Teachers and parents on the frontlines of this pandemic should be given control of how their schools are reimagined in the future. When this crisis ends, they should be given the voice on how to bring back democratic public schools and make them their own. Any revolution surrounding schools is theirs.
Those who foisted unproven and draconian school reform on America’s public schools in the past, now attack those reforms like they’re the fault of teachers and school systems. If public schools are broken it’s largely due to what these so-called reformers did to schools. They’re criticizing the mess they created!
Who…
- insisted on high-stakes standardized tests?
- pushed a no-play, no-recess curriculum on our youngest learners?
- denied children with disabilities the services they need?
- wrote and insisted on Common Core State Standards?
- insisted on one-size-fits-all goals and instruction?
- drove parents to distrust teachers?
- ignored the mental health needs of children in our schools?
- destroyed student privacy, especially online privacy protections?
- reduced or removed the number of school nurses, counselors, and support staff in schools?
- fired the librarians and closed libraries?
- removed the arts from poor public schools?
- set up EMO charter schools that drain funds from true public schools?
- gave vouchers to schools unaccountable to the public?
- praised and funded alternate teachers with fast-track training?
- insisted on large class sizes?
- said teachers don’t need to improve their knowledge with advanced degrees?
- insisted teachers need to be evaluated by tests, using test scores of students they never taught!
- opened the door to administrators who never studied or worked with children?
Trying to justify replacing schools with charter schools and online instruction will make for a nice profit.
Since their reforms failed, they and their ideas should be put out to pasture.
________
Here’s two of many examples.
Joseph Wise, who leads Acceleration Academies, a controversial charter school network and the Educational Research and Development Institute (ERDI), an organization meant to promote the business of schools, said in the Orlando Sentinel, “Use COVID-19 Crisis to Revamp Public Education Commentary.”
Wise begins by telling how difficult it has been to conduct online instruction to students, but goes on to tell us that …after we’ve done the triage needed to finish this school year, educators, lawmakers and technology innovators must lay the groundwork for a makeover of public education that uses technology to shape learning for each student’s needs.
Before COVID-19 shut down schools, most students had to report to classrooms each day, log state-mandated “seat time,” and progress (or not) through a one-size-fits-all curriculum.
It’s a crisis, yes. But it’s also an opportunity for a revolution in public schools – one in which kids come out on top.
Wise comes from the Broad Center.
A 2012 Duval Case Study by the Chamber of Commerce, who aren’t fans of public education, tells about the firing of Wise after he had replaced John Fryer, a retired Air Force major general, the previous superintendent.
What’s interesting is how they frame it.
Despite the improvements that Fryer and Wise instituted, student performance in Duval County remains low. The graduation rate is about 70%, and the district ranked 50th of 67 Florida districts in 2011 state test results. Achievement gaps remain large. According to the Jacksonville Public Education Fund, low-income African American 9th graders in Jacksonville have only a 5% chance of earning a college degree.
How are they improvements if the results were not adequate? Can you imagine them saying, despite the improvements teachers made in the classroom the achievement gaps remain large?
The point is, Wise never improved schools. Why should anyone listen about what he says about public schools?
________
Arne Duncan, former education secretary under President Obama, and former CEO of Chicago schools, had years to improve public schools. But Race to the Top did a bad job. Now Duncan is using this time to reimagine education which means he wants online instruction.
Here’s Duncan showcased by the Gates backed The 74, “74 Interview: Former Secretary of Education Arne Duncan Urges ‘Empathetic Leadership’ Through ‘Brutal’ Coronavirus Crisis and Toward a New Normal,”
I don’t want us to go back to the old normal. And there’s a whole bunch of things that this time allows us to think and to challenge. Can we think about the fundamental school year and calendar year? Can we think seriously about not seat time, but about competency? Can we think about what should truly continue to be online and learn virtually, and what should be done in a physical building?
This is Arne Duncan on Twitter:
Now is the time to reimagine education.
Now is the time to end massive inequities.
Now is the time to close the digital divide.
Now is the time to give every child in America the chance to learn anything they want, anytime, anywhere.
Duncan doesn’t like the old normal for public schools, the normal he heavily influenced as education secretary. Duncan might criticize Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, but he also implies he wants to end brick-and-mortar schools!
Duncan had years to improve public schools. Instead, like DeVos, he’s ready to turn it all over to for-profit companies. He’s connected to technology through The Rise Fund and looks to make out well focused on online instruction. It’s difficult to find where he helps teachers.
Why should anyone listen to what he says about public schools?
Those who led schools with their visions, were about converting public schooling to all-technology. That’s always been the case. It’s more so now.
There are many more naysayers. When public schools return, teachers, parents, and their communities should oversee public schools, not outsiders with no education background, or those who don’t have their children in those schools.
The so-called old crisis, those broken schools, screamed about in the media are the obnoxious reforms these venture capitalists placed on public schools themselves! They did this to destroy schools. With the Covid-19 crisis they have the perfect opportunity to end brick-and-mortar schools for good. Quit listening to them.
Any school revolution needs to come from those closest to their schools and not those who pretend to care but have their own for-profit interests in mind.
Any schooling revolution must come from educators and parents with a vested interest in their children and promise of a public education that will survive this crisis if there’s anything left that is holy and good.
How about folks like Rick Hess and his ilk?
A couple of years back the far reactionary right wing group “Show Me Institute” had a conference in Kansas City entitled “Failures to Fixes”. Out of 12 or so participants there was a total of 7 1/2 years of K-12 teaching. 3 1/2 for the KC Supe (what a joke as a “qualification”) and 4 for Jay P Greene (U of Ark-the bought and paid by the Waltons education department).
As it was, the very ones who had championed the policies that have wrought so much damage to the public education teaching and learning processes, i.e., the standards and testing malpractice regime, were now charging themselves with the job of fixing the “failures”, of course the fault of the teachers for not implementing those malpractices with fidelity. A total joke!
And the punch line hits the students right up side the head!
We both know there’s a long list of people who are shills for school privatization. Thanks, Duane.
Paul Cottle, a Florida-based university science educator and advocate for physics education is not impressed by Acceleration Academies. https://tinyurl.com/y7oxrnyb
Thank you, Anne. Interesting.
Keep saying it loud and clear, Nancy.
Thanks.
Wonderful as always, Nancy! Thank you!
Thank you, Your comments on Diane’s blog are great!
Here’s my $0.02. worth of re-imagination for the secondary, 7 – 12 level:
WHAT!
The school year schedule and course offerings have to become much more granular. Translation, we need to end the traditional full year, 40 week courses and adopt the college format of 20 week semester scheduling. This would include 4 week mid semester break and a shorter 8 week “summer vacation”. Classes would be scheduled for either 10 0r 20 weeks, Double 20 week classes, like *biology to be scheduled with new student groups if possible. Traditional 40 – 45 min. periods to be maintained.
WHY?
The restructuring the school schedule in this way, offers several important advantages.
1) The time frame for school success (passing a class) is shortened, providing fresh starts for students. This advantage for marginal students cannot be understated
2) Eliminates the downside of ‘familiarity’ as student/teacher relationships don’t get too relaxed
3) Allows for *refining course offerings
4) Requires teachers to increase their efficiency and eliminates busy work
5) Establishes a sense of urgency for all stakeholders
6) Its FREE
*Example:
Biology, Grade 9
Semester 1 > Classification, Cells, Reproduction, Genetics, Human Body Systems, Disease
Semester 2 > Biodiversity, Evolution/Natural Selection, Ecology/Ecosystems, Environmental issues
You seem to know a lot about this, Rick. I know there are ways the schedule could be tinkered with, even to create necessary smaller classes for early learners for reading. The only scheduling I don’t care for are 90 minute periods. Maybe for certain classes but it usually seems too confusing and long.
Also year round school. That would need coordination so children in the same families are given the same times.
But this is interesting and important to think about. Thank you!
My middle school created a Fresh Starts program that effectively turned each of the traditional “quarters” into an independent, 10 week grading (credit bearing) period. Restoring hope by shortening the time period for academic success from 40 weeks to 10 weeks has made all the difference in the world, especially for marginal students. I have details I can send you if you’d like. However, the above proposal is a slightly different, but maintains 40 minute periods and does not involve year round schooling.
Thanks for including Duncan and Wise as examples of the larger points about failed policies and no understanding of the multiple purposes of education beyond generating test scores.
You know the list is long. But they were recently showcased. I’m sure we will hear more from them, We always do. Thank you, Laura.
I agree 100% but I do hope that educators understand there will not likely be a “snap-back” to prior-state anytime soon, if ever. NO ONE really knows how to even approach a return to the classroom in this pandemic. Some school systems (and universities) in my state are already talking about January ’21 before in class sessions start and even those may not be 100% of the time, or 100% of the students and teachers at the same time. But pervasive Covid-19 monitoring and testing MUST be in place to support it. The world’s record for the development of a working vaccine is 4 years (Mumps in the late 50’s) and expecting one in 12-18 months for this is extremely optimistic…so it will likely be a long slog. There is little doubt in my mind that online education platforms and tools will play a more consistent and possibly bigger role in K-12 schools than ever before. It is not a Virtual vs Not Virtual false-binary choice, but will be thoughtfully crafted approaches and programs developed and evaluated by educators.
Thank you, Patrick. You may be right. I hope you’re wrong and they figure out something sooner.
I am not a Luddite. I like a lot about tech. There’s much about it that’s fascinating. and students need to be tech savvy. So many careers are connected to technology.
But there are a lot of crummy programs out there, and we have not evolved to where we know that a regimen of nothing but tech, and students working on their own, will work well.
I don’t think we will ever get to the point where students don’t need teachers and brick-and-mortar buildings.
Thank you, Diane Ravitch! Read the comments too. Robert Shepherd and Duane Swacker are there.
https://dianeravitch.net/2020/04/20/nancy-bailey-stop-the-talk-about-reinventing-and-reimagining-schools-after-the-pandemic-unless-you-are-a-parent-or-teacher/comment-page-1/#comment-3025129
I haven’t commented in awhile but I thought the time was right because of the unknown, let us say for the Fall 2020. How will teachers start the year, will they go back to their classes when/where schools ended so abruptly? Some teachers and a old Principal thought it may be a good idea. Will they be able to have full classes? I’ve heard the use of split schedules with online teaching to accommodate 6 feet distance. I have faith in teachers they will find a way. So many issues, a Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos who is evil to education. She preaches private and charter trying to kill public education. While our leaderless idiot in the WH is divisive and is killing many areas of government with incompetence. Just last night Trump was trying to use a disinfectant to cure Covid-19. We have so many problems it is like where does one start? The one thing I believe is teachers will somehow get it done in spite of all the tasks at hand. My wife who is sitting by, who retired a couple of years said how she is glad to be out. I have no idea what is in store for America cause this is so uncharted/unknown. One thing I do know, you will be able to count on public education. Teachers will do the best job under extreme conditions. Public teachers continue to amaze me, so the future will be a huge test. Best of luck educators.
That’s nice. Thank you, James. I am sure teachers will appreciate your comment.