At any previous time in American history, I can’t imagine writing a column with this title. Almost every American understood that public education is one of the most important democratic institutions in our society. There were a few curmudgeons here and there who didn’t want to pay to educate other people’s children, but their numbers were always small, and their complaints were dismissed as idle grumbling.
Now there is a full-bore attack on the very existence of public education. Billionaires and their paid minions wage war on the concept of public education. They push vouchers, charters, homeschooling, online schooling, for-profit schooling, and most anything they can think of that will starve public schools into submission or obsolescence. They lack any sense of civic obligation.
Yet here is Marilou Johanek, a columnist for the Toledo Blade, saying what used to be simple common sense, and today it sounds like a revelation. We ALL have an obligation to provide a strong public school system for all our children.
Johanek gives the spotlight to a grassroots group that has formed to tight Governor John Kasich’s privatization steamroller.
She notes the tsunami of bad ideas that have suddenly descended on the public schools, once seen as the bastion of our democracy:
Public schools are buffeted by all sorts of competing agendas that seek to influence policy on charter schools, vouchers, value-added measures, unfunded mandates, high-stakes tests, and Common Core. Who wants a piece of the public school action?
Those who work in local schools are as frustrated as those on the outside, trying to make sense of the upheaval. Educators are exasperated with cyclical attempts at school reform that are hastily embraced and poorly developed.
Administrators are tired of begging for money. Property owners are sick of school levies. Parents are dismayed with eliminated programs, laid-off faculty and staff, and pay-to-play sports.
Students are numb and joyless about learning. They’re guinea pigs for revised expectations, exams, and for-profit education.
Public education is at a crossroads. It needs advocates to sustain it as an indispensable public service. Fortunately, a grass-roots campaign is forming to raise awareness of what’s at stake in public education.
The good news is that citizens are mobilizing to save public education.
She writes:
Groups of stakeholders, calling themselves Friends of Public Education, are mobilizing in several states, including Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois. Their mission is to become informed activists in defense of public schools.
Dan Greenberg, an English teacher at Southview High School in Sylvania, was instrumental in starting Northwest Ohio Friends of Public Education. “I just can’t sit by and wring my hands and say, oh, I hope it [the public education crisis] goes away,” he said.
“If we don’t stand up and do something in the public schools in our community, they could be gone, changed to private entities,” Mr. Greenberg said. “I don’t think you can help but get mad or get upset and want to take action if you know the injustices that are being heaped on public education.”
The times, they are a-changing. The tide is turning. The billionaires are in for a big surprise.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
There is no common sense anymore in this nonsense of “educators” dictating what goes on in the classroom. Hire fine teachers and then let them do their work. The educational systems in both New York and California when I went to school were top-notch. That was before the money-hungry “spoilers” arrived on the scene. We need to get back to the basics of teaching the subject, not the tests.
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I am not as confident that “There were a few curmudgeons here and there who didn’t want to pay to educate other people’s children”. If that were true, we would not have needed the top down direction of federal courts and legislation to force local schools to educate all students even if they were students of color, female, or had different learning abilities.
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Publics form and re-form all the time. You speak of cultural changes within our vast society that transcend the schools. The new “logic” of reform is nothing but a return to taking the power away from the people.
As usual, you begin with focusing on a detail and making it the premise of a full-blown argument. Less economics and more sociology from time to time does a body good.
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My comment here is meant to point out that a premise of the post, that there was a time when almost every citizen in the country cared about the education of every child in the country, is false. Nothing to do with economics at all.
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The reference to economics is a response to your commentary that always appears steeped in absolutes–and yes I see the irony in my use of the word “always.” No one offered a statistic on just how many people cared about the education of every child in the country. It’s a cultural trend which is often immeasurable unless one samples every single demographic variation that exists, which would be an impossible task–or nearly. lol!
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I would say that referring to “almost every American” in contrast to “a few:” is a rough estimate of a statistic. How do you interpret these phrases, especially in light of the long struggle to get states and localities to pay to educate children of color, to allow equal access to education for women, and provide classes that can educate students of all learning abilities?
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“At any previous time in American history, I can’t imagine writing a column with this title. Almost every American understood that public education is one of the most important democratic institutions in our society. There were a few curmudgeons here and there who didn’t want to pay to educate other people’s children, but their numbers were always small, and their complaints were dismissed as idle grumbling.”
I didn’t see anything in the opening statement in regard to how public schools would go about educating other people’s children–just that public education was supported by a vast majority according to Diane.
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I too see no claim about HOW students should be educated, but there is a claim about IF students should be educated.
Why was Brown vs The Board of Sducation in Topeka Kansas necessary if almost all Americans wanted to pay to educate children of color? Why pass title nine if educational opportunities for women were the same as those for men? Was the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act superfluous because every school district already provided appropriate education for all students?
I look forward to your thoughts on this.
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None of what you say, TE, changes the fact that most Americans realized the importance of a public education system. Who was included and how that has changed over time does not negate the ideal.
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I think it is important to place the current public school system in the proper historical context. I don’t think that being willing to pay for the education of other people’s children is the same as being willing to pay for the education of other people’s white male children without disabilities.
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“None of what you say, TE, changes the fact that most Americans realized the importance of a public education system. Who was included and how that has changed over time does not negate the ideal.”
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Good to read.
Fairly positive news in NC today (despite today being test score release day; and at my school, sadly, one of our kindergartners was hit by a car last night and is on life support—a sad day in our building).
Here is the positive news (from NCAE):
I’d like to thank you all for organizing, supporting and participating in Monday’s walk-in events. The “walk-in” captured front page headlines in every media outlet across the state. If you were unable to follow the media coverage, we’ve provided a link below for your review.
While the debate continues over the merits of a “walk-in” versus a “walk-out,” there is no denying the following:
Leadership in the General Assembly never commented on the threat of a “walk-out”; it’s what they want. They’ve already passed legislation making it easy to terminate teachers and eliminate any due process rights. They could use the “walk-out” to further vilify educators and terminate any participants for cause. The “walk-in” is apparently a greater threat; they don’t want parents and communities to know what they’ve done to public schools.
Our voice is being heard. Yesterday, NCAE lobbyists were invited to meet with several key legislators to discuss how to address educators’ concerns. We have also met with the governor’s education advisor to discuss teacher salaries. We are optimistic that there will be a salary increase of some sort during the short session.
The governor convened the Teacher Advisory Council meeting the day after the walk-ins. This is not a coincidence.
The public is engaged and voicing their frustrations and concerns, both in the media and via direct communications with NCAE members in their communities. They are showing their support and asking how they can help. This is huge!
We have the momentum. As the election year approaches, legislators are scrounging to fix the mess they’ve created in time to sway voters. We must keep the pressure on by continuing to support walk-ins, town hall meetings and rallies throughout the state. We must not allow a salary increase to appease us. This is about more than just salaries, it’s about resources, class sizes, due process rights, advanced degree compensation, testing, and investments in public education. It’s about RESPECT!
Let’s build on the momentum by making the American Education Week walk-in events even more successful. Let’s begin planning and organizing events in every local in the state! Click here for suggestions on how you can make your AEW walk-in events a success!
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Your links didn’t come through, Joanna.
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Fantastic!
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