Ky Vu

Former school district leader and program officer @gatesfoundation.

[Tony Giles @gilesboys]

The consequence of a belief in the power of a “decolonized” curriculum is that it leaves students ill-equipped to function in a society that still assumes familiarity with Western culture. Students need knowledge of both mainstream culture and that of their own communities.

[John Arnold @johnarnold]

In wake of George Floyd's murder, there was an outpouring of contributions to racial equity orgs. Today, most funders have returned to their previous giving patterns, creating a mess for nonprofits that assumed this funding would sustain. Philanthropy's response to the moment misunderstood how change happens.

Most leaders working on racial equity tell the same story: in the second half of 2020, they couldn't answer the phone fast enough. Every funder was looking to donate to racial justice aligned orgs. Some orgs saw their fundraising expand by multiples. It was never easier to raise money.

With bank accounts flush and a sense this was a unique opportunity in history, nonprofits aggressively expanded. Many orgs were small and had not lived through a wave of funding like this. It was not known that much of the interest was ephemeral.

Most new donors wrote one check in 2020. Sometimes they wrote another the next year. More institutional foundations generally wrote 2 or 3 year grant terms. Either way, most of the surge of donations (though certainly some funders have endured) ended within 3 years. By now, orgs have spent most of that. My understanding is most racial equity orgs are cutting budgets and shrinking today. The one-time surge of money, while beneficial at the time, created a mess for nonprofits to navigate.

Problems that were generations in the making don't get solved in one or two years. They take decades. Slow, incremental progress creates large change. To paraphrase, people overestimate what can be achieved in one year and underestimate what can be achieved in ten.

The philanthropy consulting group Bridgespan studied 10 major, national policy advances over the past century. On average, those big policy victories came from at least 40 smaller wins over 25–30 years.

If funders want to make progress in any movement, it takes committed funding. It's not fund this for 2 years, then move to a different topic and fund that for 2 years. That doesn't work and isn't helpful to grantees, particularly when everyone else is doing the same thing at the same time. Success on any policy issue requires patience.

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

https://t.co/urQYQEtJsy

[Andrew Rotherham @arotherham]

Don't miss Cindi Williams on parents, grades, report cards, and achievement:

https://t.co/CSafUrvyzm

@BeALearningHero

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

@karenvaites Never a fan of SFUSD's 9th grade Algebra policy; however to be fair, in many places, student proficiency declines in both ELA and math as students go up in grade, especially for students of color. Academic rigor is a broad challenge.

[Emily Hanford @ehanford]

Our podcast, Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong, is available wherever you get your podcasts.
https://t.co/F6Nd8mkMwt

[reading4berkeley @read4berkeley]

Powerful words: "I believe you when you say you care about your babies, that you care about me. But I know what it's like to not be able to read and be smart and be shamed by your classmates, feel stupid... not want to go to school and feel constantly anxious." #BerkeleyREADS

[Nicholas Kristof @NickKristof]

A useful look at international law as it applies to the war in Gaza: https://t.co/lZtms94s5z

[Karen Vaites @karenvaites]

And once more, for those in the back…

PHONICS IS FAR FROM THE ONLY ISSUE WITH UNITS OF STUDY.

I need to update this to capture the concerns beyond the 2020 review by literacy experts. But… aren’t those concerns enough to compel attention?

https://t.co/WkmJtHKzJ5

[Emily Hanford @ehanford]

Bonus episode of Sold a Story out today.
"I was trained as a Reading Recovery teacher. I trained other people in balanced literacy using that cueing system. I’m mad. I’m saddened for the kids that I’ve taught. You did a wonderful job telling our story." https://t.co/qB5j6G4DhA

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

#ecet2 With Earth Day approaching, here's a great resource developed by National Geographics to engage students: https://t.co/qIpCW2ksLD

[StandardsWork @Standards_Work]

.@SonjaSantelises @drgoffney @principallearns knock this OpEd out of the park.

Essential reading:

#CurriculumMatters @tdavis_aldine @kyairb @kstoryscotti @delgadong94
https://t.co/NSdCJhKRj9

[Democracy Now! @democracynow]

The College Board has financial and political incentive to bend to conservative censorship of African American studies, despite its claims that course revisions are backed by scholarship, says professor @KhalilGMuhammad.

[Sara Allan @Sara_Allan]

The #AccelerateED program is providing valuable resources and insights as its design teams across the country work to expand dual enrollment opportunities so more students can work towards an AA degree in high school. https://t.co/zpFvPAJbC4

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

@ValeriaBrownEdu Big Trouble in New Delhi

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

If you are in the business of teaching kids how to read (educators, parent), this is a must listen.

[Chryl Laird @chryllaird]

Podcast that left me shook in 2022🧵
1/ Millions of kids can't read well. Scientists have known for decades how kids learn to read but many schools are ignoring the research. They buy teacher training & books that are rooted in a disproven idea. @ehanford
https://t.co/qc4vDYSbgP

[Chryl Laird @chryllaird]

Podcast that left me shook in 2022🧵
1/ Millions of kids can't read well. Scientists have known for decades how kids learn to read but many schools are ignoring the research. They buy teacher training & books that are rooted in a disproven idea. @ehanford
https://t.co/qc4vDYSbgP

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

@ValeriaBrownEdu We're generally around during major school breaks so just let us know when you want to come.

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

@ValeriaBrownEdu Vomitron

[Ky Vu @kyvu]

@ValeriaBrownEdu https://t.co/U2YPsSGmEA