- Jun 25, 2014
Arne Duncan and Special Education – A Dangerous Mixture
Posted in ChicagoNow, June 25, 2014 I said I was on vacation and not posting again after Monday, but on the eve of my departure, this...
- Mar 28, 2014
Reading Incomprehension – Common Core Standards in Action
Reading when not in school Published in ChicagoNow, March 27, 2014 You would think a former teacher and English major with a master’s...
- Mar 7, 2014
“Life is a Test” – Really?
Published in ChicagoNow, March 7, 2014 In its March 6, 2014 editorial in the printed paper, the Chicago Tribune asks, “Where is the harm...
- Mar 2, 2014
Dr. Seuss Not a Fan of Testing Kids
Published in ChicagoNow, March 2, 2014 Dr. Seuss died in 1991, ten years before the No Child Left Behind Act passed Congress and long...
- Jan 24, 2014
Meltdown over Frozen Recess
Published in ChicagoNow, January 24, 2014 My granddaughter, a second grader, was punished along with half of her classmates for playing...
- Jan 10, 2014
Standards Driven Education Reaches Preschool
Published in ChicagoNow, January 10, 2014 (cCartoon by Marcia Liss) Now I’m really angry! Cherry Preschool, which I founded and directed,...
- Dec 9, 2013
Raise Your Hand Today
Published in ChicagoNow, December 9, 2013 Today, December 9, 2013, is Raise Your Hand Day. In its message to Congress, the National...
- Dec 4, 2013
Teachers Who Love Testing
Published in ChicagoNow, December 4, 2013 (cartoon by Marcia Liss) The first grade teacher tests her students in reading at the start of...
- Nov 22, 2013
Why I am Mad at Arne Duncan Today
Published in ChicagoNow, November 22, 2013 (Photo: Rachel Monroe/Monroe's Dragonfly) Today, on the 50th anniversary of the assassination...
- Oct 25, 2013
Mister Rogers, Doctor Seuss, & Tests
Published ChicagoNow, October 25, 2013 A friend of mine who trains Chicago public elementary school teachers how to teach reading was...