In a speech at the National Press Club, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan reached out to the nation’s teachers to assure them that he understands how they feel.
He understands that change is hard, especially when almost every state and district is imposing untested, experimental and possibly destructive methods of evaluation on them.
The end game, he is sure, will be higher test scores.
Of course, no one should be evaluated by a single score.
Truly, he understands. Message: I care.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Go to dekalbschoolwatch.wordpress.com…>>Chamblee teachers write to Barge about ‘SLOs’. I wonder if these teachers agree that Arnie Duncan understands their ‘pain’. Chamblee Charter HS in Atlanta wrote a collective letter to the GA State superintendent. Just the tip of the iceberg.
Yes, he cares, the way a predator cares about its prey.
About feeling my pain…..so if the Secretary of Education feels our pain we perhaps he needs to explain why he brought charter schools, excessive testing and the precursor of the trigger law to Chicago schools when he was in charge. After all, the agenda of school reform he demanded from Chicago’s teachers had prepared the stage for the recent teacher strike there. His remarks sound more like pandering support for the continuance of market based agenda he brought with him from Chicago. All we need do is check the four essential priorities for each of the RTTT programs and Teacher Incentive Fund to comprehend what his edcuation reform really represents. Truly, this agenda ignores the pain these change reforms inflict on the public schools and those who staff them.
I think he says that he is very sorry you feel bad but he will change nothing that makes you feel bad.
Diane
Yes, it’s just a variation on “this hurts me more than it does you.” No child ever believed that line, and no one should believe Duncan either.
The day that Dunk Funkin resigns declaring that his educational policies were all trash and destructive to the teaching and learning process will be the day that he shows he “feels our pain”.
Duncan’s remarks are infuriatingly patonizing and condescending. He addresses teachers like they are toddlers.
He is also at the head of the line of lemmings who cannot distinguish between measuring a thing and ameliorating a thing (or who are not interested in that distinction.
It is sad but true, many administrators treat teachers as if we were children. I have had to remind many a principal that his/her teachers were not students. How insulting! But that behavior translates into the present situations where everyone thinks that they know best, and that anybody can teach. Our US history of professional respect toward teachers is not showing any signs of improvement.
If your district is like mine, I just retired, more and more of the administrators are being hired with far less teaching experience than ever before. 3 years in one instance. When I began teaching most of the district and school administrators were veteran teachers with a lifelong commitment to our students.
He’s an imbecile. High scores equal learning. That’s just brilliant Arne. I know several people who achieved (one of your favorite words) perfect scores on their driving exams. That doesn’t mean I would want to drive with them, nor does it mean they know anything.
I truly dred the possibility of another four years of his sheer incompetence and the deleterious effects it will have on our nation. You’d think after the fiasco in Chicago he presided over he’d be finished. But no- only in American can his type of incompetence shine and be rewarded. God help us all.
An ignoramus like Duncan will never understand the harmful effects that his policies inflict on innocent children. He would never subject his own children or their teachers to this sort of senseless abuse.
I think what I wrote the morning after the First Lady’s moving convention speech probably applies here, too.
With the necessary amendment of changing the word “Angel” to “Angler” …
Check out a letter to the GA state superintendent from 50+ Chamblee Charter HS teachers. They are informing the superintendent that they refuse the required RTTT testing. Very brave! We as teachers are not always willing to step out and challenge the system en masse. These teachers need support in their bravery!
Go to …dekalbschoolwatch.wordpress.com, >> Chamblee teachers write to Barge about ‘SLOs’.
FYI- Arne’s kids are in Arlington, Virginia. They (Virginia) haven’t bought into RttT yet.
Something tells me Arne’s kids aren’t ever going to have to deal with the reforms he prescribes for everyone else’s kids. The Arlington district is a wealthy one, and the reformers are only interested in destroying and charterizing the poor ones.
And now the GA state superintendents have been ordered to cease and desist from campaigning against the ballot measure by the state’s attorney general. See: http://blogs.ajc.com/political-insider-jim-galloway/2012/10/03/sam-olens-orders-local-school-boards-to-cease-campaigns-against-charter-school-amendment/
I posted this the other day, but it’s time for every educator in America to stand up and demand President Obama dismiss Secretary Duncan. Let’s pick a day/time to flood the President’s email acct. – that’s when they’ll notice. Until then no one will listen or care. Honestly they won’t even at that point, but a national one day strike is probably a little extreme…
Also tweet at: @BarackObama, @arneduncan It’s time for a full-frontal social media assault.
This is the thinnest of gruel to lure us to the polls on election day.
Not impressed, Arne!
The first paragraph of that article was an insult to teachers:
“many educators feel besieged by the national push for new evaluations and faster improvements in student achievement.”
This makes teachers sound like unaccountable flat earthers when it is the reformers who lack solid evidence to back what they want to do.
AP article published this morning in Times-Picayune: Education Chief Wants Textbooks To Go Digital.
“the world is changing. This has to be where we go as a country…It’s about keeping up with other countries whose STUDENTS are leaving their American counterparts in the dust…”
“A student studying algebra might click to watch a video clip explains a new concept or property. if they get stuck, interactive help features could figure out the problem. Personalized (ha!) quizzes ensure they’re not missing anything – and if they are, bring them up to speed before they move on to the next lesson.”
WHAT’S WRONG with this picture???? Arne, thanks from all the incompetent students in America. thanks from all the lazy teachers who believe the problems with human interaction can be solved by eliminating it. Thanks for letting us know your strategy for destroying the Profession of teaching. Thanks from the children of poverty both inner city and rural who can look forward to this solution that will compensate for all they lack.
DUMP DUNCAN!!!
So, how about that electricity and bandwidth and air conditioning and tech support staff we need to implement this vision of frolicking algebraic kittens? (Never mind the actual computers/devices.)
Should we also not be a little upset with our union leadership? Do we worry that he’s good buddies with Van Roekel?
Pathetic…
I am wondering if Arne cares to share with us the rubic he thinks would be appropriate for his evaluation. Does it include Value-Added test scores?