Category Archives: Education – K-12

Grading Children at a Play

Grading Children at a Play (with apologies to Robert Frost) Whose son this is I think I know, His mom is in the lockup, though. She will not see me judging here To watch her boy’s skit win the show.

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NC Charters Close State’s SAT Gap?

For many years, North Carolina’s public schools have lagged far behind the national average in college-bound SAT scores. Since 1998, however, that gap has steadily shrunk in direct proportion to the number of students enrolled in charter schools.  By 2012, … Continue reading

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The enhancing of charter schools

As a longtime supporter of charter schools, I am relieved to watch bi-partisan legislators as they assist this popular and proven system for school improvement and further enhance it as a force for strengthening public education for all children in … Continue reading

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Scary Reading in the Washington Post: WaPo as the low-information raconteur

Washington, DC – A chatty little diatribe titled “Scary reading in charter school bill” graced the WaPo on March 28.  Confounding misinformation with ignorance in breathtaking fashion, the near-sighted worthy confuses nearly sky-high, out-of-sight  accountability with “apparently none.”

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Multiple Charter School Authorizers: 10 Reasons Why It’s a Bad Idea

Whenever the topic of charter school policy and legislation comes up, someone always manages to bring up the idea of “Multiple Authorizers.”

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An Armed Deputy in Every School: At What Cost?

Zero cost.  After thirty years as an entrepreneur, I  have been a Trustee and administrator at two public K-8 charter schools for the past twelve years.   I have worked with annual budgets as these schools grew from 53 students to … Continue reading

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Instructional Evaluation: Assessing Growth for Teachers/Grades/Schools

Background: When comparing schools or classrooms or curricula, evaluators have been faced historically with a choice of one or two measures of growth such as average growth per student and ratio of students achieving positive growth; or they have faced … Continue reading

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NC DPI says, “READ THIS FIRST.”

DPI warns the reader: “READ THIS FIRST: In order to understand the charts, it is important that you first read the following information.” And I feel obligated to warn the reader that: THE CHARTS ARE TOTAL, UTTER, USELESS NONSENSE!

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“When Caution Trumps Courage, Kids Lose!” (1, Arne Duncan)

The early 1990’s saw the beginning of charter schools that were intended to innovate and address unique local needs in the K-12 schools.  Charter schools were allowed to operate without the many stifling regulations  imposed on traditional schools by the … Continue reading

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SB-724 Edition 2: A slightly improved act to improve…

Maybe letters to your legislator do matter! Or maybe it was a coincidence.

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