Category: Lloyd Lofthouse

Originally posted on Diane Ravitch's blog: Jeb Bush is trying to present himself to the public as a moderate. Nothing could be farther from the truth. When it comes to education, Jeb Bush boasts of the wonderful transformation of the schools in Florida, but that is not an accurate portrayal of what Bush actually did. With his far-right dedication to…

Originally posted on Diane Ravitch's blog: Want to get rich quick? Hurry on down to Florida and open a charter school. You don’t need any experience in education, it doesn’t matter if you failed in the past, just come up with a good idea! The Sun-Sentinel in Florida published a powerful indictment of the unsupervised charter industry. In the past…

Originally posted on Elfwriter: There is an urban author’s myth of a now famous author in her undiscovered days – was it Janet Evanovich? – who spoke at a bookstore in a mall with pouring rain outside. She knew the audience would be sparse as the mall was empty, and to cheer herself up, she bought a box of chocolates…

Originally posted on gadflyonthewallblog: It’s been more than 50 years since Harper Lee published her Pulitzer Prize winning novel “To Kill a Mockingbird.” In that time, a lot has changed and nothing has changed. Our schools are still highly segregated and unequal – but we justify that with standardized test scores. Our prisons are still disproportionately filled with black and…

Originally posted on Crazy Normal – the Classroom Exposé: “Principal known as Emanuel critic reprimanded by mayor’s school board.” – Chicago Tribune, August 29, 2015 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-troy-laraviere-principal-warning-vote-met-0828-20150827-story.html Troy LaRaviere’s Blog: A place to discuss a better school system for all Chicagoans http://troylaraviere.net/ Troy LaRaviere: My Statement on CPS’ “Warning Resolution” CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND I’ve been asked for my thoughts in response…

Originally posted on Allison Maruska: I watched The Hunger Games last night. I read the book before the movie came out, and I’ve seen the movie a few times. So I obviously knew what would happen. Still, a certain scene got me. By that, I mean it made me weepy. I’m not usually a weepy individual, so the moment surprised…

Originally posted on Diane Ravitch's blog: Ashana Bigard is a parent advocate. She wrote this article for “The Progressive.” She is aware that politicians are promoting New Orleans as a national model. She warns that the “reforms” are a fraud. She says, talk to the parents, not the hucksters. “As a New Orleans parent and an active member of my…

Originally posted on The Soulful Veteran's Blog: Every Thursday afternoon I drive to a local VA medical clinic and join a veteran writers group. One of the regular members, who never served in combat, seems obsessed with the glory of war. He can’t seem to hear enough stories from us combat vets. To listen to him, it seems that he…