Private
vs. Privatization…
There has been a lot
written about the battle between public and private schools, much of it
presenting the conflict as though the two can't exist together. I know that many of my posts come out in
favor of public education over privatization of our educational system. I believe that there is a significant difference
between private education and privatization of education, and one that needs to
be mentioned directly here.
Private schools are a part
of the fabric of American educational history.
In fact their history goes back to the beginning of our nation. For a significant portion of American history
the lines between public and private school were easily ignored or virtually non-existent. Our nation has an interesting educational
history that has resulted in the complex and multi-layered system we have
today.
Private schools continue
to have a place in our society. They
provide instruction in religious studies that would be unconstitutional in a
public school. They also provide
educational options for families and often are part of family traditions. In short, my issues with private education
are not necessarily about the schools themselves.
My issue lies with the
efforts to take public money away from public schools and to funnel it to
private schools, voucher schools or charter schools that operate outside the
control of local school boards, DPI regulations and other public
oversights. It seems clear to me that if
a school/organization takes public money they should immediately fall under the
same rules and regulations that public schools operate under. These schools should have the same
consequences that public schools have and be held to the same standards.
Instead, we are seeing
politicians and "education reformers" use the mantras of
"choice" and "freedom" to push an agenda that transforms
our public education system into a maze of voucher and charter schools that
siphon students away from public schools.
The reality is that these privatized schools often don't perform better
than the public schools they are replacing, and they also don't serve all
students needs. Students with special
learning needs or challenging behaviors are frequently excluded from private
education. These students remain in the
public school system and, because there is often a higher cost involved in
meeting their needs as well as an impact on test scores, are used to
demonstrate that public schools are neither cost effective, nor educationally
sound institutions.
Public and private schools
may share the broad category of educational institutions, but in many cases the
similarity ends there. It is important
that people recognize the differences and realize that comparisons between public
and private schools are often like comparing apples to oranges. We also should be looking at ways to utilize
the strengths of both types of schools in order to make sure that all of our
children are getting a quality education.
As a nation we don't put a priority on truly educating all of our
citizens and the struggle to find money and resources for education clearly
demonstrates this. Turning our
"educational reforms" into a struggle for scarce resources only harms
our students and their families.
Defending
Public Education…
As the political and
economic climate has changed, we've seen public education and public educators
attacked as lazy, incompetent and inefficient.
This has allowed for policy makers to make significant changes in how
public educators go about their work and has influenced how the general public
views the public schools in their community and the nation as a whole.
Here in Wisconsin we've experienced a governor and
legislature that has taken advantage of the current economic climate to
institute a broad range of "reforms" that have negatively impacted
public education and educators. With the
results of the recently completed election returning power to the GOP it is
likely that we will see even more damaging legislation and policies
introduced.
With all that has happened
in Wisconsin
in the recent past it would be easy to give up hope and accept the
"reforms" as inevitable.
However, we've seen public educators here, and across the nation rally
in defense of the profession and the institutions we value so highly. There is a lot to be proud of in Wisconsin's public educational
system (and much work to do as well).
In the end, the success of
our public schools rests on the individual educators, students and families who
make up the system. It is up to us to
defend our schools and to protect and preserve our public education
system. Politicians will always seek out
issues to serve their needs and we've seen how turning education into a
political football has harmed our students and schools.
I am excited about an
initiative that is starting in my school's community. To date we have had two gatherings with
educators, family members and community members to talk about how to advocate
for our public schools here in Madison. We have been working on identifying issues of
concern and developing strategies for communicating with others in the
community and with policy makers as well.
I see this type of group as an effective way to advocate for our schools
and to return control of the "reforms" to those who have the most
investment in public education.
Spend
Your Money Wisely…
News Flash….Holiday
shopping continues. Please remember that
your dollar is an important weapon in the continuing struggle to create a more
socially just and equitable society.
Small
Business Saturday Spending Exceeded Expectations According to Research from
NFIB and American.
madeinusachallenge.com
We will continue to see
the anti-labor rhetoric take center stage in the mainstream media. This makes sense because it is the
"big-money" corporate interests who control major media outlets. It allows them to place blame on the workers
and on labor unions whenever we face economic difficulties. However, it is important to remember that
criticisms of labor are criticisms of the majority of American citizens. Those taking the blame are the same people
who do the work, spend the money and drive our economy.
Walmart has become a focal
point in the battle between labor and management as well as between small business
and large corporate institutions. While
Walmart isn't the only business that engages in such questionable practices,
its sheer size and the power of the name make it the most visible of anti-labor
(dare I say anti-American) employers.
All consumers should be aware of the labor practices and business
policies of businesses they frequent.
We
can't ignore the looming debate over taxes that will occupy legislatures and
the national and state levels for the upcoming weeks. Once again the propaganda machine for the
wealthiest Americans will be in full effect and it will take a great amount of
careful focus to find where the reality of our economic situation lies.
Bernie Sanders Blows the Lid Off the ‘Bipartisan’ Plan To Cut
Taxes for Corporations and the Wealthy
www.politicususa.com
Walkergate…
We
continue to follow this story with a mixture of hope and revulsion. Hope that we may see our current governor pay
the price for his lack of ethics.
Revulsion in the apparent level of misconduct and the reality that many
would overlook this for the sake of political gain.
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