Don’t Call Me an Education Reformer — I Don’t Know What That Means Anymore
Don’t call me an education reformer. I’m not interested in debating reformers’ beliefs, who is a reformer or who is not. I’m not interested in responding to blanket accusations about reformers’ intentions, or joining forces with the think-tank types who wish to defend them. This might seem odd coming from someone who leads an organization […]
We Need a More Productive Debate About School Accountability, Not Tired Arguments Over Testing
Last week, we at the Center on Reinventing Public Education celebrated our twenty-fifth anniversary by hosting a convening of practitioners, advocates, and researchers to take stock of where our education system stands, and how it must change to prepare every child for a future where change will be the one certain constant. We discussed a […]
It’s Time to Rebuild the Sensible Center on Education Reform
Albert Shanker used to talk about crab bucket syndrome, by which high school students fighting to get out of poverty are constantly pulled back by others who don’t hope to “make it.” Something like that is happening in the increasingly polarized education policy debate, as groups trying to rise above the ideological divide about school […]
The Enrichment Gap: The Educational Inequity That Nobody Talks About
Note: In celebration of our 25th anniversary, CRPE released Thinking Forward: New Ideas for a New Era of Public Education. The research discussed in this blog post shows how ideas from two essays in that volume—Educational Equality in the Future: Risks and Opportunity and Beyond the Bell: Leveraging Community Assets for an Expanded Learning System—play […]
On the 25th Anniversary of the Center on Reinventing Public Education, a Look at Lessons Learned & New Imperatives Ahead
At the Center on Reinventing Public Education, we are celebrating our 25th anniversary. We are thinking a lot about our principles and lessons learned. At our core, we believe schools can make a difference even for the most disadvantaged children. To do that, they must be coherent — meaning they must be grounded in a […]
Thinking Forward: How Can Public Education Prepare Every Student for the Challenges of the Future?
Today, to mark our 25th anniversary, the Center on Reinventing Public Education is releasing Thinking Forward: New Ideas for a New Era of Public Education. This volume of essays rethinks foundational aspects of the current education system, from funding to accountability to equity, with an eye toward preparing every student for the future. Our goal […]
To Meet the Needs of Complex Learners, School Systems Must Think More Boldly
Twenty-five years ago CRPE was founded on the idea of the school as the locus of change. Today we are reexamining our old assumptions in light of new technical possibilities, changes in the economy, and a recognition that even the most effective schools may need to develop new approaches to better serve students whose needs […]
A New School Takes Root in New Orleans—And Races Against Time
Twenty-five years ago CRPE was founded on the idea of the school as the locus of change. Today we are reexamining our old assumptions in light of new technical possibilities, changes in the economy, and a recognition that even the most effective schools may need to develop new approaches to better serve students whose needs […]
Working Smarter, Not Harder: Promising Local Strategies for Improving Charter School Teacher Supply
September’s jobs report gave us a picture of this year’s teacher shortfall compared to 2017. From last year to this, not much has changed. For some this could be good news—at least things aren’t getting worse—but we also know that teacher numbers haven’t returned to pre-2007 levels. The teacher shortage is a popular topic in […]
States Don’t Need to Wait on a Congressional Investigation to Improve Online Charter School Oversight
Once again, virtual charter schools are coming under heavy scrutiny. Last week, the Center for American Progress published a report that called for banning for-profit online charter school operators. Soon thereafter, two Democratic U.S. senators called for a Government Accountability Office investigation of virtual charter schools. While meaningful federal action might be unlikely under the […]