Wednesday, June 22, 2011

A lot of people are saying similar things

A lot of people for a long time have been saying schools are in dire need of re-forming. So what will make my call to start over any different than another shout in the wind? The wind is so strong that whatever voices have come before mine have been drowned out. I am one that thinks this is on purpose; that, as my friend Carlos says, there really are men in the back room. And those men don't want a dynamic, thinking, action-oriented, collaborative, and articulate public so they've make good and darn sure we don't have it.

The latest of the books I'm reading in preparation for Enough is Enough is Linda Darling-Hammond's book  The Flat World and Education: How America's Commitment to Equity Will Determine Our Future. She nails it. The more I read of the book, the more I wish Obama had selected her to be Secretary of Education. I'm grateful she's still in the conversation though.

I'm still thinking I have something to offer the movement to transform schools. Emphasis remains on achievement and I think that's the wrong direction. I know policy types need the numbers though, so I'll have to do more thinking on this part. George Moses's idea about community-based evidence seems like a really productive direction.


Sunday, June 19, 2011

Same old argument

I thought one way to get some inspiration for my new book would be to go back through some of my writing to find the main claims I have been making over the years. Turns out I've been making this argument about needing to start over in schools for a long time. Not sure this gave me inspiration though. Now I wonder whether it's worth trying to say it again.