This letter came by email from a teacher in Massachusetts. Evidently, the Commissioner of Education believes there are some bad, bad teachers in his state, and he wants the power to remove them quickly. Bear in mind that by
Broad Coalition of Lawmakers, Parents, Educators to Speak Out Monday in Capitol About 3 Bills Needed to Halt Waste, Fraud and Secrecy in Charter Schools Media Teleconference on SB 808, AB 1478, AB 1360 Set for Same Time
This article was written by Dan Currie, a member of Pastors for Texas Children. He explains that the real goal of the school choice movement is to eliminate public schools. He writes: Many years ago, Jerry Falwell articulated the goal of the school choice movement well when he said, “I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won’t have any public schools. The chur
Reader Michael Fiorello commented on an article about charter schools. It is no accident that the Walton family (the richest family in America, thanks to Walmart) is spending $200 million annually on charter schools. It is not about
If you were irked by Checker Finn’s article calling for an end to teacher tenure, you will enjoy Mercedes Schneider’s biting commentary on “tenure” at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. She opens up the tax returns of TBF and reveals executive salaries. Working for a think tank in D.C. pays far more than teaching. I was a founding board member of TBF, back when it started. Checker’s father was chai
In the wake of Betsy and Randi’s visit together to a public school in Ohio, Russ Walsh reflects on how school choice affects democracy. Every dollar that goes to a charter or voucher is taken away from public schools like those they visited. “Choice” means budget cuts to the public school, and it means that public dollars go to privately controlled schools. “While the school that DeVos and Weinga
This is not a new article but it remains timely and worthy of your attention. Jeb Bush runs an organization called the Foundation for Educational Excellence. Betsy DeVos was a member of his board. FEE receives corporate contributions. It works closely with ALEC, the rightwing corporate-sponsored organization that lobbies for charters, vouchers, and against teachers’ unions and tenure. In the Publ
Deborah Meier created an oasis of child-centered education at Central Park East 1?in East Harlem. Parents from out-of-district enrolled. It was different from other public schools. Deborah Meier left, convinced that her school was in safe hands. But the system took control. The system does not like rebellion. Parents are now protesting a principal determined to quash Deborah Meier’s vision. Arthu
Mike Klonsky says: Nothing. You cannot turn a sow’s ear into a silk purse. http://michaelklonsky.blogspot.com/2017/04/randis-school-visit-gambit-with-betsy.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+mikeklonsky+(SmallTalk)&m=1
The State Commissioner of Education MaryEllen Elia has scheduled a hearing on whether to remove Buffalo school trustee Carl Paladino for racially offensive remarks made last December in print. As Leonie Haimson writes here, there is another reason to discipline the billionaire real estate developer. He violated student privacy laws.
Ruminations on Earth Day in the Trump era, by SomeDam Poet: “How I plan to celebrate earth day” For Earth Day Forty Seven I plan to chop a tree To honor Earthly Heaven I’ll drill in Arctic sea I’ll open up a pipeline That brings the oil to you Pollute the river lifeline With tar and other goo I’ll bring back dirty coal And with it, lung disease The things enviros stole Through hugging of the tree
Tim Slekar regularly posts podcasts of high value to the resistance, to those fighting privatization and high stakes testing. This episode features an interview with Sarah Mondale and Vera Aronow, the veteran filmmakers whose new documentary tells the story of the organized assault on public education. Please take he time to listen. In 2001, Mondale and Aronow made a four-part documentary called
Donald Cohen, executive director of the nonprofit group In the Public Interest, wrote the following ( co-posted in Huffington Post ): Conservatives seem to have a thing for fast food. The founder of what would eventually become the country’s largest private prison corporation, CoreCivic (formerly CCA), once declared , “You just sell [private prisons] like you were selling cars or real estate or h
New York Commissioner MaryEllen Elia has scheduled a hearing to consider the removal of Buffalo School Board member Carl Paladino, who made vile comments about President and Mrs. Obama last winter. The hearing will be held on June 22. Last December, Paladino was invited to participate in a published discussion of “hopes for 2017.” His response began like this: 1. Obama catches mad cow disease aft
A follower of this blog contacted me recently to share a video on YouTube that outraged her. She explained that she is blind and so are her two children. She is also a lawyer, who has overcome many obstacles to achieve an education and a profession. She was outraged because this video featured a young man who said he was blind and that he was unable to get the support he needed in public schools.
