Teacher union protestor: Why didn’t white folks keep charter schools for themselves?

April 8, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Wow-background here.

That has got to be the best teacher union protestor since…

 

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Jindal Triumphs in Louisiana, Brewer vetoes in Arizona

April 4, 2012

 (Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal got both his tenure reform and his voucher/charter school expansion bills through the Louisiana Senate tonight. The bills will either go to the House for concurrence or to a conference committee, but they are getting close.

On a far more disappointing note, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer vetoed a bill expanding Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Program.

Her veto message noted the fact that Arizona public schools get funded on last year’s student count, and raised concerns over first year double counting of students in the transfer year.

Time will tell whether Governor Brewer and the Arizona legislature are able to work things out. For now, Governor Jindal is to be congratulated for his strong leadership and courage in taking action to improve Louisiana’s public school system.

UPDATE: The Louisiana House concurred with the Senate 60-42- the choice bill is off to Governor Jindal’s Desk.

 

3 Comments | Education Savings Accounts, vouchers | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
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Greg Scores Again!!!

March 29, 2012

 (Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Just in the last day or two, tax credit bills have passed one chamber in Louisiana and South Carolina, and both chambers in New Hampshire. Today the expansion of the Education Savings Account bill passed the Arizona House, with the next stop being Governor Brewer’s desk.

So counting up chambers per the terms of Greg’s original bet with Jay Mathews, I count two chambers from Florida (tax credit bill), two from Louisiana (one voucher and one tax credit), four from Arizona (tax credit and ESA bills), two from New Hampshire and one from South Carolina. I count eleven, with the original Forster vs. Mathews bet having specified 10 as the over/under.

Further votes are on the way, but Greg continues to pile up style points like Tommy Frazier in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl.

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John White in the Baton Rouge Advocate

March 29, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

The battle for education reform in Louisiana is fully engaged. Governor Bobby Jindal has gone all-in for tenure reform and increased parental choice. State Superintendent John White wrote the following letter to the editor, published in the Baton Rouge Advocate. It is one of the most direct and effective rebuttals of the Ravitch-zombie mindset I have seen:

The Advocate has recently published several letters to the editor on public education. I have to say as an educator, I’m disappointed with the prevailing tone and content of those letters opposing change.

Here are some passages that illustrate a common thread:

“We, the public school teachers of East Baton Rouge schools, can’t educate children who don’t want to be educated. We can’t educate children whose parents don’t care and are not involved.”

“ … the state is going to require that very poor students take the ACT … . The weaker of these students are not college-bound students who have no intention to attend college, yet he has to be compared and compete.”

And one writer simply stated, “Poverty is a significant factor affecting academic scores,” leaving it at that — as if that absolves us of any responsibility to educate the child.

I’m so disappointed in these comments for two reasons. First, they betray a mindset that forsakes the American dream. They show a sad belief among some that poverty is destiny in America, defying our core value that any child, no matter race, class or creed, can be the adult he or she dreams of being. Yes, poverty matters. Yes, it impacts learning. And that fact should only embolden us to do everything we can to break the cycle of poverty so another generation of children does not face the same challenges.

Second, and perhaps more disappointing, is that these letters were written by professional educators. The media would have you think that most educators oppose change. Even The Advocate editorial board used the number of teachers showing up at the Capitol during a weekday as evidence to prove teachers’ collective objection to change.

But as an educator, I can tell you that our views are as varied as are the individuals in the profession. There are 50,000 teachers in this state, and it demeans them to say that the loud voices of those who chose to take a day off speak for the majority, who spent that day working with children. It further demeans them when they are represented in these pages as excuse-makers who see poverty as only a barrier to success and not as the reason to do the job in the first place.

Not all teachers support all of the proposals. Some support none. But all deserve better representation in these pages. Our teachers are soldiers in the fight for social justice in America. As with all soldiers, they joined the battle for different reasons and have different stories to tell. But they have not given up on winning. That’s the real story. The media should start printing it.

John White

state superintendent of education

Baton Rouge

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Obama vs. Obama on Health Care Mandate

March 28, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Golf clap…

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Ed Week on 3rd Grade Retention

March 27, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Ed Week on the 3rd grade retention debate, including quotes from my Foundation for Excellence in Education colleague Jaryn Emhof and Marcus Winters on his forthcoming research on persistence of the retention effect. I am very proud of our lawmakers in Arizona and especially Governor Brewer and Senator Crandall for taking action to close loopholes in the Arizona law.

