What Joel Klein’s misleading autobiography means for school reform
Joel Klein has repeatedly talked about how he grew up in a poor neighborhood and was headed for failure until a high school teacher helped him realize his potential. This story, he says, shows how important teachers really are. But in the important following post, Richard Rothstein, a research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, explains why Klein’s story is misleading — and why that matters in the school reform debate.
The EPI is a non-profit organization created to broaden the discussion about economic policy to include the interests of low- and middle-income workers. Rothstein was the national education columnist of The New York Times from 1999 to 2002 he, and he is the author of several books, including “Grading Education: Getting Accountability Right” and “Class and Schools: Using Social, Economic and Educational Reform to Close the Black-White Achievement Gap.” This appeared on the institute’s website.
By Richard Rothstein
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