New Hampshire’s Governor is a Trump-style extremist, Chris Sununu, whose father John advised the first President Bush. Sununu appointed Frank Edelblut as state commissioner of education. The state commissioner home-schooled his children and follows the ideology of Betsy DeVos. He thinks government money should go wherever children go, regardless of who gets the money. That’s called “Learning Everywhere.”
Edelblut is an extremist libertarian.
Now he wants to pilot online leaning for pre-schoolers. This is his response to the growing recognition of the value of early childhood education.
Not surprisingly, advocates for ECE are alarmed that sitting in front of a computer is being substituted for play, where children learn to cooperate with others and make things and use their imagination. One group said:
Kids aren’t meant to sit still in front of a screen. They use their whole bodies to learn, and they want and need to move. Let’s not forget that some of the essential milestones for preschoolers are gross and fine motor skills. They need to practice galloping, throwing a ball, zipping up their jackets to go outside, and holding a pencil. Having good motor control is essential for children’s growth and independence. They cannot develop it by sitting at a computer.
You may recall that DeVos offered New Hampshire $46 million to double the number of charter schools in the state. The Democrats in the legislature have twice turned down her offer. New Hampshire has declining student enrollment, and the Fiscal Oversight Committee said it would be irresponsible to add new charter schools, which would drain students and resources from existing public schools.
Edelblut came back with his own analysis, claiming that adding more charter schools in a time of declining enrollment would save money.
According to the report from Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut, doubling the number of charter schools over the next 10 years could translate into at least $60 million in savings for local taxpayers as 4,000 students leave traditional public schools.
Edelblut’s report points to studies that warn declines in enrollments not related to charter schools will be at least 24,000 by 2030 — and could approach double that figure.
“If the visceral reaction is how are we going to manage a declining student enrollment due to public charter schools, the answer is you are going to have to deal with this issue regardless of this grant,” Edelblut said…
This report clearly responds to analysis from Reaching Higher New Hampshire, which supports traditional public schools.
The group has warned the charter school grant could cost the state an additional $57 million to $104 million in its first 10 years.
The same organization found in its analysis of 20 of the state’s charter schools that at least 1,083 of the 4,025 seats available went unfilled in the 2018-2019 school year.
Reaching Higher New Hampshire also maintains state funding alone often doesn’t cover operating costs for these charter schools, which make them unsustainable.
Senate Majority Leader Dan Feltes, D-Concord, said the new report doesn’t change his view that the panel should keep rejecting this grant.
“We need to support our public schools and the successful existing charter schools, work on the over 1,000 open spots in existing charter schools, and protect New Hampshire taxpayers. This fiscally irresponsible grant will cause our already record high property taxes to continue to increase, which is unacceptable,” Feltes said in a statement.
With 25% of the state’s charter school seats empty, it should be hard to make the case that NH needs more charters.
Edelblut welcomes the Trump administration’s plan to turn all education funding into a block grant as he feels it will give him more control over federal money. His own philosophy is that public schools are unnecessary, which is rooted in the practices of the 18th century.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Great take on Governor Addled Butt!
But you overlooked the great advantage to the Party overseeing the New Feudal Order in getting Prole children on computers early. If we alienate children from nature, their peers, and their adult caretakers early on by turning them into screen zombies who will do whatever next task is put before them, this will go a long way toward making them adults who accept alienation from
the products of and value of their labor (these belong to the teaching machine and, later, to the capitalist)
the process of doing the work (which is not a vehicle for self-expression or creativity with a natural, organic connection to workers’ needs and wants)
other workers (these become the competition and so not folks one might join with in solidarity to effect change in the conditions of life, which are constant production for the machine or the capitalist) and mentors (the machine is the mentor and the surrogate for the state machine)
themselves, because of the above (they learn to push their own needs aside or even not to recognize that they have needs and to sit down, shut up, and do the next trivial, alienating, meaningless task given by their overlords)
their humanity
In other words, by this means Prole children can be turned into docile, obedient bots with no sense or expectation of self worth.
You clearly do not accept this, Ravitch 2948. Please report to Rm. 101 for reeducation.
Excellent reporting again, Dr. Ravitch!
When are politicians going to understand consequences? Federal money is generally a bait and switch. If you take the bait, your communities will pay dearly in so many ways. The public schools will be weakened, and there is zero evidence that a cyber preschool has any merit at all. If the population is in decline, there is no need to create private schools to compete with the public schools, particularly in rural areas. The charter lobby will work to squeeze as much public money out of the state as it can. It is a ticket to dystopia. Take a look at Michigan, Pennsylvania or Ohio.
Here’s why school districts are addicted to online “virtual academies”: these can be used by students to do credit recovery to complete graduation requirements. This pumps up district graduation rates.
Imagine that one sentence on billboards across the nation: The Charter Lobby Will Work To Squeeze As Much Public Money Out Of The State As It Can.
Children also NEED to be around other children so they learn how to socialize and interact.
“Having a high IQ is an advantage but having EQ can make all the difference to your studies and future career. Emotional intelligence determines our ability to manage our feelings and relationships. … EQ and IQ are the difference between being able to function well and being able to function well enough to succeed.”
