Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/15/AR2009021501257.html
Author: Randi Weingarten, President of the AFT

“The countries that consistently outperform the United States on international assessments all have national standards, with core curriculum, assessments and time for professional development for teachers based on those standards… But there is little outrage over the uneven patchwork of academic standards for students in our 50 states and the District of Columbia. And the federal government has tacitly accepted this situation by giving a seal of approval…”   She reneges on her affinity for nationalized control, stating…

“I am not talking about federal standards… nor am I proposing that state and local education authorities lose all say on curriculum. I certainly am not suggesting that teachers be forced to provide instruction in a scripted, lock-step manner, unable to tailor lessons or draw on their own expertise…. Education is a local issue, but there is a body of knowledge about what children should know and be able to do that should guide decisions about curriculum and testing.”  Then she proposes only what already exists, stating…

“I propose that a broad-based group — made up of educators, elected officials, community leaders, and experts in pedagogy and particular content — come together to take the best academic standards and make them available as a national model. Teachers then would need the professional development, and the teaching and learning conditions, to make the standards more than mere words.”

Our AFT President must exist in a vacuum, oblivious to our current educational situation; which does exactly what was described above– Groups of educators, officials, leaders, and experts coming together to take the best “standards” to make them available as a national model,  then doing professional development for teachers.  The problem is that while this was her “solution”, she took the entire first half of the article outlining other nations that have nationalized standards.  Nations like South Korea, where each class, in every grade level, regardless of school or location, is teaching the same thing everyday and all subjects, methods, content is perscribed and controlled at the national level.

Therefore, while she states her affinity for such situations and most likely wishes that this becomes the educational condition in America, she backs off of this for some reason.  Unfortunately, the movement in the AFT-CIO is most definiately marching towards nationalization.  Furthermore, it is becoming quite obvious from other statements of Weingarten, that if this nationalization can be sped up, that would be better… because it is clear that good educational decisions are beyond that capabilities of parents and local/state educators.

What is the educational climate and situation in America?  Our individualistic predisposition, and American hisory, is largely for local and individual control over education.  While some may believe that individuals are incapable of making good educational decisions, and therefore feel it necessary to control the entire process for every citizen, the reality is that regardless of a parent/guardian’s education, the vast majority knows what their child needs.  Only a very small few need assistance, but the answer is assistance, not control over their livelihood.  Summizing, education should be situated for the student, and for this to occur it must be controlled at the smallest level possible.  This micro control is placing educational decisions into the hands of those closest to the student, the parent/guardian, teacher, and tutor(s), and the school itself may be too far disconnect, let alone the local, state or national level.

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