Publications

Ideas matter. In addition to our work with clients, Bellwether Education Partners generates and gathers ideas and policy solutions, analyzes ongoing reform efforts, and writes about and discusses education and education reform. We believe that the work we do to improve education for all students benefits from thought leadership, analysis, and thoughtful discourse around emerging ideas, in order to help challenge leaders and leading organizations to think differently and improve, to coordinate efforts where possible, to inform policymakers and improve the political and policy context, and to share successful approaches with the public education field at large.

Authors

Better Teachers: More Questions Than Answers

April 21, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- Teacher effectiveness matters more to student learning than anything else schools do, and there are substantial differences between teachers.

Don’t Look For Lessons in the Story of Cathie Black

April 14, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- Mark Twain famously cautioned us to take from an experience only the wisdom that is in it and to stop there. That sensible admonition is routinely ignored in our overheated debate over education.

Low Graduation Rates: It’s Not Just Student-Athletes

April 7, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- The attention to low-graduation rates among some athletic programs should not distract us from the more systemic problem of low graduation rates for college students overall.

Cheating on the Hard Work of School Reform

March 31, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- Cheating in school became education topic No. 1 this week, except this time it wasn’t students cheating on tests — it was adults cheating for them.

Why One Innovator is Leaving the Public Sector

March 24, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- But while innovation is a catchy buzzword, on the ground conditions are often anything but innovative. This week, the resignation of a school administrator in New York City who most readers have probably never heard of vividly illustrates that disconnect.

Can Anyone Change No Child Left Behind?

March 18, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- The Obama Administration is doubling down on its push to overhaul the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Getting the Best Info on a Potential New School

March 10, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- For some guidelines about what parents can expect and tips on how to get the most out of a visit, I asked teachers, school administrators and national education leaders -- including Arne Duncan and Michelle Rhee -- about what they consider a reasonable standard of openness and what advice they would give to parents.

When It Comes To Class Size, Smaller Isn’t Always Better

March 3, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- Secretary of Education Arne Duncan may well be right that scarce resources will be the “new normal” for schools.

Beyond Unions: 5 New Rules for All Teachers

February 24, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- If we’re serious about having school systems that put student learning first and create a genuine profession for teachers here are five common practices that must change.

The Wisconsin Teachers’ Crisis: Who’s Really to Blame?

February 18, 2011

Publication

TIME.com -- As Madison becomes ground zero for the debate over government spending and public-sector reform, some hard questions are getting lost in political theatrics and overwrought rhetoric.