Ed. Magazine Your Turn! Posted May 29, 2013 By News editor "What we need, I think, is more cynicism and distance."— Frederick "Rick" Hess, Ed.M.'90, talking during an EdCast about how so many people involved in education policy and reform are uniformly passionate and committed, which can be good, but it can also be problematic: You've got all of these people, he says, "screaming that they know what's going to work for kids." Instead, we need more people operating as the "ball bearing" in the middle of the debates, he says. Hess, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, a blogger, and a prolific author, was at the Ed School in January to take part in an Askwith Forum looking at the futures of education reform.What do you think of Hess' comment? Ed. Magazine The magazine of the Harvard Graduate School of Education Explore All Articles Related Articles Usable Knowledge The Problems and Promise of Common Core In a video roundtable, HGSE experts explore the challenges of implementing America’s new standards. EdCast Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools Jack Jennings, founder and former CEO of the Center on Education Policy, reflects on the history of the federal government's involvement with education reform, and discusses its most notable changes to policy Usable Knowledge How Cities Can Act to Close the Achievement Gap