Arizona has a sad history of punting on tough reforms, having dummied down the state AIMS test by dropping the cut scores and having delayed the enactment of using the AIMS test as a high school exit exam several times. The 3rd grade retention law that passed in 2010 put the new standard in place for incoming kindergarteners the following year, giving an ease-in adjustment period for the districts. Last year at the Arizona School Boards Association conference, an Arizona Superintendent confided in me that “we’ve found the loophole in the retention law, and we are getting ready to use it.”

Fortunately, Governor Brewer’s team found the loophole as well, and are taking action to close it. This law is going to be a tremendous test of character for the Arizona education community of the sort we have failed in the past. Reading intervention should have the top priority for every dime of federal funding received for K-3 students. All of the Title programs can be used to support early reading intervention, remediation, and professional development. So long as we are really going to see the policy through, I support Governor Brewer’s call for additional state resources without reservation.

The only time Arizona officeholders garner attention seems to be when they do something controversial or downright nutty. Kudos for getting some things right!

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David Gergen on Teach for America

March 27, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

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The Way of the Future: Creative Destruction in Higher Education

March 23, 2012

 (Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

You thought I was crazy back in 2009 when I predicted that we would see free, high quality university training made available online. I thought I might be crazy too, and for the record it hasn’t happened (quite) yet.

Inspired by Khan Academy, two Stanford professors however just put a graduate level Computer Science course online, complete with reading assignments, tests and a “Certificate of Completion.” Wired Magazine reports that a mere 200,000 students from around the world took the course.

The good professors decided to form a company, called Udasity, to pursue online higher education. Money quote from the article:

He’s thinking big now. He imagines that in 10 years, job applicants will tout their Udacity degrees. In 50 years, he says, there will be only 10 institutions in the world delivering higher education and Udacity has a shot at being one of them. Thrun just has to plot the right course.

Personally I don’t believe there will only be 10 institutions delivering higher education in 2062. I think the demand for in-person instruction will be considerably stronger than that. Having just visited the Stanford campus a few weeks ago, I dare to wager that there will always be a Stanford.

I do however believe that by 2062 we will see far fewer universities than we have today. The technology exists to put high quality undergraduate and graduate level courses online and make them available for free or next to free. Stanford and MIT have been moving in this direction, and if they don’t close the deal eventually someone else will do so.

Universities have been increasing their costs at a rate exceeding health care inflation for decades. The pink cloud of academic euphoria is going to meet the cold howling wind of creative destruction, and that includes the current stock of for-profit online providers. Once Stanford or MIT or Oxford starts putting degree programs online for little to no cost to the student, many dominoes will begin to fall.

Far more important than the incumbent interests of the status-quo is the remarkable benefit that this trend with have for human progress. Making world-class graduate level training available to subsistence farmers in Bangladesh will change the world for the better, regardless of whether it forces changes in business models for online companies and/or puts painfully mediocre and expensive universities out of business.

The Amazon first mover advantage for a serious brand name to move into the free-for-user higher education space with a Google funding model is out there, waiting for someone to seize it and make history. Cry Havoc and let slip the dogs of war!

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Coulson Returns Serve to Dorn

March 19, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Andrew Coulson has replied to Sherman Dorn on the productivity implosion chart. Turns out that I had been using an old version of the chart, and Professor Dorn has conceeded the larger point over the broad sweep of the spending and academic trends, but who doesn’t enjoy a tussle over methods?

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Teach in the Tetons

March 15, 2012

(Guest Post by Matthew Ladner)

Pioneer Classical School, a new Christian grammar school in Jackson Hole, WY is seeking teachers for grades K-3.   Classical curricula, the Core Knowledge scope and sequence, and a pedagogical philosophy aligned with the principles of Western Civilization and the Judeo-Christian tradition. Bachelor’s degree required. To apply, submit a cover letter, a resume, and a statement of education philosophy to Linda Carroll at carroll6@mindspring.com or via fax to 866-265-8165

 

 

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