Teacher Education under attack since 2011: Our Response!
In 2011 I posted the blog below and ticked off some of my teacher education colleagues. I received messages and notes and voice mails that proclaimed that speaking out in ways that are not “civil” does nothing but hurt our movement.
Well check it out and judge for yourself.
HELP! Where are all the credible teacher educators? Where all of my colleagues? Do you really think that hiding behind your “research” agenda shields you from the reality of this new push to destroy the American public school system along with quality teaching and learning? WAKE UP! PAY ATTENTION! The corporate reform movement is coming for you and me now.The NEA, NCATE, and as far as I can tell, our institutions of higher education that employ us now support “accountability” as defined by the Obama/Duncan Department of Education. As reported by Stephen Sawchuck, “Momentum appears to be gathering behind a U.S. Department of Education plan to hold teacher education programs accountable for the achievement of students taught by their graduates.” If you need to, go back and read that statement again and again until it sinks into your thick skulls.We are now going to be responsible for the test scores of children that end up being taught by our graduates. In other words, if my son fails and his teacher was your student, it’s now your fault! And if you don’t make the changes needed to help your students “teach” my son how to do well on his standardized tests you, your department, your school, and/or your college will be slapped and eventually shut down. When that happens please tell me about how important your “research” was.I’m sorry was I too harsh? Did I offend you (my colleagues)? Did I dare pick on your research? Yes I did. Now get over it and start speaking, writing and screaming about how “No Child Left Behind” for teacher education is at best a bone-headed idea and at worst an absolute assault on our academic freedom and an unethical attempt to make us do what we know is absolutely wrong.Remember NCLB? Yeah, some of you complained and some of you even managed to turn it into a productive line of research. And what was it that you complained about and what did all that research reveal? You complained that testing would not do anything to the achievement gap, that the curriculum will narrow, that the “least among us” would be hit hardest, and that linking student test scores to teachers and schools was problematic. Then after years of conducting research you found out that all of your complaints were substantiated. The achievement gap still exists, public school children now receive little to no instruction in the arts or the humanities, the children of poverty are bearing the brunt of this misguided ideological attack on public schools and value-added measures of teachers are extremely unreliable and the public reporting of these statistics causes harm to all involved with public education.It is our turn to join with the children, parents, teachers and public schools. All across the country there is an “Opt Out” movement occurring. Parents are refusing to allow their children to take standardized tests (here, here, here), teachers are refusing to administerthe tests, administrators are speaking out against the negative consequences associated with the tests, and some schools have actually stopped administering the tests.What should we do? How should we respond? Who’s willing to be the first teacher educator to say:“No. I opt out too. I will not abandon everything I know about children, teaching learning and schools. I refuse to take part in a rigged political system designed to dismantle public education and thwart democracy.”Isn’t it our turn to tune in and “opt out”?
It’s now 2015 and what has happened? How has all that silent civility worked out for teacherTeacher Education under attack since 2011: Our Response! | BustED Pencils: