My last post criticized Science of Reading (SoR) advocates for not fighting against third-grade retention or believing it’s good remediation for reading problems. Third-grade retention based on a test is a ploy to drive parents to take their children out of public schools. Some parents with children who have dyslexia, who believe in the SoR, […]
Why Do Science of Reading Advocates Accept Unscientific Third-Grade Retention?
How can anyone who claims the Science of Reading is real think it’s OK to retain a third-grade child based on one test or for any reason? If ever evidence or science existed involving education, understanding the rottenness of retention would be it. Yet some of the same people who believe using phonics (and more) […]
When the Last Real Teacher Says Goodbye: The Dangerous Myths Driving Their Exit
As this year’s Teacher Appreciation Week ends, Americans might want to think about a country without real teachers. In the future, technology may control and monitor children. Their data will continue to be sought after by companies. Teaching will increasingly be about profitmaking, and tutors or fast-track trained Teach for America types will supervise classrooms […]
The Troubling Focus on Testing Rewards, Testing Pep Rallies, and Test Prep Bootcamps
With spring comes heightened concerns about public school students facing high-stakes standardized tests and the troubling focus on testing rewards, testing pep rallies, and test prep boot camps. It makes schooling and a student’s worth all about the test. Testing is a serious business. Test results have been used to rate teacher performance unfairly, and […]
Fighting for a Public School for Students with Autism and Neurodiversity: Choices Parents Want
For years, parents of children with special needs have demanded classroom inclusion. They want a Free, Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in general classes, the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). But in Philadelphia, parents want a public school for students with autism and neurodiversity. They recognize that their students are not getting the resources or teachers they […]
Who’s Behind PBS News Hour’s Gloomy Reporting About Student Learning?
Arne Duncan (Obama) and Margaret Spellings (G. W. Bush), noneducators and former education secretaries, recently appeared on PBS News Hour, Study shows parents overestimate their student’s academic progress to dash any hope parents might have that their children are doing well in school. Who’s behind such gloomy reporting? Here’s how PBS begins, and here’s the survey: […]
The Science of Reading and The Rejection of Picture Books
The Science of Reading rejects the importance of picture books to children learning to read. In 2021, I wrote this, and many parents assumed that schools still use picture books and that children get exposure to them at home. The general idea was that picture books were taken for granted. But while there are quibbles […]
What Does ChatGPT Say About The Science of Reading? It May Surprise You
ChatGPT is raising concerns about the future of learning and advancing a new way to obtain information. Since many journalists, cognitive psychologists, educators, and parents claim that the Science of Reading (SoR) is the authentic way all children will learn to read, and there’s a drive for states to adopt expensive SoR programs, I asked […]
How Stressing Preschoolers and Kindergarteners Could Lead to Mental Health Problems
There has been a pushdown of academic expectations for years, and Americans should be asking how much stress this causes all students, especially our youngest learners. If a child struggles in preschool or kindergarten, it might be due to pressure. Why force children to rush through preschool and kindergarten to learn skills that never would […]
Will the Future Include Free Democratic Public Schools and Teachers?
Will today’s babies grow up with free democratic public schools, or will they attend schools stratified by wealth, with parents paying most of the cost, schools that allow for few differences, cyber schools without real teachers but online instruction, which collect unlimited data on children used for commercial and career tracking purposes? Will they be […]