Carl Cohn: The “Parent Trigger” Is Obscene Verbiage
Carl Cohn is one of our nation’s most distinguished educators. He had led many school districts, received innumerable awards, and now serves as a member of the California State Board of Education. Like many people, Dr. Cohn finds the imagery of the “parent trigger” unseemly. Why suggest that parents take up arms and shoot someone, even metaphorically? Violence, whether real or metaphorical, is not the path to education or knowledge or wisdom.
Dr. Cohn writes:
“Given the horrific events at Newtown, isn’t it time for the
media and the proponents of this so-called reform to abandon the
Dr. Cohn writes:
“Given the horrific events at Newtown, isn’t it time for the
media and the proponents of this so-called reform to abandon the
The Problem with Choice
A reader from Oregon explains the destructive consequences of choice. School choice has been a goal of the right for decades and is now embraced by the Obama administration:
“For US education to thrive, charters must go.
“Some Win, Some Lose with Open Enrollment”. The headline in the Eugene, Oregon Register-Guard may seem like an occasion for joy to the winning school districts but, really, it is just terribly sad for all of us. Open enrollment across district lines is the latest and most extreme version of a school choice movement that is on a trajectory to split public education in two – one set of schools for the haves and the other for those left behind.
School choice is probably the most popular of the signature elements of the current school reform movement –
“For US education to thrive, charters must go.
“Some Win, Some Lose with Open Enrollment”. The headline in the Eugene, Oregon Register-Guard may seem like an occasion for joy to the winning school districts but, really, it is just terribly sad for all of us. Open enrollment across district lines is the latest and most extreme version of a school choice movement that is on a trajectory to split public education in two – one set of schools for the haves and the other for those left behind.
School choice is probably the most popular of the signature elements of the current school reform movement –
Learning from Kansas City
A reader writes to describe what happened in Kansas City as a warning to other cities (John Covington left the superintendency of Kansas City on short notice to head the Michigan Education Achievement Authority, which was created to oversee low-performing districts across the state):
Learn from Kansas City’s mistakes. You spoke – in another blog, that the superintendent of a southern system fired teachers and replaced them with 150 from Teach For America. The same happened in Kansas City – we fired 150 teachers without cause and replaced them with (drumroll) 150 Teach for America teachers at a cost of $3,000 per head. So it was with dismay that I discovered that a Teach for America sits on the board of Broad
Learn from Kansas City’s mistakes. You spoke – in another blog, that the superintendent of a southern system fired teachers and replaced them with 150 from Teach For America. The same happened in Kansas City – we fired 150 teachers without cause and replaced them with (drumroll) 150 Teach for America teachers at a cost of $3,000 per head. So it was with dismay that I discovered that a Teach for America sits on the board of Broad
California Parent Trigger Leaders Sue for Money
Readers may recall that an organization called Parent Revolution led the battle for a “parent trigger” law in California in 2010. Parent Revolution is funded by Gates, Broad and Walton foundations.
Earlier this year, Parent Revolution worked with parents in Adelanto, California, to take over low-performing Desert Trails elementary school. Some parents wanted to rescind their signatures from the petition to take over the school, but the judge would not permit them to do so. The parents who did not sign the petition were not allowed to vote on choosing a charter operator.
When it was time to select a charter school, only 53 parents in a school of more than 600 children cast a ballot.
Earlier this year, Parent Revolution worked with parents in Adelanto, California, to take over low-performing Desert Trails elementary school. Some parents wanted to rescind their signatures from the petition to take over the school, but the judge would not permit them to do so. The parents who did not sign the petition were not allowed to vote on choosing a charter operator.
When it was time to select a charter school, only 53 parents in a school of more than 600 children cast a ballot.
EduShyster Explains the “No Excuses” Model
EduShyster is upset. She doesn’t understand why our nation’s leaders have embraced the idea that “success=compliance.”
She is concerned that white philanthropists and white teachers are imposing strict discipline on black and brown children.
This phenomenon is known as “no excuses.”
As she mentions, the origin of ”No Excuses” may be traced to a book of that name by Samuel Casey Carter, written in 2000 about 21 “high-performing, high-poverty schools” and released by the far-right Heritage
She is concerned that white philanthropists and white teachers are imposing strict discipline on black and brown children.
This phenomenon is known as “no excuses.”
As she mentions, the origin of ”No Excuses” may be traced to a book of that name by Samuel Casey Carter, written in 2000 about 21 “high-performing, high-poverty schools” and released by the far-right Heritage
A Call for Political Leadership
Where are our leaders? Where are the political leaders with the courage and independence to support the commons against the power of Big Money?
This reader read Gary Rubinstein’s brilliant Letters to “Reformers” and wrote this comment:
“Thanks for making this series more widely known– it is so well done and important for people to see. And as noted in the notes on the Tillson piece, their collective silence is deafening. Rarely is that crowd quiet about
This reader read Gary Rubinstein’s brilliant Letters to “Reformers” and wrote this comment:
“Thanks for making this series more widely known– it is so well done and important for people to see. And as noted in the notes on the Tillson piece, their collective silence is deafening. Rarely is that crowd quiet about
Diane in the Evening 1-4-12 Diane Ravitch's blog
Diane Ravitch's blog: How to Live with an Outrage by dianerav Chancellor Kaya Henderson is closing 20 public schools in DC, displacing 3,000 children. She has abdicated her responsibilty to improve the schools and is instead following the corporate reform script: close public schools while opening more privately managed charters. The Washington Post has an article advising parents and students how to accept the destruction of their Jersey Jazzman Deconstructs Klein Record: Part 2 by dianerav Jersey Jazzman has decided to analyze Joel Klein’s record, since he is now one of ... more »