Charlie DePascale

Is that all there is?

One of the benefits of giving up a late Sunday afternoon to travel to the site of my Monday morning meeting is the opportunity to leisurely read the newest edition of the Late Late Bell from the Fordham Institute. Last Sunday, as the Amtrak Northeast Regional rumbled toward Providence, I read the following in theContinue reading “Is that all there is?”

This Is My Fight Song

Arizona, Connecticut, and a fuchsia wristband Charlie DePascale Last weekend I attended a concert in Boston with my daughter; an opportunity that has become more rare and more appreciated since she left for college four years ago. We arrived early and waited in line to hear Rachel Platten perform her breakout hit Fight SongContinue reading “This Is My Fight Song”

It’s Déjà vu All Over Again

Charlie DePascale The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. (source unkown) Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. (Santayana) Newman! (Seinfeld) This is one of those times when there are so many quotes that describe the situation so wellContinue reading “It’s Déjà vu All Over Again”

The Road to Hell and High-Quality Assessment

It is said that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. I fear that those building the road to next generation, high-quality assessments may be using the same construction crew. At the beginning of this month, Secretary King released promised guidance to states as a follow-up to President Obama’s Testing ActionContinue reading “The Road to Hell and High-Quality Assessment”

It’s January. Can Johnny Read?

While we spent the fall waiting for PARCC to set performance standards, NAGB to release NAEP scores, and Congress to reauthorize ESEA, students and teachers across the country were going to school day after day, week after week, month after month. Now it’s the middle of January and half of the school year is complete. Continue reading “It’s January. Can Johnny Read?”

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”

Run, Forrest, Run!

As the final states release results from the spring 2015 Smarter Balanced and PARCC assessments, this post is a look back at a June 2010 presentation to CCSSO Technical Isssues in Large-Scale Assessment (TILSA) members on lessons learned from my involvement with the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP). The presentation was titled, Lessons LearnedContinue reading “Run, Forrest, Run!”

If a tree falls in the forest…

“…once upon a time, researchers simply published their research in professional journals – and there it stayed. However, my colleagues and I learned things we thought people needed to know.” The quote above from an EdWeek commentary is Carol Dweck’s explanation for why she published her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Likewise, asContinue reading “If a tree falls in the forest…”