When Betsy DeVos became the Secretary of Education after a tie-breaking confirmation vote, she brought with her absolutely zero experience in public school education. In fact, her only "qualification" for the job was an agenda that rubber-stamps those who prop her up. And there are striking similarities with our own state superintendent, Mark Johnson. While … Continue reading Mark Johnson is Our Own Betsy DeVos

Exams are almost over. At least for this semester. And in my school the largest obstacles and tallest hurdles dealt with technological issues. Knock out the Ethernet connections to a couple of buildings, have a bad connection in another building, and then some scattered wireless availability in a couple of other buildings, then a school … Continue reading Give Schools and Students The Choice to Take Paper & Pencil State Tests

Below is a list of the standardized tests administered by the state of North Carolina in our public schools. North Carolina End of Grade Exam Math – Grade 3 North Carolina End of Grade Exam English / Language Arts- Grade 3 North Carolina End of Grade Exam Science – Grade 3 North Carolina End of … Continue reading Too Many Standardized Tests For Non-Standardized Students, i.e., Every Student

In 2011, the North Carolina General Assembly under the control of the GOP in both chambers for the first time in decades lifted the cap on the number of charter schools in the state. Until that time, the cap was 100. If the State Board of Education approves the 12 submitted for approval by the … Continue reading Put The Cap Back on NC Charter School Growth

This past January, Mark Johnson issued a statement regarding testing in North Carolina. As reported in the News & Observer: The number of questions on the state end-of-grade math exams, science end-of-grade exams and biology end-of-course exams are being reduced, according to Drew Elliot, a DPI spokesman. He said changes in the state’s language arts … Continue reading Dear Mark Johnson, Reducing Number of Questions on Tests Is Not “Test Reform”

The final song on the album Lifes Rich Pageant might be one of the largest collections of the first-person personal pronoun “I” within the limits of a song under three minutes. In fact, it is uttered no fewer than 40 times in a song that has around 170 words in its lyrics. And the protagonist … Continue reading “I Am Superman” Says The “World Leader Pretend”

In January of 2017 it was all about “urgency”. In the first six months of 2017 it was all about a “listening tour.” In all of 2017 into 2018, it was about a legal fight with a state board of education under control of the same political party about who had the most control over … Continue reading Is Mark Johnson Going to Run Again in 2020?

Dear Graduates, This next week, I will be a part of what I believe will be my twenty-second high school graduation as a teacher (student teaching included). And every year, it gets a little different, but for the right reasons. If I do the math correctly, I literally have had thousands of students come through … Continue reading A Thank You Letter to Graduates From a Middle-Aged Public High School Teacher