The Answer Sheet: oprah


Posted at 10:30 AM ET, 01/09/2011

How to be taken seriously as a reformer (don't be an educator)
By Valerie Strauss
In the current upside-down world of education policy, there's one foolproof strategy for being taken seriously as a reformer: Make sure you're not an educator. Here, an educator writes about what counts -- and what SHOULD count -- in the school reform debate.

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:30 AM ET, 01/09/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  Illiinois schools, Performance Counts, bill gates, eli broad, jeb bush, mark zuckerberg, obama and schools, obama daughters and school, oprah, performance counts, president obama and daughters, school reform, sidwell and obama, standardized tests, teacher assessment, teachers

Posted at 12:30 PM ET, 01/05/2011

Resolutions someone should make for 2011
By Valerie Strauss
An educator offers some resolutions for the new year: That President Obama et al stop saying, "We are going to educate ourselves toward a 21st Century economy;" that people who really know about education appear on Oprah; that policy makers stop making standardized testing the gold standard of student achievement and teacher effectiveness; that we stop using corporate speak (game changer, incentivize) to talk about education. And more.

By Valerie Strauss  |  12:30 PM ET, 01/05/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  2011 resolutions, ian hacking, mike rose, new year's resolutions, obama and education policy, oprah, oprah winfrey, president obama, standardized tests, stephen jay gould, student achievement, teacher effectiveness

Posted at 09:13 AM ET, 11/05/2010

Who’s NOT on Forbes powerful people list -- but should be
By Valerie Strauss
On the Forbes list of the 68 most powerful people in the world you will find government leaders, bankers, religious figures, a drug trafficker and Oprah Winfrey. But you won't find an educator, and there's one who should have been on the list.

By Valerie Strauss  |  09:13 AM ET, 11/05/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Education Secretary Duncan | Tags:  arne duncan, china president, dalai lama, forbes, forbes magazine, hu jintao, jintao, mark zuckerberg, oprah, oprah winfrey, pope benedict, powerful people list, president obama

Posted at 01:02 PM ET, 09/21/2010

Oprah and her warrior woman, Michelle Rhee
By Valerie Strauss
When Oprah Winfrey aired “Waiting For Superman - The Movie That Can Transform America’s Schools,” on her television show, viewers should have realized that they were watching an entertainment show with a show woman -- not an educator -- as host. Guests Michelle Rhee, Bill Gates and Davis Guggenheim all played their parts, not letting facts get in the way.

By Valerie Strauss  |  01:02 PM ET, 09/21/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  D.C. Schools | Tags:  bill gates, bill gates and oprah, d.c. schools, davis guggenheim, guggenheim film, michelle rhee, michelle rhee and oprah winfrey, oprah, oprah and gates and rhee, oprah and rhee, oprah show, oprah winfrey, rhee on oprah, school reform and rhee, waiting for superman, waiting for superman and rhee, will rhee go?, will rhee stay?

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 09/20/2010

Has education reform jumped the shark? A teacher says 'yes'
By Valerie Strauss
A veteran teacher looks at recent events in the education world and concludes that yes, indeed, education reform has jumped the shark, and the signs of its collapse are everywhere.

By Valerie Strauss  |  06:00 AM ET, 09/20/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  anthony cody, arne duncan, bill gates, education nation, gates on oprah, michelle rhee, nbc education nation, oprah, race to the top, rhee on oprah, teachers and reform, teachers town hall

Posted at 10:06 AM ET, 11/20/2009

The problem with 'Oprah as Teacher'
By Valerie Strauss
Oprah Winfrey seems to love to teach--on her top-rated television show, through commencement speeches, in her successful magazine. But in an era where educators say the one thing students need to learn is so-called “critical thinking skills”--or the ability to deeply analyze problems--Winfrey does very little to help on several levels.

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:06 AM ET, 11/20/2009 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Intelligence, Intelligence | Tags:  Oprah Winfrey