Coffee 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:

Coffee with Diane Ravitch's blog

 A site to discuss better education for all

DeVos Will Scale Back Civil Rights Enforcement

19by dianeravitch / 1h

Betsy DeVos will scale back civil rights enforcement by the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights because they take too much time. “The Department of Education is scaling back investigations into civil rights 

Newtown Mother: “My Daughter Died at Sandy Hook School Elementary School Massacre”

by dianeravitch / 1min

A year or two after the horrific massacre of children, teachers, and the principal of the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, I began getting comments on the blog asserting that there was no massacre. I blocked those 

Thank You, Massachusetts Teachers Association, for Standing Up to Profiteers!

8by dianeravitch / 1h

The Massachusetts Teachers Association rejected the for-profit promotion of Depersonalized Learning! MTA delegates also adopted a resolution calling for full funding of public schools. Massachusetts is the highest performing state in 

Indianapolis: What the Public Schools Learned from the Charter Schools

1by dianeravitch / 7min

Indiana has been taken over by the forces of corporate school reform, under a succession of Republican governors devoted to school choice: Mitch Daniels, Mike Pence, now Eric Holcomb. The public schools got a brief respite when 

Jan Resseger: PBS Documentary “School Inc.” Is Libertarian Propaganda

2by dianeravitch / 14min

Jan Resseger, the great social justice advocate based in Ohio, reviewed the origins of Andrew Coulson’s “School Inc.” now airing on PBS. Resseger points out that the film was produced by “Free to Choose Media,” a libertarian group known for its production of Milton Friedman’s 10-part series based on his book of the same name. “On his blog The Grade, on the website of the Phi Delta Kappan, Alexand

California: Two Scandal-Ridden Charters Closed, Then Reopen with New Names

2by dianeravitch / 1h

The Los Angeles Unified School District closed down two charter schools that are part of the Celerity charter chain, because of financial abuses and mismanagement. The charters appealed to the charter-friendly State Board of Education, which rejected their appeal. With amazing speed, the two charters changed their names and will reopen in the same buildings with the same principals and most of th

Buzzfeed: DeVos Plans to Cancel Regulations that Protect College Students from Predatory For-Profit “Colleges”

6by dianeravitch / 2h

Betsy DeVos plans to withdraw federal regulations adopted during the Obama administration to protect college students from predatory for-profit colleges. “The Trump administration moved today to roll back two regulations designed to protect students against predatory for-profit colleges. “In federal filings, the Education Department said it would renegotiate the federal “gainful employment” rule,

North Carolina: Legislature Bars Rev. Barber from Entering Its Building

5by dianeravitch / 2h

Reverend William Barber, the nation’s most eminent civil rights leader at this time, has been barred from entering the Legislative building in North Carolina. http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article156649019.html Reverend Barber, the president of the state NAACP, has led the Moral Monday’s protests at the Capitol, where thousands of protestors meet in front of

YESTERDAY

New York: Contact Your State Senator to Stop School Privatization

12by dianeravitch / 20h

The State Senate in New York loves charters. They produce generous contributions from financiers and Wall Street. The State Senate is now holding hostage a deal to renew mayoral control unless Mayor De Blasio agrees to accept more charter schools. Don’t let them get away with it! More money for contractor schools that can choose their students and impose draconian discipline on children of color.

DeVos Invites Anti-LGBT Groups to Join Father’s Day Event in D.C.

28by dianeravitch / 22h

The DeVos family foundations have long supported (even helped to found) anti-gay groups. Betsy DeVos’s mother was one of the major contributors to Prop 8 in California, which declared gay marriage illegal. Her family members are on the boards of Focus on the Family and Family Research Council. At her confirmation hearings, DeVos was asked about her connections to these anti-LGBT organizations, an

Mercedes Schneider: Betsy and ALEC, Perfect Together

8by dianeravitch / 23h

Mercedes Schneider comments on the happy convergence of Betsy DeVos and the notorious anti-government ALEC. Their pro-corporate, profiteering views converge. https://deutsch29.wordpress.com/2017/06/13/in-her-element-us-ed-sec-betsy-devos-to-be-alec-guest-speaker/ Schneider knows ALEC well, having written about it in the past. ALEC writes model legislation for states that want to get rid of public

Betsy DeVos Will Speak at Annual ALEC Meeting in Denver, July 19-21

100+by dianeravitch / 1d

Our Secretary of School Privatization Betsy DeVos will address her colleagues in arms, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), in Denver during their annual conference in mid-July. DeVos couldn’t find time to meet with the Education Writers Association but she will always have time for ALEC, which is funded by rightwing billionaires and major corporations. ALEC writes model legislation

Chicago: Rahm Emanuel’s Zany Graduation Requirement Draws Mixed Notices

13by dianeravitch / 1d

Rahm Emanuel has a new plan: instead of funding the Chicago public schools, the Mayor–who controls the school system–has raised graduation requirements. Students cannot graduate unless they can prove they have post-secondary plans. Presumably, they will remain in high school for the rest of their lives if not. Dare we say it is doomed to fail? “In a radical policy change being referred to as ever

NYC: Mother Banned by Success Academy Because She Said “Damn” in Presence of Students

5by dianeravitch / 1d

Eva Moskowitz’s Harlem Success Academy Charter chain won the Broad award for its high test scores a few days ago. The next day, news broke that the mother of a child in fourth grade in a Success Academy Charter School in Brooklyn was 

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

Keeping retirement weird. I retired five years ago from teaching. Here’s how that day went. A post from 2012. | Fred Klonsky

Keeping retirement weird. I retired five years ago from teaching. Here’s how that day went. A post from 2012. | Fred Klonsky:

Keeping retirement weird. I retired five years ago from teaching. Here’s how that day went. A post from 2012.

June 8th 2012

We celebrated another end to another project at 9:30 this morning.

All of the students lined the main hallway. Then on cue the fifth grade girls and boys paraded down and out the front door to waiting parents taking pictures with their phones.

They are done with us. We are done with them. They are on to middle school.

In the span of ten weeks they will go from the mightiest to the lowliest.

As it has always been.

Most of them aren’t truly aware that this is the transition they are about to embark on. It may occur to them in early August. Then there will be a sense of terror for some as the realization sinks in.

But they will survive.

Some will return next year to say hi, seeking the feeling that you get eating comfort food.

Then they will disappear completely.

A few will come back their senior year in high school. They will show up and speak to their former teachers with a politeness we never thought possible when they sat in our classrooms.

However, they will not be speaking to me.

This year Karen, Cathy, Glenna and I paraded behind them.

We are the retirees.

Joining the parade was not our idea. The fifth grade teachers invited us. I thought it was a bit awkward. I felt this was the fifth graders’ moment. I had been honored enough with a series of Keeping retirement weird. I retired five years ago from teaching. Here’s how that day went. A post from 2012. | Fred Klonsky:

Cowardice in the Face of Hate – or how someone made me miss Randi Weingarten | JD2718

Cowardice in the Face of Hate – or how someone made me miss Randi Weingarten | JD2718:

Cowardice in the Face of Hate – or how someone made me miss Randi Weingarten

Randi Weingarten was a lousy UFT president. We never should have had a non-teacher as president. But that’s relatively minor. When she left, the union was far weaker than when she arrived. And that is huge.  Some of the details:  Under her tenure our big high schools were broken up, weakening the union, and making education WORSE for many students. And she didn’t just watch it happen, she participated.  Under her tenure, we had the 2005 contract, full of give-backs, rammed down our throats. The damage done in that “deal” lives with us today; seniority, innocent before being proven guilty, right to grieve… and the list goes on.

But there were positives. And one that stands out: on political endorsements we started considering where politicians stood on “human rights” (mostly revolved around gay and lesbian issues). We stopped supporting Dov Hikind and Serph Maltese and their ilk, just because they voted the right way on Political Action’s checklist. If they stood for hate, we wouldn’t stand with them. This was a battle. Previously the UFT supported incumbents mostly for being incumbents, checking a small number of votes, and not looking at their record beyond. That’s pretty lousy. But under Randi, we fixed that. Or I thought we did.

Fernando Cabrera peddles hate. I’m not going to say “homophobic” – let you decide. Maybe we should have known in 2009 when we endorsed him for City Council. Maybe we should have known in 2013 when we endorsed him for City Council. But in 2014, he announced it loud and clear. In Uganda.

Here’s the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSs8UQQgOVc

“Godly people are in government. Gay marriage is not accepted in this country. Even when the United States of America has put pressure and has told Uganda, ‘We’re not going to fund you anymore unless you allow gay marriage.’ And they have stood in their place. Why? Because the Christians have assumed the place of decision-making for the nation.  Abortions are illegal here. Things that Christians really stand for. Why? Because the Christians here took the opportunity to take their rightful place. So now the city here is rejoicing.”Cowardice in the Face of Hate – or how someone made me miss Randi Weingarten | JD2718:

What TFA Tells The New Recruits About ‘The System’ | Gary Rubinstein's Blog

What TFA Tells The New Recruits About ‘The System’ | Gary Rubinstein's Blog:

What TFA Tells The New Recruits About ‘The System’

The Teach For America mission statement does not mention the word teacher.  It reads “Our mission is to enlist, develop, and mobilize as many as possible of our nation’s most promising future leaders to grow and strengthen the movement for educational equity and excellence.”  I don’t remember exactly what year this happened, but at some point in the past 10 years they made a big deal about how they are a ‘leadership’ organization.  Certainly this wasn’t what they were saying back in 1991 when I started as a TFA corps member.

