This video might teach you something about pensions – and it’s must-watch for teachers. New DQC report on student data.
Richard Barth calls on colleges to get serious about helping low-income students get a leg up:
Imagine if leaders at 40 of the most selective colleges in the country stepped up, with a commitment to create 100 new spots at each of their schools and combined that with a significant effort to expose talented low-income students to their institutions. That’s the equivalent of adding two Harvard or Yale freshman classes.
Seats for 4,000 new students might not seem like a lot, on a national scale. But the echo effect in low-income communities, among other colleges, and on the makeup of the nation’s future leadership, would be tremendous.
Parent suing in Virginia over data transparency for teacher performance information prevails. Â It’s very easy to misuse data like this so now comes the hard part. But, Virginia officials wouldn’t be in this position if the state were more transparent and parent-friendly with regard to education to begin with. If you think this is a wound, then it’s at least in part self-inflicted.
There seems to be a problem with pensions in Illinois? Emily Richmond on equity and equality. Ted Cruz’s education views. Hailly Korman on a new toolkit to help adjudicated students transition.
Counterfactual of the day: LAT’s Howard Blume looks at Network for Public Education’s decision to hold a meeting in North Carolina rather than boycott over the state’s recent anti-LGBT law. There are ironies on top of ironies with this whole NC episode in terms of corporate behavior individual choices and all the rest and reasonable people can disagree about whether boycotting or not is the best or most effective approach to addressing the new law. But, I can’t help but wonder if all the people ratifying the decision to hold an education meeting there would be as forgiving or giving of cover if it was, say, DFER or Students First or for that matter Pearson or some other unpopular for-profit player who decided to hold a meeting in NC?
In terms of this specific decision my take is more pedestrian: It’s a real hassle to reschedule a conference, scheduling, hotel deposits, non-refundable travel and all, so this is a pretty handy ex-post facto justification to sidestep all that and still have your meeting  – ‘We’re the real heroes here! We were going to the belly of the beast!’
Don’t let the public name anything? The Austin School Board has final say in renaming Robert E. Lee Elementary there but they asked for public input and here is what they got. Trump won in a landslide but there were some inspired choices including Schooly McScoolerson and Willie Nelson Elementary. Boaty McBoatface got a vote, too. Willie is overdue for a school, I could get behind that. Don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys is as useful as anything you’re going to get from many ed schools…
