APRIL 20 THRU 23, 2018


NEWS AND VIEWS


THE APPETIZERS:

https://www.mediamatters.org/research/2016/04/27/here-are-corporations-and-right-wing-funders-backing-education-reform-movement/210054

https://www.prwatch.org/news/2017/01/13207/betsy-devos-ethics-report-reveals-ties-student-debt-collection-firm

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rulesforengagement/2018/04/devos_critics_of_school_discipline_guidance_GAO_racial_disparities.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewjosuweit/2018/01/05/4-ways-betsy-devos-plans-to-make-it-harder-for-ripped-off-students-to-get-loan-forgiveness/#6ff9107c18a8



I GUESS IT’S ALL IN WHAT YOU CONSIDER TO BE “GREAT,” RIGHT? I WILL ECHO TRUMP’S FAVORITE TWEET. SO SAD! THE FAR-RIGHT MAY NOT “TAKE OVER THE GOVERNMENT WITH SOME OF THEIR “MILITIAS,” BUT THEY ARE DESTROYING WHAT AMERICA IS.

THE FOLLOWING STORY IS ONE RESULT THAT WE ARE HAVING OF THE RIGHTIST INFLUENCE IN EDUCATION. SOME PEOPLE ARE FEELING EMPOWERED TO DISCRIMINATE AND SHAME KIDS. THAT IS SICK. IF YOU WANT TO FIGHT SOMEONE, TAKE ON SOMEONE WHO IS YOUR EQUAL.

THIS RACIST-TAINTED STORY IS LINKED TO THE PEARSON COMPANY, WHO ARE CONNECTED WITH BETSY DEVOS, NOW TRUMP’S EDUCATION CZAR. HER GOAL IS TO PRIVATIZE THE EDUCATION SYSTEM SO THAT BILLIONAIRES CAN GRAB IT BY THE THROAT AND SQUEEZE TIGHTLY. IN OTHER WORDS, SHE WANTS MONEY FROM THE EDUCATION SYSTEM AND TO HAVE, LITERALLY, A MONOPOLY WHICH THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENTS CAN’T TOUCH.

WHAT THAT WILL MEAN TO POOR PEOPLE IS THAT THEY CAN’T AFFORD TUITION. THE SOLUTION TO THAT? STUDENT LOANS. INTERESTINGLY, SHE IS ALSO INVOLVED WITH THE STUDENT LOAN PLAN AND A BUSINESS TO ENFORCE PAYMENT. ANOTHER OF TODAY’S DEVOS STORIES STATES THAT SHE AND THE OTHER CORPORATE OWNERS OF EDUCATIONAL CENTERS WILL BE ABLE TO DISCRIMINATE. EXACTLY HOW WASN’T STATED, BUT SCHOOL GRADES IS PROBABLY ONE WAY, WHICH WILL QUICKLY GET TO THE MATTER OF RACE. THIS IS THE GIST OF THE FIRST NEWS STORY BELOW.

THIS IS THE THIRD TEACHER RACISM STORY I’VE HEARD IN THE LAST THREE YEARS OR SO. WE NEED TO SEE THAT PUBLIC SERVANTS ARE EDUCATED, INTELLIGENT, DECENT AND SANE. WE SLIPPED UP HERE AGAIN. ONE, HIRE CAREFULLY. TWO, CHECK REFERENCES. ONE STORY WAS ABOUT THE FACT THAT SCHOOLS TOO OFTEN DON’T CHECK REFERENCES AND DON’T WITHHOLD A GOOD REFERENCE FOR A TEACHER WHO DOES A VERY BAD THING TO A STUDENT. THE UNION MAY BE INVOLVED IN THAT, BUT PERHAPS IF SCHOOLS WERE HELD TO A MORE RESPONSIBLE STANDARD, WHICH WOULD WORK BETTER IF TEACHER PAY WERE HIGHER, WE WOULDN’T HAVE AS MANY OF THESE UNSAFE OR OTHERWISE DISTURBING STORIES. LIKE SO MANY OTHER THINGS IN THIS COUNTRY, TAKING CARE OF OUR CITIZENS’ HUMAN NEEDS FIRST WOULD REALLY HELP.

“THIS SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT ALSO CALLED ON THE CHARTER SCHOOL NETWORK TO REVIEW ITS HISTORY CURRICULUM.” THIS IS WHAT WE REALLY NEED – AN ALERT AND ACTIVE PUBLIC AND OFFICIALS WHO ARE READY AND WILLING TO INTERVENE. THE RIGHTIST END OF THE MIDDLE CLASS AND WORKING CLASS, AT LEAST SOME OF THOSE ON THE INTERNET, LIKE TO CALL PEOPLE “SJWS’”, OR “SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS.”

THAT MEANS THAT WE EXAMINE AND IF NEEDED, CHALLENGE EVALUATION FROM THE TOP DOWN ALONE, RATHER THAN FROM THE BOTTOM UP, PERHAPS; TOP DOWN WILL ONLY BE AS GOOD AS THE POLITICAL CRONYISM THAT IS DOMINATING THE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT; BUT WELL-SPOKEN PUBLIC COMMENTS WILL MAKE A CHANGE IN WHAT THE GOVERNMENT DOES -- OR DOESN’T DO. WHEN THE PUBLIC ARE AROUSED, THE GOVERNMENT WILL ACT SOONER THAN IF WE THE PEOPLE SIMPLY SIT ON THE COUCH AND WATCH THE TV, EAT A BAG OF POTATO CHIPS AND DRINK A BEER. IT WILL IN SOME CASES ACTIVATE THE POLITICAL LEADERS’ OWN CONSCIENCES, BUT EVEN IF NOT, IT WILL MAKE THEM AWARE THAT THEY MAY NOT BE IN OFFICE FOR AS LONG AS THEY HOPED. SO, STAND UP FOR THE GOOD RATHER THAN THE EVIL, FOLKS, STRONGLY, PUBLICLY AND FREQUENTLY!

