General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSo Ted Kennedy Was Behind No Child Left Behind???
I was not aware of that until tonight watching the DVD Waiting For Superman.
The movie has changed a few of my core beliefs about education.....
ForgoTheConsequence
(4,846 posts)Which beliefs of yours did that movie change?
pkdu
(3,977 posts)elleng
(130,126 posts)TroglodyteScholar
(5,477 posts)elleng
(130,126 posts)Haven't seen the movie.
TroglodyteScholar
(5,477 posts)cheapdate
(3,811 posts)I despise this law. It would be immediately repealed in its entirety if I had my way.
snot
(10,478 posts)Mnpaul
(3,655 posts)Michelle A. Rhee, Americas most famous school reformer, was fully aware of the extent of the problem when she glossed over what appeared to be widespread cheating during her first year as Schools Chancellor in Washington, DC.
A long-buried confidential memo from her outside data consultant suggests that the problem was far more serious than kids copying off other kids answer sheets. (191 teachers representing 70 schools). Twice in just four pages the consultant suggests that Rhees own principals, some of whom she had hired, may have been responsible (Could the erasures in some cases have been done by someone other than the students and the teachers?).
http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2013/04/12/did-michelle-rhee-ignore-her-own-cheating-scandal-a-new-memo-suggests-clear-evidence-was-discounted/?cxntfid=blogs_get_schooled_blog
It looks like the principals under Rhee may have altered test answers to get better scores. I have also seen allegations that she moved out special ed. students to bring test scores up.
Starry Messenger
(32,342 posts)Philip Anschutz and Walden Media: What Kind of Agenda?
One of the key players in the distribution of Waiting for 'Superman' is Walden Media, a film company owned by Philip Anschutz. Barbara Miner touches on him (and many other players) in her recent article, but I've yet to see anyone look at how Anschutz uses his family's foundation to push a conservative/libertarian agenda.
As I'll lay out below, the Anschutz Foundation, chaired and financed by Philip, is quite fond of some of the biggest players in conservative education advocacy: the Manhattan Institute, Heritage Foundation, Cato Institute, Hoover Institution, and the American Enterprise Institute. The foundation also gives to the Freedom Works Foundation, Washington Legal Foundation, and various other influential think tanks/organizations. I won't really get into it here, but it's fair to say this foundation uses their philanthropic arm much the way the Koch brothers do: to further their own conservative agenda while creating a climate that is more friendly for their businesses.
Many left-leaning moviegoers will believe the film must be true: it's produced by that great curly-haired fellow who made 'An Inconvenient Truth.' Never mind his misunderstanding of NAEP cut levels, his misrepresentation of tenure, and his refusal to provide even a slight bit of nuance about charter schools - the public comes away from this flick not even know what they don't know (yes, I've seen it). And, as far as someone like Philip Anschutz is concerned, that's just fine and dandy - it fits right in with the school reform agenda pushed by the think tanks he funds.
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duffyduff
(3,251 posts)It doesn't matter if the director or whatever is a "Democrat."
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)Recursion
(56,582 posts)But W suckered him into believing it would be fully funded.
Rex
(65,616 posts)nt.
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)Recursion
(56,582 posts)Really?
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)*fully* funding it would have given better results.
so, how?
Rex
(65,616 posts)instead of being sabotaged from the very beginning of signing it into law. Personally, I would have never trusted GWB to help do anything good for this nation - but that is just me.
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)Rex
(65,616 posts)It did NOT do that, not even close. If it had been fully funded and implemented in good faith (which it was not), maybe it would have worked. I don't think so and still to this day think standardized testing is stupid - we pay teachers to teach let them do their jobs.
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)in the principle that 'failing' schools could be closed down, personnel fired, converted to charters, etc.
That's what it was intended to do. That's what got funded.
And those are the policies that Obama has continued.
Rex
(65,616 posts)and would have never signed on knowing it was just built to fail from the beginning.
graham4anything
(11,464 posts)It's the same with the Clinton's and Gore and NAFTA
What was the original intent was disallowed by the Bush's and became the opposite that it was
ForgoTheConsequence
(4,846 posts)You can blame the Republicans for a lot but NAFTA was a Republican idea that Clinton gladly went along with. We started to see the results before W even took office.
DemocraticProse
(28 posts)I firmly believe education is something that needs to be solely about children.
Too many of the hurdles we face in education reform are more about labor issues than children and I find that troubling and selfish.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)As long as reform focuses on the teachers, from one direction or another, I think it's doomed.
eShirl
(18,466 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)it's like a Zen Koan.
tammywammy
(26,582 posts)ananda
(28,781 posts)Just most of it.
Title III was great!
immoderate
(20,885 posts)And the policy was anti-education. What did they expect?
--imm
ForgoTheConsequence
(4,846 posts)And supporter teacher unions until the end.
Dawson Leery
(19,348 posts)His mistake was signing on with the BFEE. When you deal with the Bush's, you lose.
duffyduff
(3,251 posts)It is a propaganda piece peddled by the likes of the billionaires and Wall Street crowd.
It was Bush who was behind NCLB, but Democrats got onboard to their everlasting shame. This was rammed through Congress right after 9/11.
Obama's education policies are a million times worse.