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Past Events

  • Is the Promise of ESSA Being Actualized?

    February 14, 2018

    Now that the states have completed and submitted their first ESSA plans, it is an appropriate time to ask if the promise of ESSA is being realized. Which states and districts have used this new freedom to draw back from testing overreach, establishing more balanced approaches to student promotion, teacher evaluation and school accountability? Are states and districts using ESSA to provide the needed resources and supports to struggling schools, almost all of which serve students with the greatest needs? If ESSA’s promise is not being realized, why not? What, if any, role has a Trump/DeVos Department of Education played in the first fruits of ESSA? Our panelists addressed these questions among others. Watch the video.

  • Teaching Democratic Citizenship When Democracy is at Risk

    January 10, 2018

    Today, the U.S. finds itself in a crisis of democracy, in which the future of our liberties and our republican form of government hang in the balance. Almost daily, we see attacks against the rights of citizenship, especially on the right to vote, and against the rule of law, an independent judiciary and a free press. Demagogic attacks are regularly launched against “other” Americans—immigrants and refugees, people of color, Muslims and Jews, and LGBTQ people. What role should American education play in responding to this crisis of democracy? How should we teach democratic citizenship in our schools and universities to ensure that the “whole mass of the people” can see that it is their interest to preserve the republican government established by the founders to sustain liberty and democracy? How can America’s educators ensure that their classrooms and lecture halls are places where students learn to recognize demagoguery, oppose bigotry and resist tyranny? Two of our nation’s leading public intellectuals, Harvard professor Danielle Allen and Yale professor Timothy Snyder, joined AFT President Randi Weingarten to discuss these questions. . Watch the video.

  • Austerity Politics and American Education

    November 8, 2017

    Soeakers: Ivy Bailey, Michael Fabricant and Gary Miron. Watch the video.

  • Deborah Meier Book Event and Reception

    October 25, 2017

    Wednesday October 25, 2017. More information

  • Daniel Koretz Book Reception

    October 16, 2017

    Monday, October 16, 2017, 4:00 to 6:30 pm, 555 New Jersey Ave, NW, Washington, D.C.

  • The Crisis of Democracy Conference

    October 5, 2017

    We are experiencing an organic crisis of democracy, international in scope. This conference will draw together intellectuals and activists from across the globe to examine and explore different dimensions of that crisis. The speakers will venture into a deeper analysis of the political forces and dynamics at work, with an eye to identifying opportunities in the resistance as well as dangers. October 5-6, 2017, Washington Court Hotel, 525 New Jersey Ave, NW, Washington, D.C. Watch the sessions.

  • Vouchers and Education: What Do History and the Research Tell Us?

    September 13, 2017

    As Congress considers the Trump-DeVos proposals for a national voucher program, what can we learn from the history of vouchers and from the research on the performance of voucher systems? From a variety of perspectives, our panel addressed this question. Panelists: Martin Carnoy, Vida Jacks Professor of Education, Stanford Graduate School of Education; Leo Casey, Executive Director, Albert Shanker Institute; John Jackson, President and CEO, Schott Foundation for Public Education; and Ning Rui, Senior Study Director, Westat. (Full bios.). Watch the video.

  • 2016-2017 Conversations

    June 30, 2017

    Co-sponsored by the Shanker Institute and the American Federation of Teachers.

  • "TEACHER STRIKE!" Book Discussion & Reception

    June 27, 2017

    A wave of teacher strikes in the 1960s and 1970s roiled urban communities. Jon Shelton illuminates how this tumultuous era helped shatter the liberal-labor coalition and opened the door to the neoliberal challenge at the heart of urban education today. Join us for a book discussion and reception on Tuesday, June 27, 2017, 4:30 -6:30 pm. 555 New Jersey Ave, NW, Washington, D.C. Register Here.

  • Lunch Discussion with Paweł Zyzak

    June 8, 2017

    Former Shanker Institute Fellow and author of the new book, "Domino Effect: Did the USA Overthrow Communism in Poland?" June 8, 2017, noon to 1:30, 555 New Jersey Ave, NW, Washington, D.C. Registration required.

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