After my very popular posts on education reform last week, I thought it worth mentioning Joel Klein’s op-ed from the Sunday Washington Post. Read it! Why? It’s useful (and relevant) for two reasons: 1) It provides a salutary check on the Palin-esque obsession with Michelle Rhee. Her supporters and opponents alike can’t talk education reform … Continue reading
First of all, let’s get a few things straight: I really, really, REALLY like Freddie DeBoer’s work. He writes eloquently about the ideas undergirding progressivism, which is pretty rare (in the blogosphere or on Capitol Hill). Concern about this is what pulled me to start writing outside of academia. Special note to trolls: The “Irresponsible … Continue reading
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten’s piece in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal was another piece of evidence showing the awkward political torsion that education reform inflicts on American political divisions. Think about it: Weingarten’s piece was entitled “Markets Aren’t the Education Solution.” She’s a union leader. It appeared in the Wall Street Journal. Are … Continue reading
An old friend asked me to guest blog for her today at Happy Life in NYC. In keeping with her blog’s theme, I wrote about how to enjoy yourself as a teacher in New York City. Check it out here. It’s a welcome change of pace from my usual gloomy ruminations on urban teaching. Good practice … Continue reading
Most American school districts are facing serious budget shortfalls as a result of the economic downturn. This means, in many cases, that teachers will be fired. In many districts , teacher contracts are structured in such a way that administrators must terminate teachers in order of seniority. This system goes by the name of “Last … Continue reading
I was going to write on the GOP’s proposed cuts to education and national service this week, but Richard Cohen beat me to it. Good news is, he did a bang-up job. Go read the article. Get angry. Get in touch with your member of Congress. Call them one extra time for me (DC doesn’t … Continue reading
The way that I had the book diagrammed out when I was writing in 2005-2006, this chapter was sort of a second go at the Introduction. I’m not sure where it fits at the moment, but it could be another standalone chapter also. I get the sense that this could be too much head-heavy rumination … Continue reading
Another fragment… Copyright © Conor Williams. All Rights Reserved. Introduction here. Chapter 1 here. ————— Sunday night. Everyone deals with it in a different way. Some rage against their final moments, refusing to go quietly into the week. They get increasingly anxious every hour after breakfast. By the evening, they’re wound tight, lashing out at anyone … Continue reading
Wendy Kopp celebrated the launch of her new book, A Chance to Make History, last night at the National Geographic Society here in DC. MSNBC’s Norah O’Donnell conducted an informal interviewbefore an audience Q&A. As most of you know, I am a Teach For America (TFA) alumnus—and supporter—and have no business trying to present a … Continue reading
In case you missed it, I posted some thoughts a few weeks ago on my time teaching in urban schools. It was part of a larger project I worked on back in 2005-2006, entitled “Breaking Promises to Myself.” The work’s introduction (and some more background) can be found here: Breaking Promises, Introduction. Here, then are … Continue reading
