| Pearson's Big Ed Biz Is Under Fire | |
| By Jack O'Dwyer | |
| PR exec Kate James, who is leaving the Gates Foundation to be chief corporate affairs officer at Pearson at the start of the year, will bring lots of controversy with her when she delivers the annual Distinguished Lecture to the Institute for PR Thursday at the Yale Club. The IPR website does not mention that James has taken the job with Pearson, moving from a non-profit to a for-profit organization. IPR said it will make an announcement of this before James starts her talk Thursday.
PRW cites instances of Pearson working with elements of the American Legislative Exchange Council, which PRW says is an organization of 2,000 mostly Republican state legislators and 300 corporate representatives that has an undue influence on state lawmaking. Only one Democrat is among 104 legislators in its leadership posts, it says. PRW charges Pearson has undue influence on legislators and improperly funds trips abroad for educators. The blog bigeducationape says, “In essence, every facet of our public educational system, from teacher preparation, curriculum design and content, and testing/assessments from womb to tomb are now owned by a private corporation whose profits skyrocketed into the billions of dollars.” Pearson, with revenues of $8.29 billion, is called “the largest education company in the world” and the “largest book publisher in the world” by Wikipedia. Its properties include the Financial Times Group; 47% of Penguin Random House; 50% of the Economist Group which includes The Economist magazine; Prentice-Hall; Connections Academy, which operates online classes in many states, and |
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Pearson's Big Ed Biz Is Under Fire - Mon., Nov. 18, 2013
Pearson's Big Ed Biz Is Under Fire - Mon., Nov. 18, 2013:
Heresy or Reality?: Todd Mertz tells it like it is. | Reclaim Reform
Heresy or Reality?: Todd Mertz tells it like it is. | Reclaim Reform:
Whenever I post about the ALEC written legislation passed by the Republican Tea Party in various states and also post the same legislation passed and attempted by Democratic Liberal Democrats in Illinois and elsewhere, I have been derided as being divisive, anti-American, anti-union and potentially in league with the Devil. A veritable sinner against politics as a faith-based religion.
Heresy or Reality?: Todd Mertz tells it like it is.
A) The attacks against public education are spearheaded by the scapegoating of teachers – past and present teachers.
B) The support of one liberal issue does NOT justify the actual corporate sponsored, ALEC written, Illinois constitution ignoring, anti-public education, anti-union, anti-teacher, anti-union behavior and legislation performed by super-majority Democrats.
Whenever I post about the ALEC written legislation passed by the Republican Tea Party in various states and also post the same legislation passed and attempted by Democratic Liberal Democrats in Illinois and elsewhere, I have been derided as being divisive, anti-American, anti-union and potentially in league with the Devil. A veritable sinner against politics as a faith-based religion.Yes, the Illinois Democrats legalized gay marriage; this helped to reinforce their image as Liberals and Progressives. They desperately needed to show that image if they expect to retain their super-majority ranks in the House and Senate along with the Governorship and all other leadership positions in the heavily gerrymandered state.
Todd Mertz is a true pro-public education advocate who tells it like it is regarding the behind the scenes machinations of public education destruction in Illinois. He also objectively includes what has and has not been done by union leadership in Illinois.
Here is Todd’s letter:
Friends and Colleagues
It is time we have an Illinois governor stand up for public education, students, teachers, employee unions, and collective bargaining rights.
If not, we are likely to fall victim like
Choosing Democracy: How Charter Schools Are Undermining Public Education
Choosing Democracy: How Charter Schools Are Undermining Public Education:
I think of this experience often as I follow the polarized debate over charter schools. I know there are many committed charter school teachers who share the dream of teaching in a progressive, student-centered school. And I know that, for some teachers, charter school jobs are the only ones available.
But I also know the charter school movement has changed dramatically in recent years in ways that have undermined its original intentions. Although small schools and theme academies have faded as a focus of reform initiatives, charters have expanded rapidly. According
How Charter Schools Are Undermining Public Education
Stan Karp
November 14, 2013 |
Somewhere along the way, nearly every teacher dreams of starting a school. I know I did.
More than once during the 30 years I taught English and journalism to high school students in Paterson, New Jersey, I imagined that creating my own school would open the door to everything I wanted as a teacher:
- Colleagues with a shared vision of teaching and learning.
- Freedom from central office bureaucracy.
- A welcoming school culture that reflected the lives of our students and families.
- Professional autonomy that nourished innovation and individual and collective growth.
- School-based decision-making that pushed choices about resources, priorities, time, and staffing closer to the classrooms where it matters the most.
I think of this experience often as I follow the polarized debate over charter schools. I know there are many committed charter school teachers who share the dream of teaching in a progressive, student-centered school. And I know that, for some teachers, charter school jobs are the only ones available.
But I also know the charter school movement has changed dramatically in recent years in ways that have undermined its original intentions. Although small schools and theme academies have faded as a focus of reform initiatives, charters have expanded rapidly. According