“Politics is like dice: the better the player, the worse the man.” ― C.J. Sansom, Heartstone The Fourth of July has always been my favorite holiday. Growing up, it marked the unofficial beginning of summer, when city folks would… Read More ›
Education
Broken Ribs, Broken Narratives, and Why I Still Don’t Trust the Test
“What literature can and should do is change the people who teach the people who don’t read the books.” ― A.S. Byatt Two weeks ago today I was sitting in the bleachers watching my son’s baseball game. The game… Read More ›
The One-Room Schoolhouse
“It seems a universal rule in this world that people will always look for victims and scapegoats, does it not? Especially at times of difficulty and tension.” ― C.J. Sansom, Dissolution Remember that old lyric, “It’s summertime and the… Read More ›
Graduation Rain, Education Gurus, and the Annual Principal Shuffle
“Nothing is a cliche when you’re living it.” ― Ben Lerner, The Topeka School Sometimes I get the answers to questions before I even publicly ask them. Case in point: high school graduations. Over the last couple of weeks,… Read More ›
The Last Bell Rings, But the Lessons Don’t Stop
“These days, Clarissa believes, you measure people first by their kindness and their capacity for devotion. You get tired, sometimes, of wit and intellect; everybody’s little display of genius.” ― Michael Cunningham, The Hours Just like that… it’s a… Read More ›
Chaos, Consequences, and Classrooms
“If someone’s ninety percent awful and ten percent great, everyone says that deep down they’re great. Like they’re an iceberg, but all that greatness is under the water – and invisible. But actually, the truth is, they’re just ninety percent… Read More ›
The Testing Ritual and the Steakhouse Reality
“This society hasn’t changed one bit. People who don’t fit into the village are expelled: men who don’t hunt, women who don’t give birth to children. For all we talk about modern society and individualism, anyone who doesn’t try to… Read More ›
The Session Ends, the Campaign Begins, and the Same Old Arguments Keep Spinning
“Just when you think something can’t get any worse someone who dislikes you comes to watch.” ― Denise Mina, Conviction Yesterday marked the end of Tennessee’s 114th General Assembly. It was an odd one. A little longer than expected for… Read More ›
Follow the Flow
“If there is one class of person I have never quite trusted, it is a man who knows no doubt.” ― Geraldine Brooks I’ve picked up a new hobby recently. Admittedly, not a great one for an aging gent… Read More ›
Every Minute Counts—Until It Doesn’t
“He is aware of neglecting his son, of not even talking to him much, too preoccupied with his own stuff. His own plans. This is his life, these things that are happening.” ― David Szalay, All That Man Is … Read More ›
