Monthly Archives: November 2014

Common Core shines light on Santa

 The Common Core should be treated by school districts as the draft of a guide for curriculum development rather than as a blueprint. During the next few years, as we try and implement the standards outlined in the draft, the need for revisions will become clear. Common Core standards for the early years of schooling, for […]

Will virtual charter school students have to meet Maine’s new proficiency-based graduation requirements?

The Maine Charter School Commission today approved Maine’s second virtual charter school. The virtual school will be managed by K12 Inc., only 27.7 percent of whose students  achieve adequate yearly progress by federal standards, and whose graduation rate is a mere 49.1 percent. Simultaneously,  Maine has been spending huge amounts of taxpayer money converting our traditional public schools to a […]

The Biggest Elephant in the Schoolhouse: Poverty

Among wealthy reformers and others who have little experience with the reality of a classroom it has become sexy to blame teachers for the low test scores some students achieve in school. Teachers are apparently lazy, working for payday, uninspired, just needing a kick in the pants in order to produce better student testing outcomes. […]