NANCY BAILEY: The Racism Behind Firing Librarians and Closing School Libraries

The Racism Behind Firing Librarians and Closing School Libraries

The Racism Behind Firing Librarians and Closing School Libraries

Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.  ~Frederick Douglass

If a school has no school library or a flimsy excuse for a library, students are denied access to books and reading material. They miss opportunities to learn information and become proud of who they are. Look for racism behind the decision.

When school districts diminish school libraries and those who run them, they fail to address the critical issues involving history, civics, and race relations. With all the talk of schools and equity, it’s unconscionable that closing school libraries and firing school librarians are accepted practices.

In May 2020, the Washington D.C. school district passed a $70 million budget increase. In January 2021, the American Rescue Plan infused over $368 million of COVID relief and new aid to DC Schools. Today, school librarians there are begging to keep their jobs. Here’s the petition!

The dismal account of dwindling libraries and librarians is happening across the nation, especially in poor schools and schools with children of color. If your child’s school CONTINUE READING: The Racism Behind Firing Librarians and Closing School Libraries

NANCY BAILEY: Where’s the Biden Administration on School Problems Facing Students, Teachers, and Parents?

Where’s the Biden Administration on School Problems Facing Students, Teachers, and Parents?

Where’s the Biden Administration on School Problems Facing Students, Teachers, and Parents?

The pandemic showed us that public schools are critical. Understandably, Covid-19 has been front and center. But the Biden administration glosses over or is silent on critical school issues. Sometimes these topics are front and center not in a good way in State legislatures or ignored altogether.

Frustrated parents will seek alternatives, and there’s a real risk that public education will be no more.

Where’s the discussion? Here’s a list in alphabetical order. Your suggestions, ideas, or criticisms are welcome.

The Arts

How many children get access to art, music, drama, even dance in their public schools? We know that when students get the arts, they thrive.

Students artistically inclined who don’t get the arts in their schools will go elsewhere if their parents can afford private school. All students should have a quality arts program.

Why is this still an issue?

Charter Schools

The Biden administration mentions the importance of regulating charter schools, but CONTINUE READING: Where’s the Biden Administration on School Problems Facing Students, Teachers, and Parents?

NANCY BAILEY: The Loss That Matters This Mother’s Day

The Loss That Matters This Mother’s Day

The Loss That Matters This Mother’s Day

The loss important to understand this year, the most critical loss, is not learning loss. It involves the loss many children are facing after losing a mom or dad to Covid-19. Or it could be a grandma or grandpa, a beloved aunt or uncle, or sister or brother, even a friend.

On this Mother’s Day, how many children are grieving the loss of their mother? On Father’s Day, how many will be missing their dad?

We’re told that between 37,000 and 43,000 children in the United States have lost at least one parent to COVID-19. According to the University of Southern California, this is a 20% increase in parental loss over a typical year.

A loss will affect how students look at school, how they take tests, and how they recapture a sense of normalcy as school buildings reopen and they gather once again in person if they are not already in the school building. School and life for them will never be the same.

Parental loss due to Covid-19 has been found more in the black community. Children are called Covid Orphans.

Children may be troubled simply due to the fear and anguish caused by the strangeness CONTINUE READING: The Loss That Matters This Mother’s Day

NANCY BAILEY: The Covid-19 Tech v. Teacher Tug of War and Teacher Appreciation

The Covid-19 Tech v. Teacher Tug of War and Teacher Appreciation

The Covid-19 Tech v. Teacher Tug of War and Teacher Appreciation

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week, time to thank a teacher before there are no teachers to thank. Not only did teachers have Covid-19 fears to contend with this past year, keeping their students and themselves safe, but they’ve also gone through a tug of war since the start of the pandemic.

A year ago, teachers were forced to quickly embrace remote learning, to rely on the technology many want to see replace them. What must it be like to know that the machine you’ve been forced to depend on for safety could have your job in the future?

Teachers chose to focus on protecting their students, themselves, and their families from the virus.

But those who have been watching and researching public school “disruption,” who’ve understood for years that elites want the future of education to be online only, reducing teachers to facilitators, were alarmed to see this abrupt reliance on screens due to Covid-19.

They feared the pandemic would lead to nothing but online learning in public schools CONTINUE READING: The Covid-19 Tech v. Teacher Tug of War and Teacher Appreciation

NANCY BAILEY: We Need Clarity and Consistency From the President When it Comes to Democratic Public Schools

We Need Clarity and Consistency From the President When it Comes to Democratic Public Schools

We Need Clarity and Consistency From the President When it Comes to Democratic Public Schools

President Biden has accomplished much in his first 100 days. He’s a caring President when this is especially needed. There’s much to like about the President’s ideas and, here, for education, but his speech did not highlight some major concerns. He talked strongly about democracy, but he missed the chance to make important points about democratic public schools and teachers.

