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Thursday, December 31, 2015

Sorry NYTimes. We’re Onto You. | Save Maine Schools

Sorry NYTimes. We’re Onto You. | Save Maine Schools:

Sorry NYTimes. We’re Onto You.

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This morning, the New York Times published an editorial claiming that our high school diplomas are meaningless.
Isn’t that funny, because that’s exactly what the Digital Learning Now Council has been claiming too.
The DLN Council, made up of CEO’s and representatives from across the charter, ed-tech, and assessment industries, recently published a document called “Navigating the Digital Shift,” calling for all states to implement “proficiency” (competency) based diplomas.
In 2012, my poor home state of Maine  fell victim to a well-orchestrated, Gates-funded PR campaign and has so far been the only state to make this corporate-driven idea a reality.
Apparently, the Times editors are of the same mind as Rex Tillerson, CEO of Exxon-Mobile, who recently angered parents across the country with his claim that the business community is the customer of public schools, and thus we have a responsibility to turn our products (people) that they can use.
According to the Times, “some South Carolina business leaders are worried that the state is producing high school graduates who are not qualified to compete for higher-skilled jobs at companies like Boeing, Volvo and BMW.”
I wonder if they’ve been talking to members of the Maine Chamber of Commerce, who recently urged our state lawmakers to “stay the course” on our experimental proficiency-based diploma mandate despite the havoc it is Sorry NYTimes. We’re Onto You. | Save Maine Schools: