Public schools

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United States: DeVos’s ineptitude demonstrates how little America cares for its public schools

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United States / March 24, 2018/Dailycampus

Resumen: Una reciente entrevista de 60 minutos con la Secretaria de Educación, Betsy DeVos, reveló cuán inadecuado es el Secretario para el puesto. DeVos, entrevistado por Lesley Stahl, no respondió varias preguntas, incluso sobre escuelas en su estado natal de Michigan. Por ejemplo, cuando se le preguntó si las escuelas de Michigan habían mejorado debido a las escuelas charter, DeVos no pudo responder. Ella también admitió que no ha visitado escuelas de bajo rendimiento. La ignorancia y la completa falta de preparación mostrada por DeVos durante su entrevista son simplemente inaceptables para un Secretario de Educación.

A recent 60 Minutes interview featuring Education Secretary Betsy DeVos revealed just how unfit the Secretary is for the position. DeVos, interviewed by Lesley Stahl, failed to answer several questions, including ones regarding schools within her home state of Michigan. For instance, when asked whether Michigan’s schools have improved due to charter schools, DeVos was unable to answer. She also admitted that she has not visited underperforming schools. The ignorance and complete lack of preparation displayed by DeVos during her interview is simply unacceptable for an Education Secretary.

Numerous scholars have also expressed disappointment with DeVos; Claire Smrekar, a professor of public policy and education at Vanderbilt University, told The Atlantic that DeVos’s interview “demonstrates…an appalling lack of understanding of some public fundamental principles and practices related to public education. America’s students deserve much better than this. Public education is one of the most important issues that we face today, and proper leadership is required to navigate America through the difficult problem of improving schools. The fact that the Trump administration nominated someone so unqualified for this job indicates that they do not care about improving public education; they only care about undermining public schools in favor of charter/private schools.

Secretary DeVos’s main idea for improving education in the United States is to use public funds on charter and private schools instead of using funds to improve public education. A Washington Post article from early Thursday morning reveals that DeVos wanted to cut funding for programs that help kids in need and programs that help low income students reach college in order to procure $1 billion to fund charter, magnet and private schools. This is misguided because public schools are the cornerstone of American education; everyone has access to them, and purposefully keeping funds from them in order to favor institutions which only wealthier students are able to attend means that students from low income families are especially harmed. Thankfully, Congress rejected DeVos’s budget plan and instead chose to support increasing funding to her department by $3.9 billion.

Senator Patty Murray commented on DeVos’s ideas, saying “After more than a year on the job, I would have hoped Secretary DeVos would have learned by now that her extreme ideas to privatize our nation’s public schools and dismantle the Department of Education do not have support among parents or in Congress”; it is hopeful that Congress came together to reject DeVos’s radical ideas on education and that they still have faith in America’s public school system. Privatizing schools in America is not the solution to providing quality education to everyone; education should remain public and free for all students. Education is a right, not a privilege, and low income students should not be at a disadvantage. The fact that DeVos wanted to end programs that help low income students achieve their college goals in favor of using public funds for charter/private schools that are for wealthier students is inexcusable, and against the American Dream. All students in America should have an equal opportunity to achieve success, and education is crucial to that.

Charter schools are not even necessarily better than their public counterparts. In DeVos’s home state of Michigan, for example (which has more charter schools than any other state), charter schools underperform,with English scores from students between third and eighth grades dropping. If the state with the highest number of charter schools has schools that underperform, then perhaps they are not all that different from public schools after all. If this is the case, ripping funding away from public schools is not justified. Thus, keeping education a public institution is necessary. If Betsy DeVos really wants to help American students, she must realize this.

Fuente: http://dailycampus.com/stories/2018/3/23/devoss-ineptitude-demonstrates-how-little-america-cares-for-its-public-schools

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EEUU: Portland Commissioner Eudaly blasts Portland Public Schools for ousting special education program

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EEUU/March 06, 2018/By Bethany Barnes bbarnes@oregonian.com/Source: http://www.oregonlive.com

Portland City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly weighed in over the weekend on a Portland Public Schools plan that’s been generating opposition for months: oust a program for special education students from its building in favor of a larger program for gifted students.

