She Said, She Said: Diane Ravitchv. Deborah Meier
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Lauren Barack -- School Library Journal, 03/28/2007
Conceived as a spirited chat, a new blog hosted by EdWeek.org is tackling the subject of public education by allowing two grand dames in the field, Diane Ravitch and Deborah Meier, the chance to argue their often opposing opinions.
Mary-Ellen Deily, the editorial director of Education Week Press, thought up the idea for the blog after she spotted an opinion piece cowritten by the two late last year. "I thought of it as getting to eavesdrop between two really bright, interesting women," says Deily. Tagged "Bridging Differences," the blog, which went live in February, has already attracted about 3,000 page views a week and 1,000 unique visitors a day, says Deily.
Both Meier and Ravitch are based in New York, and much of their chat focuses on the experiment to privatize New York City's school system—which clearly neither of them supports.
"…the many ways in which those with no background in public education are shaping its future is truly astounding," writes Meier in an early post. Other topics have included Meier attacking the idea of "scientifically-proven" methods of education, and Ravitch's concern for what she sees as a growing "anti-union sentiment in the media."
Deily says she occasionally helps point them in new directions, but mostly acts as a sounding board. She's also the logistical part of the team by getting the entries edited and up on the blog every two to three days. "People from all over are very interested," she says. "And the two bloggers have enjoyed the immediate contact with readers."
Deily says the blog is open-ended, continuing as long as the conversation does. Ravitch and Meier, for their part, still have a lot to say. "We have no final answers," wrote Ravitch, about the discourse on public education. "We keep negotiating."
