ICYMI: Big List for the New Year!

Must be the holidays-- either I was reading more or people were writing more. But the list of must-reads this week is long.

In America, Only the Rich Can Afford To Write about Poverty

This came out back in August, but this Guardian piece by Barbara Ehrenreich (Nickled and Dimed) reflecting on how most writing about poverty is done by people who are anything but poor-- this is well worth the read.

The Inside Story on What Really Caused the Occupy Wall Streer Movement To Collapse

Another non-education piece, but in the process of talking about the meltdown of the Occupy movement by an insider, this has much to say about how movements can lose their way,

The Martian Allegory of Whose Lives Matter

Paul Thomas's brain lives at he intersection of deep thinking and pop culture, and consequently he produces pieces that nobody else can. Here he takes a look at The Martian and what it tells us about just who is worth time, effort and expense to save.

Staring Down Goliath

Super profile of Justin Oakley, the Just Let Me Teach wristbands, and his new message to teachers-- Vote. Or. Die.


Gross National Happiness

From the Teacher Tom blog-- a look at other ways of measuring the success of children.

Students, Not Standards in 2016

Yes, Paul Thomas again, this time remembering an influential teacher in his own life, and reminding us where the focus should be in a classroom.

Look Out 2016

At educarenow, Bill Boyle takes a look at the language of deficit and how a few simple word choices signal a serious problem in approaching the "problems" of schools.

Um-- There Are These Kids We Call Students

Ah, a rant after my own heart. Blue Cereal Education rips reformers about the use of students as passive props in their reformy melodrama.

 Of course, the end of the year is always a time for listicles. Consider this top post list from the always-essential Jose Luis Vilson or this list of book recommendations from Russ Walsh or check out Nancy Bailey's list of good news from 2015 and even Rick Hess's tongue-in-cheek list of 2016 news stories.

And finally, here's Valerie Strauss and Carol Burris's primer on why nobody is exactly excited about having John King as Acting Pretend Secretary of Education.