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Monday, January 28, 2013

Diane in the Evening 1-28-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

Diane Ravitch's blog:





The Rationale for the Reform Movement

A reader from Wisconsin points out that Governor Walker’s reforms are not intended to improve the schools, but to turn schooling into a free-market activity:
Thank you Diane for highlighting yet another unproven attempt to inject free market ideology into Wisconsin public schools.
The recent recall attempt exposed the forces supporting Gov. Walker and how they wish to dismantle public 

Bobby Jindal and Social Justice, part 2

A reader in Louisiana shows how the budget cuts affect the neediest persons in the state:

Louisiana is in the top 5 for cancer deaths, infant death, and AIDS.
Baton Rouge, the capital is #1 in America for new AIDS infections.
And the busline (such as it is) ends well before it reaches the new Women’s Hospital where most of the babies are delivered and women receive ob/gyn care. They have to walk from the last bus stop to the hospital down a 4-

Why Are We Hoodwinked by Metrics?

A reader explains why policymakers and the public are hoodwinked by numbers. Follow the links:
Diane-
I got to this article in the WSJ through the Naked Capitalism blog I read daily:

Bobby Jindal Backs Down–For Now

Acting in response to a loud outcry and planned protests, Bobby Jindal has decided not to eliminate funding for hospice care for elderly patients on Medicare. The program has gotten a reprieve until June 30.
But the administration is still looking for ways to cut the costs, such as by cutting reimbursements to providers, encouraging the elderly to get care in homes, not hospices, and reducing the number of people eligible to get end-of-life care.
Count on it: The issue will be back on June 30. And don’t count on anyone in the Jindal administration to act with compassion. That’s not his style.

Julian Vasquez Heilig Is on a Roll

Julian Vasquez Heilig is a professor at the University of Texas who has a rare combination of gifts:
He is smart, he has a strong command of research skills, and he has a wicked sense of humor.
In these two posts, which seem to be the beginning of a series, he follows the money to see who is making big bucks at the public trough (he uses a different, anatomical term).
This one is about Sandy Kress, the architect of NCLB, who frequently writes opinion article about the virtues of 

LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 1-28-13 Diane Ravitch's blog

coopmike48 at Big Education Ape - 3 hours ago
Diane Ravitch's blog: [image: Click on picture to Listen to Diane Ravitch] Today is Student Data Day, Read This by dianerav If you can help with answers to the questions below, please chime in. How do parents “opt out” of sharing personal information about their children that is collected by the state and shared for purposes of marketing? *Diane, I am not sure where to post this but this is a request for you. This impacts almost every public school parent, student and child in the country and your forum would reach out to many. Would you post this in a prominent place to make par... more »