This teacher in Pennsylvania wonders why President Obama is turning his back on the calamity facing students in Philadelphia.
Please send his comment to the White House. After years of budget cuts and layoffs, isn’t it time for action? The Obama girls attend a wonderful school with small classes, experienced teachers, arts, physical education, science labs, a library: shouldn’t everyone?
The teacher writes:
“I teach in suburban Philadelphia in a district which is managing to survive with cutbacks in programming and hiring under Governor Corbett, but my wife teaches in Philadelphia and is experiencing firsthand the devastating impact of the state and city leaders seriously shortchanging public education. In September she currently expects to return to a school with no assistant principal, no counsellor, no nurse, no aids, no librarian, and fewer teachers.
“While I expect the kind of indifference exhibited by our tea party Governor and legislature to public education, I am struck by the almost total dropping of the ball by our President and the Democrats on the issue of saving our schools, especially on behalf of the constituency which worked and voted for their reelection. Is this because the President and those around him making education policy have been bought off by the same education “reformers” who own Governor Corbett?
“I got my answer when I watched the “cutting edge classrooms” town hall for students which was sponsored by the Obama administration on June 6 after the President announced his plan to put more technology in our nations classrooms. Here is the link: whitehouse.gov/show-and-tell. This was billed as the National Show and Tell on connected classrooms. The host was a spokesperson for something called EdSurge and at approximately the 24 minute spot of the presentation she tells the assembled students that she wants them to believe she has a magic wand which could solve any problem in their schools and she invites responses. It is then that a student from Philadelphia explains that her district has a 300 million dollar deficit, that teachers and counselors are being laid off and that she wishes the magic wand would be used by the Obama administration to fix this crisis caused by, what the student refers to as the “Doomsday budget.”
“Incredibly the total response from the spokesperson is to say: okay, Philadelphia wants more funding for its doomsday “project”. That’s it. That’s all she wrote.
“As you said in your letter to the Education Secretary it is a national disgrace to allow the public schools to die, but as long as leaders are more beholden to the technology companies than the students, technology, not learning is what we will get.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Thank you for this wonderful piece. Please let me know if you and your wife are interested in participating in a Teacher Oral History Project. I would love to include your perspectives.
-j. gorlewski
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70’s: “Ford to NYC, Drop Dead”
10’s: Obama,Duncan,Gates,Broad, to Philadelphia students, ” Drop Dead”
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Let’s BROADen that statement, Galton–
Obama, et. al. to all public school students in the U.S.A., “Drop dead. And, BTW, National Teachers’ Day is now National Charter School Day!”
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Obama and Duncan are a major part of the problem, not the solution.
Today is the first Speaker’s Bureau training session for Joining Forces for Education. We in Los Angeles realize that we must pitch in and do what our government is not only not doing, but we are determined to educate many sectors about the vast problems they actually are causing with their privatizing and testing views.
Our rapidly growing membership includes mainly retired educators, from elementary teachers through higher ed professors, who no longer must live in the culture of fear that exists across the Nation in our public schools. We are training to go to organizations and inner city parents to talk about Ben Austin’s Parent Revolution and their goal to turn public schools nationwide into for-profit charters through the used of flawed parent trigger laws, or to close public schools down completely and make the publicly funded buildings and land into free market investment opportunities.
Parent Revolution laws are being funded by the major billionaire players, Rupert Murdoch who says public education is the next huge investment opportunity, Gates, Broad, etc., and mainly by the Walton Family Foundation, and the Heartland Institute (which urges teaching creationism) which want to do away entirely with unions as spoken by Grover Norquist and his followers.
If anyone wants more information on starting activist chapters of Joining Forces for Education in your area please contact me at
JoiningForces4Ed@aol.com
We now have members in So. California, No. California, Delaware, Connecticut, Maryland, and Texas. We are happy to share our goals, methods, and materials.
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Telling Obama about the tragic state of public education is like talking to a wolf about the growing, dead chicken slaughter…laughable on both stories! He is not unaware of the spiraling demise of public education. Nor is his dopey, head of education. Arnie, Obama, Bennett and the cadre of corporate vultures that are feeding on the remnants of what once was a public education system that served the nation’s children FAR, FAR better than the false front charters, have plotted the destruction of the public system.
Gates, who has diligently has promoted this farcical charade on the public, will reap the public funds and gleefully laugh at ALL the victims; teachers and students alike.
WAKE UP AMERICA! Obama says one thing and covertly does the opposite. Doubt it,
read “Dirty Wars” by Scahill and you will be shocked at the secret army (JSOC) that he has used to fight his global wars with this murderous “Killing machine.” It will make you so much wiser and not fall for pretty speeches and charming smiles of the prez.
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Also see the movie which is currently in wide release.
http://dirtywars.org/
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I concur. Wake up America before public education, the hallmark of our democracy is destroyed by self-serving legislators and powerful corporate leaders. Both groups would benefit from ignorant, illiterate citizens.
