Parents for Public Schools (PPS) repeated

I put this up last week and am repeating it because some new visitors might not look at previous blogs. New PPS members are joining our newly formed LinkedIn/Google group and I want them to see this blog up front.

Years ago I met members of a school advocacy group and respected them as good, progressive advocates for public schools but I didn't really know their history. What I eventually learned deeply moved me. This organization is rooted in the courageous civil rights and social justice movement. In the sixties there was white flight to private schools to avoid the mixing of white with black students in the public schools. As schools were forced to integrate, a group of white families in Jackson, Mississippi decided to keep their children in the public schools and to support integrated public schools. And that's how Parents for Public Schools (PPS) was born.

I need to create some space after that last sentence. I need to reread it. Sometimes activist people of color, as I have been most of my adult life, tend to forget that there are strong and persistent allies, and we need to acknowledge, celebrate and support them. Our public schools were then, and continue to be, the one institution where democracy has a chance to be nurtured and developed. If we cull and separate the beautiful mix of students coming to our schools, we fertilize the seeds of elitism, classism and racism. Challenged as many of our public schools are, and tempting as other choices might be for some, we must create and support the public will to put the resources into our public school system to have world class classes and schools. We must have schools of excellence in every neighborhood, inner city and rural town rather than dangle a few choice exceptions to the many puzzled and beleaguered poor families...

My soap box is always close by.

Anyway, back to PPS: Parents for Public Schools continues to be a strong advocate for excellent public schools for all children. They just came out with a new website. Full disclosure: I'm on the national board and am one of the oldies in the banner picture. School children would look much better, certainly than this balding oldster, but I bow to the wisdom of the designers.

The PPS new web page says "You are plugging into an important resource for those who value public education and acknowledge its impact on the lives of children and our democracy."

I truly believe that organizations and networks such as these are extremely important and vital to the revitalization and salvation of our public schools. Families organizing, informing themselves and others, testifying, demanding and creating a public will for vibrant and excellent schools are the ones to keep the doors open. We educators are accused of having narrow, selfish goals and rarely show our numbers in the ballot box, and sometimes even vote against our own self interest!

If your community doesn't have a strong advocacy group for public schools, consider starting a Parents for Public Schools chapter.

Excellent Public Schools for ALL Children

Announcing the start-up of a new Google group that is also a LinkedIn connection:

Excellent Public Schools for ALL Children

The purpose of the site is to create a network of advocates for children to have the best possible neighborhood public schools - especially for families that are poor, of color, English learners and/or recent immigrants.

The welcome message at the site:

Bienvenidos and welcome. If you are here, it is because you have a magnificent vision about what our children deserve and are capable of. You believe and act upon the belief that all children merit the best possible schools.
We are advocates for our public schools as the sites where democracy has a chance to be nurtured and developed. If we cull and separate the beautiful mix of students coming to our schools, we fertilize the seeds of elitism, classism and racism. Challenged as many of our public schools are, and tempting as other choices might be for some, we must create and support the public will to put the resources into our public school system to have world class classes and schools. We must have schools of excellence in every neighborhood, inner city and rural town rather than dangle a few choice exceptions to the many puzzled and beleaguered poor families.

If you are interested in participating, let us know. Membership is carefully screened for anti-public school fleas.

The google site address is:http://groups.google.com/group/excellent-public-schools-for-all-children?hl=en
My gmail address: aureliom08@gmail.com
Send me a note if you are interested, and especially if you are already an activist/advocate.

Welcome, again, 3rd time

Since I'm at 500+ on linked in, I'm going to welcome new people for the third time. I'm new to all this so it'll take a while to get it all functioning. The google dialogue is picking up and more people are giving opinions.

This blog, my maiden voyage into a public journal is an invitation to an online dialogue with others interested in supporting the educational leadership of all families, especially those that are blue-collar, poor, minority, or speak a language other than English. One key premise for me: public schools must flourish. I do not wish to debate that. I champion excellent public schools for all children and equitable resources for public schools; I expect excellent teachers and curriculum for all students.
I'm especially concerned about the schools where economically disadvantaged students predominate (Title 1 schools) and need support for all students to succeed academically. I envision schools where students are prepared for access and success in higher education. I also see it necessary to encourage parent leadership to collaborate with schools and accelerate the movement toward schools work for all children.

Public schools are the first and last venue to keep democracy alive and vibrant and to make the American dream real for families who expect education to provide a future for their children that is better than what they (the parents) have had.

My organization, the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA) has advocated for excellent public schools for all children for over 35 years. I am the lead (point person) for parent involvement within my organization. I have been working with schools and organizations on these issues, and have written articles, recorded podcasts and continue to train, speak and advocate for parent leadership in education. I am currently on the National PTA board and also on the national board of Parents for Public Schools (PPS).


I'll be posting specific ideas, concerns and questions.

Parents for Public Schools

Years ago I met members of a school advocacy group and respected them as good, progressive advocates for public schools but I didn't really know their history. What I eventually learned deeply moved me. This organization is rooted in the courageous civil rights and social justice movement. In the sixties there was white flight to private schools to avoid the mixing of white with black students in the public schools. As schools were forced to integrate, a group of white families in Jackson, Mississippi decided to keep their children in the public schools and to support integrated public schools. And that's how Parents for Public Schools (PPS) was born.

