How bad does it have to get?

I am always amazed by what gets people passionately angry when discussing education reform. It seems that everyone knows there's a serious problem with getting and keeping amazing teachers in the American classroom -- and that there's an even MORE serious problem being able to fire teachers who are not good at the job, or who are even ABUSIVE to children! -- but when you begin to discuss why (i.e. union-created and strongly protected rules that make it nearly impossible to fire anyone), the outrage is suddenly directed at YOU. You must be a union-hater! You must hate teachers! (This reminds me of a quote from the classic film, The Jerk: "He hates these cans!"). As in The Jerk, this outrage is misdirected.

How can anyone deny that the profession is SERIOUSLY screwed up when it is impossible to fire people who have sexually abused children? We can have absolute proof of a teacher's indefensible actions and still not be able to fire him/her. It is great to see the media finally bringing these often-ignored issues to the forefront. Some articles on this issue, including an op-ed by former CNN analyst Campbell Brown:

Campbell Brown: Teachers Unions Go to Bat for Sexual Predators

Miramonte teacher was paid $40,000 to drop dismissal challenge

A California State Senator introduced a bill to stop the insanity and make it easier to dismiss teachers who sexually abuse children...but the bill was killed by Democrats (my political party, btw) who presumably are more concerned with keeping teachers unions happy than taking even the most obvious and basic steps to protect children. How did we get to this point? And, more importantly, how do we get out?

One thing you can do is VOTE. Follow your elected officials and vote them out of office if they choose adult interests over childrens'. Who killed this bill in California? Names included in this article:

Why California Democrats Protect Sex Abuser Teachers

Also read:

Why Is It So Hard to Do the Right Thing?

 "He hates these cans!"

Los Angeles Premiere - As if you were there!

We had an amazing program in Los Angeles, focused on the many great things happening there (and statewide) with regard to teacher accountability & evaluation. The beauty of what's happening is that so much is being led BY teachers and former teachers, who want the profession to improve and know it will benefit students AND teachers if it does. 

To learn more, read our background hand-out from the event here.

To see photos of the event go here and here.

Read a review of the event here: TEACHED Film Series Cracks Open L.A.’s School-to-Prison Pipeline

And, most importantly, watch the video of Dr. Howard Fuller's keynote speech:

Please join us in thanking the sponsors for this wonderful, inspiring event:

COMMUNITIES FOR TEACHING EXCELLENCE & STUDENTS MATTER

Race Matters

I think we all want to believe that race doesn't play a defining role in how people are treated in America today, but that is sadly FAR from the truth, and many astounding statistics prove it.

Here's one of the latest I came across in an USAToday article about the "Stand Your Ground" law, which is getting more scrutiny in the wake of the tragic Trayvon Martin shooting. From the article:

"According to the FBI, "34% of cases involving a white shooter killing a black person were deemed as a justifiable homicide. Meanwhile, in similar situations, when the shooter was black and the victim was white, the homicide was ruled justifiable only 3.3% of the time."

Here are a few more you may not know:

"Studies show that people of all colors use and sell illegal drugs at remarkably similar rates. If there are significant differences in the surveys to be found, they frequently suggest that whites, particularly white youth, are more likely to engage in drug crime than people of color. (Yet) in some states, black men have been admitted to prison on drug charges at rates twenty to fifty times greater than those of white men." (emphasis mine). -- Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow (a MUST-read)

Unequal treatment begins early and is perpetrated in our most "democratic" institution--the public school:

Black Students Face More Discipline - from the New York Times. (There are many studies showing that black students in particular are given much harsher, life-impacting punishments-- like expulsion or arrests--than white students for the exact same behaviors). 

Thought for the day: What kind of America do you want to live in, and how can you help create it?

I'm not Finnish'ed Yet

I think we need a service that helps the public read between the lines of education-related articles (and highlights the incredible jumps in logic that appear so frequently). Maybe Google can develop a new "translation" app: you could just paste in any article, hit send, and a new version would appear with what the writer is REALLY saying. Red flashing lights would reveal statements that contradict each other (or reality), and links would magically appear to take you to what the research actually says.

Click to read more ...

WHAT WE'RE DOING...AND WHAT YOU CAN DO

VOTE. READ. ORGANIZE.

Over the last few months, we've had the opportunity to try out our interactive screening model at three different venues in front of three very different audiences:

• A prestigious film festival; 
• A community screening organized by friends at their local public library; and,
• A screening and panel discussion organized by and for college students.

At each event, we brought "stars" from the films and/or other guest speakers to present their views and answer questions from the audience. I also shared some of my background and described how the project came to be.

The feedback on all three events has been over-whelmingly positive. Audience members tell us they learned much they did not know before, and we in turn have learned a lot about how these events can have the greatest impact. We plan to fine-tune our model every step of the way.

But there has been one surprise. I wasn't prepared for the feeling of hopelessness audience members would share with me, their frustration in the belief that our education system can't be changed. BUT IT CAN, and in fact, it must be. So what can you--what can we--do?

- VOTE. 

The number one thing you can do to improve our education system and, especially, make sure every student receives the same opportunities, is to VOTE FOR CANDIDATES who are not owned by the powers-that-be, that are independent-minded and that believe that all children can learn. THiS STARTS AT THE SCHOOL BOARD LEVEL. If more people would vote in school board elections, there would be a greater diversity in those who get elected and serve. 

For whatever reason, many school board elections are held at off-times (in the spring), not along with the other big races you would probably never ignore (ie, the President!). MAKE IT HAPPEN. Find out who's running, what they are promising to do, ask questions of and about them (especially where their funding comes from), AND VOTE. (If you need help finding information about candidates and elections in your area, feel free to contact us, we will help.)

- READ.

...especially between the lines. There is so much misinformation out there, so many people who benefit from the system remaining exactly as it is, that you must apply commonsense to the opinions you read and hear.

Compare what you hear -- the excuses-- to the statistics: do you really believe that ALL the parents of ALL those kids don't care? Do you really think that in today's world, THAT many kids believe dropping out of school is a great idea? Why might so many students decide it's not worth it to stay in school?

Also think about how you and your family are impacted by the realities behind the outrageous statistics. Do you think our nation is able to remain a global leader if THAT many children aren't finishing high school? How does it impact our economy, your personal saftey, the nation's progress? And what kind of potential are we missing out on when so many kids aren't even close to realizing theirs? 

Keep up on the facts, and keep your commonsense at the forefront. If you find yourself getting caught up in the same old tired arguments others give for why the system can't be changed, don't accept them. This is America. We can vote, we can change policy, we can demand something better. And when we do, students, teachers, families and our national community will benefit.

- ORGANIZE.

It's becoming an overused phrase but one I love: BE THE CHANGE. Be the one in your circle of friends or community to keep the fight for educational equality alive, to make sure people are paying attention to the elections that matter and voting in them. Better yet, help find the best candidates to run for elected office and support them, or run yourself. Serving on a school board is rarely glamorous or well-compensated, but it can and will make a huge difference if more independent thinkers and activists for education equality run for elected office and serve. 

I created TEACHED to document the sad race and income-based injustices that continue to plague our education system and to inspire and motivate more people to demand change. Consider the TEACHED short films as tools you can use to bring people together to focus on and discuss thse issues. We are in the process of making the TEACHED VOL. I DVD available for public screenings; we hope you will organize a screening in your community and bring in your own speakers (for instance, invite you local school board candidates to present their views and take questions from your audience). Email us at screenings@teached.org if you are interested in organizing a screening event.

And don't give up.

FIGHTING FOR EDUCATION EQUALITY IN THE CORNHUSKER STATE

OK, I'm a bit biased when it comes to Nebraska (my home state) and people from there, but I believe this young guy named Justin Wayne has the potential to be a national leader on education reform. A lawyer by trade, Justin got himself elected to the Omaha School Board and is really shaking things up there (and taking plenty of heat for it). 

Justin Wayne

Here's Justin's BIO.

And here's a letter today he submitted in support of a bill that would improve teacher evaluations in the state: Justin Wayne testimony for LB 809

You know, I can't help looking at that testimony and, for the millionth time, seeing just how crazy our system is with regard to evaluating teachers. Can you imagine if, as a new employee, you were only evaluated ONCE a year -- that is, a person actually came and observed you doing your job ONCE year (and you knew exactly when it would be)? Then, after a couple of years, you might only be evaluated every THREE TO FIVE years! Justin is supporting a bill to make sure every teacher is evaluated at least once a year. I mean, that's how far away we are from a system that holds teachers accountable.

For more reading on just how important teachers are, don't miss these recent articles by NYT writer Nicholas Kristof:

How Mrs. Grady Transformed Olly Neal

The Value of Teachers

How Much Do Good Teachers Matter?

The answer is a LOT.

It always surprises me that we need more and more research to prove this to many people, given how intuitive and obvious it should be to anyone who has ever attended school. Regardless of what children bring with them to school in terms of home experiences, previous learning, expectations -- WHATEVER -- if the teacher in the classroom IS NOT teaching, or is not teaching effectively, or -- and this does happen -- is actually telling the students that they are not capable of learning .....well, NO learning will happen. 

Whereas a good or great teacher, armed with only paper and pencils can do amazing things. Give those teachers even better resources and they will arrange miracles. Fortunately, most teachers fall in this category (and are feeling quite dispirited by the polarized discussion that labels all participants as either "anti-" or "pro-" teacher, as if all teachers are equal in quality). 

Alas, today's education debates are such that we need hardcore research to prove that the quality/ability/effort of the teacher in the classroom has a tremendous impact on whether kids learn or not. 

Additional research is showing that when there are ineffective teachers in the system, they are disproportionately placed in front of low-income, minority students in communities where the parents have the least power to do something about it. Then we blame those parents, students and communities for the resulting lower academic performance. 

The question is, why do we allow this to continue? 

Some reading on the matter:

 THE VALUE OF TEACHERS

 LEARNING DENIED

And So It Begins (Sigh)

If you look on the TEACHED Facebook page, in a response to our post on Nov. 15th, you will see the first of what I expect will be many attempts to disparage the film project (and me) as we get noticed. There are a LOT of people who benefit from our education system remaining just as it is, no matter how unfair that is to some children, and it looks like someone's already been doing and disseminating research to try to tie me into some imagined group of "corporate reformers trying to destroy public education." Of course, the truth is I have committed most of my career (and volunteer time) trying to improve public education for low-income, minority students, and our film's budget definitely doesn't bring to mind the word "corporate," but this is a political and ideological (not a moral) issue for many people. Instead of arguing the issues, many of those who benefit from today's education structure would rather deflect the public's attention away from the issues by disparaging anyone who wants the public to consider them more closely.

Click to read more ...

Some Thoughts on Teaching (for Two Years)

We had the most amazing premiere weekend at our first festival-- and I will share details and photos soon-- but today I'm thinking about a question I am often asked: for how many years did I teach? Maybe the question is asked out of curiosity, but more and more often it feels like the questioner is trying to catch me on something; when I say I taught for two years in South Central, I get "Oh. Two years." Then, the knowing nod. I was in Teach for America's charter corps, which means I signed up to teach for two years. (It also means I was part of the original group that had no clue if the program would be good for our resumes or not, nor did we care, or at least I didn't. I wanted to give two years of my life to helping others before I went to grad school or jumped into journalism, my original plan).

Click to read more ...

Another milestone...with proof in pictures!

This has been a BIG week for TEACHED! We "locked" the trilogy of films that comprise TEACHED Vol. I and sent them off to the Napa Valley Film Festival. WHEW! That was a 2.5 yr marathon (in sprint mode more often than not) so we are tha-rilled.

Huge thanks to Sergei Krasikov who came in for the final week to help out in the "ediiting room" (ie my living room) almost round the clock. He's not just another groovy cameraman! Haha. And thanks Sergei for dressing to match the decor. Very nice of you.

SERGEI AT WORK:

 THE OFFICE I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE SOMEDAY:

THE OFFICE I ACTUALLY HAVE: