School Privatization Turns Business Into Predator and Students Into Prey | gadflyonthewallblog

School Privatization Turns Business Into Predator and Students Into Prey | gadflyonthewallblog:

School Privatization Turns Business Into Predator and Students Into Prey

The mother sea turtle struggles to shore to lay her eggs.

A typical clutch includes anywhere from 50–350 eggs, which the mother hides under the sand. Her sole contribution to their future complete, she swims away.

They incubate underground for 50-60 days. Then just at dusk, the tiny sea turtle hatchlings emerge and struggle their way to the waiting sea and surf.

Well they try to get to the sea. Most of them don’t make it.

Predators are always lurking in the shadows to pluck up these movable hors d’oeuvres. Sea gulls, crabs, small fish – all are waiting to enjoy a meal of fresh baby sea turtle.

It’s estimated that only 1 in 1,000 hatchlings survive into adulthood.

Is that really the model we should be using for our public schools?

Because – make no mistake – it is exactly the kind of thing the market-driven model of education is based on.

The idea goes something like this: schools should be run like a business. Parents and students should choose between educational institutions, which would then compete School Privatization Turns Business Into Predator and Students Into Prey | gadflyonthewallblog:

A disturbing look at how charter schools are hurting a traditional school district - The Washington Post

A disturbing look at how charter schools are hurting a traditional school district - The Washington Post:

A disturbing look at how charter schools are hurting a traditional school district

Bethlehem Steel is reflected in the Lehigh River in Bethlehem, Pa., on Nov. 8, 1995. Bethlehem Steel Corp. extinguished its last blast furnace at its flagship plant that year, sending home 1,800 workers and ending an operation that had been pouring steel since the Civil War. (Nanine Hartzenbusch/AP)

Charter schools have become a central feature of the school “choice” movement, itself a key part of corporate school reform which seeks to operate public schools as if they were businesses rather than civic institutions. There are now thousands of charters — which are publicly funded but independently operated, sometimes by for-profit companies — enrolling a few million students in 43 states and the District of Columbia, who make up about 6 percent of public school students across the country.

While they are a small minority of the public school student population, outsized controversy surrounds charter schools in many communities, especially in states where lax oversight has resulted in financial irregularities and traditional public schools are negatively impacted. There are so many issues surrounding charter schools that in October 2016, leaders of the NAACP, the oldest civil rights organization in the United States, bucked intense pressure from charter supporters and ratified a resolution calling for a moratorium on the expansion of charters and for stronger oversight of these schools.

[Why charter schools get public education advocates so angry]

Here’s a cautionary post about the impact of charter schools in one school district in Pennsylvania, one of a number of states with extremely lax charter school laws. It was written by  Carol Burris, a former New York high school principal who is executive director of the nonprofit Network for Public Education. She was named the 2010 Educator of the Year by the School Administrators Association of New York State, and in 2013, the same organization named her the New York State High School Principal of the Year. She has been chronicling problems with corporate school reform for years, including with a series about troubled charter schools in California.

[How messed up is California’s charter school sector? You won’t believe how much.]

On Jan. 11, the Senate education confirmation will hold confirmation hearings on Betsy DeVos, the Michigan billionaire selected by President-elect Donald Trump to be the next U.S. education secretary. She is an unabashed supporter of charter schools, and has worked in the past against strong oversight of the schools.  Senators asking her questions may want to ask her about charter oversight and the dynamic around charters in Pennsylvania and the Bethlehem Area School District, as described by Burris.

By Carol Burris

Bethlehem is a proud city with a tidy historic downtown that appears well-kept and well-intentioned.  Income is below the national average, and unemployment is slightly higher, yet it is still in far better shape than neighboring small cities such as Allentown.

The Bethlehem Steel Plant that once kept the economy robust closed down about 20 years ago. Now the small city is a small tech hub with tourism, major medical networks and local universities providing work for its nearly 75,000 residents.

The public schools of the city do a fine job serving their majority minority students, of whom nearly 60 percent receive free or reduced-priced lunch. There are few dropouts, and an outstanding music program keeps kids engaged.  Bethlehem’s two high schools offer AP courses, and SAT scores are consistently close to or above the national average, with most students taking the test.

