The geeks over at Slashdot have an interesting thread on the Department of Education's performance pay initiative. I'd argue that to recruit and retain the next generation of teachers, this web intelligentsia are the people to be listening to.
The recent report from RAND entitled "Evaluating Comprehensive School Reform Models at Scale" highlights a facinating finding that really ought to get lots of attention. Making things work in schools is a difficult, messy business. Well designed interventions--from the ones highlighted in this report, to new mathematics or science programs, to others--are really difficult to implement well, and that has negative effects on their success.
So what's to do? Certainly focus on leadership development, but also establish clear metrics and mechanisms to collect data about how implementation is going, so that mid-course corrections can be applied before it's too late. Focusing on the fidelity of an enactment is really important, and I'd argue that most school systems don't have the organization or the business processes in place to do that well.
Two people who really have inspired me have rightly earned US News's America's Best Leaders award. Bob Moses, of the Algebra Project, advocates makes mathematical knowledge a civil right. Wendy Kopp's Teach For America just keeps getting better and better. Congrats to both!
I have never quite bought into the left-wing attacks on E. D. Hirsch, and after reading this interview with him at Education Sector, I'm even more impressed with him. (He votes for Dems!) Sadly, the sense that content and curriculum matter is a perspective that has get to gain much traction within the education establishment, and Hirsch is as articulate as anyone in advocating.
For those who've written him off, it's certainly worth reading the interview.
Wendy Kopp's annual speech to new corps members is now online, and, as usual, it's an inspiring and energizing piece. While still sidelined by many in the education establishment, I think it's clear that now more than ever TFA is really at the leading edge of some of the big issues facing our schools and country.
Her three big ideas, paraphrased:
It's neat to hear how TFA fits within these three big ideas, and how they've become the core foci that are driving the organization to bigger and better things.
I met a few New Orleans friends this past weekend, and they reminded me of this great new-school story among all the Katrina sadness. A group of parents all from the Lusher Elementary neighborhood found themselves in New Iberia after the storm, and decided to start a school as they waited to return to the city. The result is Sugarcane Academy, which was housed at Loyola University New Orleans and served Orleans Parish students.
I always thought that real community driven schools were powerful, and this seems like such a great example of families coming together under dramatic circumstances to take care of their children. I understand that there's a book that will be published shortly about the school and the families involved.
I've been having lots of fun lately reading Guy Kawasaki's blog. His post about what it takes to make an idea spread is pretty insightful. (I'm sure the Silicon Valley types are sneering that it's hopelessly behind the times.)
In education, we talk lots about professional learning communities and networks of teachers. The literature is filled with all kinds of stories about what they are and why they're so important, but rather scant with concrete ideas about how to start and sustain them. This post is a succient summary of a host of ideas that all of us in the education sector could learn a great deal from.
Who's got the Web 2.0 education app? Hire me on!
Nature has a list of the top five science blogs--thankfully, Teach and Learn is not listed there.
One of my favoriates that's not on the list is Chris Mooney's The Intersection. It's a good blend of science and politics.
An email from a friend included this "sample" of student work. Funny.
This New York Times story about harcourt missing test deadlines in Connecticut reminded me of some conversations I've been having lately. Harcourt's clearly in trouble, having botched the ISAT testing for Illinois, but most of the testing companies are having trouble ramping up with all the new work they have from NCLB. Similar capacity gaps exist in the groups providing core curriculum support--the IFLs and Dana Centers and BSCSs are all overflowing with work offers, and just don't have the people to do the work.
It's certainly more than time to think really seriously about how we'll build the collective capacity for teaching and learning nationwide. We don't have it now, and strategies that depend on it are going to be in serious trouble if changes aren't made soon.
