Opinion Archive

  • This article is from Kenneth J. Bernstein who is a schoolteacher and a blogger whose work appears on Daily Kos and other sites. We were sitting in a Starbucks in Arlington, Va. It was our first meeting. Previously, Iowa governor Tom Vilsack and I had talked by phone and exchanged blog posts on education. His campaign staff had reached out to a number of educational bloggers, as he was seriously considering running for president and thought education was a good issue for him. Since he was going to be in my neighborhood, we agreed to get together. At one point I mentioned that the governors had just had a meeting on education, and he nodded. I remarked that each had brought a business leader to the meeting. The governor nodded again. And then I asked, “Why didn’t you bring a...

    Why Not Ask Teachers How They Would Improve Our Schools?

    Posted on January 16, 2013 | No Comments
    This article is from Kenneth J. Bernstein who is a schoolteacher and a blogger whose work appears on Daily Kos and other sites. We were sitting in a Starbucks in Arlington, Va. It was our first meeting. Previously, Iowa governor Tom Vilsack and I had talked by phone and exchanged blog posts on education. His campaign staff had reached out to a number of educational bloggers, as he was seriously considering running for president and thought education was a good issue for him. Since he was going to be in my neighborhood, we agreed to get together. At one point I mentioned that the governors had just had a meeting on education, and he nodded. I remarked that each had brought a business leader to the meeting. The governor nodded again. And then I asked, “Why didn’t you bring a...

    Continue Reading...

  • The Public Disclosure Commission has fined Kennewick School Board members Brian Brooks, Ron Mabry and Ben Messinger for violating campaign finance laws during their school board election campaigns in 2011. This raises several issues. While the civil penalties of $200 (with $100 suspended) are a slap on the wrist for the board members, the consequences for Kennewick students and families are very significant. As candidates, these men assured voters they were most qualified to serve on the school board because their experience with budgets and finances was superior to that of their opponents.  Ironically, Mr. Brooks taunted candidate Uby Creek for her self-deprecating comment that she was occasionally troubled managing her checkbook.  His failure to properly manage his campaign finances of $5000 discredits his claim to expertise yet he now oversees a school district budget of many millions. When signing up...

    Kennewick Board Members’ Campaign Violations Have Consequences

    Posted on October 5, 2012 | No Comments
    The Public Disclosure Commission has fined Kennewick School Board members Brian Brooks, Ron Mabry and Ben Messinger for violating campaign finance laws during their school board election campaigns in 2011. This raises several issues. While the civil penalties of $200 (with $100 suspended) are a slap on the wrist for the board members, the consequences for Kennewick students and families are very significant. As candidates, these men assured voters they were most qualified to serve on the school board because their experience with budgets and finances was superior to that of their opponents.  Ironically, Mr. Brooks taunted candidate Uby Creek for her self-deprecating comment that she was occasionally troubled managing her checkbook.  His failure to properly manage his campaign finances of $5000 discredits his claim to expertise yet he now oversees a school district budget of many millions. When signing up...

    Continue Reading...

  • By Mark Naison, professor of African American Studies and History at Fordham University The start of a new school year is normally an exciting time.  Teachers are busy decorating their classrooms, preparing their lessons, reconnecting with colleagues, imagining what they are going to say that first day when they meet their students.  But this year, teachers will have many other things on their minds.  We live in a society where every important group- politicians, business leaders, media pundits, even Hollywood film personalities – are quick to blame teachers, not only for the alleged failures of our schools, but the failure of our society to reduce poverty and Inequality.

    Message To My Teacher Friends At The Start of a New School Year

    Posted on August 28, 2012 | No Comments
    By Mark Naison, professor of African American Studies and History at Fordham University The start of a new school year is normally an exciting time.  Teachers are busy decorating their classrooms, preparing their lessons, reconnecting with colleagues, imagining what they are going to say that first day when they meet their students.  But this year, teachers will have many other things on their minds.  We live in a society where every important group- politicians, business leaders, media pundits, even Hollywood film personalities – are quick to blame teachers, not only for the alleged failures of our schools, but the failure of our society to reduce poverty and Inequality.

    Continue Reading...

  • This editorial opinion was published in the Tri-City Herald on August 7, 2012. Public education seems to be attached to a philosophical pendulum, swinging from one trend to another. While many ideas may sound great in theory, it isn’t until they are implemented that they can truly be tested. Sometimes they are successful, sometimes they cause a few unforeseen consequences and sometimes new programs just don’t work. Go to this link to read the entire opinion: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/08/07/2052493/ksd-grading-policy-should-have.html  

    KSD grading policy should have community support

    Posted on August 13, 2012 | No Comments
    This editorial opinion was published in the Tri-City Herald on August 7, 2012. Public education seems to be attached to a philosophical pendulum, swinging from one trend to another. While many ideas may sound great in theory, it isn’t until they are implemented that they can truly be tested. Sometimes they are successful, sometimes they cause a few unforeseen consequences and sometimes new programs just don’t work. Go to this link to read the entire opinion: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/08/07/2052493/ksd-grading-policy-should-have.html  

    Continue Reading...

