Politico reports that the proof of Betsy DeVos’s school choice policies can be found in Michigan. She claims that choice would “fundamentally improve education.”
But it hasn’t.
Despite two decades of charter-school growth, the state’s overall academic progress has failed to keep pace with other states: Michigan ranks near the bottom for fourth- and eighth-grade math and fourth-grade reading on a nationally representative test, nicknamed the “Nation’s Report Card.” Notably, the state’s charter schools scored worse on that test than their traditional public-school counterparts, according to an analysis of federal data.
Critics say Michigan’s laissez-faire attitude about charter-school regulation has led to marginal and, in some cases, terrible schools in the state’s poorest communities as part of a system dominated by for-profit operators. Charter-school growth has also weakened the finances and enrollment of traditional public-school districts like Detroit’s, at a time when many communities are still recovering from the economic downturn that hit Michigan’s auto industry particularly hard.
The results in Michigan are so disappointing that even some supporters of school choice are critical of the state’s policies.
So, let’s see, follow Betsy’s policies and the state opens bad charter schools and undercuts public schools. A disaster for everyone.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
This is how the commercial, moneytheist mind works. Everything is made New & Improved again with New & Improved commercials, so long as they are loud and glitzy and repeated enough.
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The main problem with zealots is they refuse to face facts and reality. There is little to no evaluation of the results. Twenty years is more than enough time wasted on this failed experiment. Even when public agencies study the harmful impact of charters and or vouchers, the results are buried in some federal document, and the public is none the wiser. The whole “choice” movement has resulted in a disinvestment in the common good. Our young people are paying the price. We strip the public schools of resources so they cannot effectively address the mission of educating all young people. We give money to opportunistic gamblers that can use public money for their experiments. This is reckless policy. Most people want quality public schools for their children. We must work to get the “choice” fanatics out of office, and change the laws that incentivize the destruction of public schools.
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Agreed. I have never understood how a group that is a slave to the “data” can’t see the failure of charters. I know it’s because they make money, but you’d think the media or someone would pick up on this.
But in Utah, which started taking over schools that are the lowest 5%, the state purposely ignored the failing charters, and took over public schools that scored higher than those charters instead. But it’s “all about the kids, right???”
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Bravo for Politico! They asked The Question!
With the hundreds of ed reform orgs and university studies on ed reform why don’t we see this question asked more often?
This “movement” was supposedly about improving PUBLIC EDUCATION, right? That’s how they pitched it to the public?
So how did it end up as an echo chamber that exclusively focuses on expanding charters and vouchers and ignores existing public schools and systemic effects?
DeVos bills herself as a public education advocate. The applicable measure then, is did she improve public education in Michigan? If she didn’t she failed and it doesn’t matter how many politicians she purchased or how many charters opened or how many vouchers were handed out.
THIS should be the only thing anyone talks about:
“Despite two decades of charter-school growth, the state’s overall academic progress has failed to keep pace with other states”
The same is true of Ohio, BTW, except you can add “vouchers” in Ohio.
We deserve an explanation from the politicians and lobbyists who pushed this dogma.
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How is it that Politico is the only entity who bothered to ask this question?
Thousands of paid ed reformers, whole university departments devoted to ed reform and Politico is the only entity that asks the simple and obvious question- “did DeVos improve public education in Michigan”?
Ed reform is an echo chamber. It’s so closed and insular they don’t even ask the right questions. They’re so focused on expanding charters and vouchers they (incredibly) forgot the whole point of what they were supposedly about.
How does this happen? How do end up with thousands of experts and politicians and lobbyists who never look at systemic effects?
Check out any ed reform site on DeVos. Look at any of the “debates” they’re having. It’s entirely focused on charters and vouchers.
Utter and complete capture. It doesn’t even occur to them to ask about the effect on public schools or the effect on the state systems as a whole.
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It’s true even of the US Department of Education. John King’s big concern is that Trump will erode political support for charters, because Democrats and liberals will connect Trump with “choice”.
He literally doesn’t mention the threat to existing public schools. They simply don’t care what happens to the tens of thousands of pubic schools that are operating right now.
I find this amazing and I think any ordinary member of the public outside this echo chamber they’ve created would find it amazing too.
How do you disregard or OMIT the 90% of students who currently attend US public schools? How does that happen?
