“And know where all the exits are.” – Dan Willingham

A few notes:

• NYC Educator discusses why teachers now more than ever should get a contract, in light of Hurricane Sandy. [NYC Educator]
• My main man Prof. Christopher Emdin and rapper The GZA (Wu-Tang) team up for a lesson on science. Wow. [New York Times]
• Angela Benton of the NewMeAccelerator speaks on asking the one big question of creating a new business … but it’s also relevant for educators. [Wall Street Journal]
• Here’s how teachers’ unions can (and do) lead to better schools for all. [In These Times]
• We should focus on who General Petraeus was droning versus who he’s … well, you know. Thanks, Jennifer Pozner. [The Daily Beast]

Quotable:

“This strikes at the heart of why we’re so enamored with standardizing, predicting, and controlling things. “Data” seduces us into thinking we can predict and control things that are frequently unpredictable and uncontrollable, and therefore scary. We can’t really test our way into guaranteeing that 100 percent of America’s students will be destined for Yale instead of jail. But pretending we can is a heckuva lot easier than re-engineering the needlessly cutthroat, winner-take-all society that’s really putting our kids “at-risk.” When people feel threatened, they typically won’t take the risks change requires. So in order to continue helping all schools progress, we have to re-establish the sense of safety that helps people summon the courage and will they need to successfully navigate the inherently uncomfortable process of change.”

– Sabrina Stevens in GOOD, “If Educators Want Real Change, We Have To Work Together.“