It seems that in running schools like businesses, many corners have been cut. Recently we've heard of food providers who won City contracts. Perhaps they seemed like the best option, but in reality it seems they were cheating their workers.
Schools have also tried to scrimp and save on sanitation. Witness the bedlam created in Chicago. There have been similar stories about situations in L.A. juxtaposed against the iPad fiasco. Some NY City schools have seen years lean on sanitation, with garbage sitting for days in classrooms, emboldening even the most timid mice. I once knew a teacher who brought her own broom and disinfectants to teach. How much more highly effective could one hope to be?
If you've worked at a charter school, you may have seen your school operate more like a business than a public service. Your school may be a prep machine, get great publicity and shower millions on supporters in Albany while those students who can't cut it get short shrift and shown the door. Fired without even two-weeks notice! You may even find time to stage protests during normal school hours with those students who remain. It's cost-effective!
I'm pretty sure some business-minded individuals would cut corners, de-professionalizing teaching by creating a drive-through education in which "teachers" flip tests for minimum wage, no benefits, and the likes of Pearson rake in the big profits. Over one billion tests served, but is humanity well-served?
Posts
