KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG A site to discuss better education for all

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

KEEP UP/ CATCH UP WITH DIANE RAVITCH'S BLOG 

A site to discuss better education for all

Big Education Ape: My New Book Was Just Announced! | Diane Ravitch's blog -https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2019/05/my-new-book-was-just-announced-diane.html

Why I Do Not Support Cory Booker

by dianeravitch / 46min

Cory Booker has a long and well-documented record of disparaging public schools and enthusiastically supporting charters, even vouch ers. Now, he says he will dedicate himself to public schools and stop privatization, as if he had not been one of the leading cheerleaders for both charters and vouchers for the past two decades. Valerie Strauss wrote here about his deep ties over the years to Betsy

YESTERDAY

What Is Happening in America Today

61by dianeravitch / 20h

Bob Shepherd wrote this comment earlier today: “Terrible things are happening outside… poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes. Families are torn apart; men, women and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared.” – Anne Frank (Jan 13, 1943) The horror. The horror. What are we doing? What do we tell our children?

Cory Booker Promises to Abandon His Past Support for Charters and Vouchers

100+by dianeravitch / 21h

Cory Booker has been a devoted promoter of charters and vouchers for many years. He worked closely with Republican Governor Chris Christie and together they persuaded Mark Zuckerberg to pony up $100 million to promote the charterization of Newark. He often boasts about what he accomplished by privatizing public schools. But now that he wants to be president, he has suddenly decided that he will b

John Thompson: Oklahoma’s EPIC Charter Fraud

93by dianeravitch / 22h

Virtual charter schools are a disaster for students, but a honey pot for their operators—that is, until they get caught and face the music and possible jail time. John Thompson describes the epic fail of the EPIC virtual charter in Oklahoma. Ghost students, straw teachers, parent bonuses. What a scam. An Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation revealed that the co-founders of the state’s largest v

Mercedes Schneider Reviews a Book about Competition and Choice

by dianeravitch / 23h

Mercedes Schneider reviewed a book about “competitive school choice.” Kat e Phillippo , associate professor of cultural and educational policy studies at Loyola University Chicago’s School of Education, published a book in March 2019, entitled, A Contest Without Winners: How Students Experience Competitive School Choice. In her book, Phillippo offers details from the experiences of 36 Chicago Pub

Yong Zhao: The Achievement Gap Mania in America

48by dianeravitch / 1d

Yong Zhao is one of the scholars I admire most. He turns out book after book, each saturated with remarkable scholarship and learning. He is also a superb speaker, who fills his lectures with learning and humor. He recently posted the introduction to a book he published last year called Reach for Greatness. In it, he wrote about America’s obsession with “the achievement gap,” which is based on th

AUG 08

Trump Is Incapable of Consoling Anyone in Their Grief

46by dianeravitch / 1d

Trump cannot perform one of the basic roles of a president: Showing empathy for others who are in pain. He cannot console anyone. Consolation and empathy are not part of his emotional makeup. He can insult, he can sneer, he can boast, he can ridicule, but he cannot console. When he went to El Paso, he told the hospital staff about the large crowd he had when he last visited the city. He mocked Be

Harold Meyerson: Walmart and Guns, 2

by dianeravitch / 1d

AUGUST 8, 2019 Meyerson on TAP Walmart and Guns, Part II. In my Tuesday On Tap , I noted that a number of Walmart employees, in the wake of the mass murder at an El Paso mega-store, had begun expressing concern about the company’s policy of selling guns (Walmart is the nation’s leading gun retailer) and allowing open carry in stores in the states that permit it. That discontent is now ballooning.

Bill Phillis: Online For-Profit Charters Are Corrupt

100+by dianeravitch / 1d

‌ ‌ ‌ Oklahoma’s Epic Charter Schools seems to be as creative in fraud as Ohio’s ECOT Epic gave the State Superintendent $23,000 in campaign donations. The Education Department did not investigate Epic’s fraudulent practices . Epic had ghost students. Epic paid $800-$1000 to each student who didn’t enroll in a public school. One family with 10 children received $8000 and then withdrew the childre

Which Democratic Candidates Are the 1% Supporting?

