Thompson: Support Obama Anyway, Boomer Teachers

The question posed by Rick Hess in "How Romney Should Grade Obama on Education has an obvious answer: Romney should give Obama an A+.

The Obama education policy embodies the Bain Capital model of "churn." It has encouraged the mass dismissals of teachers as a part of a risky turnaround strategy where any amount of suffering by the majority is justified if a few innovations pay off.  

In fact, President Obama praised the mass firing of teachers. The administration's School Improvement Grants have provided a fig leaf for driving Baby Boomers out of the profession to reduce salaries and benefits.   Obama has created incentives for the privatization of public education and a fee for (so-called) student performance value system. 

The fact that Romney still attacked the Obama education record in his Wednesday speech reminds us that Romney's agenda goes even further down the corporate line.  That's why educators must support Obama's reelection despite our displeasure and misgivings.  We cannot risk a Romney presidency where the destructive policies that President Obama has imposed on schools is extended to the entire nation's economy. - JT (@drjohnthompson) image via.

Comments

[Bruce]

Rick Hess's article made some useful points about the hubris in the mainstream reform movement. We need an alternative reform movement. We can't stick with the present status quo, and shouldn't simply turn the clock back to the good old days of 20 years ago (which weren't so good, educationally speaking), but we should also recognize that the mainstream school reform movement went off track a few years back. We should encourage the president, who I think is a good man who means well, to move in the direction of a more democratic federalism, and towards the school empowerment vision that Al Shanker had when he originally supported charter schools when the idea was first becoming known in the late 1980s. That was a vision that empowered educators, rather than enslaving them to successful business leaders whose success in the for-profit world makes them overconfident when approaching the very real challenges facing our education system.

[CarolineSF]

A wise voice who is very savvy about education policy and power made me aware that supporting the current brand of so-called education "reform" is a litmus test for major donors. As I've said, I believe that's why the Obama administration is promoting such destructive and wrongheaded policies. I believe that Obama feels compelled to promote those policies while taking an oddly hands-off "I can't worry my pretty head about such things" attitude, dumping it all on Duncan. (That attitude seems very out of character for Obama.)

Those mighty financial backers are not interested in the school empowerment vision that Al Shanker had. They want to see that public money flowing into private pockets, while pretending it's all about "the new Civil Rights movement" and "putting children first." Will they ever be stopped?

[Sarah]

The ultimate problem, yet again, comes down to the legislative and executive branches being locked in perpetual stalemate. I’ve heard, for the most part, well-meaning, sound ideas come from Obama, but an unwillingness to put any of them into action because both parties can’t be satisfied at once. And unless that happens, nothing will happen at all.

[Mary]

No, John. As murderously bad as a Republican White House has been proven to be, we have too much to lose by giving up on our party or our floundering president.

Standing up to his hedge fund donors would be the first move of his actual presidency, if he has the vision to take it. Otherwise, he's a useless piece of window-dressing anyway, keeping the seat warm for a new reactionary dynasty of corrupt administrations, Republican or Democrat.

Ed Reform stooge Cory Booker has done Obama, and us, a favor by sticking up for Bain. It's clear whose surrogate he really is, and that Obama has to decide who he'll answer to.

If he wants my support, he's going to have to come and get it.