Education schools are nothing more than dumbed down, politically correct fad factories supported by the teachers unions. If you ever wanted to have a complete file of Diane Ravitch’s inane union apologist utterances all in one place – here it is. As Part of NBC’s Education Nation, she and Harlem Children’s Zone’s President Geoffrey Canada...
Useless teacher “professional development” classes cost California taxpayers billions in increased salaries and pensions. On June 14th, my blog, “You Don’t Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Union Wind Blows,” addressed the “Teacher Quality Roadmap: Improving Policies and Practices in LAUSD,” a 58 page report commissioned by United Way and several civil rights’...
Teacher union boss cherry picks from a biased poll and ends up with the pits. Cherry picking is a phrase that has become quite popular these days. The term simply refers to advancing a certain point of view by using only data which supports that POV and omitting any contradictory or mitigating information. A recent...
President Obama has talked a good education reform game, but when push comes to threats, he is above all a good union man. On August 25th, AFL-CIO boss Richard Trumka uttered a few words that seemed to resonate with President Obama. He said, “The AFL-CIO has not yet decided if it will participate in next...
Once a rabid anti-reformer, termed out United Teachers of Los Angeles President A.J. Duffy has become a union apostate…maybe. On September 1st, Los Angeles Times writer Howard Blume wrote what at first glance appeared to be satire. He reported that A.J. Duffy is starting his own charter school. For those of you who live a...
The Dog Days of summer are making teachers unions sweat as they get caught being, well, teachers unions. August has been a bad month for teachers unions. And looking at things objectively, it would appear that every one of their hot flashes has been well deserved. In no particular order: The SOS March was a...
Despite good intentions, efforts to reform teachers unions and make them partners in education reform will not work. Last week, the typically sane and sage Andrew Rotherham wrote a provocative article for Time Magazine entitled “Quiet Riot: Insurgents Take On Teachers Unions.” The main thrust of the piece is this: “But perhaps the biggest strategic...
Time for being shocked, shocked about teacher union methods and objectives is over. Last week, writer Rishawn Biddle broke a story about the American Federation of Teachers’ recent successful actions to neuter a Parent Trigger bill in Connecticut. The first Parent Trigger law, officially the Parent Empowerment Act, was passed in California early last year....
“Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.” – William Butler Yeats “You can’t light a fire in an empty bucket” – Larry Sand The Save Our Schools March, Rally and Pity Party went off as planned in D.C. this past weekend, although on a smaller scale than the organizers had anticipated. They...
Teachers should think twice before marching in lockstep with this revolting crowd. Americans have always had a warm spot for teachers. We all have memories of those who have taught us, who were there every day for us and felt like part of our family. But over the past 40 years or so, teachers unions...
NEA and AFT ramp up attacks on non-existent teacher bashers, while vilifying those who are trying to reform a failing system. In her address last week at the American Federation of Teachers TEACH conference, AFT President Randi Weingarten came out swinging. In an emotional speech to the faithful, she said that education reform should come...
Congratulations go to the Ogden, Utah school board for their Take-It-Or-Leave It Contract Deal to the teachers’ union. Teachers employed by the Ogden School District will get letters over this holiday weekend, informing them they have 20 days or fewer to sign a new contract or they will lose their jobs. After months of contract...
The California Teachers Association and Democrats in the legislature join forces to victimize school districts, children and taxpayers. In Sacramento, on Tuesday night, June 28, school districts, children and taxpayers were essentially mugged by a gang of Democrat legislators at the behest of their bosses in the California Teachers Association. Governor Jerry Brown, also in...
Congratulations to Governor Scott Walker for sticking to his guns. The state of Wisconsin is far better off because of it. So are taxpayers. Most importantly, so are the school kids. Please consider Union curbs rescue a Wisconsin school district “This is a disaster,” said Mark Miller, the Wisconsin Senate Democratic leader, in February after...