Skip to main content

Delaware's NCLB waiver: Deck chairs on the Titanic

Gee, Arne Duncan decided that the Federal government imposing Race to the Top will no longer also impose its predecessor, No Child Left Behind, on Delaware.

Of course, the price of an NCLB waiver is total acquiesence to the RTTT agenda.

And here--in a single lesson--is why RTTT needs to be shown the door as well:  RTTT identifies "under-performing" schools for special attention [Partnership Zones].

Notice that almost all our under-performing schools have a common denominator:  high poverty.

So instead of helping solve the problem of extending equitable educational opportunities to poor kids, the rhetoric of RTTT simply labels their schools as the problem--they are "under-performing."

That Arne Duncan--what a way with words and Federal regulations.

Almost enough, isn't it, to make you wish the US Department of Education and the 6.6.% of the funding it grudgingly provides Delaware would just . . . go away.

Comments

KilroysDelaware said…
The reason NCLB failed in Delaware was because DSTP failed and was flawed from day one! DSTP was rolled out Spring 1998 prior to NCLB 2001. Delaware made no effort to modify DSTP to better align it with NCLB goals. DSTP was was heavy on student consequences and less on really addressing teacher accountability and issues including parental "engagement" that is needed to help children to succeed. DSTP was hatch via a Delaware business roundtable agenda and even-though it failed he same group of reformist were allow to help write Delaware's RTTT application . plan.

With this wavier date from past years and current years forwards will be skewed! Not apples to apples.

Popular posts from this blog

The Obligatory Libertarian Tax Day Post

The most disturbing factoid that I learned on Tax Day was that the average American must now spend a full twenty-four hours filling out tax forms. That's three work days. Or, think of it this way: if you had to put in two hours per night after dinner to finish your taxes, that's two weeks (with Sundays off). I saw a talking head economics professor on some Philly TV channel pontificating about how Americans procrastinate. He was laughing. The IRS guy they interviewed actually said, "Tick, tick, tick." You have to wonder if Governor Ruth Ann Minner and her cohorts put in twenty-four hours pondering whether or not to give Kraft Foods $708,000 of our State taxes while demanding that school districts return $8-10 million each?

New Warfare: I started my posts with a discussion.....

.....on Unrestricted warfare . The US Air force Institute for National Security Studies have developed a reasonable systems approach to deter non-state violent actors who they label as NSVA's. It is an exceptionally important report if we want to deter violent extremism and other potential violent actors that could threaten this nation and its security. It is THE report our political officials should be listening to to shape policy so that we do not become excessive in using force against those who do not agree with policy and dispute it with reason and normal non-violent civil disobedience. This report, should be carefully read by everyone really concerned with protecting civil liberties while deterring violent terrorism and I recommend if you are a professional you send your recommendations via e-mail at the link above so that either 1.) additional safeguards to civil liberties are included, or 2.) additional viable strategies can be used. Finally, one can only hope that politici

More of This, Please

Or perhaps I should say, "Less of this one, please." Or how about just, "None of them. Ever again. Please....For the Love of God." Sunshine State Poll: Grayson In Trouble The latest Sunshine State/VSS poll shows controversial Democratic incumbent Alan Grayson trailing former state Senator Dan Webster by seven points, 43 percent to 36 percent. A majority of respondents -- 51 percent -- disapprove of the job that Grayson is doing. Independents have an unfavorable view of him as well, by a 36/47 margin. Grayson has ignored the conventional wisdom that a freshman should be a quiet member who carefully tends to the home fires. The latest controversy involves his " Taliban Dan " advertisement, where he explicitly compares his opponent to the Taliban, and shows a clip of Webster paraphrasing Ephesians 5:22 -- "wives, submit to your husbands." An unedited version of the clip shows that Webster was actually suggesting that husba