Category Archives: antitrust

Koch Brothers and Kansas

by

Jan Resseger has another excellent post up on her take of the Americans for Prosperity, aka Koch Brothers, and what’s happened in Kansas.

 

Jeff Glendening, the director of the Kansas chapter of Americans for Prosperity was quoted—framing the legislation as part of a fight between those who stand for children and those who stand for “adult” interests—by the NY Times : “We appreciate the willingness of the Legislature to place the interests of Kansas children over the welfare of the teachers’ union.”  This kind of rhetoric is widely promoted by far-right groups such as StudentsFirst and Stand for Children. These groups try to imply that teachers, who have committed their lives to nurture children, are somehow a class of people working purely out of self interest.

~~~~~~~~

Incredible.  The teacher’s intentions are an example of a stunning psychological twist of the truth.  They claim to be concerned for the welfare of the children…but with Common Core, shoving special needs and struggling students out the door, and money being siphoned away from public education…we know differently.

As was pointed out yesterday, the teacher’s union is the same as the police and fire fighter unions….yet no one would think of saying that those unions are operating against the welfare of the people.

Related to this, Fred Klonsky has a post up on the pension raids with a statement on  the theft by Karen Lewis.

“This is a sad day for our paraprofessionals, especially our retired ones, who will see their pensions reduced and devalued significantly. They will lose the value of a third of their retirement savings, so instead of the people who crashed the economic system having to pay their fair share, our elected officials brutally attack the people who are most vulnerable—many of whom have become the head of their households, caring for both children and grandchildren,” Lewis said.

~~~~~~~

Target the elderly/retired.  They have worked their entire lives putting into the system.  They deserve to have those pensions.  Now that they are retired, they have less money to fight back with–sly ploy by cowards to attack the weaker.

 

 

 

Kansas eliminates due process for Teachers

by

What sad times we live in….

As usual, the comments are insightful and compelling.  They bring up the fact that it really isn’t that hard to get rid of “problem” teachers–all the administration has to do is harass them until they’ve had enough and leave.  Done. Problem solved.

I’ve seen this in the state government, as well, so yeah, it’s not really that hard to get rid of someone.  All you need is a bully in the midst while the administration looks the other way (or even worse–participates).

Urged on by conservative special interests such as Americans for Prosperity, Republican leaders pressed hard to eliminate due process rights for teachers.

~~~~~~~~

The handiwork of the Koch Brothers.  Destroy public education so the Koch brothers don’t have to pay one more penny for unionized workers.  More for me…poverty wages for you…

 

 

 

Charter Supporters making money grab

by

Diane Ravitch has a post up on the repubs and DFERs  (Democrats in favor of charter schools).

She notes that in 1988, advocates were saying that charters would cost less because of less bureaucracy.  Remember that, folks, when they say “less government meddling”…the actual results speak volumes…

 

Rahm Emanuel, Propaganda, and CTU

by

You would think that Rahm Emanuel would think twice before messing with Karen Lewis, but he apparently hasn’t been, um…schooled.  (sorry, bad pun I know)

She once again delivers a smackdown of the mayor by calling him on the divide-and-conquer politics.

Be sure to click on the links to Fred Klonsky’s blog, which also gives some insight to what is going on in Chicago.  What goes on there, is most certainly going on around the country.  Bless Karen Lewis.

 

New SAT any value?

by

Diane Ravitch has a post up on the “new” SAT.  I haven’t seen the test, so I have to go by what Diane is describing.  I do know that I when I first heard of the “new” SAT, I was sure there was some connection to the brainless Common Core.  Yep.

It’s troubling that the writing section will be optional.  Being able to write well-constructed sentences is an art.  It should be a part of the test.

Diane quotes Superintendent Cohen, whom is critical of the “new” SAT:

Nowhere in our new, vaunted Common Core State Standards are teachers told to be concerned with nurturing young people’s imaginations or their original thoughts about the books they read, about the way nature works, about whether our government’s policies are good or bad, about whether the Pythagorean theorem could be used to help design a better bridge over the Hudson river, or whether “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Nor will the “new” and “fairer” SAT ask students to write about such matters.

