2012 Medley #26

Corporate Education Reform.

Usually my "Medleys" contain 5 or more articles dealing with several subjects. Today, though I want to highlight just one thing.

As the last "Medley" of 2012 this one covers just one topic focusing on one blog entry and its comments.

KatieO is a teacher in a psychiatric hospital in Chicago. In her post from December 28, 2012, she wrote about ways in which corporate "reform" is the hurting the education of her students. By extension, the same can be written about students all over the country. It's worth the read...

Make No Mistake, Corporate Ed Reform is Hurting Kids

And those proponents of choice brag about closing down "under-performing charters" the same as neighborhood schools as if this were a good thing! The number one thing my students require is stability and connection. And those are the very things which are being lost as CPS follows the corporate education reform path. Edreform's goal is a neverending cycle of chaos, with schools being opened and shut down again like shoe stores. And this model goes against everything we know to be good for children.

Education Reform does not work. It shuffles kids around, concentrating a few high-achievers in the choosen "miracle schools" in order to be able to market "choice", but does not actually do anything remotely innovative or even new. And to condemn so many of those bright young charter kids to "no excuses" discipline codes makes me ill. Why can't they get creative, progressive teaching and learning like the children of the suburbs get? Edreform is all smoke and mirrors. And while reformers try to spin their made-up successes, the children being left behind are being hurt, neglected, and abused like never before.

As is so often the case, there are thoughtful comments which include valuable insights. This is part of Comment #4 by Maureen Reedy.

It is time to take action from the Outside/ In.

Keep contacting people in a position to bring Katie’s facts to light, keep going with reaching your contacts, newspaper columnists, talk show hosts, etc.

Keep moving with your words, your expertise, your stories, your ACTIONS.

Keep doing what you can to save our children and public education.

Thank you Katie, thank you Diane, thank you to all friends who are fighting for our precious children, the real victims of corporate reform.

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Stop the Testing Insanity!

Sign the National Resolution on High Stakes Testing!

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