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Talk to the State
CORE and GEM member Xian Barrett, who also happens to be a 2009-2010 U.S. Department of Education Classroom Teaching Ambassador Fellow, urges us to attend the upcoming teleconference meeting of the Illinois P-20 Council (pre-kindergarten through college levels).
 
According to the Illinois General Assembly, which formed this group, "The purpose of this council is to study and make recommendations concerning education at all levels in order to avoid fragmentation of policies, promote improved teaching and learning, and continue to cultivate and demonstrate strong accountability and efficiency."
 
Take a look at the membership list here and you'll see that they really need to hear from the grass roots. 
 
Here's when and where you can join in:
  • Wednesday, January 27, 2010
  • 1 to 3 pm
  • James R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph, Room 9-040

You might want to ask them why the state has recently raised the charter school cap despite all the evidence that African-American and Latino students are doing worse in Illinois charter schools.

You might want to ask why their Race to the Top (RTTT) proposal will tie teacher evaluations to state tests (and state tests alone in Chicago) when the tests are not designed to do that.

In fact, you might want to ask them why they were in such a hurry to accept and follow the requirements of Race to the Top when Arne Duncan's own spokesperson, Peter Cunningham,  recently publicly stated:  "Education has been corrupted (by tests). In addition to narrowing the curriculum by abandoning other topics, what this kind of system does is create incentives to game the system. We're actually harming the education of students in this country...."We 100 percent agree with Mr. Rothstein that many (charter schools) are not good."

You might want to ask them why they are willing to promote such flawed policies to "hold schools and teachers accountable" when they are not wiling to fund our schools adequately? Who is being held accountable?

Maybe we can start with the P-20 Council. 

pure | PURE Thoughts | 25 January, 8:39am