For years, school administrators have been talking about bringing more computers into the classroom. Parents have assumed that this was to enable students to hone their computer skills and to gain knowledge about the world. Surprise! It has turned out that the world is gaining knowledge about your child. Read Jane Robbins’s commentary about data-mining from the website, Truth in American Education here.
I was e-mailed this article today: “Washington Charter School Law Best in Nation According to Report.”
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/dec/08/washington-charter-school-law-best-in-nation-accor/
It would be funny if it weren’t so frustrating–and misleading. The National Association of Charter school Authorizers (NACSA) wrote the report that praised Washington’s charter school law. NACSA is funded by the Gates Foundation.
Gates is patting himself on the back.
In December 2015, Congress passed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), a re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA) of 1965. This law replaces the previous re-authorization, better known as No Child Left Behind. Since then, former New York State Education Commissioner John King has succeeded former Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and we can begin to see how the new law will unfold. The ESSA is being touted as a new move to return education to local control, but the devil is in the details. The Federal Department of Education’s interpretation of the bills language will determine the true effect of the law upon the states. The American Priciples Project has commented on how the law was passed. Read the commentary here.
Turkish President Erdogan is blaming his political rival Fethullah Gulen for the recent attempted coup and wants Gulen extradited to Turkey. Gulen, a Turkish cleric, living in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania denies the accusation and claims that Turkey’s coup was staged by President Erdogan himself. At this point, the truth is not forthcoming, but the violent events shine the spotlight on this Turkish cleric.
And what does this have to do with education in Washington State? [read more]
Charter Schools – a “Gotcha” Game in Education By Cris Shardelman As parents, teachers, students, and voters rightfully attempt to repeal use of Common Core–the assessments, Achieve, Data Gathering, a National Curriculum, and a career/work certificate, they are led to believe Charter Schools are the escape route from each of these policies or issues. They […]
By Lucy Wells
Educational fads usually have names that sound like perfect solutions to our failing educational system. People are inclined to assume good intentions, so they give these fads a chance. Yet the fads, tragically, victimize generation after generation. [read more]
Under the federal education law, No Child Left Behind, at least 95% of the state’s students must take the state assessments. However, this year Washington state students in various parts of the state opted out in large numbers, resulting in only about 90% of the students taking the assessments. Exact numbers have not been released yet. This is an unexpected and unprecedented occurrence. It is uncertain how the federal government will respond. Read the KPBS article.
Girls in Seattle schools may not be able to have candy or soda due to health reasons, but they can certainly get IUDs without their parents’ knowledge. Read the article here.
This story is so outrageous, it was even printed in the United Kingdom’s Daily Mail. However, it has unfortunately been much less publicized by our own US media.
A Connecticut mom was left appalled and angry when a school district’s kindergarten application asked whether her child was delivered by C-section or not. The district was asking extremely intrusive questions, ostensibly to detect any potential health or emotional problems in enrolling youngsters. Read about the survey here.
School staff are increasingly becoming pseudo-psychologists and -psychiatrists. Meanwhile less and less academic information is being taught.
Remember you can refrain from answering questions in school forms (or other forms, for that matter) that you find too intrusive.
This video by Aaron Kasparov explains the Common Core approach to math and English/language arts. Many states are seeing this type of math for the first time, however we in Washington state have been subjected to this type of math for years. We experienced this “constructivist” math during the WASL period. In some districts, subtle messages undermining traditional values in the language arts courses have also been in the curriculum for years.
Watch the video.