Callousness of the Obama Administration and Mal-Practice of Secretary Arne Duncan

I don’t really have a “I-Told-You-So” personality, but after reading about the backlash President Obama and secretary Arne Duncan are experiencing after their callous remarks regarding the teachers who were fired at Central Falls High, I just can’t help myself. I TOLD YOU SO! If they were somehow able to dig into the pile of email they receive, they would find an email from me just two days ago pointing out how hurtful and callous their statements are to teachers and educators. There is just no logic to heaping all of the blame for a school’s failure on just the teachers. If we really want to spread blame and “hold people accountable” as Obama keeps saying. (I wonder if he realizes he sounds just like President Bush when he says that?) But in all honesty, if we want to begin the process of holding people accountable for the failure of a school let’s make a list. Who else will we fire because they are not doing their part to make a child’s education successful? The list is endless, and in all honesty, the blame game is a time-waster and unfruitful exercise.

I am thrilled that teachers are letting the Obama administration know that they do not appreciate his using them as a scapegoat for all that ails in education. They need to be even more vocal by writing emails, sending letters, and speaking out. All educators have a stake in this debate, whether they are teachers, administrators, or central office personnel. The Obama administration’s education policy under Race to the Top and his stated efforts to address the drop out rate stand to do even greater damage to the education system.

We educators need to continue fighting this administration’s education policy. We need to push the Obama administration to get rid of Arne Duncan, whose sledge-hammer tactics is going to destroy public education in this country.