Big Data – Big Mess
Folks, the dollar is collapsing. Fort Knox is empty (maybe). The American dollar is on its way out as the reserve currency for the world. The IMF is considering a basket of currencies as a replacement. Google has other plans. They appear to be betting that data will be the new currency and they are mining it like the dickens right now.
Money is useful to get people to do things you want them to do. Data can accomplish the same goal only it can be used as both a positive and negative motivator, unlike money which is only a positive motivator. If I know a lot about you I can use that information to subtly steer you towards certain purchases or behaviors, like Cass Sunstein talked about in “Nudge”, or I can threaten you into an action with negative information I have about you. Information is power. Big data means big power. And it doesn’t even have to be real or accurate.
Every state took State Fiscal Stabilization funds and set up State Longitudinal Data Systems to track all kinds of information on students. This was supposed to help improve their education somehow. Teachers, school districts, parents and states were supposed to get all these wonderful reports at their finger tips that would tell them what needed to be done to get their students to the desired “student achievement level.” Unfortunately, “Results may vary”, “These results are not typical” and “Please do not attempt, product shown being used by professional on a closed course” should be mandatory disclaimers on all state run data bases.
This story from Louisiana is just one example of the problems that can and do occur with these data bases. Untold Data Crisis at LDOE. The post by a data insider details problems with the state data system that stem from cronyism, hiring cheap but unqualified labor, and the incredible Big Data – Big Mess | Missouri Education Watchdog:
Common Core Humorous Hypocrisy
Do you want a laugh to get your weekend started? Take a look at this tweet: I was holding my sides laughing as I replied: @NOLAnews Hilarious! Irony at its finest! CCSS adoption/implementation worst overreach ever! Bypassed voters/legislatures. #stopcommoncore Can you believe these groups actually believe what they have signed on to? […]
The Common Core Chess Game. Is it Time for the Anti-Common Core Checkmate?
Denis Ian wants us to look at the Common Core State Standards Initiative rollout and current state of CCSS affairs as a chess game. Denis is a retired high school teacher who taught Economics, English and Global History for 34 years in the same public school district in Westchester, NY. Reprinted with permission: *************************************************************************** […]
JUN 12
The Only Important Common Core Accountability Measurement: “Watoto Wazima?” (How Are the Children Doing?)
When Tanzanians meet each other, one of the questions traditionally adults ask each other is Watoto Wazima? (How are the Children Doing?) The graphics above and below are from In Our Village: Through the Eyes of its Youth. Do Americans focus as much on that question: How are the Children Doing? or are they […]
JUN 11
The Common Core Chuztpah of Bill Gates & CCSSO
During the Washington Post’s March 2014 interview with Bill Gates, reporter Lyndsey Layton asked him what he thought about being called “the unelected superintendent of the country”. Gates did not appreciate such a question and insisted Layton was making the interview political vs substantive. Perhaps he had second thoughts about that title. Has he […]
JUN 10
Merit Pay For College Professors
Merit pay is the concept of paying someone for the value they actually produce, not just a salary for showing up every day. An employee is measured against the contribution they are expected to make, usually a specific target like a sales goal or production goal, and paid based on how close they came to […]
JUN 09
Bill Gates Insists that His Common Core Philanthropy is Not For Any Self-Interest
Bill Gates insists in a Washington Post article that his philanthropy is not for any personal gain. Maybe it’s for the destruction of a representative government? That’s how the Common Core State Standards Initiative adoption and implementation occurred: it was the circumvention of the political process and certainly transformed the way our public education systems […]
JUN 08
Common Core Does Include Data Collection. It’s the Foundation for the Data & Accountability Systems.
Put away those tin foil hats. It’s confirmed. Data tracking will be done (if it’s not already) on your child without your permission. Here’s a memo to the Common Core proponents: stop telling us the Common Core State Standards Initiative is “only standards” and has nothing to do with data. From the lead in to […]
JUN 07
An Incentive Program for the Feds
Race To the Top was the Federal Incentive program for states to adopt common core and the assessments. Maybe what they need now is a state developed incentive program for them to clean up their act. Utah lawmakers are considering dropping their request for an extension of their No Child Left Behind waiver. This could […]