SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT

A flutter in the education dovecotes

Normally, salacious gossip is far beneath us, and those with no interest in silly tittle-tattle should stop reading now. Still reading? I thought so.

The scandale du jour concerns historian Diane Ravitch who, until a short time ago, was a perfectly respectable professor of history and supporter of education reforms like standardized testing and school choice. Then Dr. Ravitch apparently had some sort of conversion on the road to Damascus, publishing a book that strongly repudiated everything she had previously supported. Predictably, Dr. Ravitch immediately became the darling of the teachers’ unions and other status quo educators. Her book became a surprise best seller, and she hit the talk show circuit with a vengeance. To give you an idea, here’s her published schedule for the next while: May 24 - Washington, DC; May 26 Connecticut Skype conference; June 2 - New York; June 9 - Tampa, FL; June 17 - Savannah, GA; June 27-29 Aspen, CO.

However, sometimes there are strange things done ‘neath the midnight sun, and Dr. Ravitch recently made a huge fuss, accusing the Rhode Island education commissioner of very rude behaviour in the course of a meeting which included the governor of the state. Dr. Ravitch loudly complained that she had never before “encountered such rudeness and incivility”, and that she was waiting for an apology. The education commissioner, however, remembers the meeting very differently, calling the session “productive and a good conversation”. The governor, not normally an ally of the education commissioner, agreed with this assessment. You can read more about it here.

Fortunately for those of us with enquiring minds, the session happened to be videotaped. The videotaper, who is reluctant to get into the middle of the fray, will release the videotapes only if all parties agree. The education commissioner and the governor gave permission immediately, but Dr. Ravitch asked to review the tapes before granting permission. It’s now Day 7 and, given Dr. Ravitch’s aforementioned busy schedule, it’s starting to look as if she will never find time to review those tapes. 

Do you suppose Dr. Ravitch didn’t notice the camera? What was she thinking? Was she thinking?

BREAKING NEWS: Diane Ravitch has apologized to the Rhode Island education commissioner. Sort of.