THE NEW BEDFORD SCHOOL COMMITTEE voted 5-2 on Thursday night in favor of a precedent-setting expansion deal with a local charter school operator, but even the five supporters insisted they […]
Elementary and Secondary Education
Posted inEducation
MTA raises legal concerns about New Bedford charter deal
A BID BY NEW BEDFORD OFFICIALS to peaceably resolve a dispute with a local charter school hit a potential roadblock on Tuesday, as the Massachusetts Teachers Association said a key […]
Posted inOpinion
A third way on the school funding/accountability debate
BEACON HILL LEADERS are searching for ways to provide public schools with a significant infusion of new dollars. Taking a page from Massachusetts’s landmark 1993 Education Reform Act, some have […]
Posted inOpinion
Lesson from LA: Less standardized testing
TEACHING CHILDREN is one of the hardest and most important things a society does. So teachers should be treated as among the most valued members of our society. That’s the […]
Posted inOpinion
We must continue to invest in braille
IN A WORLD where technology is rapidly opening new doors for people with vision loss, most notably in the case of the smartphone and its applications that greatly aid navigation, […]
Posted inOpinion
Boston officials should stop slandering their own schools
LAST MONTH SAW the tragic spectacle of top Boston school officials saying two high schools should be closed because of falling enrollment and so-called “academic challenges.” But students, parents, and […]
Posted inOpinion
Ed funding problem most acute in low-income communities
IT’S A PROMISING SIGN that fixing how Massachusetts funds our K-12 schools has moved to the top of the agenda on Beacon Hill. The governor and Legislature acknowledge that the time […]
Posted inEducation
UMass Boston severs ties with Confucius Institute
THE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON has severed its ties with the Confucius Institute, an on-campus academic center funded by the Chinese government that has stirred controversy on campus and among […]
Posted inEducation
Superintendents spotlight ed funding formula flaws
PUBLIC SCHOOL superintendents made the case for changing the state funding formula for education at forums in New Bedford, Fitchburg, and Malden on Tuesday as lawmakers on Beacon Hill prepared […]
Posted inThe Download
Superintendents spotlight ed funding formula flaws
Public school superintendents made the case for changing the state funding formula for education at forums in New Bedford, Fitchburg, and Malden on Tuesday as lawmakers on Beacon Hill prepared […]
Posted inOpinion
Listen to New Bedford families, not special interests
SINCE THE 2016 BALLOT campaign around charter schools, we’ve seen victory lap after victory lap from the regressive anti-innovation crowd in education, but zero solutions presented to address the real […]
Posted inOpinion
New Bedford charter expansion ‘mind-boggling’
CHARTER SCHOOLS STARTED as a hopeful experiment in public education. But as is possible with any experiment, this one has failed. It’s time to move beyond the charter school debate […]
Posted inOpinion
Ignore the charter school think-tank crowd
YOU ARE AN EDUCATION RESEARCHER sent to discover best practices in urban schools so that you can replicate them to create results for more kids—kids who you believe are trapped […]
Posted inOpinion
New civics education law misses the mark
WHEN THE NATION has an itch, the schools get a scratch. As a result, Massachusetts students are getting a new civics requirement, which Charlie Baker signed into law Thursday. Many […]
Posted inOpinion
As a teacher, I think it’s time to rethink education accountability
AS A TEACHER, I believe that accountability is necessary to help districts lift their underperforming schools. As a teacher in a turnaround school, I’m convinced that only a radical accountability […]
Posted inEducation
Chang exits with $267,383-plus
FORMER BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS superintendent Tommy Chang received $267,383, the equivalent of one year’s salary, for agreeing to resign two years before his contract was scheduled to expire. According to […]
Posted inEducation
Parent provocateur
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MICHAEL MANNING IT’S A THURSDAY EVENING in late May and about 20 immigrant parents and grandparents are gathered in a meeting room of the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association […]
Posted inOpinion
It’s time for another McDuffy case
WHEN THE PUBLIC SEEKS to improve the educational outcomes for students, we tend to misdirect our frustration towards teachers unions, low-performing district schools, and/or the existence of charter schools. The […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t let charters take over in Puerto Rico
RICARDO ROSSELLO, the governor of Puerto Rico, recently signed an education reform bill that will introduce charter schools to Puerto Rico for the first time in history. The signing of […]
Posted inEducation
Tracing Latino educational inequality
MASSACHUSETTS IS FALLING FAR SHORT when it comes to educating Latino students, with a four-year college graduation gap between white and Latino students that is the 37th worst in the […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t bemoan harder, next-gen MCAS
I WAS A 6th GRADE math teacher in 2000-2001 when the state rolled out the 6th grade math MCAS test for the first time. I remember being furious and frustrated with […]
Posted inOpinion
Tufts officials explain their civics research
THE MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATURE is considering a bill (S. 2306) to enhance civic education. We are excited about its prospects and welcome the debate that the bill has provoked, including the […]
Posted inOpinion
In defense of recess
WHEN YOU WERE YOUNG, could you spend six or seven hours in a classroom without going outside? Could you sit still for hours at a time, without a chance to […]
Posted inEducation
Pool teachers not unwanted, just underutilized
I’VE BEEN AN EDUCATOR IN BOSTON public schools for more than 30 years. I am a high school biology teacher, who holds a graduate degree from Harvard. I spent three […]