Education
A Decade Left Behind
My first career started a few decades ago in the classroom as a high school history teacher. While much has changed since then – including the use of technology and…
Commentary
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Patriot News (Mostly) Endorses School Choice
This week, the Patriot News editorial board wrote an endorsement of a school voucher proposal in Pennsylvania. Here is the key pro argument: The case for vouchers is…
Media
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Pennsylvania’s School Choice Movement Must Address the ‘Bottom 5%’
Pennsylvania has a simple choice to make. We can embrace change and welcome educational reform or we can choose to satisfy ourselves with the tired old policies of the past that,…
Commentary
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Is the Education Status Quo a Success?
Former Gov Ed Rendell was in town today to defend the status quo in education, claiming that more spending has produced great improvements in performance. Is he looking at…
Media
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A New Teacher Evaluation System for Pennsylvania
After numerous meetings and conversations with constituents, teachers, school administrators and education policy experts, I have come to the conclusion that we must have a comprehensive way to identify quality…
Commentary
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Nation’s Report Card: How Did Pennsylvania Schools Do?
Last week, the U.S. Department of Education released “The Nation’s Report Card,” looking at students’ performance on the National Assessement of Educational Programs, or NAEP, in 2011. In…
Media
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Analysis Finds Failing Public Schools Racked by Violence
The Commonwealth Foundation released today an alarming new analysis of school violence that uncovered more than 4,500 criminal acts occurred at the 141 public schools scoring worst in the…
Press Release
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Pennsylvania’s Failing, Violent Schools
Nearly 82,000 children are enrolled in the 141 public schools with available data on violence in Pennsylvania's lowest-performing 5 percent on student proficiency. These schools reported more than 4,500 violent…
Fact Sheet
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Academic Achievement Stagnates
Pennsylvania students are not making much academic progress according to 2011 PSSA test results. The Patriot-News reports small gains were not enough to keep some central Pennsylvania school districts…
Media
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