professions

What the School Reform Debate Misses About Teachers

Posted by zoeweil ⋅ March 30, 2011 ⋅ 5 Comments

For my post today, I’m sharing an excellent op-ed by former New York chancellor, Joel Klein. While I don’t always agree with Klein, in this case, I believe that he’s hitting the crux of the issue regarding teachers, and that we need to stop choosing sides and ensure that our children get great teachers and … Continue reading →

Want Better Schools? Exalt Great Teachers

Posted by zoeweil ⋅ March 28, 2011 ⋅ 8 Comments

For my blog post today, I’m sharing an essay I wrote that was published on Common Dreams.org, a progressive news site. Here’s a short excerpt: “We all have our stories of bad teachers. Most of us have memories of being bored, frustrated, anxious, and often miserable at school. We love our great teachers, and we … Continue reading →

Paying Teachers $125K for Excellence

Posted by zoeweil ⋅ March 25, 2011 ⋅ 3 Comments

In this 60 Minutes episode, “Charter School’s $125,000 Experiment,” Katie Couric reports on a New York City charter school experimenting with high salaries to attract great teachers, none of whom are provided the safety net of tenure. What do you think? Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education Author of Most Good, Least Harm, … Continue reading →

Dexter Chapin’s Master Teachers

Posted by zoeweil ⋅ March 16, 2011 ⋅ 1 Comment

I recently read Dexter Chapin’s excellent book, Master Teachers: Making a Difference on the Edge of Chaos and underlined more passages than I had in any book in years. For my blog today, I wanted to share some of them. “Nothing the federal government, the state government, or the school district does will improve education … Continue reading →

Teaching: The Most Noble Profession

Posted by zoeweil ⋅ March 7, 2011 ⋅ 3 Comments

For my blog post today, I’m sharing an essay I wrote that was published on Common Dreams.org, a progressive news site. Here’s a short excerpt: “In college a friend in medical school told me that he thought that medicine was the most noble profession. It was a strange statement, really, and quite provocative. I wondered … Continue reading →