I WANT TO SEE THAT BOOK, BECAUSE I DOUBT THAT IT TRULY TAUGHT THE JOYS OF SLAVERY; HOWEVER, DEMEANING BLACK PEOPLE AS BEING UNABLE TO DO ANY ADVANCED SCHOOLWORK OR LACKING THE PERSONAL RESOLVE, PROBABLY WAS MORE LIKE THE STATEMENT. AT LEAST WHEN YOU’RE A SLAVE, YOU’LL GET FED AND A PLACE TO SLEEP, RIGHT?

THE ARTICLE THAT STIMULATED ALL THIS PERSONAL AROUSAL ON MY PART IS BELOW. SEE WHAT YOU THINK OF THE ACTIONS OF THIS TEACHER. PERHAPS HE WAS “JUST PLAYING THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE?” THAT’S ANOTHER THING THAT PEOPLE SAY WHEN THEY HAVE JUST EVISCERATED SOMEONE VERBALLY. THE REAL GOAL IS NOT TO ADD MORE TO A DISCUSSION, BUT TO DELIVER A BIG PERSONAL LEVEL SMACK DOWN. PERSONALLY, I NEVER USE THAT PHRASE. IT’S JUST ANOTHER VERSION OF “I WAS JUST KIDDING.” REMEMBER THAT A JOKE IS NEVER VICIOUS.

SHOULD OUR NATION BE LED BY PEOPLE LIKE THIS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE KIDS ARE TOO YOUNG TO DEFEND THEMSELVES, OR TO SEE THE FALLACY IN THE BULLY’S STATEMENTS? ON THE QUESTION OF PRIVATIZING SCHOOLS VIA THE MEGA-CORPORATION PEARSON, AS IS HAPPENING NOW IN BRITAIN, SEE THIS HUFFINGTON POST ARTICLE. AS USUAL, IT’S VERY INTERESTING. AFTER THIS ARTICLE, GO TO: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/alan-singer/pearson-plan-for-education_b_4628520.html.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/san-antonio-texas-teacher-asks-8th-grade-students-to-list-positives-of-slavery/
CBS/AP April 21, 2018, 5:54 PM
Teacher asks 8th-grade students to list positives of slavery

SAN ANTONIO -- A San Antonio charter school has apologized after a teacher asked students in an eighth grade American history class to list the positive and negative aspects of slavery. The teacher at Great Hearts Monte Vista who distributed a worksheet titled "The Life of Slaves: A Balanced View" has been placed on leave.

Aaron Kindel, the superintendent of Great Hearts Texas, said in a statement the school would audit the textbook associated with the lesson.

"To be clear, there is no debate about slavery. It is immoral and a crime against humanity," Kindel said in a statement posted Thursday on the Great Hearts Facebook page. He said the school's headmaster plans to explain the mistake to the history class.

Scott Overland, a spokesman for Pearson, which published the textbook, said the company didn't create and doesn't endorse the worksheet assigned to the students, CBS affiliate KENS-TV reports.

"We do not support the point of view represented in the worksheet and strongly condemn the implication that there was any positive aspect to slavery," Overland said.

A parent of one of the students in the class posted the worksheet Wednesday on Facebook. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, drew attention to the issue on Thursday when the Democrat tweeted that the worksheet was "absolutely unacceptable."

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Joaquin Castro
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@JoaquinCastrotx
This is absolutely unacceptable. A @GreatHeartsTX CHARTER SCHOOL in San Antonio asked students to complete a “balanced view” assignment about slavery, requiring them to list the “positive aspects” of slave life. The teacher worked from a @pearson textbook.

1:02 PM - Apr 19, 2018
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"Asking students to complete such an assignment challenges the reality that slavery was utterly dehumanizing," Castro said in a statement. He also called on the charter school network to review its history curriculum.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

COMMENTS, BACKGROUND, AND LINKS

Joaquin Castro‏
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This is absolutely unacceptable. A @GreatHeartsTX charter school in San Antonio asked students to complete a “balanced view” assignment about slavery, requiring them to list the “positive aspects” of slave life. The teacher worked from a @pearson textbook.*



THIS ARTICLE IS NOT RECENT, BUT IT IS STILL TIMELY.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/alan-singer/pearson-plan-for-education_b_4628520.html
THE BLOG 01/21/2014 12:48 pm ET Updated Mar 23, 2014
Beware! Pearson’s Plan for Education Is Coming to a Country Near You
By Alan Singer

In the United States school districts are traditionally organized and funded locally. Parents, teachers, and school and district administrators usually only think about state and national issues when they feel pressed from above by state imposed budget cuts or federal demands for curriculum change and new assessments. Much of the opposition to Common Core and Race to the Top arose because parents, teachers, and administrators felt local prerogatives were being undermined by unwarranted pressure from above. But an examination of the Pearson publishing mega-giant’s plan to control public education in Great Britain makes clear, the greatest threat to local initiatives in public education may be from powerful global corporations. Beware! The Pearson Plan for education in the United Kingdom may be coming to a country near you — unless we can stop it now.

