CTU President Karen Lewis On Sandy Hook: Teach For America Kills

I’ve had little to say about the heartbreaking Sandy Hook Elementary massacre because for the most part I see it as a horrible societal problem that visited a school, not a school problem.  Our schools have their challenges but overall they’re safe places for youngsters.  I have a column coming in TIME on the gun …

Guns, Charters, And Other Non-Polarizing Issues. Plus Schmitz, Coons, Boston HS, More!

Kirsten Schmitz on some CTE leadership lessons. I suggest always reading Jack Coons. You may have missed it, but this week Virginia transgender teen Gavin Grimm won another victory in court. It’s a good reminder that despite all the political action in D.C. on this issue the real action is going to be in the courts. …

States And Talent, Less NAEP Means More NAEP? Transparency Means Better Finance? Oakland Charters, Names At Yale, Tenure And Free Speech, Prince And Students!

Christine Campbell on principals and how states think about talent in education.  Phillip Burgoyne-Allen argues for a bit less NAEP, which could mean more NAEP: If we didn’t have the data above from 2005, 2009, and 2013 – meaning these NAEP tests were only administered every four years – would we really be missing out …

School Safety, Part 1: Children Deserve Action

Guestblogger Kori Milroy teaches grammar school science. She participated in New Voice Strategies’ VIVA Chicago Idea Exchange and is coauthor of the 2011 collaborative report “Time, Teachers, and Tomorrow’s Schools.” Like most schools in America, my school conducted a lockdown drill shortly after the Sandy Hook massacre last year.  During the drill, we were instructed …

The Gun Issue

Last week I wrote about Uvalde and the issues around school safety and firearms safety. Mary Wells and I also wrote this. The short version is that these episodes are shocking but far more rare than most people realize. Schools are safe and trying to convince parents otherwise in pursuit of political goals is counterproductive no …