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Obama/Duncan policies, RttT, have extraordinarily enabled the privatizers. Writing Obama about something he helped create will not solve anything. Teachers, parents, and students must become much more aggressive. Boycotting the high stakes exams would be a good place to start. Look at Seattle!
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I agree. Letters and phone calls are great, as is educating yourself to help when talking about the issues, but the real impact will be boycotting the tests.
What about boycotting all the other exams as well? Any exam not created by the teacher?
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Agree. As professionals we must take back control.
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We do not have two parties in this country. We have one party which represents the 1%. We need to create a party which has a program which meets the needs of the 99%.
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O’Bait and Switch.
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Obama is a severe disappointment, for sure, but where are the Congressional leaders? Why are they all fiddling while public education is destroyed in America? I get nothing but form letters via email back from my Congressional delegation when I ask them to address the privatization of public education.
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VermontTeacher: So sad to get form letters back from Congress-folk. So duplicitous especially with all the aids they ironically have (unlike our nation’s teachers who are losing their aids)! Also sad… I attended a Michael Moore event a year ago and stood up and asked him if he planned to take on public education as it seemed to address everything he claims to stand for. His response was regrettably a “fluff off” ten second “yes” and then he went on VERY QUICKLY to answer a completely different topic. I got the feeling he said “yes” only to evade the question – the tactic worked. If Michael Moore did a documentary it would at least GET THE PUBLIC’S ATTENTION. Sadly, he is ignoring the most significant issue of our time and on this basis my attitude about him has done a complete reversal!
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The operative word is duplicitous. Not just Congress but the Obama administration as well. Obama had L.D. Hammond as his Ed. advisor campaigning for 2008 election and said all the right things to get teacher’s support. Once elected it was out with Hammond in with Duncan.
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art: No real response is the response–MM doesn’t want to–he could if he did, & I, too, am greatly disappointed in him. Robert Rendo–am I correct in saying that the great documentarian Errol
Morris is your wife’s cousin? And that you have sent a message to him to speak to Diane? PLEASE work on something, and soon!!!
(Or how about the guy–Robert Greenfield {sp.} who made the WalMart doc. & “Koch Bros. Exposed?” HELP US!)
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This is just what Obama and Duncan want and have worked for all their lives. What else do you expect from “The Destroyer in Chief.” More to come.
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The truth and documentation has for years been laid out and presented and this has not been by teachers. It has been done by us on what they would call the outside. We are far advanced in what goes on to teachers that is for sure. Where have they been. Some of us have been doing this for 40-50 years and maybe teachers are just starting to wake up. They have a lot to learn as they have not been and still do not listen. Maybe with Badass Teachers it will change.
In the meantime we have already started training teachers and parents on Title 1 and the Parent Trigger laws. We are the first there and the first with the laws and rules and regulations. When we put my email in the Diane Ravich Blog only three people asked for the laws, rules and regulations. One of them was Ellen Lubic. We thank her for wanting to know. So we know for sure, on this subject, that she has the real laws, rules and regulations to go by. This is ridiculous as to all the people, most teachers I assume, who comment on these issues and have never read them. Is this what education is all about to just talk about what you do not know?
Once again, thanks Ellen, for wanting to know. This is the only way to deal with issues you must know what you are talking about. We wish everyone who is fighting against this onslaught success in the combined fight as it must come from many different sectors and all must be fully documented to win.
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We need to sit up and take notice! No one has put public schools first on their agenda. Have we become a country filled with self-serving legislators and apathetic citizens? We should look at history and realize our democracy is not something we can assume will always be protected.
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More sadness about Philadelphia’s music teachers and the demise of their programs: http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/local//arts-culture/56484-laid-off-music-teachers-perform-farewell-concert-hope-for-encore-in-philly-classrooms
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The government wants to break up the unions and control the public schools. They want to create an assembly line of similar schools rather attempt to actually invest in old school creative critical thinking schools that are allowed to actually teach children.
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I agree, Catherine. The bottom line for the privatizers is the destruction of the collective bargaining rights for teachers in the US. All rhetoric leads to that end. Democrats have let this happen. I never thought I’d see the Democratic Party turn its back on teachers the way they have but they are anti union except for a few in Congress who support worker’s rights. It’s sad.
I can’t help but think about that old movie The Manchurian Candidate when I think about President Obama. 🙂
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I believe it’s highly likely that President Obama knows what happening to public education. He is well aware of what’s happening in Chicago, Philadelphia, etc. As far as we know, he may be a regular reader of Diane’s posts.
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Whatever happened to Obama’s promise to Main Street over Wall Street?? The Damnocrats are useless!!!!
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The republicans did are two-steps behind the Dems
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At first, I got very upset about all of this “reform”, but then I read “The Power Elite” by Mills, and it really explains all of this and how the system operates. Once I realized that we are a Democracy in name only and that the elites control everything, it was strangely comforting. You are free to live your life and not worry about the government (system) anymore. I used to send e-mails and blog, but then I never received an answer. I figured out that the whole thing was “pretend” and “for show.” Once in awhile I glance at this site and a few others, just to watch to destruction. I feel much better now after figuring out the truth. I also recommend studying propaganda techniques of the Third Reich. Pay special attention to the “Big Lie” by Joseph Goebbels. If you repeat a lie over and over (teachers are to blame) then eventually people believe it. Adolf Hitler also said something like, “What a gift it is to those in power that people don’t think.” And if he thought most Germans in the 1930s were dumb, you can multiply that by 10 for America today. Our country is not in a very good place right now.
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You must be pretty hard hearted to just sit by and watch this country turn into the Third Reich and not at least *try* to do something about it. So, when they start hauling the teachers/Muslims/blacks/etc. off to concentration camps, you’re just going to pop yourself some popcorn and enjoy the show?
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John, in order to “Connect the Dots”, you have to see them. Wool covered eyes aren’t up to the task. You need the “Wit” to recognize
the conflict between professed values and actions. Naive, gullible
oblivious, willful self delusion, strategic stupor, all, give false
consciousness an exponential boost in fiction trumping reality.
Engineering consent has always been a tool. It’s best application is
provided by those that believe their own propaganda.
My “Status Quo Club Member” meter, swings into action by the buzz word
Democracy.
In the name of the Flounder, the Sunfish, and the Holy Mackeral,
Let us Pretend…
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George Bruzzetti gave the moaners and complainers something they can do to help at least try to turn this treacherous tide of betrayal by government and business. His comments, and research based information are above and throughout many of these blogs and worth the read and then the action.
After forty years of research and trying to have people listen and wake up one can get testy. Can’t blame him!!! In the beginning of this disgrace of a financial/power grab those that woke up early were called conspiratorial thinkers. Educators and administrators tried to either shut down or shut-up anyone who looked like they might get in the way of the stream of money and technology that might come their way. Promises kept in the beginning and then slowly from behind the noose began to get tighter. Teachers think this is about them, and it is when you consider that next to parents teachers sway the most influence over the minds of children. Yes! It is also about union busting and breaking the backs of the public for a better understanding that when the whip cracks it does not differentiate the back of the college educated from the blue collar or no collar person.
There are many to blame but the blame game won’t change the current or the tide to sweep the public schools away, most particularly in the urban areas. This is a much bigger take over then the schools. This is a complete reshaping of this country and how to utilize the citizens for the global power elite. The children are the most in danger and the most vulnerable.
Does this President know? Remember he told you that Change is coming. He just didn’t say how. This was underway before him and the players are on both sides of the isle.
This is a well designed plan and the people who are the architects are smart enough to give out the various assignments to some but not all of it to any one person. So not even the President and his disciples know the whole of this twisted takeover of finance, minds, land, future global design of life and living. But I believe they have convinced themselves or have had enough indoctrination to be party to this deceitful immoral
takeover. Would any of them have the courage to slow this down and redirect to a less damaging and healthier balanced outcome for the millions they are betraying? Hmmm!
You never know from which heart Truth and Courage might manage to come and
act. The risks are great but the reward could be greater!!!
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What a great question by the Philadelphia student. It takes guts to step up to the plate, and ask a serious question in that type of a goofball forum. As someone who has had children in the Philadelphia public schools since 1997 (16 school years), and my youngest is still a 9th grader at a public school, I think the city of Philadelphia needs some major federal help for the schools. The governor is from Pittsburgh, and he doesn’t even care that most of his revenues are generated from a big city on the opposite side of the state. Obama won the state of Pennsylvania in 2008 & 2012, because of the Philadelphia voter turnout. His administration owes us a favor or two, and some help to the public schools would be an appropriate payback. Couldn’t they at least give us about $100 million in “Race to the Top” funds?
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Dude don’t care. Obama is a complete sellout of the first order, pandering for votes with his “Hope and Change” nonsense then selling out those same people immediately afterwards. His lap dog, Mayor Mutter, is almost as bad.
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Go to “Mintpressnews.com” and do an Obama search. There you will find an article explaining Obama’s ties to the Joyce Foundation- he was a board member, that support privatization. The article is a real eye opener on just how duplicitous Obama was in order to get the teacher’s vote in 2008.
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Not to psychoanalyze the President too much on this issue, but I think it’s important to remember that Obama is 100% the product of private schools. From Punahou to Occidental, to Colombia, to Harvard, Obama has never personally participated in the American public school system. And neither have his daughters. Michelle has, but even she is the product of private higher education. With that kind of background, it’s hard to imagine how he could have even been the ally we hoped he would be for public school systems. I don’t only think he has been “bought” by the reform crowd, I think he truly, genuinely, believes it, because he watched his mother struggle with the bills and yet say “no excuses” to him and got him a fancy scholarship to Punahou. Obama is in fact the model “reform” school child.
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