Peter Greene writes here on why the “reformers” will lose.
The subject of my speech at the NPE conference was “Why We Will Win.” I will post it when I find the link in a few minutes.
Peter notes that no one espouses the “reformer” agenda unless they are paid to do so.
On our side, as we saw at the NPE conference in Austin, everyone is a passionate and knowledgeable volunteer, unpaid and deeply concerned first and foremost about children and the future of our society and the survival of a basic public institution–our public schools.
When I read his post, I was reminded of a brief exchange I had with the reporter from the Wall Street Journal, who stopped by our conference for a few minutes, on her way to SXSW, which enlists every imaginable corporate sponsor, from Pearson to Amplify, to dozens of others.
We talked about the issue of money and profits. She said, to my shock, “There are people on both sides looking to make money.” I waved my hand across the room of education activists and said, Who here is making money? The teachers making $40,000 a year? The parents? Everyone here paid their own way, or we supplemented their expenses. We have no corporate sponsors. We have no union sponsors. Who is making money?” I am still waiting for an answer.
Oh, I did admit that Randi Weingarten gave us money. She joined as an individual member and paid $20.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Diane, I heard you in Indy at AACTE–great talk. I went online and joined NPE. I work for the California State University System, largest single preparer of educators in the country. If you ever want to do any work with us, let me know. We’d welcome you to California!!!
What an ignorant comment on the part of that WSJ reporter. To my mind, this is why education is such an important issue for our country. So many of our brightest students…the ones who become writers, politicians, and even academics…develop a cynical detachment from the problems of our time, often filling the gap with false equivalencies.
Pardon my language but screw “race to the top”. We need to teach our children to take personal responsibility for their country as much as we need to encourage them to take personal responsibility for turning in their homework on time. So long as education is viewed merely as the development of human capital we will miss every opportunity to build the next generation of citizens.
When one takes responsibility for promoting and working for the greater good within their community it is called civic responsibility. Civic responsibility is old fashioned and no longer in vogue in America. Perhaps we can change that.
Come to think of it, I recall having a grade for citizenship on my report card in elementary school. I suppose that went the way of the peanut butter and jelly sandwich years ago, huh?
Emmy,
I remember getting a grade for citizenship and a long list of behaviors that were appropriate in school.
When I started teaching in the 1970s, there were still citizenship grades. I wasn’t paying attention when they went away.
LAUSD report cards (at least the elementary ones, don’t know about the others) have many behavior and work habits listed that must be graded as well a list of prewritten comments teachers can add to their report cards.
Diane, of course you are right: that is why the reformers will lose. *They’re losers.*
Your keynote mantra makes me laugh every time I think about it.
“And you’re a loser.”
It’s easy to be a “loser” when you start 10 yards from the finish line in a 100 yard dash.
“There are people on both sides looking to make money.”
When did this sort of “tit for tat”, “both sides do it”, reasoning take the place of journalism?
Also known as false equivalence: it’s a common and fallacious debate tactic, and typical of the “objective” style of US journalism.
What do we invariably hear when the police/soldiers of an oppressive regime open fire on peaceful demonstrators? “They threw rocks at us.”
Ang & Michael Fiorillo: you are approaching it the right way—
“It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question.” [Ionesco]
And once the right questions have been posed—
“Questions are never indiscrete, answers sometimes are.” [Oscar Wilde]
And one indiscrete answer is—
That when those in the MSM make a “false equivalence” they feel free to avoid delving deeply and thoughtfully into the subjects they so blithely write about, like education.
Freedom from critical thinking. Freedom from inconvenient facts. Freedom from having to admit they were wrong yesterday and wrong today and will probably be wrong tomorrow. Freedom from the ethical responsibility of doing the best job they can do as both reporters/journalists and as citizens.
Freedom from the tiresome task of spending time, energy and resources to get the story right.
Ang & Michael Fiorillo: are you against freedom?
😡
Next thing you know you’ll be saying that it makes no ₵ent¢ to amass ginormous amounts of $tudent $ucce$$ for the few at the expense of the many.
Slippery slope, that…you might end up with democracy and equity and fairness and such.
I shudder to think of the consequences……a “better education for all” might break out all over!
😎
About the time “fair and balanced” was invented at Fox.
Rupert Murdock’s News Corp owns The Wall Street Journal. Just because someone is a reporter doesn’t mean they are trustworthy or honest. Even reporters can be bought off and infuse bias in what they write. There are plenty of examples of journalists who sold out for wealth and/or fame.
That’s because they are propagandists, not journalists.
I admire and respect Randi Weingarten for joining NPE and contributing $20.00
I was thinking she could have afforded more out of her Gates donation.
Compared to her Gates donation to the AFT (?? $2 million ??), am I to believe that $20 compared to $2 million represents the proportion of her support for NPE vs. her support for Gates?
Randi, would you care to chime in here now that you’ve consolidated more power in NYSUT through your delegate system?
Please, Randi. Say something.
I’ll pay you $20 if you just say anything here . . . . .
She’s on twitter, and does get in dialogues with any and all. I know, however, that you don’t tweet, not yet anyway…
Thank you, Detroiter.
I will consdier tweeting one day if I ever get the nerve and courage.
But the problem is also that little soundbites are not the same as robust dialogues. . .. . This is a shield, in part, for Randi.
Robert Rendo,
We were very happy that Randi joined as a regular member. We do not want to be underwritten by the unions. We hope all of their members do what Randi did: join us, become a member.
Wait a minute… we can join NPE? Where do I go for that? I didn’t see a link at the Schoolhouse site, but may have missed it in my enthusiasm.