This letter was posted as a comment: “I just sent the
following post to the White House: Dear David Simas, I have
supported President Obama and the Democratic Party for some time.
However, I’m totally fed up and dismayed by Arne Duncan and the US
Department of Education’s assault on Public Education in America.
There are a lot of subjects I don’t have much in-depth knowledge
about. However, I have been a science teacher for the past 27 years
and I believe that I do know a little about educating children. I
want to tell you that the Race To The Top and it’s predecessor, No
Child Left Behind along with the excessive emphasis on Standardized
Testing are KILLING PUBLIC EDUCATION. “There are a lot of
experienced, knowledgeable, and well educated, respected educators
who are screaming at you to please stop this nutty policy which
includes Pay for Performance and the Common Core Curriculum. It is
certainly true that public education in America can be improved,
but not with the solutions that are now being implemented (without
documentation that they will actually work). “These thoughtless
policies are destroying communities, families, children and
teacher’s lives–all in the name of “improving education”. I now
believe that RTTT, NCLB, and the associated standardized testing
that now drives instruction throughout the country is doing greater
harm to our nation that George Bush’s War in Iraq. In its simplest
terms, children cannot be effectively educated by a top down,
force-fed curriculum. They hate it, get bored, and don’t see the
relevance of this test driven education to their lives. “Teachers
are not given the freedom to teach to the kids where they are and
build on their knowledge base. Curriculum content is dictated from
on high. This is the same concept that Joseph Stalin had in Russia
with his 5-year central economic plans. Didn’t work then, won’t
work now. “Educating children is a complex undertaking. It requires
two way, personal interaction between a teacher and student. If
class sizes are too large, that just can’t happen. If a teacher
cannot get his/her students interested and excited about learning,
educating the child is not going to be effective. There are 4 basic
ingredients to a good education: 1) Well trained and dedicated
teachers, 2) small class sizes, 3) adequate resources and a decent
environment to teach in, and 4) giving the teachers freedom to
teach. “Some will argue that this will just cost too much money and
that there are cheaper ways to educate kids. But it just ain’t so.
“Education is not about the money, it’s about the kids. It’s not
about international competition on standardized tests. Those tests
actually measure the wrong things anyway and cost waaaay too much
money. Public education is perhaps the most important bedrock
pillar that makes our nation great. Policies now being put in
place, including RTTT and Common Core Curriculum are destroying it.
Our children and our nation deserve better from you. I will no
longer support this President or the Democratic Party if they
continue on this self destructive path. “Al Tate
altate1122@gmail.com”
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How does one write to the White House and have any chance of the letter being read by anyone but an aide?
You get Diane Ravitch to post it in her blog!
Thanks for speaking out and up- way up to where it should go! So many of us feel the same way and it is hard to see where we can get the change from. Please, someone listen to the people who know what is happening to our poor children who don’t want the schooling we have to give them. It is not an education, it is not learning for life, it is fact cramming and test prep 101!
Bravo! Well said. I want to repeat this real educator’s list. Here’s what he wants:
1) well trained and dedicated
teachers,
2) small class sizes,
3) adequate resources and a decent
environment to teach in, and
4) giving the teachers freedom to
teach.
We have spent 6 trillion in Iraq and Afghanistan, but we can’t give him this. Instead, we insist upon treating him as though he were a dog to be sent to CCSS “trainings”: “Roll over. Now fetch. Here’s your evaluation: Good boy.”
Pope wrote:
“I am his Highness’s dog at Kew;
Pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?”
And this teacher says, “I am no one’s dog.”
This science teacher gives an accurate analysis regarding the killing of public education. The one other aspect which is sapping the energy & money from quality education is privatization-charter schools.
Bravo Al Tate!!!!!!!
Totally agree!!
Mr. Tate,
Perhaps you didn’t get the memo. We don’t care what you think, and we don’t need your support. We get enough of that from our neoliberal patrons.
Sincerely,
Obama and the Democratic Party
Unfortunately this is the letter they’d send if they had a shred of honesty left. The current administration has opened my eyes. I’ll no longer be voting for either party in national elections. The Dems (I’m ashamed to say) fooled me twice but they won’t fool me again.
Me and you both – this mostly conservative voter will be voting Green nationally and Democrat locally.
I am pissed.
A comment on a comment made by a science teacher.
A Science Teacher Writes to President Obama: Stop!
The science teacher statement should be shouted from the roof tops and sent to Sec. of Ed., every governor, and every superintendent.
