Do politicians know anything at all about schools and education? Anything?

[proud2BlibKansan]

By Diane Ravitch

1. Both Republican candidates and President Obama are enamored of charter schools—that is, schools that are privately managed and deregulated. Are you aware that studies consistently show that charter schools don’t get better results than regular public schools? Are you aware that studies show that, like any deregulated sector, some charter schools get high test scores, many more get low scores, but most are no different from regular public schools? Do you recognize the danger in handing public schools and public monies over to private entities with weak oversight? Didn’t we learn some lessons from the stock collapse of 2008 about the risk of deregulation?

2. Both Republican candidates and President Obama are enamored of merit pay for teachers based on test scores. Are you aware that merit pay has been tried in the schools again and again since the 1920s and it has never worked? Are you aware of the exhaustive study of merit pay in the Nashville schools, conducted by the National Center for Performance Incentives at Vanderbilt, which found that a bonus of $15,000 per teacher for higher test scores made no difference?

3. Are you aware that Milwaukee has had vouchers for low-income students since 1990, and now state scores in Wisconsin show that low-income students in voucher schools get no better test scores than low-income students in the Milwaukee public schools? Are you aware that the federal test (the National Assessment of Educational Progress) shows that—after 21 years of vouchers in Milwaukee—black students in the Milwaukee public schools score on par with black students in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana?

4. Does it concern you that cyber charters and virtual academies make millions for their sponsors yet get terrible results for their students?

more . . . http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=ask_this.view&askthisid=00552

[immoderate]

1. How to channel school funds into their pockets?

Otherwise I'm stumped. But to Ms. Ravitch,

--imm

[RKP5637]

2. For me, it's yet another WTF moment. I was aware of some of the

things, but never in this much detail.

This entire charter school deal reminds me of how well our private health care system works ... it will be overly costly and the net/net result will be a poor level of education.

The whole thing smells bad ... the goal of a corp. is to provide some product "x" at the cheapest production cost while maximizing profits for the corp. So, in essence, we'll end up with educational costs funding the corp. fat cats while the quality of product "x" (education) is sacrificed.

We see examples of this all of the time. Certain things in life should not be monetized in the private domain. They belong in the public sector, such as, education and health care.

[Lifelong Protester]

3. Just got her book today

can't wait read it,

and no, they are 'drive by experts'. all politicians.

And I 'heart' you. Thanks for all your informative posts, proud2B!

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. So glad you are going to read it.

Her book makes more sense to me than almost anything else I have read on the topic.

And I still feel honored to have met her.

[Downwinder]

5. To answer the question. They know as much about schools

as the passengers know about flying a 747.

[madrchsod]

6. yes...how to demonize the teachers....

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. Those who can,

[2pooped2pop]

8. I believe the republicans have decided

that they should buy into the prison system.

and that all liberals should eventually end up there

children can work for almost nothing

schools are really only going to be needed in their future for the wealthy. THere is really no need to educate the poor children as they will be busy working for the system while their parents do free labor from prison.

Schools for the rich only, I think, is their plan. And only if they can make money off of it. (by owning the cyberschools)
slave labor for the rest of us.

They don't want to pay taxes to send poor peoples kids to school anymore. It's a waste of time and money since they will only end up in the prison system in slave labor camps.

This I think is the future they hope for.

[ananda]

9. Politicians are mostly bought and paid for..

... by privatization interests.