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Notes -
Here's the other side:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4z3bWxf2twThlc3xSmdTul?si=48EYBBJsTfuJklH8hRDw4A
I didn't listen to all of it but it seems to do a kind of Motte and Baily. Paraphrasing:
"People are always complaining about teachers and schools, nothing new under the sun." (geh, I wonder why?)
"The real problem is poverty."
"No-one is saying that children doesn't need phonics instruction"
"Whole Language is a philosophy, not a practice."
"Whole Language will not work if we don't address class size."
"If we put a good teacher with eighteen kids and give them time and space to do what they need to do, then all of these things will be successful."
"Sold a Story is angry that people making money while making money for this journalist."
"The market economy of the US depends on poverty to thrive, thus market forces will never overcome poverty."
"Social reform must precede or at least be concurrent to in-school reform, while both must seek equity, not accountability."
Anyway, thought it would be good to have some contrast. It's hard not to snark though. I can see how the argument that teachers should be autonomous and free from commercial influence from publishers, big standardized tests and political silver bullets can be convincing to some, but it's so far away from how I see the world. In my world, lack of competition or accountability will cause stagnation and rot, and idealism isn't enough to prevent this.
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