Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Joel Klein have hoodwinked the public into thinking that conditions in our schools are improving.... [MORE]

Ed Greenspan

Oct 28, 2007 16:15

I was reading your comments, and I was thinking about what the real role of the teacher is, because I... [MORE]

Dulce Dedieu

Sep 3, 2007 15:43

After a daunting first year of teaching, I can see why so many teachers leave the profession. First, we are... [MORE]

Donna

Jun 18, 2007 19:54

After reading this article and many of the comments, I felt I had to say something. I have been a... [MORE]

Heather Perkins

Jun 18, 2007 12:09

One of the problems we have in this country is assigning blame…….We are great at blaming everyone else but not... [MORE]

Bob Dean

Jun 17, 2007 11:36

Re. Don't Blame the Teacher By Diane Ravitch The responsibility for educating a child is placed squarely in the hands of... [MORE]

Phyllis Cynthia Murray

Jun 16, 2007 17:28

When I first read Ravitch's article I thought....great points. Yes, in poorer nations children are hungry for learning and success.... [MORE]

MLR

Jun 16, 2007 13:50

BRAVO to Diane Ravitch! Teachers know the truth. We do everything we can. We talk to the students and to... [MORE]

Judith

Jun 16, 2007 10:51

Ms. Ravitch you are right. The detractors of public education in America have been fooling the public and even many... [MORE]

Paul Preston, Inside Education, Educational Talk Radio

Jun 16, 2007 09:30

To get a real picture of where the U.S. stands in regards to other countries on public education, see the... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 18, 2007 14:07

Ms.Ravitch starts her article with: "The meeting proceeded through the now-familiar litany of bad news: American students perform poorly on... [MORE]

Paul Preston, Inside Education, Educational Talk Radio

Jun 19, 2007 23:50

Paul, by commenting on the "litany of bad news" regarding the state of our public school system, Ms. Ravitch is... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 20, 2007 13:44

Thankfullly, we finally live in a state that has mandatory testing. It's a godsend since most of my childrens' teachers... [MORE]

Moira

Jun 15, 2007 23:03

Everyone who can remember when tests were measures of student success rather than the teacher's... raise your hand....! And by the... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 18, 2007 07:27

Yes, BRAVO for NCLB, it is truly the first step in legislative efforts at public education reform. In addition to... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 18, 2007 14:14

To Diane Ravitch: Thank you! [MORE]

Dennis Fermoyle

Jun 15, 2007 21:28

I am a teacher and have been an assistant principal and a high school principal. I now work for the... [MORE]

Mary

Jun 15, 2007 20:07

Diane Ravitch--this is an awesome statement. Politicians, business people, most conservatives, and all those others who could never hold their...

John E. Russo II

Jun 15, 2007 15:36

Those who want to blame the entire set of teachers for the state of education today have never bothered to... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 15, 2007 13:08

Diane Ravich is absolutely correct in identifying the source of America's educational woes in students' lack of work ethic. But... [MORE]

Mary Hudson

Jun 15, 2007 11:39

I only partially agree, because I'm sure a very small percentage of students are as Ms. Ravitch describes. (A very... [MORE]

Anne Spence

Jun 15, 2007 08:27

I agree with Ms. Ravitch that student apathy is a real problem in government schools and with many of the... [MORE]

Crimson Wife

Jun 15, 2007 15:44

You are angry--that 's obvious. However, as a public school Teacher, with excellent evaluations and commendations, I know Diane Ravitch... [MORE]

John E. Russo II

Jun 15, 2007 16:12

I was saddened to read the posting from the mother of the dyslexic student. Having been a special educator for... [MORE]

Jeanne

Jun 18, 2007 10:25

Sorry to hear of your child's educational horror story. BTW, it's Johnny not Jonnie. Remember, teaching is a cultural act... [MORE]

rb

Aug 24, 2007 21:36

I'm a Chinese student. No offense to all the teachers in the US, I have to say that, from a... [MORE]

