The purpose of this commentary is to argue that a better way of addressing the centuries old criticisms about the ivory toweresque model is to stop complaining and engage with knowledge mobilization strategies (KM). Scholars engaging in knowledge mobilization seek to understand and increase the impact and usability of research by means of multi-dimensional, interactive strategies that target a wide range of stakeholders as an approach to meet the ethical obligation scholars have to ensuring the research produced in education is more accessible and ultimately impactful. We recognize, as well, the evolving tensions that this process will likely evoke in the quest to improving scholarly impact by making research more accessible and usable for the public.
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Written by New York public school principals, Harry Leonardatos and Katie Zahedi, this article shares a shop-floor view of the impact of Race to the Top on New York Public Schools. The New York State Regents Reform Agenda involves mandated compliance with the federal legislation within Race to the Top (RTTT). Requirements related to an increase in student testing and the coupling of teacher evaluations to students’ scores on state tests is at cause in the deterioration the quality of public education in New York State. Imposed political directives are shown to have a role in creating confusion through untested policies, engendering a culture of distrust, and diverting money from sound educational practice that are dismantling public schools in favor of market models.
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Dr. Maxine Greene, distinguished philosopher, scholar, and professor emerita at Teachers College, Columbia University, passed away recently on May 29, 2014 at the age of 96. As a self-proclaimed existentialist, Greene served as an advocate for aesthetic education in American public schools for well more than half a century and remained committed to expanding creativity among children by encouraging them to imagine possibilities both within and beyond the classroom.
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Powerful new historical scholarship documents the many connections between American higher education and the institution of slavery. This commentary argues that this new historical knowledge should be brought to bear on discussions of contemporary inequality and should prompt a reexamination of how schooling and labor and wage structures interact today.
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This paper examines the history and development of the GED in order to investigate the allure, promise, and pitfalls of the idea of contextless assessment and accountability. In doing so, this paper reveals the importance of quantification as a means of creating useful abstractions as well as the inherent danger of the perceived certainty of these kinds of metrics. The U.S. experience with the GED offers important lessons and insights in a world where PISA continues the reign of contextless, test-based accountability systems.
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Epitomized by the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the U.S. government’s Race to the Top, “accountability” is becoming a pervasive normalizing discourse, legitimizing historic shifts from viewing education as a social and cultural to an economic project engendering usable skills and “competences.” The purpose of this special issue is to provide context and perspective on these momentous shifts. The papers point to historic antecedents, highlight core ideas, and identify changes in the balance of power between domestic and global policy makers.
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