Arne Duncan: The Lesson Plan for Education

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I thought this article was very useful for my classroom project on Arne Duncan.

Eliza Top of NY 3:02PM December 04, 2009

I thought this was very useful for my school project thank you for posting this article.

Eliza Top of NY 3:01PM December 04, 2009

America's education is delegated to state and local communities. The Feds ought to set an outcome based agenda, make any Federal aid contingent on meeting milestone objectives, sponsor a quarterly review with the state education chieftains, and get out of the way.
Oh, by the way, get the teachers' unions out of the picture, Recruit high performing teachers to be part of a local community uplift council. Go for excellence, not mediocrity.
We need to change our 19th century paradigm of education delivery - our our society will need to learn Chinese and Hindu. There is no other option.

JR Gordon of FL 2:46PM June 06, 2009

I see the words. They are high minded. They are not a plan. The plan seems to be:
Step 1: Spend money.
Step 2: ??
Step 3: Get success.

Wayne of OK 6:10PM May 29, 2009

Just what are the Feds doing in education?
Totally unconstitutional.
Dismantle the whole department!

Don of PA 6:57PM May 28, 2009

i need help for my school work

florane of FL 9:37AM February 22, 2009

I meant to say that the rest of the modernized world uses the metric system and has 11-month school years.
An Additional Thought: Our kids need to know how to do research. We don't believe everything we see or read or hear, why do we and our kids believe everything that is on the internet. No one teaches them how to evaluate research information.

Alan F. Smith of TX 7:01PM February 09, 2009

I am not optimistic about the transformation and renaissance of public education in the United States which we desperately need in the United States based on what I've heard from and about Arne Duncan so far.
We need to break with our relatively recent focus on thousands of educational standards and high-stakes accountability. Those things do not make great schools or establish high expectations for our students. Great and passionate teachers do that. We absolutely do NOT need to start passing out cash for high test scores. Of course our students need to do well on tests, but a high quality education is about MUCH more than simply the knowledge and skills which can be reflected in a multiple-choice assessment. We need classrooms where students and teachers are empowered to think deeply and critically, utilizing digital tools to collaborate and solve problems. Our workforce needs for the 21st century are very different than they were at the dawn of the 20th century. Our schools should support creativity and innovation, NOT standardization and the myth that quality education can or should only take ONE form.
We need to focus on "basics" like those included in the Common Principles of the Coalition of Essential Schools:
http://www.essentialschools.org/pub/ces_docs/about/phil/10cps/10cps.html
All our students in grade three and up need laptop computers to access digital curriculum, and our teachers need to be encouraged to continually learn in professional learning communities. We don't simply need laptops so we can force-feed digital worksheets down our students' throats, we need a transformed curriculum and assessment landscape for learning.
These ideas aren't pipe dreams, they are changes we need NOW for our students. So far everything I've heard about and from Secretary Duncan makes me think he is an educational "statist" wanting to simply continue the destructive and harmful focus on high stakes accountability that we've been given via NCLB.
Accountability and assessment are vital and important things in education and learning, but the high-stakes nature of testing which NCLB promotes "inherently corrupts the educational profession" (to quote Dr. David Berliner of ASU) and fails to support creative cultures in our schools which include differentiated learning opportunities or the chances to learn digital literacy skills vital for vocational success in our new information environment.

Wesley Fryer of OK 12:59AM February 05, 2009

I have worked for Head Start for 16 years. I have seen many people inprove their lives through this program. The teachers in the public schools tell us they love getting the children which attended Head Start. They say the children are ready to learn and always ahead of the other children.
We need your support of Head Start. We had to close a center due to lack of funds. We have not had a cost of living raise in at least 2 years. Our Teachers are working very hard to keep the standards of Head Start high. They need to know they are going to get enough support that they can feed their families. All our teachers have a AA in Early childhood and most are working on a BA, but they need to know they are going to be compensated for their hard work and dedication. Please help us in this important journey to keep Head Start on the right track.

Linda Bolen of AR 11:59AM February 04, 2009