In October 2017, the venerable James Ford of the Public School Forum delivered the keynote address at the North Carolina English Teacher’s Association. It was more than exceptional as Ford highlighted that what hurts our schools most are external factors that are not being dealt with such as systemic poverty. Part of his presentation included … Continue reading EVAAS, The Iceberg Effect, and Stranger Things – The Secretive Way NC Measures Teachers and Schools
Public Education
Our Schools Are Not Failing; Our Policy Makers Are – On Raleigh’s New Way of Measuring Schools
When you are the North Carolina General Assembly and you want to stop a string of court decisions that have declared your unconstitutional acts “unconstitutional,” then you change the judicial system in your favor. Or at least try. When you are the North Carolina General Assembly and you want to remain in power on West … Continue reading Our Schools Are Not Failing; Our Policy Makers Are – On Raleigh’s New Way of Measuring Schools
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The Misguided Narrative Over Differentiated Teacher Pay In North Carolina
“This idea that the school is a harmonious community and that teachers aren’t competing with one another is patently false. Teachers are constantly competing with one another. They want to outdo each other. They want to be a better teacher than the teacher down the hall. That doesn’t mean they’re not going to collaborate.” – … Continue reading The Misguided Narrative Over Differentiated Teacher Pay In North Carolina
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Raleigh, Buy Us Some Damn Textbooks!
Raleigh, buy us some damn textbooks. With real pages and hard covers. Yes, technology in the classroom can be a great avenue for learning. However, technology for technology’s sake can block many roads for students. And if technology is to be looked at as a simple substitution for other resources to save time and money, … Continue reading Raleigh, Buy Us Some Damn Textbooks!
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The Pharisaical DeVastation of Betsy DeVos
Betsy DeVos might very well be the most “not-pro-life” person in the nation’s capital. "It goes back to what I mentioned, the concept of really being active in the Shephelah of our culture — to impact our culture in ways that are not the traditional funding-the-Christian-organization route, but that really may have greater Kingdom gain … Continue reading The Pharisaical DeVastation of Betsy DeVos
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The State Superintendent Needs Someone to Speak For Him – Someone Who Speaks With Details Is Preferred
State Superintendent Mark Johnson has begun to use the $700,000 of tax payer money given to him by the NC General Assembly to begin hiring people who can help carry out his nebulous, amorphous, and ambiguous agenda that has been long in the making but short in the doing. That $700,000 dollars is specifically for … Continue reading The State Superintendent Needs Someone to Speak For Him – Someone Who Speaks With Details Is Preferred
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Again, Why We Need Educational Journalists – What is Happening in Florida
When North Carolina adopted its current school performance grade policy, it was not original. It was taken from Florida where Jeb Bush enacted it as governor. Apparently, NC has also adopted a proclivity for the use of vouchers and couple that with our state's deliberate lack of oversight and regulation, we may have another similarity … Continue reading Again, Why We Need Educational Journalists – What is Happening in Florida
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National Board Certification Score Release Day – An Argument to Invest More in Teachers
Did you know that North Carolina has more Nationally Board Certified Teachers than any state in the country? Simply go to this site and compare - http://www.nbpts.org/in-your-state/. This morning score reports for those who were seeking renewal were released. If you succeeded, I congratulate you. It's not easy to become and remain certified. When I initially … Continue reading National Board Certification Score Release Day – An Argument to Invest More in Teachers
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The State Superintendent, Robeson County, and the Innovative School District
The special session of the GOP-controlled North Carolina General Assembly that convened last December was nothing but a power-grab for a party that had lost control of the governor’s mansion. One of the most egregious acts was HB17 which transferred significant powers from the State Board of Education to the newly elected state superintendent Mark … Continue reading The State Superintendent, Robeson County, and the Innovative School District
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When the State Superintendent Starts Following Your Twitter Account
This week I received confirmation that Mark Johnson, the state school superintendent, is now following my personal twitter feed through his office’s official twitter account. Even have the proof. And I absolutely welcome it. There are around 100,000 teachers in this state. Mark Johnson’s official twitter account currently follows 442 people (as of this post), … Continue reading When the State Superintendent Starts Following Your Twitter Account
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