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brave new world
March 10, 2009
Obama calls for ideological truce, radical changes in education
In a speech that called for more charter schools, performance pay, and tougher state standards, President Obama this morning laid to rest some doubts that he had not yet made up his mind on several education policy questions currently dividing the Democratic Party.
At the same time, Obama called for a truce in education politics, which has lately been divided by those, including Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, who are pushing for aggressive changes in how schools are run and those who say that schools cannot be fully improved unless lawmakers address poverty and other roots of educational failure. He said his administration will invest heavily in initiatives that are proven to boost student achievement, such as early childhood education and home health care for young families, regardless of who supports them. And in proposing major changes to how teachers are hired, compensated, and fired, Obama never once mentioned teachers unions, regarded by some as obstacles to reform.
Thanks to the stimulus bill passed last month, the federal government is authorized to spend an unprecedented amount of money on education in the coming years. Obama said his administration would offer special funds to states that want to boost their preschool quality, develop more rigorous standards and assessments, and cut their high school dropout rates. During a visit to a Brooklyn charter school last month, Obama’s new education secretary, Arne Duncan, said he would support districts that want to build new data systems to track student achievement and pay teachers based on their students’ test scores, as New York City has done. Without mentioning New York, the president today said he supported the same initiatives.
On how some of the more controversial elements of his education plan would be put in place, Obama gave few specifics in the speech delivered in Washington, D.C., to the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. He said that in up to 150 school districts, “good teachers” will be paid more if their students do better, but he didn’t explain how his administration will identify good teachers or measure student achievement. He also encouraged schools to extend the length of their day and year but did not specify how to pay for the change. And he challenged governors to adopt higher standards in their states, but he left open the question of whether those standards should be the same from state to state.
“The devil is in the details,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the national American Federation of Teachers, in a statement. Traditionally, teachers unions have opposed some of Obama’s proposals, such as differentiating pay based on student achievement and expanding the number of charter schools, whose teachers typically are not unionized. But Weingarten, who also heads New York City’s teachers union, has supported some of the initiatives in the past, permitting a pilot school-based performance bonus program in New York City and calling for national standards in the Washington Post.
Below, statements from the AFT, Chancellor Joel Klein’s Education Equality Project, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, and the Gates Foundation.
American Federation of Teachers:
Statement by Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teachers, On President Obama’s Remarks Today To the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
WASHINGTON-We embrace the goals and aspirations outlined today by President Obama when he called for providing all Americans with a comprehensive, competitive education that begins in early childhood and extends through their careers. The president’s vision of education-and the AFT’s-includes world-class standards for all students, new and better tools for teachers, greater effort to recruit and retain good teachers, and competitive teacher salaries with innovative ways to reward teaching excellence.
We also fully support the president’s call for shared responsibility for education-among public officials, school administrators, parents, students and teachers. Teachers want to make a difference in kids’ lives, and they appreciate a president who shares that goal and will spend his political capital to provide the resources to make it happen.
As with any public policy, the devil is in the details, and it is important that teachers’ voices are heard as we implement the president’s vision. The AFT stands ready to work with the president to make America the leader in public education.
Education Equality Project:
REVEREND SHARPTON AND CHANCELLOR KLEIN’S STATEMENT FOLLOWING PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA’S EDUCATION ADDRESS
We joined together to convince America that a renewed focus on our schools — and a willingness to challenge the status quo on education — is critically important to our country’s future. Today, President Obama told America that ‘economic progress and educational achievement’ are linked. He urged us to rise above partisanship to hold our schools and educators accountable for results; tie education funding to student outcomes; give schools and educators the data they need to make smart decisions; recruit, prepare, and reward outstanding teachers and remove ineffective teachers; and promote educational innovations such as charter schools to provide parents with choices. These ideas are the ones we must implement in order to transform our schools and prepare our students to succeed in the 21st Century global economy. We are taking the President’s words seriously — and are eager to work with him and other school reformers to back the words up with action.
