by David Safier It's true, we're graduating a sizable number of high school students whose academic skills are low. It's also true, a sizable number of students have lousy attitudes toward school. But here's something most people forget, or don't know: Those low skilled, bad attitude kids would have dropped out if they had been … Read more
by David Safier Ed Supe John Huppenthal has pushed back the date he plans to rule on whether MAS violates the law. It was expected before the end of May. Now it sounds like it will come next Friday, at the earliest. There are a bunch of possible explanations for the delay. Since none are … Read more
by David Safier
According to a Media Release from Save Ethnic Studies,
On May 25, attorney Richard M. Martinez filed a motion for summary judgment in the case against HB 2281. The motion, filed on behalf of the 13 litigants in the case (11 TUSD Mexican American Studies instructors and two TUSD students), makes the case that the prohibitions outlined in HB 2281 are too vague and broad and violate the first amendment rights of teachers, schools and students. Since every provision of the law violates the constitution, the motion calls for the law to be overturned in its entirety.
You can read the whole MSJ here. I don't have the legal chops or the patience to wade through it myself. The Media Release does a good job of summarizing the points, which deal with the provisions of HB2281 and show how they can't be used against the MAS program exclusively. They are so broad, they would apply to many classrooms and seriously restrict the course content, discussion and even freedom of speech. An example:
In part b (promotes resentment toward a race or class of people), the motion uses the example of a possible discussion of jihad and the attacks of September 11. Could this promote bitterness toward Muslims and therefore make the topic off limits for discussion? For that matter, might a discussion of the Apache raids in Arizona promote resentment toward Apaches?
You can read the whole Media Release after the jump.
by David Safier I'm not going to try and guess the motivations behind TUSD Board President Mark Stegeman's op ed in today's Star. But the sad fact is, the piece does nothing to further the Ethnic Studies discussion and is likely to lead to more, not less, distrust between the people involved in the local … Read more
by David Safier For-profit colleges are scamming their students and the federal government. They charge too much, teach too little and saddle their students with loan payments out of proportion with the salaries graduates earn in the jobs the colleges pretend to prepare them for. When the ex-students can't pay, the feds pick up the … Read more