I comment on the implications of the newly-released NAEP scores for New York City. ny1.com/nyc/all-boro...

We’re hiring! Tenure-track Assistant/Associate. Professor of Sociology & Education at Teachers College, Columbia University! Review of applications begins October 15, 2025. For more info, contact me at [email protected]. employment.tc.columbia.edu/cw/en-us/job...

I comment on the latest New York City reading and math test scores. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025...

Wearing your conference badge to the hotel fitness center is overdoing the status signaling.

I comment on Zohran Mamdani’s lack of attention to classroom teaching and learning. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/08/n...

Is anyone here working with PIAAC 2023 data? I’m unable to replicate published international means with the public use files, but the individual country files line up correctly. Would love to compare notes.

I caution against using screener test scores as definitive evidence of the effects of curriculum reform in NYC. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025...

On Friday, Elon Musk explained his black eye, saying that he told his five-year-old son to punch him. Maybe he’d be willing to adopt me.

Donald Trump doesn’t like the epithet TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out). But unfortunately, reprehensible retaliation is Trump’s objective (BURRITO).

“Do the Trump administration’s efforts to close the Department of Education jeopardize Title I and IDEA funds? Not if the administration follows the law.” My interpretation of the effects of dismantling the federal Department of Education for NYC. www.vitalcitynyc.org/articles/wha...

Donald Trump is eviscerating the federal Department of Education. What does that mean on the ground for teachers, students and parents in New York City's largest-in-the-nation public school system? @ampallas.bsky.social answers: www.vitalcitynyc.org/articles/wha...

A disappointing turn in NYC education policy. But I did get to reference Jennifer Jennings on "bubble kids" in talking to the reporter. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025...

We're hiring! The Sociology & Education program at Teachers College, Columbia University is recruiting for a three-year Lecturer appointment. Details at employment.tc.columbia.edu/cw/en-us/job...

In which I call threats to cancel federal funding for public education “a form of domestic terrorism.” wordinblack.com/2025/02/titl...

You can’t solve poverty by giving it a tax cut.

A few comments on the craziness in Washington. www.northjersey.com/story/news/e...

A few words about NAEP reading scores and performance gaps. wordinblack.com/2025/02/sorr...

My affiliation with the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education—as an intern, employee, contractor, Technical Advisory Committee member, proposal and manuscript reviewer, and co-Principal Investigator on research and training grants—spans 45 years. What happened today is sickening.

You know what’s radical and wasteful? Telling public schools what they can and cannot teach.

My annual warning to not over-interpret NAEP scores. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2025...

I’ve just learned of the death of Lee Shulman, one of the most influential scholars of teaching and learning over the past 60 years. And a true mensch. May his memory be a blessing to all who knew him.

Is Washington Heights becoming unaffordable? If so, what are the consequences for schools? I comment. www.nytimes.com/2024/12/19/n...

I comment on Linda McMahon and President-elect Trump’s aspirations to shut down the federal Department of Education. ny1.com/nc/charlotte...

I comment on the federal Department of Education in a second Trump administration. youtube.com/watch?v=GzOa...

I comment on social class and parental monitoring of their children in class. www.edweek.org/technology/p...

@joshcowenmsu.bsky.social and I comment on the prospects of dismantling the Education Department: www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tru...

Effective school cellphone policies require listening to parents’ and students’ concerns. www.edweek.org/technology/m...

I comment on the implications of the expiration of federal COVID relief funding for school staffing. www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...

Make a movie milder: Adequate Fly

I comment on the implications of stable high school graduation rates in New York City, alongside rising chronic student absenteeism. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2024...

It may be a germ of an idea, but in Alabama, it’s a dissertation.

I comment on the political implications of Americans’ subjective wellbeing. www.newsweek.com/americans-su...

I was on last night’s PBS NewsHour expressing reservations about 4-day school weeks.

I comment on the tradeoffs in four-day school weeks. m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMFb...

Microsoft has hired ousted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Clippy lives!

I comment on New York State’s new proposed high school graduation policies. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2023...

I’m teaching a new (for me) master’s-level course on the Sociology of Teaching and Learning this spring. All leads on topics and readings are welcome!

I rejected last night's anxiety dream, but invited it to revise and resubmit.

I comment in the Wall Street Journal (paywall) on the rise of student and parent bullying of teachers in South Korea. www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...

New research by Alex Bowers and my doctoral student Yeonsoo Choi.

I comment on the Implications of new class size caps In New York City: Loopholes demand transparency . https://t.co/QgpkdFB4TR

What can we learn from reading scores in Mississippi? Devon Brenner and I offer our take. hechingerreport.org/opinion-lesson… via @hechingerreport https://hechingerreport.org/opinion-lessons-from-mississippi-is-there-really-a-miracle-here-we-can-all-learn-from/

I comment on the rise of the 4-day school week as a strategy to recruit and retain teachers, especially in rural districts. There’s a better approach: Pay them better. https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/philadelphia/news/4-day-school-week-impact-nationwide/

Jarring picture of two of my favorite researchers, Sean Reardon and Tom Dee. And something I’ll have to add to this year’s doctoral proseminar syllabus.

Brand new here. Thanks for the invite, Peter Bergman! Is this where I find the rainbows and unicorns?