0 Musical Elective of the Month: September-October 2010

The Musical Elective of the Month is Crowded House.Those of you who know me well, you know that Crowded House is my all-time favorite band, going on almost 25 years dating back to my high school years....

0 The Education Buzz

The latest edition of the Education Buzz, hosted by the blog Bellringers (like us, another Washington Post best for 2010), is now available. Bellringers is the brainchild of Carol Richtsmeier, a high...

0 Teacher Quality: What You Need To Know

Today the Joyce Foundation is releasing “Teacher Quality: What You Need to Know,” a first-of-its-kind guidebook that shows parents why we need to improve how we recruit, support, evaluate, and reward...

0 Alphabet Soup

A recent report raises a fundamental education policy question that requires more than simply refuting the report's premise.The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) -- a self-proclaimed "free...

0 Foodie Finds

This week's foodie feature highlights some choice restaurants from recent travels:Brasserie V - one of the most consistently excellent and unpretentious restaurants in town - Madison, WisconsinForbes...

0 Teacher Voices: The VIVA Project

The VIVA Project is a new initiative that gives teachers an opportunity to collaborate, share ideas, and inform education policy and reform conversations at the state and national levels. VIVA stands...

0 Foodie Finds

In an effort to spice up this blog a bit, we'll tap into the Optimists' foodie inclinations by periodically featuring some choice restaurants and food-related businesses.This week we feature some...

0 LA Times Value Added Editorial

The Los Angeles Times editorial page gets it mostly right today on the value-added issue ("Good teachers, good students," September 3, 2010). It says a number of smart things that I agree with, such as:"Test...

0 Foodie Finds

In an effort to spice up this blog a bit, we'll tap into the Optimists' foodie inclinations by periodically featuring some choice restaurants and food-related businesses. This week we feature some favorite...

0 More Grist for the Value-Added Mill

Here is additional smart and pithy commentary on the current value-added conversation that I wasn't able to incorporate into yesterday's post or have only discovered since.Dr. Douglas Harris - "Not By...

0 Crist Off the Hook?

Predictions that Florida Governor Charlie Crist's veto of a monstrosity of a teacher effectiveness bill back in April 2010 would cause his state to lose the Race to the Top competition have proven false.Charlie...