Recent election outcomes offer a snapshot of what people really think about education reform, said John Podesta, chairman and founder of the Center for American Progress. And lawmakers, advocates and opponents of school reform should all take note. This month’s stunner – the ousting of Indiana public schools chief Tony Bennett, who[Read More…]
Tag: teachers unions and education reform
Michelle Rhee: Teachers unions are isolating themselves from Democrats
Michelle Rhee, in this morning’s Tampa Bay Times: I’m a Democrat because I believe in the party’s basic principles, particularly the idea that we have to look after one another and stand up for those who need help. I believe in fighting for the civil rights of all Americans, especially[Read More…]
Chicago teachers union strike to continue
From the Associated Press tonight: CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago teachers union decided Sunday to continue its weeklong strike, extending an acrimonious standoff with Mayor Rahm Emanuel over teacher evaluations and job security provisions central to the debate over the future of public education across the United States. Union delegates[Read More…]
For school choice, the best publicity ever
Talk about unintended consequences. Has anything ever – ever – generated more positive publicity for school choice than the teachers strike in Chicago? For charter schools especially, the strike is the gift that keeps on giving. They’re open. The traditional public schools are not. Meanwhile, the framing of the strike in the mainstream press dovetails with the parental empowerment rumble from Won’t Back[Read More…]
redefinED roundup: Ed reform tension at the DNC, charter school expansion in North Carolina & more
DNC: President Obama suggests Mitt Romney would gut education spending, but avoids mention of Race to the Top (redefinEd). (Image from Minnesota.publicradio.org) Panel discussions sponsored by Democrats for Education Reform highlight the battle within the party over education policy (redefinED). Teachers union leaders promise to campaign hard for Obama, despite[Read More…]
Diane Ravitch goes off the rails
After more than a decade working in education reform I learned long ago that if I stopped to kick every snapping dog along the pathway, I would never arrive where I needed to go. But every now and then I read something, such as Diane Ravitch’s latest op-ed on CNN.com,[Read More…]
A young teacher weighs the pros and cons of teachers unions
Editor’s note: A response to Kelly’s piece from redefinED host Doug Tuthill is scheduled to run tomorrow morning. by Kelly Garcia Fresh out of college, I was green about unions. I knew little about what they were and why they existed, yet I blamed many of the American education system’s woes on[Read More…]
Romney to NAACP: Expanded school choice will help black students
Beyond the boos for his vow to undo President Obama’s health care overhaul, Republican president Mitt Romney stressed school choice in his speech to the NAACP today, talking up charter schools and suggesting Obama’s ties to teachers unions hampered his efforts to help disadvantaged kids. “If equal opportunity in America were an[Read More…]