Invisible Man, Charter Expulsions, Jared Polis and Name Calling, AKA The New Normal
2 min read
A North Carolina school board bans The Invisible Man for having no literary merit.
Melinda Anderson has a great piece on charters - she reports the story of a 7 year old girl expelled for her hairstyle, which apparently violated the dress code. However, she then situates the story in the larger context of school closings - which disproportionately affect people of color - and how some charters quickly open in these neighborhoods.
Meanwhile, in Louisiana, private schools receiving public subsidies in the form of tapayer funder vouchers are performing 30% below average. John White, despite being a TFA alum and presumably schooled in the no excuses ethos, offers the following excuse:
"Anytime you start something new, it's going to take some time to grow," White said. "Nearly two thirds of the kids taking tests in those schools had only been there six months."
In Colorado, Democratic Representative Jared Polis calls Diane Ravitch an "evil woman" for her work advocating for strong public schools. Of course, he makes his statement, and then deletes it. Try and find this in his timeline. Good luck.
Because, of course, it's not like the internet remembers everything. And, elected officials have a moral obligation to label the people who disagree with them as evil.
Over in my email inbox, I have a message from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee asking for money because John Boehner did something stupid.
The day before that, same request for money, but it was because Mitch McConnell is vulnerable, and defeating him "could really send a message."
The day before that, same request, but this time with the Koch brothers bogeyman.
Nothing about education. Everything about fear, and us versus them, and give us money to spread our message. Fortunately, Jared Polis seems to be doing a fine job spreading the message on his own.
And people say our educational system is broken.
If we're looking for ways we could improve our educational systems, getting informed people making policy would be a great start.
