Sunday, May 4, 2025

ICYMI: Star Wars Edition (5/4)

If you don't know, I don't think I can explain it to you.

If you are of a Certain Age, you have a story. In the summer of 1977 we didn't have a movie theater in my county, so I trekked down to Butler, 45 minutes or so away. The within a week, I went back again. It was part of the new phenomenon of Star Wars-- Jaws had invented the summer blockbuster just two years earlier, the movie that everybody had to see, but Star Wars was the movie you had to see more than once, just to see everything and hear everything. I was a broke college student but I still went three times (the third in Hampton Beach while on a summer trip with friends) and it still didn't seem like enough.

There are things you just can't understand second-hand, and most of them, unfortunately, are things that suck. But some are moments of uplift and excitement that stick with you for a long time. One more amazing part of being human in the world.

Here are your bits of reading from the week.

Drawing a Line

Jennifer Berkshire looks at how communities are stepping up to protect immigrant members.

Will the U.S. Supreme Court Approve Oklahoma’s Proposed Religious Charter School?

Jan Resseger looks at the big decision coming down the road. I sure wish it was a harder decision to predict.

The Rise of the Unqualified: Inside the Kakistocracy Running American Education

Julian Vasquez Heilig has been writing up a storm lately. Here he explains why, exactly, kakistocracy sucks.

The New Teacher of the Year Shares Her Secrets for an Engaging English Class

She's from Pennsylvania, and she has some non-silly ideas. Sarah Sparks reports at Education Week.

Tina Descovich must leave Ethics Commission after Senate again fails to take up nomination

A Moms for Liberty co-founder doesn't make it onto a state ethics commission? What a surprise. Okay, in Florida, land of infinite grifter tolerance, it is kind of a surprise.

K12 Education, Meet Trump 2.0 Chaos.

The indispensable Mercedes Schneider tries to assemble a timeline of Trumpian education shenanigans.


Thomas Ultican takes a look at ASU+GSV and its varied AI grifting.

Court says no rights violated when Michigan school told girl to remove hat with image of a gun

Dad sends third grade daughter to school with a hat bearing an image of a AR-15ish gun and "come and take it" in all caps. School told her to take it off. Dad sued. He seems like a swell guy.

Are Women the Cause of Reluctance to Read?

Well, no. But Nancy Flanagan explains herself a bit more thoroughly than that.

How would the Trump Administration budget impact American education?

Steve Nuzum looks at the Trump wishlist for the budget and what it would mean to education (spoiler alert: nothing good). 

Separation of Church and State: Critical for Public Schools and America!

Not sure it can be said too many times, but separation of church and state is a good thing. Here comes Nancy Bailey to make sure it's said again.

Exceeding Student Expectations of Teachers: A Way to Achieve “Good” Teaching

Larry Cuban looks at the importance of expectations for academics and behavior.

Battle lines being drawn

Benjamin Riley is taking names of those organizations that have decided that technofascism is super cool and totally fine with them.

As Predicted: Florida’s Voucher Expansion is Gutting Public Education

Sue Kingery Woltanski reports on the progress of Florida's program to end public education. 

And now, Happy May the Fourth


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