Article by Ron Lieber, The New York Times, September 29, 2017   Response by Richard Ohmann. As an example of how actual high school students might step into the college problematic, take Payback, an interactive simulation game, or, as the designers put it, “an immersive online experience that educates students to make wise decisions on how they’ll pay for college.”  It assumes that players have applied to a number of schools; have been adm itted to four institutions of varying types, from a community college to a private university that costs about $60,000 a year; and want to “understand the real Read More …

Elise Gould October 6, 2017 EPI.       With the September employment data in hand, we can look at the number of teachers who are starting work or going back to school this year. The number of teachers and education staff fell dramatically during the Great Recession and has failed to get anywhere near its prerecession level, let alone the level that would be required to keep up with an expanding student population. In addition to losses from the Great Recession, the pursuit of austerity at all levels of government has meant that public education jobs are still 128,000 Read More …

This very important post was written on Diane Ravitch’s blog by Jim Scheurich on behalf of himself, Gayle Cosby, and Nathanial Williams, who are identified in the text. They are experienced in the school politics of Indianapolis, a city whose school system is being systematically dismantled and privatized. They have been active in the fight against what they call the DPE (Destroy Public Education) model in their city. Their experience and insights are extremely informative, especially their recognition that the DPE movement is not limited to Indianapolis; it has gone national. Indianapolis is only one of its targets. The business community, civic Read More …

Israeli Soldiers Harass Students on US Campus    Charlotte Silver June 16, 2017 The Electronic Intifada   University of California, Irvine is once again investigating the school’s Students for Justice in Palestine group after a protest of an event featuring Israeli soldiers last month. A video still shows a man wearing a Palestinian scarf and a T-shirt with Arabic. He was part of a group of Israeli soldiers harassing students at UC Irvine in May., , But members of Students for Justice in Palestine say they are the ones who endured days of harassment and intimidation by Israeli soldiers invited Read More …

  Don’t Monkey With Education    Fay-Cooper Cole May 12, 1967 Scientific American   In 1925 a Tennessee teacher of biology named Thomas Scopes was tried for teaching the theory of evolution. An expert witness at the trial relates how evolution lost in court but won in the eyes of the nation.   , ,   May marks the 50th anniversary of the repeal of the infamous “Monkey Law,” which prohibited the teaching of evolution in Tennessee public schools. Adopted in 1925, the law led to the trial of John T. Scopes, a 24-year-old science teacher who was convicted of Read More …

Schools push back against Trump’s transgender, immigration stances　 Alarmed by President Trump’s increasingly hostile stances on immigration and transgender issues, school officials from at least seven local　cities and towns — as well as the state education department — have sent letters home or posted statements. In Needham, Superintendent Dan Gutekanst　wrote that “collectively these actions and pronouncements impact us all by sending a message that an individual is not welcome or wanted.” “And that,” Gutekanst wrote, “is simply unacceptable.” To read the full story, visit:　www.BostonGlobe.com.

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Worldwide, School Choice Hasn’t Improved Performance Henry M. Levin; Steve Hinnefeld January 30, 2017 U.S. News and World Report   Worldwide, rising populism and identity politics are leading to increased demands from families seeking out specific types of schools that mirror their ideologies. In some countries, this has extended to replacing the public system of schools with government vouchers that can be used to pay for private schools – a priority of Betsy DeVos, the nominee for U.S. education secretary. Advocates argue that school choice promotes competition that will improve performance and allow the freedom of choice that will best Read More …

OK, I know I am preaching to the converted, but… There is only one thing that can be said about the mass firing of Central Falls, R.I. teachers on February 26: it was anti-teacher, anti-union, and anti-education. We all know the basics of the story: the test scores of the students, mainly low income, immigrant, learners who moved around school districts, were abysmally low. Despite this, the students described the majority of their teachers as committed and hard working, in the words of some, “like family.” The students recently held a lively demonstration in support of their teachers. Would they Read More …