My Conversation with Tavis Smiley and Cornel West

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1. Jesse Sandschaper says:

   December 7, 2012 at 3:51 pm

   Love these guys. A guy from Ed Reform Now tried to tell we that Cornel West and Malcolm X would be supporters of the current Ed Reform. Wild.

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2. George Buzzetti says:

   December 7, 2012 at 4:45 pm

   It’s all about big money and mind control. When you control what children are taught and think you control the future. Do you think corporations care about your children? The DOD Budget this year is about $642 billion and K-12 general fund revenue is about $700 billion. There is more in education than in the DOD now does it make sense why the hedge funds and such are in this field. They have stated “We learned there is a lot of money in education. We can double our money every 7 years instead of every 12 years by using government money, charter school.” This is where it really is at. If you use the “Correction Factor” which allows for charter schools not having to follow most ed code and local regulations, cherry picking parents and students, no dealing with behavioral problems, ESL and special education they do not do so well. We need to hold our regular public schools feet to the fire on accountability. There is no reason for most school districts to be in the shape they are. Here is a big budget buster: There are school construction bonds which do not start to be repaid for 20 years. One district is going to be paying back at the rate of 16.5-1, Normally, bonds pay back with interest around 2-1, These “Crazy Bonds” normally pay back at (10-12)-1. One school district will be paying back at 16.5-1. 200 of the little over 1,000 school districts in just California have written these “Crazy Bonds.” These districts are now financially dead for the next 40-50 years. They are throwing this part time debt onto their grandchildren. Some of these districts are using that money to buy i-Pads. We know that they last 40-50 years don’t they? California needs to outlaw these predatory bonds.

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   • Duane Swacker says:

     December 7, 2012 at 7:33 pm

     George,

     You are spot on with your analysis.

     Thanks!!

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3. georgina says:

   December 7, 2012 at 7:15 pm

   Dianne,
   Great informative piece. I think you speak a lot to common core and the way it will hurt kids. I really like the case you make against privatizing schools. While I don’t agree with some of your views, I have a lot of respect for someone that fights for what they think is right (your truth.) I am an educator in a poor inner city school that is overpopulated with Sped and ELL students. We are fighting a good fight but we are so underfunded, it is sickening to see us being set up to fail. So I thank you for talking about the realities of what is really going on in our schools. Best!

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4. Linda says:

   December 7, 2012 at 8:13 pm

   Diane,

   Thank your for speaking out and for posting. I have sent to many here in CT. All my best to you.

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   • dianerav says:

     December 7, 2012 at 8:22 pm

     I had such fun talking with those two!

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5. DeeDee says:

   December 7, 2012 at 9:51 pm

   Great interview. Please keep spreading the word. I’m glad both of them are aware of what is going on out there. I’m blown away by the fact that the charter movement has easily spread in these poor urban areas. They are no better than the public schools that once served the neighborhood. As a matter of fact, they are worse because entire areas of the curriculum have been dropped (the fine arts etc.-I have seen this through my own experience) and the staff turnover is tremendous. They just can’t keep qualified staff. Very sad and shameful-the CEO and family are making a ton of money. What has happened in this country?

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6. Jack says:

   December 7, 2012 at 11:29 pm

   Dr. Ravitch, I admire what you are trying to do. With all due respect, you should be telling idealistic young people to move to Canada (wherever). Flee! People don’t have to live like this. The lunatics are running the asylum. This is a kind of modern “Dark Age,” devoid of reason, descending over America. There is no debate that matters. Many of us should go back to Europe, or to Australia. We don’t all have to stay on this Titanic. This American experiment is going to end very badly, and I feel it now with my entire being. I am not alone. This is a dark truth! This is bigger than education. I hope that young people who read this will go teach English in Germany or Japan or Scandinavia. Escape! Money has always won in America, just do the research. How do you think America got rid of train travel and streetcars. It was always the will of the “few” over the millions of “peasants.” Henry Ford only paid good wages because he wanted the peasants to buy his cars…

   Dr. Ravitch, you must know all this as a historian. Don’t condemn all these young teachers to living and suffering in this system. It’s cruel! This is the time for me to be a hermit. It is too late for me to change countries. To survive in America, many of us “thinkers” will have to escape from the main culture like a monk in the Middle Ages. The “truth” of all of this is that education for the masses is effectively over. Only the wealthy will get any kind of semblance of education and for the rest, it’s “online baby!” The writing is on the wall (on the monitor) so to say. Very sad…My grandparents would not have believed this. I think there are a record number of Americans living abroad, so this isn’t a new idea. Flee, young people! It is actually very cruel to give people hope when there isn’t any. Maybe 500 years from now there will be some kind of post-information age when people will actually talk to each other again and reason will prevail, or maybe not….Life is very brief.

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7. "2old2tch" says:

   December 7, 2012 at 11:54 pm

   We just have to keep rotating in the first line: those who are not feeling beaten down at the moment but have experienced some reason for hope. I subbed today in a junior high. Those kids energized me; they are worth fighting for. Their teachers are worth supporting. I left with a smile. Your talk with Tavis Smiley and Cornel West had me smiling not because you were painting such a rosy picture, but because here were two people who obviously got it whose voices can make a difference.

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8. Ms. Caesar says:

   December 8, 2012 at 12:51 am

   Enjoy listening, I did! Thank goodness for you, Diane Ravich! It is your voice that keeps me going! I do believe this day in education will pass. Until then, I remain grateful to you for articulating the real issues facing teachers, our students, their families, and our communities. Amen!

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9. CC says:

   December 8, 2012 at 12:35 pm

   Again, a wonderful and lucid description of the current situation. My question is this: If someone were to run for school board in a small city/town, and that person wanted to fight back against this accountability/testing mentality that the public seems to have swallowed, what assurances could he provide that would permit local options to join that fight? What can a school board do in the face of RTTT, NCLB, and other enemies?

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   • dianerav says:

     December 8, 2012 at 1:42 pm

     Say no. Say it again and again. Explain why you are saying no.
     Say it again and again. Explain it again and again.
     At some point, the public will hear you.

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     • CC says:

       December 8, 2012 at 3:38 pm

       But doesn’t “no” come with economic reprisals? Can a school district afford to say that they won’t use test scores to judge their schools, their teachers, their system? Would a school district lose any funds if they stood up against this?

10. R.Murphy says:

    December 8, 2012 at 11:25 pm

    I think I’ll try … once more into the breach … a fellow announced for Mayor of Seattle, Tim Burgess – Burgess who is supported by the local DFER head (Lisa Macfarlane) and the ex SPS School Board Director Sundquist, beaten in his re-election race a year ago. Sundquist & Ms. DFER were supporters of intiative 1240 to bring charters to WA – the initiative which won 506 to 493 – after out spending the anti charter people 17 to 1.
    Burgess wouldn’t answer yes or no on 1240 to Melissa Westbrook – 1 of our local intrepid citizen journalist bloggers.

    Lots of local Democratic endorsement meetings coming this spring – the 46th, (mine), the 43rd, the 36th, the 32nd … guess where I’ll be?

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