Grading Texas

One of the most overused – and misused – words in the English language, particularly in the political discourse over public education, is “reform.” I misused the word when I was a news reporter, and reporters, among many other players in the political arena, are still misusing it.

Just this week, a good reporter, in an otherwise wellreported, wellwritten story, included these words: “the homeschoolers, business groups, charter school and voucher supporters in the reform movement.” It would be better for all reporters to put the word, “reform,” in quotation marks or, better yet, use the word, “change,” instead.

The groups that were cited above certainly want to change the public education system, but many of them don’t want to reform it. They call themselves “reformers” because that is a positive word that sounds good politically.

According to the dictionary in my office, “reform,” as a verb, means to “change into another and better form.” As a noun, it means a “change for the better.” “Reform” suggests improvement, but many of these alleged public education “reformers” want to do anything but improve the public schools. Many, if they had their way, would weaken and eventually dismantle the public schools.

The vast majority of Texas children will continue to be educated in traditional public schools, not charter schools, not private schools and not home schools. Our focus and our state resources need to remain focused on traditional public schools.

Groups that support the diversion of tax dollars to pay for vouchers for private school tuition do not want to “reform” the public schools. They want to weaken them in favor of boosting private schools, where only a very limited number of children will ever be educated. Transferring tax dollars to private schools would deprive public schools and the vast majority of Texas students of needed resources.

Charter school advocates continue to mislead parents and taxpayers into thinking that charters are a silver bullet that will magically rid the country of its public school problems. Several studies, in fact, have shown that charter schools on the whole are no better or worse than traditional public schools. Some are good, some are bad and some primarily are profit centers for their operators. Is this reform? I think not.

Finally, some business people in Texas are strong supporters of public schools. Others support “reform” as a cover for various privatization schemes, such as vouchers or more testing, to enrich themselves from tax dollars. Other business leaders are hopelessly conflicted. They cry out for education “reform” while continuing to support an antieducation governor and legislative leadership that cut $5.4 billion from the public schools last year and plans to slash more next session.

Groups purporting to be public education “reformers” – even to the point of using the word, “reform,” in their titles – are a dime a dozen. Unfortunately, many don’t live up to their billing. Many others, however, genuinely want to improve public schools. Those who are truly “reformers” should be able to do their work without being associated with those who want to tear down the public schools that are the pathway to opportunity for most Texas children.

Overcome with crocodile tears, State Rep. Charles Perry of Lubbock, a tea partytype who voted last year to cut $5.4 billion from the public education budget, is quoted in the article linked below about the need to encourage more people to become teachers. According to the article, the number of teachers in Lubbock ISD, which Perry purports to represent, has decreased by almost 100 over the past two years while the number of students in the district has increased by 500.

Perry’s hypocrisy is very transparent. He and rightwing ideologues like him are a major reason schools are losing teachers. Statewide, almost 11,000 teaching jobs have been lost since Perry and his buddies slashed the public school budget. But with reelection time upon him, Perry is trying to make nice with the teachers he spent his time in Austin last year attacking.

The article, unfortunately, gives Perry a free ride, since it doesn’t say anything about his budget vote or the fact that the budget he supported was so bad it didn’t cover enrollment growth. And, today, he was scheduled to join Gov. Rick Perry and sign the governor’s antitax, antigovernment “Texas Budget Compact,” which would result in even deeper cuts in the public schools and the teaching ranks.

“This next session (in 2013) is going to be a better session,” Rep. Perry says.

It will be a better session if Charles Perry and a lot of backwardthinking legislators like him aren’t there. Teachers and other West Texas voters in Texas House District 83 have an opportunity in the May 29 Republican primary to improve the lot of their local schools. They need to vote against Perry and send Delwin Jones back to Austin. Jones truly values public schools and knows that they require more than hollow rhetoric.

http://www.myfoxlubbock.com/news/local/story/CharlesPerryCherieJenkinsteachersstudents/d0ZeEvE_5EC3Nz7p0hrjyw.cspx

Premont ISD in South Texas, one of the poorest districts in the state, is still struggling to stay open, but it received a $65,000 gift this week. Much of it was raised by lowincome children in 22 neighboring school districts who, unlike the budgetslashing political majority in Austin, realize that public schools do cost money.

Premont is the same district that even suspended its sports programs for a year to cut costs and try to avoid being shut down by the state. Were that to occur, its students would have to be bused to schools in other communities. The Texas Education Agency gave the district a oneyear reprieve last December to give it time to make about $700,000 in state required improvements.

It is still unknown if Premont will survive, but school kids from other lowincome South Texas school districts have done their part with an inventive assortment of fundraising endeavors. They turned their contributions over to the Premont superintendent and some of his students in an emotional ceremony yesterday. It is reported in the Corpus Christi Caller story linked here:

http://www.caller.com/news/2012/may/03/studentsfromneighboringschooldistrictsraise/

Unable to resist the temptation to damn with faint praise, I will note the obvious. Robert Scott has been a better education commissioner than his boss, Rick Perry, has been a governor. Scott’s resignation, however, will have little impact on the future of Texas’ public schools.

As an appointed state official, Scott was bound to do the bidding of the governor and the legislative majority. Consequently, he presided over the expansion of a misdirected standardized testing system that holds thirdgraders more accountable for educational policies than the governor and legislators. And, he presided over deep budget cuts to the public schools inflicted by Perry and the legislative majority.

Scott obviously shared much of that wrongheaded thinking over education policy or he would have departed long ago. But in recent months, he indicated that the damage to our public education system may finally have been getting too severe for his own comfort zone. Or, he simply became tired of being barraged with complaints from superintendents and school board members. In a speech to school administrators in January, he said standardized student testing had become a “perversion of its original intent.” And, he expressed discomfort with the extent of last year’s education budget cuts, which will become even worse if the Legislature obeys Perry’s latest rightwing, antitax, antipublic schools “budget compact.”

Some people are wondering if Scott is stepping down voluntarily – he has held the job longer than most commissioners or was forced to resign by a governor who doesn’t like naysayers on his “team” and plays bully politics. At this point, that doesn’t really matter, except maybe to Scott.

Anticipation and speculation will build over Scott’s likely successor. And, the governor’s choice for the next education commissioner will be important. But the next commissioner will be someone who shares the governor’s political philosophy and will continue carrying out the policies promoted and enacted by the governor and the legislative majority.

What matters much more to the future of public education in Texas than Scott’s resignation or Perry’s choice of a successor are this year’s legislative races. Nothing much will change for the better at the Texas Education Agency until after significant numbers of antipublic education legislators are replaced with lawmakers of either party who will make public schools a real priority. That means adequate funding and a fair, broadbased accountability system that actually means something.

Scott was charged with carrying out bad educational policies. So will be his successor. Change has to start with the policymakers, beginning with this year’s legislative races and continuing with the 2014 races for the Legislature and the governor’s office.