National Association of Public Charter Schools:
President Obama Calls on States to Lift Caps Limiting Charter School Expansion
Washington, DC— In a major education policy speech today, President Barack Obama called on states to lift arbitrary caps on the growth of public charter schools.
In outlining a bold and transformative education strategy for America’s competitiveness, President Obama called “promoting innovation and excellence” a key element of his plan and stated, “One of the places where much of that innovation occurs is in our most effective charter schools.”
The President urged that states remove the artificial caps on charter school growth that now exist in 26 states and the District of Columbia. He said “Right now, there are caps on how many charter schools are allowed in some states, no matter how well they are preparing our students. That isn’t good for our children, our economy, or our country.” Provided that charter school accountability is ensured, President Obama said “I call on states to reform their charter rules, and lift caps on the number of allowable charter schools, wherever such caps are in place.”
National Alliance for Public Charter Schools President and CEO Nelson Smith commended President Obama’s call for a lifting of caps. “With 365,000 students on charter waiting lists, there is no excuse for state laws that stifle the growth of these schools,” said Smith. “President Obama has taken a bold step by challenging states to get on the reform bandwagon. He’s right to couple the promise of growth with a demand for accountability – and nowhere will you find stronger support for high-quality chartering than in the charter movement itself.
At this critical time, students must have educational options that will prepare them for the 21st century economy. President Obama’s call to lift charter caps will open a new chapter, especially in states where caps have limited the future prospects for thousands of students.”
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation:
Allan Golston, president of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s U.S. Program, issued the following statement today regarding President Obama’s speech this morning to the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce:“President Obama today continued to advance the urgent demand to improve America’s public education system from the earliest ages through high school and the completion of a college degree or certificate.
We join our grantees and students across the country in this important endeavor, including the need for fewer, clearer and higher standards, pay that rewards effective teachers, data systems that track student achievement and increasing financial aid that rewards postsecondary completion not simply access.
As the President recognizes, the global economy demands that we not only address high school dropout rates, but do more to ensure that students go on to complete a postsecondary degree or credential with real value in the job market. Low-income and minority students, in particular, suffer from a lack of access to a high-quality education. Only one in five Hispanic young people graduate high school ready for college, and only a quarter of low-income students earn a degree or credential after high school. Today’s speech recognizes education reform as both a civil rights and an economic security priority for everyone in this country.
We are committed to working with the President and his Administration, members of Congress, governors, and other bold leaders across America who are making it a top priority to ensure that all young people graduate prepared for college and career success.”
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March 10th, 2009 6:17 pm
It is really a shame that Obama has drunk the charter school Kool-Aid. That’s probably not surprising given the vast wealth, PR firepower and political clout wielded by the charter mafia. As charter schools haven’t wrought the promised miracles in the 16 years they’ve been around, obviously it will eventually become clear. We just have to hope they don’t do too much damage to public education before it does.
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March 10th, 2009 8:18 pm
I don’t see real change happening until a real partnership is created between parents, teachers and kids. I don’t get the impression that any emphasis was put on accountability for anyone but teachers. My school has SES providers and many kids are in school until 5:30; we also have academies over the February and Christmas break and Saturday school. These kids should be doing much better than they are, considering all the time they spend in school. I’m not necessarily opposed to a longer day or longer year, but I also don’t think it’s the whole solution.
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March 11th, 2009 7:40 pm
[...] In a speech (view here) before the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce he laid out his priorities. Gotham Gazette trolls the press releases and just about all the players in the ed mix praise the speech, well, [...]
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March 12th, 2009 12:06 am
I have a hard time seeing how DOE does not just put up a bunch of ads with Obama’s picture and his statements and call it a day on the Mayoral Control fight. This is just a huge validator and Albany’s going to have a hard time ignoring it.
Practically speaking, I’ll be curious to see if Klein and Bloomberg continue to be vilified as they are on some sites, seeing as how the President of the United States just backed their vision of education reform and I’d imagine is going to try to apply it to the entire country.
