David, I personally do not support the notion of public schools as having
"homogenizing function of knitting together the diverse constituencies of
the nation" (thanks for such precise wording, although!). Actually, it is a
good question, whether mass "public" schools in US and in many other
countries can be called public. Coming to the US from the Soviet Union, I
was very surprised to find public schools so similar to Soviet schools.
Mass school may the only institution that is so similar in capitalist and
totalitarist countries.
I wonder whether protectors of public education really (but maybe
unintentionally) protect the totalitarian education.
There is also an old Soviet joke about Soviet official mentality about
equality, "If we can't make everybody equally happy, let's make everybody
equally miserable." I think Matvey's point can be about increasing islands
of better practices and institutions rather than to support a totalitarist
system of educational "equality" (or better to say misery for many kids,
colonization by white middle class ideology, and reproduction of economic
conditions in the society). In other words, rather than blaming for and
preventing people from escaping from sinking Titanic of "public" education
let's help to escape as many people as possible by diverse means (including
vouchers, charter schools, and so on).
What do you think?
Eugene
----------------------
Eugene Matusov
School of Education
University of Delaware
Newark, DE 19716
Office (302) 831-1266
Fax (302) 831-4445
email ematusov who-is-at udel.edu
Website http://ematusov.eds.udel.edu/
-------------------------
> -----Original Message-----
> From: dkirsh who-is-at lsu.edu [mailto:dkirsh@lsu.edu]
> Sent: Thursday, May 13, 1999 4:08 PM
> To: xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu
> Subject: Re: Campaign Against Public Schools
>
>
> Matvey,
> I appreciate your situation.
> There seems to be several interrelated issues.
> On the one hand we could allow those folks who
> have the time and inclination to care about such
> issues to pull their financial resources out of public
> schools, leaving the public schools for those who
> don't have the time or inclination to pursue alternatives.
> This possibility subverts the (perhaps paternalistic)
> ideal of public schools as saving the "disadvantaged"
> children from their circumstances.
> On the other hand we could simply do away with
> public schooling altogether. This possibility
> subverts the ideal of public schooling as providing a
> homogenizing function of knitting together the
> diverse constituencies of the nation, leading
> perhaps to a more fragmented national landscape.
> I think it is these sorts of ideals that underlie the
> anxieties of those, like myself, who oppose vouchers.
> David Kirshner
> Louisiana State University
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Matvey Sokolovsky <sokolovs who-is-at uconnvm.uconn.edu> on 05/13/99 01:09:39 PM
>
> Please respond to xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu
>
>
>
> To: xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu
>
> cc: (bcc: David H Kirshner/dkirsh/LSU)
>
>
>
> Subject: Re: Campaign Against Public Schools
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Hi everyone:
>
> i'm a parent and i send my kids to a montesori school. though i'm
> not a fan
> of htat method, i do like hte school because it, for instance, creates an
> opportunity for my son, who is good in maths, go ahead in his studies. my
> local public school, considered to be one of hte best in hte nation, told
> that no adjustments are possible before the 5th grade.
> unfortunately for my
> son, who is in hte 1st grade, he has practically covered all the
> curriculum
> till grade 5. short but typical story, i believe.
>
> i pay 1/3 of our income for tuition. and i also pay taxes that
> are supposed
> to cover my children's education. i believe that those parent who want to
> send their kids to private schools have a right to do this, regardless of
> the so called quality of eduation. i have an idea how to choose
> cshools but
> i also know htat other parents value differnt things.
>
> Bottom line, i am for vouchers
>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >[From People For the American Way Foundation, Washington, D.C.,
> >Special Issue, April 21, 1999]
> >****************************************************************
> >
> >New Report Details Links Between Charity and Vested Interests in
> >Campaign Against Public Schools
> >
> >People For the American Way Foundation today released a report that
> >gives the most detailed look to date into the organizations, leaders
> >and strategies behind the nationwide push for school privatization,
> >a campaign at odds with efforts to strengthen education for all our
> >nation's children.
> >
> >The report, "Privatization of Public Education: A Joint Venture of
> >Charity and Power," exposes the interlocking goals, leadership and
> >strategies of allied organizations such as the Children's Scholarship
> >Fund (CSF), CEO America and a network of statewide and local groups,
> >including shared CEO/CSF affiliates, to turn public education money
> >over to private schools and entrepreneurs. These organizations'
> >efforts to remove children from the public schools dovetail with a
> >goal long espoused by Religious Right leaders such as Pat Robertson,
> >Gary Bauer and Jerry Falwell - to eliminate public schools entirely.
> >
> >This report, on the eve of CSF's highly publicized "lottery" to pick
> >the "winners" of 40,000 $600 to $1,600 scholarships, shows how this
> >alliance uses charity to promote privatization through publicly funded
> >vouchers that strip needed resources and support from the public
> >schools and funnel vast amounts of money to private institutions,
> >including pervasively sectarian ones.
> >
> >A white paper also issued today, "Grand Illusions: A Look at Who Backs
> >School Vouchers, Who Profits - and Vouchers' Dismal Performance to
> >Date," documents the poor performance and damaging impact of the
> >nation's two current private school voucher experiments in Milwaukee
> >and Cleveland. It provides a review of current research showing that
> >educational quality has made no appreciable gains and, in some cases,
> >has actually declined for students participating in these voucher
> >programs.
> >
> >The reports noted below are available at:
> >
> > http://www.pfaw.org/issues/education/CSF-report.shtml
> >
> > *Privatization of Public Education: A Joint Venture of Charity and
> > Power
> >
> > *Grand Illusions: A Look at Who Backs School Vouchers, Who Profits -
> > and Vouchers' Dismal Performance to Date
> >
> > *The Children's Scholarship Fund's Target Markets
> >
> > *The Best Way to Help Children: Corporate and Private Philanthropy
> > to Support Public Schools
> >
> >******************************************************
> >
> >*
> >Jerry P. Becker
> >Dept. of Curriculum & Instruction
> >Southern Illinois University
> >Carbondale, IL 62901-4610 USA
> >Fax: (618)453-4244
> >Phone: (618)453-4241 (office)
> >E-mail: jbecker who-is-at siu.edu
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
> Matvey Sokolovsky
>
>
>