Shaun Johnson eloquently explains here why he is letting his AERA membership lapse.
In brief, he is disappointed that AERA has not taken a leadership role in defending public education against the corporate-funded assault on its very existence.
But, Shaun, don’t give up.
AERA invited me to give the John Dewey lecture at AERA in Philadelphia on April 3, 2014. When I last spoke at AERA in 2011 in New Orleans (my topic was “Who Kidnapped Superman?“), the room held only about 400 people, and there were more people outside the room than inside it, because the room was too small.
This time, I have been promised a room that holds at least 1,000 people.
Come to Philadelphia. You will not be disappointed.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Can I come too, especially since’s it’s in Philly in April?
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Thank you, Shaun, for articulating what so many others, including me, have felt about AERA in recent years. I admire you for speaking up about this. And thank you Diane, for giving us some encouragement on the topic.
Nancy Carlsson-Paige
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Thank you Nancy.
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Many of my former professors were deeply involved in AERA – and leading the charge to “disrupt” public education.
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Each of us does what he or she can.
Shaun Johnson made one point. The owner of this blog will make another. Neither effort is wasted.
Perhaps if a video is made of the AERA organizers anticipating the 2014 John Dewey lecture, it will be called “Waiting for Diane Ravitch.”
😎
P.S. Soon to be followed by the movie of the inspiring fight to ensure a better education for all “Won’t Sell Out.”
Not to be confused with overly-long infomercials of strangely similar names.
😄
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I renewed my AERA membership before this exchange. Now there is a very very good reason to be in Philadelphia in April, with others from the Chicago Teachers Union. I hope they have a “disabled parking” section so I can get a decent seat, albeit hobbling, for that session. AERA has always been a mixed bag — so many sessions you can almost find anything you want. For years, we had a session on “The Resistance”. That was terminated in the early 2000s, around the same time that the Phi Delta Kappan was clandestinely purchased by the Broad Foundation. But the fact is, if we have any trust in science and the facts, we know that they will re-emerge. And 2014 will be that year at AERA.
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INFO: There are members in other professional organizations who have decided to not be members anymore, because of their former prof. org.’s weak or neutral stances on CCSS and high-stakes testing.
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I would say to Shaun Johnson and to us all that there is precious little territory that we can afford to cede to the deformers, especially by withdrawing from the fight. TFA has an evidence based voice of resistance growing from within and they became a deformer front group shortly after their birth. AERA has not been fully co-opted as evidenced by the sharply negative reception given Arne Duncan at the 2012 conference. If Nelson Mandela can last for 27 years in prison can we do any less? As our numbers and the awareness of our struggle continue to grow, there is no battlefield we can afford to walk away from. As an organization, AERA would do well to consider it’s own experiences with the cognitive failures described in the article about John King. http://www.prismdecision.com/john-king-common-core-cogitive-bias That is best done from within and can only be done if there are dissenting voices on the inside.
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Many professional organizations have been bought or sold out with the assistance of the usual wealthy suspects.
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Any word on the rumor that Bill Gates is being invited?
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Barbara, I hope he is invited. Maybe we could have a debate! So far, I have struck out with Rhee and Coleman. Is it something I said?
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If he is invited, please do ask for a debate. I might renew my membership for that!
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“Is it something I said?”
LOL!
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I had shown support agreeing with Dr. Johnson on his earlier post about AERA. I, too, had similar experiences with AERA, as well as, additional experiences that had forced me to question my membership with the organization. I had decided to not renew my membership as well. Recently, another professor who is well-known at AERA and connected to me through my past academic endeavors made a comment online about the wonders of AERA and referenced one of Shaun’s posts. I had merely voiced a short, polite statement of agreement regarding Shaun’s post. The following comments after my comment were so disrespectful and inconsiderate. These posts were from other professors and people I had graduated with when I completed my doctoral program. Yet another experience that was a representative example of many experiences I had while attending AERA conferences regarding how a growing group of members of AERA treat others who have different views.
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I can understand Shawn’s dilemma, for this constant witnessing of educators and education institutions selling out to the corporate leeches is so tiresome; and at times can be draining of our precious energy. These leeches have been able to buy out even some of the groups we trusted believed in public education. Take the current many believe that Bill Gates has given up in pushing his hobby of corporate ed reforms in MA, this is because we don’t see his name outwardly attached to the privatization that is going on. But I fear that it is not case for he has found a way to pay stooges and that he has planted firm his hold with local groups. Take for example, the Boston Foundation, they used to be one of the largest supporters of the public Boston Pilot Schools which the Boston Foundation used to be it’s biggest supporters, today they are the biggest promoters of the Charter schools because they are making huge profits.
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This is a very interesting question. Has AERA been co-opted by the “reformers”? On what basis could someone make a case for either “yes” or “no”?
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My reply: http://atthechalkface.com/2013/12/10/per-dianeravitch-i-re-evaluate-my-participation-or-lack-thereof-with-aera_edresearch/
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This is interesting. The expensive journals may be the only part of Shaun’s post to which I might take exception. I realize that even a journal article can be expensive to purchase online. However, as a doc student, my membership to AERA is $40. I receive two of their journals via mail as part of this fee. Of course I gain access to most journals through my library though.
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