Our children are not your profits, or your data they are our children

Salutations Readers, A little news from Michigan. check this link out:

When education reform is about politics, not children (column)

http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2012/02/post_66.html

This blog is for the ones standing up to this madness

NCLB/RTTT has never been about our children. When you turn your nation's public schools into for profit ventures our children, parents, teachers, and our local communities lose. Public education should be something noble. An imperfect dream at best, but a dream worth fighting for in a democracy. Notice I said fighting for not selling! Schools for profit are just schools for profit. In schools for profit children become capital to be squeezed for profit. Lets all get something straight from the start- NCLB no matter how-well intentioned people claim it is ends up selling our children, our teachers, and our schools to the highest bidder. The currency use is test scores, and the profits come from a one trillion dollar slush fund allocation of federal dollars. People became rich off the misery of our children. I demand a full accounting of where, and to who every single dime went to. I demand a full disclosure of all political donations, and consultant fees paid to policy makers, lobbyists, and political campaigns as well. Anyone who spends time in our nation's classrooms and talking to students understands that our obsession with testing has brought nothing, but misery to the lives of America's children.

America is waking up. We smell the the phony education reform coffee that places for sale signs on our children, our teachers, and our schools all over our country. Children are more than test scores, and are certainly not capital to be squeezed. 

There are many battles being fought against NCLB/RTTT's Status Quo policy makers/profiteers these days. The amount of news about these battles is dizzying. Even MNBC's Education Nation can't cover it up any longer. Even Emperor Bloomberg in New York's is under siege these days. I find myself smiling proudly as I read about the efforts of parents, teachers, and community activists from sea to shinning sea that are fighting this madness that reduces our children test scores. SOSers are there at every battle as well. Bravo SOS Chicago, Washington, and Colorado you are rocking the nation. I am so very proud of all the parents and teachers showing up at every New York City, Boston, and Chicago mayoral controlled board of education meetings. You can see it all on Robert Lamothe's Teach documentary. Robert was out there documenting it all in from Boston to Wisconsin to DC. http://www.robertlamothe.net/rl/   Robert is a truth teller in our mists.  


I remember a time when I felt alone in this battle. When I spoke out against NCLB a decade ago I was one of the only voices in the room. The only real person fighting NCLB in those days was Susan Ohanian. She lit the only real beacon of resistance in the night for us all to follow on the very first night of darkness. Susan is a blessing. Anytime you think you are alone, or lost in this struggle go to http://susanohanian.org/  Susan Ohanian is truth leading us from the mists. 


I remember a decade ago thinking how can so many good people be buying this idea that testing our children more will save them...What I missed back then was the term "buying."  NCLB is not just snake oil school reform it is about placing a big for sale sign on our public schools and children. The good news, and yes there is good news everyday~ we are winning. I can see it on policy maker's faces, hear it in their voices, but most of all you can see it in the room at every public forum. I am not saying the battle is over. Actually I am saying the battle is only really beginning. Forgive me using a sport metaphor here, but like Muhammad Ali our jabs are wearing them down. Ali took the early blows from the mighty George Forman, and then use his jabs to bring the giant down. Keep Jabbing Michigan,
New York, 
Colorado, 
Arizona, 
Florida, 
California, 
Texas, 
Chicago, 
Indiana,
Washington state,
Washington DC,
Chester Pennsylvania, 
Connecticut,
Georgia,
New Jersey, 
Wisconsin, 
Luisiana, and 
Georgia keep jabbing brothers and sister keep jabbing. 


On Tuesday I gave public testimony at the Connecticut Department State Department of Education at the ESEA Waiver Hearings. It was my usual children are more than test scores. Assessment is a photo album of performance, and is about time we start valuing the voices of teachers and students in the data. Want the turth go ask a child about how they feel about all this testing? On Tuesday I saw the first sign of winning in Connecticut. Policy makers shifted from Race To The Top to ESEA terminology. Policy makers and politicians are learning the old slogan "No Child Left Behind" kills anything they have to say, and so does using "Race To The Top" as well. Now we are far from victory here, but we are winning. 
I said you can see in the room. Well 10 years ago I stood alone in a room like that one at a Connecticut Reading Association conference session that presented NCLB as the word of god. Speaking out against NCLB meant standing alone. Momma always said it's not who your standing with, but what your standing for that counts. Back then I spoke alone. Last Tuesday everyone spoke out against NCLB/RTTT, new teacher evaluations schemes, new standards, and new assessments. We did not win any battles that day, but man we like Ali we "floated like a butterfly and stung like a bee," and we are jabbing so fast they don't know left from right, or up from down. 
We are at the tipping point, and their scams, their lies, and bullying are coming  an end. The NCLB Status Quo Walls are tumbling down on them. 
If you want to see what democracy looks like check parents and teachers at the NYC PEP meeting last night 2/9/12: http://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2012/02/video-of-protests-at-pep-meeting-last.html
Can someone let Secretary Status Quo Arne Duncan know I'm coming to DC?

