The Business councils in virtually every state are wielding power and
serving as brokers for the campaign that resulted in a federal law and
laws in California and many other states mandating direct instruction
phonics in reading instruction, and tightly controlled indoctrination of
teachers through loyalty oaths.
The Governor's Business Council in Texas has a man in the governor's
office- As does the business councils in California and Arizona. Big
business has found they can control without confrontation by using their
money and their political clout as major contributors to politicians war
chest. In California the Packard Foundation Has been giving millions to
school districts to adopt the Open Court and other commercial programs.
All this is a part of a campaign to privatize education, to marginalize
professional educators in colleges, state departments of educ. and in
the classroom. I've been accumulating a mountain of documentation of
this campaign including many articles and editorials in LA and San Diego
papers. one thing that makes this campaign successful is that left
intellectuals think schools aren't so good anyway- and see themselves as
involved when professional educators are attacked.
Ken Goodman
--
Kenneth S. Goodman, Professor, Language, Reading & Culture
504 College of Education, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
fax 520 7456895 phone 520 6217868
These are mean times- and in the mean time
We need to Learn to Live Under Water