Unified Field Theory Of Detachment

Like everyone else I think Jay Mathews’ op-ed in today’s WaPo is spectacular. It reminded me of this terrific Ruth Mitchell op-ed that had a similar theme: The CW among the comfortable upper-middle class types who populate the opinion/policy world can not only be wildly off-base in terms of the nation as a whole, it can actually have harmful consequences for less economically fortunate Americans.

Very much related, this is what galls me about the discussions about growth models and value-added achievement for No Child Left Behind. Most of the people arguing that absolute standards are unfair would not for a moment tolerate having their own children in schools that were not ensuring that they reach them, not just making progress toward them.