Monthly QuotED: 6 Notable Quotes That Made Education Headlines in February, From Literacy to the Coronavirus — and the Value of Teachers Who Grade Tough

QuotED is a roundup of the most notable quotes behind America’s top education headlines — taken from our weekly EduClips, which spotlights headlines from America’s 15 largest school districts. Read previous EduClips installments here.

“A vast unplanned experiment in mass home-schooling.” —Kevin Carey, vice president for education policy at New America, a think tank, on plans to teach students remotely via the internet in the event the coronavirus leads to school closures. (Read at The New York Times)

“All of these years later, now we know that in communities of color those cops are not there to protect and serve, but they are there for law and order purposes. White kids get protect and serve. Black and brown kids get law and order.” —Judith Browne Dianis, executive director of the Advancement Project, a nonprofit that focuses on racial justice issues, on Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s longtime support of school-based police. (Read at The74Million.org)

“I wouldn’t be surprised if other suits in other states follow, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some states and jurisdictions take this as a cautionary tale.” —Nell Duke, a University of Michigan education professor, on a settlement in a California lawsuit that directs the state to spend $53 million on better reading instruction at the state’s lowest-performing schools. (Read at the Los Angeles Times)

“In the short run, that makes people’s lives easier. In the long run, that really hurts students. It gives them a false sense of security; it sets them up for failure or at least lower performance down the road.” —Seth Gershenson, an associate professor at American University, on the dangers of grade inflation. His new study shows that students perform better on standardized tests when their teachers are tough graders. (Read at Education Week)

“Basically, if you’re poor, you’ve got second-class remedies available to you.” —Jennifer Valverde, a law professor at Rutgers University who specializes in special education, on the federal guarantee of “private placement” if a public school can’t meet the needs of children with disabilities. (Read at USA Today)

“There’s a lot of forces working to make sure the world doesn’t know how difficult educating kids is and how often people fail.” —Outgoing Louisiana Superintendent John White. (Read at The74Million.org)

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