Education

Coming up on Speakers Forum, January 24 at 8:00 p.m.

Finland’s public education system consistently ranks among the top in the world in terms of achievement and efficiency. Professor Pasi Sahlberg’s presentation talks about what the United States can learn from Finland, where education policies focus more on professional development rather than standardized tests, and pedagogy above technology. Sahlberg spoke at the University of Washington’s Kane Hall on November 14, 2012.

Teachers at Orca K-8 school in Seattle say they will boycott the same standardized test that Garfield High School teachers came out against last week.

    

A group of teachers at Ballard High School in Seattle has come out in support of Garfield High School teachers' refusal to give students the district-mandated Measures of Academic Progress standardized test. The teachers say the test is useless and shouldn't factor in to teacher evaluations. Ross Reynolds talks with educators and education experts on both sides of the issue.

Seattle Public Schools officials and the company that produces the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test are defending the school district's use of the standardized test after Garfield High School teachers refused to give it to their students this quarter.

Teachers at Garfield High School in Seattle say they have voted overwhelmingly to refuse to administer a district-wide standardized test. A statement from Garfield teachers called the test a waste of time and money.

What makes a good self-help book? Book commentator and author Nancy Pearl joins us to think about it. Her favorite is “The Dance of Anger” by Harriet Lerner. What's yours? Call us at 206.543.5869 or email weekday@kuow.org.

Last session, Washington state legislators introduced some "title only" bills into committee — essentially blank legislation with the details to be filled in later. They also held hearings on some bills with only two hours public notice, violating the intent of their own rules. Jason Mercier of the Washington Policy Center tells us why he wants to see more accountability in Olympia through greater legislative transparency.

In this month’s RadioActive podcast, hosts Bryce Ellis and Daniel Metz hear stories about high school students who aren’t "sluffin" when it comes to their futures (if you don’t know what "sluffin" means this show has got your definition).

One of the kids in these stories goes down the traditional four-year college route, while the others travel off the beaten path: