Oped: Education

http://educationnext.org/accountability-overboard/ President Barack Obama and Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick are both brilliant orators who espouse the “politics of hope.” Both know about hope firsthand, having overcome less-than-privileged backgrounds to achieve great success. Patrick endorsed Obama early in the campaign and is a...

http://www.lowellsun.com/editorials/ci_19734981 From working to shopping and paying our bills, the Internet seems to have  transformed virtually every aspect of modern life. Now it’s changing the way we  educate our children. Thirty states plus the District of Columbia have full-time online schools.  And...

http://boston.com/community/blogs/rock_the_schoolhouse/2012/01/evaluate_teachers_with_a_singl.html Back in July, I wrote a series of posts on teacher evaluations, outlining why the Massachusetts law that was passed, with much fanfare a “bold, pioneering teacher-evaluation system,” was not likely to lead to much improvement for teachers or for students....

http://www.lowellsun.com/oped/ci_19718547 In November, state Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester announced he will  name a receiver with “all the powers of the superintendent and school committee”  to right Lawrence’s troubled schools, where about 80 percent of students score  in the two lowest categories on...

http://boston.com/community/blogs/rock_the_schoolhouse/2011/12/tough_times_on_virtual_learnin.html Back at the start of December, I blogged on the need for both an open door to online learning and also a greater focus on accountability for those who would operate in that space. Understanding the quality of the choices in...

http://www.lowellsun.com/oped/ci_19584224 February will be decision time for another round of Massachusetts  charter-school applications. In 2012, the focus will be on “Gateway Cities” —  middle-sized cities outside the Boston area. As part of a successful bid to win federal grants, state leaders last...

Until state education leaders reinstate the MCAS history requirement, students won’t know important chapters in black — and Massachusetts — history.