette?  It’s Jennifer Jennings.  Can we now concentrate on whether what she writes makes sense or not?

3) Where will Obama send his kids to school?  It’s Sidwell Friends.  Next the People Magazine-type education bloggers will want to know whether he wears boxers or briefs.  Oh wait.  We’ve been through that before.

4) Should we push choice or instructional reform?  They’re both good together.  Will the next invented, self-destructive fight be about whether we should have Popeye’s chicken or cajun mash potatoes?

5) End of year lists.

UPDATE:  OK, I know that I said I was sick of the ed sec talk, but now that we know who it is I guess there is actually something new to say.  And Mike Petrilli has the best analysis I’ve seen, here.  I especially like that it is a 5 point list.

Leave a Comment » | blogging | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Jay P. Greene

Al Copeland: Humanitarian of the Year

December 15, 2008

Al Copeland  may not have done the most to benefit humanity, but he certainly did more than many people who receive such awards.  Chicago gave Bill Ayers their Citizen of the Year award in 1997.  And the Nobel Peace Prize has too often gone to a motley crew including unrepentant terrorist, Yassir Arafat, and fictional autobiography writer, Rigoberta Menchu.   Local humanitarian awards tend to go to hack politicians or community activists.  From all these award recipients you might think that a humanitarian was someone who stopped throwing bombs (sort of like the pleasure of stopping to hit yourself in the head) or who you hoped would picket, tax, regulate, or imprison someone else.

Al Copeland never threatened to bomb, picket, tax, regulate, or imprison anyone.  By that standard alone he would be much more of a humanitarian.  But Al Copeland did even more — he gave us spicy chicken.  You see, Al Copeland was the founder of the Popeyes Chicken chain.  Copeland was a humanitarian because he developed a product that people really wanted and voluntarily paid for.  The Dr. John jingle says it best — “Love that chicken from Popeyes!”

By developing a product that people enjoyed, Copeland was able to build a chain of restaurants that served millions of customers while employing tens of thousands over his career.  Making products that people want and giving people opportunities for employment isn’t just a good strategy for making a profit, it’s also a morally desirable activity.

I’ve intentionally selected the founder of something as mundane as a spicy chicken restaurant chain to make this point.  The entrepreneur doesn’t just benefit himself.  He or she also benefits humanity.  Making new and better things improves the human condition.  Even spicy chicken makes life better.

It’s true that the entrepreneur also benefits from making something new or better, but that in no way diminishes from his or her contribution to humanity.  Life is not a zero-sum game in which one person’s improvement necessarily comes at the expense of someone else.  When the entrepreneur succeeds, customers enjoy a good product, employees enjoy their wages, and the entrepreneur enjoys a profit.  The invention of something new or better allows everyone to win.  

Al Copeland  didn’t always win.  When his company acquired Church’s Chicken, they bit off more than they could handle and had to enter bankruptcy.  But bankruptcy doesn’t mean that you put assets in a big pile and blow them up.  Popeye’s restructured and continues to operate, so we continue to enjoy the legacy of Al Copeland’s creation.

Al Copeland enjoyed his legacy as well.  He spent his fortune on a fleet of racing boats and cars.  He decorated his Louisiana mansion with such an elaborate Christmas display that it attracted thousands of visitors as well as a lawsuit from neighbors.  Undeterred by the failure of his first two marriages, Copeland married a third time in a lavish ceremony complete with a fireworks display.  The man lived large.

The fact that he sometimes failed in business, failed in his personal relationships, and often spent his money on frivolous pleasures still does not prevent him from being more of a humanitarian than many who receive such awards.  No matter how he failed or wasted, he still developed something that improved people’s lives.

And let’s remember that the more typical recipients of humanitarian awards are not completely selfless.  Even if they don’t have money squirreled away in Swiss bank accounts like Yassir Arafat, or ego-gratifying constant attention like Bill Ayers, they usually receive some sort of compensation for their actions.  Being rewarded in no way diminishes their accomplishments any more than it does the entrepreneur.  The only question is whether they really do things that help humanity — even with something as mundane as spicy chicken.

Al Copeland passed away this year from a rare form of cancer.  As flawed as he was (and aren’t we all) he was a great humanitarian.

7 Comments | Al Copeland Humanitarian Award, economics, tributes | Permalink
Posted by Jay P. Greene

Team Maverick?

December 15, 2008

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Tina Fey as Sarah Palin: “John McCain and I, we’re a couple of mavericks, and gosh darn it, we’re gonna take that maverick energy right to Washington and we are gonna use it to fix this financial crisis and everything else that is plaugin’ this great country of ours.

Queen Latifah as Gwen Ifill: How will being a maverick solve the financial crisis? What will you do?

Tina Fey as Sarah Palin: You know, we’re gonna take every aspect of this crisis, and look at it, and ask ‘What would a maverick do with this situation?’ and then, you know, do that.”

Mike, pally, careful with the maverick talk! You’ve got to at least give us all some space from the election so that just hearing the word doesn’t sound like fingernails scratching a chalkboard.

2 Comments | blogging | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by matthewladner

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