This past week, I sat on the interview panel for Arizona Rural Teacher of the Year. I have worked with Teachers of the Year in the past and I know the quality of teachers they are. In fact, I nominated
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Should Undocumented Teachers Be Allowed to Cross Professional Borders? Part Two
In an attempt to ease Arizona’s open-position crisis, recently passed Senate Bill 1042 permits schools to hire applicants with content expertise but no coursework in education. The law applies to grades six through twelve, as do the vignettes that follow.
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Should Undocumented Teachers Be Allowed to Cross Professional Borders? Part One
In an attempt to ease Arizona’s open-position crisis, Senate Bill 1042 permits schools to hire applicants with content expertise but no coursework in education. The law applies to grades six through twelve, as do the comments below. (Part Two contains
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Addressing Dyslexia in Arizona, Part 1
Frida Kahlo is known for her vibrancy in art and life, and her courage. Although I have always loved the surreal, direct qualities of her portraits, I had forgotten that she experienced injury and illness that led to multiple physical
Read MoreVouchers Can Bridge the Income-Tuition Gap
Note: Some numbers from the Private School Review provide perspective for what follows: Currently, 64,353 Arizona students attend 478 private schools. Elementary schools charge an average of $6,268 per year for tuition and high schools charge an average of $17,116.
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Teacher Appreciation Weak
Ah, teacher appreciation week. I look forward to the handmade cards and homemade goodies, and if I’m really lucky, school supplies or a Starbucks gift card. But here’s what I really want for Teacher Appreciation Week. Stop undermining the teaching
Read MoreA Warning for Public Education Advocates
Who knew the answer to all of our challenges was so simple that it could be written in bullets on the back of a napkin? Recruit top performing students from public schools. Label non-randomly selected samples of “lowest-performing” students and
Read MoreSave Our Language: Call Them Empowerment Vouchers
Arizona gets a blue ribbon for its euphemisation of political dialogue. In order not to appear like a Common Core State Standards state, they named them the Arizona Career and College Readiness Standards. The difference between the CCSS and the
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The Slippery Slope of Teacher Certification
I swore I would never teach junior high. Junior high, two swirling years of what, as a student, I experienced as daily hell. I owe all my patient and forgiving junior high teachers a debt of gratitude. By the time
Read MoreI Teach In a Traditional Public School and I Support School Choice
I’m a traditional public school teacher (and union rep), and I support school choice. As a right-leaning independent with a high concentration of libertarianism running through my veins, I default to political positions that tilt the balance of power toward
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