Kay McSpadden writes frequently about education issues in North Carolina. Here she explains why the Tennessee bill to cut welfare benefits to families if their children didn’t get high test scores was a disaster. Fortunately, key Republican legislators put a halt to it and it never came to a vote.
I try not to read comments on blogs, other than this one, where I read them all.
But I couldn’t help read the ones that followed Kay’s compassionate post and was appalled by several, especially this one:
“I’m not going to profess to be a Christian scholar Joe, but would you cite for me one passage where Jesus calls on people to forsake their own family in order to take care of someone else’s family?”
Wasn’t there something called the Golden Rule?
North Carolina has some awful legislation of its own, hurtling toward passage. Right now, there is one that will remove any due process protections for teachers (aka, “tenure”). Who will dare to teach about evolution or anything controversial? The angry commenters will drive them out.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
One needs to ask the question? And, do see the Daily Show for sane commentary on this and other Tennessee legislation that should need no comment, but only in a world where sane people do the legislating. There is a guy named Ken C. there who, if making the slightest bit of sense to the people of Tennessee could really do with less of whatever it is the Tennessee considers to be education.
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How about counter intuitive.
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Just in response to the question posed by the gent who doesn’t claim to be a Christian Scholar. Jesus also told his disciples and a certain rich man to give up everything they had and follow him. Seems pretty clear — everything means everything.
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There is also ‘The Parable of the Good Samaritan.’
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“1 John 3:17 But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won’t help him–how can God’s love be within him?”
“Prov. 21:13 He who shuts his ears to the cries of the poor will be ignored in his own time of need.”
A quick search brought me to these 2 verses. Makes me wonder how some politicians can claim to be Christians. Clearly Christians are to help those in need, not punish them for their need.
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And WHY this? …Missouri’s HB1040, Rep.Cookson –
Specifies that school age children of welfare recipients must attend public school at least 90% of the time in order to receive benefits
Last Action: 4/03/2013 – Read Second Time (H)
http://www.house.mo.gov/billcentral.aspx?page=1&q=welfare+school+attendence
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Please google the Matt Taibbi article today in Rolling Stone, title is Dan Loeb, Hedge Fund King With Balls….in which he talks about Dan Loeb, notorius hedge fund manager speaking in favor of Students First, Michelle Rhee’s organization for privatizing American public schools. It is an eye opener.
We are losing all freedom in America. Rush to the Top, Obama’s version of NCLB, is right in line with these oligarchs drive to turn public education into a vast for-profit grab for lucre.
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You will see my post about Dan Loeb on Monday.
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addendum…we must remember that Rhee is deeply involved in Tennessee education policy since her ex and her two children live there…and she lobbies there too for all of the profiteers.
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Diane…can hardly wait to read your take on Dan Loeb. Getting my blood pressure med ready.
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December 2011 FERPA Regulations: Information Sharing Around Child Welfare and Education
Click to access FERPA%20Regs%20Dec%202011%20FINAL.pdf
[The new rules offer expanded opportunities for state or local child welfare and education agencies to share information. However, given that these new regulations do not sufficiently eliminate the barriers to intersystem communication for children in care, we look forward to legislative changes to ensure that child welfare agencies can fulfill their duty to ensure that the educational needs of the children in their care are met.]
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This was the link I was looking for:
S. 3472 (112th): Uninterrupted Scholars Act (USA)
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/s3472/text
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So there was actually a set of serious proposals for cutting the welfare payments of families because their children don’t do well in tests? If that happened in Britain, I’d like to think the MP in question would be expected to resign merely for suggesting something like that. But I can’t be so sure these days.
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I can barely find the words to express how I feel about this type of thinking. If this is the foundation for our solution for education then we are going down a very dark, dangerous and dead end path. It is our job as educators and education solution designers to build solutions that INSPIRE and ENABLE not INTIMIDATE. This fear based method makes no sense from a neurological perspective where it has been proven that fear blocks decision-making, memory, communication, and creativity or an emotional perspective where mere survival is a human’s first biological instinct – water, food, shelter, clothing, etc. When you take that away from a family that is teetering on the edge of mere survival you spin more panic and fear in their life and education moves further and further down their list of priorities.
We are quickly and dangerously losing sight of a cold hard fact and working from the misconception that somehow “learning” is mandatory……… “Education” (seat time, class attendance, grade advancement, graduation) might be mandatory……… You can always take the easy way out and find ways to “require” or “demand” that a student show up, sit in a seat and be physically present, but if we are going to break through and “actually” re-establish the value of education to any one individual (which is why I do my job and I believe the vast majority of educators also) we are all going to have to accept and “embrace” the cold hard fact that true, genuine and effective “learning” is completely and totally VOLUNTARY……….
