I'll give Andrew Cuomo this: when he makes threats to come after someone, they aren't just empty political promises. He said he would try to break the public schools, and he appears to be determined to make it happen.
Much will be written about Arne Duncan's January 12 speech about ESEA. I'm not going to attempt any big analysis (for reasons I'll get to), but I can't pass up a chance to register some quick impressions.
I've been staring into the reformy abyss for over a year, and that involves such a general ongoing background level of outrage that it takes something special to really tweak the rage-o-meter.
If you have not yet seen the letter from Cuomo aid Jim Malatras to ed leaders Tisch and King, you can find a copy right here. If you want to see just how direct and ugly an attack by a governor on his own state's public education system can be, you should read it.
Race to the Top Priorities
This jolly PR release in the Democrat and Chronicle announces that Ted Morris, Jr., is one of the new proud owners of a charter school authorization in New York, specifically in Rochester.
We periodically hear of the notion of college-ready five year olds. Not that they are ready to go to college while still that young, but that we can clearly tell in kindergarten whether these children are on the collegiate trajectory or not.
In announcing a new emphasis and "major shift," the US Department of Education will now demand that states show educational progress for students with disabilities.
Arne Duncan announced that, shockingly, students with disabilities do poorly in school. They perform below level in both English and math. No, there aren't any qualifiers attached to that. Arne is bothered that students with very low IQs, students with low function, students who have processing problems, students who have any number of impairments-- these students are performing below grade level.
| Background: | The Progressive is a monthly leftwing magazine of investigative reporting, political commentary, cultural coverage, activism, interviews, poetry, and humor. The Progressive Magazine is particularly well situated to provide such a platform. A national political magazine founded in 1909 by Fighting Bob La Follette, it has been a voice for democracy and social justice for over 100 years. From our base in Madison, Wisconsin, we have made the attack on public schools a particular focus of our reporting. |
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