Author Archives: Mike

Grading the Teachers

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Mike

Politicians, Pundits, Polemicists, and Professors Who of All People Should Know Better, love to lament that “teachers unions reflexively reject anything that smacks of accountability.” Or so said Leonard Pitts of the Miami Herald, who usually hits the nail right … Continue reading →

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A Reasonable Reading of a Text

Posted on September 7, 2010 by Mike

As I sort through my folders of old e-mails, I occasionally come across something that I said pretty well and that  stands alone like a little essay without a lot of the context of the correspondence. Much of it is … Continue reading →

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Digital School Books, Part One

Posted on September 6, 2010 by Mike

When I travel, I occasionally take a break from the local-wherever-I-am newspaper and indulge in USA Today. That’s how I came across the August 10 article “Learning Curve Goes Digital.” On the USA Today website, it is titled “Can college … Continue reading →

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Raw Milk

Posted on August 20, 2010 by Mike

As I wrote this (now some days ago) I was listening to an NPR news story about the Raw Milk Revolution, and government suppression of it by force of arms – it seems that armed federal officers destroyed inventories  of … Continue reading →

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Denver Schools’ Test Scores

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Mike

One of the benefits of travel lies in reading newspapers from other parts of the country and learning what is going on there. So it was that when I opened the Denver Post of August 11, 2010, I saw the … Continue reading →

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Educational Accountability

Posted on August 3, 2010 by Mike

I am not a Politician, a Pundit, a Polemicist, or a Professor. I have never run for public office nor do I have a Ph. D., so I do not belong to those two clubs, and the middle two would … Continue reading →

Posted in Education Reform, Teacher Accountability, Teacher's Unions | 1 Comment

Math Requirements

Posted on July 26, 2010 by Mike

Math Requirements A few days ago, a high school friend in South Dakota sent me an interesting link: http://www.school-of-thought.net/?p=868.   Fred Deutsch is a school board member from Watertown, South Dakota. This particular post discusses South Dakota’s new graduation requirements. According … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Posts | 1 Comment

Performance Reviews

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Mike

This morning, 7-9-2010, on NPR, I heard a review of Samuel Culbert’s book Get Rid of the Performance Review. Although Culbert’s book is aimed at the corporate world, I was struck by how many of his points seem relevant to … Continue reading →

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THE PEAVINE QUARTER – PRELUDE

Posted on July 6, 2010 by Mike

Welcome to my new blog, The Peavine Quarter. These early posts will be mostly “Why I Went to the Woods” stuff. Call me Mike Steiner, because that is my name. I am now retired, having taught mostly English and mostly … Continue reading →

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