Newark Superintendent Is Advising School Board Members to Lie to the State
Just when you think Newark Public Schools District can’t get any more dysfunctional, another perversion pops up. Example: today Chalkbeat reports that during October’s board
2022 Mid-Terms: Winners Listened to 81% of Parents Who Support School Choice
This is a press release from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Education played a significant role in the 2022 election cycle in America—and
Top New Jersey Officials Demand More Honesty and Less Vomit From Murphy’s Education Department As Student Proficiency Plummets
When someone stands up and says New Jersey schools are #1 I have an immediate reaction to vomit because I know that’s not true. That’s
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Taking Pot Shots at N.J.’s Charter School Students
“The charter school law needs to be rewritten in a thoughtful, comprehensive way. It’s been more than 20 years since the law was passed…I support
QOD: Camden Charter School Teacher on Parent Partnerships and the Joy of Learning
Joelle Quick, a kindergarten teacher at Hope Community Charter SchooL It’s a happy feeling inside. Every day I wake up and I’m excited to get
Interdistrict Public School Choice Leader Offers a Funding Solution
Bob Garguilo, chairman of the New Jersey Interdistrict Public School Choice Association, has an excellent editorial in today’s NJ Spotlight on the primary problem with
Jersey City Charter School Teacher: I’m an “equal partner” and “empowered by school leadership”
Jomayra I. Torres, a first grade teacher at a Jersey City charter school and mother of a charter school student, describes the pedagogical benefits of these alternative
Great News! Newark City Council Opposes Diegnan/Jasey Charter Moratorium Bill
Yesterday the Newark City Council, duly-elected representatives of Newark residents, passed a resolution that opposes Assembly bill 4351, sponsored by Patrick Diegnan and Mila Jasey,
Montclair Teacher Scheduled AP Review Session During PARCC Test; Parent Fights Back
Montclair Public Schools has one of the highest PARCC opt-out rates in the state and it appears that the boycott of annual standardized tests is
The Chutzpah of the Rutgers Anti-Charter Trio: “We’ll Tell You What’s Right for Your Kid”
On Saturday the Star-Ledger published a lengthy editorial-cum-analysis on the pushback in New Jersey against high-performing charter schools, specifically KIPP NJ, which runs schools in
In Diegnan’s Anti-PARCC bills, Poor Children are just Collateral Damage
Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex), chair of the Assembly Education Committee, has an editorial in today’s Star Ledger promoting his PARCC moratorium bill (A 4190) and
Correction
My column yesterday at Newsworks WHYY contains an error. I said, “Things are so bad that a moronic charter school moratorium bill unanimously passed the
A N.J. Teacher Makes an Immodest Proposal
Today Walter Bowne, an A.P. English teacher somewhere in South Jersey, argues in NJ Spotlight that PARCC test results should not be tied to his
New Newsworks Column: Christie’s Toast But He Can Still Advance Education Initiatives
Let’s make it official: Chris Christie is toast. As our defamed and diminished governor lurches back towards Jersey, his only quandary is whether or not
Livingston Superintendent on PARCC: We Don’t Care; We Don’t Have To
Jim O’Neill, interim superintendent of Livingston Public Schools, defends his district’s high PARCC opt-out rates in yesterday’s NJ Spotlight: I am sorry to say the
QOD: A Newark Mother Decries N.J.’s Charter Moratorium Bill
Newark mother Melissa Grant (she’s also CEO of a non-profit that provides transitional housing for homeless women) expresses her dismay at Assembly bill A4351, which
I’m Off the Wagon, Diane
I’ve been really good about not quoting Diane Ravitch, but I’m off the wagon. In a recent blog post she demeans national civil and human rights groups
Civil Rights Groups Decry Anti-Testers’ Appropriation of a “False Mantle of Civil Rights”
In a just-issued press release, Twelve national civil and human rights groups announced their opposition to “anti-testing efforts springing up across the country that are
If Asbury Park Public Schools Were Charters, They’d Be Shut Down Long Ago
Here’s a parent of a high school student enrolled at Asbury Park High School: “I am so done with that district,” said Phyllis Ling, who
QOD: N.Y. Times Debate on Standards and Assessments
The NYT’s “Room for Debate” is featuring a conversation between Patricia Levesque from the Foundation for Excellence in Education and Kevin Welner of the National
Sunday Leftovers
North Brunswick Schools Superintendent Brian Zychowski on why opting your children out of PARCC hurts kids and schools: Parents need facts, not distortion. Fact: There’s
QOD: Ross Douthat on Baltimore, Police Unions, and Teacher Unions
From today’s New York Times: Police unions do have critics on the right. But thanks to a mix of cultural affinity, conservative support for law-and-order
