EWA's blog about education issues and topics from a journalist's perspective. The Educated Reporter is anchored by Emily Richmond with contributions from EWA staff and guests.
EWA’s blog about education issues and topics from a journalist’s
perspective. The Educated Reporter is anchored by Emily Richmond with contributions
from EWA staff and guests.
That Pulitzer-prize-winning Bristol Herald Courier series on
rural Virginians being denied royalties to the natural gas
production under their land got less than half the hits of a
story about local waitresses being picked for a Hooters calendar,
according to the paper’s editor, quoted in the
Washington Post.
If you know me, you know I am inherently skeptical about ratings
and rankings. As an authority of both
cake and pie,
I lowered my guard and developed high hopes for the Jezebel
dessert March Madness, and
look what happened: cheesecake won! As a PIE! Which is it
not.
When I reported in middle schools I always picked up stray notes
off the floor. A highlight of my collection is a crumpled piece
of loose-leaf that says in now-fading pencil:
There are a couple of scholarships left for higher ed reporters
to come to our conference
in San Francisco next month. The money covers travel, hotel and
registration. Scholarships for K-12 reporters are gone, sorry.
But we would still love to have you.
My friend Lizzie Skurnick
wades into the NPR
discussion about how airtime and sources lean heavily male.
Curious, I did some math on my source lists, which turn out to be
about two-fifths female in preK-12 and one-third female in higher
ed. Certainly if you look at the usual cast of characters
commenting on education in the Washington policy world, it is
very, very male—and very white.
Central Falls left a lot of reporters asking about how much
turnaround has actually occurred since NCLB began, and what it
has looked like. A new Education Sector report, “Restructuring
‘Restructuring,’” gives some useful context.
While I was away, I was glad to see I am not the only one who
thinks newspaper online comments are a mess.
Leonard Pitts Jr. of the Miami Herald and
Connie Schultz of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer last week called
for a ban on anonymous comments—though the atmosphere on comments
threads is so toxic I am not sure requiring names will truly
improve it.
The death of wonder teacher Jaime Escalante Tuesday at
the age of 79 has provoked some thoughtful remembrances of his
remarkable life and the even more remarkable math achievement he
provoked among the many students he taught at Los Angeles’
Garfield High.
OK, Pet Peeve Time, readers of The Educated Reporter. Why is that
so many charter schools in their promotional messages describe
themselves as “tuition free”? I understand that people often are
confused about what charter schools are or are not, but they are
emphatically public schools, not private schools.
The Educated Reporter herself is a bit busy on a time-consuming
project this week that will surely make the rest of us all the
more educated. In the meantime, I will occupy the TER chair for
the week. Who am I? I am an educated (at times, miseducated,
perhaps) reporter from the smaller world of Baton Rouge, the
state capital of the great independent state of Louisiana. I
cover schools in this medium-sized city and have been doing so
for the past nine years.
I am busy on an EWA project this week, so in my place you’ll have
the immensely capable, witty and intelligent Charles
Lussier. Charles is an education reporter for the Baton Rouge
Advocate. He’s a native of Florida but applying for citizenship
to the independent state of Louisiana. I will miss you all but am
happy to leave things in good hands.
Today I watched a screener of “The Lottery,” the Eva Moskowitz
informercial—er, sorry, charter school documentary—that is making
the film festival rounds and coming out in May. Sure, I got a
little teary-eyed at the end; every detail of this film is set up
for the viewer to believe that if these children do not get into
one of Moskowitz’s Harlem Success Academies, they are doomed for
life. The sad thing is, I had the feeling the five-year-olds at
the lottery got that dispiriting message as well.
Why we can’t judge on clicks alone—or even mostly.
That Pulitzer-prize-winning Bristol Herald Courier series on rural Virginians being denied royalties to the natural gas production under their land got less than half the hits of a story about local waitresses being picked for a Hooters calendar, according to the paper’s editor, quoted in the Washington Post.
Rankings fail?
If you know me, you know I am inherently skeptical about ratings and rankings. As an authority of both cake and pie, I lowered my guard and developed high hopes for the Jezebel dessert March Madness, and look what happened: cheesecake won! As a PIE! Which is it not.
Joel, Randi and me.
When I reported in middle schools I always picked up stray notes off the floor. A highlight of my collection is a crumpled piece of loose-leaf that says in now-fading pencil:
Higher ed reporters: Come to San Francisco on us!
There are a couple of scholarships left for higher ed reporters to come to our conference in San Francisco next month. The money covers travel, hotel and registration. Scholarships for K-12 reporters are gone, sorry. But we would still love to have you.
The other gender gap: Who are your sources?
My friend Lizzie Skurnick wades into the NPR discussion about how airtime and sources lean heavily male. Curious, I did some math on my source lists, which turn out to be about two-fifths female in preK-12 and one-third female in higher ed. Certainly if you look at the usual cast of characters commenting on education in the Washington policy world, it is very, very male—and very white.
How much have we actually turned around so far?
Central Falls left a lot of reporters asking about how much turnaround has actually occurred since NCLB began, and what it has looked like. A new Education Sector report, “Restructuring ‘Restructuring,’” gives some useful context.
No comment.
While I was away, I was glad to see I am not the only one who thinks newspaper online comments are a mess. Leonard Pitts Jr. of the Miami Herald and Connie Schultz of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer last week called for a ban on anonymous comments—though the atmosphere on comments threads is so toxic I am not sure requiring names will truly improve it.
The Escalante Conundrum: Possible versus Probable
The death of wonder teacher Jaime Escalante Tuesday at the age of 79 has provoked some thoughtful remembrances of his remarkable life and the even more remarkable math achievement he provoked among the many students he taught at Los Angeles’ Garfield High.
Tuition Free?
OK, Pet Peeve Time, readers of The Educated Reporter. Why is that so many charter schools in their promotional messages describe themselves as “tuition free”? I understand that people often are confused about what charter schools are or are not, but they are emphatically public schools, not private schools.
An Introduction Complete With Easter Eggs
The Educated Reporter herself is a bit busy on a time-consuming project this week that will surely make the rest of us all the more educated. In the meantime, I will occupy the TER chair for the week. Who am I? I am an educated (at times, miseducated, perhaps) reporter from the smaller world of Baton Rouge, the state capital of the great independent state of Louisiana. I cover schools in this medium-sized city and have been doing so for the past nine years.
Guest blogger: Charles Lussier.
I am busy on an EWA project this week, so in my place you’ll have the immensely capable, witty and intelligent Charles Lussier. Charles is an education reporter for the Baton Rouge Advocate. He’s a native of Florida but applying for citizenship to the independent state of Louisiana. I will miss you all but am happy to leave things in good hands.
TER goes to the movies: “The Lottery”
Today I watched a screener of “The Lottery,” the Eva Moskowitz informercial—er, sorry, charter school documentary—that is making the film festival rounds and coming out in May. Sure, I got a little teary-eyed at the end; every detail of this film is set up for the viewer to believe that if these children do not get into one of Moskowitz’s Harlem Success Academies, they are doomed for life. The sad thing is, I had the feeling the five-year-olds at the lottery got that dispiriting message as well.