Jonathan Pelto here follows up on his report about the high rate of suspensions of children in kindergarten.
The clincher is the closing lines, where the regional superintendent of Achievement First explains why so many children are suspended:
“The most telling remark came from Marc Michaelson, who works as the regional superintendent for Achievement First, Inc. He told the Courant that Achievement First, has “a very high bar for the conduct of our students and that’s because we’ve made a promise to our scholars and our families that we are going to prepare them for college.”
“The “prepare them for college” statement seems more than a bit gratuitous considering the statistics he is trying to rationalize relate exclusively to children aged 6 and under.”
You can read the Hartford Courant story here:http://www.courant.com/news/education/hc-kindergarten-suspensions-20130525,0,6059434.story
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Reblogged this on kotiko jafaridze.
This is such a depressing story. I’m curious about the demographic breakdown of the kids being suspended.
“Asked about Hartford’s numbers, district spokesman David Medina said in an email response that “there are times that suspension is necessary for appropriate reasons. They are typically temporary and instruction is provided.””
Typically temporary? Meaning sometimes they are not temporary – they are suspended forever?
No one interviewed for the Hartford Courant story said: No suspensions of kindergarten kids were acceptable!
You know you’ve entered Charter School La-La Land when students are exclusively referred to as “scholars.” Gag me with a back-hoe.
Really, and do they call the kids who work at McDonald’s “chefs”?
Saying “scholars” instead of “students” is not demonstrating high expectations. It’s just a bold-faced lie. Calling students as young as five years old “scholars” also diminishes the value and long hard work of true scholars.
As if scholars have tantrums, probably due to mind numbing test prep, get sent to the office and wait for mommy to pick them up?
They use these terms to impress the unsuspecting parents and we are supposed to believe this is associated with “high expectations”.
Yeah, “schoolers” would be much more accurate, but the corporate “reformers” finesse to impress and they have a pattern of euphemistic wordsmithing, in order to ascribe much more credit than is deserved. That applies to TFAers, too, who have no more training than what’s required of substitutes and should be called TFA Subs, not teachers.
This is as stupid as it gets. These people really want to call themselves educators? What a joke. Everyone knows that if the student is not at grade level at the end of the third grade they and society are in for a bad ride. Remediation needs to start in pre-K. This is total insanity to let remediation go till after the third grade. We are setting up total failure as is happening at LAUSD with over 117,000 not coming to school everyday. Students if they are not at grade level begin to act out out of humiliation for not being able to do the work. The arts helps this out more than everything we know of and yet this is one of the first programs killed. That is counter intuitive. Do we really want student achievement or is this just a “Kabuki Dance” of deflection. Looks to me like a “Kabuki Dance.”
These people obviously have very low expectations for their scholars.
My charter school, The Transformational Academy for Totally Awesome Excellence, is providing SAT prep for pre-schoolers.
And we call the cops if any of our scholar-diaper wearers give us any back talk.
No excuses, and zero tolerance, baby! It’s a tough, cruel world out there, and we’re getting our scholars ready for the tedium, surveillance and authoritarianism they’ll find in the workplace of the 21st century global hyper-connected flat world that superb educators like Arne Duncan keep telling us to prepare for.
Nothing is more important than going to college, even if we must sometimes incarcerate the little monsters to get them there!
Because, when all is said and done, isn’t really about the kids?
Oustanding. I must repost on Pelto if okay with you?
I have visited several schools and have seen some positive working models and a balance that exists. I have also seen the utter hypocrisy at play: teaching Pre-K and K scholars at all costs that college is of omnipotent importance, calling groups and tables by University names, having college pendants decorating the walls, referring to each class as the class of 20__, yet the instructors teaching the scholars are not always required to be certified or even have a degree in Education! Not to mention the irony that if a scholar would grow up to enter the field of education themself they may find it challenging to get a job with their education degree in order to aspire to
teach other scholars! And with the push to teach these future college grads with rigor beyond what is sometimes developmentally appropriate for their age, development, and grade level sometimes what is missing is glaring like no number line, word wall, or
center activities present in the learning environment. It can be absurd. I think there should be no excuses for THAT! College should be encouraged but in a perspective that makes sense to children. They should be allowed to fully experience the wonders of early childhood while they can. I can’t imagine the burnout that these kids must feel by the time they do reach their college years and unfortunately, few of them are probably going to pursue a career in education. Is it really hard to imagine what their excuses would be for that decision? They would probably have zero tolerance for the demands put upon them and what can be a lack of respect experienced by professional educators. But, go class of 20_! It is an understatement to say how much we’re counting on you and that we’ll need you by
then. Sorry you have to be a “scholar” instead of a kid now though.
treatment
We already have such a glut of people with college degrees that millions of college grads have resorted to working in under-paid jobs that require no college degree whatsoever. http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/012813-642236-subsidies-create-glut-college-graduates-student-aid.htm?p=full
And yet our government wants even more college grads, and so badly that they are willing to rob our nation’s children of their childhoods in order to accomplish that. What could be the end-game for the neo-liberal capitalists who promote this?
Are they intent on making college the new high school –making an undergraduate college degree a requirement for mediocre jobs and a graduate school degree necessary for higher paid positions? Since college is not free like high school, that would mean many more people having to pay for schooling themselves –to the benefit of…. neo-liberal owned for-profit colleges.
Haven’t you heard? College loan backed securities.
They’re now bundling college loans for investment just like they did mortgage-backed securities. That’s why college loans were left out of all the bankruptcy reform. It’s an albatross that will hang around your neck until you die.
Students graduating with over $100,000 in student loan debt. And then can’t get a job.
Yeah, you better believe the corporate overlords and investment bankers and hedge fund managers are pushing their congressional puppets to mandate college for everyone. Can’t afford to go? Well, then….just take out a student loan!
Another self-identified idiot reformer.
Diane…I’m trying to find out who or what is really behind the DIBBLES tests. I see that it says University of Oregon, but remember reading that the group is somehow connected to Smarter Balanced?? I’m a K teacher and my students who read 2nd grade level are scoring “strategic” and “intensive.” I’m worried that these scores may be used against us shortly. Can you comment on this or open a discussion on this? I’m going to ask the district to perhaps adopt a more accurate test. Please comment if you have the time. Thanks, Bea Lieberman
We use DIBELS for our early (k-2) readers. I don’t have a problem with it: it’s quick and the information it gives is used to inform instruction. It is not the end-all and be-all. As with any assessment, I could see it being used inappropriately.
Some info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DIBELS
Or they could be just like Illinois…we want to keep them in school forever: http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2013/05/nanny-staters-win-another-one-in-illinois-if-guv-signs-sb-1307-into-law.html
They start taking the NCLB tests in the second grade. That means Achievement First and other charters need to weed out all the underachievers that would pull their test scores down OUT before they enter the 2nd grade.
‘Nuff said.