A fellow named Blaise Nutter wrote this glowing review of the Waiting for Superman propaganda/documentary/cartoon about education coming out in September.
In his review, Mr. Nutter writes:
Everyone agrees that the main problem with schools is bad teachers.
What is Nutter's evidence for this prognosis?
He saw the movie Waiting for Superman.
Uh, huh - that's it.
He is not an educator and has never taught anything anywhere near a public school. He has worked as an account executive and writer for HR Public Relations, a boutique PR firm specializing in the travel industry, however, so that surely gives him the expertise, knowledge, and experience to declare "Everyone agrees that the main problem with schools is bad teachers."
Perhaps by "everyone," Mr. Nutter means everyone HE KNOWS - as in, all the folks at the boutique PR firm specializing in the travel industry.
But if Mr. Nutter got out more, say to a few public schools other than the sexy charters like KIPP and Harlem Children's Zone schools journalists like Bob Herbert and David Brooks seem to visit over and over again before writing their "teachers unions are evil" columns, he would know that the issue is so much more complex than "Everyone agrees that the main problem with schools is bad teachers."
In fact, if "journalists" like the Herbert, Brooks and the rest of the Timesmen and and Timeswomen also got out a little more and actually reported on the consequences of the Obama/Gates/Broad/Bloomberg education reform movement they so often applaud, they would know it is wreaking more destruction than even NCLB did.
Diane Ravitch - an illustrious education expert with a lot more experience, knowledge and expertise in the field than all of those "journalists" and politicians and bloggers named above combined - says so right here.
Unfortunately, people seem to think watching an hour and a half piece of propaganda and/or cartoon about education gives them all the knowledge, expertise and experience they need to make huge policy decisions that will affect and harm millions of children and teachers.
I do look forward to the next Blaise Nutter post wherein Mr. Nutter watches a Roadrunner/Wile E. Coyote cartoon, declares himself an expert on roadside explosions caused by Acme products and says "Everybody agrees the main problem with highway accidents these days is the wide availability of Acme explosives."