29by dianeravitch / 1d

Forbes very helpfully published a list of the candidates who have received contributions from billionaires. Here it is . Are you surprised?

“Stand for Children” Folds in Massachusetts

67by dianeravitch / 1d

Once upon a time, long ago, a man named Jonah Edelman founded a group called Stand for Children. Edelman had instant credibility because he was the son of civil rights leader Marion Wright Edelman. Somewhere, somehow, around 2009, Stand for Children decided to change its focus. So it became a grantee of the Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation, and an advocate for charter schools, hi

Oklahoma: Officials Can’t Track “Ghost Students” in Online Charter School Scandal

30by dianeravitch / 1d

How does a state determine whether students on a virtual school’s rolls exist? Oklahoma can’t . Oklahoma investigators believe Epic Charter Schools embezzled money by inflating its enrollment with homeschool and private school students. Because of the state’s dedication to privacy, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister says the alleged abuse would not have been preventable und

Alert: Koch Brothers Are Paying Operatives to Sow Discord in NAACP

73by dianeravitch / 2d

Rebecca Klein, education editor of Huffington Post, broke the story that rightwing groups have infiltrated NAACP chapters in California to create a fake rebellion against the organization’s 2016 call for a moratorium on new charters. The resolution passed by the National Civil Rights Group demands a halt until charters agree to be accountable, to cease diverting money from public schools, and to

AUG 07

Pastors for Texas Children: Love in Action

by dianeravitch / 2d

A Message from our friends in Texas: “Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.” -1 John 3:18 Our Texas community is still reeling from the news of the recent shooting in El Paso. As faith leaders across our state, we are devastated by the violence and loss of life that has affected so many. Instead of our usual update this week, we wanted to offer you encourag

Joe Biden Gave a Great Speech in Iowa Today

by dianeravitch / 2d

I was driving home from a friend’s memorial service held in Salisbury, Connecticut, and I tuned in to CNN, where I heard the live broadcast of a speech by Joe Biden. He was in Burlington, Iowa. It was about American values, what we stand for, what our ideals are, and how Trump has betrayed those ideals and appealed to the darkest forces in our society. Trump is a propagandist and apologist for ra

What You Should Know About Marion Brady

by dianeravitch / 2d

Marion Brady has been fighting for progressive education reform for many decades. He is still fighting. To learn more about him and his ideas, open this link.

Gary Rubinstein: Do YOU Know Any of the 100 Names of TFA Alumni on This List?

24by dianeravitch / 2d

Gary Rubinstein doesn’t believe Teach for America’s claim that 85% of its alumni are either working in education or serving low-income communities. He has pulled a random sample of 100 names of TFA’s earliest recruits from its directory. Do you know any of them?

My Talk with a Defector from the Rich Reformer Club

86by dianeravitch / 2d

I was thrilled to read the recent article by Nick Hanauer in The Atlantic, where he publicly announced his defection from the blame-public-Schools-first club. He realized that schools alone can’t “fix” poverty and that the biggest problem in our society is income inequality and wage stagnation. I know of Nick Hanauer as someone who has given millions of dollars to promote charter schools, and now

Network for Public Education: Report of the Grassroots Education Network

22by dianeravitch / 2d

The Network for Public Education is fortunate to have Marla Kilfoyle as director of its Grassroots Education Network. Marla previously was national executive director of the Badass Teachers Association and a full-time teacher. Would your group like to join the Grassroots Education Network? Contact Marla Kilfoyle at marlakilfoyle@networkforpubliceducation.org. Here is her report on current activit

Joe Biden: Where Does He Stand on Race to the Top?