It has not been easy supporting the public schools, however, given the financial challenges of A disturbing look at how charter schools are hurting a traditional school district - The Washington Post:

CA Finalist for National Teacher of the Year - Year 2017 (CA Dept of Education)

CA Finalist for National Teacher of the Year - Year 2017 (CA Dept of Education):

San Diego Teacher Finalist for National Teacher of the Year

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today that Megan Gross, a 2017 California Teacher of the Year from San Diego County, was selected as one of four finalists nationwide for the 2017 National Teacher of the Year award.

Gross has been a special education teacher for nine years, the last three teaching an autism spectrum disorder special day class at Del Norte High School in Poway Unified. She leads a team of instructional assistants who collaborate to design and support unique learning opportunities and experiences.

“Megan is a terrific educator who is deeply dedicated to creating a safe and productive learning environment for her students. She has worked diligently to end the social and physical isolation of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” Torlakson said. “I am proud to have her represent California. She is an exemplary example of how innovative teachers can enrich the students’ lives.”

In October, Gross was named one of five California Teachers of the Year and selected as a finalist by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization of public officials who head departments of elementary and secondary education in the United States.

Today, Gross and three other state Teachers of the Year, including teachers from Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Maryland, were chosen by a panel comprising 15 prominent education organizations and representing more than seven million educators.

The National Teacher of the Year will be announced in Spring 2017 in Washington, D.C.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Gross is a leader in the greater Special Education community. She is a well-known advocate for inclusive education, in which students of all abilities are fully integrated in classrooms and school activities.

Gross graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in genetics from the University of California, Davis. She holds a Special Education Credential from California State University, Sacramento.

For more information on the National Teacher of the Year program, visit the CCSSO NTOY Program  Web page.

# # # #

Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

 CA Finalist for National Teacher of the Year - Year 2017 (CA Dept of Education):

Weingarten speaks on the future of public education | American Federation of Teachers

Weingarten speaks on the future of public education | American Federation of Teachers:

Weingarten speaks on the future of public education

Watch full speech here: AFT President Randi Weingarten Delivers Remarks | Video | C-SPAN.org - https://www.c-span.org/video/?421372-1/aft-president-randi-weingarten-delivers-remarks-education-policy

In a Jan. 9 speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., AFT President Randi Weingarten juxtaposed two approaches for education that would have vastly different consequences for America's students. Either build on the bipartisan consensus of the Every Student Succeeds Act to provide all families with access to great neighborhood public schools, or promote the dangerous, destructive approaches that Donald Trump's education secretary nominee advocates to undermine and privatize public education.

It's our obligation, as a society, to provide all families with access to great neighborhood public schools, said Weingarten. The Trump administration can follow the will of the people and walk the path laid out by Congress a year ago. Or they can follow the destructive dogmas of the past and reignite the education wars.

Weingarten outlined four pillars to achieve powerful, purposeful public education: promoting children's well-being, supporting powerful learning, building teacher capacity, and fostering cultures of collaboration.

Promoting children's well-being

Ensuring the well-being of all children is of vital importance; to do so, we must confront the reality that half of all public school students live in poverty.

Poverty is not an excuse for low expectations, Weingarten said. It is a reality that must be acknowledged and confronted.

An effective way to confront the effects of poverty and support children's well-being is through community schools—neighborhood public schools that meet students' academic, enrichment, social and health needs by coordinating partners and resources.

The Community Health Academy of the Heights, in New York City, is an excellent example of how to do this, Weingarten said. CHAH offers an array of supports—including mental health counseling, a food pantry, a parent resource center and a full-service health clinic that is open to the community. A variety of indicators, including large gains in academic achievement, show that great results are possible when you focus on the well-being of the child, the child's family and the child's community.

The AFT is working to expand community schools through the AFT Innovation Fund, which provides financial and staff support to expand community schools in three states.

Supporting powerful learning

Society rightly sets high expectations for our public schools, Weingarten said—to develop students academically, prepare young people for work, equip them to be good citizens, and enable them to lead fulfilling lives.

She said the path to accomplishing those goals is through powerful learning—learning that engages students; encourages them to investigate, strategize and collaborate; and helps them build initiative and agility.

