On this day, I pause to thank you, the readers of this blog.
I thank you because you care about children and the future of education.
I thank you because you understand that the way we educate our children today shapes the society we will live in for decades to come.
I thank you because you teach me, you encourage me, you give me strength.
I thank those of you who are parents, doing what is best for your child or children.
I thank those of you who are educators, who have dedicated your life to helping others learn and develop.
I wish you and your family a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I and many are thankful for you and your efforts. Thank you.
No, Diane we should thank you for your intellectual leadership in the fight to save public education in America. Your Blog is an important focal point for those of us who share your commitment.
Although keeping up with your Blog is a little like trying to drink from a firehose, keep it flowing !!
Charlie
Every day we give thanks for you, Diane.
Thank you Diane for being one of the few prominent individuals who is on our side and eloquently speaking out on our behalf. Thank you for starting this blog and keeping people across America informed about the true nature of ed reform. Knowledge is the first step to empowerment.
Thank you Diane. We are in a huge fight in South Carolina over State Superintendent Mick Zais’ plan to have teachers graded on their evaluations. He wants to use an A-F grading scale. The evaluation of course will be based on student test scores and use VAM ratings. He has the schools that are on SIG grants beta testing this system though no reliability and validity determinations have been made on the observations. Of course, the tests that the students take in South Carolina are not made to measure growth, and of course, we all know about the unreliability of VAM. The South Carolina Education Association is working hard to educate the public and parents about this turkey of a plan.
Keep up the great work!
Thank you for all your tireless efforts!
Thank you, Diane, and bless you for your inspiration that keeps me going and believing that this madness will soon end.
Diane,
Thank you for keeping all of us informed. Many teachers and parents read you on a daily basis. We need you and we appreciate you. Have a blessed Thanksgiving day with your family. Love, Linda in CT.
The very same to you,Diane. Your smart analysis,critical thinking and fearless commentary keeps us inspired. You have united educators across the nation. Thank you…we are very,very grateful.
Thank you too Carol Burris for your courage to stand up for teachers, children and parents. The strong and caring voices of you and Diane are an inspiration to all.
And thank you for putting forth the plight of public school education and the children who need to strong advocates. Happy Thansgiving.
Thanks for the thanks, and thank you, too!
Diane, thank you for being a voice for education that we can count on when the rest of us feel beaten down emotionally or do not have the mental or physical strength to speak to the thousands of injustices that are spoken or written about our schools everyday. You are our rock. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.
Thank you Diane, for speaking up. We are doing a unit on how individuals can enact change. One of the quotes the children are writing about centers around a quote by Ghandi, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” Thank you, thank you, thank you for offering insights on the change we need to enact in education. You are an inspiration to us all who battle misinformed policies every single day. Have a blessed thanksgiving.
Best Wishes to you too! Your work is very important.
Murray Polner (former HS teacher of social studies, college professor, and onetime executive asst to the NYC’s first schools Chancellor).
Diane-
We thank you for your enduring commitment to the education of our nation’s children and blogging about it on a daily basis.
Thank you, Diane. Your courage and energy helps us keep fighting for our students and colleagues.
Each day I read your words and am inspired by your continued efforts of behalf of teachers, children, parents, and public education. You are fearless and tireless, and the world is a better place for it. With heartfelt gratitude for your gifts to humanity, I wish you a blessed Thanksgiving. (And take a break and enjoy that extra glass of wine today…..you deserve it!!!)
As many have said before and many more will say after me, I am thankful for your leadership and incredibly insightful words. You are a guiding light in this dark times.
“these” dark times
Thank you for being a tireless advocate for all of us
Thank you, Diane, for starting this blog at the time when many teachers were feeling very discouraged. You have brought us hope. I have to say that, despite having one of the most difficult classes I have ever had, my attitude is much more positive and I am not stressing so much about the demands placed on us. My new attitude is that I will do the best I can with my students, but I will teach them in a way that I think is appropriate for their needs and stage of development, and not with how my district and state think it should be done. I am trusting my instincts again. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you, Diane, for your tireless work on behalf of us parents, our children, and teachers everywhere. You give us hope that if enough people understand the travesties occurring in the name of education “reform” throughout the U.S., things can be turned around and education can finally be improved rather than destroyed. Please never stop your outstanding work, but do take a break and enjoy your Thanksgiving!
Thank you very much for your blog. I forward it to many and post on Facebook. I wrote the White House and asked for you to be appointed when Arne Duncan goes! Thanks! Tracy Ajello
Thank you so much, Diane for this blog. I learn so much about what is going on in the world of education around the country and around the world, which I can then share with colleagues and others. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
Let’s Be Thankful for Karen Lewis: Hear a Real Union Leader’s Vision for Education:
http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2012/11/lets-be-thankful-for-karen-lewis-hear.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+schoolsmatter%2FSISc+%28Schools+Matter%29
What a great speech! City Club members are big shot business and political leaders and can be a tough crowd. I got such a kick out of how she answered this question, about 38 minutes in:
“Instead of corporate meddling, would you prefer that corporations sit on the sidelines and not try to help our schools get better?”
Karen said, “I don’t think they should sit on the sidelines. I think they should do what they do when they give money to the Lyric Opera. I don’t believe they go to the Lyric Opera, give money and then go tell the singers how to sing. I don’t believe they do that. So give your money –where’s Andrew Carnegie when you need him?– give your money and walk away, Buddies. Ya know, just leave it alone. When you don’t know something, don’t dilettante your way into it.”
Gotta love her honesty and chutzpah!
That’s my favorite part, as well, because it is the crux of the matter.
“When you don’t know something, don’t dilettante your way into it.”
A quote for these times!
Heartfelt thanks to you Dr. Ravitch. You inspire me with your energy, intellect, clear vision, and commitment to creating a just society.
Thank you Diane, for your amazing energy, insight, and inspiration!
Thank you, Diane, for providing our teachers with the leadership and support that they need at this time. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
Thank YOU Diane Ravich!!
Thank you, Diane, for your leadership and the respect you show to us in valuing our voices. Thank you, everyone, for sharing and caring.
Thank you, Diane, for your scholarship and experience, putting you heads and shoulders above the rest and first in credibility. Your knowledge and your voice started a movement, one that will not end until truth and justice prevail. And, most assuredly, they will.
Many heartfelt thanks to you, too, Diane. You’re such a wonderful example of how the wisdom of experienced, veteran teachers really matters.
Thank you for helping fellow educators to recognize how they can make a difference in the struggle against big business, politicians and pseudo-reformers who present themselves as if they know more about our field than the experts within it.
Thank you for exposing the motivations and agendas of corporate sponsored “reformers”, who really care more about money and power than the best interests of children, families and communities.
I am ever so grateful to you for your tireless commitment to saving public education from privatization, for the sake of our continued democracy.
I hope you have a (much deserved) very rewarding holiday season!
Happy Thanksgiving. Thankful for you!
Thank you Diane for your non-stop perseverance for education. May you have a blessed thanksgiving!!
Thank you,Diane, for starting this blog so that ideas can be freely shared. Your opinions and facts have been a source of encouragement to me as teaching mandates make my job more and more difficult.
Thank you to the readers and commentators on this blog, including those that I may not agree with. I am grateful that we still have the opportunity to express our thoughts and opinions which may run contrary to those in positions of power. I pray that this freedom never goes away.