Technical Education in NV?

Obama Backs Rewarding Districts That Police Failing Schools

Obama Backs Rewarding Districts That Police Failing Schools

By JEFF ZELENY    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/us/02obama.html
Published: March 1, 2010

WASHINGTON — President Obama said Monday that he favored federal rewards for local school districts that fire under performing teachers and close failing schools, saying educators needed to be held accountable when they failed to fix chronically troubled classrooms and curb the student dropout rate

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Well....... There's actually something I agree with Washington on

and... to continue:

In their efforts to overhaul failing public schools, Mr. Obama and his education secretary, Arne Duncan, have frequently drawn the ire of teachers’ unions

The president’s comments incensed the leadership of the American Federation of Teachers,

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Gee isn't that a surprise...

 and...

To qualify for the federal money, known as School Turnaround Grants, he said, the school districts must agree to take at least one of the steps: firing the principal and at least half the staff of a troubled school; reopening it as a charter school; or closing the school altogether and transferring students to better schools in the district.

“If a school continues to fail its students year after year after year,” Mr. Obama said, “if it doesn’t show signs of improvement, then there’s got to be a sense of accountability.”

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I don't believe it....  A good idea  (who was it said that insanity is doing the same thing over &  expecting different results).  Lets see if he can do it

As long as the schools offer coursework that is so removed from the students reality that it just doesn't matter to them...  there is going to be a very high drop-out  rate.   How about some relevant classes?  How about trying to teach some tired old subjects in a new way?  (I remember fondly a "construction math" class...  it actually showed me there was a USE for some of their abstract concepts).  The little I know of Calculus I didn't learn in a math class (I learned it tuning industrial control loops)...

posted by cl @ 8:49 PM