Powerful learning can take many forms. Weingarten cited examples of engaging project-based learning: students in New York City who planned and conducted a mock trial of a participant in the Rwanda genocide, and students in Corpus Christi, Texas, who investigated the potential for humans to live on other planets. And she detailed several innovative career and technical education programs that not only deeply engage students but develop skills and knowledge they can use in the world of work.

Building capacity

Becoming an accomplished teacher takes time and support, Weingarten said. Building teachers' capacity begins long before they take charge of their own classrooms, and it should never end.

Weingarten cited two approaches to develop teachers' skills—one focused on developing prospective teachers' skills before they have their own classrooms and the other spanning teachers' entire careers.

The San Francisco Teacher Residency program offers teachers in the city's highest-needs schools a yearlong residency alongside an accomplished teacher. The program has led to higher teacher retention and a teaching core more reflective of the community it serves.

In Meriden, Conn., support never stops, Weingarten said. Rookies go through a new teacher induction program and skilled veteran teachers have numerous opportunities to share their expertise with colleagues.

In her remarks, Weingarten said, Building capacity is a shared responsibility. And unions are a crucial partner. AFT locals use their advocacy and collective bargaining to help teachers continuously hone their craft and build our profession.

In addressing teacher tenure and evaluations, Weingarten made clear that the AFT has worked with willing partners to ensure that tenure it is neither a cloak for incompetence nor an excuse for principals not to manage—but a guarantee of fairness and due process. And she stated that far from being against evaluations, the AFT has fought for evaluation systems that support both teacher growth and student learning. That's why we fought for ESSA to end federally mandated, test-driven evaluation. And that's why we support locally driven evaluations with multiple, meaningful measures.

Fostering collaboration and community collaboration

Weingarten said that evidence and common sense show the value of teachers' collaboration. Collaboration is the glue that holds everything together, she said, and she called for broader collaboration—schools with parents, educators with administrators, and schools with community partners.

She contrasted such approaches with school disruption—mass firings, school closures, and district or state takeovers. These approaches are disruptive all right, Weingarten said. But they are not effective—especially when it comes to improving student outcomes.

Weingarten cited examples of quiet successes, such as those in the ABC Unified School District in the southern suburbs of Los Angeles. The school district and teachers union have an intentional and purposeful collaboration to improve their schools, she said, that has contributed to strong and sustained gains in achievement, particularly for Latino students, African-American students and students from low-income families.

ESSA: The new education federalism

Weingarten expressed hope that the overwhelming bipartisan support for the Every Student Succeeds Act quelled the education wars and enabled our shared attention to turn to what works—collaboration, capacity building, powerful learning and the well-being of all children.

Describing a new education federalism, Weingarten said the frontier has moved from Washington, D.C., to state capitols, districts and school communities. This doesn't mean that the federal government has no role. We still need it to promote equity by funding schools that serve disadvantaged children and protecting the civil rights of all children.

Betsy DeVos and the attack on public education

Weingarten said Betsy DeVos is the most anti-public education nominee for secretary of education in the history of the department and lacks the necessary qualifications and experience to be the nation's top education official. DeVos hasn't taught in a public school, Weingarten said. She hasn't served on a school board. She never attended public school—nor did she send her kids to one. She's a lobbyist—not an educator.

DeVos worked in Michigan to undermine public schools and to divide communities, Weingarten said. And now she's poised to swing her Michigan wrecking ball all across America.

Weingarten detailed some of the destructive education policies DeVos has lobbied for and poured millions of dollars into: a school voucher initiative that voters rejected by more than a 2-to-1 margin; the vast expansion of for-profit charter schools; negligible oversight for charter schools; and allowing failed charter operators to open more schools.

What is the result of all this? Student performance has declined across Michigan, Weingarten said. Nearly half of all its charter schools ranked among the bottom of American schools.

A challenge and an invitation

Weingarten laid out a challenge to DeVos, if she is confirmed. I extend both a challenge and an invitation to Ms. Devos: Spend some time in public schools. Weingarten said. There is no substitute for seeing firsthand what works so well in our public schools, or for seeing the indefensible conditions too many students, teachers, and school staff endure.

Come to rural McDowell County, W.Va., the eighth-poorest county in the country, where many voted for Donald Trump. A county where the AFT is leading a public-private partnership to improve the public schools and health outcomes. Join me at Harvest [Collegiate High School] or CHAH, or Toledo Technology Academy or in Meriden [Conn.], Corpus Christi [Texas], California's ABC district or Miami. Spend a day or two in a class for severely disabled students. Before you try to do what you did in Michigan to the rest of the country, see firsthand the potential and promise of public education.