~~~~~~~~

Absolutely.  Spot on.   It’s not enough to be able to repeat what another wrote–but to be able to interpret what they wrote and take it beyond that to expand the dialogue.  Or to offer another point of view and facts or theory to back what you’re saying.

As I’m reading the article, I thought about when I took the SAT’s in high school.  It was a gamble on my part, because I did not take the college-bound courses offered.  That was the time that my Mom was pouring cheese soup over crackers for dinner sometimes….college seemed like an unreachable dream, so I took the easier courses offered.  Personally, I don’t think those courses should have been an option–all the students who were capable should have been in the college courses.  One really can’t know their potential until they are tested.  And when you’re young and unsure of yourself, being tested means taking a risk–putting yourself out there for possible failure.  Teenagers would rather die than face what they perceive as humiliation (when in fact it is a growing moment that should be supported, and not humiliated, as some like to do.)  And when you’re poor, your options become even more limited because taking a risk could mean consequences for the family (if one risked going to college, and failed, that money spent on tuition is lost.)

I did pass the SAT’s, and was admitted to Indiana University but on a probationary status.  I ended up not going because of being unsure of myself (probationary status to me meant “failure”) and interference by someone else.  Being supported would have made all the difference at this point in time–maturity, too.

I’m telling this story because I had some rough years in middle school and high school.  My grades reflected that.  But they didn’t reflect my potential.  As you know, I went on to college and graduated much later.  It illustrates how badly misguided the Common Core and Race to the Bottom are–we are who we are at any point in time, but who we might grow to be is not measurable by any human tool.

 

 

 

Yet another oil spill **edited

by

…off of the Texas coast.

How in the world does one collide with a barge?  It’s not like they’re speed boats zipping past one…

…looks like another drunken captain.

The words George Bush I echo the oil man’s empty promises of safety…and clean up…as we have witnessed with every freaking oil spill since then–Kalamazoo and Arkansas and the Gulf are evidence of that.  As one of the commenters said, the captain was made the scapegoat while the company escaped blame.

And Tricky Dicks’ comments?  “The Alaskan pipeline is on the way…and the environment will be saved…” Priceless.

The proponents of XL pipeline are saying it’s going to create jobs…but as this video illustrates, how many jobs are lost (income lost) by the spills?  How does one put a price tag on the oiled soil, water, and dead/impaired wildlife?  Why are they even *considering* XL after all that has happened…?

**edited to add link to XL pipeline petition.

School Bullies?

by

Has it really come to this?  That a mother has to assert her child’s civil rights to be let alone from government intrusion, via the pro-Common Core/anti public schools mob??    That a child can be interrogated by Chicago Public Schools for opting out of an abusive test?

Who are the bullies in this scenario? Because it ain’t the kids…

NPE Twitter storm

by

Reclaim Reform has a post up on the twitter storm demanding Congressional investigation into the profiteering of standardized testing.

From the link to NPE:

How good are the tests?

Problems with the actual content of tests have been extensively documented. There are numerous instances of flawed questions and design, including no right answer, more than one right answer, wording that is unclear or misleading, reading passages or problems that are developmentally inappropriate or contain product placements, test questions on material never taught, and items that border on bizarre, such as a famous example that asked students to read a passage about a race between a pineapple and a hare. Tests are not scientific instruments like barometers; they are commercial products that are subject to multiple errors.

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Linda Darling Hammond testifies

by

Diane Ravitch has a post up on Linda Darling-Hammond testimony at the Vergara trial.  She outlines the criteria for evaluating teachers for tenure and helping struggling teachers:

“Well, it’s important both as a part of a due process expectation; that if somebody is told they’re not meeting a standard, they should have some help to meet that standard.

~~~~~~~

Absolutely.  If a teacher is abusive or grossly inadequate, you want them out.  But if a teacher is good in some areas, but needs help in others, by all means, they should get support and encouragement in those weak areas.  In any line of work, you would expect some guidance from those more experienced.  Why should the teaching profession be any different?

More:

And the third reason is that when you create a system that is not oriented to attract high-quality teachers and support them in their work, that location becomes a very unattractive workplace. And an empirical proof of that is the situation currently in Houston, Texas, which has been firing many teachers at the bottom end of the value-added continuum without creating stronger overall achievement, and finding that they have fewer and fewer people who are willing to come apply for jobs in the district because with the instability of those scores, the inaccuracy and bias that they represent for groups of teachers, it’s become an unattractive place to work.

