Comments on: Big Mouth Strikes Again

By: Jay Frasco

Jay Frasco — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 00:22:09 +0000

Davis Guggenheim is making a documentary on the U.S. education system that I think will address many of our concerns — it will certainly open up door to a broader discourse, one that goes beyond politics. I believe they’re still filming, but am really looking forward to this.

By: Jim Shanley

Jim Shanley — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 11:06:21 +0000

Hi Julia,

I enjoy reading your blog posts about most everything, but especially the situation within NYC schools. You may be interested in what out organization, Comp2Kids, is doing. As a grass roots organization we have, since 2002 we have raised $ from wealthy, and lately not quite so wealthy, New Yorkers and purchased refurbished computers for kids in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Harlem. The computers go directly to the kids (teachers too!), and the results have been dramatic. Our story is at comp2kids.org, we’re having our annual auction on May 6 in the lion’s den, the New York Stock Exchange.

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 18:47:01 +0000

I’d like to hear more specific reasons why you support charter schools. Have you visited more than one?

I’m a former teacher who taught in two charters and remains on the fence about charters in general. Seems to me that we should be able to do what the effective charters are doing in ALL public schools. Why does there have to be a special niche?

And charter experts, particularly those at Teachers College where I’m studying ed policy, say the jury is still out on charters. It’s too early to make any grandiose proclamations about their efficacy or lack thereof.

So I’m wondering whether it was one little look at one little charter that’s got you all excited or if you’ve got more substantive reasons.

By: Hebisner

Hebisner — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 16:03:46 +0000

You may not have articulated your point well when you were on the spot, but it was still an important point. We may have made progress in education but there is still a long way to go. Your experience as a public school student was relevant to that discussion.

By: Jen P.

Jen P. — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:55:48 +0000

Your concern for the state of education is real and while you focus on NYC, the concern is relevant to many areas all over the country. I teach in an area in Virginia that spends quite a bit of money on public education yet yields less than desireable results. I’m not pleased with the state of affairs in public education and if I don’t see some big changes with Duncan as our new Secretary of Education, I will most likely quit teaching altogether. The system is broken and reform cannot come soon enough.

Nice Smiths reference, by the way.

By: On her new blog, Julia Stiles weighs in on the city’s schools | GothamSchools

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:33:52 +0000

[...] her own experience in the city’s schools, and the two exchanged a few messages. On her blog, Stiles reveals the contents of their dialogue: I was nothing short of surprised when I discovered a message from him in my inbox the next [...]