"Least influential of education's most influential information sources."
-- Education Week Research Center
"full of very lively short items and is always on top of the news...He gets extra points for skewering my high school rating system"
-- Jay Mathews, The Washington Post
"a daily dose of information from the education policy world, blended with a shot of attitude and a dash of humor"
-- Education Week
"unexpectedly entertaining"..."tackle[s] a potentially mindfogging subject with cutting clarity... they're reading those mushy, brain-numbing education stories so you don't have to!"
-- Mickey Kaus
"a very smart blog... this is the site to read"
-- Ryan Lizza
"everyone who's anyone reads Eduwonk"
-- Richard Colvin
"designed to cut through the fog and direct specialists and non-specialists alike to the center of the liveliest and most politically relevant debates on the future of our schools"
-- The New Dem Daily
"peppered with smart and witty comments on the education news of the day"
-- Education Gadfly
"don't hate Eduwonk cuz it's so good"
-- Alexander Russo, This Week In Education
"the morning's first stop for education bomb-throwers everywhere"
-- Mike Antonucci, Intercepts
"…the big dog on the ed policy blog-ck…"
-- Michele McLaughlin
"I check Eduwonk several times a day, especially since I cut back on caffeine"
-- Joe Williams
"...one of the few bloggers who isn't completely nuts"
-- Mike Petrilli, Thomas B. Fordham Foundation
"I have just three 'go to' websites: The Texas Legislature, Texas Longhorn sports, and Eduwonk"
-- Sandy Kress
"penetrating analysis in a lively style on a wide range of issues"
-- Walt Gardner
"Fabulous"
-- Education Week's Alyson Klein
"thugs"
-- Susan Ohanian
Smart List: 60 People Shaping the Future of K-12 Education
RTT and i3 are initiatives that few people would call successful. While we can withhold judgement on the Early Learning Challenge, we can be certain that the process will be long, political, and unfulfilling.
Education reform initiatives are too often written by those who deal with States, agencies, and Districts on the theoretical level. Such policy writers are so far removed from the political, district, and bureaucratic obstacles that confront “front line” reformers, that they find it difficult to comprehend how the theoretical had so much trouble becoming practical.
Sometimes “front line” reformers like charter schools ask themselves, “Are these folks trying to help us, or hurt us?”
Having participated in the application for RTT and i3, I doubt that I would ever take the time to reapply.
If I were to counsel any organization on the application process for any Federal initiatives, there would be a serious discussion on availability of human capital resources, political influences, and money.
Even with the best of intentions, top down policies rarely impact the classroom. Worse, top down funding doesn’t make it there either. To the inexperienced and naive (me) you soon discover that it actually cost you money to apply for the funds you needed to aid your teachers and students.
I agree with John.
If I were a billionaire, I’d reimburse states would they would lose from withdrawing from all these federal mandates–just so they could get back to state and local control and things that really make sense–not just clever rhetoric that doesn’t work.
It’s time to end this educational De-form movement.
I agree with Karl and John. This top-down federal interference with K-12 education is unlikely to help — and likely to hurt — the states’ public schools. You can’t dictate the minutiae of K-12 teaching practice across the country from Capitol Hill.