200+by dianeravitch / 3d

I have not endorsed a candidate, and I will vote for anyone nominated by the Democratic party to run against Trump. He is the worst, most ignorant, most unqualified president in our history, and we cannot have four more years of his vile policies. I am expressing my views about the candidates in the Democratic primaries and will continue to do so. I am not a one-issue voter but I sincerely hope t

AUG 06

Harold Meyerson on Walmart and Guns

100+by dianeravitch / 3d

Did you know that Walmart is the single biggest seller of guns in America? Did you know that Walmart allows customers who are carrying guns to walk through the stores without hindrance? Of course you know that Walmart does not allow unions. See how all these issues converge in this short article by Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect. The Walton Family, which owns Walmart, is the richest fam

California: Charter Industry Furious At State Superintendent Tony Thurmond for Trying to Reform Charter Law

37by dianeravitch / 3d

Bill Raden of Capital & Main reports that the charter industry and its lobby are steaming mad at State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, who actually wants to increase charter accountability. The California Charter Schools Association has consistently fought accountability and transparency. No matter how many scandals and outright embezzlement, the charter lobby wants no regulat

Texas: Don’t Take Over Houston’s Public Schools

by dianeravitch / 3d

State takeovers of struggling school districts have a very poor track record. Two education leaders in Houston call on state officials to support the Houston Independent School District, not to dissolve local control. Ruth Kravetz is co-founder of Community Voices for Public Education and Zeph Capo is President of the Texas AFT. They speak out for democracy. I have a stake in HISD. I attended pub

Note to the National NAACP: Ignore Michael Bloomberg

59by dianeravitch / 3d

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg spoke to the national convention of the NAACP about why they should believe in the saving power of privately managed charter schools . He tried to persuade them to rescind their brave 2016 resolution calling for a moratorium on new charters. This thoughtful report explains why the NAACP called for a moratorium. The NAACP deserves our thanks for its resolution and sho

Why Michael Bennett Should NOT Be the Democratic Candidate

300+by dianeravitch / 4d

Mitchell Robinson, professor of music education at Michigan State University, sends out a warning that Michael Bennett is pure Corporate Reformer. Robinson reminds us that Bennett has more in common with Secretary Betsy DeVos than he wants you to know. Michael Bennet, US Senator from Colorado and presidential candidate, had what the pundits this morning are calling “a moment” at [the second] Demo

AUG 05

Trump Calls on Nation to Condemn “Racism, Bigotry, and White Supremacy.” I Therefore Condemn Donald Trump.

100+by dianeravitch / 4d

What an irony to hear Donald J. Trump calling on the nation to condemn “racism, bigotry, and white supremacy.” No one has done more to inflame racism, to encourage bigots, and to bring White Supremacists into the mainstream than Trump. No need to recite the evidence. We have all seen it, beginning in Charlottesville when he praised the “very fine people” among the White Supremacists. Or to rememb

In the Public Interest: Inside the LA Teachers’ Strike

100+by dianeravitch / 4d

The photograph below was taken during the UTLA strike last January. The guy in the center is famous rocker Stevie Van Zandt, who loves teachers and public schools and unions. Stevie is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He played in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band. Stevie is constantly giving back, and he gave back in Los Angeles, where he picketed in the rain. Stevie will be a feature

Florida: Principal Doubles Salary When Public School Turns Charter

400+by dianeravitch / 4d

What a payoff! A principal in Florida doubled his salary when his public schools converted to a charter , which is what the rightwing governor and legislator want to happen. Meanwhile teachers In the state are raising money to pay for basic school supplies for their students. Lincoln Memorial Academy principal Eddie Hundley, the subject of a federal investigation, earned more than twice the avera

Julian Vasquez Heilig: New Study Concludes That Charters Have a Segregation Problem

by dianeravitch / 4d

Julian Vasquez Heilig reports here on a new stud y about segregation and charter schools in which he is one of the authors. The other authors are Jameson Brewer and Yohuru Williams. Here is an abstract of the study: Abstract: We conduct descriptive and inferential analyses of publicly available Common Core of Data (CCD) to examine segregation at the local, state, and national levels. Nationally,

