In this article, the author talks about the resignation of New York State's commissioner of education David Steiner, and how it will affect the state's Race to the Top. He contends that Steiner was savvy enough to understand the importance of Race to the Top and able enough to turn the state's education energies toward it. The "Washington…

Notes that within the past five years, the national standards movement has prompted many states to turn to the use of test scores to hold students and teachers accountable to higher standards in academic achievement. Discusses the unintended consequences: pervasive emotional pressure, reductionist views of literacy, conflicted views of teaching…

The focus on raising standards reflects a national trend in which New York State is considered a leader. The new requirements adopted by the State Board of Regents have generally been supported by business leaders and all major educational policy advocacy groups. There are positive signs that achievement is improving, but there is a performance…

Challenged by our 7th U.S. Secretary of Education, Rod Paige, when he said "Dream how technology can not only improve education but also transform what we think of as education," we made this dream a reality in an elementary classroom in the Bronx. The dream of improving and transforming education through technology became possible as a…

As adults, today's students will have to deal with emerging problems societal changes are creating. Improving public education for all will require educational reform that better accommodates under-served American youth. This chapter discusses the educational standards movement, which assumes that virtually all learners can achieve educational…

Responds to the article "Opportunities Lost: Teachers Learning about the New York State Social Studies Framework" by S. G. Grant. Contests ideas on the professional development opportunities used with the New York social studies framework. Considers the intentions of the professional development as political and the role of assessment.…

Uses the example of New York State to illustrate how the rancorous political debate over education can render national standards irrelevant and contradictory. In appeasing so many factions the standards become inclusive to the point of obfuscation. Provides a brief overview of the controversy concerning national standards. (MJP)

This monograph summarizes educational policy trends of the past 5 years in terms of their implications for the educational outcomes of students with disabilities. The first section reviews the gradual development of federal and state policies concerning goal and standard-setting activities, accountability, and large-scale and alternative…

The convergence of two apparently opposite theories of urban educational reform is analyzed as it occurs in three middle schools in a New York City school district. The first theory, emphasizing small schools of choice, promotes close relationships between students and adults in distinctive school programs. The second--centralized, standards-based…