Here is the transcript of the President’s speech.

Why are clarity and consistency about schools so important?

The President once told educators and parents that he would end high-stakes testing, teaching to the test. However, earlier this year, the Biden administration said states must still test even after a year of disruption due to the pandemic.

Also, preschool is important, but in his speech, President Biden emphasized competition and the workforce. Most teachers and parents dislike connecting the economy, the workforce to children, especially using preschool.

This is the same old talk of previous Presidents, pandering to business. It doesn’t solve the nitty-gritty problems facing schools and teachers, difficulties that need to be fixed if CONTINUE READING: We Need Clarity and Consistency From the President When it Comes to Democratic Public Schools

NANCY BAILEY: Will America Invest in Public School Buildings, Finally?

Will America Invest in Public School Buildings, Finally?

Will America Invest in Public School Buildings, Finally?

How will the Biden administration manage a public school facelift? Is $100 billion enough? Will communities see a windfall of funding dedicated to this purpose? Will corporate partnerships help? Will Americans see it as an equity issue?

Covid-19 showed Americans the importance of public schools, but they still might not understand the crumbling conditions found in many of those buildings. How many teachers and students face substandard classrooms?

Epidemiologists and pediatricians continue to speak about classroom mitigation strategies like they’re easy, while teachers frantically describe sealed windows or classrooms with no windows. Overcrowded classrooms make safe instruction unthinkable. Lousy HVAC systems in schools became a national disgrace.

America’s schools have been allowed to deteriorate for years. Even newer school buildings have depreciated due to deferred maintenance. Powerful people want students to prove they can do well on tests, but they don’t consider how the conditions CONTINUE READING: Will America Invest in Public School Buildings, Finally?

NANCY BAILEY: Acceleration: The Meaning Behind the Buzzword

Acceleration: The Meaning Behind the Buzzword

Acceleration: The Meaning Behind the Buzzword

Acceleration is the new pandemic buzzword brought to you by pro-privatization school reformers. Students may have missed some in-person schooling, even though most learned remotely or in person. Still, the frenzy surrounding learning loss is mounting.

The pandemic has given rise to a new way to reframe the old learning gap talk, with new terminology, acceleration. If students have missed out on schoolwork, they’re told they need to accelerate and catch up if they’ve fallen behind.

The fear is that the pandemic will be used as an excuse to push students harder. Poor students will bear the brunt of this, a doubling down on strictness.

But all students are affected when advanced learning disregards a child’s development.

This message has festered for years, starting with No Child Left Behind. Failure was not an option, we were told, as they continually raised the ante. If students did well, the test CONTINUE READING: Acceleration: The Meaning Behind the Buzzword

Nancy Bailey: Why I Write About Students and Public Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog

Nancy Bailey: Why I Write About Students and Public Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog

Nancy Bailey: Why I Write About Students and Public Schools

Nancy Bailey is a retired teacher and a terrific blogger. She and I co-authored a book called EdSpeak and DoubleTalk: A Glossary to Decipher Hypocrisy and Save Public Schooling. We have never met in person but I asked her to help me revise a similar book that I published a decade earlier; it had become obsolete. Now it is the go-to book to understand education jargon and decipher hoaxes. It was a joy to work with her. Nancy wrote this post for me while I was out of commission having surgery.

Why I Write About Students and Public Schools

Democratic Public Schools

Ensuring that the public has access to good public schools after Covid-19 is more critical than ever. We cannot go back to continuous high-stakes testing and schools that punish teachers and students, especially our youngest learners. Schools should also not be allowed to continue to collect unregulated data through online CONTINUE READING: Nancy Bailey: Why I Write About Students and Public Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog

NANCY BAILEY: President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Should Include Teachers! Here’s Why

President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Should Include Teachers! Here’s Why

President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Should Include Teachers! Here’s Why

It’s good that President Biden is focusing on updating school buildings in his infrastructure plan. But there’s another crisis his administration should address. America needs a national movement to get well-prepared teachers into our public school classrooms.

The teaching profession has been in crisis mode for years. Much of this crisis has been generated by wealthy groups and individuals, venture philanthropists, who want to see technology replace teachers. They often use the term equity, but real equity isn’t found on a computer. Children need to see diversity face-to-face in the classroom, including real teachers of color.

It’s time to restore dignity to the profession and ensure that every child has access to qualified teachers, teachers who look like they do, care about what and how they learn like children should be cared about. Who are willing to choose teaching as a long-time career. Students need to know that their teachers are committed to them for the long haul.

This should include revisiting the Every Student Succeeds Act.

From Educational Leadership:

The Highly Qualified Teacher requirements (which stipulated that you must hold at least a bachelor’s degree from a four-year institution, be fully certificated or licensed by the state, and demonstrate competence in each core academic subject area in which CONTINUE READING: President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Should Include Teachers! Here’s Why

NANCY BAILEY: Why Do So Many Children Have Dyslexia? What is it Exactly?

Why Do So Many Children Have Dyslexia? What is it Exactly?

Why Do So Many Children Have Dyslexia? What is it Exactly?

Many parents and educators raise concerns about dyslexia, and some are pushing for state laws for students with dyslexia in schools.

But why do so many children have dyslexia? What is it exactly? What causes it?

Prevalence

LD Online states that a staggering 5 to 15 percent of Americans—14.5 to 43.5 million children and adults—have dyslexia, a learning disability that makes it difficult to read, write, and spell, no matter how hard the person tries or how intelligent he or she is. 

The British Dyslexia Association claims the number of individuals with dyslexia in the UK; they call a lifelong condition, is around 10 percent.

The Dyslexia International Association states…perhaps as many as 15–20% of the population as a whole—have some of the symptoms of dyslexia, including slow or inaccurate reading, poor spelling, poor writing, or mixing up similar words.

That’s a lot of people who struggle to read, but why?

What is Dyslexia? 

The International Dyslexia Association says they need to create a new definition. We now know that dyslexia is real; we know what it is and what to do about it. Is CONTINUE READING: Why Do So Many Children Have Dyslexia? What is it Exactly?

NANCY BAILEY: Covid-19 School Contradictions, Confusion, and Mistrust

Covid-19 School Contradictions, Confusion, and Mistrust

Covid-19 School Contradictions, Confusion, and Mistrust

Covid-19 is a strange phenomenon without any proven how-to guides. Recommendations and contradictions surrounding Covid-19 and schools have raised uncertainty. When there’s a lack of clarity, people become suspicious of what they’re told, and they wonder what and who to believe.

Parents and Teachers Can’t Agree

Many parents believe schools are safe, few children get sick, Covid-19 is not real or not as bad as it’s made to sound, and teachers’ unions are remiss for their caution about in-person learning.

On the other hand, persons of color are hesitant to send their children back to school.

According to Mother Jones:

The pandemic has dealt a disproportionately heavy blow to Black Americans. According to CDC data published in September, Black youth accounted for 29 percent of COVID-19 deaths among people under 21, twice the percentage for white youth. The federal agency also found Black children under 18 at a significantly higher risk of hospitalization—almost four times higher than white children and teens.

Mixed Messages From the CDC, Pediatricians and Dr. Fauci

Parents who blame teachers for schools not fully opening, do so partly due to a sloppy push to make schools sound safe from the CDC, pediatricians, and Dr. Fauci.

Many claims ignore problems with school infrastructure and how schools work, while CONTINUE READING: Covid-19 School Contradictions, Confusion, and Mistrust

NANCY BAILEY: Kindergarten Learning Loss Message Is HORRIFYING for Children!

Kindergarten Learning Loss Message Is HORRIFYING for Children!

Kindergarten Learning Loss Message Is HORRIFYING for Children!

No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, high-stakes testing, Common Core, and other bad school reform measures are coming together with Covid-19 to destroy the futures of America’s youngest learners!

They include the same equity and disparity talk used to ramp up the above harmful policies. Those changes to schools, all that rigor talk, did not work before, and they’ll not work to fix pandemic losses.

What child is going to welcome learning, look forward to going to school, some for the first time, when they hear about how far behind they’ve already fallen?

When parents read dire reports they will feel compelled to push their kindergartners and early learners harder. They’ll worry about the next test. Children will see learning as something to fear not a joyful experience.

Last November we saw Dallas Students Suffer ‘Horrifying’ Learning Loss During Pandemic, New Data Suggests. Such hyperbole is harmful.

Dallas doesn’t stop with the November report. Now we learn Dallas Trustees  CONTINUE READING: Kindergarten Learning Loss Message Is HORRIFYING for Children!

NANCY BAILEY: Questions About The AFT and NEA’s “Learning After Covid Vision”

Questions About The AFT and NEA’s “Learning After Covid Vision”

Questions About The AFT and NEA’s “Learning After Covid Vision”

Teachers are the most important individuals in a child’s schooling, and during the pandemic, they have gone above and beyond to reach out to students.

