Eric Hoefler

Recent Posts (view all)

• No More Trouble-Makers Asking Questions

  I understand (and agree with) the goal of removing ineffective teachers from the classroom. I have no idea why anyone thinks that removing 50% of the teachers in a school and replacing them with substitutes and college grads will make things better. But Mary Tedrow might have the answer: Young, un-credentialed teachers are much easier to control [...]

• In the Set of All Factors, Money Wins

  This chart pretty clearly illustrates the correlation between student performance and socio-economic status: I have no interest in defending ineffective teachers, but we also have to talk honestly about what schools can and can’t do to help students. I don’t doubt that the effectiveness of a teacher is the single largest factor in determining a [...]

• The Impermanence of Digital

  Simon Winchester, commenting on the fact that the Oxford English Dictionary won’t be reprinted and future editions will only be available in digital formats: The printed book is about to vanish at extraordinary speed … Books are about to vanish; reading is about to expand as a pastime; these are inescapable realities. In practical and environmental [...]