Read education researcher David Kirp’s NY Times smart article on Union City NJ improving schools! We’ve focused in this website on teachers writing about their classrooms to rebuild public trust in education — but I couldn’t resist highlighting the eminently sensible approaches being taking in Union City. They build both academic skills and a positive sense of community, involving teachers in planning — rather than negative school ratings, firing teachers, pitting charters against regular in-district schools. I’ve linked to the article on the web here — but if you can’t get to it without a subscription, there’s also a link on our Teachers Speak Up Facebook page that should work.

We need to help more public media and policy-makers pay attention to thoughtful education achievements like these!