Citizen Carrie, after an absence of about a week and a half, has returned to the blogosphere with two well-researched posts about important issues. The first, from last night, chronicles in detail the nauseating story of the last five weeks where the entire apparatus of the government we pay for has been marshaled to crush the careers of technologically-minded Americans. CC has assembled every step in the process, from the March 12 star turn by Bill Gates in front of Congress to the April 14 H-1B lottery. Read the post, especially if you have the stomach to see just how active and adroit our government can be when it feels those tech company dollars flowing into the coffers.
CC's second post, shorter but no less important, discusses the myths surrounding our nation's schools. The supposed crisis, promulgated by ideologues and educationists, has been used by our 'leaders" to justify the sellout described above. I'm not a big fan of our educational system, it neglects the most gifted under the theory that, "they'll do OK anyway," it tends to emphasize the wrong things in pandering to the "latest thing."
But the "crisis" has been shamelessly used to support a political agenda, and to create endless change that enriches consultants and experts. Very little has been done to look at the reality of our schools; that we still can't determine the effectiveness of No Child Left Behind after seven years is scandalous, especially with all the people who are making a living off the numbers it generates. If you want to be introduced to the shoddy basis for the claims of abject school failure, take a look at Citizen Carrie's post.
CC's second post, shorter but no less important, discusses the myths surrounding our nation's schools. The supposed crisis, promulgated by ideologues and educationists, has been used by our 'leaders" to justify the sellout described above. I'm not a big fan of our educational system, it neglects the most gifted under the theory that, "they'll do OK anyway," it tends to emphasize the wrong things in pandering to the "latest thing."
But the "crisis" has been shamelessly used to support a political agenda, and to create endless change that enriches consultants and experts. Very little has been done to look at the reality of our schools; that we still can't determine the effectiveness of No Child Left Behind after seven years is scandalous, especially with all the people who are making a living off the numbers it generates. If you want to be introduced to the shoddy basis for the claims of abject school failure, take a look at Citizen Carrie's post.
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