Targeting mayoral control of the schools

Photo: Anna Philips

Brother Fred reports from OWS that mayoral control of the schools has become a prime target of the protests. Although I don't think I'll ever be at ease with that human microphone thing (reminds me too much of the Monty Python movie, Life of Brian), it does sound like a great way to get your point across in one of  Chancellor Wolcott's carefully controlled policy panel meetings.

There's a pretty good debate about standardized testing going on at National Journal online. The main protagonists are FairTest's Monty Neill and former Bush adviser and die-hard NCLB defender (he may be the only one left) Sandy Kress. On today's Bridging Differences blog post  "End it, don't mend it", Diane Ravitch warns that, "Instead of ditching this disastrous law, senators are trying to apply patches."

School's CEO J.C. Brizard calls Chicago's widening racial achievement gap "unacceptable." Good! But then he offers up the 90-minute longer school day as the solution. Not so good.
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NYT reports that the top 1 percent of earners more than doubled their share of the nation’s income over the last three decades.  

The most affluent fifth of the population received 53 percent of after-tax household income in 2007, up from 43 percent in 1979. In other words, the after-tax income of the most affluent fifth exceeded the income of the other four-fifths of the population.