Via NY Times | by Frank Bruni There are perils to the current tenure talk: that it fails to address the intense strains on many teachers; that it lays too much fault on their doorsteps, distracting people from other necessary reforms. But the discussion is imperative, because there’s no sense in putting something as crucial as...

Via NY Times | by David Kirp Today’s education reformers believe that schools are broken and that business can supply the remedy. Some place their faith in the idea of competition. Others embrace disruptive innovation, mainly through online learning. Both camps share the belief that the solution resides in the impersonal, whether it’s the invisible...

By Bennett Kayser As we learned yesterday that Robin Williams had been in the early stages of Parkinson’s Disease, I felt the need to step forward and share my story, and perhaps let others know they are not alone, that there is hope and that life with the disease can be joy-filled. I was recently...

Via Wall Street Journal | By Antonio Villaraigosa President John F. Kennedy said, “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” This message has apparently been lost on some people in our teachers unions who used their recent national conventions in...

Via OC Register | by Jalen Rose Many young people in America today face a harsh reality. Their fate in life is determined by their ZIP code. For an overwhelming number of African Americans and other minorities, having the wrong ZIP code keeps you from a high school diploma, a college degree, and a future that...

By Ron Taw I came to education out of the business world. Before entering the classroom, I was making my way up the corporate ladder at a Fortune 500 company. But then, over 15 years ago, I realized that I wanted a job where “success and advancement” would mean changing more lives, not just earning...

Now what? Two years after Vergara v California was filed and one stunning Superior Court decision later, the long wait to a final resolution now begins in earnest. Will Judge Rolf Treu’s lower court decision stand? He knocked out five California laws that he viewed as unconstitutional, violating state laws that guarantee every public school...

With seven candidates vying for the vacant LAUSD school board seat in South LA, what would it take to pull ahead of the pack and head off a costly stand-alone runoff? Coinciding with the California statewide primary on June 3, the special election was called to fill the District 1 board seat, left vacant by death last...

With this essay, Ellie Herman concludes her year in the classroom — and sharing her observations and insights with LA School Report. This year, I had the remarkable experience of taking the academic year off to visit high schools across the socioeconomic spectrum in L.A. in an attempt to understand better what we mean when...