With the effects of House Bill 17 from the surreptitious special session of December in 2016, Mark Johnson became the most enabled incoming state superintendent in state history. He would have powers that even his predecessor did not possess one-tenth the magnitude of. And considering that he ran against her adherence to the “status-quo”, that’s … Continue reading HB17: The Power Grab for Mark Johnson From That Special Session in December of 2016 – Reason #24 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

From WRAL on January 27, 2018: Johnson has said he prefers to work behind the scenes, speaking with lawmakers privately rather than sharing his thoughts on policy in public settings. But on Thursday, he shared his thoughts on teacher pay while speaking at a conference hosted by the North Carolina School Boards Association in Raleigh (http://www.wral.com/breaking-tradition-ncae-won-t-invite-superintendent-to-convention-due-to-teacher-pay-comments-other-reasons/17293180/).  From Dr. … Continue reading When the Leader of the Public Schools Refuses to be Part of the Public – Reason #23 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

One of the more common arguments reformers and critics of public education offer is that schools would function better if they operated more like a business, especially when it comes to fiscal policies and employee retention. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every one of the assertions about adopting a business model in public … Continue reading The “Business Model” Reform Never Works For Public Schools – Reason #22 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

11. Attacks on North Carolina Governor’s School - https://caffeinatedrage.com/2018/05/02/attacks-on-north-carolina-governors-school-reason-11-to-march-for-students-rally-for-respect-on-may-16th/ 12. North Carolina Should Not Allow the ACT to Have This Much Power Over Our Schools - https://caffeinatedrage.com/2018/05/02/north-carolina-should-not-allow-the-act-to-have-this-much-power-over-our-schools-reason-12-to-march-for-students-rally-for-respect-on-may-16th/ 13. Taking Public Money to Fund Private Schools Through Vouchers - https://caffeinatedrage.com/2018/05/03/taking-public-money-to-fund-private-schools-through-vouchers-reason-13-to-march-for-students-rally-for-respect-on-may-16th/ 14. Principals Need More Respect Than This Horrible New Pay Plan -https://caffeinatedrage.com/2018/05/03/principals-need-more-respect-than-this-horrible-new-pay-plan-reason-14-to-march-for-students-rally-for-respect-on-may-16th/ 15. The Secret Algorithms of EVAAS … Continue reading Another 10 Reasons To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

We live in a country that is the most evangelical in the world. We live in a state that is part of the Bible Belt. In fact, it may be part of the buckle. And it is amazing how many American politicians seek to gain a political endorsement from the Son of God. They know … Continue reading The Threats to “Specials” Like PE and the Arts – Reason #21 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

News this past February that a “fix” for the class size mandate was “agreed” upon by both chambers of the North Carolina General Assembly should seem like a welcome outcome. On the surface, it was a victory for parents, advocates, and schools in that the mandate will be pushed back for a while and some … Continue reading Using Our Students As Political Pawns (HB90) – Reason #20 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

Political leanings and lenses aside, sometimes data can create a picture so vivid that it is really hard to argue against the conclusions. Just like in recent years, the state of North Carolina this year released its school performance grades for the with pretty much the same parameters kept in place with a similar conclusion. … Continue reading Too Many of Our Students Live In Poverty in a Gerrymandered State – Reason #19 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

It is rather odd that in the same session that produced the nebulous and de-professionalizing SB599 bill a sanitized and highly truncated version of the North Carolina Teaching Fellows program was reintroduced. As reported by Matthew Adams in the “Under The Dome” section of the News & Observer on July 1st, 2017: North Carolina will pay college … Continue reading The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program Was Purposefully Made a Shadow of its Former Self – Reason #18 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

Raleigh, buy us some damn textbooks. With real pages and hard covers. Yes, technology in the classroom can be a great avenue for learning. However, technology for technology’s sake can block many roads for students. And if technology is to be looked at as a simple substitution for other resources to save time and money, … Continue reading We Need Some Damn Textbooks! – Reason #17 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th

Remember when Sen. Chad Barefoot said this in February of 2017 concerning House Bill 13? “For years, the General Assembly has been sending tens of millions of dollars to districts for new classroom teachers for the purpose of lowering classroom sizes,” he said. “The question we keep asking over and over again is, ‘What did … Continue reading Class Size Chaos: The NCGA’s Deliberate Distortion of the Truth – Reason #16 To March For Students & Rally for Respect On May 16th