The science teacher stated:
“There are 4 basic ingredients to a good education: 1) Well trained and dedicated teachers, 2) small class sizes, 3) adequate resources and a decent environment to teach in, and 4) giving the teachers freedom to teach
I would like to add to that critique- N.L. Gage’s four aspects of what is good teaching: [1] cognitive level; [2] indirectness; [3] enthusiasm; and [4] caring.
“Teacher Effectiveness and Teacher Education: The Search for a Scientific Basis”
As the science teacher said, “Teachers are not given the freedom to teach to the kids where they are and build on their knowledge base.
“Cognitive level”- as N.L. Gage states- instructing on the student ‘s instructional level.
I want Obama’s children to go to one of the schools that follows lock-step the RTTT policy. Let Obama put his “money” where his mouth is.. and these days that is not a good place.If Obama wants to salvage any respect (from those who are being scape-goated but deserve utmost respect), then he should fire Duncan and actually hire someone with experience in education and who can clean up the Obama/Duncan mess before too many more students suffer.
The day that Obama turned National Teacher Appreciation Day into National Charter Day, I sent a friendly email informing the president that there are a number of charters in DC for him to choose from and telling him I’d be curious to find out which one he chose for Sasha and Malia.
You’ll be shocked to hear that I didn’t get a response.
Perhaps it is best that He choose the school that was able to provide security without totally disrupting the school.
What about all the other reformers that want one thing for public school kids, and then they send their kids to private schools where their children will not be forced to experience their dumb reforms?
While I want to put my kids in a private school, and being a product of a private school, I want public school kids to enjoy the same joy of learning that I did and my kids will enjoy.
I want that same inviting, learning environment for my own kids and my public school kids that sit before me.
I am sending my kids to a private school to escape the approach of the reformers, not because there are poor teachers, not because there are poor administrators, and not even because there are poor county personnel.
Reformers may force me to get a second job just to escape their brutality.
If a family has sufficient means they can make the best choices for their children. In my case, my children have only attended traditional zoned public schools.
And why is it that that school just happens to be a small, elite progressive school with small class sizes, a full curriculum and multiple libraries rather than, say, KIPP? Are you saying that KIPP lacks adequate security?
Small and isolated seem right for security purposes.
Fine, then he can find a small and isolated military school that follows the same principles as those charter schools he loves so much.
I give up. Ad hominem now, ad hominem tomorrow, ad hominem forever.
Face it teachingeconomist, the position is ironic, if not worse, when reformers push their agendas on schools that they refuse to put their own kids in.
I don’t even mind Obama as much as I do people like Sandy Kress. There was nothing stopping Mr. Kress from putting his kids in his local public schools, which were probably top notch, yet he placed his children in a private school that advertised an advantage of their school being that kids aren’t forced to take standardized tests. Sandy Kress has no need for security for his kids. 99.9% of people in America probably have no idea who he is.
What’s ad hominem about calling someone hypocritical for pushing “reforms” on other people’s children and then seeking the exact opposite for their own? Isn’t that the definition of “hypocrisy”?
It is not addressing the merits of the argument about how best to educate students, doing nothing to try and move the discussion forward.
Typical response to Dienne, teachingeconomist…”moving the discussion forward”, right into their bank accounts.
Whose bank accounts? Do you mean mine?
teachingeconomist – do you think reformers really care about kids? They want to bust unions, free up money, and take that money…”forward”, right into their bank account.
I think there are a variety of motivations for people on all sides of the debate. I don’t think it is very useful to speculate about what those motivations might be.
Reading comprehension, TE. This thread is about Obama. I was responding to a comment about Obama sending his own kids to a school that follows RttT policies. A discussion of how best to educate kids would be out of place here.
For the record, and as I think you know, I have posted hundreds of comments on how best to educate children. But that’s hard to accomplish when we have a president and his lackey doing the exact opposite of the best way to educate children.
I urge you to continue to make constructive posts about approaches to education.
Dienne: it is clear what you are writing about.
Here’s an eighteenth-century cagebusting comment about the posturing and false virtue of folks like Obama and Duncan:
“Hypocrisy can afford to be rich in its promises, for never pretending to go beyond promise, it costs nothing.” [Edmund Burke]
And people object to a sharp tone when it comes to this sort of insincerity? Ok, a nineteenth century cagebusting comment will have to do:
“There are three things in the world that deserve no mercy, hypocrisy, fraud, and tyranny.” [Frederick William Robertson]
I don’t always agree with you, but so much the better:
“A difference of opinion is what makes horse racing and missionaries.” [Will Rogers]
🙂
This isn’t an ad hominum argument, teaching economist. It’s about good teaching and learning conditions. It’s about the administration threatening and punishing states that won’t force their public schools to follow destructive education policies.
