Nancy E. Bailey's Blog, page 64
January 21, 2016
Mandating Common Sense—21 School Reforms that Need to Go
Gov. Chris Christie just vetoed a mandate for New Jersey children to get recess. A lot of people–including me–are not happy with this decision. He obviously thinks school boards should determine how much recess students should get, but does he realize the problem with recess? Recess is a heated topic with parents across the country. […]
January 20, 2016
Could Changing College Admissions Be the End of High-Stakes Testing?
Could it be that once the first domino falls the rest will follow? Leaders at eighty leading colleges and universities, including the Ivy League, are attempting to revise the application process to look at students and their personal interests! They want to focus less on the canned metrics. Are college and university leaders across the […]
January 18, 2016
Why Sen. Bernie Sanders Wins as the Education Candidate
Last night during the democratic debate, like always, there was no mention of K-12 education, so why did Sen. Bernie Sanders win the debate as the education candidate? It’s simple. Sen. Sanders’ argument against the power and influence of big corporations has huge implications in regard to public schools. It would be nice if he […]
January 17, 2016
Further Apart in Public Schools than Ever Before
In honor of Martin Luther King, I would like to revisit a post I did about public schools and race relations after I first started blogging. A democratic public school system has great potential to bring children of all colors and from every background together. This would ultimately create a better world. But in order […]
January 14, 2016
What If the Wealthy Donated to Fixing Public School Buildings?
According to a 2014 PBS report, more than half of the nation’s public school buildings are in bad shape, and it will take $197 billion to fix or rebuild them. Where will all the money come from to do this? I checked, and most of the Presidential candidates on both sides have said that they […]
January 12, 2016
Joyful or Punishing Teachers: Which is it American Media?
What do Americans want their teachers to be like? What do they really want out of their schools? Within a space of a week I saw the media send out very mixed messages. We know Americans are meant to see these reports as examples of what teachers should be like. But which is it—A or […]
January 10, 2016
Lead Poisoning and “No Excuses”
It is appalling to hear about the situation in Flint, Michigan where lead has been pouring into the drinking cups of children for months. Lead is known to cause serious health problems, including cognitive disorders and learning disabilities. The effects can last, and most exposed children will need special education. And, if the trend in […]
January 7, 2016
Storm Clouds Over Hillary Clinton’s Education Agenda
Hillary Clinton gets positive points for speaking out about autism and mental health. She mentions student transition from high school to young adulthood where there exists a worrisome gap. There is more she proposes here. Mrs. Clinton also brought up the sensitive topic of seclusion and restraints involving students with serious disabilities. We need that […]
January 3, 2016
What Arne Duncan Didn’t Do for Special Education
So the tree is down and the egg nog is drunk and Arne is leaving. Everyone is sharing their parting thoughts, so I thought I would address Arne’s big moments with special education. Arne’s Letter to Parents Perhaps the place to start is the letter Duncan sent in 2010, making it sound like he understood […]
December 31, 2015
Some Good Education News from 2015
Writing about education is interesting, but it can also be depressing. Sometimes it feels like being a hamster on one of those wheels. So as we close out 2015, here is a list of some good news that happened in 2015. If you have something to add, let me know! Happy New Year! These are […]
