Public Education Partners

In 4th century Greece, Cynicism was a kind of philosophy or social criticism, and legend has it that a man named Diogenes wandered the Greek countryside on a never-ending quest for an honest man. It was said that few Greek politicians exhibited that character trait, because society in ancient Greece was ruled by thoughts of personal gain, political corruption, and meaningless rituals.

It’s the 21st century in America, where thoughts of personal gain, corruption, and meaningless rituals continue to flourish for some within our political system. After extreme obstructionism led to many unproductive legislative sessions, a Public Policy Polling survey found that Congress is now less popular than root canals, head lice, colonoscopies, and cockroaches.

Is it any wonder that United States citizens are increasingly skeptical about the possibility of lawmakers compromising on meaningful legislation in the near future? Many voters have become so cynical that they even choose to sit out elections.

State lawmakers in Ohio began the 2015 general session with a long list of legislative priorities, and charter school reform was an issue that had bipartisan support. Everyone wondered what reforms would be put into place by a legislature that’s controlled by David Brennan of White Hat Management and William Lager of the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow. They’ve been among the largest single donors to Ohio politicians – especially those from the party that now dominates state government. http://knowyourcharter.com/2015/01/21/policy-vs-politics-will-prevail-looming-ohio-charter-school-reform-fight/

Following controversial scandals, many legislative delays, and scathing editorials about Ohio’s failing charter school experiment, legislators finally passed the most sweeping, comprehensive and meaningful reform of Ohio’s charter school system since the program began in the late 1990s, as reported by Stephen Dyer, Education Policy Fellow at Innovation Ohio. It will keep track of Ohio’s operators, letting the public know where they operate and how they perform. It will force sponsors to do their job and hold schools to account, or else they won’t be able to sponsor schools. It will open up the mostly opaque world of charter schools so the public can better track the now $1 billion a year in state money that goes to charter schools.  http://www.10thperiod.com/2015/10/a-great-day-for-ohios-kids.html

According to Innovation Ohio, the bill relies on the Ohio Department of Education to provide the necessary enforcement and oversight that will actually make HB 2 a success. Given the recent scandals and controversies that have engulfed ODE, there’s good reason to be concerned. And this is critically important because HB 2’s accountability provisions focus almost entirely on charter school sponsors, especially, the state’s evaluation of them. http://innovationohio.org/2015/10/14/hb-2-passes-now-to-the-details/ 

Cynics could rightfully say that real charter school reform will never be possible with a GOP-dominated state school board, legislature, and governor who answer to the corporate interests of education profiteers.

Ohioans must hold their legislators accountable in making sure that the Ohio Department of Education honestly and effectively evaluates charter school sponsors and their schools.

Unless that happens, legend has it that Diogenes will be doomed to wander the countryside for eternity in his never-ending quest for an honest man.

We are many. There is power in our numbers. Together we will save PUBLIC EDUCATION.
~Diane Ravitch

A school year of high-stakes testing is upon us again, and the number of families refusing to allow their children to participate continues to grow. Education experts around the country have come forward to speak out against the use of standardized tests to evaluate children. Some states have even passed student assessment  laws to help parents understand their rights about the testing and to make them aware of their legislative options.

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) is not as forthright with information to parents about the use of these mandated tests.

Public Education activist Kevin Griffin believes parents have the right to updated and accurate information about the tests from ODE, and they have the right to choose what’s best for their children. Kevin recently presented at Public Education Partners’ statewide education summit, PUBLIC EDUCATION MATTERS, and he informed attendees about Ohio’s high-stakes tests and parents’ options about testing. http://keving722.blogspot.com/2015/10/ohio-public-education-partners-common.html

A concise but poignant resource about high-stakes testing debacle is a popular children’s book called Hooray for Diffendoofer Day. This picture book was primarily created by Theodor Seuss Geisel, but he died before he was able to complete it. Adding to Dr. Seuss’s original work, author Jack Prelutsky and illustrator Lane Smith finished the fable in 1991.

This insightful book is about an out-of-the-box kind of school staffed by appropriately named workers, such as the nurse, Miss Clotte, the custodian, Mr. Plunger, and three cooks named McMunch. Diffendoofer School teachers provide inquiry-based lessons mingled with some important skills not found on any list of standards:

Miss Bobble teaches listening, Miss Wobble teaches smelling,
Miss Fribble teaches laughing, and Miss Quibble teaches yelling.

The quirkiest teacher of all is the main character in the book:

My teacher is Miss Bonkers, she’s as bouncy as a flea.
I’m not certain what she teaches, but I’m glad she teaches me.
Of all the teachers in our school, I like Miss Bonkers best.
Our teachers are all different, but she’s different-er than the rest.

One day, Diffendoofer’s worried little principal, Mr. Lowe, makes a special announcement:

All schools for miles and miles around must take a special test,
To see who’s learning such and such- to see which school’s the best.
If our small school does not do well, then it will be torn down,
And you will have to go to school in dreary Flobbertown.

Like most of the children in Ohio public schools, Diffendoofer students stress out at the thought of taking such a high-stakes test, and they fret about the prospect of being removed from their beloved school and forced to attend a different school in dreary Flobbertown, where everyone does everything the same. 

They continue to agonize over the test, until Miss Bonkers reminds them:

“Don’t fret,” she said, “you’ve learned the things you need
To pass that test and many more- I’m certain you’ll succeed.
We’ve taught you that the earth is round, that red and white make pink,
And something else that matters more- we’ve taught you how to think.”

Miss Bonkers is right, and the students get the very highest score and pass the dreaded test using background knowledge, combined with the thinking skills they acquired through a variety of innovative activities at Diffendoofer School.

Ohio’s reliance on high-stakes tests to evaluate students, teachers, and public schools has forced many districts to re-focus their budgets on curricula that will help teach for the test. It’s not a coincidence that the same educational companies that profit from the testing resources also contribute to the campaigns of many of the legislators who sponsor the corporate ed reform laws.

In this test-driven era, Art, Music, and Physical Education have already been slashed in many school districts to free up funding for the state-mandated exams. Ohio’s GOP-controlled State Board of Education eliminated the “5 of 8” minimal school staffing rule to make it easier for cash-strapped districts to eliminate art, music and physical education teachers, as well as nurses, library media specialists, guidance counselors, and social workers.

Unfortunately, limiting the programming to align with the tests will eventually lead to more schools like dreary Flobbertown, where everyone does everything the same. 

Legislators need to think about the real world implications of what Dr. Seuss figured out more than two decades ago.

High-stakes testing is taking its toll on our children, as well as chipping away at the institution of public education.

All for the benefit of profiteers who fund political campaigns…

We are many. There is power in our numbers. Together we will save PUBLIC EDUCATION.
~Diane Ravitch