The Missing Metric
I've been thinking about the rise of meaningless data-worship in schools over the past decade, and how it's taken a toll on the communities that need the most help. I remember when it started, at the start of NCLB. You'd get these consultants from Texas visiting your school, talking about their miraculous data-driven model that had transformed their state into a beacon of academic excellence.
All the while Texas remained basically stagnant and near the bottom of on the various NAEP measurements.
Now, I work in a place where data is valued, and I understand the difference between data used to inform decisions, and data used to reinforce a narrative. NCLB was about the narrative. RTTT is about, as George W.
All the while Texas remained basically stagnant and near the bottom of on the various NAEP measurements.
Now, I work in a place where data is valued, and I understand the difference between data used to inform decisions, and data used to reinforce a narrative. NCLB was about the narrative. RTTT is about, as George W.
The Prison Analogy
Nobody ever privatized a prison to improve prisons, criminal justice, or rehabilitation. Prisons are privatized for two reasons: to spend less money on prisons and to funnel the money that is spent on prisons to politically connected people.
It's the same with privatizing schools via the charter movement. There is nothing else to it. It's about
It's the same with privatizing schools via the charter movement. There is nothing else to it. It's about
What A Cast of Characters!
Great piece by George Schmidt on who's who over at CPS. There is nobody remotely connected to the actual parents of the actual students.
I wonder what it's like to be JC Brizard, rolling from one town to the next, racking up huge salaries and buyouts just for the minor inconvenience of being used as a prop by the actors on the stage.
I just hope that when I die, people can name three things I stood for and was willing to fight for, or for the things I tried to build rather than the things I tried to tear down.
I wonder what it's like to be JC Brizard, rolling from one town to the next, racking up huge salaries and buyouts just for the minor inconvenience of being used as a prop by the actors on the stage.
I just hope that when I die, people can name three things I stood for and was willing to fight for, or for the things I tried to build rather than the things I tried to tear down.