What Does Equal Educational Opportunity Mean in Chicago?
An article that appeared in “In These Times” describes the school where Mayor Rahm Emanuel sends his children. It is the University of Chicago Lab School. President Obama chose it for his girls when he lived in Chicago. Arne Duncan is a graduate.
It is a wonderful progressive school, originally founded by John Dewey. It has small classes, a broad and rich curriculum, wonderful facilities, a beautiful library, seven full-time arts teachers for a student body of 1,700
This Mainstream Writer Respects Teachers
It is a wonderful progressive school, originally founded by John Dewey. It has small classes, a broad and rich curriculum, wonderful facilities, a beautiful library, seven full-time arts teachers for a student body of 1,700
This Mainstream Writer Respects Teachers
This is a column written for U.S. News and World Report by an experienced journalist.
Yes, she understands what teachers are dealing with.
Thank you, Susan Milligan!
We can’t improve education if we don’t improve the conditions of teaching and learning.
It is hard to read the comments that follow this post or any other.
There are many people who seem to think that teachers are vastly overpaid, greedy, lazy, selfish, and
A Reader in South Africa Comments
Yes, she understands what teachers are dealing with.
Thank you, Susan Milligan!
We can’t improve education if we don’t improve the conditions of teaching and learning.
It is hard to read the comments that follow this post or any other.
There are many people who seem to think that teachers are vastly overpaid, greedy, lazy, selfish, and
A Reader in South Africa Comments
I wish I could say that things here in South Africa were different, but as I read your blog, I felt as though I was reading about my own country. We have schools that have no text books, no libraries, no educational equipment, no computer facilities, no sport facilities – they are basically a shell and when these schools do not perform the government immediately blames the teachers and principals. Never mind that the children have had to walk up to 15km to get there, or that they have come to school with no food in their tummies…these schools lack basic support from the government and yet they are held accountable for non-performance. Every year when the Matric results are released I wait for the onslaught from government…it makes my blood boil.
This Teacher Is Appalled by the Lack of Respect
A reader comments on an earlier post by a Chicago teacher who explained why he was striking:
I was a high school teacher in New York City, and I agree 100% with Kevin. Before teaching in NY I was a public school teacher in Hong Kong. What struck me the most about teaching in the US is that teachers here are expected to be “supermen” and “superwomen” who should be able to turn classrooms of kids, no matter how difficult and how little support they receive from parents and politically-driven administrators, into high-achieving academic-minded students.
The worst schools in Hong Kong have their own school campus (buildings and playgrounds). In NYC, 5 schools
I was a high school teacher in New York City, and I agree 100% with Kevin. Before teaching in NY I was a public school teacher in Hong Kong. What struck me the most about teaching in the US is that teachers here are expected to be “supermen” and “superwomen” who should be able to turn classrooms of kids, no matter how difficult and how little support they receive from parents and politically-driven administrators, into high-achieving academic-minded students.
The worst schools in Hong Kong have their own school campus (buildings and playgrounds). In NYC, 5 schools
Do Testing and Accountability Promote Critical Thinking?
Jan Carr, an author of children’s books, is a dedicated public school parent. She wrote a post wondering why the powerful elites in our society are so obsessed with testing and data. She wondered why they care so little for developing critical thinking.
Jan wrote: “I’ve been a scrappy public school mom for 12 years and counting, and I’ve watched the increasing encroachment of the data and accountability business, which would have our kids prepping for and taking
Jan wrote: “I’ve been a scrappy public school mom for 12 years and counting, and I’ve watched the increasing encroachment of the data and accountability business, which would have our kids prepping for and taking
Good News from the Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation has released a study showing that the poor are really pretty well-off in America. Lots of them own their own home, have a car and air-conditioning.
Message: Stop whining about the poor. They should thank their lucky stars they are living in America! They should not expect a handout as they are doing just fine. Forget about the vast income inequality that exists in our society. Who cares?
Are the kids homeless and hungry? Blame their parents or their absent father. Are they sick because the parents don’t have health insurance and can’t afford a doctor? Their fault.
What would you call this report? “Compassion is for the weak”? “The poor will always be with us”? “Poverty is your problem, not mine?”?
Message: Stop whining about the poor. They should thank their lucky stars they are living in America! They should not expect a handout as they are doing just fine. Forget about the vast income inequality that exists in our society. Who cares?
Are the kids homeless and hungry? Blame their parents or their absent father. Are they sick because the parents don’t have health insurance and can’t afford a doctor? Their fault.
What would you call this report? “Compassion is for the weak”? “The poor will always be with us”? “Poverty is your problem, not mine?”?
The Diane Rehm Show: Me Vs. Three
Diane Rehm is one of the best interviewers on national radio (WAMU in DC).
I always enjoy being on her show.
This morning, I was invited to discuss the Chicago teacher strike, and discovered to my chagrin, that the lineup was three against one.
I defended the teachers and discussed their aims and the conditions in the Chicago public schools.
On the other side was Rick Hess of the conservative American Enterprise Institute; Andrew Rotherham of Bellwether Partners; and former Mayor Adrian Fenty of D.C.
The three of them versus me. Mayor Fenty would like to see tenure abolished. He blames the unions for all the
I always enjoy being on her show.
This morning, I was invited to discuss the Chicago teacher strike, and discovered to my chagrin, that the lineup was three against one.
I defended the teachers and discussed their aims and the conditions in the Chicago public schools.
On the other side was Rick Hess of the conservative American Enterprise Institute; Andrew Rotherham of Bellwether Partners; and former Mayor Adrian Fenty of D.C.
The three of them versus me. Mayor Fenty would like to see tenure abolished. He blames the unions for all the
Should Schools Be Run Like Businesses?
Listen to an excellent panel discussion, featuring the brilliant Dissent writer Joanne Barkan. She is the author of“Got Dough: How Billionaires Rule Our Schools,” which you should read.
How Some African American Leaders Went Wrong on Reform
Karran Harper Royal is a leader of Parents Across America.
She lives in New Orleans, where she went to public schools. Her child attends a charter school.
She spoke at the SOS 2012 meeting in Washington, where she analyzed why some African American leaders
She lives in New Orleans, where she went to public schools. Her child attends a charter school.
She spoke at the SOS 2012 meeting in Washington, where she analyzed why some African American leaders
Nashville School Board Turns Down Charter for Third Time
The Metro Nashville school board turned down a charter proposal for the third time, even though the state education department ordered the board to endorse the charter.
The local board feared that the charter would appeal mainly to affluent white families, both because of the curriculum and the expectation that families would make a large up-front “voluntary” contribution.
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120911/NEWS04/309110094/Metro-defies-state-denies-Great-Hearts
The local board feared that the charter would appeal mainly to affluent white families, both because of the curriculum and the expectation that families would make a large up-front “voluntary” contribution.
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120911/NEWS04/309110094/Metro-defies-state-denies-Great-Hearts
What Price for High-Performing Charters?
Here is an alarming story about a chain of high-performing charter schools in Minnesota.
These are truly no-excuses charter schools.
They focus relentlessly on getting those highly prized test scores.
And they do it.
They boast of “drill and kill.”
The children study the tests, get ready for the questions, and they get high scores.
He Will Vote For Obama
These are truly no-excuses charter schools.
They focus relentlessly on getting those highly prized test scores.
And they do it.
They boast of “drill and kill.”
The children study the tests, get ready for the questions, and they get high scores.
He Will Vote For Obama
This reader will vote for Obama because Romney would be a catastrophe on many levels:
I am just the opposite of many here. I will be abandoning the Green party for the first time in years because, while I did not vote for Obama, the difference between Democrat and Republican is, for the first time I can remember, significant enough to warrant my voting for a less than ideal candidate to avoid electing a truly awful one by default. Even if ed. policy is your only issue, I don’t see how anyone thinks the strong ALEC-driven push to privatize the entire
I am just the opposite of many here. I will be abandoning the Green party for the first time in years because, while I did not vote for Obama, the difference between Democrat and Republican is, for the first time I can remember, significant enough to warrant my voting for a less than ideal candidate to avoid electing a truly awful one by default. Even if ed. policy is your only issue, I don’t see how anyone thinks the strong ALEC-driven push to privatize the entire
K12 Cyber Schools in Trouble Again
K12, the giant cyber corporation that sells for-profit schooling, is in trouble in Seminole County, Florida, because the state insists that teachers must be certified. But having certified teachers is more expensive than having uncertified teachers, which cuts into K12′s profit margins.
The Florida Department of Education has opened an investigation into K12.
So, you can see, this is a big problem for regulators, who have this quaint attachment to the idea that teachers should meet a standard of some sort, but also for K12, whose profit margins are at risk.
You will note in the first article that K12 has another problem: The NCAA refuses to accept the credits of K12′s
The Florida Department of Education has opened an investigation into K12.
So, you can see, this is a big problem for regulators, who have this quaint attachment to the idea that teachers should meet a standard of some sort, but also for K12, whose profit margins are at risk.
You will note in the first article that K12 has another problem: The NCAA refuses to accept the credits of K12′s
You Will Not See This in Any National News
This is what the Chicago Teachers Union wants.
The strike is not about pay.
It is about the conditions of teaching and learning.
It is about class size.
It is about curriculum.
It is about social workers for
The strike is not about pay.
It is about the conditions of teaching and learning.
It is about class size.
It is about curriculum.
It is about social workers for
New York Times’ Editorial on Chicago: Still Clueless
A few weeks ago, the New York Times published an editorial saying that teachers needed more carrots and sticks to make them work harder and produce higher test scores. The assumption is that they are not working hard now (a Gates-Scholastic survey in the spring said the typical teacher works an 11-hour day now); and that waving a bonus in front of them would raise student test scores (even though merit pay has never worked, even with a bonus of $15,000 for doing so); and that the threat of firing might move the needle (even though it is the kids who need to “produce,” and threats don’t produce better education).
Today the Times blames the Chicago teachers’ strike on the teachers and suggests it is all the fault of their
Conservative Pundits Pummel Chicago Students
Today the Times blames the Chicago teachers’ strike on the teachers and suggests it is all the fault of their
Conservative Pundits Pummel Chicago Students
Jersey Jazzman calls out the conservative pundits who, in an effort to embarrass Chicago teachers,try to show how awful student perormance is in that district and paint it in the worst possible light.
If they are casting stones, you kinda wonder why they don’t throw them at Arne Duncan and Mayor Daley, whose policies determined what happened in the schools.
What they do is akin to blaming the war in Iraq on the soldiers, not the policymakers.
If they are casting stones, you kinda wonder why they don’t throw them at Arne Duncan and Mayor Daley, whose policies determined what happened in the schools.
What they do is akin to blaming the war in Iraq on the soldiers, not the policymakers.