Still jabbing,
Jesse

One for my old school brothers:

If you are wondering what the Walkingman is listening to today on his walk...it's Des"ree's You Gotta Be Strong: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8Vdw0hZk20&feature=related

"Listen as your day unfolds,
Try to keep your head up to the sky...
Challenge what your future holds,
Lovers they may cause you tears,
Go ahead release your fears,
Stand up and be challenged
Dont be ashamed to cry..

You gotta be, you gotta be bad, you gotta be bold, you gotta be wiser,
You gotta be cool, you gotta be calm, you gotta stay together,
All I know all I know is love will save the day.
You gotta be hard you gotta be tough you gotta be stronger,

Herald what your mamma said,
Read the books your father read,
Try to solve the puzzles in your own sweet mind,
Others take a different view,
Some may have more cash than you,
My oh my, hey hey hey,
you gotta be bad, you gotta be bold, you gotta be wiser,

You gotta be hard you gotta be tough you gotta be stronger,
All I know all I know is love will save the day.
You gotta be cool, you gotta be calm, you gotta stay together,"

 you like I said we gotta keep jabbing,

Jesse

Somebody Call the Secretary of the Status Quo Arne Duncan

I  wonder if Secretary Duncan understands the issue of equity? Has he even read the NAACP January resolution on charter schools? The prize is and has always been equity not some race to nowhere that leaves some schools with more funding, more supports, wrap around services, and more segregated than ever before. I salute the leadership of the NAACP for reminding America the prize is not test scores, but equity.
So friends copy and paste this one to every DOE in the nation? The Status Quo is NCLB, and has run the show for over a dozen years now.
The Status Quo in DC has spent over a trillion dollars on new testing and standards all the while ignoring inequity in our schools.
Secretary Status Quo Duncan had his chance to change the status quo, but instead has done everything in his power to maintain and to preserve a system of inequity.
See you in DC March 30-April 2 Mr. Status Quo at Occupy the DC DOE,
Still marching,

Jesse 

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE 4805 MT. HOPE DRIVE • BALTIMORE, MD 21215-3297 • (410) 580-5777

LEON W RUSSELL

Chairman, Resolutions Committee National Board of Directors

BENJAMIN TODD JEALOUS

President & Chief Executive Officer

ROSLYN M. BROCK

Chairman, Board of Directors

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the nation’s oldest, largest and most widely-recognized grassroots based civil rights organization. Formed in 1909 by a multiracial group of progressive thinkers, the NAACP is a nonprofit organization established with the objective of ensuring the political, educational, social, and economic equality of people of color. For over 102 years, the NAACP has challenged this nation to uphold its promise of equal opportunity toward the goal of eliminating racial prejudice and removing all barriers of racial discrimination through democratic processes.

In a process established by the NAACP Constitution, this resolution was adopted by the delegates to the 101st Annual Convention in Kansas City, Missouri, during the legislative session in July, 2010. It was subsequently ratified by the NAACP National Board of Directors at its meeting on October 15, 2010. This resolution is now the policy of the Association, and is “binding on the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, the Officers, and all units.”

WHEREAS, charter schools are public schools which were originally designed to explore new approaches to educate students; and

WHEREAS, in some cases, charter schools have become a school model that is used to segregate students; and

WHEREAS, charter schools have too seldom informed the education community regarding innovative instructional strategies that accelerate academic achievement in the general population of students; and

WHEREAS, the Center for Research in Educational Outcomes (CREDO) which examined charter school data in fifteen (15) states and the District of Columbia confirmed that only 17% of the charter school students in the study outperformed their peers, while 46% performed no better and 37% performed worse; and

Charter SchoolsWHEREAS, charter schools operate more autonomously than traditional public schools in the use of funds, adherence to state laws and school policies, selection and removal of students, and the selection and removal of staff, thus creating separate and unequal conditions for success; and

WHEREAS, charter schools draw funding away from already underfunded traditional public schools; and

WHEREAS, the NAACP recognizes that at best, quality charter schools serve only a small percentage of children of color and disadvantaged students for whom the NAACP advocates relative to said population left behind in failing schools; and

WHEREAS, the NAACP recognizes the urgent need to provide quality education for all children, not only those fortunate enough to win lotteries to attend existing quality charter schools; and

WHEREAS, the NAACP is committed to finding broad based, effective solutions for immediate implementation to improve the quality of public education for all children.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP will strongly advocate for immediate, overarching improvements to the existing public education system; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NAACP rejects the emphasis on charter schools as the vanguard approach for the education of children, instead of focusing attention, funding, and policy advocacy on improving existing, low performing public schools and will work through local, state and federal legislative processes to ensure that all public schools are provided the necessary funding, support and autonomy necessary to educate all students; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NAACP will urge all of its Units to work to support public schools throughout the nation to educate all children to their highest potential.

Roslyn M. Brock Chairman National Board of Directors

Leon Russell Benjamin Todd Jealous Chairman President & CEO Committee on Resolutions

If you are wondering what I was listening to on my walk this morning:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=130J-FdZDtY&feature=related
Still marching Momma, and still listening, and still believing in that dream,
Jesse 

Spread the word Occupy the DC DOE this March 30 to April 2

My Momma loved listening to Dr. Martin Luther King on our little black and white TV. She would have us all down on our knees in prayer every time someone arrested, or did something mean to him.
It was like we knew Dr. king personally, and in some ways I think we all knew him. I grew up in a house with a missing father. Her thinking was there could be no better role model for her only son than Martin.
She brought us a 33 vinyl record album of Dr. King's "I have a dream speech", and we listened to it on Sunday afternoons after church. We listened as we looked through images of that speech in the only Life magazine we ever had in that old apartment.
She told us every once in awhile a man needed to take stand and testify before his brothers and sisters. We only have to do it once in awhile. Now she was sure to let us know Martin did it every single day. The only picture of a black man in our house was of Martin. His picture was right next to the Pope's picture.
She cried for weeks after Martin was assassinated. We all cried, and I still find myself crying some nights.
Like my Momma said every once in awhile a man has to take a stand, and testify. Well this spring I am going to tell it on a mountain at Occupy the DOE in DC. I have carried the hurt of a thousand children, a thousand parents, and a thousand teachers inside of me for over a decade of NCLB. I have walked, talked, blogged, and now I am going to testify and occupy the DOE with my brothers and sisters.

Come one, come all, and if you can't make it to DC then make a sign, grab a friend, and occupy a DOE near you for an hour or two in your state.
Come tell it on a mountain that the people are taking back their public schools.
Still walking, still marching, and ready to occupy the DOE,
Jesse   
 For a peek at the schedule for Occupy the DOE click
http://unitedoptout.com/occupy-the-doe-in-dc-schedule-march-30th-to-april-2nd-2012/

If you are wondering what the walking man was listening to just before he testified at the Connecticut State Department of Education ESEA Waiver hearing:
http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?p=blind%20boys%20utube%20go%20tell%20it%20on%20a%20mountain&tnr=21&vid=1442126955610&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts3.mm.bing.net%2Fvideos%2Fthumbnail.aspx%3Fq%3D1442126955610%26id%3D94f1b0e79849e499b0d795877a685dfd%26bid%3D8pAYjCWjK8TXFg%26bn%3DThumb%26url%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.youtube.com%252fwatch%253fv%253drgESkVmFnsQ&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DrgESkVmFnsQ&sigr=11a6ca197&newfp=1&tit=Go+Tell+it+on+the+Mountain+-+The+Blind+Boys+of+Alabama
Sometimes a man has to testify, and tell it like it is. A trillion NCLB dollars later all DC has to offer is more of the same old same old. Come tell it on every mountain top that their old NCLB/RTTT Status Quo has to go!