Joanne Jacobs
How schools can help poor kids beat the odds: Consistency, collaboration, priorities
Schools that help disadvantaged students achieve focus on consistently good teaching, a strong, shared curriculum and lots of collaboration.
top of page
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 122 min read
'No excuses' model rebounds: 'A lot of anti-racist practices don't work'
Achievement fell in charters that replaced the "no excuses" model with "anti-racist practices."
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 212 min read
As absenteeism soars, schools want money for no-show students
Funding schools based on enrollment rather than attendance would be "more equitable," a superintendent told Rick Hess as they waited to...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 202 min read
Lowering expectations doesn't lead to 'equity'
It's easier to get A's and harder to get an education, writes Fordham's Michael Petrilli. Expectations started falling and grades...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 82 min read
Top marks for low expectations: 'Rate your teacher' surveys could backfire
Asking students to rate their teachers is a dubious way to evaluate teachers' competence, writes Vladimir Kogan, a Ohio State political...
Joanne Jacobs
Jan 242 min read
'No excuses' school guru passes on: Will excellence survive?
Linda Brown, who trained hundreds of charter leaders as leader of (Building Excellent Schools (ES), has died at the age of 81. Many of...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 17, 20232 min read
Detracking in Shaker Heights: 'Honors' for all, lower expectations
All Shaker Heights students take honors classes -- or classes with an "honors" label. The "enriched" and "advanced" tracks are gone,...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 7, 20232 min read
'We took care of our kids' -- but they lost a year in reading, math
Juab School District in Utah focused on supporting students emotionally when schools reopened in fall of 2020. “We took care of our...
Joanne Jacobs
May 11, 20233 min read
Set up to fail: In real life, you've got to show up and do the work
"Equitable grading" is supposed to be fairer to students who have trouble completing homework, getting to school on time and studying for...
Joanne Jacobs
Jan 28, 20231 min read
'If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life' ...
My husband says this is "our song." I interpret it as: Have realistic expectations.
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 4, 20222 min read
Failing college: Covid kids can't do the math
For a year or more, their high school classes were online. Perhaps they returned to an on-and-off schedule with frequent quarantine...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 3, 20222 min read
Excluding Ophelia: Here's how to justify bias against Asian achievers
Asian-American students teachers earn high grades in advanced classes because teachers hold them to high expectations, argues Jennifer...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 3, 20222 min read
When teachers believe, students achieve
"All students can learn" was the school district's slogan, printed on the stationery back in the era when mission statements were new....
bottom of page