Archives for the month of: August, 2012
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Andrew Cuomo, No Friend to Public Education

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
22

Principal Carol Burris is one of the co-founders of the Long Island principals’ revolt against high-stakes testing. When she heard that Governor Cuomo’s commission would be holding hearings in New York City, she joined up with fellow principal Harry Leonardatos and they headed for the hearings.

Read their gripping account of the proceedings, where the deck was stacked in favor of the corporate agenda.

They were among the first to register, but soon discovered that they would not be allowed to speak.

Who was allowed to speak? Campbell Brown, an ex-anchor for CNN who spoke about sex abuse in the schools (her husband is on the board of Rhee’s StudentsFirst, which she did not disclose); the TFA executive director for New York City; someone from the New Teacher Project (founded by Michelle Rhee); an 18-month-veteran of teaching who is now heading a Gates-funded group of young teachers who oppose tenure and seniority. “…they all represented organizations that embraced the governor’s policies, and they all advocated for the following three policies: state imposition of teacher evaluation systems if local negotiations are not successful, elimination of contractually guaranteed pay increases, and the use of test scores in educator evaluations.”

Although the two principals were told that the last 30 minutes would be reserved for those who signed up first–which they had–they were not allowed to testify. Instead the commission heard from the leader of Rhee’s StudentsFirst in New York. They thought they would be allowed to testify against the NY system of grading teachers on a bell curve, which guarantees that half will be found “ineffective.”

Please read this article. It is alarming. Governor Cuomo and his commission have aligned themselves with the enemies of public education.

Categories Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, Cuomo, Andrew, Education Industry, Education Reform, Gates Foundation, Bill Gates, Merit pay, New York, Principals, Rhee, Michelle, Teacher Evaluations, Teacher Tenure

Only in Education Would This Happen

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
7

A retired teacher writes:

Education is the only field in which people (i.e., teachers) are moved around like chess pawns, often at the whim of
administrators. Would a law firm tell a lawyer who specialized in real estate law to switch to labor law? Would a hospital or medical group tell a gastroenterologist to become an ob/gyne? And yet, we have teachers (like me–duly certified, in numerous areas–because I taught special ed. and I continued to take classes so that I could better help my students in the evolving world of disabilities, inclusion,
RTI, etc.) who are moved from early childhood classes to middle
school, because, “Oh, you are such a wonderful teacher–you could teach anyone!” And, then, when you are not quite the teacher they cracked you up to be, they criticize you, make your life miserable (and this from other teachers!), and–instead of placing you back in the job for which you trained and were extremely successful in–they
transfer you somewhere else because NO ONE  “wanted” to teach
that class in that school! (This was successfully fought–and won!–
thanks to the union contract!) Further, in the last job (which lasted
twenty years), it took at least three years to gain the expertise.
Lucky for all concerned that it stretched to seventeen more. What a
gain for the students and parents!

Categories Teachers and Teaching

Tell “Won’t Back Down” to Back Off

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
24

A reader writes about the new pro-privatization movie “Won’t Back Down.” This is a movie celebrating the ALEC-inspired “parent trigger,” encouraging the public to think that parents should seize control of their public school, fire the staff, and hand the school over to a charter corporation. The film is produced by Walden Media, the same company that produced “Waiting for Superman.” It is owned by billionaire Philip Anschutz.

I’ve started a #BoycottWontBackDown campaign on twitter… blog about it and share it on Facebook as well. Tell the public WHY we should boycott this movie. This company should not make even more profit on the vilification of teachers and public schools.

Categories Education Reform

Arne Duncan Says…

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
42

I hesitate to inflict this interview on my readers. You trust me to inform you and even on occasion to make you laugh with a good satire or parody. I try to shield you from pain and double-speak.

But I must share this with you.

Here is the latest interview with the Secretary of Education. It begins with a stomach-turning but accurate admission that education is the one thing that President Obama and the teacher-bashing governor of New Jersey Chris Christie agree on. How’s that for a reassuring opening?

When asked why the evidence for the reforms he is pushing seems weak, Duncan replies it is because they are new and therefore don’t have a 50-year track record. Oh, please, they don’t have any track record at all, yet he is pushing these untested, invalid measures on schools across the nation. Of course, everyone wants great teachers and great principals and great schools, but nothing he is doing is producing those results.

The questioner gently asks why there were no “dramatic” improvements in New York City or Washington, D.C. or Chicago, where Duncan was in charge for eight years. The answer is so vague as to be indecipherable. Ten years of Duncan-style reform in New York City, six years in D.C., twelve years in Chicago, and nothing to show for it. Just have faith! Believe!

I can’t go on.

Maybe you can.

But isn’t it nice to know that Arne Duncan and Chris Christie and all the rightwing governors are on the same page about how to deal with teachers and principals and schools and education?

 

 

Categories Charter Schools, Chicago, Corporate Reformers, Duncan, Arne, Merit pay, New Jersey, New York, Teacher Evaluations, US Education

Alert! Dinosaurs Were Spotted Yesterday!

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
4

Lance Hill writes from New Orleans, in response to this post:

There are still dinosaurs on earth: they run the Louisiana education privatization movement.
Categories Louisiana

Hilarious! What Kids Will Learn in Jindal Voucher Schools

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
34

One of the reasons I love Twitter is that I find it a great source of information and stories. People send me links to stories in newspapers across the country and to magazine stories they know will interest me. I got several tweets today with this story.

It is one of the best portrayals of what is taught in at least 19 of the schools that will get voucher students and about $4 million of taxpayers’ dollars.

Every one of these dollars will be subtracted from the minimum foundation budget for public schools, which will be poorer so that children can learn that the Ku Klux Klan was a benevolent society and slavery wasn’t all that bad and the Loch Ness monster is real and people co-existed with dinosaurs.

This is John White’s idea of good education for the children of Louisiana.

This is Bobby Jindal’s idea of education reform.

Friends, the only way this era of idiocy will end is to laugh. Someone said the other day that when the noose is tightening around your neck, it’s hard to laugh. I get that. But when the guy with the noose is wearing a clown suit, it’s funny. There is a novel by Nabokov, I think it is called Invitation to a Beheading, where the main character is behind marched right up to the scaffold, and he stops, turns around, disbelieving, and freeing his mind from the oppressors. And they melt away.

Categories Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana

Texas Anti-Testing Revolt Reaches Business Leaders

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
16

There is a hugely important development in Texas.

Tom Pauken, the former head of the state Republican party and a current state workforce commissioner representing employers told a meeting of business leaders that testing had gotten out of control in the state and was actually hurting the workforce of the future. “I’m really concerned we’re choking off the pipeline of skilled workers that our employers need,” he said. “We’re spending too much time and effort teaching to the test instead of focusing on real learning.”

Teachers have been saying that for a decade and no one has been listening. Now that the business leaders hear it from one of their own, maybe they will listen.

I wonder if the anti-high stakes testing revolt by the school boards of Texas is making a difference. I wonder if the arguments the school boards make are so powerful, that they can’t be ignored.

We are making headway. Do not lose hope. This mighty vessel will turn, and lots of empty suits will be left behind when it does.

Categories Testing, Texas

Spread the Word, Share the Blog

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
5

A retired teacher emailed me and said she found this blog to be extremely informative. She asked her union to put a link to the blog on its website. She thinks that other teachers will not only appreciate the opportunity to learn what is happening in other districts and states, but will find moral support and encouragement in our discussions.

It is no accident that I constantly remind teachers how valuable they are. With all the negativity today in the media and coming from politicians, there must be a place you can turn that appreciates what teachers do for our children and our society and how hard the work is.

When I spoke at the AFT convention in Detroit, I told friends beforehand that I had three goals: 1) to tell the truth, as I saw it; 2) to make teachers feel good about the work they do; and 3) to rock the house. In the warm response that I got–three standing ovations– I think I did all three. And I felt the love.

Share it.

Spread the word.

Categories Education Reform, Ravitch, Diane

Do First-Year Teachers Become Ineffective?

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
11

In response to the post about the “irreplaceables,” in which the New Teacher Project claims that an average first-year teacher is more effective than 40 percent of teachers with seven or more years of experience, teachers are asking the inevitable questions.

Why is education the only field in which experience is undesirable? In what other line of work would a first-year practitioner be considered better than those with years of experience? When you go to a hospital, do you want to see a doctor or a first-year intern or, for that matter, a new college graduate with no medical training at all?

And this:

If a first year teacher is more effective than one with seven years, what happens when that first year teacher has seven years? Does she too become ineffectual? I have been teaching for 16 years and know I am definitely better now than I was then. I also believe I will continue to get better with each passing year. This is nonsense.
Categories Alternate Route To Certification, Teacher Evaluations, Teachers and Teaching

Debating Testing

By dianeravitch
August 7, 2012 //
7

The New York Times recently ran a feature debating testing today.

There were my favorites in the debate.

This by Leonie Haimson.

This by Pedro Noguera.

Both make excellent points. Tests are overused and misused, as Leonie says; and accountability should be for those at the top, not just those in the classroom as Pedro says.

Standardized testing as mis-used today has become an obstacle to good education. Judging teacher quality by these flawed measures is ruining education.

Categories Teacher Evaluations, Testing
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »