NEW VIDEO EXPOSES PARENT TRIGGER CAMPAIGN
Education Opportunity Network Shows “Parent Revolution” Effort Misled Parents and Fractured the Community
Washington, DC – The Education Opportunity Network (EON) is releasing a new video with the real story of how one campaign behind parent trigger laws misled parents and fractured the community. The video tells the story of Adelanto, California where a well-funded, outside group "Parent Revolution" came to town and instead of working to improve the schools tricked parents with false promises, bitterly divided the community, and disrupted the education of young children.
“The video makes clear that that parent trigger laws, pending in 14 states, have made it harder, not easier, for parents and communities to improve their schools” said Roger Hickey of the Education Opportunity Network (a project of the Institute for America’s Future) “Schools need better resources, engaged parents, good teachers and a supportive community. What schools do not need is divisive campaigns that mislead parents and disappoint parents,” he said.
The Education Opportunity Network is part of a new movement that is building in America aimed at assuring that all children and youth have the opportunity to learn. The Education Opportunity Network is a project of the Institute for America’s Future, in partnership with the Opportunity to Learn Campaign.
The video is being widely distributed online by EON and other groups – to grassroots education activists and national organizations fighting against divisive education policy.
“We need to work together for student success. Let’s give our teachers and students the tools and resources they need to
The Disempowerment Of Public School Parents
By Jeff Bryant
“The parent trigger has been relentlessly marketed to parents and policy makers as an ‘empowerment’ that enables parents to conduct a petition campaign in their community to fire their school’s staff and change its governance. But what are the results? A new video “Parent Triggers: Another Reform Misfires,” released by the Education Opportunity Network, recently looked at the results of the parent trigger in Adelanto , California and found that rather then uniting parents in doing what’s best for children, the parent trigger brought deception, division, and disruption to the community.”
How Is This Not A National Scandal?
Dispatches From The Underclass
A Chicago blogger writes, “90 percent of students affected by public school closings in Chicago are African American, a rate that doesn’t match up with the city’s racial demographics … School closings are the latest trend among privatization and charter school advocates who seek to dismantle public education (and teachers unions) to turn a profit. So far they’ve been largely successful because it’s happening on the backs of poor black communities.”
Which States Have Academic Performance Targets That Vary By Race?
NBC News
“To date, the Department of Education has approved waivers from No Child Left Behind (NCLB) for 34 states and the District of Columbia. These waivers allow states to set new academic performance targets for their students, as long as they make substantial gains in reducing the achievement gap in six years. Because of this, 23 states have now set targets that vary by race.”
Sequestration Cuts Deep In Underfunded Rural Schools
National Education Association
“As the sequester cuts take effect, $9 million will be cut from funding set aside for rural schools alone. These schools will also face massive cuts to programs such as Title I funding for low-income schools and IDEA for special education … Rural schools are also serving a growing number of students … enrollment has risen by more than 22 percent … This growing population has been met with fewer and fewer resources for many of these schools.”
Voters Send Mixed Signals To School Reformers In L.A.
The Washington Post
”Voters keep sending signals that they have very mixed feelings about corporate-based school reform. The latest signs come from Los Angeles, where Tuesday’s races for three Board of Education seats resulted in one defeat, one win, and one runoff for supporters of school reform. The reason it matters is that Los Angeles is the second largest public school district in the country, and people around the country were watching the elections as a kind of bellwether.”
How Washington Could Make College Tuition Free (Without Spending a Penny More on Education)
The Atlantic
“With what the federal government spent on its various and sundry student aid initiatives last year, it could have covered the tuition bill of every student at every public college in the country … Instead of handing money to students and parents, the federal government could instead send the cash down to the states, on the condition that local legislatures kept per student funding at a certain level, and colleges lowered their tuition rates.”
Diane Ravitch Launches New Education Advocacy Counterforce
Education Week
“Education historian Diane Ravitch, a fierce critic of current education reform trends, is launching a new advocacy organization that will support political candidates who oppose high-stakes testing, mass school closures, and what her group calls the ‘privatizing’ of public schools. The new Network for Public Education is meant to counter state-level forces such as Democrats for Education Reform, Stand for Children, and Students First.”