The Global Search for Education – What Poland Did
Jan26

The Global Search for Education – What Poland Did

“The crucial difference between Poland and many other countries is that we focus on providing the same comprehensive curriculum to students until the age of 16 and ensuring that nearly all students finish upper secondary school.” – Maciej Jakubowski  What were the education reforms that enabled the improvement of Polish students’ 2012 PISA test results from far below the OECD average to the European top? ...

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The Global Search for Education: The World Test?
Jan13

The Global Search for Education: The World Test?

“The more important questions that countries have to ask themselves are why they are comparing with one another and what they are doing with the findings to improve the education of their children.  Countries should take PISA results as a useful reference, not as a report card.” – Pak Tee Ng  The Program of International Student Assessment (PISA) is an exam given every three years to 15 year olds around the...

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The Global Search for Education: Change Leaders — Leon Botstein
Nov17

The Global Search for Education: Change Leaders — Leon Botstein

  “No matter what the technology, the learning is about face to face.  The crude analogy I would make is between learning and sex.  Technology can greatly improve, broaden and diversify what we define as the sexual experience, but in the end it’s about intimacy and human contact in real time.” — Leon Botstein A speech from Bard College’s President Leon Botstein is an enlightening conclusion to a...

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The Global Search for Education: School Performance
Oct23

The Global Search for Education: School Performance

  “Schools are driven to place too much emphasis on test scores that capture what can easily be measured. In doing so, they neglect other important skills and qualities that are difficult to quantify.” — Andy Hargreaves A new report, Data-Driven Improvement and Accountability, authored by Boston College professors Andy Hargreaves and Henry Braun, offers recommendations for establishing more effective systems and...

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The Global Search for Education – Is the AP Worth It?
May16

The Global Search for Education – Is the AP Worth It?

 “Students need to be prepared for the extra work and make sure this fits with their overall schedule and their ability to take care of their health and well-being.”  –Denise Pope  The College Board has long claimed its gold standard AP Program can help students succeed in college, narrow the achievement gap and level the playing field for traditionally under-served high schools and students.  The program has...

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The Global Search for Education: If not the SAT, What?
Feb04

The Global Search for Education: If not the SAT, What?

 “Multiple choice tests have been the dominant type of test in this country since World War I, but that is about to change.” — Roger Benjamin  What if educators were able to assess the 21st century skills that thought leaders in The Global Search for Education series talk about week after week?  What if this 21st century replacement for the SAT was able to measure high school students’ critical thinking,...

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