I need to create some space after that last sentence. I need to reread it. Sometimes activist people of color, as I have been most of my adult life, tend to forget that there are strong and persistent allies, and we need to acknowledge, celebrate and support them. Our public schools were then, and continue to be, the one institution where democracy has a chance to be nurtured and developed. If we cull and separate the beautiful mix of students coming to our schools, we fertilize the seeds of elitism, classism and racism. Challenged as many of our public schools are, and tempting as other choices might be for some, we must create and support the public will to put the resources into our public school system to have world class classes and schools. We must have schools of excellence in every neighborhood, inner city and rural town rather than dangle a few choice exceptions to the many puzzled and beleaguered poor families...

My soap box is always close by.

Anyway, back to PPS: Parents for Public Schools continues to be a strong advocate for excellent public schools for all children. They just came out with a new website. Full disclosure: I'm on the national board and am one of the oldies in the banner picture. School children would look much better, certainly than this balding oldster, but I bow to the wisdom of the designers.

The PPS new web page says "You are plugging into an important resource for those who value public education and acknowledge its impact on the lives of children and our democracy."

I truly believe that organizations and networks such as these are extremely important and vital to the revitalization and salvation of our public schools. Families organizing, informing themselves and others, testifying, demanding and creating a public will for vibrant and excellent schools are the ones to keep the doors open. We educators are accused of having narrow, selfish goals and rarely show our numbers in the ballot box, and sometimes even vote against our own self interest!

If your community doesn't have a strong advocacy group for public schools, consider starting a Parents for Public Schools chapter.

Learning First Alliance

Learning First Alliance is an interesting network that has a brief online e-newsletter. It's most recent one is Rallying Communities Around Academic Success. You can contact Claus von Zastrow to sign on.

Example of a section:

Visionaries By Claus von Zastrow on August 1, 2008
Since Public School Insights first appeared a few months ago, we've been privileged to interview many inspiring people--leading authors, educators, and advocates--about what it takes to ensure all children the opportunity to succeed in the 21st century.

Now you can browse all of our interviews--25 and counting--on our new "Visionaries" page. Among the people we've interviewed:
Best-selling writers Dave Eggers, Richard Louv, Jon Scieszka, and Dan Pink;
Leading researchers Helen Ladd, James Heckman, Don Deshler and Pedro Noguera;
Celebrated advocates Will Steger, Richard Simmons and Hugh Price; and
A host of outstanding educators. Be sure to take a look.

Podcasts

Check out IDRA's
Classnotes Podcasts, especially those wonderful, witty and pithy ones taped by Aurelio M. Montemayor.

One that we did some months ago is Student and Parent Math Conversations

Parent Teacher Student Dialogs

Below is a condensed version of the opening of a recent article:

A Snapshot of a Dialog --

The Setting: High School Library. Students, parents and teachers grouped around a table at an evening school meeting are asked to answer a question as part of their introductions. The questions, in English and Spanish, are to be answered by each in turn as the group self monitors the conversation allowing everyone to share during the allotted time. The opening questions are:
Student: What is a talent or skill you have (something you are good at doing) that most students and teachers are not aware of?
Parent: What is something you have done as a parent in rearing your child that you are proud of or that you think you have done well?
Teacher: What is something you have done as a teacher that you are proud of or that you think you have done well?
After three rounds of questions, each group has a parent-student pair report to the group at large. Because some of the parents do not speak English and some of the teachers do not speak Spanish, students and bilingual adults translate back and forth ensuring everyone understands.
Results: Witness dialogs among parents, teachers and students as authentic consultation in the spirit of school accountability. Parent-student-teacher dialogs like this can provide an accountability forum for a high school campus that has not been making adequate yearly progress. The catalyst is the campus report that highlights the student scores. The goal is to create a greater consciousness among all with important implications for everyone.
In these conversations, the students report on their classroom experiences, whether succeeding or not, in the targeted subjects. The parents discuss their role and challenges while seeking advice on how to support their children. The teachers give insight into how their job feels and how they are attempting to teach under the current pressures and focus.
No one is blamed or attacked. No quick answers are sought, nor is anyone expected to defend their position. It is an organized conversation where each can hear the other out. The meeting is the confluence of three important goals: effective outreach, new parent leadership and participatory meetings.

In writing the article I did a quick search for the most recent work of the Study Circles, a movement that has great potential. Their website is now http://www.everyday-democracy.org/). I found a fascinating video clip on their work in one community. You can see the Many Voices, One Community video (Lynchburg, Va.) at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ahndJnsfHg

Student voices must be part of the conversation, especially with the revisiting of No Child Left Behind and the re-authorization of Title 1 regulations. The students, across the spectrum of grades, participation and school success, must be listened to carefully. They are the ones on whom policy and practice is carried out in our schools. Harried and stressed as teachers are, they at least already have a degree and a profession. Not so for the students, and for those to whom the rules and regulations have been most punitive, there is little hope of completing high school and much less of getting a college degree.