Since the announcement of the change in November, parents and staff from the special education program, Pioneer, have regularly protested at school board meetings and even shown up at board members’ workplaces to protest. The optics have been awkward for the district from the beginning. Officials botched announcement of the change by accidentally telling families in the gifted program before Pioneer families about the move.

Time hasn’t soothed tensions.

School board members have said the decision is a done deal. Access Academy, which serves more than 350 highly gifted students, is being ejected from the former Rose City Park Elementary building because that facility is needed to reopen as a neighborhood school. So, the 120-plus students now served at Pioneer will be moved to two smaller sites over the summer, they say, reinforcing Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero’s choice.

Board members have indicated that, while the move was spurred by a building shortage, they feel it is also a change needed to improve service for some of the most vulnerable students in the district.

Many Pioneer parents and teachers are skeptical that the change will lead toward anything resembling improvement. Oregon’s largest school district, critics argue, has a poor track record. The fast timeline to split up and relocate the special education students is a setup for failure not success, they say.

Eudaly, whose own child is in special education at a Portland school, wrote a lengthy Facebook post that decried the decision. In response to comments questioning if Pioneer is currently serving these students well she wrote:

«I’m well aware of what Pioneer is and I have issues with it but that’s not relevant to this conversation. It’s not like the school district is offering an improvement.»

Read Eudaly’s entire post below:

«I had a couple brief encounters yesterday that left me feeling very sad about the general lack of understanding and support for students with disabilities. As an accelerated learner who struggled in school and ultimately dropped out, and the parent of a child with multiple disabilities, I understand how our public schools often fail learners who deviate from the ‘norm.’ I empathize with parents desperate to see their children achieve their potential when their educational needs are not being met. (Talented and gifted) and special education students have something in common in this regard (sometimes a student qualifies for both). However, their standing in our district, community, and society are not the same. Their struggle is not the same. Their outcomes are not the same.

Chances are your accelerated learner is white, and/or middle class, and/or does not have a disability. I mention this not to shame or guilt trip but to point out relative advantage. I bet you tell them they can do and be anything they set their mind to and you believe it. There are numerous programs, resources, and opportunities inside and outside of school available to them that many students with disabilities cannot access. In fact, many parents of children with disabilities are too busy fighting to protect their children’s civil rights and get their most basic needs met to even think about extracurriculars (even if they were welcomed and included, which they are often not). And many of us have been denied the basic experience that most families take for granted — getting to choose and remain at a school and be a part of a community.

I am deeply disappointed to see our school district continue to treat students with disabilities and their families like second-class citizens and not full members of the community. Our children belong as much as anyone’s and should not be shuffled around like surplus furniture. We know that changing schools can have detrimental effects for any student. How can we justify repeated moves for our most vulnerable students?

I spent years feeling cheated by my public school experience, where I was literally stuck in a corner and given busy work while other students received instruction. Could I have gone further, faster given a more appropriate education? Absolutely. But you know what? Things worked out for me. I can’t say the same for many of my classmates with disabilities, or the students who followed them over the next 30 years, or most painfully, my own son.

This Pioneer/Access debate reminds me of an encounter I had years ago at Chapman Park (ironically attached to our neighborhood school, which Henry would later be denied access to). I was pushing Henry on the single adapted swing (the only accessible feature) when a mother and her able bodied child expressed their impatience for their turn. I looked at them and said, ‘You’ve got the entire park and playground to explore. This is the only thing my son can enjoy.’ And I turned back around and kept pushing. I’m going to keep pushing for the students who are getting the short end of the stick — students with disabilities, students of color, students from low income households, (English language learner) students — in our shamefully inequitable system. Please stand with me for all students beginning with the ones who are most in need.»

 Source:
http://www.oregonlive.com/education/index.ssf/2018/03/portland_commissioner_eudaly_b.html

 

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Analysis: How corrupt local officials kill decent education in Africa

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Africa/February 24, 2018/Author: Maty Konte/Independent

There’s no disputing that many African countries’ education systems are in trouble. Despite significant investment and some improvements linked to the push to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, children in large parts of Africa are simply not being well taught or learning what is needed as they progress through the school system.

A lot of the discussion around this problem centres on resources: people argue that teachers must be trained better. More money must be spent. This is, of course, correct.

And governance is sometimes discussed, though mostly only as it relates to central governments and their responsibilities. But the quality of local governance matters, too. Local governments – those at a regional, provincial level, district or village level – are closer to communities. They are more likely to understand particular populations’ needs. At a practical level, they are often in charge of providing or distributing goods and services. In education this would mean textbooks, furniture and repairs to classrooms.

This suggests that local governance can have a real effect – positive or negative – on the quality of learning resources in a community and, by association, on how children perform?

I set out to explore this effect by using a series of surveys conducted by Afrobarometer in 33 African countries. This is an independent and non-partisan research network which conducts nationally representative surveys in Africa measuring public attitudes on economic, political and social matters. More than 50,000 citizens have been interviewed in the selected surveys I used for this study.

My study showed a strong link between the quality of local governance and the quality of the educational resources in Africa’s public schools.

In fact, I found that corrupt behaviour by local government councilors increased the likelihood that schools would lack textbooks, have poor facilities and overcrowded classrooms, have poor quality of teaching, and would record high levels of teacher absenteeism. This finding stands no matter how much money a particular country’s central government had invested in education.

If Africa is serious about improving its schooling systems (and meeting the Sustainable Development Goal related to education), it must tackle corruption among local councilors.

What the data shows

My research was based on survey data Afrobarometer collected between 2005 and 2013. Some of the questions related to education; others to people’s perceptions of their local government councilors’ performance and ability.

Among the questions about education, interviewees were asked whether they had encountered the following challenges in their local public schools: expensive school fees; lack of textbooks or other learning supplies; poor teaching; teacher absenteeism; overcrowded classrooms; and facilities that were in poor condition.

Afrobarometer Round 5 (2011 – 2013)

For almost each of the items listed, more than 50% of the respondents had encountered the challenge in the question.

Most interviewees complained particularly about a lack of textbooks and teaching materials; poor teaching quality and teacher absenteeism. These are all key determinants of what students can achieve by the end of an academic year.

A crisis of corruption

Corruption, like low-quality education, is a real problem across Africa. In its 2017 Ibrahim Index of African Governance, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation warned that the level of corruption on the continent had risen between 2007 and 2016.

This is borne out by what interviewees told Afrobarometer in the surveys I studied. More than 80% of those surveyed on the subject said that at least some of their local government councilors were involved in corrupt activities. Less than 10% of those surveyed believed that their local councilors listened to their communities.

Afrobarometer Round 5 (2011 – 2013)

The study shows that a 1% increase in the measure of local government corruption is associated with an increase of about 0.4% to 0.9% in the percentage of people who face poor human or physical school resources in local public schools. This statistical evidence suggests tackling issues in local governance can help education systems in Africa.

And it matters because good local governance can ensure that textbooks and learning materials are available and that they reach the students at public schools. The behaviours and attitudes of local government councilor’s may affect the way public sector employees, like teachers, are hired and treated.

The performance of teachers in public schools depends on many factors, and their degree of accountability depends also on the degree of accountability and responsiveness of those in charge of the management of the schools that include local government councilors.

Taking action

Improving the quality of education systems will have huge benefits for Africa’s present and future generations. Part of this improvement must involve tackling people’s negative perceptions about their local councilors, whether those relate to corruption, effectiveness or responsiveness.

Central governance remains important. It should be coupled with careful plans and actions to fix local governance, make councilors more accountable and ensure they’re providing the services schools need to thrive.

Fuente: https://www.independent.co.ug/analysis-corrupt-local-officials-kill-decent-education-africa/

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Pakistan: Is Punjab Education Foundation a better solution?

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Pakistan/November 14, 2017/Source: https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk

  • Failure of public education system

How much development and progress has been made can be seen from recent statistics about Literacy Rate in Pakistan. As it dropped by 2pc in the year 2015-16 to 58pc and that under the criteria, “a person is literate who can read and write a paragraph (3 lines) in a national/regional language with comprehension”

On the one hand our government is hiring hundreds and thousands of new teachers while on the other it is privatising thousands of public schools through PEF

 

“Education is a matter of life and death for Pakistan. The world is progressing so rapidly that without requisite advances in education, not only shall we be left behind others but may be wiped out altogether.” Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Recently, Pakistan celebrated its 70th Independence Day. How much development and progress has been made can be seen from recent statistics about Literacy Rate in Pakistan. As it dropped by 2pc in the year 2015-16 to 58pc and that under the criteria, “a person is literate who can read and write a paragraph (3 lines) in a national/regional language with comprehension”.

Reasons behind the downfall of education system?

Let’s talk about the reasons of downfall of education in Pakistan, especially Punjab, which was once considered the hub of educational institutes and province with highest literacy rate. There is no special reason but an amalgam of corruption, overspending education budgets in salaries given to teachers, lack of motivation towards education among students and parents alike, lack of schools in rural areas, lack of counselling, and missing infrastructure in schools.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF)

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) was established by the Punjab Assembly’s PEF Act of 1991. At that time its purpose was to help private investors (by funding or granting loans to) build new schools so there may be more schools accessible to the public. The ultimate authority of PEF was under the government from 1991 until Act of 2004 as between this period the chief minister of Punjab was its chair, but after 2004 it started working as an autonomous body under a board of directors. Initially, its basic aim was to provide better education to the nation with the help of private schools by providing teacher training, professional development for private schools, interest-free loans for building construction and by providing special vouchers to households of the students to incentivise them for taking education seriously. But today, a significant chunk of PEF’s budget goes to it Foundation Assisted Schools (FAS) programmes through which, Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) pays for every child’s fee enrolled in a Foundation Assisted Private School.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) claims that its programmes are cost effective that is why these programmes are the best solution for equity and quality of education. In a wave of privatisation of already existing public schools, Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) has privatised thousands of public schools. PEF gave management of these thousands of public schools to private investors. Now, I would concede to the fact that, yes, PEF is efficient in what it is doing so far, but the real question is whether the approach being followed by PEF is the right approach for long-term greater good?

Punjab needs to spend more on education?

In the fiscal year 2016 Punjab’s Education budget was $2.99b out of which only $0.602b was allocated for development projects and the rest was to cater the current needs of the education department. During the fiscal year 2014, 87pc of the education budget was spent on salaries given to teachers. The major problem lies in the overspending of the education budget on salaries to 343,458 teachers and when after evaluations a schools’ progress is represented by numbers they just decide to outsource these schools or encourage students of these schools to go to private schools which are already compensated by Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) other programmes; eventually wasting tax payer’s money in the process. It may serve its purpose in the short term but then what is the purpose of having a public school system if eventually all that government is going to do is to outsource these public schools.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) started paying fees of the students to the private management of the schools. Fee varies according to the grade level of a student;

Rs550 per student up till primary classes

Rs600 per student for elementary classes

Rs900 per student for secondary arts classes

Rs1100 per student for secondary science students

Punjab Education Foundation is aiming to privatise the management of all schools up till grade five across Punjab and also plans to keep management of some of the school from grade six onwards.

It is worth noting how this system can collapse in seconds as it did with the change of government after 2008 national elections when PEF’s progress stalled for nearly a year. This concludes that the progress will show its numbers as long as you keep paying these private investors and this is not going to help raise the quality of education in public schools at all. On the other hand, if public schools get operated appropriately by introducing a better attendance system for teachers and students, they may even need lesser funds than what they are already spending paying these investors and overpaying their own teachers.

What needs to be done?

Pakistan as a whole has more than 600,000 teachers appointed as government employees, these teachers may have degrees, but most of them lack motivation and discipline for doing their job with honesty as most of them do not even bother showing up in schools and gather huge sums of money in salaries. This problem needs to be addressed on an emergency basis by introducing appropriate measures.

The government needs to stop paying private investors fees for students and needs to raise the standard of the public education system which is more useful in the longer run. This policy is going to help the government build a precedence of good management within its public schools otherwise its already failing public schools because of lack of good management are going to lose their remaining symbolic as well as figurative value.

