I remember how it was -- JR
Tuesday, November 09, 2021
Loudoun County's Equity Consultant Says Relationships, Not Learning, Should be the Focus of Public Schools
The co-founding partner of The Equity Collaborative, the consulting firm hired by Loudoun County Public Schools to promote equity and inclusion into its classrooms, said in a recent lecture that he believes learning should not be the highest priority for public schools because the internet does a better job of informing students of what they need to know.
"I think the thing that public education offers…because I certainly don’t think we offer learning… are relationships…What historically high schools were for was dissemination of information very quickly…Well actually the internet is better than the high school is…Truthfully, the teacher in relation to the dissemination of information is obsolete. But the teacher in relationship to relationship is the thing," Equity Collaborative leader Jamie Almanzán said in a video posted to Twitter Monday.
Almanzán emphasized the need for school faculty to "practice" changing the minds of students by speaking to adults, whose views are harder to change, so that they would be better prepared to influence children, who, as he points out, are more persuadable because of their ever-changing perspectives.
"To change adults…sometimes I wonder whether it’s even worth it," he said. "Sometimes you’re like ‘Just forget it.’ They should just get out of the way. Kids change must faster. Adults are in the way."
He also said that it is "easier" to have a productive dialogue about equity when discussing the idea of equity itself, rather than "addressing inequity," proposing a shift in language to come up with "the outcome we want to see and then addressing the inequities that prevent us from getting to that outcome."
"People are down for equity, people are not down for challenging inequity," he said.
According to the consultant report card from nonprofit Parents Defending Education, LCPS signed a contract in 2019 with The Equity Collaborative, which was paid more than $300,000 in taxpayer funds to implement critical race theory trainings into the school curriculum.
The contract included having three of the firm's consultants, who were paid $5,000 per day per consultant, present an eight-day "Systemic Equity Assessment" to county staff, students and community members.
It also had LCPS paying $32,000 to The Equity Collaborative for a "District Equity Plan" led by Almanzan and Graig Meyer. The firm would also receive $40,000 for two "Equity Driven Central Office Leadership" trainings a month over a five-month period in 2019.
That same year, the district gave another $22,000 for a four-day "Equity in the Center Co-Facilitation" that paid Almanzan $5,500 a day.
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Instead of “Retaking” K-12 Education, Let’s Remake It
It’s true, as the late, great Andrew Breitbart famously said, that “politics is downstream of culture.” But both are downstream of education. Nothing is more important to our families—or the future of our country.
In that regard, Republican Glen Younkin’s recent gubernatorial victory in Virginia, fueled in part by fed-up parents, was heartening. But does it signal that the tide has turned?
Not to downplay that happy outcome or the role brave parents played in it, but sadly, I think not. I still believe, as I wrote recently, that the “public” schools are lost to us. Which leaves parents to continue asking the same question they’ve been asking for nearly two years: “What can we do?”
There is no easy answer. Attempts to work within the system mostly aren’t succeeding, the occasional victory notwithstanding. School boards across the country grow increasingly more intransigent, digging in their heels and doubling down on mask mandates, Critical Race Theory, and LGBTQ+ propaganda.
No amount of pushback from parents, in the form of emails or newspaper editorials or impassioned speeches at board meetings, appears to have much effect. The education establishment is simply indifferent to parents’ concerns. They’re certain they know better, and that’s that.
Elections might make a temporary difference, but long-term, I believe conservative, Christian parents—indeed, all rational parents—must accept that “public schools” no longer serve the public. Instead, they have truly become “government schools,” promoting the ruling caste’s priorities over those of parents and students.
So what can families do?
Charter schools are a viable alternative, where they exist. But they are difficult to get off the ground, often facing stiff opposition from within. And because they are publicly funded, they must follow many of the same policies as other public institutions. Fundamentally, charter schools are still government schools.
Traditional private schools—long the refuge of dissatisfied parents—are beyond the means of most families, especially those with multiple children, even in states with some sort of voucher program. In addition, many private schools today suffer from the same ills that plague government schools. They, too, have become leftwing indoctrination centers and bastions of “safetyism.”
Homeschooling works well for many families but by no means all. When both parents must work full-time, teaching children at home is simply not feasible. Many parents also have legitimate concerns about homeschooled children missing out on important social opportunities and extracurricular activities. Variations on the concept, such as homeschool academies or co-ops, can help alleviate some of those problems, but again—not for everyone.
Classical academies, combining private education with homeschooling, offer some promise. However, they also combine the necessity of paying tuition with the requirement that at least one parent be home two or three days a week. Once again, not every family can do that.
I don’t mean to disparage any of these models. All have their advantages, and one of them might be the best fit for you and your family. But clearly, even taken together, they are insufficient to address the situation, because many parents who would like to get their kids out of the government schools still feel trapped there.
For those desperate parents, I would like to propose another alternative. I actually think it’s the best option, combining the strengths of all the others—including those good, strong public schools many of us grew up in.
