I recently came across the following interesting quotation, from Bill Gates:
Ian Underwood
Armed Teachers: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
A little while back, I was chatting with a teacher who wants to carry while she’s in the classroom. She’s wondering whether to ask her principal or superintendent about doing that.
Looking at the words of the Pledge
Skip ended his recent piece about the Pledge of Allegiance by saying: ‘Words have meanings but when you don’t know and understand what those words mean…’
So let’s take a closer look at those words, shall we?
NH Schools: Getting out of our own way
Today, NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut published an insightful editorial, in which he argued that the education establishment seems more interested in promoting the illusion of change, than in making actual substantive changes. In support of that, he mentioned some of the changes that he’s tried to make during his time at the Department of Education, and how they have been torpedoed by those vested in continuing with the current system.
Shooting blanks at Elizabeth Warren
It’s becoming popular among school choice supporters to accuse Elizabeth Warren of hypocrisy, or inconsistency, or ‘failing her own purity test’, because she sent one of her children to an elite private school (and is doing the same thing for some of her grandchildren). This, I believe, is both a tactical and a strategic error.
Even publications like Reason, which should know better, are piling on, saying things like: ‘The problem comes when politicians like Warren try to deny that opportunity to parents who do not have as much money as they do.’
But He’s Still Entitled to Due Process
With the release of Justice Department Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz’s report, we are forced to acknowledge our government is under attack. Who is attacking it?
The $46 million lesson
A lot of people are talking about the recent decision to reject the $46 million startup grant to help form new charter schools in New Hampshire. Many of the comments focus on the party-line vote, and range from ‘Democrats hate children’ to ‘Democrats rejected the money because it was procured by a Republican’.
But the blame for this vote cannot be laid entirely at the feet of Democrats. Even if Democrats were inclined to vote against the grant, Republicans — and other supporters of the grant — played right into their hands.
Anti-gun bills: Defense isn’t enough
As expected, Democrats have introduced a number of very anti-gun bills for the upcoming legislative session. Republicans and Libertarians are are watching the bill texts be released, and are already rallying the troops for what will most likely be a repeat of last year: some of those bills will pass (with party-line votes), all will … Read more
Message? I got ya message right here.
In his recent post, I was a little surprised to see Steve say this: ‘By its very nature, the Republican brand eschews a policy of protecting people from themselves.’
So the War on Drugs — which is about protecting people from themselves — is part of the Democrat brand?
The $46 Million Free Lunch
The first thing to understand about charter schools is that reasonable people disagree about whether the outcomes from charter schools are significantly better than those from regular public schools. (And by ‘outcomes’, I don’t mean just final scores. I mean improvements. Schools that have students who would do well under any circumstances don’t deserve any credit when those kids do well.)
And what do taxpayers deserve?
A recent Grok post begins: All our state’s students deserve the best education possible…
I’m sorry, but that’s just wrong.
Groundhog Day
In the film Groundhog Day, Phil keeps waking up to the same day, over and over, already knowing what’s going to happen, and powerless to stop it.
The 90/40 Test for Charter Schools
In thinking about the arguments that have been made in support of the recent rejection of $46 million in startup funds for new charter schools in New Hampshire, it helps to understand some basic facts about how school districts and charter schools are funded.
Mandatory parental liability insurance
At least two states (New York and Maine) have recently considered legislation to require gun owners to obtain special liability insurance — in particular, to cover crimes that might be committed using firearms that they own.
Thinking outside the stall
Recently, I sat though a seemingly endless conversation about constructing a model school policy covering who can enter which restrooms under what conditions.
Education in one picture
Back in the 1980s, David Letterman’s show occasionally featured something he called The Museum of the Hard to Believe. Here’s something that I think belongs in that museum: A typical school district in New Hampshire spends more money on a 10th grader than it does on a 3rd grader.
Pediocracy
Maybe it was because I’d seen Steve’s post in the morning, but today I had one of those Aha! moments where something that never seemed to make sense suddenly did. And it happened while I was playing Zombie with my grandkids at Homeschool Gym.
Serious Wetware Development
One of the first rules of serious software development is that you set up your tests first, before you write a line of code, so that you’ll be able to tell whether your program is working.
The #YellowNewDeal
Once upon a time, public schools were largely a response to two constraints: scarcity of educational resources, and difficulty of travel. But those constraints are no longer as significant as they once were. In particular, travel has become easy enough that many people think nothing of driving 30 miles to go out to dinner. A … Read more
In praise of assembly-line schools
One of the most common criticisms of schools is that they are too much like assembly lines in factories. But assembly lines are one of the greatest inventions ever, in terms of actually getting things done effectively and efficiently… provided that you use them properly.
There’s nothing wrong with setting up schools as assembly lines… provided that we do it properly.