There are times when the little policy matters seems irrelevant. Who cares if a subject is declared "core" by your state department of education or USDOE?Take a good look at this story coming out of Toledo. It is a rather stunning example of how a school district is proposing the elimination of all certified arts and physical education teachers and justifying it by declaring … [Read more...] about Proposal to Scorch the Earth in Toledo Public Schools
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The Mayor Of London Gets in Front of a City-Wide Music Education Plan
Well, apparently he's both in front of and behind the plan. In fact, Mayor Boris Johnson is clearly excited by this project.Click here to listen to him speaking about music education and this new project.Click here to view the plan.There are many local music services,orchestras, arts organisations, charities and schools which do excellent work. This strategy sets out how we … [Read more...] about The Mayor Of London Gets in Front of a City-Wide Music Education Plan
If There’s Only One Book to Read on K-12 Education, Read This One!
All the time, I run into people in the arts field who ask me to explain exactly what the hell is going on with K-12 education. Between vouchers, choice, turnaround, merit pay, alternative certification, race to the top, race to the bottom, AYP, value-added assessment, process-driven goals, backwards-mapped curriculum, and more, trying to get a handle on what all this means can … [Read more...] about If There’s Only One Book to Read on K-12 Education, Read This One!
Can the Arts be a Central Part of Urban School Improvement?
Well, of course. Unfortunately, that answer is not widely known or embraced among the policy elites. That's part of our job as advocates.Middle School 223, once shuttered as one of the most violent middle schools in New York City, was reopened in 2003 as M.S. 223/The Laboratory School of Finance and Technology. Today, Principal Ramon Gonzalez says attendance is about 4 percent … [Read more...] about Can the Arts be a Central Part of Urban School Improvement?