  • Nancy Smith spoke to the Kennewick school board during their retreat this past Wednesday.  Some of her comments were reported in the Tri-City Herald.  This letter more completely explains her position on SBG as it is being implemented in Kennewick. Kennewick School Board, As you can see, I am passionate about teaching and student learning.  I agonize over the grades and spend hundreds of hours evaluating student work each year, before recording a final summative academic score.  It is critical that I am invested in and have faith in the grading system I use. Wednesday night, I was saddened that this was the level of staff development on Standards-Based Grading being spoon-fed to a School Board at the apex of decision making on a grading philosophy.  As I listened, I became offended by the superficial dialogue and generalizations made about how...

    Nancy Smith’s Open Letter to the Kennewick School Board – SBG Fixes

    Posted on June 15, 2012 | 3 Comments
    Nancy Smith spoke to the Kennewick school board during their retreat this past Wednesday.  Some of her comments were reported in the Tri-City Herald.  This letter more completely explains her position on SBG as it is being implemented in Kennewick. Kennewick School Board, As you can see, I am passionate about teaching and student learning.  I agonize over the grades and spend hundreds of hours evaluating student work each year, before recording a final summative academic score.  It is critical that I am invested in and have faith in the grading system I use. Wednesday night, I was saddened that this was the level of staff development on Standards-Based Grading being spoon-fed to a School Board at the apex of decision making on a grading philosophy.  As I listened, I became offended by the superficial dialogue and generalizations made about how...

    Continue Reading...

  • New isn’t always better, different isn’t always bad We are glad to see young people getting involved in the decision-making process. When eight Kennewick middle school students delivered to the school board 150 letters addressing their grading system, we were impressed.They sure weren’t looking at the rest of the community for role models. As a whole, adults are a demonstrably apathetic when it comes to attending school board or city council meetings. Regardless of whether the grading system is revised, at least the students have a better feel for how to petition their elected officials. That’s a lesson worth learning. Read more here: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/06/06/1972140/new-isnt-always-better-different.html

    Standards Based Grading – the Tri-City Herald Speaks Out

    Posted on June 6, 2012 | 1 Comment
    New isn’t always better, different isn’t always bad We are glad to see young people getting involved in the decision-making process. When eight Kennewick middle school students delivered to the school board 150 letters addressing their grading system, we were impressed.They sure weren’t looking at the rest of the community for role models. As a whole, adults are a demonstrably apathetic when it comes to attending school board or city council meetings. Regardless of whether the grading system is revised, at least the students have a better feel for how to petition their elected officials. That’s a lesson worth learning. Read more here: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/06/06/1972140/new-isnt-always-better-different.html

    Continue Reading...

  • National Research Council concludes the experiment on our children didn’t work!   The National Research Council is the nation’s leading research organization and an arm of the National Academies. This 2011 report, Incentives and Test-Based Accountability in Education, has been ignored by the U.S. Department of Education, the states, and the mainstream media as we send our children plunging like lemmings over the cliff of high-stakes testing and the other failed policies of No Child Left Behind (Bush II) and Race to the Top (Obama). Our children and their teachers/schools are the primary victims of this debacle which extends to state legislatures, governors, mayors, and even local school boards who rushed to the trough of incentive money without bothering to ask if the measures being implemented were likely to succeed or to check along the way to see if they...

    10-YEAR EXPERIMENT ON CHILDREN HAS FAILED!

    Posted on May 26, 2012 | 1 Comment
    National Research Council concludes the experiment on our children didn’t work!   The National Research Council is the nation’s leading research organization and an arm of the National Academies. This 2011 report, Incentives and Test-Based Accountability in Education, has been ignored by the U.S. Department of Education, the states, and the mainstream media as we send our children plunging like lemmings over the cliff of high-stakes testing and the other failed policies of No Child Left Behind (Bush II) and Race to the Top (Obama). Our children and their teachers/schools are the primary victims of this debacle which extends to state legislatures, governors, mayors, and even local school boards who rushed to the trough of incentive money without bothering to ask if the measures being implemented were likely to succeed or to check along the way to see if they...

    Continue Reading...

  • What Passes for School Reform: “Value-Added” Teacher Evaluation and Other Absurdities       The less people know about teaching and learning, the more sympathetic they’re likely to be to the kind of “school reform” that’s all the rage these days.  Look, they say, some teachers (and schools) are lousy, aren’t they?  And we want kids to receive a better education — including poor kids, who typically get the short end of the stick, right?  So let’s rock the boat a little!  Clean out the dead wood, close down the places that don’t work, slap public ratings on these suckers just like restaurants that have to display the results of their health inspections.

    Reasons to Oppose School Reform – for Teachers and Parents

    Posted on May 11, 2012 | 1 Comment
    What Passes for School Reform: “Value-Added” Teacher Evaluation and Other Absurdities       The less people know about teaching and learning, the more sympathetic they’re likely to be to the kind of “school reform” that’s all the rage these days.  Look, they say, some teachers (and schools) are lousy, aren’t they?  And we want kids to receive a better education — including poor kids, who typically get the short end of the stick, right?  So let’s rock the boat a little!  Clean out the dead wood, close down the places that don’t work, slap public ratings on these suckers just like restaurants that have to display the results of their health inspections.

    Continue Reading...

Older Entries