Joy. A palate cleanser.

Charter schools have a substantial positive evidence base behind them. I’m not aware of the same for the other two, which makes it difficult to view this as a positive development.

Me: Curriculum doesn’t include whole books. That’s bad! Them: NBD, teachers can add books to the curriculum. If only it was that simple. Unfortunately, when teachers are left to choose lesson materials, studies have shown they select books below grade level. Also… 1/

Glad to have this study and its interesting policy implications (def read the thread linked), particularly for teacher prep & diff comp for teachers. The ed prep regime and how we structure tchr staffing & pay continue to be real barriers to maximizing impact of K-12 reforms.

Karen makes a good point here - phonics was a big part of what MS did right, but just passing a bill encouraging phonics, as CA has now done, will not get you MS-tier results. You have to copy the whole playbook or you won't see much of a change.

"Former Education Secretary Margaret Spellings on testing, accountability, and how to reverse the decade-long decline in U.S. student achievement." The David Frum Show: Bring Back High-Stakes School Testing - The Atlantic theatlantic.com/podcasts/archi…

Great threat. Incredible data.

On the tax credit scholarships will the Trump Administration go for maximum disruption or maximum divisiveness? That and more - including fish - Eduwonk today. Link in reply.

The peak of the ed reform movement by policymakers, philanthropists and advocates occurred from 2009-14. Much of that attention has since shifted to career pathways. That holds much promise, but if we keep turning away from the 100,000 public schools, these trends will continue.

Career pathways are hot. But if kids can’t read, they can’t build careers.

It's also a depressing reminder that successful models of reform (that are almost always about teacher human capital) are rarely replicated. I hope we find the right mix of policy and incentives to make reform models work, rather than just relying on exceptional individuals.

One of the things that I find interesting in this work is that the relationship between teacher applications/slot and poverty is different for traditional public and charter schools. Here's a pic, you'll have to read the paper for more on this!

Seems like we have a model or two and that what makes an individual exceptional is they’re the one willing to build and lead a team to do it.

STUDY ALERT: A rigorous experimental evaluation in Los Angeles finds "Enrolling in a #CharterSchool increased 11th-grade standardized test scores & enrollment & persistence in 4-year colleges substantially." Derrell Bradford publiccharters.org Gary Larson Jorge Elorza Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist