Another note about test scores
Peter Gray’s latest post over at Psychology Today, Be Glad for Our Failure to Catch Up with China in Education, reminds me of this post Jim wrote here back in October. Both make the pretty commonsense point that standardized test scores are probably not a great...
Agency and coercion in several kinds of schools, Part 1
As a teenager in the 1970s, I wanted to be a fifth-grade teacher—an impulse that remains today, perhaps because I still love and listen to my inner nine-year-old. I studied interesting schools back then (still do), and traveled to visit several while still in high...The benefits of play
Play is a hot topic these days, and every article I read on the subject reinforces for me the “rightness” of the Circle School experience. Here’s an article about the benefits of play, both social and “academic.” Enjoy.
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Washington gridlock and democratic schools
Tomorrow we Americans elect a president. Two days ago we Circle Schoolers hosted a group of families and educators here, telling them about life in our democratic school. Now I’m thinking about the connection between Washington gridlock and American schools....Low Test Scores Are Not The Problem
Of course all this talk of assessment and global competition treats children as raw materials in a government-run factory, rather than human beings with their own hopes, interests, and talents. Education policy should be centered on children and families, not money and power. Public funding should promote innovation and variety in schools, rather than uniformity and standards. It’s good for children, families, society and, yes, a thriving global economy.