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Thursday, March 24, 2011

Arne Duncan and the Future of Public Education

Arne Duncan may have more myth in his resume than substance.

Why is the CEO of one of the worst performing educational systems in the nation now the Secretary of Education? Chicago Public Schools under Arne Duncan had graduation rates of 40%! Chicago politics are well know for political nepotism and less on true merit. Arne Duncan was at best a haphazard maverick of change, spending vast sums of money on what most would call educational gimmicks in the guise of best practice reform. Arne Duncan may have believed he was doing a great job but is not a teacher and has no experience teaching in an American classroom. Arne and the CPS spent millions and millions on the latest silver bullets, all offered up by eager entrepreneurs, publishers, and reformers as the next great educational panacea. Today, Chicago Public Schools are no better off after the eight years with Arne the Renaissance ed-reformer. Eight years later, Chicago is known for under-performing charter schools, low graduation rates, violence, military style public schools, people leaving the city in droves, and the closing of many neighborhood schools. Arne may have promised an educational renaissance but delivered no sustained results.
      What does this mean for the future of education in America?

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