Democratic nominee for Arizona Superintendent, David Garcia

Dr. David Garcia, Democratic nominee for Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction joins the show.

(Note: Diane Douglas, the Republican nominee was invited and declined to participate).

We discuss a wide range of educational topics including Dr. Garcia’s assessment of the current quality of education in Arizona, his proposed “fixes,” and what power a Superintendent of Public Instruction really has to implement these.

We also touch on all the “hot button” educational issues: Common Core standards, the role of testing, how to evaluate quality schools and teacher selection issues.

Given last week’s guest, Amanda Ripley (author of “The Smartest Kids in the World”) we also discuss his take on this book and what he thinks the implications are for education in Arizona.