We are prepared to take a stand

Weingarten said that if the Trump administration chooses to reignite the education wars, communities across this country will stand up and defend their public schools and our children—like hundreds of thousands have done so far in open letters and petitions, and like AROS will on Jan. 19. Whatever this new administration does, we will be walking the walk for great neighborhood schools by investing and supporting the four pillars I've described today.

Weingarten concluded with a call to action, So I ask you to join with us as we stand up for the well-being of all children. For powerful learning. For capacity building for teachers. For community collaboration. Please join with us as we stand up for the promise of public education, and for the public schools all children deserve.

Read an AFT fact sheet about DeVos.

Read Randi Weingarten's letter to U.S. senators opposing the nomination.

- See more at: Weingarten speaks on the future of public education | American Federation of Teachers:

CURMUDGUCATION: Warren Spanks DeVos

CURMUDGUCATION: Warren Spanks DeVos:

Warren Spanks DeVos

Elizabeth Warren has noticed that there will be only one, brief opportunity to grill Secretary of Education nominee Betsy DeVos, and so today she has sent DeVos a letter outlining what sorts of answers she's looking for. The whole thing is sixteen pages long, and while Warren has not always been on the right side of education debates (in particular, she believes in the Big Standardized Test), she pulls no punches here, asking many of the questions that many of us want to see asked. You can read the whole 16-page missive here, but I'll hit the highights for you.

On the very first page, after outlining the reason for the letter, Warren outlines the situation with appropriate bluntness:

There is no precedent for an Education Department Secretary nominee with your lack of experience in public education. While past nominees for Secretary of Education have served as teachers, school system leaders, and governors, and came to the Department of Education with deep executive experience in public education, you have held no such position.

Warren notes that a review of DeVos's record shows that she has "largely advanced your policy agenda through others" mainly through money. Warren quotes DeVos's now-infamous line about expecting a return on her investment.


You are, of course, free to spend your fortune however you choose, but making large political contributions to 'buy influence' does not qualify you to help set policy for the education of America's school children.

Warren wraps up the executive summary by noting DeVos's "non-existent" record on higher ed, and CURMUDGUCATION: Warren Spanks DeVos:

CHALLENGING A FAILED POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEM PART I of III blogs | Dr. Edward F. Berger

CHALLENGING A FAILED POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEM PART I of III blogs | Dr. Edward F. Berger:

CHALLENGING A FAILED POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEM

America is now led by people who have power because they do not follow the ethical and moral concepts that I once thought inviolate. We are experiencing the exact opposite of what I was taught, what I taught students, and what I believe. I am being forced to re-examine the values that have guided me for over 77 years, and to try to understand those in power.

I am searching to know how those in power construct their belief systems. This first of three blogs is based on what I have learned about the roots of their understanding.

They believe:

That we have an expanding population and a limited economic system that is unable to provide for the masses. There are over 340 million people who are Americans. Our population is growing at an exponential rate. This generates increasing numbers of people to be employed, maintained, and useful. At the same time, automation of manufacturing and marketplace competition have lowered the opportunities for jobs. To them, this means that the economy does not generate enough demand for workers except temporarily in the aging infrastructure area. Projecting infrastructure repair and expansion jobs out ten years or so they assume that most jobs end and we can no longer sustain these higher employment levels. They conclude that these expenditures create a bump in employment, but end up leaving people unemployed, unproductive, and burdens on the state.