~~~~~~~~

Word.

This comment by Teacher Ken gets at the heart of teaching and tenure:

I have been the cooperating teacher for five student teachers from the University of Maryland at College Park, three from the undergraduate program and two from the masters’ program. The only one who failed to ‘make it’ was a 4.0 student who refused to listen to the notion that he had to meet the kids where they were in order to be able to inspire/entice them to move further. He dropped out before doing his full load of student teaching.

I have been a building union rep and have served as an informal mentor to both beginning and struggling experienced teachers. I have helped some turn around and have counseled others out of the profession. I have as a union rep helped remove a tenured teacher (who never should have gotten tenure) who was not merely ineffective but a danger to students.

We have those who should never go into teaching – they don’t like kids.

~~~~~~~~

This can’t be stated enough–the pro-Charter, anti-public schools, anti-Teacher’s union mob would like to play on people’s emotions and say that bad teachers get a free ride once they get tenure.

As Diane has stated in the past, tenured teachers are not guaranteed a job, per se, but are guaranteed the right to a fair hearing if charges are made against them.  That seems reasonable to me.

However, I have heard of instances of bad teachers being kept on because the principal was afraid to confront them.  They feel they had to have mountains of evidence to get rid of a bad teacher. It might also be just a clash of personalities…where the child is better suited for another teacher.  The teacher isn’t necessarily bad and the kid isn’t necessarily bad, but they just butt heads.

On the other hand, I would not want to see a teacher sacked over gossip (lack of solid evidence)…because I’ve seen that happen, too, where some big mouth started a rumor and the good teacher left.  He was one of those teachers that really connected with the kids, too.  The gossipmonger was probably jealous of his ability to connect and the resulting popularity.

And Teacher Ken’s point about the 4.0 teaching student is spot on.  You can be the smartest person in the room, but if you don’t like kids and can’t get down to their level to help them learn, you’re in the wrong profession.  (Gee…why does this describe Bill Gates to a “T”…??)

Teachers’ Letters to Bill and Melinda Gates

by

This is one of the most compelling letters I’ve read so far.  It’s sickening how these little children are being forced to perform at levels above their comprehension and emotional growth.  It’s abuse, plain and simple.  Bill Gates is a child abuser…why isn’t he held accountable??

Kids had to solve 8+6 when the answer choices were 0-9 and had to DRAG AND DROP first a 1 then a 4 to form a 14. There were questions where it was only necessary to click an answer but the objects were movable (for no reason). There were kids tapping on their neighbor’s computers in frustration. To go to the next question, one clicks “next” in lower right-hand corner…..which is also where the pop-up menu comes up to take you to other programs or shut down, so there were many instances of shut-downs and kids winding up in a completely different program.

~~~~~~

Some of the links in the letter:

Gates dining with 80 Senators. Eighty.  Unfortunately, it stops short of naming names. So, I went looking for other reports to try to find out the senators’ names…no such luck.  All that I could find were quoting Politico.

On Politico’s site, I found this little tidbit:

SPOTTED: Political odd-couple Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) having dinner last night at Bistro Bis just off Capitol Hill. Sen. Joe Donnelly later strolled over with a big group to say hi. (h/ts: @ZStoller and @dsamuelsohn) Pic here: http://bit.ly/1qyM4dx

~~~~~~~~~

Wanna bet Joe Donnelly was one of those senators that dined with Gates?

And from this link:

There is a growing body of evidence that the Common Standards are not the solution to make America more competitive, to make kids smarter in math, reading and science, and any of the other ills that have been cast upon the education system.  I’ve reported on this blog that independent research questions the efficacy of a standard-based approach to education as it is now conceived.  The standards-based system is a top-down authoritarian system that disregards the professional decision-making ability of classroom teachers.  I’ve reported research by Wallace that shows that this authoritarian accountability system is a barrier to teaching and learning.

~~~~~~~~

[…]

….the Gates Foundation has invested about $2.3 billion into the Common Standards and related efforts.

~~~~~~~

Bill and Melinda Gates are not educators.  Why does their $$$ opinion $$$ matter more than those who are educators and don’t wish to abuse children?!