As regular readers know, I have very serious concerns about the so-called “parent trigger.” This California law (which may be spreading to other states) allows 51% of parents whose children attend a “low-performing” school ( or parents who will have children attending that school in the future), to sign a petition and have major changes made — closing it down completely, replacing the principal and extending the school plus other changes, replacing the principal and firing 50% of the teachers, or converting it into a charter school.

I thought I’d put together a “The Best…” list of related resources today, especially since the California State Board of Education is reviewing potential regulations this week on how to implement the law.

Here are my choices for The Best Resources For Learning Why The Parent Trigger Isn’t Good For Parents, Kids Or Schools (not in order of preference):

I’m going to start off with my Washington Post piece titled “The ‘Parent Trigger’ doesn’t help schools or parents.”

What’s really wrong with ‘parent trigger’ laws is the title of my newest piece in The Washington Post.

And I’m going to follow it up with another post I wrote headlined If It Quacks Like A Duck — Thoughts On The “Parent Trigger”

Seeking Something Better Than the Trigger by David B. Cohen may be the best piece written so far on the topic.

Amina writes on California’s Trigger law: is a thoughtful piece from Justice Matters.

Strengthen and straighten out state’s parent empowerment process is from the President of the California State PTA.

The Los Angeles Times has a surprisingly good editorial titled A better ‘parent trigger’

State faces a moving target in implementing ‘parent trigger’ law is the title of an article in today’s Los Angeles Times. It offers good information and analysis.

Parent Empowerment or Parent Manipulation? by Martha Infante is a blog post at InterACT, the blog of Accomplished California Teachers.

Emily Alpert, a San Diego reporter on education issues (whose articles I like a lot), has written a good, short article on the parent trigger.

Parent Trigger Supporters Attack PTA, Compare Schools To Batterers is the title of another post I’ve written.

Parent ‘Trigger’ Law Draws Attention, Controversy is the headline of a new article in Education Week. It provides a good overview of what’s going on in California, as well as describing which other states are considering implementing similar laws.

Schwarzenegger’s misleading account of ‘parent trigger’ is the title of a Valerie Strauss piece in The Washington Post. The comments are pretty interesting, too.

I Think These Critiques Of Parent Trigger Laws Are Missing The Point…

Trigger Laws: Does Signing a Petition Give Parents a Voice? is an excellent article in the most recent issue of Rethinking Schools.

The Trouble With the Parent Trigger is by Diane Ravitch.

Parent Trigger R.I.P is a post I wrote about its lack of success.

Additional suggestions are welcome.

You might also want to explore the over 600 other “The Best…” lists I’ve compiled.