Each year TFA recruits a new cohort of these leaders, around four to five thousand a year in recent years.  When I think of what some of the qualities that a 22 year old leader would possess, I think that many, if not most, would be somewhat outspoken.  Yes, I know that you don’t have to be outspoken to be a leader, but I’d expect there to be some very vocal ones.  There would be at least a few who are writing blogs, who are mixing it up on Twitter, things like that.  One of the mysteries of TFA is how it is possible that none of the 4,000 leaders has any sort of public presence on social media.

I believe that TFA strongly discourages the new recruits from engaging on social media.  It What TFA Tells The New Recruits About ‘The System’ | Gary Rubinstein's Blog:

CURMUDGUCATION: FL: Death To Public Education

CURMUDGUCATION: FL: Death To Public Education:

FL: Death To Public Education

Let there be no doubt-- no state is more hostile to the very idea of public education than Florida.

Just a quick search through this blog will remind you of the many ways that Florida has spat on public education in the past. They tried to undermine the teaching of science. They have remained studiously devoted to the idea of the Big Standardized Test, even though they can't seem to get one right (and even to the point of cancelling actual education and requiring students to pledge allegiance to the test). But their devotion to the BS Test is so great that they hounded the mother of a dying child and went to court to keep children out of fourth grade who had demonstrated mastery of reading-- but not on the BS Test. They have committed to a merit pay plan (well, with every kind of commitment except funding) that is one of the dumbest and most insulting versions of the oft-disproven concept of merit pay ever seen. They have turned recess into a political football. They have stood in a courtroom and declared that teacher-given grades are meaningless.  They implement bad retail management practices in their education system. They serve as the home base for FEE, the astro-turf edu-group that was supposed to help propel Jeb! Bush to the White House (as well as other failed astro-turf for the Common Core failures). In the face of a teacher shortage, they got rid of tenure and have since used it make the shortage worse by purging teachers who speak upabout abuses they see. They host some of the research in How To Replace Teachers (and Students) With CGI Avatars, as well as some disastrously failed Gates "research" about teaching. They are pioneers in the destructive and not-remotely-useful A-F school grading system. And while they have pursued these new horizons in the destruction of public schools and the teaching profession, they've also kept the door open so that good old-fashioned racist underfunding of public schools can continue unimpeded.

But then, letting terrible crap happen without standing in its way (well, unless it's those third graders trying to avoid passing the Big Standardized Test) is what Florida does best. They have left the field for charter schools wide open, while doing their best to hamper public schools so that charters would look by comparison. Which is a challenge, because in Florida we have so many awesome charters to choose from. How about the charter that fired an English teacher for assigning actual reading?  How about a charter organization making money for a former model, but not CURMUDGUCATION: FL: Death To Public Education:

Be fearless, be proud, and develop x-ray vision

Be fearless, be proud, and develop x-ray vision:

Dear education graduates: Be fearless, be proud, develop x-ray vision

It was an honor to give the commencement speech to the Masters in Education graduates of San José State University. This is what I told them: 

I want to thank Miss Cabrie – and the College of Education and all of you for this invitation and for reminding me where I came from.

I remember sitting at my university just like you’re sitting here now.  That was 1980 – 37 years ago.  And I’m 39.

I look at you and it occurs to me that I have socks older than some of you people.

I’m old.  But I look good.  And I feel good.  And I’m excited about how you look.  You look like a garden.  You’re beautiful.  And what you’re about to do with your lives is beautiful.

Welcome to the most vital, most important, most influential profession in the universe.  Something in the world is going to change because of something you saw – something you do – some seed you plant in the mind of one of your students.

You won’t be alone.  You’ll have your colleagues.  You’ll have the CTA and you’ll have me at the NEA.  You’ll have parents and communities that respect you and the miracles you’ve been called on to perform.

You’ll have your students.  And they will love you. And you will love them… but not every day. 

But every now and then something will happen where you will see love – in the most frustrating, chaotic times…  you’ll feel it.  And it’ll make all the difference in the world.

And let me just say, this work is hard. And the rest of the world won’t always see that you’re making a difference.

There are a lot of politicians out there (bless their hearts) – (I found out you can pretty much say anything you want about someone if you say “bless their hearts” before you say it.)

A lot of politicians think they can judge what we do by a student’s standardized test score. I asked a group of high school students what they thought of that.

One guy raised his hand and said:  I get good grades if I have a good teacher.  I get good grades if I have a bad teacher.  I just get good grades ‘cause I’m really smart.

And I thought:  wow!  A+ in self-esteem.

A girl raised her hand and said: My worst year in school was when a lot was happening back home and I just kind of Be fearless, be proud, and develop x-ray vision: