Why us? Why attack education? Why hurt kids and deprive them of the tools they need to be productive citizens? Why attack educators and those who work to make America better? Why work to destroy a profession? Why split and destroy communities? Why hurt families? Why support corporations that force testing and curricula on states – for profit, not for kids? Due to our lack…
Author. Educator. Father. World Traveler. EdwardFBerger.com is where I share my insights into the world of education.
The second edition of Vital Lies will be available soon as a free download!
The powerful education reform movement is well underway. Taxpayers must be pleased with the progress so far. Legislators have turned the distribution of public tax dollars collected for public schools over to irresponsible hedge fund billionaires, profit-driven companies like Pearson PLC, foundations run by proven ‘winners’ like Eli Broad, Billy Gates, and the Waltons, and compromised public servants placed in the USDOE and the Departments…
Let’s agree to use simple terms to describe complex matters. Think of a sieve used for separating coarse, from fine parts of matter. Now imagine people who believe that running students through a sieve built of data will allow them to correct or remove unacceptable thinking – like getting rid of individuality, and those who think in ways that are not acceptable to those who…
According to researchers at the Harvard University, Edmond J. Safra Center For Ethics, I live in a State that is home to the most political corruption in America. I am 75-years old and have been an educator all my life. I have taught, mentored, pioneered, and researched. I am a leader in experiential education. I have been involved in Arizona education since 1991. What have…
The Obama administration, and especially Arne Duncan, dealt a blow to educators, parents and educated citizens when they sided with corporations like Pearson, and those who believe a punishing blow to teachers and public community schools will improve American education. The USDOE is now an agency without credibility, driven by ideologies that are not based in reality. For example, pushing the false belief that bad…
There are questions we don’t ask because…? Maybe we never thought about the possibilities and couldn’t form the question. Or, maybe we thought about the possibilities and decided that what we imagined couldn’t happen – even if the changes wrought would make a significant contribution. This is a true story, my story as a young educator who explored that space between Thinking About The Possibilities,…
The attempted destruction of America’s great education system was aided by the NEA and AFT. Teachers had many forces working against them. The failure of the organizations (unions/associations) that were created to represent teachers were a major reason self-appointed billionaires like Bill and Melinda Gates, Eli Broad, creeps working for GW Bush, and… were allowed to take over the USDOE and many state DOEs, and…
A cultural lag. For many years education leaders have been pointing out the flaws in this top-down, mean-spirited, child and teacher damaging, ideological, and harmful nonsense laid on our schools. The USDOE has given access to the top levels of our education leadership and policy making to people who have never been vetted or elected, have no experience, no certification, nothing but massive amounts of…
Log from the Sea of Cortez May 6th 2014 I’ve never seen a rock snake before. There is one crawling out to sea just south of where we’re camped. It grows when they feed it. Truck after truck of big rocks seem to please it. When it gets long enough they plan to kill it – right there in place. They’ll use its length to…
Organizing Communities To Save Good Schools by EdwardBerger on May 16, 2013 Destroy the good to reform the weak? What can communities that have good schools do to stop the destruction of their schools and the weakening of their societies? Is the movement to reform education driven by educators working for children, or forces determined to destroy the American Dream and establish a new type…