We refuse to do fast, we educate teachers the old fashion way

 Our Jamaican teachers hanging with Doctors Chuck, Carol, Lynda, Lousie and Jesse last July. Their two year learning journey ends this June with me.  

Some of our graduating Connecticut Reading Specialists graduating next week at our Teacher Love Fest last May

Harry Chapin sang:

"All my life's a circle, sunrise and sundown
The moon rolls through the nighttime, till the daybreak comes around
All my life's a circle but I can't tell you why
The season's spinning' round again the years keep rollin' by"

Today we welcome a little over 30 new teachers into our Central Connecticut State University graduate program for Reading and Language Arts, and next Thursday we graduate about the same.
It never gets old, it's always fresh, the new ones are always bright, and the ones leaving are always shinning stars.
We don't do it online, we don't do Graduate Education Relay scams, we don't do Teach For America 5 weeks over the summer, our students are full time teachers, and it usually takes around two years to complete our program. We don't do fast, we do well, and we have been doing it well for 167 years. We prepare teachers the old fashion way. We mentor them in apprenticeships of love and compassion for learning and teaching. We are not some fly by night hedge fund manager's dream. Our teachers are taught by real educators with PhDs in Education from top research institutions with years of public school experience.
We are not in the business of preparing CEOs. We are in the business of preparing teachers to become something far more important, Reading Specialists, Literacy Coaches and Reading consultants.
We are wise enough to know along the way the teachers we work with teach us. Learning is funny you can't teach without learning.
So my circle today welcomes new teachers, and my circle next week sends genuine experts in their field on their way. We can't do fast.
We do exemplary with compassion, love, and right,
Dr. Jesse Patrick Turner (AKA The Walking Man)

If you want to listen to the song from this mornings walk it Harry's "All My Life A Circle" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW0vjZiu_rw

Grit another word for continued inequity and injustice for Black, Brown and Poor Children

Valerie Strauss has a good read in her article in the Washington Post. It does an excellent job exposing the thinking about teaching Grit in our public schools. This is the link below for her article. When you have some time it is really work a read.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/05/10/the-problem-with-teaching-grit-to-poor-kids-they-already-have-it-heres-what-they-really-need/

Let me make this clear "GRIT" is a code word for Progressive racist reforms that keep Black, Brown and Poor Children down. It means don't change a thing, just tell children to toughen up. It means Progressive Ed Reformers are not willing to do the right thing.
Grit is such a convenient smoke and mirrors cover up for 49 states spending more money on their wealthy schools than their poor schools. Black, Brown and Poor children in America have endured generations of inequity in our public schools. Every Ed Reform policy claiming forcing children and poor schools to meet standards without equity is the same status quo lie that preserves the School to Prison Pipeline.
I am marching with my Moral Monday Leaders Bishop John L. Selders and Rev William Barber in DC this July 8 at the Peoples March for Public Education and Social Justice for equity denied for over a hundred years to Black, Brown, and Poor American children in our public schools. Equity is not grit it's doing the right thing for America children.

I have been walking, talking and marching for 50 years for equity and justice in America. I have march every step of the way out of love for my nation and it's people. I march, because I think inequity and injustice ends in America on the day we all march. The only question I have is why isn't everyone marching with us? 
Marching for my people,
Jesse The Walking Man Turner 

If you like to know what song this walking man is listening to on his walk this morning....its Ben Harper "with My Own Two Hands" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEnfy9qfdaU

Will you TURN UP?

This Walking Man will TURN UP, This Walking Man will stand arm in arm with his brothers and sisters against injustice in our public schools.
My only question is will you TURN UP?
Fighting for equity for Black, Brown, and poor public schools is essential to ending the School to Prison Pipeline that has crushed the lives of children of color since the 19th century. Inequity in funding has plagued our public schools since the very beginning. The mask that provides cover for what Jonathan Kozol identifies as "Savage Inequalities" for over a hundred years has been testing. Testing provides that smoke and mirrors hiding racist education policies. It keeps the public eye off that fact that America has never done right by Black, Brown, and Poor children in our public schools. Public Education history provides an abundance of evidence testing policies have always exacerbated inequality in our public schools. Let me be very clear testing masquerading as education reform is merely a policy of forcing Black, Brown, and Poor Public Schools to compete for planned scarcity of resources. Inequity is injustice in our public schools and is simply immoral.
Bishop Selder's is speaking at the Peoples March for Public Education and Social Justice on July 8, 2016, because Moral Monday People have always known this. Silence and apathy in the face of injustice have always been immoral.
Proud to be marching with my Moral Monday's bothers Rev William Barber and Bishop Selders at the Peoples March,
Jesse The Walking Man Turner


If you want to listen to the tune from my morning walk today its....Gospel sisters B Leza version of " Aint gonna let nobody turn me around.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGz4NY-vklw
Feel like marching with us? > http://saveourschoolsmarch.org/2016/03/sos-coalition-event-lincoln-memorial/