Vera

Oct 8, 2007 09:22

You dramatically made the case that politically correct textbooks reflect bad scholarship and are part of the problem in The... [MORE]

Jon T. Hill

Jun 14, 2007 19:36

Get rid of active engagement with reflection, expressivism, WAC, and other "dumbed down" nonsense based on racial and gender stereotypes.... [MORE]

Paul Cameron

Jun 14, 2007 19:18

As a committed liberal, I have never been a fan of Professor Ravitch's work--until now. It is good for both... [MORE]

Bernard Freydberg

Jun 14, 2007 19:06

Teachers teach the content set forth by the state standards and benchmarks. They have some say in formal curriculum adoptions,... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 15, 2007 13:25

Who else is there to blame? Kids are sent to school. Teachers are paid to teach them. But they don't... [MORE]

Don Swearingen

Jun 14, 2007 19:05

Thank you for defending teachers. I taught special education for 17 years before being called to another career. I worked... [MORE]

Nancy

Jun 14, 2007 15:30

It's not that most parents don't support their children in school and that they don't push their children to work... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 14, 2007 14:16

School administrators are often caught between student need and lack of funding. This makes them horribly defensive, and have a... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 15, 2007 13:43

I appreciate the sentiment you are expressing to the notion that if parents simply refuse to accept "no" for an... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 16, 2007 17:06

While it is true that many parents either lack knowhow and/or time in order to ensure the best education for... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 18, 2007 07:06

I agree with you that we need stronger legislation and better enforcement in our schools, but, the facts surrounding school... [MORE]

Debbie Smith

Jun 18, 2007 13:42

What Ravitch says is true, as far as it goes, but some things are the fault of the teaching profession,... [MORE]

Charles Connell

Jun 14, 2007 12:58

Kids get A's and B's for work that would have earned us C's and D's because when they get C's... [MORE]

Michelle

Jun 15, 2007 13:47

To: Ms. Ravitch and the Editors No doubt the teachers are wrongfully blamed for the past several decades of public education... [MORE]

Nancy Joyce Jancourtz

Jun 14, 2007 12:24

As the old saying goes, "You can't make chicken soup from chicken feathers". When most of a child's capacity for... [MORE]

Harold Brown

Jun 14, 2007 12:06

I love this article ! I am a special ed dept. head in a urban high school. There are some... [MORE]

Ben Hull

Jun 14, 2007 11:23

I am no expert, just a mother of four children, but I see that in families where there are high... [MORE]

sonja moran

Jun 14, 2007 11:14

Finally someone hears what we teachers are saying. Notice that we are never included in the discussion. Why is that?... [MORE]

Heather

Jun 14, 2007 11:08

Does no one hear the words of Jamie Vollmer? Students go to school and they are there no matter what... [MORE]

Jaime Cordero

Jun 15, 2007 10:41

"The parents are the primary educators of their children. As your school we are here to help" We found this... [MORE]

Linda Jalufka

Jun 14, 2007 10:54

To me, your article is clear and hits the 'Nail' right on the head. Your perspective is so obvious to... [MORE]

Robert D. Mossman

Jun 14, 2007 10:41

I am in my late 50's and have been teaching for 6 years here in North Carolina. In all that... [MORE]

Joe Grace

Jun 14, 2007 10:22

Throughout my years in education, particularly as an administrator, I have not always agreed with Diane Ravitch's ideas or conclusions,... [MORE]

Jim Little

Jun 14, 2007 09:46

I know an outstanding teacher who recently asked her students what career path they were interested in. About 60% said... [MORE]

Fred Jenson

Jun 14, 2007 09:14

The real reason why students are slackers, and why education is ridiculed, etc. is simple: students are forced to go... [MORE]

David

Jun 14, 2007 09:04

Students are the primary agents of their own learning. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make... [MORE]

Thomas Farrell

Jun 14, 2007 08:54