The excellent private school Obama chose could follow all the policies he forces on other people’s children, if they are indeed good educational practice. It doesn’t, because they aren’t.
When we look at schools people choose when they do have resources to buy their child out of the accountability racket, none of them follows the policies demanded by the Obama administration.
Why aren’t the Obamas at PTA meetings, demanding that Sidwell test their daughters, and calculate the value their teachers have added to their scores, so they and their teachers can be held accountable to Bill Gates’ and Rupert Murdoch’s computer models?
That wouldn’t compromise their security, would it?
That particular comment was about where presidents send their children to school.
All those comments are making exactly the same argument. It is you who chooses to misunderstand them, and to distract the discussion with accusations of “ad hominum attacks”.
You still haven’t answered the underlying argument against this corporate reformer hypocrisy: the advocates of corporate test-based accountability don’t choose such policies for their own children, but instead force them on other people’s children.
Why not look at the arguments about traditional geographically zoned admission policies verses allowing students and their families to choose schools that are better suites to their individual nature. If memory serves, I believe you choose between a private Waldorf school and a private technology oriented school for your child. All I am doing is arguing that all should have that ability, not just those with sufficient means.
Nothing in RttT and NCLB helps me be a better teacher. The accountability only makes me teach to the test to keep my job and put food in the mouths of my kids. This means less time engaging my students at a level that invites critical thinking and meaningful laboratory, hands-on experimentation.
Science is about thinking and doing. The accountability measures implemented since 2001 do nothing but tug at my ability to teach my kids real science.
No standardized test measures how well my kids can design an experiment in order to solve problems. I have students who are wonderful thinkers yet they lack the reading and writing abilities to show growth or proficiency on a standardized test. I can see the face of one of those students now – grappling with how to test whether varying sizes of clay affects their densities. He lacks the writing and reading ability, but that doesn’t stop him from showing and telling me how he would design a controlled and repeatable experiment to test his hypothesis, with a glimmering in his eye that says, “Hey, look at me – I can do this!” No test can measure that quality – not one. It’s with utter sadness that I watch the accomplishments of this student in the lab to only watch him fail quizzes and tests because of his lack of reading and writing ability. Of course, I know what he is capable of, and I will help him succeed in the portfolio portion of my class to make sure he passes my part – but what about his state-mandated, mundane standardized test that he finds stupid and boring?
He will fail his state-mandated standardized test, where even if he shows growth, he will still receive an “F”, which to him means he is a failure when he is anything but that.
Too bad somebody from the state couldn’t come in here and watch him communicate ideas about how to solve problems. Maybe Arne could come see him in action.
“No standardized test measures how well my kids can design an experiment in order to solve problems.”
ME, no doubt about that considering a standardized test doesn’t measure anything. It’s not a measuring device at all mainly because the teaching and learning process is not amenable to “being measured” as it lies within the realm of aesthetics* and not the realm of science and measurement. Although there are many who claim that one can “scientize” the teaching and learning process, they are mistaken.
*the branch of philosophy dealing with such notions as the beautiful, the ugly, the sublime, the comic, etc., as applicable to the fine arts, with a view to establishing the meaning and validity of critical judgments concerning works of art, and the principles underlying or justifying such judgments.
The cornerstone of democracy has always been public education. As we destroy it, we destroy our country. When will Washington wake up to the reality that these policies are destroying the heart, soul, creativity, and intelligence of a generation of children? When will Washington hear the cries of the teachers who are painfully watching children being labeled failures and having their self esteem destroyed by the all knowing adult authority, Pearson. None of this is acceptable for the President’s children, and none of it should be acceptable for America’s children. Shame on every politician and official who remains silent and allows this abuse to continue.
+1
BINGO!
“Shame on every politician and official who remains silent and allows this abuse to continue.”
And one should add teachers and administrators of the “go along to get along” ilk “who remain silent and allow this abuse” allowing the banality of evil to continue to harm the most innocent in society, the children.
WordsMatter and your words truly matter. So well said. Thank you.
I too agree, children today are so programmed. Where are the books to teach our children a lot of us parents cannot afford the internet or computers for our children and all of the libraries in the community/neighborhoods are either closing or have limited use for usage for students. Here in Atlanta three of my children was affected by the biggest cheating scandal in history. No one here has thought about my children or any child and this has been three years in the making. The focus is on Beverly Hall, the 178 principals and teachers being indicated in the cheating scandal. I’m so upset right now!