They believe that as our current economy is barely providing adequate work for millions of people. Good-paying jobs are shrinking, while service sector low-paying jobs are barely keeping people employed at wages – based on their worth – that do not sustain workers and their families. As citizens, cannot work to generate adequate income for food CHALLENGING A FAILED POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEM PART I of III blogs | Dr. Edward F. Berger:

Ending The Futility Caused By Inaction Blog Part Iii

2by EdwardBerger / 1h

It is true that humanity is nearing a point where we have poisoned our planet. We have expanded until we are in danger of exhausting our options and now hope science can enhance the chances of our survival. We continue to increase the number of people that need food, clothing, shelter, medical care, meaningful employment and security based upon the rule of law. We Earthlings are teetering on the

ARE WE AWAKE? PART II of III

by EdwardBerger / 49min

When I was about fourteen, I was given a photo of my maternal grandfather who had died long before I was born. I picked up the photo and stared into my own eyes, like looking into a mirror. Strange energy tingled through me. I still recall that connection. What I learned changed the way I got to know people. As a 

What the Media Missed About Facebook’s Big New Hire | Vanity Fair

What the Media Missed About Facebook’s Big New Hire | Vanity Fair:

What the Media Missed About Facebook’s Big New Hire

 The New York Times reported, “Facebook is turning to a former television news journalist to help smooth over its strained ties to the news media, which views it as both a vital partner and a potentially devastating opponent.”

It mentioned, almost in passing, “In recent years, [Campbell] Brown has emerged as a major player in the pitched political battles over charter schools, prominently clashing with teachers’ unions while coming out against teachers’ tenure.” (The New York Times)

To put it mildly.

But, at least, it mentioned something, as opposed to Recode, a vibrant bastion of the digital world. “Facebook has hired Campbell Brown, a former anchor for both CNN and NBC, to a newly created Head of News Partnerships position in the hope that Brown can serve as a liaison between the social giant and the myriad of publishers that use it for distribution.” (Recode)

Well, The Times’ reference to the “pitched battles over charter schools” might have been rephrased “pitched battles over teacher job protections,” assuming somebody knew their stuff about the education field. There might have been mention of her working with aggressive philanthropists, like activist investor Dan Loeb, to spearhead a lawsuit aimed at rewriting New York’s teacher tenure laws (copycat to a similar one in California that was recently overturned).

The nonprofit she helped start was supported by the same cohort of activist philanthropists who supported Brown’s crusade against teacher job protections. Like ThinkProgress on the left or The Weekly Standard on the right, it promoted a specific advocacy agenda. But unlike those news organizations, her news startup promoted its agenda under the banner of nonpartisan and unbiased journalism.

For many in the education field, that was quite hard to square with what the new group was delivering; all the more so when she hosted a Republican presidential primary debate sponsored solely by the country’s foremost group promoting vouchers, the American Federation for Children, and hosted by her then-new website, the Seventy Four. (Slate) Theirs was a divisive policy position (on charters) with arguably no really strong evidence of success.

It was akin to ExxonMobil or the National Resources Defense Council acting as sole sponsor of a debate on the environment.

Then, of late, she said she’d recuse herself from coverage of Betsy DeVos, the moneybags Michigan pro-charter nominee for Education Secretary. (Politico) But she also produced a flattering endorsement of DeVos. (74)

Might she be a great choice by Facebook? Perhaps. We’ll see. There might just be a credibility challenge in her dealing with media organizations.

At minimum, a lack of context in reporting the announcement surely left most Times readers in the lurch What the Media Missed About Facebook’s Big New Hire | Vanity Fair:

Central Michigan Life - DeVos education policies a national failure 23 years in the making

Central Michigan Life - COLUMN: DeVos education policies a national failure 23 years in the making:

DeVos education policies a national failure 23 years in the making

On Jan. 11, the U.S. Senate plans to hold a confirmation hearing for Betsy DeVos, who was chosen by President-elect Donald Trump to head the Department of Education.

If she is confirmed, one of Michigan’s most prominent champions for charter schools may soon be responsible for policies that affect America’s 50.4 million students in K-12 programs.

Her legacy in education reform represents a lack of support for charter-school accountability and lower standards that are in stark opposition to what millions of parents demand for their children’s education.

It was 23 years ago that DeVos and others made the promise to Michigan residents that it was possible to have better standards and a choice in where their children attended school. This promise culminated in nothing but a resounding failure for the state’s charter school system, and that’s why she, too, should fail her Wednesday confirmation hearing.

Accountability to the taxpayers has always been the bedrock of public schools. Michigan’s charter schools are ranked among the worst in accountability because they are not subject to state or federal oversight.

A study by the National Education Policy Center found that charter schools are extremely unlikely to respond to requests for information about funding or student and teacher performance. The study found that only 20 percent responded to Freedom of Information Act requests, while the other 80 percent did not respond or said they were not legally obligated to respond.

