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The Push for School Reorganization
April 19th, 2007

When somebody sits at the table with their daughter, about to send her off to their local public school, Representative Anthony Weiner said recently, they are not thinking about the nuances of the reorganization of the school system.

Maybe so but a lot of the activity in education circles this week has concerned reorganization, as the Department of Education has revealed more about its plans for grading students, principals and teachers; changing the school funding formula; eliminating the new educational regions; and creating support organizations for principals.

The additional information has not mollified some City Council members who, unhappy thought they might be, cannot do much about reorganization beyond complaining about it. According to the NYC Public School Parents blog, a resolution, authored by Councilmembers Robert Jackson and John Liu, outlining objections to the plan has been joined by a broad swath of the council. Individual members have weighed in with their own reservations.

Since mayoral control was instituted, Bloomberg and his education department have resisted most attempts by council, parents or just about anyone else (business groups and high priced consultants excepted) to influence school policy. But todays News thinks there might be a thaw. It reports the administration is trying to talk to the teachers union yes the same group he recently likened to his arch nemesis the NRA and parents to win support for the plan How much is the mayor willing to budge. Not much apparently. There were crumbs for everybody,” a person who attended one meeting told the paper.

By Gail Robinson on April 19, 2007, 3:13 pm
In category: Education, Gotham City
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5 Responses to “The Push for School Reorganization”

  1. Larry Littlefield Says:
    April 20th, 2007 at 6:59 am

    I think, at bottom, this is about the funding formula.

    Low pay for teachers has been offset by rich retirement, low expectations, and an expectation that as soon as you climb the learning curve and become competent you don’t have to teach poor kids anymore. And affluent parents, or at least some of them, have been given the best of what little is on offer.

    A funding formula that would inhibit a principal in a school with better off kids from extracting an experienced teacher from a school with poor kids every time there was a vacancy would upset that applecart.

    My view — those teaching tougher places and tougher grade should be paid more — so much more that as many want to stay as to leave. They deserve it. And having new teachers working their way up in all school, rather than just passing through the schools with the less well off, would not hurt the better off. It is constant turnover that is the killer.

    They can get rid of the whole rest of the reorg as far as I’m concerned. Just keep the better funding formula. It is exactly what the state has done to the City of New York as a whole in its funding formula — well the rest of the state has more staff and higher pay so they need more aid!

  2. Larry Littlefield Says:
    April 20th, 2007 at 7:07 am

    “Under the deal, a city plan to funnel more money to historically low-performing and underfunded schools would not factor in teachers’ salaries.”

    Per the Post. Well there you have it. Rookie teachers to poor neighborhoods. By year three, they leave — to a gifted program perhaps, or the suburbs otherwise.

    Presumably as part of the deal, the brief window we got as to how resources are actually allocated will be closed. And everyone will applaud. I’d feel better if they just would say what the de-facto policy was, so at least everyone would have to deal with it.

  3. Larry Littlefield Says:
    April 20th, 2007 at 7:09 am

    And, by the away, admit that it is the “liberal” solution, as liberalism is now defined. Like I say to “conservatives” like Joe Bruno complaining about the “welfare” people who don’t look like them and then taxing them and spending like crazy on his own, face up to what you are!

  4. Rocky Says:
    April 20th, 2007 at 3:46 pm

    Larry,

    I can’t tell what you are saying is the liberal solution or why you consider it liberal.

    Tom

  5. Larry Littlefield Says:
    April 23rd, 2007 at 6:56 am

    (I cant tell what you are saying is the liberal solution or why you consider it liberal.)

    It’s not liberal at all Tom, or at least not as I understand it. The problem is people who are opposing a distribution of resources based on need call themselves “liberal” put put interests before principles. As do most “conservatives” these days.

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