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The only difference between Democrats and Republicans is that the former is sneakier, and they prefer the slow burn. The latter prefers to burn the forest down with gasoline resulting in scorched earth. I hope people do associate choice with Trump and are repulsed by its impact. Turning schools over to corporations is never a good idea. Charters are schools that emulate the factory model of education more than public schools. Public schools attempt to educate all learners, and they do so under conditions that are increasingly challenging. Public schools are a valuable resource to our citizenry. All students must have the right to a free, authentic public education for now and in perpetuity. We need to close the door on the zealots and grifters.
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How this debate is consistently framed is a measure of how insulated and captured ed reform is and how they completely dominate the discussion.
The only people I ever hear advocating for existing public schools are teachers unions. Teachers unions are private entities.
No one on the public payroll in DC is an “advocate” for public schools? That’s outrageous. They need to go back and read their job descriptions. No one hired them to privatize and replace the system they’re paid to improve.
It’s really too much to ask that public employees advocate on behalf of public schools, the schools 90% of kids attend? I mean, honestly. What the hell IS this? Talk about “off track”. These people don’t even know who they work for.
I don’t care if they have a personal ideological preference for charter and private schools. I don’t care if public schools are unfashionable this year in elite circles. This isn’t about what they prefer. At minimum they’re supposed to do their jobs and 90% of their job is public schools.
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This blog, a little more than three years ago, “Bill Gates: We Won’t Know for a Decade Whether Our Ideas Work”—
Link: https://dianeravitch.net/2013/09/30/bill-gates-we-wont-know-for-a-decade-whether-our-ideas-work/
From the linked piece:
“It would be great if our education stuff worked, but that we won’t know for probably a decade.”
So exactly the kinds of rheephorm Bill Gates/Betsy DeVos & Co. like to impose on OTHER PEOPLE’S CHILDREN have had 2 x 10 = 20 years in Michigan to produce their promised miracles—or at least less awe-inspiring pedestrian results.
Question: How long do billionaires get to see if their experiments on education work?
Answer: As long as they like: 3+ years, a decade, 20 years.
Why? Because just like Trump they are deeply misunderstood, i.e., folks take their pronouncements and deadlines too “literally” and not “symbolically.” [Please: if you don’t know what I am referencing, just use this new fangled thing called the internet and google Corey Lewandowski and Anthony Scaramucci.]
Forget old-fashioned nonsense like “say what you mean and mean what you say.”
No, just remember the now largely forgotten children’s book where two characters called Alice and Humpty Dumpty are arguing about, well, read on:
[start]
‘And only one for birthday presents, you know. There’s glory for you!’
‘I don’t know what you mean by “glory”,’ Alice said.
Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. ‘Of course you don’t — till I tell you. I meant “there’s a nice knock-down argument for you!”’
‘But “glory” doesn’t mean “a nice knock-down argument”,’ Alice objected.
‘When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’
‘The question is,’ said Alice, ‘whether you can make words mean so many different things.’
‘The question is,’ said Humpty Dumpty, ‘which is to be master — that’s all.’
[end]
Master? Rheeally?
Well, it’s all made possible by the Golden Rule of corporate education reform:
He Who Has The Gold Makes The Rules.
Really!
😎
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There is no incentive for anyone to stop and analyze what is happening. Capitalists will forge ahead looking for ever expanding markets, especially when they can socialize and risk and privatize profit. Our privatization laws are ridiculous. Corporations and billionaires will not stop unless the people stand up and stop them. Our policymakers should be looking at Michigan as a disaster and a cautionary tale. Instead, they are appointing the key destroyer to lead the charge against public schools. Nobody wants to look at the dismal results when public money is flowing.
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Public school parents and other supporters of public schools need to start reading ed reform sites and experts.
They’re really excited about Trump/DeVos. They’re debating details of national charter and voucher expansion. There is LITERALLY no mention of existing public schools.
The assault on public schools will be like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Anti-public school lawmakers in the OH state assembly are already putting forth plans that will not only drastically reduce public school funding but act as the ultimate ed reform goal, which is “back pack vouchers”
In order to privatize the whole system they will have to trash public schools, and they’re well-funded with top political talent to do just that. Get ready. They see an opening to for a “revolution”- they’re going for 100% privatization. Public schools will be treated as the disfavored system that the revolutionaries are using as a stop gap until our schools can be phased out. If you thought 2010 thru 2012 was bad for the unfashionable “public school sector”, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
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That is why I cross post this blog and other articles to friends, former colleagues and choice zealots on social media. The more informed people are, the more willing they may be to organize and fight back. Many are needed to stop them, not just readers of this blog.
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Haha! Good work Agent!
Sent from my iPhone
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