HGSE in the Media

November 2007

Muppets are International Envoys of Understanding
“In an Askwith Forum on Nov. 14 at Longfellow Hall titled Muppet Diplomacy: How Sesame Street Is Changing Our World, Sesame Workshop CEO Gary Knell explained how the company has taken [its] original model to a global audience.” (Harvard Gazette, 11/29/07)

Assessments and Standards: The Case of History
“Scores have become so meaningless that Harvard University’s Daniel Koretz calls them ‘an illusion of success that is really nice for everybody in the system except the kids.’” (Education Week, 11/28/07. Free registration required.)

Town-Gown Triumph
"These are students who have not traditionally done well in the public school system, and here they are all going on to college. There’s a steady stream of people wanting to see how the school has done what it’s done." – Lecturer Paul Reville (Boston Globe, 11/22/07)

Glascoe Faces an Uphill Battle in Getting Along Better with Teachers
"In the absence of communication, then the worst possible interpretations of decisions develop or are invented and that further embitters the relationship. It’s up to union leadership and administration leadership to say we are tied together in this work. Neither of us can be successful without the other." – Lecturer Paul Reville (The Herald News, 11/19/07)

Harvard University and Arab Republic of Egypt Announce Fellowship Program to Advance Public Health, Education, and Government
"The strength of education lies in its ability to change lives and promote a just society. As the leadership in Egypt increases its efforts to promote public service careers in its country, the Harvard Graduate School of Education is honored to be a partner. We look forward to welcoming new students from Egypt in the near future." – Dean Kathleen McCartney (Harvard Gazette, 11/15/07)

Get Smart(er)
"It’s a real quagmire. Most people mean what intelligence tests test for, but more probably they really mean learning and problem solving." – Professor Kurt Fischer (The Washington Post, 11/9/07)

Closing the ‘Achievement Gap’
"The latest expert to chime in on the gap is longtime education reporter John Merrow Ed.D.’73, president of the nonprofit Learning Matters and contributor to The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on public television.... Before an audience of about 80 in HGSE’s Longfellow Hall Nov. 1, Merrow cut to the chase: ‘The achievement gap drives me crazy,’ he said, calling the concept ‘a load of crap.’" (Harvard Gazette, 11/8/07)

Harvard Dean Overseeing JCC Preschool Project Advocates Early Education for All Children
"'Early childhood education's goal is to ensure that children enter school ready to learn,’ said [Dean Kathleen] McCartney, noting that babies ‘come into the world ready to learn.'" (Palm Beach Daily News, 11/2/07)

Universal Design Concept Pushed for Education
"Removing barriers from learning materials seems just as logical when people take the time to think about the idea, [Lecturer David] Rose said. But instead, he said, people have tended to depend on the use of technology so students can access existing lessons or materials, rather than rethinking the lessons to make them more readily accessible in the first place." (Education Week, 10/31/07)