When it comes to happiness and success in life, emotional intelligence matters just as much as intellectual ability. Learn how you can boost your EQ.
Emotional intelligence (otherwise known as emotional quotient or EQ) is the ability to understand, use, and manage your own emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict. Emotional intelligence helps you build stronger relationships, succeed at school and work, and achieve your career and personal goals. It can also help you to connect with your feelings, turn intention into action, and make informed decisions about what matters most to you. …
As we know, it’s not the smartest people who are the most successful or the most fulfilled in life. You probably know people who are academically brilliant and yet are socially inept and unsuccessful at work or in their personal relationships. Intellectual ability or your intelligence quotient (IQ) isn’t enough on its own to achieve success in life. Yes, your IQ can help you get into college, but it’s your EQ that will help you manage the stress and emotions when facing your final exams. IQ and EQ exist in tandem and are most effective when they build off one another. …
Working well with others is a process that begins with emotional awareness and your ability to recognize and understand what other people are experiencing. Once emotional awareness is in play, you can effectively develop additional social/emotional skills that will make your relationships more effective, fruitful, and fulfilling. …
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/emotional-intelligence-eq.htm
Children cannot develop emotional intelligence from an app. They must spend quality time with other children playing, learning, and working together. Children that grow up learning from computer screens are not going to learn how to work well with others.
” is to provide preschool access to rural”
I don’t understand why they continue to claim it’s impossible to offer preschool to rural children. It’s ridiculous on its face. A country that can and has provided kindergarten to rural students for decades for some mysterious reason can’t provide preschool a year earlier?
What about if offered 4 year olds school the same way we offered 5 year olds school? It’ll be easier and cheaper- we already have the schools, the transportation, the whole infrastructure is already in place.
If they just want a cheap replacement for preschool just say so. Otherwise you’re talking about extending back a year. It really doesn’t require a radical rethinking.
Call it “prekindergarten”. Is that easier? Like kindergarten, but earlier. We added preschool to our public school. It wasn’t that difficult. The hardest part was paying for it. It is WILDLY popular. If it was available when mine were small I would have happily used it. It makes a lot more sense than paying individually to send them to 15 different sites, ESPECIALLY in rural areas.
OMG, just plop the kids in front of Sesame Street and save billions of dollars.
Of course, the idea isn’t about preschool or kids, but which private company will get rich providing this on-line preschool or their “educational materials” for pennies while charging taxpayers billions?
According to the Concord Monitor, 4 year-olds in the Waterford program will spend 15 minutes a day, five days a week completing computer-based lessons dealing with such things as nursery rhymes and letter sounds, with suggestions for parents to continue working with children offline.
“Waterford UPSTART, was created by the Utah legislature in 2009 to better prepare children for kindergarten. (Wrong. The program is funded by the state of Utah). The impetus was to provide preschool education to rural or lower-income areas that couldn’t afford public programs, as well as to home-schoolers and immigrant communities.
Waterford Upstart has since spread to many other states, supported sometimes by government funding and other times by private grants. Waterford says about 16,000 children in 15 states graduated from the program in 2019, and projects that 22,000 students may participate this year. No New England states offer the program.” https://www.concordmonitor.com/waterford-upstart-preschool-nh-32275885
I looked at the website for Waterford.org. This nonprofit is an offshoot of the Waterford Institute, founded in 1978 by Dr. Dustin “Dusty” Heuston, Ph.D. described as “a pioneering educator “who “built a collaborative model of child, family, and educator engagement that delivers significant and lasting academic achievement gains.”
Dr. Heuston’s LinkedIn bio says that he produced software for companies such as Microsoft®, SRA International®, and IBM® and created the first educational videodisc for McGraw Hill. In 1996 Pearson®, the world’s largest educational publishing firm took over distribution of Waterford’s products in the U.S. public schools and, to date, has generated over $½ billion in sales.
Dusty Heuston’s advanced degrees are in American and English Literature. He has no evident formal study or experience in education. Nevertheless, a pitch for his 2011 book “The Third Source: A Message of Hope for Education” says he “discovered that teachers need extra resources to provide personalized education.” https://www.amazon.com/Third-Source-Message-Hope-Education/dp/061545027
The current CEO of Waterford.org is Benjamin Heuston, PhD (in psychology). He is son of the founder, and has been active in edtech for two decades, including service on the Education Board of the Software & Information Industry Association and at least one presentation at the Society for Scientific Study of Reading.
The person most responsible for developing and marketing the Waterford UPSTART program appears to be Dr. Claudia Miner, Ph.D. whose Linked in profile says she is Executive Director and Co-Founder of Waterford UPSTART at Waterford.org. I judge that she played a major role in launching the program in Utah, in 2009, and securing funding for it from the Utah State Legislature. Miner’s Ph.D. is in American Studies. She is an entrepreneur with no obvious experience in education She has experience in fundraising, public relations, and marketing. (She has a Ted Talk).