Why I Like Steve Bullock as a Democratic Candidate

200+by dianeravitch / 5d

Steve Bullock, governor of Montana, entered the Democratic primaries late, and to most people he is a complete unknown. At NPE Action, we have been watching Steve Bullock with admiration, because he has been a stand-up guy for public schools in his state. He has been governor of the state since 2012. He beat a pro-privatization billionaire in 2016. Montana is a red state. Bullock is a pro-public

AUG 04

NPE Action Rates the Presidential Candidates

47by dianeravitch / 5d

The Network for Public Education Action is grading the presidential candidates. If you want to keep track, read here. “For an explanation of why the candidates received the grades they did, click on their names to the left.” Ratings may change as candidates express their views. If you attend a town hall and learn more about a candidate’s views, let us know. Contact Darcie Cimarusti, Research Asso

Vox: Andrew Yang Promised to Create 100,000 New Jobs; He Failed

67by dianeravitch / 5d

Andrew Yang, now on the presidential candidates’ stage in the Democratic debates, made a bold promise: He would create 100,000 new jobs with startups, based on the model of Teach for America. His program is called Venture for America. He failed. So far, he has created 4,000 new jobs and still struggling. This parallels TFA’s bold promise to “close the achievement gap” and change the trajectory of

How to Buy a Gun in Fifteen Countries

by dianeravitch / 5d

This post originally appeared on March 3, 2018. The United States has minimal requirements for buying a gun. Although some cities restrict gun ownership, guns are readily available in most states and at gun shows and on the Internet. A purchaser might buy a gun in less than an hour. Other countries have established high barriers to gun ownership . It is possible to buy a gun but not easy. Japan 1

Justice John Paul Stevens on Gun Control

61by dianeravitch / 6d

I posted this originally on March 2, 2018, after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote a series of essays about the Supreme Court and its treatment of important issues like gun control. The Washington Post excerpted one of them here, in 2014. “Following the massacre of grammar-school children in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012,

Mark Funkhouser: Why The Media Should Print Graphic Images of Gun Violence

by dianeravitch / 6d

Mark Funkhouser writes here about the educational value of showing what gun violence does. Publish the pictures. The media usually censors disturbing images. We need to be disturbed.

AUG 03

El Paso: The Latest Massacre

85by dianeravitch / 6d

What can you say when the gun violence becomes a regular occurrence? What do you say when the politicians funded by the NRA offer their ritual “thoughts and prayers” while making clear that they have no intention of demanding new gun laws to stop the carnage? No ban on assault weapons. No background checks. No mandatory training. No limits on who can buy a weapon. This is madness. The killer post

Peter Greene Enjoyed Reading “Wisdom and Wit”

by dianeravitch / 6d

Peter Greene enjoyed reading the collection of my essays published by Garn Press. He is a discerning reader and a no-nonsense critic. To earn his approval is high praise indeed. I am immensely flattered by his comments.

Alabama Education Association Sues Gulen School, Alleges Fraud

100+by dianeravitch / 6d

The Alabama Education Association has filed a lawsuit against a proposed charter school associated with the Gulen Movement. The school, Woodland Prep, applied to open in rural Washington County. The state hired the National Alliance for “Public” Charter Schools to review charter applicants, and it rejected the proposal. The state charter commission approved it anyway. Local people were outraged a

Michael Kohlhaas: Did LAUSD Board Member Nick Melvoin Share Confidential Information with Charter School Lobby?

30by dianeravitch / 6d

Michael Kolhaas is going through his treasure trove of leaked emails and discovered some that are very embarrassing to Nick Melvoin of the Los Angeles Unified School District board. He says that Melvoin as a member of the board was privy to the LAUSD legal strategy in its perennial struggle with the charter lobby. He says that Melvoin shared this strategy with the charter lobby. Very ugly. He beg

Jeff Bryant: Teacher Outrage Helped to Topple Government in Puerto Rico

44by dianeravitch / 7d

Jeff Bryant wrote a must-read overview of the disastrous effort to privatize the public schools in Puerto Rico (the New Orleans of the Caribbean?), and the role of teachers in ousting the government. He writes: Puerto Rico’s school 

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