Miami Herald: Law (NCLB) turns kids into commodities
Law turns kids into commodities
By Fred Grimm fgrimm@MiamiHerald.com
Compared to modern school kids, I was a downright worthless student.
I dont mean worthless as a pejorative. (My father would have used a more colorful term to characterize my scholarly pursuits.) But worthless as a commodity. Us kids at Montrose Elementary School werent making anyone rich. Not like todays pupils, particularly those in Florida, whove become valuable cogs in a burgeoning industry.
Such precious little dummies, these wayward students. Their benighted ways in the classroom have given rise to a recession-proof enterprise. To a no-lose sort of capitalism. Educational entrepreneurs (some backed by Wall Street hedge funds who know a sure thing when they see it) have figured out how to make millions without the usual risks of the marketplace, drilling for profits in the ever lucrative field of school reform.
No Child Left Behind, President Bushs 2001 education reform package, since embraced by President Obama, may have forced needed attention onto failing schools, but the law also created an extraordinary new industry funded exclusively with public money. ...............(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/12/17/2551128/law-turns-kids-into-commodities.html#storylink=cpy