Education Secretary (Duncan) Presses for Reforms

[YvonneCa]

Source: San Diego Union/Tribune

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan yesterday urged California lawmakers to make education reforms or risk falling further behind the rest of the nation and losing out on a slice of $4.3 billion in federal stimulus money.

Duncan met with lawmakers from both parties at the state Capitol in Sacramento as they prepare to debate potential changes to California law. If enacted, some of the reforms would allow the state to compete for federal money under the Obama administration's $787 billion economic recovery plan.

The Race to the Top competition will reward states that are focused on education reforms. States that agree to expand public charter schools will be first in line for the money, along with those that allow performance pay for teachers based on student achievement, which is prohibited in California. Democratic lawmakers and the state's two teachers unions, which are major donors to Democratic campaigns, have typically opposed such changes.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called a special session of the Legislature to take up the reforms so California can apply for the money. That session will start sometime after lawmakers finish their regular session next week. School officials said they need the money after $18 billion in funding cuts to K-12 schools and community colleges over the past two fiscal years.







Read more: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/sep/04/education-secretary-presses-reforms/?&zIndex=160327

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More at the link.

[Dinger]

1. Fuck You Arne

Why don't you resign to "be with your family" or something?

[Freddie Stubbs]

33. Resign? So that he can be replaced by someone else to push President Obama's policies?

:shrug:

[Thothmes]

42. You are correct,

Arne is a pistolero for President Obama. If he is fired or quits, President Obama will just hire another one like him.

[roody]

2. 2nd Fuck you, Arne.

[mbperrin]

6. Make that the 3rd.

Thanks!

[YvonneCa]

8. You are welcome. This is going to be...

...tough on California.

[Hannah Bell]

10. 4th, 5th, 6th.....

[Freddie Stubbs]

43. Why? He is only pushing President Obama's policies?

:shrug:

[YvonneCa]

3. Oh, we're off to a great start...

...:7 :hi:

[Dinger]

4. Thank You Oh Queen!

:headbang: :pals:

[YvonneCa]

7. Queen, huh...

...? :7 You are quite welcome.

P.S. Congrats on your award! :toast:

[YvonneCa]

34. UPDATE: For those who care...

...about kids, here's another way. Dr. Jonathan Kozol was live on C-Span2 this morning discussing NCLB, teachers and their unions, charter schools and more. It will re-air...here's the link and schedule:

http://www.booktv.org/Program/10694/In+Depth+Jonathan+Kozol.aspx


My two favorite lines (paraphrased):

1. If everyone who says they were on the bridge at Selma was really there, the bridge would have collapsed. :7

2. Where you stood forty years ago is not as important as where you stand NOW.


It was a great interview. :patriot:

[Mithreal]

5. Arne Duncan continues the Republican War on Education.

Teachers worked really hard last election, too bad we are gonna lose them with lame ass Democratic sellouts to conservative arguments on education.

[enlightenment]

11. But he's not the only one backing this idea.

The President does, too.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/10/obama-education-plan-spee_n_173405.html
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/24/politics/main5186497.shtml

Which is not to say that Arne isn't a complete tool . . .

[Mithreal]

16. Understood. Many unrecs on this story. No surprise there either.

Too controversial an issue for many here.

[mbperrin]

18. Truth hurts, so many want to just ignore it.

Can't ignore it; I've got three decades teaching in public school.

[Thothmes]

23. Evidently fully supported by the current President of the Unite States.

[YvonneCa]

24. I fully support improving public schools. Public education is...

...important to a cohesive, unified country, IMO. But, historically, politicians haven't made the best decisions about public schools. There is a knowledge gap. They are not considering educators' suggestions at all, as to why this is a bad idea. I think they need to if success is the goal.

[Thothmes]

25. I fully agree with you on this point

maybe we should listen to the professionals in education

[Mithreal]

28. Just like we should listen to doctors and nurses on health care.

Strange world...