This lack of transparency creates a severe blind spot to anyone who attempts to hold these schools accountable.

These failures are not simply in the accountability of the charter schools, but also in the higher standards charter schools claim to have. DeVos claimed charter schools would provide students with better teachers and a better learning experience. Several independent studies have shown that charter schools have a less qualified work force when measured by experience and certification levels. Michigan charter schools also have a higher teacher turnover rate and work-place dissatisfaction than the national average for public schools.

These failings directly translate to student performance. Nearly half of Michigan’s charter schools ranked in the bottom 25 percent of all public schools in academic performance.

Lower standards, poor treatment of teachers, and poor academic performance: These are the common threads in DeVos’ vision for education in America. It is a failed experiment that can hopefully serve as a lesson in what not to do if she is confirmed and brings her support for charter schools to the White House.Central Michigan Life - COLUMN: DeVos education policies a national failure 23 years in the making:

Linda Darling-Hammond: Ending the No Child Left Behind Catch-22 on English learner progress | EdSource

Ending the No Child Left Behind Catch-22 on English learner progress | EdSource:

Ending the No Child Left Behind Catch-22 on English learner progress

CREDIT: LPI

Linda Darling-Hammond

California’s State Board of Education has an opportunity at its meeting this week in Sacramento to leave behind one of the most unfair and problematic features of No Child Left Behind (NCLB): the way it calculates English learners’ progress for purposes of accountability.

In doing so, however, the state will still have some other dilemmas to resolve with respect to how it will focus on, understand, and support the nearly 1.4 million public students classified as English learners.

These decisions, which have given rise to considerable debate, will be critically important in this state with the greatest concentration of English learners in the country (about 23 percent of K-12 public school students) so that it can both credit schools with their successes in moving English learners to proficiency in English and maintain a focus on those long-term English learners who have been left behind. Long-term English learners are students who have been English learners for six or more years, and are not making adequate progress on both learning English and mastering core content.

CREDIT: STANFORD UNIVERSITY

Kenji Hakuta

What’s the problem?

While NCLB established a noble new aspiration – raising achievement while closing achievement gaps among all groups of students – itsEnding the No Child Left Behind Catch-22 on English learner progress | EdSource:

Urban-Education Programs Prepare Teachers to Confront Racism - The Atlantic

Urban-Education Programs Prepare Teachers to Confront Racism - The Atlantic:

How Teachers Learn to Discuss Racism

Urban-education programs prepare them for imperative contemporary conversations with students.

After a rash of police killings last summer, H. Richard Milner, a professor of urban education at the University of Pittsburgh, set out to answer a question that had been gnawing at him for some time. As a noted expert on race in education, he frequently received calls from journalists seeking comment on how to help teachers talk about race in the classroom, typically following the fatal police shooting of a black victim. And he always thought the questioning was misguided and inadequate. “Rather than asking me how to help teachers … we should be asking teachers if they believe race is salient … something [they] should be interrogating and thinking about [in the classroom].”

So in early fall 2016, he surveyed 450 pre-service and current public-school teachers on their beliefs about race. Despite the small sample size, the preliminary findings from the nationally representative group revealed an intriguing disconnect. Teachers overwhelmingly agreed that race should be discussed in classrooms; they felt woefully unprepared to lead such
conversations; and they strongly rejected discussing racial violence, which Milner called “central to working with … black and brown students” who are frequently the victims of police shootings. “Basically, teachers said ‘You’ve twisted my arm. We should talk about race. Nope, I don't feel prepared to do
that. And I'm definitely not going to [talk about] violence against black bodies.’ That’s where we are in 2017.”

With a profession that’s characteristically white, female, and middle class—and with students of color and children in poverty rapidly making up the majority of the public-school population—teachers equipped and willing to talk about race and racism has become a necessity. The mere mention of these topics can be awkward and difficult, yet various research findings point to the need to confront the discomfort to improve student learning. Increasingly, that duty has fallen to urban-education programs—a special category of teacher preparation that is reimagining how teaching candidates are prepared and disrupting the race and class stereotypes surrounding urban students and communities.

The dictionary definition of “urban” relates specifically to cities and people who Urban-Education Programs Prepare Teachers to Confront Racism - The Atlantic: