Tim Slekar is a battler for public education.
He has made videos, written articles, testified before every committee that will listen, and runs a weekly radio program.
He is dedicated to stopping the corporate reform assault on public education.
Listen to this program tonight (and browse his archives, because he has interviewed so many of the teachers, principals, superintendents, parent activists and others engaged in our struggle).
@ the chalk face internet radio. Tonight at 5pm EST. Talking with Mercedes Schneider and the looming Louisiana teacher evaluation disaster. Where is the media coverage of Garfield, Ballard, Hamburg? Right here of course! Listen:http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chalkface/2013/01/13/at-the-chalk-face-progressive-edreform-talk
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Thanks to Dr. Schneider, Research on Reform, and others who have the knowledge and expertise to bring the truth to light. Here in Louisiana we are constantly told half truths and untruths from our state dept about the successful charter schools in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The press refuses to tell the public what is really happening. Our emporer governor rules with an iron hand. The problem is often revealed by those who care to dig, that the info is based on data that has been severely manipulated. These schools perform at the bottom of the state accountability list, yet the public is told they are high performing and making great progress. They do this by removing the low performing scores so they don’t show up in the calculation for the state. The public is happy and our state is held up to the rest of the nation as a success story for Ed reform.
thank you Dr. Schneider!
Dr. Schneider, thank you
You can’t rely in any mainstream media anymore. I just had story pulled, for the second time on LPB about shadow schools (schools that are not being reported to the state or federal government so small school districts can racial and finanicially segregate their students), after jumping through all the ridicuous hoops they and roadblocks they kept throwing in my path. They told the reporter I was working with, “it will never show on LPB.”
Not because there was anything factually untrue, but because there was “a chance” it might offend Jindal and John White.
Before I started getting involved with blogging and the media I was under the false assumption that at least PBS and NPR were immune to meddling and we had some sort of watchdog group looking out for us if we truly lost our way. Corporate and political interests control all media that employs people who depend on a job and control all groups that rely on advertising or donations for the existence of their station.
Bloggers can be wrong, but at least they are not afraid to be right – which is more than can said for most reporters and media these days.
Great last sentence crazycrawdaddy!
We just need to give the teacher unions another 50 years and double their salaries every 10 years and they ahve promised to straighten everything out!
Double every ten years, are you nuts? I want mine doubled every year-and I’ve already straightened everything out in my neck of the woods, i.e., my classroom.
Diane, thank you for publicizing. I will be on the show again and will let you know once it is scheduled. I have another radio spot on the New Orleans Imperative tomorrow (Monday, Jan 14) at 11:35 EST to discuss school performance score/letter grade manipulation (listen online at wbok1230am.com).