AFT President Randi Weingarten and NEA’s Becky Pringle are to be commended for speaking out about Covid-19 in support of student and teacher safety. The teachers’ unions have been criticized unfairly for trying to do what’s right for the safety of students and teachers.

But why does their new post-Covid-19 guide tip a hat towards nonprofits and groups that are not friendly to teachers and public education?

How exactly will schools change after Covid-19? Are teachers aware of the union connections and what they mean by words like restructuring schools? Is it about online learning? How involved will teachers be in that restructuring process and is it for the betterment of students?

Learning Beyond Covid: A Vision for Thriving in Public Education at first glance might seem positive and it makes some good points. But many of the links raise CONTINUE READING: Questions About The AFT and NEA’s “Learning After Covid Vision”

NANCY BAILEY - Education Secretary Cardona, End Third Grade Retention and High-Stakes Standardized Testing!

Education Secretary Cardona, End Third Grade Retention and High-Stakes Standardized Testing!

Education Secretary Cardona, End Third Grade Retention and High-Stakes Standardized Testing!

The Biden administration chose a real educator to be education secretary. Now Dr. Cardona should move to end third-grade retention, a procedure that would be especially cruel administered with this pandemic. Many alternative plans are available to help children do better in school that won’t involve the humiliation of retention.

Cardona should withhold federal funds to school districts that flunk third graders. He could accomplish this better if he’d cancel the high-stakes tests.

Educators and parents are furious about the Biden administration going forward with high-stakes testing. Repeatedly Americans are told that children have mental problems and are depressed because they’re not in school, not learning with their favorite teachers, or socializing with their friends. It’s disingenuous to claim one cares about a child’s emotions and send them to school to take a high pressured test during this pandemic!

Worse is to tell a child they failed the test and will stay in the same grade! Or to say they didn’t do well on the test, but if they don’t want to fail, they can retake the test!

This rotten practice got momentum in the State of Florida under former Governor Jeb Bush. If Bush had wanted to do right by children, if he’d been a savvy leader for CONTINUE READING: Education Secretary Cardona, End Third Grade Retention and High-Stakes Standardized Testing!

NANCY BAILEY: Tutors Replacing Teachers: A Failed Privatization Plot Returns

Tutors Replacing Teachers: A Failed Privatization Plot Returns

Tutors Replacing Teachers: A Failed Privatization Plot Returns

The pandemic showed that for students to get quality instruction, especially poor children of color, America must invest in real teachers, smaller class sizes, and better working conditions, including improved school facilities.

So why is the focus on tutors?

“Accelerated high-dosage” tutoring. We have been here before. With No Child Left Behind, tutoring didn’t work so now there’s brand new terminology and an intense marketing campaign by the same individuals who promote school privatization.

Covid-19 fears, including poor working conditions, and the lack of being heard have driven teachers out of the classroom. Schools need to reduce class sizes, which has become a problem.

Concurrently, parents have learned that technology is insufficient. Most parents can’t wait for their child’s public school to reopen.

Where’s the focus on teachers? Instead, tutors are touted as providing “personalized CONTINUE READING: Tutors Replacing Teachers: A Failed Privatization Plot Returns

NANCY BAILEY: Why Teachers Might Still Not Believe It’s Safe to Return to In-Person School #tbats #REOPENSCHOOLSSAFELY #openonlywhensafe

Why Teachers Might Still Not Believe It’s Safe to Return to In-Person School

Why Teachers Might Still Not Believe It’s Safe to Return to In-Person School

Anger about schools not reopening is directed at teachers and their unions. Sometimes it’s made to sound like they’re the problem and not Covid-19! Many public schools have opened their buildings, and teachers never quit working during the pandemic.

Teachers aren’t epidemiologists, they aren’t statisticians. They want to rely on information and recommendations concerning Covid-19. But that information isn’t always clear.

Grim Milestone

With the recent somber Covid-19 milestone, we hear the virus has killed over a half million. Constant reporting about the loss of life is seared into a teacher’s collective consciousness.

There’s good news too—vaccines, more awareness of the need for better school conditions, a downturn in cases. But there’s a discussion of variants, and news about schools isn’t all good, complete, or honest.

Children

While Covid-19 is said not to affect children like adults, children do get sick.

Here’s the February 25 report about a 10-year-old child whose Covid-19 complications included amputation of his hands and legs. There have been repeated CONTINUE READING: Why Teachers Might Still Not Believe It’s Safe to Return to In-Person School

NANCY BAILEY: Is EdTrust Behind High-Stakes Testing During This Pandemic?

Is EdTrust Behind High-Stakes Testing During This Pandemic?

Is EdTrust Behind High-Stakes Testing During This Pandemic?

