TOMORROW ON HITTING LEFT

Tomorrow on Hitting Left, I will be missing my co-host, brother Fred, who is off to New York where he's taking part in a 40-mile bike run across the boroughs. I know, right?

But joining me will be three of my favorite people, Harish Patel, Anne Emerson, and Ald. Scott Waguespack. Not too shabby.

Harish will be my co-host and my Klonsky brother for the day. He's an Indian-American, Muslim local and international social activist based in Chicago, a former candidate for state rep and the deputy director of the non-partisan policy group New America Chicago. I'm sure we will be hearing about his recent up-close and personal exchange last week with Barack Obama.

The two of us will be digging political dirt with Chicago political strategist Anne Emerson and the alderman from my own 32nd Ward, Scott Waguespack. Scott is an outspoken member of the city council's Progressive Caucus and a major thorn in side of Mayor 1%.

A stunning victory...We'll also hear from SEIU organizer Larry Alcoff on today's victory for Chicago's nursing home health care workers. At the 11th hour, just before what would have been the largest strike by nursing home health care workers in the U.S., a settlement was reached between the management of 103 nursing homes across the Chicago area and 10,000 SEIU members. Tune in and hear Larry and Brother Fred talk about the significance of this important labor struggle.

Obama to Patel...

Mr. Obama wanted to know why Harish Patel, a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, had chosen to run for state representative last year as a young man. The answer, he replied, was in part that he did not see very many Patels in office and wanted to fix that. 

“There are lot of Patels in India,” Mr. Obama interjected, prompting more laughter from the audience. “There are lot more Patels than there are Obamas."

So tune in to hear the Klonsky Bros. Hitting Left on Friday at 11 a.m. CDT, on WLPN 105.5 F.M., streaming live at Lumpen Radio. If you have an IPhone, download the Lumpen Radio app. If you miss the show live, you can always listen to the podcast 

Worst things I read this morning

Kasich tells these guys his "if I were king" fantasy. 

Not in any particular order... 

• Republican presidential candidate, and union-basher, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, tells supporters:  "If I were king in America, I would abolish all teachers’ lounges where they sit together and worry about ‘woe is us.". -- MSNBC  After the first GOP campaign debate, some of my liberal friends thought Kasich was the "most progressive" of the pack. 

• Hillary Clinton defends her call to deport children from the U.S. who are fleeing violence in Central America. She says it will send a “responsible message” that would deter Central American families from sending their children to the United States. -- Huffington  I agree. Sea World Camp, where the Clinton's sent Chelsea, would be a much better choice than camping at the border or U.S. Detention Centers.

• University of Texas system presidents will be able to order the admission of students who would not otherwise be admitted on “very rare” occasions, according to a new policy passed Thursday, the Austin American-Statesman reports. -- Chronicle of Higher Education   White affirmative action??? 
• Iowa radio host Jan Mickelson offers a plan to enslave undocumented immigrants of they remain in U.S. past deadline. -- Chris Hayes White slave owner fantasies.  

WEEKEND QUOTABLES 60 years after Brown

Grandparent Ollie Clements at Gresham sit-in

Donna Brazile 

"Sixty years later, 'separate and unequal' is still alive...privatizing our school systems results in increased segregation, not improved opportunities." -- CNN

Gary Younge

Racism is far more than old white men using the N-word -- The Guardian

Ollie Clements, a grandparent of a Gresham student

“Not just books and textbooks and other materials. We need teachers. Why can’t we have music? Why can’t we have art?” -- CBS Chicago

Michelle Obama

“Many districts in this country have actually pulled back on efforts to integrate their schools, and many communities have become less diverse, leading to schools that are less diverse." -- New York Times

Paul Tough

“Whether a student graduates or not seems to depend today almost entirely on just one factor — how much money his or her parents make.”  -- NYT: Class, Cost and College

Student tuition protests rock Europe

As parliament votes on higher tuition fees thousands of students, part of the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC), are marching in London and Edinburgh.The Guardian is providing live coverage here.

Teacher miseducation at ASU

Is McCain the new dean?

ASU is "reforming" its teacher education program by putting less emphasis on pedagogy and more on subject matter. Is John McCain the new dean of ASU's College of Ed, or what?

A new curriculum will be tougher and will consist of more content courses, especially in mathematics. Education students must specialize in a content area, even if they are teaching in elementary school. "We're talking about having a course in probability and statistics that elementary teachers will have to have because that's what they use in elementary school," [the real dean, Mari] Koerner said. "So you can't be a teacher if you're math-phobic." (Arizona Republic).

More elementary teachers with a background in statistics and little knowledge about child development and learning theory. Isn't that special?

Another indication of ASU going with the conservative flow in teacher ed is their $18 million contract to study and model Teach for America's approach. Sounds like a win-win for both.

I actually like the ideas of teachers having a specialty and of placing students in classrooms while they are doing course work. But are these something new at ASU? How sad.

Tweets Ken Libby: "I bet David Berliner has some choice words for these upcoming changes to ASU's teacher program." ASU Regents Professor of Education, Berliner is co-author of The Manufactured Crisis and one of the biggest critics of the neo-conservative/privatization trends in public ed reform.

Pedro Noguera to Duncan...

"Stop bashing ed schools!"

Secretary Duncan would be more likely to move the nation’s education agenda forward if he did less scolding and more encouraging. As the occupant of the most visible bully pulpit in the field, he might do this by offering and soliciting suggestions on ways to invigorate schools—not with more testing, but with creative approaches to instruction that foster critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity among students. ("The New War Against Ed Schools")

Quotables

What's it all about?

This is exactly what life is about. You get a paycheck every two weeks. We’re preparing children for life. —District of Columbia Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee (Mark Slouka in Harper's)

Look Ma, I'm a "school-based factor"

“We firmly believe that in order to have a good understanding of effective teaching we need multiple measures,” said Gates spokesman Christopher Williams, adding, “a teacher is the most important school-based factor in student achievement. We want research that helps the field better understand what makes a great teacher. What does great teaching look like and how do you measure it?” (L.A. Times)

Berkeley--It's not the drinking water

I mean, protests at Berkeley are necessary, not because the water produces radicalism or that there’s something, you know, that we just do at Berkeley; it’s the nature of the institution. In the ’60s it was necessary to protest UC Berkeley, because they were developing atomic weapons. And now it is necessary to protest at UC Berkeley because of what is being forced on us. (Michael Cohen, lecturer in American studies at UC Berkeley)