You’ve probably already heard about Arne Duncan’s resignation today.
I thought it would be useful to begin collecting useful commentaries about his departure and legacy.
For what it’s worth, here’s my own “take” via a tweet and a short comment I sent Ed Source when they asked me what I thought:
How often do Ed secretaries & supts depart and leave us teachers to clean up the messes they leave behind?
— Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo) October 2, 2015
I think California schools are in a position to make huge strides in spite of former Secretary Duncan’s attempt to get the state to march in step with his off-tempo drumbeat. His refusal to support the state’s waiver requests, and his subsequent encouragement of a waiver request by districts done without the support of local teachers, indicate how out of touch he has been with what effective school improvement efforts really look like. It’s important to note that Mr. Duncan has had nothing to do with what is arguably the most important school reform effort being done in the country today – Governor Brown’s transformation of school funding,
And now, for a beginning collections of commentaries from others:
Arne Duncan, Education Secretary, to Step Down in December is from The New York Times.
If you thought Arne Duncan was controversial, meet his successor is from The Washington Post.
The Education Secretary’s Greatest Hits is from NPR.
U.S. education secretary who clashed often with California to resign is from Ed Source.
Arne Duncan's Legacy, in Onion Headlines http://t.co/n3TmVyDaNi #teaching #education
— EdWeek Teacher (@EdWeekTeacher) October 3, 2015
Obama vs. teachers unions: It’s still on is from Politico.
What Arne Duncan did to American education and whether it will last is from The Hechinger Report.
What did Arne Duncan do for California schools? is from The L.A. Times.
What did Arne Duncan do for California schools? is from The L.A. Times.
Thanks for sharing these, Larry. I chose the NPR story to read, since NPR has a deservedly good reputation for quality journalism and because I like the work of Anya Kamanetz. Secretary Duncan is leaving a poor legacy in his wake, and there is more trouble ahead for American education due to President Obama’s appointment of Senior Advisor John King as his replacement, a daft move to the most undeserving candidate the president could plausibly have come up with. Therefore Secretary Duncan’s occasionally hinted at defence, that he shouldn’t be singled out for criticism of policies that are also his boss’s, is shown to be true. The secretary’s insistence on No Child Left Behind’s failed testing regime, deafness towards legitimate criticisms of the Common Core, and unforced error in forcing states to link pupil test scores to teacher appraisals considerably outweigh his successes in cracking down on for-profit colleges via the administration’s new Scorecard, and these errors are clearly President Obama’s as well, which fact argues for restructuring America’s increasingly dysfunctional federal government, with a prime minister to govern domestic affairs substituting for the pointless position of vice president, leaving our presidents to preside over foreign policy, including trade, and national defense.