Monthly Archives: November 2005

How good are various measures of teacher quality? According to Brian Jacob & Lars Lefgren, the ranking is: (1) value-added measures, (2) principal assessment, (3) teacher experience and education. Principals as Agents: Subjective Performance Measures in EducationIn this paper, we … Continue reading →

Last Saturday, Michael Duffy castigated Peter Jensen for using the Boyer lectures as a forum to proselytise. Regretfully, I tend to agree. After a wide-ranging first lecture, the second and third could almost be warmed-over sermons. Indeed, PJ seems to … Continue reading →

The ACT Human Rights Act 2004 has excited a lot of interest among those in favour of bills of rights (among whose number I count myself). There has already been a conference held on the Act, and now a website … Continue reading →

Should we have a big debate about executive pay? Ross Gittins thinks so. Fred Argy thinks so too. Australian Financial Review, Letters, 25 November 2005 Executive remuneration has become a very sensitive issue in the present industrial relations climate and … Continue reading →

The US is finally starting to recognise that its bills-for-favours system isn’t just "like bribery" – it is bribery. Reforming the system while keeping the famously independent role of Congresspeople and Senators isn’t a trivial problem, but it’s gotta happen. … Continue reading →

I’m wearing a white ribbon on my suit today, as part of the anti-domestic violence campaign. About this time last year, a CIS-funded visitor attacked the wearing of ribbons as what he called conspicuous compassion. Paul Comrie-Thomson argued that: "for … Continue reading →

Roy Morgan’s annual survey of attitudes to professions is out today. The big news that people are focusing on is the apparent drop in trust in politicians. I gave my $0.02 on this last year, so am more interested in … Continue reading →