In March 2013, The Guardian, one of the leading British daily newspapers, published an opinion piece charging that “unelected oligarchs” and “private sponsors” were taking over the British school system. The academy schools discussed in this article sound very similar to the charter school movement in the United States.

“All over England, schools are being obliged to become academies: supposedly autonomous bodies which are often “sponsored” (the government’s euphemism for controlled) by foundations established by exceedingly rich men. The break-up of the education system in this country, like the dismantling of the National Health Service, reflects no widespread public demand. It is imposed, through threats, bribes and fake consultations, from on high.”

The “academy” alternative was supposed to be reserved for failing schools, but according to the article, the reality in Britain is much different. A Department of Education memo makes clear “it is our ambition that academy status should be the norm for all state schools.” Another memo recommended transferring academies out of the state-run school system into the private sector. To achieve these goals, “academy” sponsors appear to be targeting good schools with temporary problems that they can claim to have turned around.

For example, from 2007-2012 the Roke primary school in the community of Croydon in south London was rated “outstanding” by the British government’s quality control department known as OFSTED (Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills). However, after several senior staff retired and a computer failure caused a delay in reporting data to inspectors, the school received a “Notice to Improve.” Although the school subsequently met the required standards, it was notified by the British Department for Education that it would be turned into an academy.

In September 2012, the British Department for Education held a closed meeting with school administrators and reportedly told them that if they did not immediately accept the demand to become an “academy,” they would be fired by the local school authority. They threatened that if local school officials did not carry out the order, it would be replaced by an interim board of governors that would. They also warned school administrators not to inform parents about the meeting or the decision.

School administrators at Roke acquiesced and selected the local secondary school as its partner. However, on the last day of the fall term, the Department of Education rejected the plan and paired the school with the “Harris Foundation,” a group founded by the chairman of a large retail store chain with close ties to the ruling Conservative Party. When parents learned of these events they rebelled and unanimously voted to partner with the secondary school. But the community was overruled by the British schools minister, who happens to be a wealthy businessman, a major donor to the British Conservative Party, and a sponsor of the academies plan.

In many ways the strategy for promoting academies in Great Britain is similar to the strategy for promoting charter schools in the United States. Working class and poor families are told the academies are a solution to educational inequality. The academies are also exempt from following national curriculum and are not answerable to local governments. According to one British commentator who has carefully documented the history of the academies, “When threats don’t work, the department resorts to bribery. Schools receive up to an extra £65,000 or over $100,000 in state funds, if they become academies. As a result, the academies program exceeded its budget by £1 billion ($1.6 billion) from 2010 to 2012.

The Guardian is especially concerned about the influence of Pearson, the educational publishing giant, over the so-called educational reform movement in Great Britain. Pearson, originally based in Great Britain but with most of its current revenue from the United States, is at the center of the academy movement. In partnership with the Royal Society of Arts, Pearson funded a study the Guardian suspects will be used to demonstrate the success of the academies scheme.

In addition, Pearson, through its Edexcel subsidy, is the largest testing company in Great Britain with sales totally over £317 million in 2010. It also has a contract to grade achievement tests for English 11-year-olds. Not surprisingly, Pearson sponsored another study to show how the exam system promotes “high standards.” Other Pearson ventures designed to shape educational policy and maybe also boost Pearson corporate profits include “Pearson Think Tank,” funding Oxford University’s Centre for Educational Assessment, and the “Pearson school model.” The “Pearson school model” includes a computer-based curriculum that can be sold to schools, dubbed “the Always Learning Gateway.”

The “Pearson Think Tank” is an excellent example of the way Pearson’s not-for profit policy and research programs and its for-profit corporate activities intersect. According to its website, “Although the Pearson Think Tank is funded by Pearson, it is independent from its commercial activities. We are conscious of any conflicts of interest and operate accordingly, and final decisions about what and when we publish reside with us.” However, “Where possible we try to draw on Pearson’s networks, knowledge and expertise to gather new evidence about educational quality and access that is of interest to the wider sector.”

But the reality is that the Pearson Think Tank is actively promoting Pearson corporate interests. The think tank is working in partnership with the British Academies Commission to examine the implications of the “mass academisation,” or privatization, of Britain’s state run schools. Between May 2010 and November 2012 the number of academized schools increased from about 200 to almost 2,500. As with other Pearson supported “studies,” it somehow aligns with corporate goals. In this case its goal is “to develop a practical but compelling vision for the future of UK academisation” so that “young people experience the benefits of academisation.” The Commission’s report is titled, “Unleashing greatness: Getting the best from an academised system.”

The Pearson Think Tank has also conducted “research” to support the use of Pearson high-stakes tests in the United Kingdom; to promote the type of “enterprise and entrepreneurship education“ provided by the Pearson UK online university; and to support “Pearson’s Teacher Training and Certification Programme.”

In praise of Pearson for-profits high-stakes testing programs, the Pearson Think Tank quoted Michael Gove, Great Britain’s Conservative Party Education Secretary who defended the tests as “tools of social mobility” based on human nature because “humans are hard-wired to seek out challenges”; sources of “satisfaction and contentment” for students on “a job well done”; and the basis to “ensure that a solid base of learning is complete before progressing on to further learning.” The tests are great because they “drive creativity” and “signal that a person is ready to take on greater challenge and responsibility.” Unfortunately, there was no research cited to support these over-the-top claims.

The Guardian article quoted Stephen Ball, a professor of the sociology of education at London University’s Institute of Education and an expert on education business, on Pearson’s “educational” ventures. According to Ball:

“They want to offer products and services in all areas of school practice: assessment, pedagogy, curriculum and management, and they want to create the possibility for that through policy work. They want to have indirect influence in policy to create opportunities for business expansion. It’s a very well thought-out business strategy.”

As we know from recent revelations by the Attorney General of New York State, Pearson operates the same way in the United States blurring the lines between its not-for-profit Foundation and its for-profit company. As a penalty and to avoid prosecution the Pearson Foundation agreed to pay $7.5 million into a fund managed by the Attorney General to support education in high-needs schools. When I posted a Huffington Post “Pearson Caught Cheating, Says Sorry, But Will Pay” on the Pearson Foundation Facebook page, Foundation officials responded:

“Pearson and the Foundation maintain we have always acted with the best intentions and complied with the law. However, we recognize that there were times when the governance of the Foundation and its relationship with Pearson could have been clearer and more transparent. The Foundation has adopted a number of reforms to enhance operations and programs and further its charitable mission.”

In the United States, Pearson donates to the Center for American Progress, a think tank with close ties to the Obama White House. John Podesta, Founder and Chair of the Center for American Progress, was Chief of Staff in the Clinton White House and is an important advisor to President Obama. Reports issued by the Center for American Progress have advocated in favor of the national Common Core Standards, changes in teacher preparation programs including alternative certification routes, and the validity of high stakes student assessments, all areas where Pearson for-profit is marketing products and services. While the Center for American Progress is considered a “liberal” think tank, it has some curious conservative and business connections. For example, Ulrich Boser, a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress where he analyzes education issues also serves as research director of Leaders and Laggards, a joint project of the Center for American Progress, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute.

I do not think Pearson’s problems in New York State were related to unclarity at all. What is happening in Great Britain makes it perfectly clear, Pearson’s not for-profit activities serve the global profit making goals of the Pearson company. If parents, teachers and students do not organize to resist corporate incursions into American public education, the Pearson Plan for Education will be coming to a country, state, city, town, and school near you!

Follow Alan Singer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ReecesPieces8

Alan Singer
Social studies educator, Hofstra University, my opinions, of course, are my own



Pearson Education* - ePub & PDF eBooks
www.pearsoned.co.uk/bookshop/article.asp?item=1929

Buying an eBook. To buy from Pearson, find the relevant ePub eBook or PDF eBook format title you want to read on our website and complete the payment process. A download link for the eBook will be sent to your registered email address and can also be found within the order details in the MyAccount area of this website ... THE BLOG 09/02/2014 01:16 pm ET Updated Nov 02, 2014
Pearson: Inside the Belly of a Very Troubled Beast
By Alan Singer

“And the noise was in the beast’s belly like unto the questing of thirty couple hounds.” -Le Morte d’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory, Book 1, chapter XIX, c. 14769

Being trapped in the belly of the beast is scary. In the Old Testament, Jonah was trapped in the belly of a great fish. In modern urban slang, the “belly of the beast” means being incarcerated.

But beasts can also be vulnerable. Jonah escaped. In medieval lore, knights slayed dragons. In the folk tale, Jack defeated the giant. Harry Potter bested Voldemort. The sun never set on the British Empire, until it withered away. The Soviet Union suddenly collapsed. In the same way Pearson, the publishing mega-giant, is looking more and more like it is vulnerable and its time dominating education in the United States and around the world may be coming to an end. Beasts are scary, but they can be brought down.

In Los Angeles investigators from the school district’s inspector general’s office uncovered a questionable email exchange on May 22, 2012 between John Deasy, the Superintendent of Los Angeles schools, and Marjorie Scardino, who at the time was the CEO of Pearson. They also had a lunch meeting prior to the awarding of a contract to Apple and Pearson to provide Apple iPads with Pearson software to L.A. students. Deasy emailed Scartdino, “Looking forward to further work together for our youth in Los Angeles!” Scardino replied, “Dear John, It’s I who should thank you, really can’t wait to work with you.”

There were also email exchanges between Jaime Aquino, the head of instruction for the district and Pearson officials. After a series of newspaper exposes, L.A. schools Superintendent John Deasy suspended the contract which was potentially worth $1 billion.

Contacts between school officials, Apple, and Pearson may have been going on for nearly a year before bidding was opened. According to the Los Angeles Times, the entire process was “beset by inadequate planning, a lack of transparency and a flawed bidding process.” Ties between Deasy and Apple and previous ties between Aquino and a Pearson affiliate gave an appearance of impropriety, initial rules for securing the contract may have actually been written to favor Apple and Pearson, and rules were then changed after most competitors were eliminated. I will have details from these emails in my next blog.

