Schooling In Capitalist America

Critical Reading in Education

• Save Our Schools March Analysis August 27, 2011
  Good analysis of the Save Our Schools March from Lois Weiner, editor of The Global Assault on Teaching, Teachers, and Their Unions. The key line in my opinion is: “If the AFT and NEA had put even one-quarter of the effort organizing for this march as they  did the get-out-the-vote for Obama, the march would …Read More
• Diane Ravitch and Brian Jones on Democracy Now! August 27, 2011
  Great interview with Diane Ravitch and NYC teacher and SocialistWorker.org columnist Brian Jones discussing education reform and resistance. Watch the video here.—AS __________________________________________________________________________________________ “Poverty Is the Problem”: Efforts to Cut Education Funding, Expand Standardized Testing Assailed Source […]
• Rhee Refuses to Comment on Testing Scandal August 27, 2011
  Michelle Rhee, one of the stars of Waiting for Superman, is only eager for the spotlight when she can attack teacher unions and push merit pay. Yet the testing scandal that occurred under her tenure as D.C. chancellor should become a prime example of why Merit Pay doesn’t work.—AS ______________________________________________________________________________ […]
• Duncan’s NCLB Carrot August 27, 2011
  Duncan crafts a devil’s bargain for States: I’ll let you waive your NCLB test score requirements (and consequently not have to “turnaround” dozens of your “failing” schools, but only if you adopt measures that tie teacher pay to student test scores and open the door to charter schools.—AS ______________________________________________________________________ […]
• Montana challenges NCLB August 22, 2011
  Montana refuses to raise their Adequate Yearly Progress scores as required by the No Child Left Behind Act (and consequently dozens of schools will not be labeled “low-performing” and opened up to “turnarounds.” Although Duncan initially threatens to pull Title I funding he eventually backs off. We should be demanding this happen in every state.—AS …Read Mor […]
• Panel for Education Policy Protest August 22, 2011
  Another great report from the NYC Panel for Education Policy Protest against their Verizon contract.—AS __________________________________________________________________________________________ Bloomberg’s gift to Verizon Source: Socialist Worker By Sandy Boyer August 22, 2011 Although it was recently announced that they were going back to work without a co […]
• Verizon Workers and NYC Teachers Unite! August 21, 2011
  Although it looks like the Verizon strike may be coming to an end (though it is not yet over) and the outcome looks grim, thousands of workers have experienced their own power and the an outpouring of solidarity over the last two weeks—a feeling not easily forgotten. In what has been referred to as “the …Read More
• Lessons from Wisconsin August 21, 2011
  Another good analysis of the Wisconsin recall results—AS __________________________________________________________________________________________ Let’s Learn the Right Lessons from Wisconsin Source: Labor Notes By Dave Poklinkoski August 17, 2011 Two Democratic state senators in Wisconsin beat back recalls yesterday, by 58 and 54 percent. That means that i […]
• What’s Shaping the Attack on Teachers August 13, 2011
  Dissent magazine has had some phenomenal education reporting lately. In their Winter 2011 issue Dissent printed a must-read article by Joanne Barkan on the big three foundations—Broad, Gates and Walton. Starting in their Spring 2011 issue they began a three-issue series called “re-imagining education reform.” Below is an article from the latest installment t […]
• Analyzing Wisconsin Recall Results August 13, 2011
  The labor uprising in Wisconsin was spearheaded by a 4-day wildcat strike by teachers. This was a profoundly transformative action after two years of constant teacher bashing in the media. Therefore, analyzing the results of the recall elections in Wisconsin are integral to assessing the state of the teacher and broader labor movement today. Below …Read More […]