Twitter Book Club: @DianeRavitch (2010) The Death and Life of the Great American School System - Ch 2

Hijacked! How the Standards Movement Turned Into the Testing Movement

"NCLB—changed the nature of public schooling across the nation by making standardized test scores the (cont) http://tl.gd/78avkoless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
anderscj

"Accountability makes no sense when it undermines the larger goals of education." Diane Ravitchless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
anderscj

RT @anderscj: "Accountability makes no sense when it undermines the larger goals of education." Diane Ravitchless than a minute ago via TweetDeckKelly Kronfeld
kakronfeld

If we RT this, will they hear? RT @anderscj: "Accountability makes no sense when it undermines the larger goals of education." Diane Ravitchless than a minute ago via TweetDeckMichelle Baldwin
michellek107

RT @kakronfeld: RT @anderscj: "Accountability makes no sense when it undermines the larger goals of education." Diane Ravitchless than a minute ago via HootSuiteJeff Thomas
jdthomas7

@dianeravitch "Knowledge and skills are both important, as is learning to think, debate, and question. A (cont) http://tl.gd/78b6p4less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
anderscj

By this definition, a well-educated person is docile & obedient. It also excludes other critical literacies such as media literacy which arguably is a critical skill as online media is driving radical social, political, cultural, and economic change. It leads people like your prodigy Diane Senechal to outright reject the importance of teaching students how to responsibly and effectively use technology. (to see my point-by-point critique of Senechal's article click here and here). It also is greatly biased toward an authoritative view of what constitutes a "well-educated" person. Can't a person be both heretical and well-educated at the same time?

@dianeravitch in pages 19-20 you make clear that you believe our history & literature standards should be (cont) http://tl.gd/78bej2less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
anderscj

Lets reprint that in full and add some links to it shall we:

@dianeravitch in pages 19-20 you make clear that you believe our history & literature standards should be more concrete about specific events & books all students should be familiar with. Isn't what is relevant in any genre, topic, or area of study always changing depending upon present circumstances? Also, wouldn't locking everyone into mandatory uniform subject matter be not only a standardization of curriculum but also a standardization of bias? (for a more developed framing of this question click here). Whose history? Cheney was right to point this out but I think we come to that conclusion together for very different reasons. Just look at what the Texas Board of Education is doing with what concrete events they are mandating and which one's they are cutting. The question of Whose history? goes both ways doesn't it?