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February 24, 2013

Yes, Virginia, There Really IS a Billionaire Boys Club

One does not need to be a "conspiracy theorist" to connect the dots here. We have a local school board race that has become the focus of a coordinated effort on the part of the wealthy advocates of corporate reform. This is no conspiracy. It is neither secret, nor is it illegal, thanks to rulings like Citizen's United. It is perfectly legal for billionaires to, in effect, buy up local school board races. And it is perfectly legal for them to hire "journalists" to write stories largely sympathetic to their point of view. Fortunately, it is also still legal for skeptics to point out all of the above, and suggest the voters of Los Angeles might want to think twice before they vote.  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 6:27 PM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

November 21, 2012

Teachers and Parents: Natural Allies in Defending Our Schools

Wherever the "reformers" are working to divide us, we need counter campaigns aimed at strengthening our unity. We need to make sure less experienced teachers understand the value of due process, and the reasons we object to "data-driven" evaluations and pay systems. We need to develop social and educational activities that bring generations of teachers together, so they recognize how much they have to learn from one another, and how much better they can be when they support one another and work together. We need serious outreach efforts to communicate with parents, both urban and suburban. Our public schools are community treasures, and they must be guarded by all of us working together.  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 1:02 PM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

November 02, 2012

Are Education "Reformers" Becoming Privatizers?

Will they continue to support special exemptions that allow Teach For America novices to be considered "highly qualified teachers"? Will they support the expansion of charter schools and the use of the deceptive "parent trigger" even as they increase segregation and leave the toughest to teach students behind? Will they support the expansion of sham virtual schools like K12 Inc even as they divert public funds to clearly inferior alternatives?  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 3:11 PM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

October 02, 2012

Can We Exorcize "Evil" From the Education Reform Debate?

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody Advocates of education "reform" are reeling a bit from the backlash that has greeted the release of "Won't Back Down." All of a sudden mainstream critics were seen pointing out connections between the movie's financial backers and the political agenda it advance...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 11:55 AM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

June 02, 2012

Technocratic Groupthink Inflates the Testing Bubble

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody As I was taking a look at the latest report from the National Council on Teacher Quality, a disturbing thought came to mind. The NCTQ has prepared a report that criticizes schools of education for failing to jump on the "obsessed with data" bandwagon. You can ju...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 10:31 AM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

May 25, 2012

Payola Policy: NCTQ Prepares its Hit on Schools of Education

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody Our political system has deteriorated to such a degree that policymaking in the education arena has come to resemble the selection of "hits" chosen for airplay by 1950s DJs. Back in the day, the main mode of advertising to promote the sale of records was to have...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 11:54 AM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

April 15, 2012

Cui Bono? The Question Rarely Asked, Let Alone Investigated

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody As our public schools are systematically re-engineered for dubious reasons, with questionable results, by people of uncertain motives, there is a disturbing lack of skepticism on the part of our watchdogs for the public good, journalists. One of the basic princi...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 4:44 PM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

February 23, 2012

At the Department of Education, Warm Snow Falls Up

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody As the Simpson family prepared to travel south of the equator to Brazil, Homer revealed some misconceptions. In opposite land, according to Bart's father, "warm snow falls up." Reading the latest press releases and speeches from the Department of Education, som...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 10:41 AM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

January 26, 2012

ALEC Reports on the War on Teachers

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody As state after state rewrites their education laws in line with the mandates from Race to the Top and the NCLB waiver process, the teaching profession is being redefined. Teachers will now pay the price - be declared successes or failures, depending on the rise ...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 11:52 AM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

January 22, 2012

What Happens When Teacher Voices Depend on Foundations' Choices?

Follow me on Twitter at @AnthonyCody Ten days ago, I shared a guest post authored by Kelly Flynn, Teachers Hold the Key. They Always Have. This morning it received the following comment: While I wholeheartedly agree with Ms. Flynn that teachers need to become more aware and involved in the reform...  Read Full Post >

Posted by Anthony Cody at 2:06 PM | | Leave a comment | Recommend

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