Something needs to change, all I heard from my President Obama was change when he as the nation for a vote. Where is the change for our children. When I graduated from the eighth grade my graduation song was I believe the children our future teach them well and let them lead the way. Show them all the beauty they have inside give them a sense of pride to remind them how we use to be. Before President Obama leaves office we must demand from him change for all children, teachers who want to teach not for just a pay check, and materials (books to teach). I learned from my grandmother who is 83 years old today, she had 9 children and 4 grandchildren, 38
Chandra, this is one of the best comments I have seen on Diane’s blog–straight from the loving heart of a parent. No truer words were said, “No one here has thought about my children or any child.”
Heartbreaking. And, unfortunately, closing libraries in schools, as well, is happening all over the country. Of course, in Chicago, a building housing a school library (after parents had to beg, plead & finally conducted a sit-in for theirs) was destroyed in the dead of night with no notice to the school community whatever. On a recent trip, I met a CPS librarian who was in a fairly new school with a newly, very well-stocked library. As the school’s funding dwindled this year (all because of the selfish teachers & their pension!), the principal made the decision to close down that library,making the librarian a special ed. teacher (she is certified for that). But–closing down a school LIBRARY! Inexcusable! (In the balance, neither of us felt that her principal was to blame–he hired a reading specialist, as so many of the students were struggling.)
We hear you, Chandra, and we are all–working together, community by community, state by state–going to stop this assault on children. As Diane says, it’s happening. More awareness, more parents opting out of testing, more students, parents, teachers, principals, superintendents and even state legislators saying no. Work locally–run for school board or office, join with organizations such as Parents Across America (especially in Atlanta, you must have an affiliate, or some parents group opposed to the Race to the Top agenda). I put a twist on Obama’s agenda of “change,” which–thus far–HAS been a change–for the worse. Rather than the Obama-Biden slogan, I say,
“Yes, WE can…and we WILL.”
Thanks, Chandra, for your most important opinions & ideas.
“As the school’s funding dwindled this year (all because of the selfish teachers & their pension!), the principal made the decision to close down that library,making the librarian a special ed. teacher (she is certified for that).”
You get what you pay for. If you want incompetent people attempting to educate your child, reduce the pay to that of survival mode. I, for one, want the best educators developing our minds of tomorrow. We are not going to attract intelligent, caring, competent people if we don’t pay a decent wage. Teachers’ jobs are more important than the stock brokers, bankers, politicians, tech people… who receive millions. You want to begrudge teachers of a decent standard of living and some security!? Teachers deserve and apology.
Stop the Common Core, Standardized testing, wars, foreign aid, subsidies, govt. bailouts to bankruptcy, the free iPhones the govt. is giving away, close down the federal education dept. and the list could go on and on, but don’t cut back on a teacher’s living wage and security!!!
Bravo! Very well said and so very true.
Thank you, Science Teacher! Well done!
Don’t just blame democrats. Republicans support the same policies. George Bush was responsible for NCKLB. He was a republican. The enemies of education are the self proclaimed reformers who really want to privatize education and turn it into a profit making business. Unfortunately many of the children in schools today are getting a second rate education that will handicap them for life. The people that can improve education, teachers, are the very ones being blamed . Neoliberal policies, that are centered around economic gain for a few at the expense of the many , are destroying our country. Only when the masses fight back will things change for the better.
Jackiebass, the true neoliberal minion wears a Republican mask or a Democrat mask, as the situation demands. They would push either party into a vat of acid at the command of their masters.
New “whachamacallit”. Rather sinister looking. How does one go about changing that “whachamacallit” (whatever it is called-“icon”??)
Al Tate,
I hope your letter will be heard…”from your lips to OBAMA’s ears!”. I feel that what you said is at the heart of what educators feel. Teacher expertise and experience of actually teaching students are underminded by policymakers. This year my school, a 30 year record of high performing students, is in school improvement because of a few missed points on our STANDARDIZED TEST. This year our whole school is being reorganized to be cookie cutter classes to teach the same subjects, the same way, at the same time of day. It is strangling teacher creativity and dismisses hundreds of years of staff experience because of a few missed questions. Instead of collaborating as educators we are throwing the baby out with the bath water! I hope your letter is heard!…Oh, and could our lower test scores be because we have the most crowded classes in my teaching career… 40 students in our 4th grade and 28 in our kindergartens!
Thank you for your words.
Another suggestion is to assess not only the learner but all the education memes utilizing http://criticalthinking.org and Tinbergen’s four questions, explored here:
http://homepage.uibk.ac.at/~c720126/humanethologie/ws/medicus/block1/TheoryHumanSci.ppt
Now consider this http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.1001109
In other words, I suggest we are going about education without utilizing ethologically valid measures. Education has been suspended by psychologists and educators myopic and marginally valid assessments that don’t consider our evolutionary physiology or evolving memes. We can do better and must.
