Friday, July 30, 2010

Thursday, July 22, 2010

More from Krashen

Hustlers and High Rollers: Not Just Wall Street

Sent to the NY Times, July 12, 2010

Bob Herbert ("Outside the Casino," 7/12) notes that Wall Street
"hustlers and high rollers" are doing well, while schools are cutting
services, including libraries.

Federal education policy will have the same effect: Education
Secretary Duncan plans to spend billions on new standards and tests,
increasing testing far beyond the currently unreasonable levels. There
is no scientific evidence that this will help students, but it will
help the "hustlers and high rollers" in the publishing industry: Along
with new standards and tests come new textbooks linked to tests.

In contrast, there is substantial evidence showing that programs that
have been weakened were effective: For example, studies show that
library quality and staffing is related to literacy development.

Libraries are especially important for children of poverty, who have
few other sources of books. Investing in libraries, however, does not
result in quick profits for the hustlers and high rollers in
education.

Stephen Krashen

July 12, 2010

**Outside the Casino**

**New York Times**

**By BOB HERBERT

Monday, July 12, 2010

At the heart of deficit views of the poor. . .

Without a critical perspective (in other words, when any of us become blinded by our own assumptions), we fail the potential offered by being educated. . .

Disturbing news about what we accept when faced with evidence:

How facts backfire

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Schools matter, but. . .

This is promising:

"Supt. Tom Brady puts it this way: Teachers can’t do it alone. Unless community organizations begin to address some of the myriad social issues affecting a child’s academic progress, urban schools in particular will never fulfill their promise."

Read the article HERE.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Excellent piece about flaws of national standards

Krashen has shared this excellent Op-Ed:

Core Standards: More drill and kill

Published June 21, Atlanta Journal Constitution

http://www.ajc.com/opinion/core-standards-more-drill-553702.html

By Cindy Lutenbacher