Featured Post

Fix, Don’t Discard MCAS/PARCC

This fall I had one on one conversations with many of our state's leaders and experts on the misplaced opposition to testing in gen...

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

inBloom/Gates/CommonCore Backlash

REGRET OVER INBLOOM BACKLASH?: Rep. Jared Polis has been watching the controversy over the history curriculum in Jefferson County, Colo. with interest — and wondering if its roots trace back to last year’s fracas over the $100 million inBloom student database. Here’s the connection: Activists across the political spectrum joined forces in Jefferson County to fight the Gates-backed database project. The district administration and local school board defended inBloom for months, as public anger intensified. Last fall, three conservative candidates for the school board rode that wave of anger into office, collecting votes not just from fellow Republicans but also from Democrats who appreciated their promises to take a fresh look at the inBloom partnership. The database was duly cancelled. The superintendent who had defended inBloom resigned. And the district was in the hands of a conservative majority that this fall pushed to revamp the history curriculum to play up the benefits of the free-enterprise system and minimize lessons on civil disobedience.

No comments:

Post a Comment