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March 12th, 2009 6:05 am
I agree. If the DOE’s MO is posting fraudulent ads with cooked numbers and bogus, happy-time results, why stop now? Keep it Going, DOE.
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March 12th, 2009 11:27 am
My blog comment on Obama’s speech:
Boy, is President Obama confused. That was my reaction to his recent speech on education to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
It’s not just public-education advocates and “school reform” skeptics like me who had that reaction, either. I’m Facebook friends with Lisa Snell – a free-market, pro-privatization commentator with views pretty much polar opposite to mine – and on her Facebook page, she called his talk “a study in contradictions.”
The president’s muddlement on education issues seems out of character, and I guess there’s no point in speculating on what’s causing it. Education commentators are burning up the Internet with their responses.
The two points that most leap out are Obama’s exaggerated gloomy picture of our public schools — he cited a string of “facts” that are actually questionable, wrong or even spun to make our schools look worse than they are – and his baseless praise of charter schools as a solution.
“Daily Howler” blogger Bob Somerby, who is frequently bombastic but very often on target, wonders about the bleak picture Obama chooses to paint – and, presumably, believe.
“Why do politicians paint this Gloomy Portrait of American schools? In some cases, they may not know what they’re talking about; everyone has heard these Standard Claims, and people tend to believe them. But yes, there can be political uses for such gloomy misstatements. As Bracey has noted, gloomy claims have long been used by educational “conservatives” to undermine faith in the public schools; vouchers and charters are more appealing if you believe that the public schools are a wreck. On the other hand, a president can set himself up to be a star if he overstates the mess which predates him.”
Somerby doesn’t try to guess at Obama’s motives, and I can’t either.
And what’s with the praise of charter schools, President Obama? Charter schools have been around for 16 years now. Some are great, some are disasters and the rest are all along the range in between – just like traditional public schools. As has been amply documented, charter schools overall do not outperform traditional public schools, despite having numerous advantages over them (including massive financial bounty from billionaire private philanthropists and the avid support of a series of public-school-disparaging presidents).
More and more voices are talking about the way the charter school movement started as a “progressive” and “grassroots” way to allow parents a full voice in how their children are educated – and has now been largely hijacked by the pro-privatization, anti-public-education free-market right. You’d think those folks would be hiding in a corner right now, with their philosophy so obviously discredited — I’m one of the millions of Americans suffering direct economic harm from their gleeful experiment with unregulated free markets – but they’re still out there waving the flag for charter schools. (A growing legion of resisters among real-life urban parents around the nation is rising up to decry the “stranglehold of the billionaire eduphilanthropreneurs,” as Oakland’s Perimeter Primate blog puts it.)
Education analyst/commentator Gerald Bracey responds on The Huffington Post to Obama’s admiration for charters:
” After evaluating public schools on test scores, he then turns around and praises charters for creativity and innovation. But study after study of charters has come away saying they were surprised at how much the charter schools look like regular public schools. And charter schools don’t score as well on tests as regular public schools (”NAEP gap continuing for charters,” Eric Robelen, Education Week, May 21, 2008). You can’t bash the public schools on test scores then praise the charters which have lower scores.”
Bracey, who knows his way around achievement analysis, refutes a number of the bleak claims Obama’s speech made about U.S. public education.
” … a lot of the speech contained flat out errors. He said that graduation rates had fallen from 77% to 67%. Huh? Graduates are a contentious topic, but the U. S. Department of Education says the best method for estimating it puts it at 74.5% nationally (a short treatise of the topic can be found in Paul Barton’s 2009 “Chasing the High School Graduation Rate.” Free copies at http://www.ets.org/research/pic).
” He said dropout rates have tripled over the past 30 years. Come again? A 10% decline in graduation rate = a 300% increase in dropout rate? Talk about fuzzy math.
