[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> It's true that in my last post I was critical of Mike Atherton's generalized
> attitude toward the MPS (not him personally, I don't know the man) rather
> than specific proposals he has made. Partly this was because I suspect he
> relishes the attention, but even moreso it was because I'm not sure how his
> proposals would come together in a practical and budgetary sense in the real
> world of classroom education.
Have you ever wondered why after more than thirty years of "progressive"
education we have 50% of high school students failing to graduate? Shipps
outlined the dynamics of why reforms fail in her talk. One factor that
she cites is what is called the "Employment Regime," which consists of all
those individuals, teachers, administrators, and others, whose jobs rely on
maintaining the status quo. What she doesn't mention are the tactics these
people use to defend what is essentially an indefensible position. How
can you defend a system with a 50% failure rate? Or in other words,
how do you defend something that is not rational? You use irrationality.
This is why you will often see the defenders of the public schools using
ad hominem arguments. I ask you, of what relevance is it that I might "relish the
attention" generated by this discussion. Does this somehow negatively impact
the veracity of my position? I will admit that I "relish" the chance to introduce
new ideas into the debate, but by being outspoken and controversial
I can only damage my career, not inherence it. This is because the
Employment Regime includes not only public school teachers, it also
includes professors and deans in colleges of education who have their
own reasons for maintain the status quo. People have asked me why
I would take such a risk; it's simply because I know social injustice when
I see it and unlike many of my colleges I cannot stand by silently while the
young people who need it most get the short end of our educational
system. I am an educator because I want to help people, the only person
I can help by remaining silent is myself (and my family as my wife reminds
me). I suppose my father should never have taken me to see
"Paths of Glory" when I was a kid. ["You are an idealist --
and I pity you as I would the village idiot." General Broulard] I can only
hope that the people that I rely on will have the ethical fortitude to do the right
thing. Deep down inside they know that the true basis of education is the free
exchange of ideas.
> Mr. Atherton has proposed a blizzard of
> potential reforms and innovations, making it clear that all of them should be
> tested out as to their viability. Some of them make sense to me--I too have
> seen the data on English immersion in the Calfornia schools and wonder if it
> might be something for the MPS to look into. Some of them, such as his recent
> suggestion that children with a great disparity between their chronological
> age and level of education be separated out into smaller classes, or, his
> continuing education proposals for disruptive and otherwise underperfoming
> students, who would be taught by highly trained professionals, seem expensive
> and difficult to achieve within the current constraints of public education.
> Put simply, I don't know how everything he says adds up. I suspect that it
> would cost more money and seem to remember (I know he'll correct me if I'm
> wrong here) that the only time he has addressed the cost of public education
> in real terms was to object to the proposed levy on lowered class size.
A "blizzard?" People have identified problems and I have proposed solutions.
I have not mentioned costs, because I believe that for the most part all that
is necessary is a change in philosophy and implementation. We already have
teachers, classrooms, and busses. I think that it is better to build good
morale on success, rather than high pay and fancy buildings (but of course,
high pay and fancy buildings always help).
Let me explain how "continuation" schools could be financed. Remember
that these schools would enroll students who have behavioral problems
and don't fit into a mainstream classes. Many of these students already
have learning disabilities (as well as behavioral problems), so they
can be classified as "disabled." This would allow some Federal dollars
to be allocated for their instruction. These extra dollars can be then be
used for the additional salary requirements for special education teachers.
Removing the students from regular schools can reduce the unneeded
expenses associated with problem students.
> The thrust of my last post was that the MPS faces huge obstacles due to the
> area's lack of affordable housing, the huge influx of students from other
> countries, and familial strife associated with poverty--problems that even
> the most dedicated and well-meaning reforms will have trouble addressing--and
> that critics of the system should acknowledge that fact, rather than
> cavalierly asserting that a new wrinkle here or there will solve the problem.
> (Maybe Atherton could supply some data to back up his inference that children
> learn at sufficient levels in war zones; just a website link, since I know
> that for anything further he wants to be paid for his research.)
The expenses associated with immigrant students are mainly those associated
with bilingual education, expenses which are sometimes propagated though
each grade until the students graduate. By using immersion, rather than
bilingual education these expenses can be significantly reduced. Parent
outreach programs can be used to solve other problems. Such programs
can use parents as volunteers and existing community organizations. BTW,
immersion is not simply a "new wrinkle," it is radical philosophical shift.
Please remember that my claim about education and war zones was that
some education takes place. In order prove my position false, you
must show that no education exists in war zone. I think that the following
references support my position. I will be billing Ms. Robson for this
literature search.
Kapor-Stanulovic, N. (1999). Encounter with Suffering,
American Psychologist, 54 (11), 1020-27.
Sherrow, V. (2000). Encyclopedia of Youth and War: Young People as
Participants and Victims.
Flores, J., E. (1999). Psychological effects of the civil war on
children from rural communities of El Salvador.
Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: the Sciences &
Engineering. 60(6-B), 2983.
Onyango, P. (1998). The impact of armed conflict on children. Child Abuse
Review, 7(4), 219-229.
Pullis, M. (1998). Exposure to traumatic violence: Some lessons from
Bosnia. Education & Treatment of Children, 21(3), 396-411.
James, T. (1987). Exile within: The schooling of Japanese Americans
1942-1945, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
> So let's cut to the chase: Does Atherton see any scenario by which he would
> send his child to a school that contained a typical cross-section of MPS
> students?
I'm not sure why it's relevant that I might redesign the schools in the image
I would want for my child. The question is whether the schools can be
improved to help the 50% of students that do not graduate. What's
best for my child, may not be best for most children. If my child is
anywhere near as smart as his mother, the pacing and rigor of a typical
public school might not be appropriate. If the question is whether I
would place my child in a public magnet school for gifted children
in which there is high motivation along with a high degree of racial
diversity, the answer is yes.
> If so, how would that school operate differently than the way MPS
> currently operates?
Radically different. Schools would have real vocational options.
They would adequately prepare students for college. And, they
might not have grades as we now know them.
> Does he imagine that this new operation would be more or
> less expensive (or the same cost) than the current budget of the MPS?
I believe that it can be done at current funding levels, as long as
their are some changes in laws and contacts.
> And if
> more, would he support a concomitant increase in his taxes?
If I end up sending my child to private school I'll be spending
thousands of dollars more than the amount that my taxes could
ever increase. The problem is that tax payers are currently
watching their dollars disappear into an educational black hole
with little return on investment.
> Answers to these
> questions would help me and other list members get a more specific sense of
> Atherton's educational philosophy so that we might get some context and more
> intelligently agree or disagree with him in the numerous critiques that he
> will surely file in the future.
So the value of my proposals should be judged in relation to your agreement
with my educational philosophy rather than their practical value? I guess that's
why liberals reject conservative proposal without ever fully evaluating them.
>From the tenor of this statement I will be bracing for a new ad hominem attack.
Hmmm.... My educational philosophy?
* Schools should provide students with sufficient knowledge and
skills so that they can achieve their goals in life.
*Instruction should be appropriately paced so that students
are working at a level close to that of their abilities.
*State curriculums and school social activities should have a
common core so that we share a common national experience.
*Schools should have social environments that support the
goals above.
Michael Atherton
Prospect Park
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