[YvonneCa]

31. I agree. It's not that we have to take their suggestions ONLY...

...and not weigh them with others' suggestions. But considering doctors' and nurses' ideas for health care and considering teachers' ideas for public education can prevent needless mistakes as we reform...COSTLY mistakes (and I don't mean just in terms of $$, but in kids' futures).

[YvonneCa]

30. But they aren't. At least...

not yet. Have you been to ED.gov ?

[Mithreal]

27. Similar strategy as with health care reform. nt

[Mithreal]

29. That is true and he should know better. nt

[Freddie Stubbs]

44. Those teachers worked hard knowing that Obama supported charter schools

[fasttense]

9. So is public charter schools the new code word for privatizing our educational system?

Just what we all need. GE running our local high schools.

[joeycola]

12. It always has been.

[Dinger]

14. Yup (nt)

[roody]

13. Yes, and for busting the employee's unions.

[Dinger]

15. That Is Key

You are right!

[bemildred]

17. Megadittoes, Arne.

:puke:

Teachers unions are not the problem Arne. Schools are not factories. Shitty administration is the problem, Arne.

[goclark]

19. Charter Schools are not the way to go Arne~ No!

[Frank Booth]

20. K&R!

:kick:

[YvonneCa]

22. Thank you. This will be a big deal in...

...California, since the law now has a sort of 'firewall' between student test scores and teacher evaluations.

[Frank Booth]

26. Yes. Hopefully this will somewhat loosen the stranglehold that UTLA has on LAUSD.

[Mithreal]

21. Kicking. nt

[Vidar]

32. States that agree to expand public charter schools should lose their funding,

not be awarded for this elitist bullshit.

[Nikki Stone1]

35. Make California poor, make it have to beg for $$, and make it privatize...Sounds like the IMF

The Chicago Boys come home to roost...

[ipaint]

39. neoliberals are the new progressives.

[Nikki Stone1]

40. Yeah, and spandex onesies are the new black

Bleh!

[omega minimo]

41. With our Nazi Governor in charge.

[WriteDown]

48. Godwin's law...

It's almost flawless.

[omega minimo]

36. Pimp for charters and extort the Legislature to change STATE LAW or get no funding?

:puke:

[YvonneCa]

37. That's about ...

...it. :)

[omega minimo]

38. Pimping, Extortion, there's a word for it.....................

[Dinger]

45. Kickin' Just Because I Feel Like It

:patriot:

[mix]

46. Arne Duncan failed Chicago's Public Schools.

Here's what his bosses said about his disastrous tenure there:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/downloads/CPS.pdf

Notice, however, their prescription: more NCLB reforms and charter schools, instead of admitting that these reforms have failed.

[rayofreason]

47. In most occupations...

..those who do well at it are compensated in some proportion to how well they do, despite occasional and outrageous counter examples to the general rule. A writer who writes books nobody wants to read, an athlete who cannot win a competition, a scientist who contributes nothing to scientific knowledge - all these will soon find that they are on the bottom rung of the profession in terms of reputation and compensation.

In public schools one main goal of the teacher unions is to prevent that link from being widely applied to teacher compensation. Programs like the National Science Foundation Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching that reward great teachers are the exception, not the rule. And I can assure you that winning a Presidential Award has a monetary impact - not in school pay but in outside consulting work where people pay for excellence, not for how much time you have been in the job.

http://www.paemst.org/controllers/home.cfc?method=view

If you think the program link to above is a good one, then why resist making the underlying philosophical perspective the rule in schools? Good teachers should be rewarded and merit recognized. There are good teachers and bad teachers. Reward the good ones relative to the bad ones and provide incentives to get better qualified students into teaching. Want to know how to do that? Take a look at this:

http://uteach.utexas.edu/

We know how to do this. It is just a matter of will.

[Jazzgirl]

49. Arne Duncan was the worst possible choice for Secretary

of Education that anybody could make. I do not want my tax dollars supporting private institutions which is what most charter schools are. It pisses me off that we aren't investing in the existing public school system instead of creating a whole new publicly funded private entity.