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Oped: Education

American Citizenship, Education
January 28, 2016

Guest Opinion: Don't let Challenger disaster, space race become lost

(Note: This op-ed originally appeared on the anniversary of the Challenger disaster, in the news outlets linked at the bottom of this post. Post originally posted on Jan. 28, 2015.) BOSTON — Today marks the anniversary of the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger...
American Citizenship, Education
November 9, 2015

Gass: On Veterans Day, Learning from 'Black Jack' Pershing

This op-ed has appeared in The MetroWest Daily News, The Taunton Daily Gazette, The New Bedford Standard Times, the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise, the Springfield Republican, and The Lowell Sun. Read an excerpt below. “There’s no ‘glory’ in killing. There’s no ‘glory’ in...
American Citizenship, Education
October 22, 2015

Op-ed: K-12 educational focus on government, civics must be restored

John Boehner’s resignation as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, second in line to the presidency, has rightfully sparked much media commentary in Washington, D.C. and across the country. But thanks to the commonwealth’s 2009 cancellation of the requirement that students...
Education
September 1, 2015

Op-ed: Big money pushes PARCC and Common Core

Each year, much is written and said about K-12 education when students head back to school. That will be especially true this fall, as the education policy community eagerly awaits a decision by the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education about whether to...
American Citizenship, Education
August 24, 2015

Op-ed: We must teach hard historical truths of Emmett Till's murder

This week marks the 60th anniversary of the murder of Emmett Till, a 14-year old black boy from Chicago who was killed by two white Mississippians for whistling in the presence of a white woman. “The news of Emmett’s death caused many...
American Citizenship, Education
April 14, 2015

OP-ED: Lincoln's Assassination and U.S. History

Read the full op-ed on The Springfield Republican Editorial Page  and the MetroWest Daily News on April 14, 2015 By Tom Birmingham                                                                                           “Now he belongs to the ages,” Secretary of War Edwin Stanton said upon the death of President Abraham Lincoln. But on...
Education
March 16, 2015

Patriot Ledger: TOM BIRMINGHAM: Plan to scrap MCAS is a race to the middle

Read this op-ed in The Patriot Ledger, where it was originally published on March 14, 2015 Since adopting the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test, student achievement in Massachusetts has become the envy of the nation and among the best in the world....
Education
November 7, 2014

Worcester Telegram & Gazette: Ed reform truly is matter of civil rights

By Sephira Shuttlesworth (This op-ed originally appeared in the Worcester Telegram & Gazette on Nov. 7, 2014) To many, it’s become a cliché to describe education reform as the civil rights issue of our time. But for some of us it’s deeply...
Education
September 4, 2014

WGBH: METCO Matters As Never Before

Six decades ago, the Supreme Court’s unanimous Brown v. Board of Education decision sought to ensure that all children had access to good educational institutions. With the civil rights movement’s continued emphasis on education as central to economic freedom, 48 years ago...
Education
July 22, 2014

Worcester Telegram & Gazette: Easy, wrong, vote on charters

By Charles Chieppo and Jamie Gass This article originally appeared in The Worcester Telegram & Gazette on July 21, 2014 After losing the 1958 governor’s race, George Wallace, then considered a moderate on segregation by mid-20th century Alabama standards, said he would...