I tried linking this from my phone but it didn't take. It's great to know that somebody else out there gets it, someone who isn't a Buffalo teacher. He is from South Buffalo though so I guess that gives him an edge... Click HERE to read Mike Blake's p.o.v. on the Chameleon's attempted Land Grab.
Mike/ Dave,
ReplyDeleteIt makes me happy to know that community members see through the "stuff" that the Charter School "salesmen" ( as in shady used car..)are splattering around trying to steal our public schools. Thanks for taking the time to tell them off, and inform others.
Waterfront opened in 1976 as one of the first Magnet Schools, a model in the country for school integration.The program was rooted in team teaching, with a hands on, child centered curriculum integrated with the arts. Teaching the whole child, with every adult responsible for every child definitely worked. As the years went on, the District eroded the magnet program and set the school up for failure. Most recently, the school has been overloaded with new to the country, refugee children with very little district support for those students. Yet, the tremendous effort on the part of the teachers, staff and the new administration has resulted in increased achievement in 4th grade. Tell Chameleon to get their sticky fingers out of the pie...let the staff continue on the new learning path...they deserve at least another year to show continued improvement. Don't stop the momentum that's building.
ReplyDeleteAn illustration of how "intelligent and savvy" our politicians are... (for voting to create this situaation...):
ReplyDeleteKids who don't speak English will take the exams in English. Kids who are retarded, learning disabled or dislexic will take the same exams as everyone else. Kids who are chronically absent or late to class,living in a shelter, or moving from school to school due to family or employment problems, will all have to take the exams. All of their scores will count against the schools and the teachers they are registered with, even if the students have been in the building only for a day or two.)
Their scores count against the schools that welcome them and the teachers who try to help them every day.
Enter then, the "Laws" that provide an entre' to the "reformers" with brochures and promises. How disgusting!
The "Chameleons" are rushing their application through before the end of July, for the "good of the children"...they can easily wait for a few months to give Dr. Brown a chance...but they have decided that she will be" too busy" to attend to the Waterfront/East High issues.
So, out of the "goodness of their hearts",they will take over and miraculously, the immigrant children will speak English, the special needs kids will flourish, the truant kids will come to class, the exam scores will improve tremendously, and poverty won't matter any more.
When none of those "pie in the sky "events occur, still, every one of their investors will make a lot of (taxpayer) money and that's what it's all about!
Shame on the lot of them,and their greedy cohorts and backers.