Systems of Survival
A board dinner discussion about scaling educational impact reminded me of Jane Jacobs’ Systems of Survival. The Library Journal summarized it this way: Jacobs argues that modern societies utilize two distinctive moral systems–one being suited to the world of commerce, the other to the world of politics. Commercial morality…
EdTech 10: World Cup Style
As the soccer world is facing the elimination rounds, we thought we'd offer our advice on which EdTech stories made the cut this week. Much like Costa Rica, some of these stories we didn’t see coming but are strong contenders for top story of the week.
Brooks Suggests Education Course of Action
David Brooks is, at least for me, the great explainer of our times. Fareed Zakaria helps me understand the world. Brooks helps me understand America. For someone particularly interested in education and its role in our society and economy, I’m trying to figure out whether…
The disruptive power of learning technology
Had a little sidebar in the NYTimes Magazine this morning. There were supposed to be a dozen short responses to “What is the most important – or hardest – thing to change in education today and how would you change it?” Sounds like the piece got axed…
The Black Boy Crisis
Where's the outrage? Bob Herbert rings the bell on the black boy crisis in America. Good new schools are best antidote we've found.
Chicago Parents Demand Ed Variety, More Charters
Parents in Chicago rally for more charters, more choice, and different selection processes for their kids.
Turning “I Hate to Read” into “I Love to Read”
As educators, we have to find ways around these obstacles in order to give them the gift of reading and that sometimes means going a bit outside the box.
Better Tests, More Writing, Deeper Learning
In a recent private vendor demonstration, nine testing companies showed that “Machine scoring engines did as well or better than the human graders,” as reported by Dr. Mark Shermis. In an open competition, top engines will share $100,000 prize purse to be awarded May 9 in Washington DC.
CodeHS Wins Innovation Challenge at Education Nation
CodeHS, a site that teaches high school students how to code, won the Innovation Challenge at Education Nation. CodeHS takes home a $75,000 prize from Robin Hood Foundation--and publicity worth a lot more than that!
NCTAF Learning Studios: The Future of Learning
Every once in awhile, we see pictures of the future -- a graphic image, a set of relationships, new tools at work, the buzz of a culture that feels remarkably productive. For me, site visits to Big Picture and Edvision schools were really influential 12 years ago -- and why I'm still enthusiastic about flex school models that engage and empower students.