Akil Education Policy

What if . . . thoughts on education

Since we’re living in “unprecedented” (are you tired of that word yet) and “challenging” (euphemism much) times, I’ve been thinking a lot about the alternative timeline we could have been living in. I’ve also been thinking quite a bit about policy, advocacy, philanthropy, and the power dynamics of education in this country. All of this combined with the disappointing “Marvel’s What If . . .?” series on Disney+, led me to start blogging again. So here it is, you get my late night thoughts about policy, philanthropy and possibility.

Continue reading “What if . . . thoughts on education” →
Akil Admissions Tests, Education Policy

Shuffling the Deckchairs of Testing

I wrote this back in March but then … The Rona. I’m publishing it now since BPS just chose their vendor. I’ll likely dig into that vendor and the test first on twitter but eventually I’ll post something about it here.

After a very public breakup with test-maker Education Records Bureau (ERB), Boston Public Schools is seeking a “new test” that “accurately assesses a student’s knowledge of content they’re taught in class and has been rigorously reviewed to ensure it is free of bias.” This is disappointing since it shows that BPS seems to be set on continuing to ignore research and reiterating its faith in the cult of overtesting. 

Continue reading “Shuffling the Deckchairs of Testing” →
Akil Admissions Tests, Education Policy

College, Career, and Cremation Benchmarks

As the new school year begins, I am anxiously awaiting (read: dreading) the forthcoming SAT and ACT annual reports and with them the inevitable exaggerations, hand-wringings, misinterpretations, and statistical paralogisms that will follow. The College Board’s Total Group Reports and ACT’s Condition of College and Career Readiness Reports (or Profile Reports) will not only spark the annual “sky-is-falling because district scores have dropped .005 points” responses but will also likely lead to an uptick in the “SAT/ACT scores show students not ready to succeed in college, career, life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness.”

Continue reading “College, Career, and Cremation Benchmarks” →