I Ain’t Talking to You If You Ain’t Talking About Structural Reform
In a compelling recent blog post, Nathan Gibbs-Bowling warned that as Washington State’s new Teacher of the Year he won’t be taking positions on most of the hot policy topics of the day (Common Core, charter schools, etc.). Rather, Nate, who teaches at a highly successful school-within-a-school for at-risk high school students in Tacoma, said […]
Can Districts Learn to Innovate? Lessons from NYC
We at CRPE have been watching the evolution of New York City Department of Education’s (NYCDOE) “iZone” for years. Betheny Gross and I did a paper on the early days of the iZone, when the district was asking about 200 schools to radically rethink their instruction, assessment, and staffing to revolve around personalization and customization […]
How Fordham’s Rankings Measure Up
This blog was originally published in Fordham’s Flypaper. At CRPE, we believe strongly in taking a city-wide view of education. The reality of urban education these days is a complicated mash-up of schools run by districts, charter providers, independent private schools, and sometimes even state agencies. It’s usually the case, however, that research reports (e.g., […]
The Tough Realities of School Turnaround in Tennessee
Tennessee is breaking ground on how it addresses its lowest-performing schools by employing both district-led (iZone) and state-led (Achievement School District) turnaround efforts. Very early results show both promise and concern—and illustrate how incredibly hard school turnarounds can be. A new analysis by Ron Zimmer and colleagues at Vanderbilt’s Peabody School of Education examines the […]
What’s in a Name? Portfolio, Charter Schools, and the Boy Who Hated Kreplach
There’s a Jewish parable about the mother of a boy who hates kreplach. The mother tries to ease the boy into liking the traditional dumplings by having him cook some with her. The boy is excited about the prospect of cooking together. He exclaims with delight at the addition of each ingredient—the beef, the potatoes, […]
Are Innovative K-12 Systems Solutions Hiding In Plain Sight?
Grappling with new ways to solve problems is a regular challenge in the K–12 space, yet good ideas don’t fall from the trees. Technology is now being used to try to solve problems like differentiating learning in classrooms, but could it help us address some of K–12’s stickier system-wide challenges? I was reading about these […]
“Batter Up!” Advice as States Step Up to the Plate on ESEA Implementation
With the rewritten Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), responsibility for improving outcomes for students is back where some say it has always belonged—under the purview of states. One thing is clear: as states take on their new responsibilities, they will need to use evidence to effect change, protect what is working, and ensure limited […]
How Washington State Can Keep the Door Open to Charter Schooling
Robin Lake encourages Washington state to support charter schooling in this guest blog originally published in Fordham’s Flypaper. In refusing to reconsider its September ruling that public charter schools are unconstitutional and not entitled to receive public funds, the Washington State Supreme Court is bringing the state one step closer to shutting the door on […]
The Politics of Education Reform
Creating and transforming schools is the core work of education reform. But educational change, especially at the level of a whole city or district, is inevitably political. It requires adults to work differently, threatens some jobs, empowers parents with new choices, and makes schools’ existence depend on enrollment and academic performance. In some cases, the […]
Remembering John Chubb
John died last week at 61, leaving many in his debt. His book with Terry Moe, Politics, Markets, and America’s Schools, opened the door to many of the reforms that are improving education for poor and disadvantaged children. The book demonstrated the importance of school choice for families, but also argued for government oversight to […]
