Media Leader Tapped to Head N.Y.C. Schools

          This article talks about the transition of school superintendents in New York City. Joe Klein has been the superintendent of schools in New York for the last eight years. Mr. Klein had no previous experience in school administration prior to taking this post. He was an assistant U.S. attorney. His replacement is Cathleen Black, who was working as a publishing executive. She also has no experience as a school administrator. Why is Mayor Michael Bloomberg looking for people outside of education to be the head of schools in New York? Klein over all has not been a failure and some believe he has had many successes.
           What interested me about the article was something that I have noticed in public education. It is a big business. The school superintendent does not need to know a great deal about education to run the schools. I am not saying this is good or bad for education just that these cases, and many others prove it is a fact.
            Right next to this article in the Ed. Weekly is another article about schools incorporating dance into their lessons. It is a good article with a great cover photo of students dancing and integrating other disciplines. I keep thinking about how far removed these two articles are from each other. I do not believe Mr. Klein or Ms. Black know the details of teaching photosynthesis through movement but they do need to. There are many examples of people outside education taking over as superintendents. In New Orleans an army general was appointed. Schools are big business. When 55% of the state budget in Oregon, at least as of three years age, is filtered into education then everyone is involved and not because it is their child's education. Schools have people in administrative positions just to deal with teachers unions. Maybe Ms. Black has had prior experiences in education that will guide her decisions in a truly equitable and creative way. Maybe education under Ms. Black will fulfill its promise of better citizens in a better society. Mr. Klein made no real drastic changes, improvements or not. All of these decisions have me asking, what are we looking for in schools today? Obviously it is a business model.

Why I will not teach to the test

The article argues for more in depth teaching than the shallow teaching that, they accuse, the state states engender.  I find this to be true in my limited experience. As a music teacher I have some experience with standardized tests but not nearly to the degree of class room teachers. The article, I believe accurately criticizes multi choice tests declaring that essay questions or writing require more critical thinking from the students and are a better evaluator. It is an odd contradiction that she points to in California where the exit exam for high school requires an "on demand essay" yet has the essay count for so little of the over all grade that it can be ignored entirely. However, it is good that California at least requires this. I hope that the education system moves to a more imaginative evaluative process in the future and that voices like this writer are included in the dialogue.