We can’t build 21st century education on the basis that we can judiciously require a student to sit in a seat, learn and move to the next grade and a parent to actively and meaningfully participate simply because we “said so” and pile on penalties that directly affect their mere survival.
Forgive me but that’s the easy way out……………..and I don’t know about you, but I believe I can dig deeper and tap into my own intelligence and creativity to build solutions and programs that make education compelling and personally relevant…….which is far more powerful and effective in achieving the end goals that we all desire for all students.
Yes, what I am proposing requires all of us, educators and education solution designers to DO A BETTER JOB. We must focus on dynamic, engaging and systemic solutions that “compel” them to learn, make it relevant to their own lives and give them back hope for a future through education and knowledge. In my opinion, then and only then will we truly see education make a difference and change lives like we all know it can if done right. This article makes me angry…….but it also motivates me to work harder and dig deeper for better solutions. Not short term fixes, but true transformation for any child, anywhere, under any circumstances.
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Could not agree with you more, Teri…but learned last night from a Beverly Hills teacher that this probably richest public school District in America recently notified all their teachers that the administration was doing a fund raiser and expected every teacher to write a check for at least $250. Teachers are horrified that in this community where they earn about $40 – $50 K, and parents earn multi millions of dollars, the screws are turned on the teachers to do even more than teach.
This is a major morale buster. It is the result of redistribution of wealth to the top few percent and an example of the arrogance and disrespect of the teaching profession by both parents and toadie administrators. Message is to keep teachers in their place, near the bottom of the economic ladder but remind them that they must continue to do the creative job of teaching successfully but without equitable recompense.
I can see how the young Broad-trained money makers/plutocrats could not want to really be in our vital and noble profession as it is today.
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Couldn’t agree with you more……. I find it disgusting and a really disrespectful show of support (or lack of) by all of us (non teachers – industry professionals and/or parents) that teachers are so underpaid. Sure it is a morale buster, it would in any profession, but in other professions people stand up, others listen and change happens. However, in education we just seem to be willing as a society to accept it. We hide behind it by saying there just isn’t the money. Well, I don’t believe it and I am not buying it.
On one of my blogs, Greg Limparis shared this article.
http://m.eagletribune.com/eagletrib/db_270697/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=cGbXXNAd
Two things I want to disclose and say.
1. I must disclose that I haven’t had the opportunity to dig deeper behind the details of the above plan (but I intend to), but the mere mention of even competitive salaries for teachers gets more discussion going and I think more collaborative thinking by all of us on how we can work to build a mechanism within each of our solutions to get teachers the salaries they deserve.
2. As a solution designer I have been told that teacher salaries are not my business and they are not my problem. I completely disagree. The word we throw around, TOTAL SOLUTION, in my opinion implies that all stakeholders are winners – educators, students, parents, industry, society……..and that no one is the final scapegoat left to hold all of the blame for failure (especially when failure isn’t even a viable option or even an option to consider). We spend $450 billion a year on non salary expenditures in education. I believe we can find at least 10% in efficiency through the use of just in time and algorithmic technologies, etc. and pay for both a technology and a pedagogical overhaul as well as get teachers more competitive salaries, at the same time reinventing education for the benefit of students in the 21st century and I have been working feverishly to build that in.
I know what you are probably thinking…….. She is insane. Probably just a little…………..but crazy for a good and worthwhile cause 🙂 – students and as you say, teachers in a very “noble” profession. I am adamant that we need to get more creative in how we execute, we need to think and walk in the box, outside the box, up and around the box to enable true transformation for a TOTAL SOLUTION where every stakeholder wins. (However, I believe that we have to get pretty creative, keep an open mind and explore new options to make this a reality) It was Einstein who said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.” Well, at least by this definition I am more than sane and fighting with all I have to make it a realization for kids that I love and teachers that I truly respect. I am hoping to get the opportunity to test it very soon with a proposal that we have out there. (We really are just too smart as a society to continue to throw ourselves on outdated and lousy excuses – we revolutionize other industries everyday, we need to shut up, get to work and just do it for education).
Years ago I read that teachers reinvest nearly 30% of their salary just to properly equip their classroom. I can’t name another industry where this happens – and they are called selfish and asked to sacrifice even more. Unacceptable.
The reality is education probably is THE major pillar in our society and teachers as such. We focus on so much negative and too little positive in how teachers around the world are impacting their students so far beyond test scores. I have been a product of their great hearts and I have witnessed so many as fantastic individuals, personally and professionally in the lives of our students every single day. I want to be one of the ones to share this video because it is just a great reminder that there are so many wonderful teachers who connect with students that not only make them better learners, but better people as well.
This is one of those teachers. http://www.upworthy.com/your-homework-today-is-to-try-and-watch-this-and-not-cry?c=ufb1
Sorry to go on and on but I am ready to get this done!!!!!!
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For that reader wanting a scriptural quote, I recommend Matthew 25:40:
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
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