It's hard these days to think about education reform without Michelle Rhee creeping into the picture. The alleged cheating scandal in DC schools during her tenure gives me the creeps. The whole thing is just sad.
I came across this video, posted under the name “DCVoicesofConcern” and found it worth sharing. A few years ago, I co-hosted Kenneth Carroll, one of the educators quoted at length in the piece, at my school. He was leading a team of DC college students/mentors who provided invaluable information and support to my 11th graders; it’s a real shame that Michelle Rhee wouldn’t listen to him or his colleagues when she tore apart his school community in the name of bold, disruptive reform.
Check this out:
It’s blood-boiling.
On her always insightful Teacher in a Strange Land blog, Nancy Flanagan poses the zillion dollar question more globally: Why would we ever want to reform schools in ways that aren't sustainable or endorsed by the people who do the actual work?
I agree. It doesn’t matter how much Michelle Rhee believes that she cares about kids. We can’t bulldoze our way to increased student learning.
For her part, here's an excerpt of Rhee doubling-down in an April 13 Huffington Post essay titled "Why I'm Proud of Student Achievement in Washington, D.C. (and Why We Need National Reforms)"
I know some of my decisions were unpopular and generated what some might call bad press. I should have done a better job communicating the rationale behind some of those decisions, but making real change requires decisive action. Let's examine my decision to close 23 schools where enrollment numbers were low, as was academic performance levels. In the end the kids got to go to better schools that were still in their neighborhoods.The schools that stayed opened retained high quality teachers, were renovated, and got additional resources.
Do Michelle Rhee and the teachers on the video live in the same universe?
I sat, dumbfounded at the details of what went on at Hart. This is what happens when an individual, of a different professional background, is placed in a position of "leadership."
Mr. Carroll eloquently described a situation that could be out of science fiction . . . a hip-hop principal? . . . us against them philosophy? I would guess that the principal had been mentored by Rhee, who remained at arm's length. When the principal failed, Rhee fired in an effort to further delude the public that she was in control. This is gulag mentality.
Everything that I have read about Rhee's tenure as D.C.'s Chancellor indicates that her appointment was not about the students, it was about showing the world that D.C. schools were under control. Against my better judgment, I will invoke an old cliche: I with that I had a dollar for every time I heard a teacher lament that her/his voice is not heard. This is an outrage and an grave injustice to our students, especially those in our inner-city schools. They deserve so much more from this country.
Posted by: P. Mozzani | 04/20/2011 at 04:41 PM