Who will next sell-out our children’s futures in the name of God and Country? | Reclaim Reform : Who will next sell-out our children’s futures in the name of God and Country? How can government be run as a business, a public/private partnership in education and the advancement of technology? Easy. Hand federal funds to corporations who will drain as much profit as possible into their coffers and
Fired For A Day. Guest post by Michelle Gunderson. | BustED Pencils : Fired For A Day. Guest post by Michelle Gunderson. Our school system is falling apart, and what solution do Rahm Emanuel and his appointed school CEO, Forrest Claypool have? Firing us for four days. It might seem as an extreme statement, but that is essentially what we are experiencing. Chicago teachers have been furloughed for
Trump’s plan to “totally destroy” the Johnson Amendment creates a huge campaign finance loophole for churches to exploit - Salon.com : Trump’s plan to “totally destroy” the Johnson Amendment creates a huge campaign finance loophole for churches to exploit Trump’s hard play for the religious right is a gift to big donors who want less transparency in campaign financing President Donald Trump appea
The popular uprising that threatens the Betsy DeVos nomination - The Washington Post : The popular uprising that threatens the Betsy DeVos nomination People listen to speakers during a rally in Portland, Ore., on Jan. 27. Several hundred people gathered with Oregon congressional leaders in protest against education secretary nominee Betsy DeVos. (Don Ryan/AP) If anyone can explain why Betsy DeVos
Wanted: One Republican With Integrity, to Defeat Betsy DeVos - The New York Times : Wanted: One Republican With Integrity, to Defeat Betsy DeVos This country needs a few good Republicans — one more would do — to rescue it from Betsy DeVos, one of President Trump’s worst cabinet choices and his pick to run the Department of Education. The vote to confirm Ms. DeVos is expected as soon as Monday, an
Nevada's Universal School Vouchers Foreshadow DeVos Effects - The Atlantic : A Case Study for Betsy DeVos's Educational Utopia Nevada's failed universal voucher program provided a useful template for what a school landscape could look like under the education secretary-nominee In a low-key interview in 2015, the Education Secretary-nominee and billionaire school-choice advocate Betsy DeVos laid o
Press Releases | Press | Chairman's Newsroom | Chairman | The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions : Alexander: Senate Poised to Confirm Betsy DeVos and “Swap a National School Board for a Local School Board” Following Senate vote to advance nomination, highlights DeVos supporters, including 22 governors and 4 United States Education Secretaries WASHINGTON, February 3, 201
Assessment Information - Testing (CA Dept of Education) : Assessment Information Administration dates and general assessment information for California public schools . The California Department of Education (CDE) has a clear vision and commitment to establishing innovative assessments. These assessments include a variety of approaches and item types that model and promote high-quality teaching a
Pick for U.S. education secretary rankles autism community | Spectrum : Pick for U.S. education secretary rankles autism community Autism researchers and advocates alike are sounding the alarm as President Donald Trump’s pick for U.S. secretary of education — billionaire Betsy DeVos — heads to the Senate floor for confirmation. DeVos, they say, is unqualified and unfamiliar with the policies that
Eli Broad’s opposition to DeVos reveals faultlines in charter school movement | EdSource : Eli Broad's opposition to DeVos reveals faultlines in charter school movement Eli Broad vs. Betsy DeVos. It is an unlikely duel between two multibillionaire philanthropists who both support charter schools. Broad’s opposition to DeVos, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be U.S. secretary of education, unde
The Hitting Left radio show. Today at 11AM. | Fred Klonsky : The Hitting Left radio show. Today at 11AM. Join my brother Mike Klonsky and me today at 11Am for an hour of conversation. Former CPS principal and current President of the Chicago Principal’s Association, Troy LaRaviere will be our in-studio guest. We can be heard in Chicago over the air at 105.5FM. Our hosts, Lumpen Radio, will be liv
Republicans propose right-wing education bills in Connecticut - Wait What? : Republicans propose right-wing education bills in Connecticut The American Legislative Exchange Council is the right-wing, Koch Brothers funded advocacy group that is behind many of the ultra-conservative proposals that have been sweeping state legislatures across the nation. Here in Connecticut, at least two new ALEC bi
The ECOT Debacle: When Charter Schools Dodge Accountability : The ECOT Debacle: When Charter Schools Dodge Accountability Last September, the Ohio department of education audited the attendance records of the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT), the largest online charter school in Ohio. At issue was whether the virtual schools had been inflating their attendance to maximize state funding. Th
Senate sets fight over Education Secretary for next week : Senate sets fight over Education Secretary for next week It's Working Keep Calling Defeat DeVos- Call Your Senator Now Click Here to Find Your Senator Defeat DeVos- Call Your Senator Now e U.S. Senate could vote as early as Monday on confirming President Donald Trump’s pick for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, with the political parties
How Betsy DeVos Became Trump's Least Popular Cabinet Pick : NPR Ed : NPR : How Betsy DeVos Became Trump's Least Popular Cabinet Pick Of all President Donald Trump's Cabinet choices, only one currently seems at serious risk of being denied confirmation by the Senate. The confirmation of Betsy DeVos as education secretary is a question mark after two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and
High School Students Reading ‘1984’ See A Mirror, Not Science Fiction | The Huffington Post : High School Students Reading ‘1984’ See A Mirror, Not Science Fiction They’re drawing the line from “doublethink” to “alternative facts.” A dystopian world in which war is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is strength doesn’t seem all that far-fetched to some students now studying George Orwell’s
Schumer: DeVos 'unfit' for Education secretary | TheHill : Schumer: DeVos 'unfit' for Education secretary Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Thursday blasted Betsy Devos, saying the Education secretary nominee is an example of the issues that Democrats have with most of President Trump's picks. "Many of the nominees have philosophies that cut against the very nature of the departm
GOP pushes back final DeVos vote until next week | TheHill : GOP pushes back final DeVos vote until next week Senate Republicans are postponing a final vote on controversial Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos until Monday or Tuesday. Senior Republican aides acknowledged there will be an “attendance issue” preventing a vote from happening Saturday, but said it has nothing to do with the GOP f
Trump Says He Heard Frederick Douglass Was Alive from Betsy DeVos - The New Yorker : TRUMP SAYS HE HEARD FREDERICK DOUGLASS WAS ALIVE FROM BETSY DEVOS WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—After raising eyebrows by suggesting that he believed that Frederick Douglass was still alive, Donald Trump revealed on Wednesday that everything he knew about Douglass had come from his Education Secretary nominee,
Betsy DeVos and Neurocore: Profiting from Quack Medicine? | janresseger : Betsy DeVos and Neurocore: Profiting from Quack Medicine? The NY Times editorialized this morning against the confirmation of Betsy DeVos: Wanted: One Republican with Integrity to Defeat Betsy DeVos . The final confirmation vote by the Senate is currently scheduled for Monday, and unless one more Republican Senator makes a
GUEST POST: Bigger than Sputnik, Christian Z. Goering | radical eyes for equity : GUEST POST: Bigger than Sputnik, Christian Z. Goering Bigger than Sputnik: How Betsy Devos’ Nomination for Secretary of Education just Saved Public Education Christian Z. Goering Most people are familiar with American educational history to the point that Soviet launch of a satellite into space in 1957 before the la
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Klonsky Bros. Radio : Klonsky Bros. Radio This morning at 11, my brother Fred and I kick off our new radio show, Hitting Left on WLPN, 105.5 FM. In Chicago or not, we'll be streaming galaxy-wide at LumpenRadio.Com . Or, you can download the app and hear the show with a click on your phone. We're not taking phone calls today, but you can Tweet us at #HittingLeft and
Turtle Learning: #IStand4Hijab #IStandWithHijabis : #IStand4Hijab #IStandWithHijabis February 1st is World Hijab Day -- so appropriate for the times in which we are living. I tried to take photo of myself but not good at selfies, nor putting on the Hijab. I'll get better at it I suspect as the Trump administration continues to harass and detain and demonize Islamic peoples. A celebration took pla
CURMUDGUCATION: Active Shooter : Active Shooter So today we had early dismissal so that we could spend the afternoon running active shooter drills. Loads of local law enforcement and other agencies participated in the drill. We had fifty-ish hand picked students to play the part of student victims. We had several previous PDs to go over how to handle ourselves. And we had two live "bad guys" with
Jersey Jazzman: School Choice Week's Alternative Facts : School Choice Week's Alternative Facts Hey, look who it is: Rebecca Friedrichs, the anti-labor right's favorite teacher! Last time we saw Friedrichs she was merrily leading the fight to destroy teachers unions by overturning almost four decades of judicial precedent and insisting on her right to freeload off of dues-paying teachers union me
PA Legislature Plans Taking Away Teachers’ Sick Days | gadflyonthewallblog : PA Legislature Plans Taking Away Teachers’ Sick Days Dear Pennsylvania legislators: So now you want to take away teachers’ sick days. Sabbatical, sick days, bereavement leaves – the Senate Education Committee voted 7-5 to strip them from the law and make teachers bargain for them with their districts. So the next time I
Special Nite Cap: Catch Up on Today's Post 2/2/17 Featured Post GoFundMe Campaign to Buy a “No” Vote on DeVos from PA Senator Pat Toomey | deutsch29 Democrapublican posturing and Betsy DeVos: the Overview | Reclaim Reform by
Why Teacher Uprisings May Hit Blue States Too
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Surprising results from a new survey of teachers reveals the depth of
“financial strain” classroom professionals face. These include high levels
of college...
2018 Medley #10
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Teacher Activism, Retention-in-Grade, Charters, Testing, First Amendment,
Science TEACHER ACTIVISM The 9 states where teachers have it worst
According to C...
Ohio: Online Testing System Crashes
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Ohio testing is bogged down by failure of the online system supplied by
vendor AIR. Can anyone remind me why everyone began switching to online
assessme...
Educators have no business supporting war
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Damascus after the attack. War is the enemy of education, of children and
families. Education leaders have no business supporting war or encouraging
war-m...
The Story Of How He Fell And Got Back Up
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As the two-year-old boy tried to walk up a short, sand-dusted concrete
slope, his feet slipped from beneath him. He fell forward onto the
concrete. I...
Join Us April 20th
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Communities across the nation will demand that our leaders protect students
and take real action to end gun violence on the National Day of Action
Against ...
An end to Friday night lights
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I don’t get it; will somebody please explain it to me. Jacksonville’s
schools, which mean Jacksonville’s children, are facing 62 million dollars
in cuts, y...
OF EFFICACY AND EQUITY
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I’m looking forward to the day when I write a piece that focuses on the
success of students and fails to mention the inadequacies of adults. Though
it does...
A Rotten Peach Poisoning Atlanta Public Schools
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Sadly, the Atlantic Public Schools (APS) are careening from one destructive
tragedy to the next. On the heels of the great cheating scandal of 2009,
APS hi...
Coalition Calls on Congress to Rewrite FERPA
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American Principles Project and individuals from more than 100
organizations including Education Liberty Watch and Eagle Forum called on
Congress to rewr...
Choice as a Substitute for Adequacy?
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Originally posted on School Finance 101:
Another excerpt from forthcoming work… Much of the expansion of charter
schooling occurred during the recession. T...
Can the Reading Pendulum Be Swinging?
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Two articles and some twitter chatter do not a trend make, but a guy can
hope.
One of the worst trends to come out of modern reform has been the
repackagi...
Heartbroken
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She was brilliant in high school. I admired her so much. She traveled to
our not so great school in the Bronx from Manhattan because of our honor
prog...
Featured Author @ Palmdale Book Festival
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Join me for a captivating book signing & storytelling! Get your very own
signed copy of 5 stars Chike the Invincible! and Oma the Faithful
Daughter! ...
Terrorism?
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Could somebody explain to me why acts like the unprovoked and senseless
attack by Salman Abidi in 2017 on an audience of predominantly innocent
children wa...
Some thoughts on Trump, Rosenstein, and Mueller
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offered in light of recent events, and the information floating around both
that Trump wants to get rid of Rosenstein and that Rosenstein expects to be
f...
Expanding "No Excuses" Models is a Bad Idea
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An organization called The Future of Children came out recently with a
report titled* Charter Schools and the Achievement Gap* by Sarah Cohodes,
an assist...
ELA Assessment: Dear Board of Regents,
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Dear Members of the Board of Regents,
Thank you for your service as leaders in public education in New York
State. I am writing as a parent of two public ...
How Has School Reform Worked in Louisiana?
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Is State Superintendent John White the Superman of Education Reform?
Remember the 2010 documentary film *Waiting for "Superman"? *That's the
film that sug...
Advocating for Schools to City Leaders
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Dr. Robert Moses, civil rights icon and education advocate, joined the
April 12 Education Town Hall, along with long-time DC education advocate
Suzanne Wel...
Suffering Teachers Can't Be Good Teachers
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Teacher walkouts are the ultimate outcome of wringing every drop of energy,
patience and creative juice out of a well-meaning workforce.
PAA joins Google/You Tube FTC complaint
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Today, Parents Across America joined more than 20 civic and children’s
advocacy organizations in filing a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaint
against ...
Helping an ATR
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The following are real words and real life from a current ATR. The
statement below was read to the UFT executive board on March 26, 2018. Her
name has been...
This Week in Education Organizing - April 6, 2018
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*Teacher Uprisings Continue!*
The West Virginia teachers strike was as close to a general strike as we’ve
seen in the U.S. in decades. Their historic and...
A maximizing area question
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I gave this question to students as a challenge at the end of a trig unit.
A quadrilateral has perimeter = 60 and a 30º angle. What is the maximum
possible...
Welcome to the walkout, from okeducationmom
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When I marched for the passage of HB 1017 in 1990, I was hopeful and then
grateful that Governor Henry Bellmon and a bipartisan group of legislators
found ...
Who Survives Success?
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Success Academy opened in 2006 with 156 students — 83 kindergarteners and
73 first graders. Now, eleven years later, they have their first
graduating seni...
Silence Speaks At March For Our Lives
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Listen to Emma’s profound silence. Remember the silence of students
crouched in closets, hiding from the sound of an automatic weapon being
fired in their ...
Jeanette Deutermann: The True Cost of the Tests
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Watch as parent Jeanette Deutermann gets straight to the heart of why so
many parents opt out
The post Jeanette Deutermann: The True Cost of the Tests ap...
Scenes for the March For Life in New York
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And so they came and came by the thousands, flooding Central Park West with
citizens of all ages, all races, all creeds, all who have had enough of
insane ...
A NATION THAT FEARS ITS CHILDREN?
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Here we are again. The murders caused by the NRA-GOP-Gun manufacturers
corruption have terrorized America for over a generation. Young people do
not see ad...
I’m voting for Chris Kennedy
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A question was posed to me last night. “At this point, does a vote for
Daniel Biss instead of Chris Kennedy help JB Pritzker?” During the last
presidential...
Amy/Andy and the Orphans
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Willowbrook. Any New Yorker of a certain age shutters at that name–and no,
not because it was Geraldo Rivera who brought it to our attention.
Willowbrook w...
Florina Rodov: The Truth About Charter Schools
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*“[W]hen teachers aren’t unionized, they’re exploited — and when teachers
suffer, so do kids.” — Florina Rodov*
This amazing piece by Florina Rodov on *S...
#NationalSchoolWalkout – Grown Ups Need to Listen
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Student activists, responding to the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman
Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, organized a national walk out to
memoriali...
Letter for BCPS Parents: My Child is Not a Pipeline
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(Image courtesy of Alison McDowell) Dear County Council Members, I am
writing on behalf of concerned BCPS parents regarding the newest rounds of
BCPS polic...
3rd Grade Reading: Who is Failing?
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Education Trust Midwest has just released its study on third grade reading
and, predictably, the results aren’t great. This study uniquely compares
Michiga...
Opting out of the Dinosaur (end of year test)
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Today I sent in a second letter to refuse PARCC/CMAS for my son, Luke. The
first email I sent at the beginning of the year was not sufficient as they
requi...
Resurrection
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I realized it's Lent, but this blog, bless Jesus Christ, can't wait.
Ok, so with that said, I plan to discuss Class Action suits in existence,
as well as w...
Are Our Educators Prepared For Their Students?
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If there is one thing that I am sure of as an educator it is that rapid
change greatly affects both what and how we learn. If there is a second
thing that ...
2018 TSJ Inquiry to Action Groups (ItAGs)
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We are excited to announce the 2018 TSJ *Inquiry to Action Groups *(ItAGs).
ItAGs gather educators, activists and others to study a topic and
collectively...
Who Is Pulling The Muppet Strings?
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Originally posted on Wrench in the Gears:
Sesame Street is an iconic brand that embodies humor, acceptance, and
humanity. Who doesn’t love a muppet? So, on...
IDEA Is Still The Law Of The Land
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Unless you've been living under a rock, you know the US Department of
Education (USDOE) rescinded 72 Dear Colleague and other letters of
explanation to s...
Budget Cuts To Kids Are Not Necessary!
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We’ve been hearing a lot of news from OUSD about how cuts to schools and
kids are necessary. So we’ll need to keep saying the truth… they are not
necessar...
Education Is a Civic Question
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In their final post to end Bridging Differences' decade-long run, Deborah
Meier and Harry Boyte urge readers to put the energy, talents, wisdom, and
hard w...
This is our Sputnik moment.
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School’s all across the nation are either starting or about to start a new
academic year. It’s suppose to be an exciting time for students and
teacher. How...
Student of the Month Nightmare
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*This is something I wrote for a monthly gathering to honor some of the
best students at our school. I figure most teachers will relate:*
I was grading pap...
99 Years of Progress Erased – unless we fight back
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Public healthcare for all? Public education for all? What is being done to
our monetized children regarding their potential healthcare and their
existing e...
You Can Be an Astronaut, but You Can't Be Black
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“What do you want to be when you grow up?” It’s a question I always
imagined every kindergarten student hearing.
“I want to be a doctor!” declares Sally.
...
Site News: New Home for Education News & Commentary
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Quick! Get over there! The daily education news roundup and education
commentaries that you're probably looking for are now being published over
at The Gra...
An Open Letter to NC Lawmakers
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An Open Letter to NC State Lawmakers and NC State Superintendent Mark
Johnson: I am a NC native, voter, and public school teacher. I am
addressing you all ...
Don't Like Chris Christie? Blame the Democrats.
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Yesterday Diane Ravitch published a piece in The New Republic, titled Don't
Like Betsy DeVos? Blame the Democrats.
If you care about public education at al...
The Secret to Fixing Schools (My Next Bestseller)
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The Secret to Fixing Schools (My next bestseller) Prologue I just finished
watching a fascinating documentary on Netflix entitled, “The Secret”. The
film p...
Farewell, Sleep
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Today is the official last day of my spring break. I've done a scientific
survey: My natural bedtime is 2 AM, and my natural wake up time is 9:41
AM. Tom...
New Local Businesses in Sacramento
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Starting a new local business in Sacramento is a monumental task, but can
be accomplished with footwork, perseverance and knowledge. One must learn
the loc...
Education Bloggers Daily Highlights 3/2/2017
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Education Bloggers Daily Highlights 3/1/2017 Education Bloggers Daily
Highlights Courtesy of Big Education Ape A special thank you to education
blogger Mik...
Bad Hair Day
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It’s winter time. It’s cold — okay, not for anyone outside California and
Florida, but still — I’m wearing hats in the morning. Lovely knitted hats
that I’...
Capturing the Spark
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It’s been a long time since InterACT was an active education blog, though I
remain quite proud of what we did here. Those of us who wrote blog posts
here h...
Random Musings and Observations. . . .
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I’ve been gone a while from the blogging scene. Some of my more regular
readers no doubt noticed but did not hassle me about it. Thank you for
that. Sinc...
WTU Peterson Slate: Not a 1 Woman Dictatorship
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Candi Peterson & GeLynn Thompson
Candidates for WTU Prez & GVP 2016By Candi Peterson, WTU Gen. Vice President
*Statements or expressions of opinions herein...
MY NEW BLOG
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My new blog will consist of fictitious headlines, meant to be a blend of
humor and satire. I apologize ahead of time if any other satirical site has
simila...
Thank you
-
Dear Readers,
Thank you for visiting *The Perimeter Primate*. This blog is being retired
for the time being. Although I no longer post here, I do still s...
I am Retiring
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I have some news: I am retiring from the PBS NewsHour and Learning Matters.
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other
conte...
All Aboard the Opt Out Bus
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The #OptOutBus is currently traveling the country giving away free books to
children! Follow their progress at their Facebook page and donate to their
FR...
Flaws at the Heart of Current Education Reforms
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Originally posted on Creative by Nature:
“Teaching is an art form rooted in the wise and careful use of educational
research and assessment tools. When gove...