My idea, which I first outlined a few months ago, involves churches—many of which have large, often under-utilized facilities—partnering with other community organizations to create non-government schools that offer a high-quality education and are open to all, regardless of beliefs or ability to pay. These schools will be built on three main pillars: affordability, excellence, and accessibility.
Affordability means the cost of attending will be subsidized as needed, financed by donations, fund-raisers, and capital campaigns. Tuition will be as low as possible to begin with so that vouchers (where they exist) will cover most of the cost for students who qualify.
But students who cannot afford to pay the balance—or who don’t qualify for vouchers and can’t afford full price—will not be turned away for that reason. The schools will make up the difference through need-based scholarships.
In terms of excellence, the schools will borrow heavily from the classical model, emphasizing academic skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics along with accurate history, foreign languages, and the arts.
Many have warned that the sticking point for churches may be accessibility, by which I mean no student will be turned away based on their beliefs. Students will not be required to sign a “statement of faith”—although there certainly could be a behavioral contract or “honor code.”
I understand that churches wish to evangelize. But consider this: When you invite a child into your building, whether they ever join your church or embrace your doctrine, you are performing a vital service to them and the entire community. Society benefits because that child attended your school—whether they’re Baptist, Methodist, Catholic, Latter-day Saint, Jewish, or Muslim.
To paraphrase the former Archbishop of Washington, John Cardinal Hickey, “We don’t teach children because THEY are Christians; we teach them because WE are.”
If this is a model you can get behind, I would love to hear from you at the email address or Twitter handle in my bio. All are welcome—the more support, the stronger the movement—but I am particularly interested in people who bring specific skills to the table: experienced teachers and administrators, lawyers, financial experts, fund-raisers, marketing and IT professionals. All will be needed to make this idea a reality.
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Tasmanian Education Department shielded paedophiles, disbelieved students, inquiry finds
The Tasmanian Education Department's predominant response to child sexual abuse complaints has for decades been to ignore students, shield abusers and protect itself from legal, financial and reputational risks, an inquiry has found.
The inquiry found "very recent" examples of student concerns and complaints that have been assumed to be untrue
The Tasmanian government has released the findings and recommendations from an independent inquiry into responses to child sexual abuse in government schools announced last August, prior to a commission of inquiry being established.
It was conducted by professors Stephen Smallbone and Tim McCormack, who made 21 recommendations, which the government has fully accepted.
The full report has not been made public due to legal impediments.
The professors said that across the 1970s, 80s and 90s, the department's primary responses to allegations "routinely involved deflecting or ignoring concerns and complaints, often by disbelieving or blaming students, and by shielding alleged or known sexual abusers."
"We have found it deeply disturbing that, as concerns, complaints and ineffectual responses literally piled up in DoE's records, serial abusers like Harington and LeClerc were not just allowed to keep teaching for decades, but that DoE leaders and others so wilfully disregarded the obvious risks and harms to students," the professors said.
Darrel George Harington, who was a teacher and sports coach at New Town High School, was found guilty of historical child sexual offences last year.
The department knowingly moved him between Hobart schools. The department also shifted paedophile teacher and former priest Anthony LeClerc between schools in the north-west.
"We cannot explain this by assuming that 'that's just the way things were back then', because the evidence in DoE's own records shows that DoE officials very often acted in ways that were completely at odds with community expectations at the time," the report's findings say.
'Recent' examples of students not being believed
They said while the culture and leadership of the Education Department have since changed for the better, there were residual cultural problems, and "very recent" examples where students' concerns and complaints had been assumed to be untrue.
The professors said they were unable to determine whether the incidence of sexual abuse in Tasmanian government schools had declined, increased or remained stable over the last five or six decades due to problems with record keeping.
They recommended the urgent implementation of a complete record of all sexual abuse concerns, including both substantiated and unsubstantiated incidents that could be regularly analysed to monitor patterns and trends.
The report recommends a range of new measures around safeguarding students, and that the University of Tasmania's education courses be updated to include content on understanding, preventing and responding to sexual abuse in schools.
'Uncertainty' over who should call police
The report found there was "significant uncertainty" amongst schools principals and student support staff about who should notify Tasmania Police about allegations, and in what circumstances.
Tasmania's Education Department has apologised to victims and survivors of abuse in schools, and said it was fully committed to making schools safe.
Education Minister Sarah Courtney said she shared the Department's deep sorrow and regret about the experiences of some Tasmanian students.
"The stories and experiences that have come to light are deeply concerning and confronting," she said.
"However, I'm also really pleased that we did commission this report, we did so that we can continue to progress positive steps forward to safeguard our children.
"We found there are a lot of matters raised that aren't acceptable.
"To those Tasmanians that contributed to this report, and others in the community that have been impacted by abuse within the Department of Education, I am deeply sorry."
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My other blogs: Main ones below
http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://australian-politics.blogspot.com/ (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)
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