Education Profiteering; Wall Street's Next Big Thing?

I found this link from Linkedin. I always check out an article and here and there. This one was really of little interest to me as my children are grown and I do not have grandchildren as of yet. I just was bored so I started to read. The last five years I have worked throughout Northeast WI with many different school districts. One fairly large district has several charter schools. A literacy-based school, an art-based school, a direct instruction school, etc. The other districts I have worked with are much smaller and do very little, some do not even have a curriculum for their 4-K other than saying, "We use bench marks or use the state standards or core knowledge basics."

I have had this idea in my head that those charter schools are cutting edge. They are really the best way to teach. Charter schools give parents and children choices. Parents can  give their child an edge when learning to choose the best approach that their family wants.
I also put this right in the same category as school choice. If one district offered better options, teaching styles, teachers, etc everyone should have that opportunity. I am a realist though and know that parents do not always use school choice or charter schools that really are the best choice for their children. They choose schools that are in districts that the upper middle class fund thinking money equals quality.

Let's face it we all know a child can learn a lot with a card board box or wooden spoons and a few pots and pans. It is also true, and marketing executives would never admit, what reports, flyers, and billboards say about their schools is what they want people to hear. The good stuff. They tell you how many children graduated, how many went on to higher education, how many got scholarships, etc. Not how many fell through the cracks, how many left the district, etc.

Parents also choose a school close to their place of employment. This makes total sense to me. Who has not heard that parent involvement is vital to a child success in school? If a parent values education so will the child. This then makes sense that a parent chooses a school close by. Parents then have more opportunities to attend events and be involved. They can slip out of work at lunch time and break time. They do not have to worry about traffic delaying them when picking up and dropping off children. Having school close by saves money they would otherwise spend on child care, that can now be spent on books, which every teacher tells you will help your child. Research shows the more reading your child does the better chance he will graduate, get a better paying job, be a successful member of the community, etc. Also, when your child is ill you can be at his school within the allotted time that the school staff considers a "good" parent would arrive if  they really cared about their child.

Many times parents choose schools that help the family function smoother. This is not to say there is no value in that. I would do the same thing. It is not always the method of teaching that is important. Does it not make sense that if a family is running smoother there is less stress. If funds are not in short supply there is less stress. Stress can affect a child just as much or may be more than choosing teaching styles. Choosing a school close by your place of employment so when your child is ill you can be there within 30 minutes ranks you as a "good" parent in the school staff's minds. The relationship between the teacher and parent make a difference in how well the child is taught. Many teachers will say they would never treat a child differently just because of a parent's actions. I beg to differ. I have no research to back this. It is just my opinion. I feel everything we do is based on our experiences to some extent.  We may give the child more attention if we feel parents are not doing what they should. When we do this are we helping? The child may need to be independent. Maybe that is the family culture. The child may have to wait longer because the parent has to work to make ends meet. Every family has its own culture and who are we as teachers to say it is right or wrong.  Teachers may just give up on the child because there is nothing they can do for this child if the family cannot get on the same page as they are on, and they are educators and their page is the correct page. The parents are reading the wrong book anyway.

Alas, as always I get off subject. So I started with the idea that the one district in my area with the many charter schools was in my mind a "better more advanced" district. Then I read the above article. WOW! Is it true they are funded by those who want to privatize public education? Are charter schools the start of privatization? Would that be a better system?
It is very scary to hear that these people who are giving away money in the name of education and support only doing so to get their feet in the door when a take over comes. All for their profit. Just as it is in big business the leaders/owners make the money and credit and the low level employees do all the work. Teachers who say that they are not in it for the money may well be helping. Teachers are in it for many reasons and I do not feel it is wrong to say they need to make a decent living doing what they love. Is it not said that if you can make a living doing what you love you will love going to work. So yes teachers should love what they are doing, and should be able to make a good living doing it.

So being fair I will be a devils advocate. Is this article assuming that those philanthropists are donating to and supporting education is just so that they can invest in it later might not be true. Maybe they are just really supporting new ideas they believe in. Why are we as a public always so sure no one does something just to be nice. As a society have we been burned so many times we trust no one?  Do we look for evil in every action no matter how well intended?

I also know that not every big business treats their employees poorly even though for the most part all mine have treated me that way. Unions are not any better or worse than employers. Why can we not find a happy medium. Especially when it is about our children and our nation's future.

This article tells me I really need to think about charter schools. Are they the future? When we look to fund them, check out the funding source and investigate what the donor is about. Turning down funding for the right reasons is not a bad thing. If it is meant to be there will be other funding.

Do not stop trying new things. Do not stop being creative. Differentiate to meet children's needs. Just be careful of how you do it and who you ask to help fund it.


















Here is the link to the above mentioned article. If the link doesn't work.
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Education-Profiteering-Wall-Streets-Next-51957%2ES%2E170189171?view=&gid=51957&type=member&item=170189171&trk=eml-anet_dig-b_nd-pst_ttle-cn