” He said, “In 8th grade math we’ve fallen to 9th place.” Actually, we’ve come a long way, baby. The reference here has to be to the most recent TIMSS which tested in 45 nations. But in the original TIMSS from 1995, published in 1996, U S 8th graders ranked 23rd in math among 41 nations. If that’s falling, let’s go down some more, fast. [Caroline here: A reasonably competent newspaper copy editor, coming across that claim, would know to ask: What was the rank previously; from what starting point has the U.S. fallen? What’s with Obama’s research staff? Dudes!]
” “Just a third of our 13- and 14-year-olds can read as well as they should.” This is outright garbage. The reference here has to be to NAEP achievement levels which, as I have shown over and over again, as have others, are outrageously unrealistically high. Richard Rothstein and colleagues demonstrated that, were kids in other countries to sit for our NAEP exams, NO country would have a majority of students proficient in reading using NAEP achievement levels. Sweden, the top-scoring country, would be just ahead of the U. S.–with one third of its students proficient.
” He raved about South Korean schools but neglected to say that thousands of South Korean families sell their children–yes, sell–to American families so their kids can a) learn English and b) avoid the horrible rigidity of Korean schools. And while the US trails Korea on average test scores, it has a higher proportion of students scoring at the highest level on the Program of International Student Achievement (PISA). Moreover, it has the highest number of high scorers (67,000) of any country. No one else even comes close. Top scoring Finland has a proportion that gives them about 2,000 warm bodies at PISA’s Level 6 (Lowell & Salzman, “Making the Grade,” Nature, May 1, 2009). It’s the top performing students, not the average ones, who are going to lead the way in innovation.”
And Obama makes a comment that is frequently parroted but very obviously doesn’t hold up:
“We have one of the highest high school dropout rates of any industrialized nation.”
One example that dispels this claim: I have good friends from the Netherlands who describe their school system to me this way: Students are tracked from middle school age into college-bound or vocational schools. In vocational school, they graduate at the end of the equivalent of our 10th grade – age 15 or 16 – with the equivalent of a high school diploma.
How can you compare our “graduation rate,” which requires a full 13 years in school, ending at age 17-18, with the graduation rate of a system that requires two fewer years in school? It’s a bogus, unsound comparison.
And that’s just one country’s system – I haven’t studied this, but I’m told that European school systems vary all over the place in the number of years in school required to graduate from the equivalent of high school. This claim just doesn’t hold up in any way. President Obama!
Here’s what Bracey wrote about that claim on the Huffington Post:
” Because test scores no longer work to prove American school failure, the statistic of choice to prove what a lousy job we’re doing is the graduation rate. How dare those European and Asian nations have the audacity to recover from World War II!
” The dropout rates across nations are, so far as I can tell, incomparable, since secondary school programs in other nations range from two to five years. In other nations, once students finish the equivalent of 8th grade, they are tracked into vocational, technical or precollege programs whereas American students go to comprehensive high schools …”
Bracey is a little flip in response to Obama’s comment that “half of our students who begin college never finish.” Our basic copy editor would, again, request that the writer provide a comparison to the equivalent information about other nations, but that was missing from the speech. Bracey’s response:
” I also don’t know much about college completion rates in Europe, but do know that you can hang around as a student at the Sorbonne in Paris forever. Incidentally, you want a riot in Europe? Try imposing college tuition.”
I am not saying that our nation’s school system isn’t troubled and in need of plenty of improvement — and neither are the commentators I’m quoting. But exaggerating the problems to the point of attacking our schools is not helpful. It distorts the picture and gives impetus to those who (despite the collapse of the right-wing free-market dream everywhere else) still aim to privatize American education.
Needless to say, there are lots of rebuttals like Bracey’s, Somerby’s and this one hitting the Internet. Are any of these viewpoints (at least the solid rebuttals to bogus claims he presented as facts) reaching the President?
Also on www dot change dot com, education blogger Clay Burell — who lives and teaches in South Korea, responds pointedly to Obama’s praise of South Korean schools. (I’m not including links because this site holds up posts for many hours, pending moderation, if they contain links.)
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