Education News, Analysis, and Commentary
Low points for higher education. Via Michael Powell: I had to wonder: What might have transpired had Gee emphasized the moral urgency of creating grand options for working- and middle-class students? What if he had taken the case for building a top university directly to West Virginians? Instead, the inescapable impression he leaves is of …
Continue reading “Odds, Ends, And Fish: Higher Ed, PISA, College Board…”
Congrats to my colleagues Amy Chen Kulesa and Alex Spurrier for their winning essay in Fordham’s Wonkaton. Alex and Amy take a measured look at the potential of AI. Not kool aid, and not cold water. Dutch Treat. Earlier this week Secretary of Education Cardona gaffed. Apparently unaware that President Reagan was not much of …
Continue reading “Why We Can’t Have Nice Things, But We Do Have Fish!”
This is a long one. Buckle up. But there is fish at the end. Coming attractions: Look for a LinkedIn live on Monday with Andy Jacobs, Christine Pitts, and me discussing the strike in Portland. Like other strikes lately remarkably little attention in the media. Andy and Christine are both education experts, and also Portland …
Continue reading “Vibes And Narratives Are No Way To Go Through Ed Policy Son…Plus Fish!”
Holland & Knight sponsors a podcast about Washington policy, regulatory and political issues. I sat down with Lauren Maddox to talk education. Lauren’s first question was about the Pan Mass Challenge and why I ride in it every year, which was a lovely way to start. (Fundraising ends tomorrow!) Then we covered a range of …
Continue reading “Maddox And I Talk Edu, Lazy Achievement Takes, Lazy Reading, Plus Enormous Fish”
ICYMI – we’re hiring at Bellwether, for a few roles and a Development Director in particular. Our annual report, released earlier this week, gives you a sense of what we do and why. On WonkyFolk, Jed and I talked with Lakisha Young and Heather Harding this week. I’m a pretty big proponent of college as …
To a certain kind of person, who you run into in the wild a fair amount, when you criticize anything about President Biden you immediately get a response along the lines of, “so you want Trump?” It’s an idiotic response and a sign of how wanting and unimaginative our political debate is. This shows up …
Continue reading “A Lost Generation? Plus Some Friday Fish Pics”
Greetings. Light posting with a lot of other work commitments. July will be light as well. A few items today. A seminar I did at Harvard on culture wars and school boards, a new WonkyFolk with a special guest, a caution on science of reading zealotry, a caution on stories that seem just too good …
Light posting, spent the week on the West Coast. Saw a Neil Young and Stephen Stills show that was pretty special. And spent a few days with the BARR Center at their conference. It’s such a high energy and hopeful event each year. WonkyFolk Jed Wallace and I released another WonkyFolk. We ask why after …
Continue reading “Knowledge Matters…New Podcast, Admission From Beta By Bellwether. Fish Pics!”
Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Today, reader reactions to two recent posts, a couple of items not by me you may have missed, and a serious fish. Some selected reactions to the recent post on funders and risk. A few funders wrote to say, ‘hey we’re doing this!’ A few shared interesting examples of different kinds …
Thank a veteran – and their family – today. I don’t have a lot for you on the election – they’re still counting in some key races. But it’s close. Given all the ways they had to win a slight Senate majority, the most surprising thing to me is the position the Republicans are in …