ICYMI: Labor Day 2021 Edition (9/5)

 Labor Day again already. Time sure flies when you're under stress and constant existential dread! But we have things to read, because these are busy times.

Jennifer Cohn: The GOP wants to take over all public school boards

I don't usually do this, but this Twitter thread is packed with informative  links and info, so here you go--an unrolled thread.

No Excuses Schools: Bad Theory Created By Amateurs

Thomas Ultican looks at Scripting the Moves, a book about No Excuses schools and the story about how a bunch of education amateurs founded a successful business built on bad school practices.

The Right-Wing Political Machine Is Out To Take Over School Boards

Peter Montgomery at Right Wing Watch with the story on yet another one of these obnoxious groups.

Community Schools see revival in time of heightened need

Lauren Camera at US News on the renewed interest in and support for the community school model

In Minnesota’s ‘most diverse city,’ schools are addressing the community’s deep trauma

Sarah Lahm takes a look at how community schools are helping in Minnesota

65,000 fake students applied for aid

This is a crazy-cakes story of a California community college scam. The LA Times is on it.

Report provides deeply flawed picture of special ed funding for charter schools

The School Choice Demonstration Project at the University of Arkansas issued a report about how sadly underpaid charters are. Bruce Baker is at NEPC to debunk the seriously flawed work.

The engineered student

Have you read Audrey Watters' new book yet? Well, do that. And if you haven't, here's a chapter about Mr. Teaching Machine B. F. Skinner to whet your appetite.

Teachers Didn't Sign Up For This

The Educator's Room has the list of current education shenanigans that teachers did not sign up for.

3 Vancouver schools placed on lockdown after Proud Boys try to enter during masks protest

One more sign of just how stupid things are getting out there.\

Big Educator Energy (Pt.1)

Jose Luis Vilson has some words of warning and encouragement.

See you in court

The state of Tennessee is going to court to defend itself against charges of underfunding education. Stay tuned. Andy Spears has the basics.

What does research say about Charter – District School Spending Differences?

Bruce Baker again, this time with a quick primer on what research actually says about whether or not charters are sadly underfunded (remember when they used to brag that they would do more with less--those were the days).

How States Are Privatizing Public Schools to Tech Companies During the Delta Variant Uptick

Nancy Bailey has a state by state breakdown of how tech companies are making their moves to acquire public schools.

A free lunch for all

Grumpy Old Teacher takes a look at the school district that decided not to spoil its students, and what we've come to expect from schools.

After the storm

Mercedes Schneider was in the path of Ida, and she's been providing reports of how things are going down in her hunk of Louisiana. Here's the first installment, and waiting.

College Essay Trauma Porn

Akil Bello, testing expert and college prep guru, takes a look, with help from his sons, at that very special genre of college admission essay.

Actually, I'm teaching these kids way more than they're teaching me

From Jeremiah Budin at McSweeney's, an antidote to that old baloney about how kids teach us more than we teach them.