In New York State, college faculty rallied on the steps of the state capitol in Albany demanding that the State Education Department “stop sabotaging student teachers” and cancel contracts with Pearson. Pearson designs, administers, and grades the state’s teacher certification exams including the video and portfolio assessment of student teachers. Karen Magee, President of New York State United Teachers, “shook a copy of the state’s contract with Pearson in the air before tearing out a page and running it through a paper shredder.” Magee and other speakers accused Pearson of being a “privateer” making a “buck off of students.” Weeks later the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) passed a resolution supporting the New York state college faculty seriously criticizing the edTPA teacher certification process administered by Pearson. According to the resolution, “The AFT believes that neither edTPA nor any other performance assessment should be tied to a high-stakes testing regime and the outsourcing of evaluation, especially to for-profit corporations such as Pearson, as it is not an appropriate assessment of teacher education programs and teacher performance.”

At Teachers College - Columbia in New York City, University President Susan Fuhrman, under pressure from faculty and students to resign as a member of the Pearson Board of Directors, left the Pearson board when her term expired in May 2014.

In Atlanta, Georgia, twelve former 12 former [sic] public school employees are facing trial for conspiring to alter and boost student standardized test scores. The conspiracy accusation is especially serious because it exposes the accused teachers and administrators to racketeering changers [sic – PROBABLY “CHARGES”] that bring sentences of up to twenty years in prison. In 2011, Georgia state investigators concluded that as many as 178 principals and teachers in the Atlanta school district had cheated on the tests. Dozens of district employees have already been fired, forced to resign or retired and twenty-one pleaded guilty to lesser crimes like obstruction of justice and making false statements while agreeing to cooperate with investigators in return for probation.

Pearson has not been implicated in the cheating scandal but it may have some economic vulnerability here. Pearson designs and administers a number of standardized tests in Georgia and ran school improvement programs in Atlanta schools during the years under investigation through its Achievement Solutions division. At least three of the schools where personnel are charged with cheating, Grove Park, East Lake, and Walter White, were named Pearson Achievement Solutions National Demonstration Schools for 2006-2007.

Pearson’s program in Atlanta was especially important to its marketing efforts because the 51,000 students in the Atlanta public schools are 92% Black and Latino and 70% received free or reduced price lunch, a designation for poverty. These are the groups that both the federal No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top programs are targeting for academic improvement. Essentially, Pearson argued that success in Atlanta with these student populations could be translated into success anywhere. Now it appears the success was based on cheating.

In addition to these problems, disgruntled Pearson employees are starting to lambast the company online at http://www.glassdoor.com, a website that posts company reviews. Many of their complaints stem from a restructuring Pearson starting in May 2013 to focus on digital services and emerging (Third Word) (sic)markets. The “restructuring” led to a steep decline in net profits in 2012.

A former educational specialist at Pearson based in Oregon wrote: “There are still a few decent, intelligent, caring people at Pearson. They’re just few and far between and too scared for their own jobs to call attention to themselves . . . Many, many good people left or were fired and in their place you have lots of managers and executives who have no idea what their jobs entail or what products Pearson sells. It would be comical if it weren’t so sad.” This employee recommended to anyone working at Pearson, “Don’t Let the Door Hit You on Your Way Out.”

A current employee who not surprisingly wanted to remain anonymous wrote: “Too many chiefs and not enough team work . . . No concern with Pearson employees anymore.” A former Senior Sales Representative who left the company wrote: “If you are too fond of your neck, don’t join Pearson.” Still another wrote: “It was a very, very toxic environment to work in. At Pearson, especially in the corporate office levels, there is rampant nepotism and fairly shady insider business dealings.” And a Vice-President from New Jersey wrote: “Let’s not kid ourselves - the Pearson play is about standardized testing at the global level, and that includes in Higher Ed as well as K-12/Schools. They also want to become the school itself in many parts of the world. So they are riding the wave of privatization, and following the money. But can they survive the negative press they increasingly generate? And their own incompetence?”

Katrina Bass, a long-time employee in the Pearson higher education division contacted me via email and gave me permission to use her name in this post. According to Bass, she was one of a number of over-40 employees eliminated in Pearson’s recent “restructuring.” Her story echoes the comments on the “glassdoor” website. Most of these employees had “delivered clean profits for Pearson for decades only to endure several years of harassment leading up to dismissal.”

Bass believes Pearson’s “current state of desperation transitioning to digital was partly a result of their failure to innovate early (especially between 2007- 2012) instead relying on unethical business practices.”

According to Bass, “management regularly dumped product into the wholesale channel at year-end which meant shipping new textbooks to wholesale distributors at grossly discounted rates who then resold them as ‘used’ textbooks. Although representatives were given an annual ‘adjustment’ for these sales, it undermined field sales efforts and in no way reflected the increasing hours of support needed to train faculty and students on emerging technology.”

In addition, Bass believes “managers who were highly skilled at negotiating obscene over-ordering at college bookstores were rewarded and promoted.” She claims that Pearson, one of the few (if not only) publishing companies that compensate its sales force on gross sales, “it allowed unethical managers to be rewarded for what was ultimately unprofitable activity. Many remained at the helm despite missing their sales targets for up to four years in a row.”

According to Bass, the “Pearson Solutions Division dedicated a large sales force to poaching existing Pearson business by either customizing a print or web-based product. Pearson awarded dual sales credit* when a Pearson Solutions representative built a custom web-portal to access Pearson content that was already in use and supported by a local sales representative. In many cases, media customization was a work-around to address a technological deficiency inherent in Pearson’s design. Adding to the confusion was the break-neck pace of acquisitions and the subsequent challenge of merging multiple platforms into student and faculty friendly interfaces.”

