If you read State Superintendent Deborah Gist’s description of K-12 education in Rhode Island, you got a pretty upbeat assessment.
Tom Sgouros, her most persistent critic, sees a different story.
He sees a state wedded to high stakes testing and unable to look beyond the testing regime.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
From Deborah Gist’s op-ed:
“Every high-performing school I have ever visited has been a vibrant, rich educational environment where learning is fun and well-rounded, and where students and teachers are joyful and engaged in meaningful, relevant activities.”
Every school that Gist visits parades smiling faces in front of her. Having endure her for nearly four years, school leaders have come to know that Gist will retaliate in a heartbeat the moment that one of them speaks in opposition to anything she believes (or has been told to believe by Eli Broad and Jeb Bush). There are few people in education reform who are as abrasive as Deborah Gist. The good news is that the public (and the politicians) are finally on to her. Good for you, Tom Sgouros, for taking her on.
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I am reminded of stories told by those unfortunate enough to have lived under Stalin’s rule. and were afraid to be the first to stop clapping after one of his speeches.
Also, Gist does backflips to jump in front of any news cameras present at any events she attends. OK, I’m exaggerating a little.
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Every high-performing school she visited is in a high SES district. Let’s see her admit to that.
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This teacher in RI seems to disagree.
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