ICYMI: A Quick Calm Moment Edition (12/4)
Christmas is still far enough away that the Board of Directors are not yet losing their mind, but at age 5 they clearly understand Christmas in ways they previously did not. Just hang on.
I'm going to remind you that this weekly post is all about amplification. They way people get heard on the interwebz is to be shared, far and wide, again and again. Every single person who can click can help out with that. So if you read something here that speaks to you, share it. Post it (from the original source) on your Facebook or Tweetster or whatever platform you hang out upon (which is important, because as folks spread out across various platforms, it takes a little more work to get the word to them all).
Sharing really is caring, and the bigger your personal audience, the more amplification you can provide. Okay, here we go.
Erie students get an A+ for academic growth
The story of Erie is encouraging. A school district that at one point seriously considered closing all its high schools has put together a remarkable coalition to lift it up out of the ditch. Yeah, I don't think much of test scores as a measure, but several measures, something is going right up there.
What do we owe the children of the pandemic
Nancy Flanagan with a heck of a post asking some of the important questions that most NAEP panic coverage is missing.
Conservative states are blocking trans medical care. Families are fleeing.
Politico offers some reportage on how things are working out for some families in Texas and Florida.
A post about the political machinations of the anti-LGBTQ crowd in South Carolina.
The Science of Reading and the Media: Is Reporting Biased?From Maren Aukerman at the Literacy Research Association, an excellent rundown of what's going on in the current iteration of the Reading Wars.
After a bruising Michigan election, what’s next for Betsy DeVos and her education agenda?Chalkbeat Detroit considers the DeVos fortunes after their shellacking-by-proxy in Michigan's elections. Election ReflectionTeacher activist Nicole Wolff in Arizona reflects on an election that was exhausting and not entirely encouraging in its results.The System is Just Not Built That WayTC Weber with some things to think about considering relationships and canned SEL programsFormer area teachers say they left profession feeling exhausted, unsupported
From Fargo, a look at teachers who have been worn down by problems with student behavior and a lack of support in dealing with them.
Cynical MAGA censors are damaging public education
Always interesting to see how these things look to people outside the education bubble. Here's nominally-conservative Jennifer Rubin at the Washington Post offering her take on the reading restrictions movement.
NC Baptist: On book bans, Moms for Liberty sure has a narrow view of liberty
And here's a take on book banning from a card-carrying Baptist in the South.
And then there are the pensions!
Jeff Waid continues his series with a look at the arguments being made to reduce pensions for teachers.
Pursue School Improvement Through Persuasion, Not Vilification
Yes, this is a decade or two late, and yes, Rick Hess has been pretty close to the problem he's critiquing. But he's not wrong. At Ed Week.
Elsewhere, a piece I wrote is in the official magazine of the official superintendents' association. It's about the connections between small towns and their schools.
Over at Forbes, I looked at some standards movement fans spinning their wheels and still not understanding where they went wrong, and then I picked up on Oklahoma's stated intent to require taxpayers to fund religious charters.