Obama’s Race to the Top competition won’t fix public schools

[proud2BlibKansan]

Competition may bring out the best in business and sports, but that logic doesn’t necessarily apply to public schools. The practical way to mend the educational system is by implementing economic and social reforms that focus on the children.

For taxpayers who are frustrated and angry over the glacial pace of school improvement, it’s easy to understand the appeal of the Obama administration’s Race to the Top initiative. Patience, after all, has its limits. But distribution of $4.5 billion in discretionary funding to schools that qualify will not improve educational quality for all children.

This assessment is based largely on the emphasis given to competition as the centerpiece in creating successful schools.

A slew of recent commentary articles have argued that, because competition brings out the best performance in athletics and business, it should raise the quality of public education, too. Only by being patient with charter schools and by offering performance pay for teachers as the embodiment of competition can reform ever become a reality.

But since US education is at a crossroads, it’s imperative to take a close look at the assertion that competition would boost performance.

The trouble is enthusiasm for both charter schools and performance pay runs far ahead of any compelling data that indicates their merit.

The most recent data came in September, when economist Margaret Raymond of Stanford University released the results of her study of charter schools in 15 states and the District of Columbia. She found that 37 percent of charter schools posted worse standardized test scores than comparable traditional schools, 46 percent did about the same, and only 17 percent were superior.

more . . . http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2009/1230/Obama-s-Race-to-the-Top-competition-won-t-fix-public-schools

[Tim01]

1. I could chew nails over Obama and his bullshit ideas about education.

This is just him using the government to advance the agenda of corporations. At the expense of our kids.


Home school your kids if you can.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. No. Keep your kids in public schools and get involved.

This won't change if parents don't fight it.

[mopinko]

3. iow, as far as i can tell, this guy says-

it's not my job. in spite of the presence in the study of a charter school that did overcome the injustices of the social structure that this guy says must be fixed first.

look, i know how much the teachers here get their backs up about charter schools. but some of the most amazing things happening in education are happening at charter schools. if i had a magic wand i would divide this whole conversation into talking about for profit schools vs non-profit run schools. here in chicago, the university of chicago has a charter school that is doing what all schools should be doing- taking the poorest, most at risk kids, and growing them into learners and leaders. they treat them like whole people, and nurture them like whole people.
this, imho, is what is missing in education. teachers don't like it. but these kids need real connections to caring adults. i just don't see that happening very often in public schools.

[liberal_at_heart]

4. That is a fatal flaw in the public school systems

There is no help for the at risk students. One of the things I would like to see happen to improve the system is getting rid of some of the administrative positions and reallocating the funds to reducing class size.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. The community has to get involved

That means parents and business owners. Schools cannot do this alone.

And yes, lower class sizes is an excellent idea.

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. That's one school in one district

And that is not typical of charters across the country.

I'm glad they have had some success in Chicago. But it isn't being repeated in many places.

I also question how they are measuring success. We have one charter here that boasts of graduating 100% of its kids. But there were 3 in the class. They kicked out the others who weren't on track to graduate.

The bottom line is your hope for charters reaching the poorest most at risk kids is just not happening. For profit companies run by billionaires (like the family that owns WalMart) are getting wealthier off of the backs of our poorest most at risk kids. It's disgraceful. It's not at all reflective of the values of the Democratic party.

[mopinko]

17. i did specifically say-

the debate needs to be split between for profits and non-profits. i think they are apples and oranges.
and another local example is that one of my kids went to a therapeutic day school. it was run by the local jewish children's bureau. half of the building was a yeshiva, the other half was contracted to the board of ed. they didn't have to follow all the rules, but in the end the board had the say over who was granted credit for what, and who graduated. words cannot express what that school does for it's students.

look, i am sorry that the debate is focused on this shit instead of on what kids need. because there ain't no secret sauce there. kids need to be individuals, and not cows in a herd. i really don't care who gets that done or how. i just care deeply that it get done, and now.

but as to the actual article, i would also like to add this- saying that teachers are not motivated by money flies in the face of reality. i know lots of them. the ones that make better money are happier. period.

[proud2BlibKansan]

20. Teachers who become teachers to make money don't last long

I've worked with well over 100 of them. Most were good teachers. A few were outstanding. But the bottom line is lifelong educators aren't in it for the money. There are other far greater rewards.

Yes teachers need a decent salary. That speaks to the need for more respect for the profession. But to say teachers are motivated by money is just not true.

I'm motivated by money when I am at the casino. But in my classroom, it's not about money and never will be.

[mopinko]

22. i'm not saying they are only motivated by money. i know better than that.

but to say that they are not at all motivated by money, when you are talking about making career choices, come on....

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. This year I am motivated by school supplies

Like pencils.

Supplies were cut from our budgets.

Now do I expect the idiots in charge who decided not to give us money for classroom supplies to make a competent decision about how much to pay me? LOL

[msongs]

11. charter schools skim the kids and get resources regular schools are denied nt

[Luminous Animal]

12. It isn't enough to state that charters are doing well,

you need to back it up. Unfortunately, for charter advocates, the numbers do not support the rhetoric. Two major studies, one at Stanford and the other by the Rand Corporation (funded by charter supporter Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) have determined that charters a more apt to produce worse results than good when compared to public schools.

http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/MG869/

http://credo.stanford.edu/

[checks-n-balances]

13. There ya go, still carrying water for Arne Duncan

The man has never taught a day in his life, and Obama didn't attend public schools himself. The President needs to widen his range of advisors on this subject. We haven't had a good Sec'y of Education since Richard Riley, and he was excellent.

[mopinko]

19. nice talking point

doesn't have anything to do with anything, but it is a well worn, smooth talking point.

arne duncan brings what schools need- the realization that what kids need is someone who gives a shit about their success. sadly, in many schools systems, nobody does.

[checks-n-balances]

25. No talking point, just an observation over time n/t

Duncan only brings what the corporations "need" - to make $ off of our children - and by doing so, siphoning off funds away from the public schools. It's all in the scheme to privatize the public schools, and there's no getting around that.

And Happy New Year anyway.

[mopinko]

27. this 'never been in the classroom' started on day one, here in chicago.

so, it is anything but an observation over time. it is the opposite. that would be what irks me about it.

happy new year to you, also. seriously.

[GreenArrow]

30. Arne is not an educator

and he doesn't know jack about what children need. He's nothing more than a PR flack and salesman for the likes of Neil Bush.

[walldude]

6. Happy New Year...

I am a big advocate of public school and PS teachers. They have done a terrific job with my kids and are continuing to do so. My middle son is Autistic but functional. He has some quirks but gets by in school just fine. He's in middle school and we have been hearing from every local high school, inviting him to attend their school. Turns out it's because of his test scores. They want him because he's a genius and scores high on our NCLB tests, know as CSAPS here in Colorado. This happened to him with middle school as well but they had no idea he was Autistic and he was denied access to some of the more advanced schools when they figured it out. However the high schools are fighting over him and they know he has autism. They want the money he can bring them.

This competition thing sucks for kids like him. Schools want him not for who he is or what he can achieve but for what he can give them in terms of overall school performance and increased finances.

Education is not a sport, or a competition. People learn at different paces, some have higher IQ's than others, some have learning problem and some can finish a years worth of learning in a single semester. This republican notion that everything needs to be competitive is bullshit, and Obama should know better.

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. I don't think anyone really knows what to do

That's the sad part. And kids are stuck in a dysfunctional system that no one knows how to fix.

Ask any teacher and you will hear lots of solutions. But they all cost money. And since no one listens to the teachers, we get to sit by and watch the charters get that money we have been asking for.

Good luck with your son. Sounds like a neat kid. :)

[Tim01]

15. What we have now is WORSE than what we used to have.

Now, the quality of education has gone down for all the kids in the classroom.

Go back to tracking. Let the future grease monkeys( good paying job) get into a work study program and get them out of the classes where they don't care and are only disruptive. There are lots of kids like that. I am a substitute teacher, I know.

"You didn't answer any questions on the test."
" I don't care. I don't give a shit about plant cells and crap. I'm going to work at my brothers body shop just as soon as I can get out of this crappy school. Can I sleep at my desk, or should I go to detention and sleep there?"

[phasma ex machina]

26. +1 "I don't think anyone really knows what to do" Sad, but too true.

[DefenseLawyer]

8. Standardized testing is a billion dollar racket

Follow the money.

[proud2BlibKansan]

10. A couple years ago (last time I saw the figures)

my state was spending $7.50 per test per kid. The expense is enormous.

[LWolf]

14. When will the parents start getting active to oppose it?

I don't know any teachers that are thrilled with RTTT. But, since part of the goal is union-busting, I don't expect him to listen to teachers any time soon.

Are there enough parents who "get it" to make a difference?

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. Not in my district

:(

[LWolf]

28. Not in any district I've heard about.

I really don't see how we are supposed to make a difference without the support of the community. :(

[Tim01]

18. No. American parents think school is a babysitting service. nt

[LWolf]

29. Many do, and I understand that.

Since it now takes two full-time working parents to provide what one did in my childhood.

Having been a working single parent, I know how hard child-care costs hit the family budget, and what a relief it is to have those costs drop dramatically when a child reaches school age.

That's a whole different topic. I'd really like to see a living wage.

I'm not interested in babysitting. I'm interested in learning. What would our classrooms be like if all the students, and their families, were interested in learning, as well?

It often seems like many parents are more interested in ensuring what their children WON'T learn.

[muntrv]

21. What will fix public schools is parental involvement in their kids' education.

[mopinko]

24. the kids whose parents are involved are fine. it's the kids whose parents

can't be involved who are in trouble. they don't need the schools to be surrogates, but they do need relationships with caring adults.
some parents just can't be involved. some parents are over their heads, in lots of ways. some are downright unfit.
it has ever been thus. it will ever be thus. this is the real world, and schools need to operate in it.