The Pearson Solution Division has grown rapidly and Bass claims it likes to boast that it is “building an airplane while it is in the air.” Bass feels that “Pearson is no longer a content provider.” Instead, it has become a “technology company that is heavily invested in data. It is disturbing to consider the amount of data they collect, own, interpret and disseminate that influence policies and practices in education.”

Since April 2014, when its price on the London Stock Exchange had dropped to 1008, down from a 2014 high of 1365, Pearson stock has bounced back and is now selling at 1128, which is still more than a 17% decline in value. On the New York Stock Exchange, Pearson is selling at $18.73, which is also down approximately 17% from its 52 week high of $22.40.

Pearson is trying to salvage the situation in the United States with new ventures in the “developing world.” Sir Michael Barber, who somehow combined being Great Britain’s Department for International Development’s special representative on education with his role as Pearson’s chief education advisor, is spear-heading Pearson efforts in India and Pakistan, a designated “growth” market. Pearson has also been working through an organization called the Global Partnership for Education that includes representatives on UNESCO, UNICEF and government ministers and has been able to get its head of international affairs appointed to the Board of Directors as the only representative of a private for-profit corporation.

Hopefully Third World governments in the “developing world” and international organizations will look at Pearson’s problems in the United States and rethink whether they want to be involved with this company.

Follow Alan Singer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ReecesPieces8

Alan Singer
Social studies educator, Hofstra University, my opinions, of course, are my own


“DUAL SALES CREDIT” *

I’VE NEVER SEEN THIS TERM BEFORE, SO I THOUGHT I WOULD SEE WHAT I CAN FIND ON GOOGLE. FROM THE DESCRIPTION, IT DOES SOUND A LITTLE TOO MUCH LIKE BERNIE MADOFF’S FAMOUS PONZI SCHEME, AND HE WENT TO PRISON FOR IT.

I WAS UNABLE TO FIND “DUAL SALES CREDIT” AT ALL, HOWEVER, THIS LOOKS SIMILAR TO ME ON THE SURFACE. MY ACCOUNTING SKILLS, HOWEVER, DO NOT ALLOW ME TO GO BEYOND THE SURFACE, SO I CAN’T VERIFY WHETHER PEARSON IS OR IS NOT DOING SOMETHING UNETHICAL HERE, BUT COULD THIS BE WHAT IS ALSO CALLED “COOKING THE BOOKS?” IF YOU LOVE THAT KIND OF SUBJECT MATTER, HAVE AT IT. ANOTHER THING I FOUND THAT MAY BE RELATED IS: http://www.compasscommercial.com/helpful-resources/faq-common-cre-questions/”what-is-dual-representation-and-is-it-legal.”



I WON’T GO INTO THIS STORY DEEPLY. GO TO THE YAHOO NEWS WEBSITE. I’M GETTING DISCOURAGED BY THIS KIND OF NEWS. IT’S ANOTHER MENTALLY DISTURBED INDIVIDUAL WHO DIDN’T HAVE A GUN, SO HE USED A VAN. THERE IS NOT A DARNED THING I CAN DO ABOUT THIS, SO I’M GOING TO MOVE ON. SORRY TO BE SUCH A BUMMER.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/toronto-fire-says-numerous-casualties-vehicle-hits-crowd-182502742.html?soc_trk=gcm&soc_src=69f70237-124f-3ea9-acd0-fc922af945e2&.tsrc=notification-brknews&guccounter=1
Nine dead, 16 injured after van hits pedestrians in Toronto
Jonathan Rumley Yahoo Canada News April 23, 2018



I WONDER WHO’S MAKING MONEY OFF THESE SICK FIGHTING VIDEOS. THE LAST TIME I SAW THIS, BOTH WERE GIRLS. “ARRESTED” IS A GOOD ENDING TO THIS STORY, IN MY VIEW. TREATING THIS KIND OF BEHAVIOR AS BEING NORMAL, EVEN FOR A TEENAGER, IS ONE REASON WHY WE STILL HAVE SO MUCH OF IT GOING ON. PLAYGROUND BULLIES WHO HIT, PUSH, OR OTHERWISE INTRUDE ON THE PEACEFUL LIFE OF OTHERS SHOULD BE PUNISHED WITHIN THE COURTS IF IT HAPPENS MORE THAN ONCE, RATHER THAN IN THE SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION SYSTEM. IF THEY WANT A JUVENILE DELINQUENCY REPUTATION ON THEIR NAME, GO AHEAD AND GIVE IT TO THEM. ASSAULT IS A CRIME, AND SHOULD BE PUNISHED ACCORDINGLY, ALSO I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO SEE REHABILITATIVE TREATMENT WITH AS THERAPIST IN THE PRISON. THE LIKELIHOOD THAT MENTAL HEALTH WILL BE REGAINED SPONTANEOUSLY IS NOT VERY LIKELY, I DON’T THINK. PRISONERS OF ANY AGE SHOULD COME OUT HEALTHIER THAN THEY WENT IN.

FOR ANY ADULT ASSOCIATED WITH THESE ACTIVITIES TO GET AWAY WITHOUT A JAIL SENTENCE IS, TO ME, DESPICABLE. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME I’VE HEARD OF A SCHOOL-BASED “FIGHT CLUB.” I WONDER HOW MANY TIMES THIS GOES ON WITHOUT THE PUBLIC KNOWING. I CAN DIG INTO “NORMAL” MENTAL ILLNESS WITH INTEREST, BUT SHEER CRUELTY SEEMS TO ME TO BE IN A CATEGORY WITH DEMONIC POSSESSION. I WISH I COULD SAY THAT I WANT TO “HELP” THOSE PEOPLE, BUT I DON’T. I JUST WANT THEM OFF THE STREETS AND OUT OF THE PUBLIC SPACE.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/school-administrators-arrested-in-student-fight-club-case/
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS/AP April 20, 2018, 12:06 PM
School administrators arrested in student "fight club" case

image -- Screengrab from a cell video showing students at Montville High School, who were allegedly encouraged to organize fights in the classroom WFSB

MONTVILLE, Conn. — A school superintendent, principal and assistant principal were arrested for not telling authorities about a student "fight club" at their Connecticut high school, state police said Thursday.

Several organized fights took place inside a math classroom at Montville High School during school hours with the encouragement of a substitute teacher, according to the police investigation. Many of the "slap boxing" fights were video recorded by students and shown to other students.

Video obtained by CBS affiliate WFSB shows two boys punching, hitting and slapping each other in a classroom. Someone in the background can be hear laughing, while another person appears to encourage the fight, yelling "Get him, get him, get him!"

The former substitute teacher, Ryan Fish, was arrested last week and charged with overseeing the "fight club." Fish, 23, has pleaded not guilty to charges including reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a minor. Fish was fired from the school in October, but police were not notified until two months later.

State police said Thursday that Montville Superintendent Brian Levesque, Montville High School Principal Jeffrey Theodoss and Assistant Principal Tatiana Patten are all charged with failing to report abuse.

ryan-fish.jpg
Ryan Fish is seen in photo provided by Connecticut State Police CONNECTICUT STATE POLICE / WFSB-TV

Levesque and Theodoss did not immediately return messages left at their homes. A working number for Patten could not immediately be located.

The three administrators have been placed on leave pending the outcome of the police investigation and an internal school probe, Assistant Superintendent Laurie Pallin said.

"The incident that occurred in a high school classroom was unacceptable but it is an exception to how Montville Public Schools operate — it does not illustrate the priority we place on student safety," Pallin said in a prepared statement.

The investigation began in December after a social worker said a 15-year-old student had appeared in court with signs of having been traumatized, according to a warrant. The teen said three other students had beaten him at school.

wfsb.jpg
From left, Superintendent Brian Levesque, assistant principal Tatiana Patten and principal Jeffrey Theodoss were arrested in for not reporting a fight club in Montville High School. CONNECTICUT STATE POLICE VIA WFSB

Patten told investigators in January that a guidance counselor told her on Oct. 6 that an anonymous parent reported a "slap boxing" incident with Fish's involvement but at the time there was no evidence that anything happened. Two days later, Theodoss sent her an email with a video. Patten said she received a text message from Theodoss instructing her not to say anything to anyone, according to a police warrant.

Theodoss said he informed Levesque of a video showing two boys fighting and asked whether police should be notified, and Levesque said "no," according to the warrant. In an interview with police, Levesque said he did not think about contacting police because he felt the issue was resolved after he fired Fish for failing to protect the safety of students and the students involved in the fight were disciplined.

"Levesque stated that he did not think it was criminal and thought it was a one time incident and thought that it was maybe a mistake," the officer wrote.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.



COMEY’S BOOK – SOUNDS LIKE A MUST READ. WATCH THIS INTERVIEW WITH THE BBC.

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BERNIE DOESN’T LET THE GRASS GROW UNDER HIS FEET, DOES HE? HE SEES A THREAT – CYBER ATTACKS – AND TAKES ACTION. I’M GLAD TO SEE THAT, BECAUSE SO MANY PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY ARE PASSIVE – MISTAKING THAT FOR GENTLENESS.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/04/bernie-sanders-is-quietly-building-a-digital-media-empire.html
April 22, 2018 9:05 pm
Bernie Sanders Is Quietly Building a Digital Media Empire
By Gabriel Debenedetti

Photograph -- Welcome to Bernie TV

For a brief moment in late October 2016, when Hillary Clinton was surfing on a six-point national lead over Donald Trump and James Comey had yet to dive-bomb the presidential race, the talk of the political class was a set of curious reports suggesting that after losing embarrassingly, Trump could soon pursue his own TV network. The chatter grew loud enough that, just two weeks before Election Day, the candidate had to start publicly fending off rumors about his aspirations of a media venture, for fear that his supporters would lose interest in him just as early voting was getting underway.

“No, I have no interest in Trump TV — I hear it all over the place, I hear it,” he announced to one Cincinnati radio host, clearly reveling in the speculation but straining to get the attention back to the election at hand. “I have a tremendous fan base, I mean, we have a tremendous base, we have the most incredible people. But I just don’t have any interest in that.”

Denials aside, it made some kind of sense. Here was a screw-the-system, longtime student and manipulator of the press who’d just upended one massive institution (a political party) turning his attention to another that he’d spent years rhetorically ripping to shreds (the mass media), just as everyone finally — after all these decades — knew, and would never forget, his name.

