NBC’s “Education Nation” has proved to be a forum for the advocates of high-stakes testing, closing schools, privatization, and charter schools.
When they filmed in New Orleans, students got a chance to be heard, and their views were illuminating.
Despite the drumbeat of Race to the Top and Bobby Jindal in support of evaluating teachers by the scores of students, the students had their own ideas. When asked if it was right to judge their teachers by student scores, 81% of the students said no.
The interesting question is why the students know so much more than the U.S. Department of Education, the governor, and their state commissioner.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
The students are the ones at risk and they know it. They are not stupid. They know what is going on. It is happening to them. It is their lives being ruined and their futures after all.
“The interesting question is why the students know so much more than the U.S. Department of Education, the governor, and their state commissioner.”
Well, I think I know.
Great parents and good old- fashioned EXPERIENCED teachers and teaching!
Everybody keep talking: students to students, teachers to students, parents to teachers, teachers to parents, teachers to teachers….keep it up, keep communicating, spreading the work, educate each other. Grassroots beats astro turf…don’t back down and don’t give up.
Thank you for all the posts today Diane.
“The interesting question is why the students know so much more than the U.S. Department of Education, the governor, and their state commissioner.”
It’s all in one’s motive.
The students aren’t in it to advance their careers or to make a buck.
Selfish ambition transforms otherwise intelligent, capable people into blind idiots.
Exactly. The powers that be know exactly what they are doing. They are creating worker drones for their corporate bosses.
I wish someone would talk about the churn in New Orleans and other privatized districts.
What’s that like for kids, switching schools so often? What about the huge employee turnover and kids? Do their friends just scatter every year?
If you want support students speak who are speaking up, check out these links to Students United for Public Education: http://studentsunitedforpubliced.org/ and https://www.facebook.com/StudentsUnitedForPublicEducation
Students United for Public Education: http://studentsunitedforpubliced.org/
They are in the classroom! The people who spend the most time in the classroom has the best perspective. They might not have all the answers, but they see everything in practice daily.
Have the best perspective (autocorrect)
The students know that high-stakes test results do not reflect who they really are or what they know. Year after year they have taken test after test. They understand the standardized testing fraud better than anyone.
Students are the best.
Maybe the reformers will accuse those students of protecting the status quo because they have a self interest to not have standardized tests and be held accountable.
And they are riding the gravy train.
Hee hee