IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
News Coverage of School Board Rally to Save North High Tues Oct 12th
President of Chicago Teachers Union at Rally for Public Education in Chicago - Sept 21st, 2010
On Sept. 21, 2010 a spirited rally of some 500 teachers, community organizations and students was held in Daley Plaza, just across the street from Chicago's City Hall. The rally protested the ongoing plundering of public education being led by City Hall, CPS head Ron Huberman, and corporate Chicago which gives them their orders. "Our communities are not for sale," Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis told the crowd. "You cannot destroy communities one by one through neglect, through under-funding, under-resourcing and then punish those very communities and say 'you're not living up to standards'. No, you're [pointing to City Hall] not living up to standards!" Referring to the ongoing occupation by parents of a school in the Pilsen area of the city, President Lewis said: "We have parents right now at Whittier demanding a library for their kids. Across this city the Board of Education has said our students do not need libraries. They have said not only do we not need a library, we do not need librarians. How do you learn to read, how do you learn to read for pleasure without a library in your school? How do you learn to do research without a library in your school? They don't want our children to do research, they don't want our children to know what they are doing in the name of business." Length - 5:40. Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: mail@laborbeat.org, www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit Google Video, YouTube, or blip.tv and search "Labor Beat".
Real Reformers Please Stand up!
Awesome video of NY parents and teachers rapping for real public education reform against the corporate privatization agenda - The rap is based on one of Eminem's most famous songs
Trailer "The Inconvenient Truth Behind 'Waiting for Superman'"
"Global Wave of Action for Education"-Oct/Nov 2010
Democracy Now videos on education issues
Why Is Oil Giant BP Helping Develop California Schools’ Environmental Curriculum?
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Should an oil giant responsible for the worst spill in US history play a role in what public school children learn about the environment? Well, if you’re in California, there’s a good chance they will. BP has helped develop the new environmental curriculum for California’s public schools. The curriculum will be taught to over six million pupils in some 1,000 districts. BP employees were part of a state-appointed team that crafted the program’s "guiding principles.”
Educators Push Back Against Obama’s "Business Model" for School Reforms
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It’s back-to-school season. As millions of children around the country begin a new school year, the Obama administration is aggressively moving forward on a number of education initiatives, from expanding charter schools to implementing new national academic standards. We talk to Karen Lewis, the president of the Chicago Teachers Union, and Lois Weiner, a professor of education at New Jersey City University
Debate: Is DREAM Act a Solution for Millions of Undocumented Youth or a Funnel for Military Recruitment?
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The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act—DREAM—would allow undocumented young people a chance at citizenship provided they attend college for at least two years or enlist in the military. It’s been described as a dream come true for undocumented youth wanting a chance to stay in this country without the fear of deportation. But many antiwar activists warn that the bill will simply funnel more young people into the military. We host a debate between Camilo Mejía of Iraq Veterans Against the War and pro-DREAM activist Gaby Pacheco.
Obama Defends Sweeping Education Reforms in Face of Criticism from Minority and Teachers’ Groups
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President Obama took on critics of his administration’s sweeping education reform plan on Thursday in a nearly hour-long speech at the National Urban League’s 100th anniversary convention. His address came on the heels of news that New York public school students are not performing nearly as well as prior state tests had revealed. We speak with Diane Ravitch, the former Assistant Secretary of Education under George H.W. Bush, and Leonie Haimson, executive director of Class Size Matters.
Arizona Students Protest New Law Banning Ethnic Studies Classes
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Just three weeks after signing a highly controversial anti-immigrant bill that orders police officers to stop and interrogate anyone they suspect is an undocumented immigrant, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has signed a new law banning ethnic studies in Arizona public schools. The law could shut down a popular Mexican American studies program in the Tucson school district. It will also affect specialized courses in African American and Native American studies. In response, students have taken to the streets to voice their opposition to the bill. On Wednesday, fifteen people, most of them students, were arrested protesting the law at the state offices of education in Tucson.
