Saving Miss Oliver’s

A novel of leadership, loyalty, and change

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Entries Tagged as 'Education reform'

Should We Talk About This- Or Just Continue To Shout At Or Avoid Each Other?

November 25th, 2011 · No Comments · Abortion, capital punishment, citizenship training, civil discourse, critical thinking, Education reform, Graduation Requirements, Gun cintrol, Teaching, Uncategorized

  In my last post, I proposed this graduation requirement for high schools, colleges and universities: A proven ability to engage in respectful discourse with those with whom we disagree on fundamental issues; and a consequent openness to the possibility of changing one’s position. Just in case you aren’t convinced of the wisdom of this, please [...]

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Civil Discourse: A New Graduation Requirement for Schools and Colleges

November 17th, 2011 · No Comments · Abortion, capital punishment, Education reform, Graduation Requirements, Gun cintrol, Middle School, Teaching, Youth development

 CIVIL DISCOURSE;  A NEW GRADUATION REQUIREMENT FOR HIGH SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES A proven ability to engage in respectful discourse with those with whom we disagree on fundamental issues; and a consequent openness to the possibility of changing one’s position.This ability has always been important in a democracy where each of us has the power of [...]

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Science at Aim High

November 11th, 2011 · No Comments · Achievement gap, Bay Area, Education reform, Middle School

 SCIENCE AT AIM HIGH: I WATCHED A SCIENCE CLASS  for rising 8th graders at Aim High this summer: The teacher brought in an array of commercial drinks: Coke, Red Bull, Gator Aid, Five-hour Energy, Aztec Tea and others. He divided the class into groups and each group selected one of the drinks to study. The [...]

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AIM HIGH MAGIC OBSERVED

November 4th, 2011 · No Comments · Achievement gap, Bay Area, Education reform, Middle School, Oakland, St. Paul's Eposcopal School, Summer Learning, Summer learning gap, Summer School, Teaching, teaching literature, teaching math, teaching narrative, teaching social studies, teaching study skills, Urban education, Youth development

AIM HIGH MAGIC OBSERVED I VISITED THE St. Paul’s site in Oakland on Wednesday, July 6, 2011         As always the day starts as one community, gathered in a circle so that every person is visible and present to every other person.  The circle, with 2 staff members in the center facilitating and this day, [...]

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Aim High: A Model Summer Program for Low Income Middle Schoolers in the Bay Area

October 28th, 2011 · No Comments · Achievement gap, Bay Area, Education reform, High School graduation rate, Middle School, Summer Learning, Summer learning gap, Summer School, Teaching, Urban education, Youth development

The next several posts will feature Aim High, a superb summer program at the intersection of academics and youth development for low income Bay Area middle school youth.  Disclosure: I am on the board and have been for many years because as a life-long educator I know excellent teaching and curriculum and the value of [...]

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Real Supply Side Economics

September 3rd, 2010 · No Comments · Achievement gap, Education reform, Risk-reward, supply side economics, Teaching, Thomas Friedman, Trickle down

When I first heard the term supply-side economics, I assumed that what was to be supplied as the engine of economic health was great education. Silly me not to know that what my interlocutor was talking about so enthusiastically was minimum taxation and maximum deregulation. He was very vague about what was actually to be [...]

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Letter to the Editor NY Times 6/9/09

June 22nd, 2009 · No Comments · Education reform, Teaching

Isn’t it amazing that a whole range of professional and business people, some in thier first year of employment, can earn more than the people who taught them how to read, write, compute and think?

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