Blogs:

Billions of dollars have been invested by education reformers in our country. With Bill Gates and Michelle Rhee, DC School’s superintendent featuring shortly on The Oprah Winfrey Show and with the release of Education nation specials of NBC namely “Waiting for Superman”, the stage is set for creation of a carefully developed master narrative, creation of images and creation of a crescendo of voices.

According to the narrative, the way to save our failing schools is to make it easier to get around processes to fire failing teachers, to expand charters and raise stakes on test scores that are standardized.

Haven’t we experienced such projects that are driven by ideology before? They simply tend to overestimate strength, over promise and over reach. As they reach their apex, they collapse. Our education system seems to be poised to collapse around us very soon.

The basic problem of the education reform movement is addressed here. It is ten years since massive reforms have been initiated around the high stakes governing the standardized tests. Have we seen any significant improvement in learning yet? Sadly, not even in the test scores that proponents place great value on.
 
As compared to the charter schools, public schools performed no better. As is evident at what happened in Los Angeles’ Fremont High School, firing teachers is not the solution for revving up failing schools. Public is evidently lost with the significance of renewed efforts to bolster our agenda for education reform.

A recent poll conducted by the Time Magazine reflects the sentiments of the public on the education reforms. Most of them feel that accountability based on tests have actually worked against the expected results. While 36% of people feel that this has done more harm, at least 33% of them feel that the strategy did not have any effect at all.

The reform agenda in the education field is being categorically rejected by ballot box voters even though it strives to justify its concern for poverty stricken students. Familiar voices proclaiming reform will be again heard on programs promoted by Education Nation by NBC, sponsored by Gates and Broad foundations apart from other prominent corporations.

With the November mid-term elections fast approaching and with teachers all set to host their own event at the Teacher Town Hall, results are unpredictable. To top this, administration continues to insist on following reforms that are clearly not showing any results and this in turn has led to speculations on lacklustre Democratic Party election turnout.

Deep soul searching is imperative now for the Democrats even as teachers are pushing for a strong change in education reform policies. Teachers all over the country are fed up with political slogans and the culture of racing to the top.

The ball is clearly in the administration’s court. Unless there is a viable alternative, such projects do not collapse. There is a call for a strong vision for improving schools and revamping our education system that can move forward towards a bright future for the country.