Folks - remember - no schools have been shut down for opt out. Many have been shut down for opting in. They/corp. ed. reformers are going to use every angle and every dollar they have to create fear & push back around opt out this year - its already happening and its July - remember - these are OUR schools - be ready to fight back. I am always asked - can opt out hurt our schools? My answer: Arent our schools already being hurt? Arent we already observing things that we KNOW should not be happening to children? Havent our children suffered enough? Havent our children already been denied and neglected enough as reformers funnel them into test prep and rob them of arts, PE, recess, counselors, libraries, libraries, nurses, small class size, REAL teachers, resources, developmentally appropriate practices and more???? What else must our children endure? Havent communities already been destroyed? How many more teachers must leave the profession and leave our children at the hands of those who know nothing about education??? How many more children must be stripped of their identity and culture and spirit? How many more children must be denied food, healthcare and books as society continues to ignore poverty and blame public education for all ills of our society? How much more fast cash will the billionaires make on the backs of children and our tax dollars? What kind of society will be left? I am horrified to consider it. Any negative consequences at this point are NOTHING compared to what will happen if we comply. This is war. A war to save children and ultimately our democracy. Can schools drop on the performance framework? Yes. But I can guarantee you that they will drop ANYWAY due to Common Core testing. And how silly it seems to be to worry about the performance flipping framework when childrens lives, communities and ultimately our countrys well-being is at stake. I have a mouth full of words for the performance framework that will be dispensed of in my own home after pre-loading the cuss jar with multiple quarters. Compliance guarantees the dismantling of public education as well as our teaching profession. Compliance guarantees the rapid growth of the school to prison pipeline. Compliance guarantees our inability to regain our democracy. Our schools can die a slow death (faster in urban areas) or we can halt the harm now and reclaim what belongs to ALL children. We at UOO demand an equitably funded, democratically based, anti-racist, desegregated public school system for all Americans that prepares students to exercise compassionate and critical decision making with civic virtue. Join us at United Opt Out National. Find our free opt out guides at our website (unitedoptout). We always speak truth to action. We know of no other way. And we will win this.
Posted on: Wed, 30 Jul 2014 00:40:06 +0000
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