(Site under intermittent construction. Changes may appear randomly at any time.)

A word or two about this Blog site:

I've resisted creating my own place here in cyberspace for some time. There are many brilliant, articulate people writing about what's going on in public education. Mountains of data and knowledge that expose the "education reform" movement as neither can be found all over the internet. I highly recommend you check out dianeravitch.com or curmudgucation.blogspot.com, for starters.

I would like to use this site as a way to rant a little and to pose my own questions, as issues in my daily teaching life impel me to rant and I do like to ask questions. And my friends and family may have grown weary of me filling their inboxes. I also like to muse about possible answers, and hope I will be heard in cyberspace by at least a few interested readers.

Having said that, I seek communication in writing that moves the conversation forward, even towards actionable results. I know I can't control writers I've never met and never will meet, but if you choose to comment, I encourage you to help us understand your point of view. Snark is welcomed. Rudeness is not.

Thanks for reading!

Thursday, March 3, 2016

KEEP SPEAKING OUT...

The Washington Post recently published an article by Valerie Strauss entitled  "Activists urge Senate not to confirm Obama’s pick for new education secretary" 
In part it reads:


"Dozens of students, parents, educators and activists are urging the U.S. Senate not to confirm John King, President Obama’s choice to succeed Arne Duncan as education secretary, because he pushed education policies when he was education commissioner of New York State that they say were “ineffective and destructive.”
The Senate education committee held confirmation hearings last week and his confirmation by the panel and the full Senate is expected this month. But a growing number of King critics are speaking out, including a few school boards in New York, which passed resolutions against his confirmation. Now a letter signed by a long list of individuals and organizations warns senators not to be “misled” by King’s “vague promises to do better.” Signatories include education historian and activist Diane Ravitch, educator Deborah Meier, and Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis."
I also wrote a petition and over 250 people signed it in less than two weeks.  (And that's without Facebook and Twitter...)  
The petition was sent to members of both the Senate and the House (for good measure) today. 

 I don't suffer from visions of grandeur.  John King will be our next Secretary of Education.  

 But I know for sure that we all have to keep taking our small steps forward, joining together in a unified voice, and persisting in speaking truth to power.

 The future of our democracy demands this.
Thanks to all who joined in!


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2 comments:

  1. UnknownMarch 6, 2016 at 6:45 AM

    Thank you for re-posting this important petition. Many of us who have taught in NY know why it is so important to push back against this confirmation.

    ReplyDelete
  2. aliceMarch 7, 2016 at 3:20 PM

    The petition was sent to members of both the Senate and the House (for good measure) today. I don't suffer from visions of grandeur, but I do know we all have to keep taking our small steps forward, joining together in a unified voice, and persisting in speaking truth to power.
    The future of our democracy demands this.
    Thanks to all who joined in!

    ReplyDelete

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