In any case, while the Upstart program was being marketed, the Waterford Institute received a five-year grant of $11.5 million in 2013 from the Investing in Innovation (i3) fund. “The i3 grant was for an expanded program for preschool and the summers after kindergarten, first, and second grade, with the use the Waterford Early Learning adaptive software curriculum. https://www.waterford.org/wp-content/files/UPSTART-ETI-Y5-Evaluation.pdf
The average per student cost of the Waterford UPSTART program is $1800. The website solicits donations with several tiers of contributions. It also says that 80% of participants will require all elements of Waterford UPSTART, an estimated cost of $2,000 per child (includes computer, internet access) while 20% will only require software and support, an average cost of $1,000 per child.
In addition to the computer-adaptive instruction delivered at home, the participants are monitored for indicators of progress by persons called “Family Education Liaisons.”
“Family Education Liaisons” are paid employees. They must have: a high school diploma or equivalent, basic experience using Word and Excel, at least 40 wpm keyboard skills, and be able to communicate with families once a week by phone or email. Liaisons use an online management software program that includes family profiles. Spanish fluency and prior customer service experience are desirable. I was unable to determine the compensation of these FELs. Other “careers”can be seen at
https://www.waterford.org/careers/#openings-section
The website for Waterford.org the lists “Supportive Sponsors.” These are: TED (talks), The Audacious Project, Omidyar Network, Community Foundation of the Ozarks, Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation, Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation, Valhalla Charitable Foundation, New Schools Venture Fund, Sorenson Legacy Foundation, and Longwood Foundation.
The website also lists “Proud Partners. These include: The Utah State Board of Education, the Indiana Family and Social Service Administration, and the South Carolina Education Oversight Committee for Partnership for Innovation and “more than 500 public school districts, independent schools, and state entities around the country.
Additional Partners include: Chromebook, Clever, Intel, Read by 4th Philadelphia, Hands in Outreach, Foundation for Rural Education and Development, The School Superintendents Association (AASA), Fred Rogers Center at St. Vincent College, and Raspberry Pi (a low cost, credit-card sized computer that plugs into a computer monitor or TV for use with a standard keyboard and mouse. It is marketed as a way to learn how to program in languages like Scratch and Python).
There is much more to this whole operation. It offers other programs, with current lingo about educational concepts borrowed from here and there. These products/ services include:
–Waterford Reading Academy: Said to be aligned with and cover 100% of reading/ELA standards for PreK to 6th grade. The standards are not named. This is a computer adaptive instructional delivery system surrounded by marketing hype (e.g., scaffolded digital lessons that promote deeper thinking; student engagement via activities, games, songs, videos, and animated characters).
–Waterford Mentor: For parents, a data dashboard for computers or mobile reports on student usage and scores, completed assignments, progress, weekly recommendations, coordinated resources for the program in English and Spanish, “plus Social-Emotional Learning.”
–Waterford Early Learning: At home and mobile technology-based early reading, math and science program with integrated assessments and teacher tools for PreK-2 with Clever for easy login.
–Curriculet: a digital lesson designed to “deliver a deep close reading experience.”
I looked at the most recent IRS 990 form (2017-18). Dustin Heuston, the CEO of the Waterford Institute is married to Nancy Heuston who is on the Board of Trustees of the Waterford Institute. Benjamin Heuston, the Institute’s COO, is the son of Dustin and Nancy. The 990 shows gifts, grants, and contributions of $87,721,658. There are three officials whose compensation exceeds $300,000. Some software development is outsourced to Waterford Institute in Mumbai, India in addition to being produced or held by two LLC’s: the Waterford Research Institute, and Waterford Holdings LLC. There is also Waterford Research SRL (a limited liability company). In other words the operations of the Waterford as a non-profit are surrounded with legal entities that are not transparent.
Finanlyy, I note that Ann Christensen, president of the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation is a board member of Waterford.org.
Thank you for this excellent reporting.
It is heartbreaking that all this public money that could be helping the most vulnerable children ends up in the coffers of “non-profits” where enriching yourself and family members is much more important than doing good.
“This is his response to the growing recognition of the value of early childhood education.”
Value?
What value?
The Finns don’t seem to agree with that “value”.
And I don’t either. Let kids be kids. The school to work drudgery, as epitomized by the standards and testing malpractice regime only serves to turn the children’s innate joy of learning into. . . a hatred of learning. At least let them enjoy a free early childhood.
Growing recognition?
It’s unfortunate that so many fail to recognize the idiocies of “early childhood education”.
Hey, Duane,in this economy, both parents work to make ends meet. Where will the children play?
Yes, in most families these days two parents work. I know my wife and I both did. And had my mother as a primary caregiver along with a daycare center at the hospital in which my wife worked.
Interesting angle. Are you advocating for universal free Pre-K day care? Or perhaps subsidized-for-all parental leave? Day care centers at work?
My beef is with the further “control” of all aspects of our lives from cradle to grave, in a fashion that does not respect the individuals’ autonomy or their ability to develop that autonomy.
If we are talking about day care as the unstructured care of the very young child and not the “authorized training” of children, then I have little problem in offering such services to parents. Unfortunately what I see in the proposal is that “authorized training” being pushed upon the children.
If I may leave you with a song from the early 70s that seems quite pertinent: