Dear Commons Community,

Over the past few weeks, candidates for New York City mayor have been critical of Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his administration of the New York City public schools.  While the Democratic candidates have been most vocal in their criticism, even the Republican candidates have not been complimentary.  Today’s New York Times editorial offers its take on this all important issue:

“Mr. Bloomberg’s schools chancellor, Dennis Walcott, called the criticism an “unconscionable” assault on the Education Department and accused the candidates of lacking vision. On Saturday, at a conference in Brooklyn for school administrators, he foretold a “tragedy” if the next mayor did not continue Mr. Bloomberg’s policies.

But after 12 years, this mayor’s ideas are due for a counterargument. The critiques the candidates are offering hardly shock the conscience, and their complaints about the Bloomberg administration can be heard from teachers and parents in any school in the city.

The school system has indeed gone overboard in relying on standardized testing. Tests need to be a means to the end of better instruction, not the pedagogical obsession they have become. Yes, Mr. Bloomberg has shown disdain for consultation, as in his rush to close underperforming schools without the full and meaningful involvement of affected communities. The system needs to strengthen neighborhoods’ connection to schools and reconnect with parents who feel shut out. And while charter schools can be a path to excellence, they can also cause problems. Shoehorning them into existing school buildings over local objections can alienate parents and reinforce among students a harmful sense of being separate and unequal.”

The Times editorial is on target.  For those of you who are interested in this topic, the Ph.D. Program in Urban Education at the Graduate Center and Brooklyn College will be hosting a conference tomorrow night on The NYC Public Schools After Mayor Bloomberg.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

4:00 pm – 8:00 pm

CUNY Graduate Center, 9th Fl., 365 5th Ave. at 34th St., New York

The conference is free and open to the public on a first come basis.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Yesterday, Sunday morning talk shows covered President Obama and his handling of the three major scandals that have supposedly hurt his administration:  Benghazi, Department of Justice surveillance of the Associated Press, and the IRS harassment of Tea Party non-profit organizations.    Meet the Press, Face the Nation, and the McLaughlin Group all devoted significant airtime to these issues.  CNN did also but concluded its coverage with its most recent poll of President Obama’s approval rating:

“A new poll shows that recent scandals haven’t hurt President Barack Obama’s approval rating.

The poll, from CNN and ORC International, found that 53 percent of Americans approve of the job Obama is doing, while 45 percent disapprove. This number remains virtually unchanged from polls taken before the scandals hit.  The poll was taken on May 17 and 18, and has a 3 percent margin of error.   A CNN poll taken in early April showed Obama’s approval rating to be 51 percent. According to a Gallup poll taken in early May, the president’s approval rating was 50 percent.   The CNN poll also found that 71 percent of Americans believe the actions of the IRS employees who targeted tea party groups were unacceptable. However, 6 in 10 respondents said they trusted the president’s statements on the issue.”

My opinion is that the American people want our government including its President to concentrate its energy and efforts on economic and other problems and not chasing who did what when,  which in the long run expends huge resources and yields minimal if any benefits.

Tony