Diane Ravitch's Blog

My website is dianeravitch.com. I specialize in the history of education and serve as a Research Professor of Education at New York University. Originally from Houston, Texas, I attended public schools in Houston from kindergarten through high school and graduated from Wellesley College in 1960. I earned my Ph.D. in the history of American education in 1975. I have two sons who were educated in private schools in New York City. I am also a proud grandmother to four grandsons: two of them attended religious schools, one is currently in a public school in New York City, and the youngest is set to join that same wonderful public school in Brooklyn.

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Bye Bye, Tennessee Non-Achievement School District

1 day ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

If your memory is good, you may recall Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top, which had $5 billion of unrestricted funds with which to spur education reform. Duncan had a contest in which states competed for a piece of that big pie. To be eligible to compete, states had to pass a law authorizing charter schools, and almost every state did. They had to agree to adopt national standards, which meant the unfinished, untried Common Core State Standards, as well as the tests based on the standards.
Randi Weingarten: Trump’s War on Knowledge

1 day ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Randi Weingarten is president of the American Federation of Teachers. She is my friend. Randi wrote: President Donald Trump has declared war on America’s colleges and universities, demanding they bow to his demands on what they can teach and whom they can admit or hire. Trump’s illegal and autocratic actions are tantamount to a war on knowledge intended to force schools to bend the knee to his ideology and chill free speech and academic pursuit.
U.S. Navy Cancels Lecture by Author Who Planned to Complain About Book Bans

1 day ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Under the misguided policies of Trump and Hegseth, censorship and book banning have been widespread, especially by the Defense Department. Hegseth is eager to please Trump and has stripped recognition from anyone of distinction who is female and/or non-white. Even a photograph of the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb, was taken down–because of its name. The Navajo Code Talkers were put into storage. The first women to achieve military feats and honors were mothballed.
Thomas Friedman: “I Have Never Been More Afraid for My Country’s Future”

1 day ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Thomas Friedman is not an alarmist. He has been writing about foreign policy for The New York Times for many years. He has written about crisis after crisis. But now we are an unprecedented point in our history. An unhinged ignorant man is President. Probably he is being manipulated by others. And at times, he acts on whims and grievances. On any day, he comes up with some dangerous idea. He is ruining most people’s life savings. Eliminating or disabling federal agencies.
More Than 100 Universities Sign Statement Rejecting Trump’s Interference in and Control of Their Campuses

2 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

More than 100 universities joined forces to oppose the Trump administration’s efforts to control their curriculum, their hiring policies, and their admissions policies. The initial statement was released this morning and almost another 100 universities signed on.
Will Ron DeSantis Outrun This Scandal?

2 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Jason Garcia is an investigative reporter in Florida who has had plenty to investigate during the regime of Ron DeSantis. His blog is called “Seeking Rents.” This is a post you should not miss. The governor acts like a dictator, and the Republican-dominated legislature doesn’t stop him. Remember the takeover of New College? It was the only innovative, free-thinking public institution of higher education in the state. It was tiny, only 700 students.
Robert Shepherd: Trump’s Attack on Nature is a Disaster

2 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Robert Shepherd is a polymath who frequently comments on this blog. He has worked in almost every aspect of education, on curriculum, assessments, textbooks, and as a classroom teacher. His breadth of knowledge is remarkable. Shepherd writes:First, a little about the nature of nature. There are about 800 known species of fig. Each particular species[1] is pollinated by females of ONE species of tiny wasp.
ProPublica: Trump’s War on Data Undermines Public Policy

2 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Trump’s war on our federal government continues unabated. Among his least noticed targets is data collection. If we don’t collect data, we don’t know where to focus our efforts and where we are succeeding or failing. Trump is not smart enough to figure this out on his own. Someone put this malevolent plan in action on his behalf. We know he is destroying our government, firing essential personnel, closing down Congressionally authorized agencies by eliminating their staff. But we don’t yet know why.
Politico: MAGA Loyalist Describes a Month of Chaos at the Pentagon

3 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

A Trump loyalist wrote an article in Politico blaming Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for chaos and dysfunction at the Defense Department. Before he was confirmed by the Senate, critics warned that the FOX News host had minimal administrative experience and was completely unqualified to lead one of the nation’s largest bureaucracies. He had run two small veterans’ groups into the ground and was fired from both.
DOGE Kids Are Slashing Government Agencies, While Holding Multiple Jobs

3 days ago | dianeravitch.net | Diane Ravitch

Imagine that you are a career civil servant , having worked at the same agency for 30 years. Then one day a 25-year-old youngster arrives with instructions to make rapid, sweeping change. He fires you and everyone else who knows how the agency works. This is called reform. Who are these people? It turns out that they hold jobs in multiple federal agencies. Do they receive multiple salaries? Ethics experts have questioned the practice but Trump has never listened to ethics experts.