The calculation still works. But Donald Trump isn’t the 2016 candidate who’s got a mini-media empire with a dedicated following all figured out. It’s Bernie Sanders.



I’VE SUBSCRIBED TO THE SNOPES PAGE, AND THEY GIVE WHATEVER STORY IS CURRENT ON MANY SUBJECTS, THOUGH MOST ARE SHORT – IT’S AS GOOD AS FACEBOOK FOR THE PURPOSE OF POKING INTO OTHER PEOPLE’S LIVES, AND BESIDES, IT IS HOPEFULLY TRUE SINCE SNOPES IS MY FAVORITE FACT CHECKER ACCOUNT. IT’S REALLY INTERESTING, AND SO FAR, THEY HAVEN’T ASKED FOR MY SMALL STOCK OF MONEY. GOOD DEAL. IF YOU WANT SOME VARIETY IN YOUR INTERNET LIFE, TRY SNOPES.

I DID SEE THIS NEWS CLIP ON MELANIA TRUMP WHEN IT HAPPENED, AND WAS SHOCKED AT THE NAKED EMOTION ON HER FACE. I’LL BET LIVING WITH TRUMP IS PURE MISERY, UNLESS THE MAIN THING YOU WANT OUT OF LIFE IS FINANCIAL SECURITY. I WOULDN’T LIVE WITH SOMEBODY LIKE THAT MAN FOR ANY AMOUNT OF MONEY. OF COURSE, THEY WON’T TREAT A WOMAN THAT WAY UNTIL AFTER THEY’RE ALREADY MARRIED, AND MANY PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT NO MATTER WHAT THE SITUATION, THEY MUST STAY TOGETHER AFTER THAT.

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/melania-trump-relationship-tweet/
Fact Check Politics
Did Melania Trump ‘Like’ a Tweet Lampooning Her Relationship With President Trump?
The personal Twitter account for Melania Trump "liked" (then quickly "unliked") a post speculating about her relationship with her husband

CLAIM
Melania Trump "liked" a tweet that poked fun at her relationship with her husband, President Donald Trump.

RATING
TRUE
ORIGIN
On 2 May 2017, Twitter user Andy Ostroy posted a gif showing First Lady Melania Trump looking sad after smiling at her husband, President Donald Trump, alongside a message about their perceived icy relationship: ....



SOME PHOTOS ON THESE GRISLY CRIME STORIES LOOK ENTIRELY UNLIKE THE FACE OF A KILLER, BUT THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE CASES. THEY LOOK LIKE CRUEL THUGS, AND THEY APPARENTLY ARE. I ALWAYS WANT TO SEE THE FACE OF A CRIMINAL. WE SHOULD LEARN TO MAKE SURE WE EXAMINE THE EXPRESSION AROUND THE MOUTH AND EYES, THE SIDEWAYS COCKED HEAD, THE QUICK SLANTING GLANCE AT US AS WE MEET ON A DARK STREET. YOU MAY SAY THAT’S SILLY, BUT IF IT GIVES YOU A CHANCE TO GET AWAY SAFELY, IT’S A GOOD SKILL TO KNOW.

THEIR STATED GOALS IN THIS ARTICLE ARE OF A DIFFERENT SORT – “TO WAKE PEOPLE UP” SOUNDS HARMLESS, BUT TO SLAUGHTER EVERYONE IN THE MOSQUE IS MORE ALONG THE LINES OF THE TRUTH. I’M SO GLAD THE FBI WENT UNDERGROUND AND FOUND OUT THEIR PLOT. FBI GUYS ARE GOOD GUYS, NEARLY ALL OF THE TIME.

WITH HARDENED KILLERS, I THINK THAT THEIR RATIONALE OF WHY THEY’RE DOING IT IS SECONDARY MOST OF THE TIME. IT’S THE PURE PLEASURE OF KILLING THAT THEY WANT. THESE “MILITIAS” ARE SUPPOSEDLY SO “PATRIOTIC,” BUT THEY’RE JUST CRIMINALS WHO HAVEN’T BEEN TO PRISON YET. WELL, NOW THESE GUYS WILL GET THEIR CHANCE.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43818059
Kansas militia men guilty of plot to bomb Somalis' mosque
18 April 2018

MUG SHOTS -- (L-R) Curtis Allen, Gavin Wright and Patrick Stein were steeped in "a culture of hatred and violence", said prosecutors Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office

Three men have been found guilty of plotting to bomb Somali immigrants at a mosque and apartment complex in the US state of Kansas.

A federal jury in Wichita convicted Curtis Allen, 50, Gavin Wright, 49, and Patrick Eugene Stein, 49, who belonged to a militia called the Crusaders.

Armed with guns and explosives, the trio planned to strike a day after the November 2016 US elections.

But the Garden City plotters were infiltrated by an FBI informant.

Three accused of plot to bomb US mosque

The suspects, who planned to detonate four vehicles packed with explosives at the corners of the apartment complex, were arrested about a month before election day.

Following a four-week trial, the three were convicted on Wednesday of one count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction and one count of conspiracy against civil rights.

The defendants' legal team acknowledged their clients had referred to Muslim as "cockroaches", but argued their plot was all talk.

However, Assistant US Attorney Anthony Mattivi, for the prosecution, said in court on Tuesday: "Their ultimate goal was to wake people up and to slaughter every man, woman and child in the building."

Allen, Wright and Stein face life in prison when sentenced in June.