Failure of charter schools in America

Pakistan is not the first country whose government has taken this step as in America this policy was implemented in the form Charter Schools. There are two types of Charter Schools in America; for-profit and non-profit. Our policy is almost similar to the US in its structure. According to National Charter School Study (NCSS), done by the Centre for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), 75pc of the charter schools in America were either worse or not better performing than public schools. That is because with the Charter Schools Programme, the US government focused more on their public education system to ensure that faults remain no more.

Importance of public schools

Finland has a literacy rate of 100pc. There are no private schools in Finland. The reason for that is if there are no private schools then rich people are going to care about public schools as much as they care about private schools because now they do not have any choice but to help make those public schools better. It is not easy to comprehend that a country where private schools are non-existent can have a literacy rate of 100pc. Finland had the same old rusty education system similar to the entire world till 1970, and then they changed everything once and for all for the sake of the greater good.

Only those people are hired as teachers who fall among the top 10pc of the graduating students. Teaching profession is considered as good as doctors and engineers. Teachers in Finland get paid more than teachers in the United States of America (USA). There is no standardised testing system for students and Finish students do not take any test until they are 16 years of age. There is no ranking among schools because they work under the policy “whatever it takes” and try to keep everyone at the same level. According to Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores released in 2009 Finish Students came 2nd in science, 3rd in reading, and 6th in math among nearly half a million students worldwide. These plans may seem very hard at the first look but once implemented they are way easier. All the schools are publicly funded, and if it seems so hard then why not shut down, all these high-end schools and ask the wealthy to fund public schools. There is no corporal punishment as widely practiced in Pakistan and no competition among students or schools which leads to hundreds of students falling in the pit of anxiety, depression, and eventually committing suicide. There is a rigorous check, and balance for teachers and that is the key to quality education which needs to be implemented in public schools in Punjab and Pakistan as a whole.

Conclusion

From the above discussion it is obvious that privatisation of education never helps. It is necessary to support and raise the public education system on the top. On the one hand our government is hiring hundreds and thousands of new teachers while on the other it is privatising thousands of public schools through PEF. If the government has accepted its failure and is not ready to run the public education system at all, why hiring new people for an already failed system? And if the mission is to make the government schools stronger, why are we wasting funds on paying to the private schools for free education. These two contradictions cannot run side by side for long.

Can we stop experimentation on education and follow the common successful practices only and seriously?

The question remains.

Source:

https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2017/11/12/is-punjab-education-foundation-a-better-solution/

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Las Cruces Public Schools Sends Letter To NMPED Regarding Science Education Standards

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Mexico/October 17, 2017/Source: http://krwg.org

Commentary: Las Cruces Public Schools sent the following letter to the New Mexico Public Education Department regarding proposed omissions in the state’s science education standards:

As the state moves forward with the long-anticipated adoption of new science standards, the Las Cruces Public Schools wishes to express concerns about key omissions in the proposed New Mexico STEM-Ready Science Standards. As an early adopter of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), LCPS recognizes the need for a revised vision of science education to prepare students for college, career and citizenship. However, there is great concern that omissions in standards that support conceptual understanding of complex systems will have a lasting detrimental impact on science education. The removal of terminology such as evolution and climate change flies in the face of the evidence accepted by the majority of the scientific community. These omissions dilute the accuracy of key scientific concepts that may forever impact the science literacy of students.

Public schools have the responsibility to provide students with the skills required to become critical thinkers, capable of analyzing evidence and constructing arguments based on the evidence. Taking on topics that are controversial and engaging with content that has multiple interpretations is key to giving students the opportunity to participate in authentic scientific inquiry. Removing these topics would deny New Mexico students access to scientific inquiry, examination, and debate that is fostered among students in states across the nation. Such a policy decision would marginalize New Mexico students and render them less able to compete with their peers across the nation and the globe.

The Las Cruces Public Schools continues to experience success with the implementation of rigorous science standards. In 2015, LCPS began integrating the Next Generation Science Standards, without modification, into science curricula in grades 6-8. Science educators and stakeholders have embraced these changes and there has been a notable increase in student achievement in science in the middle grades.

Adopting modified standards not only imperils the education of students, but potentially the economic future of our state. New Mexico can never hope to improve quality of education, and in turn quality of life, if the state implements policies that drive away industry and leave residents with fewer opportunities for high wage employment.

On behalf of the students of New Mexico, now and future, we implore you to provide them with access to science education that is afforded to students across the nation. Maintain the integrity of science education by ensuring the NGSS standards are adopted as designed, without omission of key scientific concepts.

This letter was unanimously approved by the Las Cruces Board of Education on October 3, 2017.

Respectfully,

Gregory Ewing, Ed.D.

Superintendent

Sra. Maria Flores

President

Las Cruces Board of Education

Source:

http://krwg.org/post/las-cruces-public-schools-sends-letter-nmped-regarding-science-education-standards

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Ghana: Supervision key to performance in public schools

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Ghana/August 8, 2017/By: ghananewsagency.com/ Source: https://www.ghanamma.com

Mr Stephen Abarika, the Eastern Regional President of the Girls Education Network (GEN), says supervision and monitoring in public schools are key to improving standards and performance of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE)

He therefore asked all stakeholders especially circuit supervisors of the Ghana Education Service (GES), community leaders, chiefs and elders, schools management committees (SMCs)to upscale their role to ensure that the expected outcomes in the investment of education especially at the basic level was fully realised.

Speaking at the maiden meeting of the GEN, to map up strategies in improving girl- child education, he observed that with strong supervision from all stakeholders’ public schools including girl’s education would be improved.

Mr Abarika, who is also the project officer of AG Care, Ghana, a social and relief organisation of the Assemblies of God Church, said monitoring and evaluation had led to sustainable change in entry, retention, completion and transition of learners in some schools in the Suhum Municipality by AG-Care.

He observed that, the institution of the GEN network indicated that there was a problem with girl- child education, be it enrolment, retention and transition to the next level, apart from the basic level.

He called on partners working towards the girl- child education to step up grassroots stakeholder participation.

The GEN is a Network of NGOs working in the interest of promoting girl -child education in the Region.

It consists of AG-Care, Action Aid, and College for Ama, FLOWER, CRESCCENT, International Child Development Programme, World Vision, Plan International, World Joy and the Girls Education Unit of the GES among other organisations.

Among the objectives of the GEN is to use a common strategy and platform to address issues such as teenage pregnancies, early marriages, poverty and other challenges that militate the enrolment, retention and transition of the girl- child in having a sound education for empowerment.

Teenage pregnancy, remains one of the huge challenges confronting girl -child education in the Region.

According to Ghana Health Service report in 2013, more than 12,000 girls of school going age were recorded pregnant and therefore dropped out of school.

Source:

https://www.ghanamma.com/2017/08/08/supervision-key-to-performance-in-public-schools/

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Ghana: Education Minister says teacher promotions no longer automatic

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Ghana/July 18, 2017/Source: https://www.ghanamma.com

Education Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, warns teachers in public schools that promotions will be based on merit and not automatic henceforth.

Education Minister Dr. Opoku Prempeh has recently stated that teachers teaching in public schools ought to endeavor live up to their responsibilities and the teaching standards of their trade.

He’s stated that teachers need to show a high sense of discipline, commitment, and respect for the their profession so that they may be able to upgrade the quality of education delivery.

“The Ministry is determined to ensuring that teachers’ promotion is based on competence, hard work and other relevant requirements per the National Teachers Council’s demands”, he noted.

Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh’s comments were relayed in a speech read on his behalf during the graduation ceremony of the Jackson College of Education in Kumasi, Ashanti Region.

In the Education Minister’s speech, he reminded teachers that theirs was an altruistic profession, one of selflessness and dedication towards the benefit of their pupils.

On the other hand, Prof. Samuel Afrane, Council Chairman of the Jackson College of Education, urge graduates to embrace rural postings..

Source:

https://www.ghanamma.com/2017/07/16/education-minister-says-teacher-promotions-no-longer-automatic/

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