If education philanthropists want to influence policy, then they must open themselves to more public debate about their  plans and goals.

An intriguing experiment is afoot in some of the nation’s struggling public schools. New “Parent Trigger” laws passed in California and on the agenda in New York, Ohio, Colorado, and Chicago, allow parents of chronically failing schools to unseat the schools’ leadership and staff. But the initiative has pitfalls.

Educators are facing what Secretary Duncan has termed the “new normal.” Learning to operate in an environment of flat or declining spending is a new challenge for most educators. It's important to know how not to respond, and then to start thinking proactively about how to find the silver lining in this cloud.

The potential of technology to transform schooling is hampered by the culture of local control and formal institutions of governance.

The largest airline merger in history is likely to get bogged down in operational and personnel challenges.

Education reformers must consider whether school districts are the best way to organize schooling, a question which has been too often ignored.

"Greenfield," a term that investors, engineers, and builders use to refer to an area where there are unobstructed, wide-open opportunities to invent or build challenge, represents a challenge to create a world more welcoming to dynamic, talented, and hard-working educators.

Trying to pursue data-driven reform without essential operational and performance data is a recipe for frustration.