In a message dated 5/4/2011 8:10:27 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
bernardcleyet@redshift.com writes:
Thank you for posting this. We had a discussion related to this on DR Vic
Stenger's physics list. This is exactly right. In the United States much of
public policy is no longer under the guidance of any democratic process ,
but is completely controlled by powerful elites whose main incentive for
the policy they create is often naked self interest. Gated has a long history
of unethical and criimnal behavior ( saved by the election of G Bush an
interesting fact) He is the last person in the world who should be creating
policy on education.
Bob Zannelli
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Diane Ravich, Ed Week - [Concerning] the agreement between the Gates
Foundation and the Pearson Foundation to write the nation's curriculum. When did
we vote to hand over American education to them? Why would we outsource
the nation's curriculum to a for-profit publishing and test-making
corporation based in London? Does Bill Gates get to write the national curriculum
because he is the richest man in America? We know that his foundation is
investing heavily in promoting the Common Core standards. Now his foundation
will write a K-12 curriculum that will promote online learning and video
gaming. That's good for the tech sector, but is it good for our nation's schools?
Oh, and one more outrage: The Gates Foundation and the Eli Broad
Foundation, both of which maintain the pretense of being Democrats and/or liberals,
have given millions to former Florida governor Jeb Bush's foundation, which
is promoting vouchers, charters, online learning, test-based
accountability, and the whole panoply of corporate reform strategies intended to weaken
public education and remove teachers' job protections.
The scariest thought is that the Obama administration welcomes the
corporatization of public education. Not only welcomes the rise of educational
entrepreneurialism, but encourages it. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan's
chief of staff Joanne Weiss, who has experience as an education
entrepreneur, wrote the following in a blog for the Harvard Business Review:
"The development of common standards and shared assessments radically
alters the market for innovation in curriculum development, professional
development, and formative assessments. Previously, these markets operated on a
state-by-state basis, and often on a district-by-district basis. But the
adoption of common standards and shared assessments means that education
entrepreneurs will enjoy national markets where the best products can be taken
to scale."
Yes, indeed, lots of opportunities for new businesses, smart investors,
and a national marketplace for entrepreneurs. I would expect to read this
sort of thing from the public relations department of Pearson or McGraw-Hill
or one of the other industry leaders. But the chief of staff to the U.S.
secretary of education?