Harkin-Enzi: Strike that, Reverse it
Earlier, I praised the Harkin-Enzi ESEA Reauthorization bill’s handling of teacher and principal evaluations, noting that they found a very small middle ground between the Obama administration’s waiver...
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Harkin-Enzi ESEA Reauthorization 2.0
If you haven’t heard, Senators Harkin and Enzi introduced a substitute version of their ESEA Reauthorization bill today. While I’m disheartened and disappointed by these changes, Secretary Duncan...
View ArticleWhat CAN the federal government do?
The Senate’s ESEA Reauthorization bills (the old Harkin bill and the newer Harkin-Enzi version) elicited a familiar reaction from interest groups representing teachers, principals, and school...
View ArticleQuick Hits (11.1.11)
To fire or not to fire. Eric Hanushek and Diane Ravitch are debating the pros and cons of removing the lowest-performing teachers from schools: (Hanushek says student achievement will be on par with...
View ArticleMaking Common Core Standards Mean Something
This week the Montana Board of Education voted to become the 45th state to adopt the national Common Core standards. Standards, of course, don’t matter at all if they just sit on shelves. If they’re...
View ArticleWhat To Think About That Big New Teacher Value-Added Study
Nicholas Kristoff wrote yesterday about the “landmark” new teacher value-added study from Chetty, Friedman and Rockoff. It’s worth being clear about why the study has garnered so much attention. It’s...
View ArticleQuick Hits (8.22.12)
State policies on teacher quality. Sara Mead examines new teacher effectiveness laws in 21 states, including regulations regarding evaluations and personnel decisions like dismissals and retention...
View ArticleQuick Hits (9.11.12)
How to measure teacher effectiveness. A California report commissioned by the state urges districts, among other things, to stay away from using student test scores in teacher evaluations. While...
View ArticleO Captain! My Captain!
English teacher John Keating, played by Robin Williams, inspired his tony prep school students in the classic film, Dead Poet’s Society. But I always wondered: Could Mr. Keating hack it in a...
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What You Should Know About TFA and the Value of Experience
If you want a summary of the new study on Teach For America (TFA) and TNTP’s Teaching Fellows program, see Stephen Sawchuk for the short-ish version or Dylan Matthews for the longer version (with...
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