> [Brauer cutting back in...] > > So you see the problem. I asked Michael for ANY data to support > his claim that there was a problem with Minneapolis gifted > education. He responded with an anecdote and a web page about a > SEATTLE school that does things differently. No data, nothing > local. Certainly not a "proof."
After three months it's nice to see that Mr. Brauer has seen fit to finally reply to my response to HIS request to show that the MPS are not properly fulfilling the needs of gifted students. However it is disappointing that has once again failed to address any of the points that I raised and instead simply calls for more data. I have been told by an authority in the MPS that the choice of pull-outs versus special schools is a explicit philosophical/political choice that is itself not based on empirical research. I would like to see Mr. Brauer defend it. I think that it is fairly clear that a full-time school for the gifted is more beneficial than our LOCAL half-hour "pull-outs." I think that these arguments can be addressed without research data, but if Mr. Brauer is only willing to discuss these issues in the context of empirical research results, I will find the time to present some. > I'm not sure he's wrong about gifted education. However, his lack of > evidence is one reason I find such attacks shallow. > > In any event, Michael's views have been well-debated ...and > undoubtedly, will be again. I will continue to challenge them - > despite a reluctance to keep such tendentious threads going - > because mere persistence shouldn't carry the day. My views have not been well-debated, in fact they often go unanswered. Mr. Brauer avoids discussing the issues I have raised. I hope that he will respond if I do provide the requested data and not op-out because it is not LOCAL. I have already stated that it appears that the MPS intentionally avoid recording LOCAL data so that their programs cannot be challenged or evaluated. I readily admit that my posts are tendentious (marked by a strong implicit point of view). I believe that I know what strategies will help narrow the achievement gap and lower dropout rates. I have been studying Psychology for thirty years and Education for close to ten. It would be one thing if my proposals had failed to be effective, but they are often not even tested because of the factors and political forces I have previously cited. There is a consider body of research to support my views, part of which I have already referenced. I argue because I want to help children to be successful and believe that educational excellence makes us a stronger nation and provides an avenue for social advancement that is a fundamental requirement of a "free" society. I believe that the educational system in Minneapolis is far less effective than it can be and in the worst case is intentionally discriminatory (no one denies that the dropout rates for minority students are horrendous). I believe that the lack of action on the part of the MPS promotes failure, poverty, and inequality. Michael Atherton Prospect Park REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
