Comments on: Duncan backs merit pay at NEA

By: Mike in Texas

Mike in Texas — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:05:21 +0000

Rags and Allen,

I don’t think booing Duncan is unprofessional, especially since he deserves to be ignored.

By: Ragnarok

Ragnarok — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 15:32:02 +0000

Mike’n'Taxes said:

“Yes, Ragnarok, I’m someone who recognizes BS when he sees it…”

And what does this have to do with why booing is unprofessional?

As Allen said, there you go again.

By: Malcolm Kirkpatrick

Malcolm Kirkpatrick — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:38:49 +0000

Mike,

“Give me money. Don’t tell me how to use it. Don’t measure my performance” is not a deal any legislator responsible to taxpayers would accept. It is not a deal any honest person would propose.

By: allen

allen — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:18:44 +0000

Of course with all the bleating about how teachers ought to be in charge of public education and how terrible it is that politicians are in charge, there’s not a lick about what Mike’s educational nirvana, wherein teachers are in charge, is supposed to look like or how it’s supposed to work.

I’ve asked you those question numerous times Mike so here’s opportunity to duck ‘em again.

By: Mike in Texas

Mike in Texas — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:51:57 +0000

Yes, Ragnarok, I’m someone who recognizes BS when he sees it, especially from someone like Duncan who has never taught a day in his life, and his tenure at Chicago Public Schools was a disaster.

He is the Michael Brown of Education. Just as unqualified and likely to lead to the same disaterous results.

By: Ragnarok

Ragnarok — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:54:42 +0000

Mike asked:

“How is booing a charletan [sic] unprofessional?”

Booing him demeans you, not him. You don’t understand this, and that stamps you for what you are.

By: Malcolm Kirkpatrick

Malcolm Kirkpatrick — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:29:25 +0000

(pm): “Do we really have the money to make this effective? At least one KIPP school is already struggling with unionization. I’m thinking that means we’re running out of teachers willing to commit to raising student achievement on the cheap.”

Dunno what “this” indicated.

“…(w)e’re running out of teachers willing to commit to raising student achievement on the cheap” is unlikely, for several reasons.
1) According to NCES, a survey of teachers in parochial schools and the NEA/AFT/AFSCME cartel’s schools found that parochial school teachers were more satisfied with their jobs than were the cartel’s teachers, despite the lower pay of the parochial school teachers.
2) “On the cheap” is a wildly innacurate characterization of the cartel’s schools. The US spends more on pre-college education than any other country.
3) Most of the K-12 curriculum is make-work for dues-paying members of the NEA/AFT/AFSCME cartel. It does not take 12 years at $12,000 per pupil-year to teach a normal child to read and compute. Most vocational training occurs more effectively on the job than in a classroom. State provision of History and Civics instruction is a threat to democracy, just as State provision of newspapers would be (is, in totalitarian countries).

By: Mike in Texas

Mike in Texas — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:58:46 +0000

Whoops, where’s the “Edit” button on this site?

By: Mike in Texas

Mike in Texas — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:46:16 +0000

How is booing a charletan unprofessional? Good for the teachers there for booing Duncan. If I’d have been there I’d have led to chants of “Bull$@%#”

By: Ragnarok

Ragnarok — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:11:27 +0000

“The key problem is that many of them aren’t “professionals,” Ragnarok.”

Well, yes. In spite of their claims to be such.