Life – Page 10 – Embrace the Absurd

Before Taylor There Was Barry

As you all know all too well, I am a fan of Taylor Swift. I have been hooked since the fall of 2006 after listening to her eponymous initial CD on repeat while driving home to Maine from a conference in Philadelphia. At that point, however, I had nearly half a century of music underContinue reading “Before Taylor There Was Barry”

Ed Reform – The Song That Doesn’t End

This is the song that doesn’t end Yes, it goes on and on my friend. Some people started singing it Not knowing what it was. And they’ll continue singing it forever just because [repeat ad infinitum] Well, folks weren’t too receptive of my attempt to invoke Friedrich Nietzsche in a recent post on Education ReformContinue reading “Ed Reform – The Song That Doesn’t End”

A Changing Nation, A Changing Framework

The US Census and NAEP, two of my favorite topics to write about, have been in the news recently because of changes. Last week, data from the 2020 Census was released summarizing changes to the racial/ethnic makeup of the United States across the last several Census counts. Earlier this month, NAEP also made news, albeitContinue reading “A Changing Nation, A Changing Framework”

Work the Problem

With the Olympics coming to an end, I began browsing through the rest of the Peacock app and came across the recently added 1995 film, Apollo 13. Since first renting the film at Blockbuster as soon as it went to VHS, I must have watched it two dozen times. For some reason, I feel aContinue reading “Work the Problem”

Parting Thoughts on Tokyo 2020

The medals have been earned and distributed and the flame has been extinguished, bringing an end to the 2020 Summer Olympics – an Olympics, it goes without saying at this point, like no other. Like every Olympics since I began watching the Games in the summer of 1972, however, Tokyo 2020 generated images, impressions, andContinue reading “Parting Thoughts on Tokyo 2020”

Enough Room Now For 49 Stars

You’re a grand old flag You’re a high-flying flag And forever in peace may you wave As the Olympics shift from the pool and the gym to the track, we are probably in a peak period for thinking about the flag. I’ll admit that aside from the Olympics, holidays like Memorial Day and Independence Day,Continue reading “Enough Room Now For 49 Stars”

Tell Me Something I Already Know

Gather round kids. We need to talk. Come on, there’s room for everybody. You three lurking in the back, join us. There are plenty of seats up front. (Sheesh, professors, y’know what I mean). Ahem, the gentleman with the pink tie and jeans in the front row, you can stop looking around the room andContinue reading “Tell Me Something I Already Know”

It Was A Privilege

The focus recently on opportunity-to-learn, equity, access to a high-quality education, etc. makes me think about my father. Today would have been his 89th birthday and his entire life was a testament to the importance of access to a quality education and to making the most of that access when it was presented to you.Continue reading “It Was A Privilege”

We Chose To Go To The Moon

“I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth.” President Kennedy, May 25, 1961 On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed and walked on the moon. After rejoining Michael Collins,Continue reading “We Chose To Go To The Moon”

Bored on the Fourth of July

Large-scale state testing is boring. tedious, dull, monotonous, repetitious, repetitive, unimaginative, characterless, colorless, soulless, passionless, spiritless, uninteresting, unexciting, uninspiring, unstimulating, unoriginal, derivative, jejune, nondescript, anemic, sterile, bland, vanilla, wishy-washy, banal, lame, plodding, ponderous, pedestrian, stodgy, dreary, mechanical, stiff, leaden, wooden, mind-numbing, soul-destroying, wearisome, tired, tiring, tiresome, irksome, trying, frustrating, mundane, commonplace, workaday, unremarkable, routine, run-of-the-millContinue reading “Bored on the Fourth of July”