December 2015 – Embrace the Absurd

Don’t Look Back – A Blog Year in Review

As 2015 comes to an end, it is futile to resist the temptation to reflect briefly on this first year of the Embrace the Absurd blog. Reflections, after all, are the lifeblood of the blog. As advertised, the fifteen essays posted in 2015 addressed assessment, accountability, and other important stuff. There were posts onContinue reading “Don’t Look Back – A Blog Year in Review”

Goals: Assets or Distractions

A noticeable difference between NCLB and ESSA is that ESSA is devoid of explicit goals. Yes, one could argue that “Every Student Succeeds” is a goal. I am still hedging my bet, however, on whether people will treat that tagline as a goal or as a policy statement, as in every student succeeds becomes theContinue reading “Goals: Assets or Distractions”

ESEA – It’s so much more than a test

Whether ESSA is signed into law before the end of the year – or like the release of the Iran hostages in 1981 we have to wait until Arne Duncan officially leaves office – it appears that we will finally see a reauthorization of ESEA. Much of the coverage of the long-awaited and hotly debatedContinue reading “ESEA – It’s so much more than a test”