The Illinois House moved to set a three-year moratorium on virtual charter schools after some suburban districts rejected them.
I wonder if the representatives understand that the quality of cyber charters is low, test scores are low, graduation rates are low. And the quality of education is poor.
But the companies make big profits.
Please don’t say this is school “reform.”
The state superintendent of education in Illinois wants to remove class size limits for special education.
Time to ask why the richest nation on earth can’t afford to provide a free and appropriate education for children with the greatest needs.
If you are in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, or Illinois–or anywhere else–please join with parents, students, and educators to support public schools. These states have been targets for rightwing demands for privatization. Enough is enough. Time to organize and mobilize to fend off the attacks on teachers, principals, and public schools.
Time For Action Update:
Parents Across America, in cooperation with Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education and with other grassroots groups, invites you to “Public Schools Across America,” a 4-state Regional Action Planning Meeting.
Across the country, there is a rising chorus of protest against corporate-style school reform. Parents, teachers, students, principals, superintendents, scholars, school board members, civil rights lawyers and other concerned citizens are voicing opposition to the privatization of our schools which threatens the future of our children and the fundamental democratic principles upon which our system of public education is based.
With “Public Schools Across America,” we hope to create a model for coordinated regional action in support of public education which could be expanded and replicated across the U.S.
Who: You are invited! And please share this invitation with others interested in regional joint action in support of public education (even if they are not in our region – as long as they are able to get themselves to Ft Wayne). This meeting is not limited to educators. It for parents, grandparents, and concerned citizens who support public education and want to get more involved in supporting our public schools and our children.
What: The first “Public Schools Across America” Regional Action Planning Meeting.
Featured speaker: Indiana State Superintendent Glenda Ritz, newly-elected superintendent.
Where: Fort Wayne, IN, chosen because it is located within a reasonable drive from all 4 states, and is FULL of public education activists!. We will meet at the Plymouth United Church of Christ, conveniently located at 501 W Berry Street in Ft. Wayne.
When: Saturday, Feb 23, 2013 from 12 noon to 5 pm (snacks provided).
Why: To share our concerns about attacks on public education and how we have addressed them locally, and to consider joint activities across our region and potentially across the U.S. to strengthen public education.
Thank you for all you do in support of our public schools and our children. Hope to see you in Ft. Wayne!
Julie Woestehoff and Maureen Reedy
Julie Woestehoff, executive director, Parents United for Responsible Education (Chicago)
Co-founder of Parents Across America.
E-mail: pure@pureparents.org
Maureen Reedy ~ Co-founder of Public Schools Across America
Parent and 29-year public school teacher
Ohio Teacher of the Year, 2002
E-mail: Maureen.reedy@gmail.com
Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education (NEIFPE) Blog: http://neifpe.blogspot.com/;
Email: neifpe@gmail.com; LinkedIn: NEIFPE and Twitter
A reader writes in response to debate about Common Core in Indiana:
Common Core and the PARCC Assessment can only be described with one word in Illinois: daunting.
Illinois school districts are losing resources yearly, state aid being among them. Last year the state prorated its aid to schools at 94%. This year it is expected to be at 89%, and next year it could be as low as 80%. All this as expectations go up.
The little glimpses we’ve received in our numerous staff meetings of the possible PARCC assessment have left us feeling overwhelmed to say the least. Next week the Illinois State Board of Education will vote on whether to increase cut scores on the ISAT test to better align with the rigorous Common Core Standards. This will result in a significant decrease in the number of students meeting or exceeding state standards.
I teach in an Illinois Spotlight School (defined as high poverty schools where high academic performance is closing the “achievement gap”). We have faced many challenges with the lack of funding coming into our school. We used to be on the cutting edge of new technology but now we are faced with an outdated computer lab where large groups of students will gather to take the future PARCC assessments. This will present a huge challenge not only with our infrastructure but with many of our students as well. Many students will not have the skills to take on-line assessments as they have been working in small RtI groups during computer classes (a sad reality). Many students still don’t have computers at home.
I believe strongly that students need good, solid foundation skills and a wide range of experiences before they can think critically. The lack of funding has caused our school to limit field trips to one per year. I predict that number to go down to zero in the near future.
I hope Illinois follows Indiana’s lead in having a serious discussion about the Common Core and especially the timing. Our teachers have been scrambling to find resources that align to the Common Core. And now our students will be tested before full implementation?
I have no objection to high expectations for students and accountability for students and teachers. But we must be given time, resources, and a seat at the policy table. I
feel like I’m on a sinking ship. A moratorium on any new assessments until we have implemented, developed resources, and made reasonable changes to the CC sounds like a good life raft to me right now.
Diane Ravitch's blog 