Living in Dialogue
Anthony Cody spent 24 years working in Oakland schools, 18 of them as a science teacher at a high-needs middle school. A National Board-certified teacher, he now leads workshops with teachers on Project Based Learning. He is the co-founder of the Network for Public Education. With education at a crossroads, in this blog he invited you to join him in a dialogue on education reform and teaching for change and deep learning. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: education reform.
School & District Management
Opinion
Gates and Duncan Seek to Use Trust in Teachers to Promote Common Core
If leadership is appointed and anointed by those in power, than it can be revoked by those in power. So if we want to be leaders, we are better off developing that status in a way that does not rely on such official designations.
School & District Management
Opinion
San Diego Charter Teachers: Bullying Contributed to Death of Colleague
At a San Diego school board meeting on Tuesday, dramatic testimony from teachers and parents uncovered serious questions about the way their charter school has been run.
School & District Management
Opinion
John Thompson: One Sided Hardball in New York Charter Fight
Vicious no-hold-barred competition cannot improve the lives of children.
The poison dumped on adult educators always flows down onto the children.
Standards & Accountability
Opinion
Chicago Teacher Explains the Infamous Viral PD Video She Shot
Some have defended the video, saying that it may be out of context. I want to clarify that context. The presenter's script is meant to be repeated (and repeated) verbatim.
College & Workforce Readiness
Opinion
The Common Core Equity Swindle
The farther into this experiment we get, the more devastating this latest sorting mechanism appears to be. Every time you stamp "college ready" on a student who has cleared the bar, the students that did not make it past that hurdle are stamped "unworthy."
School Climate & Safety
Opinion
Chicago Children Who Opt Out Face Pressure
"We hear of administrators who are telling families they are breaking the law, which is a lie. Think about this, they are intimidating people who are undocumented or in difficulty."
Reading & Literacy
Opinion
Paul Horton: In Defense of Books
In the Corporate Common Core's rush to create a snippet curriculum that separates reading comprehension from the acquisition of knowledge, book lovers are panicking all over the world.
Equity & Diversity
Opinion
Historic Network for Public Education Conference Issues Call for Congressional Hearings into Test Abuse
The major news to come out of the event was the Call for Congressional Hearings announced on Sunday afternoon. Diane Ravitch and I held an impromptu press conference where we made an urgent request for Congress to investigate the overuse of standardized tests.
Equity & Diversity
Opinion
John Kuhn at the NPE Conference: This is Our Education Spring
John Kuhn, alongside Chicago Teachers Union president Karen Lewis, spoke against threats to public education.
Teaching Profession
Opinion
Union Election in Los Angeles: Meet Candidate Ortega
United Teachers Los Angeles, the teachers' union for Los Angeles Unified School District, is holding elections for all of its major offices this spring
School & District Management
Opinion
Michelle Gunderson: Administrator's Pledge on Ethical Treatment of Students Who Opt Out
It is time for administrators to take an ethical stance and make a firm commitment to the fair and kind treatment of children whose parents have opted them out of testing.
Families & the Community
Opinion
Chicago Test Boycott - Second School Joins In
Educators and parents in Chicago joined forces this week to boycott the ISAT at two schools, Maria Saucedo Elementary School and Drummond Montessori. There are also over 1,000 parents at 37 other Chicago schools who requested to opt their child out of ISAT.
Families & the Community
Opinion
Union Election in Los Angeles: Meet Candidate Gaffney
Our union is at a crossroads, and I cannot sit back and watch our influence deteriorate. My colleagues know me as a relentless "bridge-builder," and I believe it is only through collaborative efforts by all stakeholders that the union can finally produce real solutions.
Standards & Accountability
Opinion
Paul Horton: Why the Common Core Is Unlike Standards of the Past
Understanding Common Core is about seeing a much larger picture. That picture is a collage of the strategic plans of most multinational corporations that are increasingly managed or heavily influenced by the CBS approach to business and labor relations.