Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Recess? What recess?

The President got a little confused. He was bragging that schools in his beloved Windy City "never close" because of the weather.

"My children's school was canceled today, because of what? Some ice," Obama said, and all at the table started laughing. "As my children pointed out, in Chicago school is never canceled," he continued. He said that in their old hometown, "you'd go outside for recess in weather like this. You wouldn't even stay indoors."

But his kids went to private school. Didn't he know that back in 2001, when Arne Duncan became CEO recess was banned in 80% of Chicago schools. Even though Duncan has recently voiced support for restoring recess, many Chicago public schools continue the ban today.

5 comments:

  1. Charming. By the way, in NYC, they really never close. Many has been the day my kid stayed home while I trudged up the LIE with cars crashing to my right and left. I remember one day, having almost arrived, listening to then-Mayor Giuliani urging people to stay home if at all possible. It hadn't occurred to him to close the schools.

    We also have a delayed opening procedure that's been used precisely once during a transit strike.

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  2. Wasn't recess banned as part of a union contract to shorten the school day at those schools? Wasn't it teachers who voted to get rid of recess in favor of an earlier dismissal time?

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  3. No, Anon. Recess isn't banned in the union contract and I don't know of any school where teachers voted to get rid of recess in favor of earlier dismissal. Maybe you could give us the name of a school or a news clip.

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  4. Recent studies show that recess actually improves student learning outcomes as well as student behavior. See this piece in USA Today:

    http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-01-28-recess-behavior_N.htm

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  5. Obama was wrong about schools never closing in Chicago. His boy Duncan just announced the closing of 20 schools in Chicago, just before he left town. Duncan did what the weather never does.

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