Until We Get It Done (On My Meeting with Zohran Mamdani)
A couple of Saturdays ago, I had an existential question that I couldn’t grapple over. “Do you think I should go canvass?” My wife, knowing who I was, neither confirmed…
All Posts
![Featured image for “Why You Should Worry About Khan Academy, Not Just Math Geeks [Future of Teaching]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/mckaylamaroneyunimpressedpeanuts.jpg?fit=612%2C612&quality=100&ssl=1)
Why You Should Worry About Khan Academy, Not Just Math Geeks [Future of Teaching]
Excerpt: The trend of gamifying our culture has had some benefits in other areas. Weight Watchers uses a points system to discourage customers from eating
Our Children: Arrested Developments
Yesterday, Think Progress reported that administration in Meridian, MS sent children (predominantly special needs and / or Black) to prison for infractions as small as
![Featured image for “Parent Trigger And Why We Need To Talk [Let’s Be A Solution]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/viola-davis-as-aibileen-clark-in-the-help.jpg?fit=780%2C419&quality=100&ssl=1)
Parent Trigger And Why We Need To Talk [Let’s Be A Solution]
I rarely get the opportunity to have my opinion come in direct conflict with an outstanding actress of any repute, so excuse me if I
Book Giveaway: Break The Habit by Tara Betts
Hello and welcome to this installment of The Jose Vilson Book Giveaway, where I’ll do my best to offer the latest and greatest books I
![Featured image for “Then You’ll Really Know What It’s Like [featuring Xian Barrett]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/catssleepbooks.jpg?fit=500%2C303&quality=100&ssl=1)
Then You’ll Really Know What It’s Like [featuring Xian Barrett]
Xian Barrett has been one of my favorite education commenters in the last year or so. His commentary can simultaneously crack you up and crack
7,000 Children Left Behind
A couple of weeks back, newspapers across the city reported that around 7,000 students were wrongly sent to summer school because of their ELA or
Theatricality And Deception, Powerful Agents For The Uninitiated
This is the post where I almost started off with a “Dear White People.” This is going to lean towards education, but applies pervasively. I’m
![Featured image for “It’s Just Different [The Three Vilsons]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/baldwin533.jpg?fit=533%2C311&quality=100&ssl=1)
It’s Just Different [The Three Vilsons]
I have another confession: I’m still working with a few different Vilsons here. People assume that by now I’ve closed the gap between the Vilson
Measuring My Teacher Effectiveness In Buckets
Yesterday, I had an interesting conversation with my brother Ralf, and a couple of burgeoning entrepreneurs about the teaching profession. They called it the most
Great. Another Non-Math Person Complaining About Algebra.
Holy cow, Andrew Hacker. Shut up! OK, that was a bit harsh. Warranted, but harsh. Say what you want to, but lower your voice a
![Featured image for “Coalition Matters [featuring Bayard Rustin]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/bayard_rustin.jpg?fit=500%2C354&quality=100&ssl=1)
Coalition Matters [featuring Bayard Rustin]
Anytime you mention Bayard Rustin’s name as a hero, you’re good in my book. The mastermind behind the 1963 March on Washington, Rustin rarely gets
How Many Houses Have You Built? [On The Future of Teaching Blog]
Excerpt: However, I can’t help but feel some sort of way about the risk / reward dynamic that’s played itself out when it comes to
![Featured image for “A Letter About My View on the Common Core Learning Standards [Because “Shut Up” Isn’t Clear Enough]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Kermit4.jpg?fit=300%2C400&quality=100&ssl=1)
A Letter About My View on the Common Core Learning Standards [Because “Shut Up” Isn’t Clear Enough]
Dear Reader, Frankly, this post shouldn’t matter. I’m a classroom teacher first and foremost, and am often in situations where I can readily embody what
On My Two Recommendations for Gregory Michie and Daniel Willingham
Here’s my first big confession of 2012: I’ve been reading a lot. You’d think, Vilson, that’s not a big deal for you. I’d reply, “As
The Latino Namesake
I landed in Orlando / Cocoa Beach a few hours ago, and had the fortune of getting a van all to myself to escort me
![Featured image for “Heroes Made, Not Exactly Born [on Frank Ocean & Malcolm X]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/FrankOcean.jpg?fit=552%2C368&quality=100&ssl=1)
Heroes Made, Not Exactly Born [on Frank Ocean & Malcolm X]
First, let me say how ecstatic I was to see that, out of the thousands of friends and acquaintances I’ve gotten to know via social
Supersonic
I always dreamed I would end up in Seattle somehow. In the early 90s, I fell in love with the idea of going to the
![Featured image for “In The End, The Love You Take Is Equal To The Love You Make [Class of 2012]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/The%2BBeatleschampagne.jpg?fit=500%2C428&quality=100&ssl=1)
In The End, The Love You Take Is Equal To The Love You Make [Class of 2012]
On The Future of Teaching blog, I made a list of the five things I learned this year, a standard writing prompt for writers who
Bloomberg Is The System
Today, Greg Kristof of the Huffington Post reported that Michael Bloomberg has announced that he wants to have schools call up parents and deliver teacher
![Featured image for “The Not-So-Secret Secret [A Piece of My Manuscript] [Middleweb]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/stewiebrianbook.jpg?fit=500%2C306&quality=100&ssl=1)
The Not-So-Secret Secret [A Piece of My Manuscript] [Middleweb]
For a while, you’ve been told of this magical manuscript in the works now for the last two years. If you’re still here after waiting
What Rodney King Meant To Me
I have a student who already glorifies the idea of enrolling for the armed forces. He resolves every imaginary conflict with a shotgun or a
For The Person That I Do Have
It all starts with a broken heart, a disillusionment about the statues your youth asks you to revere. I wasn’t supposed to tell you that,
![Featured image for “You May Say I’m a DREAMer [Where We Belong]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/dream_act_capital.jpg?fit=500%2C400&quality=100&ssl=1)
You May Say I’m a DREAMer [Where We Belong]
An interesting story came across my desk this morning. Daniela Peraez, the valedictorian of her class, almost had to rescind her citizenship status over complications
![Featured image for “Recapturing Manhood for Young Men of Color [Stopping Stop-And-Frisk]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/FathersDaySFMarch.jpg?fit=2550%2C3300&quality=100&ssl=1)
Recapturing Manhood for Young Men of Color [Stopping Stop-And-Frisk]
On Saturday, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous spoke to the Netroots Nation crowd around one of the organization’s pivotal efforts: ending New York City’s stop-and-frisk policy
![Featured image for “Leaving Things Up To God: On Community Activism and Education [#NN12 Reflection]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/saunders-richard-malcolm-x.jpg?fit=338%2C450&quality=100&ssl=1)
Leaving Things Up To God: On Community Activism and Education [#NN12 Reflection]
This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending Netroots Nation 2012 in Providence, RI as a panelist for “Education as a Right-Wing Wedge Issue”
A Short Note on Educational Leadership
Last night, after talking with my life partner about educational structures, I came to the realization that education leaders actually need to care about kids.
No Church In The Wild
Last week, Kanye West and Jay-Z premiered their video for “No Church In The Wild,” their incendiary song about rebellion in the forms of ideas
Provoked
Dear disciplinarians and other enforcers within our school communities, Please note: you’re trying to keep kids in school, not keep them out of it. Let
I Don’t Win Unless You Win, Kid
“It doesn’t matter anyway because y’all gonna win before 2:20 anyways.” The three adults stare at each other in frustration. “It’s true, y’all do.” This
![Featured image for “An Open Letter To NYS Education Commissioner John B. King [Testing Isn’t Natural]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/johnbking.jpg?fit=640%2C361&quality=100&ssl=1)
An Open Letter To NYS Education Commissioner John B. King [Testing Isn’t Natural]
Dear John B. King, Let me just get this out of the way: testing is not natural. Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported that parents
Let’s Agree on This: Bring The Troops Home
This post won’t serve as an anti-war post. I haven’t changed my pro-peace stance on any level, and firmly believe that our presence in so
A Whole Month Left (A Freewrite)
“You’re going to miss us!” “Yes, I’m going to miss bothering the heck out of you!” I mean, why do students think we’re actually going
Don’t Grade The MTA
Dear members of the NYC City Councilmembers, I get it. You want to hold the MTA accountable somehow for their abhorrent misuse of funds, consistently
Don’t Talk To Me About Personal Responsibility If …
No, not this again. “This kid never takes personal responsibility for anything that they ever do. I’m standing there wondering why this kid is literally
![Featured image for “The Normalcy of School Segregation [It Matters If You’re Black Or White]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/separation.jpg?fit=1550%2C1239&quality=100&ssl=1)
The Normalcy of School Segregation [It Matters If You’re Black Or White]
You’re a firm believer that we as a country has made tremendous progress since the Jim Crow laws. We have a Black president whose education
![Featured image for “I Don’t Write For Your F**king Approval [Channeling Kobe Bryant]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/kobe-bryant-free-throw.jpg?fit=590%2C354&quality=100&ssl=1)
![Featured image for “On Leaked E-Mails and The Eventual Uproar [Where I Call Joel Klein a Pirate]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/homework-class-test-be-careful-what-curse-words-you-use1.png?fit=500%2C347&quality=100&ssl=1)
![Featured image for “Four Months of Awesome [On Alejandro]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/aleblurry.jpg?fit=612%2C612&quality=100&ssl=1)
![Featured image for “I Went Through Hell, So I’m Expecting Heaven [On Speaking Up Again]”](https://i0.wp.com/thejosevilson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/jay-z-and-kanye-westbw.jpg?fit=620%2C380&quality=100&ssl=1)
