The Death and Life of the Great American School System
Educational historian Diane Ravitch will
make a presentation in Sacramento on Jan. 20, 2012 sponsored by local CTA
affiliates- that is good. The
public needs this conversation and teachers need this support. The Bee story on Jan 12 unfortunately
uses a misleading headline- Testing Critic to address teachers. The issue is
testing and more. And, the public
needs to consider what is happening to their schools- not only teachers.
The
Bee article by Melody Gutierrez is
reasonable, while the general reporting on education in national newspapers,
magazines and television leaves much to be desired. Ravitch’s book and her presentations will offer a
small but important counter story.
Why
do many reporters not report on the realities of school change?
They too often rely upon the wisdom of selected “spokespersons” and other
elites.
They have been sold a
framework of a corporate view of
accountability. Corporate sponsored networks and think tanks such as the the
Thomas B. Fordham Institute, the Broad Foundation, the Bradley Foundation, the Pacific Research Institute, and the Olin Foundation provide
“experts” prepared to give an opinion on short notice to meet a reporters
deadline. Most reporters assume
that these notables are telling the truth when in fact they are promoting a
particular propaganda such as in the film “Waiting for Superman”. Who do they not talk with? They fail to interview experienced
teachers and professionals who have worked for decades to improve the quality
of inner city schools.