High-stakes standardized testing. Why now? Why again? Why ever? Was The Education Trust (EdTrust) involved in the decision? Who is EdTrust, and why would President Biden listen to them?

EdTrust is a pro-school-reform group that carries clout, and they’ve been vocal about schools reopening during the pandemic.

John B. King, Jr., who was education secretary after Arne Duncan for a short time, is now the President and CEO of EdTrust. King was involved with charter schools and became the New York Education Commissioner before becoming education secretary in the Obama administration.

King has been on TV numerous times stating how schools should run during the pandemic. The EdTrust is often cited in the mainstream media, including during the pandemic, like this USA Today report. Reopening schools has been expensive. Making up for student learning losses may be worse.

It’s rare to find one of their headlines referring to public schools in a CONTINUE READING: Is EdTrust Behind High-Stakes Testing During This Pandemic?

NANCY BAILEY: Time for a NEW National Reading Panel to Study Reading Instruction

Time for a NEW National Reading Panel to Study Reading Instruction

Time for a NEW National Reading Panel to Study Reading Instruction

Reading. It’s one of the most important and controversial topics in education. Reading is the foundational skill required of children to learn. With a new President and educators Dr. Miguel Cardona and Cindy Marten, the time is right to convene a new, inclusive National Reading Panel (NRP).

Here’s why this is important, along with some brainstorming as to what it could involve. Please share your ideas.

National Reading Panel

The last NRP convened in 1997, submitting its report to Congress in February 1999, almost 25 years ago. Much has changed.

The NRP is mired in controversy. In his recent book, education scholar P.L. Thomas states:

A central component of No Child Left Behind was the NRP; however, as a key member of the panel has detailed, that report was neither a comprehensive and valid overview of the then-current state of research on teaching reading nor a foundational tool for guiding reading practices or policy. Yet, media coverage routinely references the NRP CONTINUE READING: Time for a NEW National Reading Panel to Study Reading Instruction

NANCY BAILEY: President Biden’s Ideas About Schools and Covid-19 Miss the Mark

President Biden’s Ideas About Schools and Covid-19 Miss the Mark

President Biden’s Ideas About Schools and Covid-19 Miss the Mark

I watched President Biden’s CNN Townhall. I like President Biden and feel that he is sincere and wants to do a good job. He is well-focused on helping the country move forward. His kindness shines through. But his school plans for Covid-19 are worrisome.

As expected, Covid-19 dominated the Townhall conversation. A whole segment could have been on schools and Covid-19. Unfortunately, the school issue wasn’t well-addressed with only two questions.

Opening Schools in 100 Days

I wish the President had never said that schools should open in 100 days. It reminds me of when politicians from both parties said that with No Child Left Behind, all third graders would read proficiently by 2014. In 2021, students still have reading problems. Covid-19 is different from reading, of course, but making predictions about Covid-19 seems like a gamble.

It’s also not like all schools have been closed. Some schools have in-person learning or a hybrid approach. Schools may open then close due to Covid-19 cases. Teachers have been safely teaching remotely since the beginning of the pandemic.

If he had to pick a time, perhaps it should be Fall, as noted by Dr. Leana Wen, M.D. CONTINUE READING: President Biden’s Ideas About Schools and Covid-19 Miss the Mark

NANCY BAILEY: CDC Recommendations Are Clearer, But Teachers Face the Same Problems and New Ones

CDC Recommendations Are Clearer, But Teachers Face the Same Problems and New Ones

CDC Recommendations Are Clearer, But Teachers Face the Same Problems and New Ones

Just because school opening isn’t causing higher levels of community transmission doesn’t mean that there isn’t individual risk to teachers and staff. If we had wanted schools to safely reopen, we should have worked hard as a society to keep transmission rates down and to invest resources in schools.

~Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and a visiting professor of health policy at George Washington University.

The CDC’s recommendations about school reopenings are better than previous guidelines and teacher union leaders seem to approve. They say they have a road map based on science, but teachers still have concerns. Here’s a description.

What about the Red Zones?

According to the new color-coded zones, the CDC identifies counties by Covid-19 risk, blue, yellow, orange, and red. Each zone is supposed to follow specific mitigation steps, with the red zone being the most concerning.

Dr. Walensky says: If we get to a point where we are beyond the red zone here, really high levels of community spread related to the variants or related to just more transmission, we may need to revisit this again. 

CNN reports that most zones are red zones.  CONTINUE READING: CDC Recommendations Are Clearer, But Teachers Face the Same Problems and New Ones

Fewer than 100,000 children in the US live in a county considered “low” or “moderate CONTINUE READING: CDC Recommendations Are Clearer, But Teachers Face the Same Problems and New Ones