Mary DeFalco–just to clarify what I wrote, as to your reply–actually, this wasn’t one of those cases where the principal put an unqualified teacher in that sp.ed. position–she IS certified & qualified (& I believe that she told me that she had taught sp.ed. students before becoming a librarian). Given what is going on with school libraries (actually, community libraries, as well), it’s a good thing that many school librarians I know had taught, first (graduated from education programs, & then returned to college for an MS in Library Sciences), it’s a good thing that they might previously have taught, and have the certification to do so. So this wasn’t a case of the principal hiring an “incompetent.” It was a case of the principal being forced to make a bad decision–due to CPS funding–or lack thereof. The point of my comment was to tell Chandra that her comments are very important, and that, no, parents should NOT stand for anyone undermining the education of her children–or anyone else’s. Closing down school libraries? An absolute disgrace–if my daughter were still school-aged (thank goodness she’s long out of that scene!), I would not–for one minute–keep her in a school with no library, even if we had the best town library in the U.S.A. Chandra is spot-on–children need BOOKS and will ALWAYS need books.
Arne & the powers that be are forever complaining, shutting down schools and firing teachers over low test scores. How can kids be expected to read without books?
Oh, wait, ALEC doesn’t want them to. Well, other people’s children, anyway.
(Sorry for the rant. Anyway, that was my point, Mary, that ALL American children have what 1% kids do–especially school libraries.)
Reply to retiredbutmissthekids September 14, 2013 at 5:39 pm
I was responding to your comment: (“all because of the selfish teachers & their pension!) I wasn’t commenting on the qualifications of your former librarian. My point: if you don’t pay teachers what is commensurate with professionals in other fields, we can’t retain competent, dedicated, and caring teachers. You get what you pay for. Any school hiring TFA teachers are not going to be hiring competent teachers. The University of Minn. took a stand against TFA teachers – every faculty member signed their opposition ending with “we view TFA as antithetical and harmful to our work.”
(Sorry for the rant. Anyway, that was my point, Mary, that ALL American children have what 1% kids do–especially school libraries.)
Agree, all children should have a right to a good education and all that a good education entails. However, major discrepancies are occurring in education in the US. Here on LI some districts have free pre-school; in other areas parents pay for pre-school. Some districts have half day kindergarten and some full day. Yet when it comes to teachers in the classroom where academic freedom should prevail, one teacher told me everything is scripted, everyone has to teach the same lesson at the same time. If an administrator walks in and the teacher isn’t teaching what is on his/her schedule she/he is in trouble. Teachers teach to the test if they want to keep their job. They are in a quandary: follow their conscience or blind obedience.
Teaching is an art and a science. Flexibility and judgment are essential- not all children learn the same way and the at the same time. If the politicians and business people who are controlling the strings had some back ground in philosophy of ed. and cognitive psychology such asinine directives wouldn’t exists.
Add to that: attendance is taken often during the day sometimes as often as 7 times. All have to take the Standardized test including special ed. students; tears flow freely in disbelief. If a parent doesn’t want their child to take the test they have to sign a letter. Their child will not be able to take the Regents in the future – doomed at an early age. Everyone scores are counted in with no appendix for special ed. when rating a teacher and the school.
Like the march on Selma, we need a march on every state capital and on Washington. Otherwise, concern parents may have to adopt Ron Paul’s curriculum for homeschooling.
If I could ask a clarifying question, did every member of the faculty of U of M take a stand against TFA or was it every member of the faculty in the School of Education at U of M?
The June 8th “march” on Albany was ignored by Kommissioner King, Chancellor Tisch, and Cuomo the Executioner.
All of our union rallies have been ignored by the media (aka: Bloomberg) since our illustrious mayor took control of our public schools. Tens of thousands of people at City Hall. No press or television coverage at all.
Please excuse me if this has already been said:
From what I see and read, it’s pretty clear that Obama really doesn’t care about Al Tate’s (or our) support. He and Arne are all about furthering the privatization of our national education system. They were both heavily involved in that movement prior to their lives in politics and you can be sure that they’ll be even more heavily involved (and profiting) once they’re out of office.
They believe that our current system is inferior. Or they want to profit from the system which they support and take part in. Or a combination of the two. It doesn’t really matter what the motives are. These are people with lots of power who are not in our corner. They have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
This science teacher nails it. But even if the letter landed square on Obama’s breakfast table, while he was sipping his morning coffee, it wouldn’t matter. He and the people he represents don’t care about whether we support him, the Democratic Party, or anything else. I hate to say that…but from everything I’ve seen and read; that’s the reality.