Trumped Up Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all

Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all:

Trumped Up Diane Ravitch's blog

A site to discuss better education for all

Here is Andrew Coulson Series on Virtues of Privatization

2by dianeravitch / 29min

Watch libertarian Andrew Coulson’s film, now showing on some, not all, PBS stations around the nation. It was paid for by libertarian foundations that support privatization. The lead funder–the Rose-Mary and Jack Anderson 

Florida: Charter Operator Charged with Theft, Fraud

4by dianeravitch / 48min

When will the citizens of Florida say “Enough is enough”? When will taxpayers stop subsidizing frauds who open charter schools? The founder of a charter chain in Florida was charged with racketeering and fraud The founder of a 

Ohio: Vouchers Are Failing to Help Kids, but Legislature Wants to Expand Them

2by dianeravitch / 41min

Stephen Dyer of Innovation Ohio writes here that vouchers cost Ohio taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars every year, yet voucher students are performing worse than their peers in public schools. I don’t like writing these things. I really 

D.C.: Whether Public or Charter, Teachers Are Leaving at High Rates

2by dianeravitch / 54min

Thanks to G.F. Brandenburg for pointing me to this important post about teacher attrition rates in D.C. by Valerie Jablow. D.C., lest we forget, is one of the epicenters of corporate reform. In 2007, D.C. established mayoral control of the schools. Mayor Adrian Fenty hired Michelle Rhee and gave her full authority to remake the schools. Rhee stayed until Fenty was defeated at the next election in

Maurice Cunningham: Dark Money Combines to Privatize Public Schools: PLEASE READ THIS!

10by dianeravitch / 1h

This may be the most important post you read today. Maurice Cunningham, a professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts, began investigating the millions of dollars pouring into the state during the referendum on charter schools last fall. He wondered why so many billionaires from other states wanted to expand the number of charter schools in Massachusetts. He continued his in

Nancy Flanagan: The War on the Teaching Profession Is No Longer Covert

19by dianeravitch / 2h

In 2010, the corporate reform movement emerged as a national phenomenon. “Waiting for Superman” was the rage that fall, aided by a massive Gates-funded PR program, asserting that bad schools were caused by lazy, greedy teachers. Suddenly, the push for privately managed charter schools and attacks on teachers merged as a coherent “reform movement,” helped along by $5 billion in Race to the Top fed

YESTERDAY

Mike Klonsky: Rahm Emanuel Going to D.C. to Boast of His “Success” as a “Reformer”

11by dianeravitch / 12h

Mike Klonsky writes that it was another horrendous weekend of youth violence and murder in Chicago. And Rahm Emanuel, the mayor who will go down in history for closing 50 public schools in one day, is going to speak at the National Pres Clob about his punitive plan to withhold high school diplomas from students who can’t produce evidence of college acceptance or a job or enlistment in the militar

Help is On the Way! Education Law Center Launches “Voucher Watch”

21by dianeravitch / 17h

Legal teams will track voucher plans and file lawsuits against them. No public finds for private and religious schools. No public funds for private security forces, private firefighters, private swimming pools, private beaches, private parks. Public means public! Under democratic control. Open meetings. Financial transparency. Open to the public. VOUCHER WATCH LAUNCHED TO COMBAT USE OF PUBLIC FUN

Steve Zimmer Reflects on the Los Angeles School Board Election, the Most Expensive in American History

10by dianeravitch / 22h

Steve Zimmer has been on the Los Angeles Unified School Board for eight years. This spring he ran for re-election. He came close to the 50% mark in the first round, but didn’t cross it. In the runoff, turnout was very low (less than 10%), and he was beaten by Nick Melvoin, who was funded by the Billionaire Boys Club. He wrote these reflections on his defeat: Friends, It has been a month since the

Lubienskis: Why is Betsy DeVos Pushing Vouchers When Research Shows They Don’t Work?

59by dianeravitch / 23h

Christopher Lubienski and Sarah Lubienski are among the nation’s leading researchers on the subject of school choice. Their book, “The Public School Advantage: Why Public Schools Outperform Private Schools” is must reading. Christopher Lubienski is professor of education policy at Indiana University. Sarah Theule Lubienski is a professor of mathematics education at the University of Illinois at U

Duane Swacker Makes His Mark in Australia!

21by dianeravitch / 1d

Phil Cullen is a blogger in Australia, whose blog “The Treehorn Express” eloquently savages national standards and testing. Cullen discovered our reader Duane Swacker, who teaches in Missouri. Duane regularly lectures us on Noel Wilson’s devastating critique of standardized testing. I am happy to point out that Phil Cullen discovered Duane Swacker and introduced Noel Wilson’s thinking to many Aus

Carpe Diem Charter Schools, Once Lauded, Now Sinking

31by dianeravitch / 1d

The Carpe Diem charter chain started in Arizona in 2012. Google the chain, and you will find articles praising the promise of this school where students sat in cubicles with a computer, looking like a call-center. Flash forward to 2017, and it turns out that students don’t want to be taught in a call-center. The Hechinger Report, which wrote about the promise of the charter when it opened, discov

Marc Tucker: Trump’s Budget Takes from the Poor to Give to the Rich

17by dianeravitch / 1d

Marc Tucker says that Trump’s budget will not make America great again. It is a reverse Robin Hood plan, taking from the poor and giving to the rich. “The first reaction is all gut. The budget, on its face, would represent a gigantic 

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